The herald., 1897-07-11
know how to conquer obstacles and sur

know how to conquer obstacles and sur
mount difficulties To fulfill our part we
must understand our Guty; yet the
source of great and noble achievement;
is not knowledge, but sentiment The
greatest objects have been accomplish
ed by enthusia SIN, which is often called
blind and reckless, because it thinks not
of hirdrance or obstacle. 1t need not.
for it has always overcome difficulties
and attained its end. The wisest people
are not the greatest benefactors of the
race; they are often cold and Indifferent.
Not philosophic theories, but sympathy
with suffering and love for fellow men,
have led to the execution. of philanthrop
ic works We must look to the heart
and not to the head, for the carrying out
of those things that build up human
happiness.
The root of most of the good and evil
in the world is within the breast of man.
One of the most distinguished of our an
cient rabbis once put before his five
favorte pupils the following compre-
hensive questions: Go and see'' said he,
which is the right way to which man
should cleave; that is, consider what is
the one greatest essential to human well
fare" The answers returned were as
follows: One said, "A kindly eye; l. G.
good will" the second said "a good
companion;" the third, "A good neigh
bor;" the fourth, Prudence, the power
of forseeing what is to Gomez" the fifth
and youngest answered simply, "A good
heart" Whereupon the sage exclaimed: ::
Il prefer this last answer to all of the
others, because in it all of yours are
contained" To test them still further
he asked: Now go and see what is the
evil way from which man should remove
himself" meaning thereby, What is
the worst and most harmful thing in the
world?" The answers corresponded to
those given before. The first said, IAN
evil eye; i. e. ill-will, jealousy, malice p
the second said, "A bad companion; -
the third, "A bad neighbour" the fourth,
said, Borrowing without repaying," i"
by which he implied dishonesty and in
justice in general. The fifth promptly
responded, "A bad heart" Again the
rabbi declared: II consider the last an
wer superior to all the others, for all the
things that you have named are includ-
ed in it.
If we ask ourselves those same ques-
tions, what is the best thing in the world
to be priced above all else? and what
is the worst thing in the world to be
stunned more than all else? we can give
no better and no other answers than
those of the young scholar of 1000 years
ago, and say in reply to the first, "A
good heart" and to the second, "a bad
heart" In these opposites we have
named the source of the greatest good
and of the greatest evil that can come
to mankind. We have conquered the
elements, have learned how to check
the storm wind and drive back the
floods. We have learned how to convert
the destructive forces of nature into
useful servants of our will. We have
learned how to turn arid wastes into
productive fields. We have overcome
many of the enemieso of our physical we'll
being and have learned how to ward off
epidemics and cure disease. But we
have not yet conquered many, we have
not yet learned how to suppress vice or
crush wickedness. We have not yet
learned how to evade the sufferings that
are inflicted by unkindness, malice and
hatred. Woeful facte give warrant to
Burns exclamation: Man s. inhuman-
ity to man makes countless thousands
mourn
On the other hand, there are no greater