The record-union., 1898-03-11
PROFESSOR GRIGGS' LECTURE
"SELF-CULTURE THROUGH THE
VOCATION. HIS SUBJECT.
An Interesting Address That Gave
His Audience Much Food
for Thought.

Those who last night attended the lee
Iture of Professor Edward Howard Griggs
OF Stanford University at the Congre
gational Church enjoyed a rare treat
and carried away ideas that should bear
excellent fruit if allowed to terminate.
Professor Griggs is a lecturer who
does not strain after rhetorical effect,
but rather puts himself on the plane of
a confidential talk with his audience
and places himself in such thorough
touch with them by that means that
they seem instinctively to understand
exactly what he means to inculcate, and
to sympathize with his ideas fluent
talker, with so wonderful a command of
for an instant over the exact word he
wants, he held the full attention of his
audience, and when he had finished they
sighed for more. His subject was Self
Culture, Through the Vocation
He was introduced by Mr.. Weinstock
in few well-chosen remarks.
If there is one thing more noticeable
than another in culture in these days
he said, it is the extension of education
beyond the school period in two direc-
PERSONAL through life. The education
obtained through active business life is
the heart and soul of all culture. The
individual is the door to the whole hu-
man world. Culture and education
must come to use through the medium of
daily business life. Going back to the
early ages, there We're only two voca-
tions he said, that were respected by
the anoipnfc nd ~ l., H.
Among the ancient Greeks teaching and
business were carried on only by slaves:
the free citizens turned only to war and
craftsmanship. In the Middle Ages the
same state of affairs prevailed, and the
teacher had no standing. 1t is only
within thelast hundred years that he has
come to be respected. In the old days
men We're only respected because they
were idle; now it is only because of
their activity. A man must give to the
world as much as he takes from it;
otherwise he is a pauper and a thief
Our growth for helpful work has been
greater in the last hundred years than in
all the former history of the world.
This shows that the vocation has become
a problem. No age before this has at
tempted to build up all men and women
! ti-lOQ SuutdtlOI. w T nave ATTEMPTED
to carry all the men and women in the
land on toward culture and civilization.
In this way the tension of life has be-
come heightened on every hand We are
trying to make education democratic
and open TO every man and woman in the
land. We must find, then, in our daily
life the culture that is to elevate US
The problem, however, cannot be re-
duced to rule or form. Man must ad-
! just himself to circumstances, because
he cannot prophesy the changes to
ccme to him. We must make of life not
only science, but art We must carry
art into daily life-into human existence.
The problem of vocation is, first of all,
to pay the running expenses of life, but
it must do more than pay the running
! expenses of life, or it is a failure
/ Growth of life means growing out into
/ larger relations with our fellow men,
Every mans vocation is rather to live
than TO make living. Any man may
! become anything, give him time enough
and opportunity enough.
/ 1t is better to do some limited human
thing than to dream forever of impos-
sible things which we make no effort to
/ put into practice. Man becomes master
| of his idea only when he brings it to
some practical result The pupil can
understand Newton's figures and concu-
| sions only by starting at the beginning
and working up through the grades of
mathematics The student must work
with the real material of science and
learn thoroughly what he does learn, if
it is only one thing. Through the effort
to know we grow into a larger life. The
one who works with humanity finds his
material not altogether plastic, but the
artist, with material, If he knows thor
oughly his technique, is master of his
work
The object painted, however beauti-
fui, is not so large as the world in
which it is 1t is only one mood IF
nature. Teaching drawing to the chill
dren does not make one in a hundred
become an artist, but it makes each
child more appreciative of the beauty
of the world in which it lives RAJ
phaePs finest face has only one ex-
preston. but the humblest human face
has its many changes of expression,
and is more beautiful than Raphaeps
for that reason; still, Raphaers "Sistine
Madonna" is an achievement for the
whole world
There is no vocation in this world
which cannot be made, to some extent,
fine art; in fact, life itself is fine
art. There is no vocation in which,
doing the work as honestly and we'll
as we can to-day, we cannot do it bet
ter tomorrow. The unattractive voca-
tons teach US the most of faithfulness,
honesty and earnestness. After all,
there is no vocation that does not have
dead hard work. We admire Paderew-
skis genius, but we forget the hours
and months and years of work day
and night that have given effect to il.
Things that are done most easily cost
US most in patient, thorough work be-
fore we can do them. We are masters
only of the life that we have earned
There is no royal road to anything
worth learning.
There are vocations however in
which there is too much of dead work
to allow of development, and then one
must have the courage to change
vocation too hastily adopted Many
| times this is impossible because we
must pay the expenses of living. and
then If we would really grow in useful
ness and culture we must take up Il
side avoeation and pursue it. Here we
see the benefit of an avocation Bryant
made his living III his vocation as Il
journalist, while he made writing po-
| etry his avocation. So John Stewart
Mills did over thirty years of clerical
work While he was studying and
writing on the subjects that made him
famous. This is what makes the mar
Gin of existence 81 eacrad Each nf