Daily Kennebec journal., 1899-06-12
PERSONALITY"
The Subject Of Rev. C. A. Hayden's
Baccalaureate Sermon
delivered, Sunday Evening, 10 Graduating
Class Of cony High School.

The graduating class of the Con
High school listened to one of the mos
inspiring baccalaurate sermons. Sun
day evening, that has been in the 10
OF a class in many years. The sermo,
was given by Rev. G. A. Hayden at tn
Universalist church which was filled [,
overliowing with the friends of tn
class. The sermon was one tha
though addressed to the class, was &c
pecially interesting to all and was full
of the most ennobling ideas of man,
duty toward himself.
The pulpit was very prettily deco.
ment of beautiful fiowers making IL
the decorations.
Miss Elida Higgins presided at The
organ throughout the services in a
most artistic manner The class num-
bering 81, marched to their seats re-
served near the front after which Miss
Higgins rendered a beautiful organ
voluntary. Mr.. Hayden read the
Scriptures. taking the 3Oth chapter of
| Proverbs. Following this Miss Edith
Fuller sang a charming song.
! Mr.. Hayden took for the subject of
his discourse. Personality" The ad-
| dress occupied 50 minutes in the de-
| lievery and in the following brief alb
stract no adequate idea can be given
of the power Of the Grafton. He spoke
in part as follows:
A recent writer has said: Excepting
the name Of God, the pronoun | Is the
most pregnant the most religious word in
our vocabulary To what awful heights
it rises; over what immeasura bic
supernal meanings"
We hear great deal about higher edu-
cation. What do we mean by it--simply
further education? 1t ought 10 signify
more, much more than that. Not simply
more information. 1t should mean the
broadening of outlook; the strengthening
of soul In other words. it should
strengthen your own personality. 1t is
said Of Emerson. the greatest personality
New England ever produced, that is the
most original, where he was at all
he was altogether My dear young
friends. don't imagine for a moment thai
you are educated because you have com
pleted your course in the High school
You have been instructed. You have
few principles. You have been drilled
in methods of application. These are all
valuable as beginning TO show you how
to think. They never can make you an
educated person. That is from within
The assimilation of what you have
learned, all to be developed into under
standing. wisdom and virtue, to result In
personal character Every one before he
comes TO middle life should know what
he thinks or feels and why he thinks and
feels it; 10 have a philosophy or plan of
life. The great lesson for YOU is: BE true
to the best you know. Do the best thing
you can. You cannot afford to do second
rate things If the best is possible TO you"
The way for generous education has
opened for YOU "A thousand doors to sue
cess or failure. Ii IS your part TO choose,
To be simply an educated man. so far as
knowledge goes, without moral purpose.
is a dangerous thing. The great work of
education lies before you-the perfection
of the whole man, every limb of the
body, every faculty 0t the mind and as
piration of the soul. Less than this is an
unfinished culture. Nothing short of the
complete man ought to satisfy YOU. To
gain this is lifelong process. Make all
you get effective to this end. Effective
one can know or do. In this sense it is
virtue wrought into action. We need to
learn that every life has a distinct mis-
sion. How can this distinct mission be
achieved BY every one being themselves
and making the most and best of their
own personality.
/ would have You remember that the
great work of education stiil lies before
you, and the formation Of your character
and the shaping of your deStinies are,I
committed to your own hands. 1t is not
only your privilege but your duty TO ac-
quire knowledge from every source as the
bee gathers honey from every flower. COL
lect and compare facts. Seek truth hon
estly, sincerely. remembering that in eV-
is hidden a lesson of wisdom logic
which is not only irresistible, but divine.
Be yourselves, not copies; but snow
your personality in whatever YOU do.
There is weakness in imitation, strength
in originality. | read of an old man who
spent his entire life in copying that farl-
Cross" in the Antwerp cathedral. He
made $50 copies. Could he have painted
the original? No. it, was not possible TO
him. The world is full of men and wo-
souls have done Are they creators? No.
simply copyists, President Eliot says
that there are just two classes OF people
in the world. one the imitators and the
others the creators, and that when one
passes from the class of imitators 10 be
long to the class of creators, 50 far tina
soul has obtained education This Is
why urge you to be yourselves, to think,
to act to create. In phrase Be thyself.
How happy is he born or taught
Who Serveth not anOther'S Will;
Whose armor is his honest thought,
And simple truth his highest skill.
In believe in the old doctrine Of cleo
ton. not Of few. but that every one is
destined for the best that God can do.
Only YOU must be candidates No one is
elected who is not first a candidate.
why not be a candidate for the best
and all the best and nothing but the
best" and then work with might and
main to make your calling and election
sure?" Cicero once said to a decaying
branch of one of the old families, when
ted by him that Cicero's family was
pleban: Sir the difference between your
family and mine is, your family ends
with you: mine begins with me-"
There is no man who has yet come to q
full sense of his own dignity, of the
power and possibility of his own person
ality. Man is king of his own world and |
lays under tribute all outlying worlds, |
only one thing he does not and cannot
know and that Is man. Himself the key
TO unlock all secrets, he fails to under
stand himself. 1t Is ours, yours to be, to
do, to become, to achieve larger and bet |
ter things. So glorious is this destiny Of
ours that the highest ideals ought to be
realized, and this ever widening, upward |
tending path is the one you must tread.