The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1900-03-08
Paper Read Before the Choiuauq,Id Circle.


In our study upon the life of Abra-
ham Lincoln some pre-eminent object
lessons present themselves to my mind.
The first of these is, the way in
which we train our minds so they will
become developed. The sense of right
and wrong, justice and injustice, was
very acute in Lincoln; and it follows
from study of his life, that, in order
to so develop our minds, we must
necessarily begin with the little things
which the every-day-life puts before
Us, to discern the right from the wrong,
the just from the unjust.
Our mental and physical bodies are
subject to the same rules in keeping
them i'll healthy uncontamlnated
condition.
Ii we take certain quantity of a
deadly poison into our physical system
in lump, the result is death; but if
we take that same quantity divided
into smaller doses and introduce it
into our anatomy, at certain intervals,
it will have no deadly effect upon us;
on the contrary, we will in time be-
come wholly immune of its poisonous
properties, and thenceforth we may
partake of it with impunity.
AND so it is with our minds. When
little things of right and wrong come
before us to choose from, and for per
sonal reasons, saying to ourselves,
"surely this little thing will do no one
harm and it will be a favor TO our
friends" we side with those whom we
know to be wrong, our minds will
become just as immune from the
wrong as our bodies become immune
from the deadly poison; and when
matters of an important and moment
GUS nature present themselves before
us, we are very prone, from the same
motives, to uphold the wrong without
our conscience feeling the least pang
of fremorse, because there is no Io' ger
any feeling in it, having been stunned
with the small doses with which we
have fed it.
Next we find the activity of mind as
well as body; and but for such activity,
would Abraham Lincoln, the son of
poor, shiftless and imprOvident par
ents," have attained the most exalted
position in the gift of great and free
nation? or would the United States
have become the power it is today in
commerce, industry, art, invention and
all other things which constitute the
greatness of nation? Decidedly no.
There were in the time Of Lincoln
and we also encounter them in our
time, (happily they are few puny
minded persons who looked upon any
agitation and effort for universal as
we'll as individual justice, right and
advancement, with disfavor, and in
making such efforts, were styled dis
turbers and their actions disturbances.
A puny mind cannot grasp the idea
that mans duty is more than to secure
little cot for himself, to learn to sing
his little song. They live under the
misconceived impression that if one
succeeds in doing that, he has done his
duty, his whole duty and nothing but
his duty.
Next we find that "6ne feathers do
not make fine Birds" neither are men
with shook larnin'," by virtue of the
"isms" and "olOgies" that have been
drummed into them, best fitted to
conduct great affairs of state or any
other vocation, or that their sense of
right, justice and humanity is more
keen, or that their faculties for obser-
vation and perception are better de-
veloped; or, if such is the case, that
their inclinations to do that which is
just and right are greater than of
those who have not had the fortune to
acquire such "book larnin'."