Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1902-09-14
.Philosophiaing.

Philosop hising.
Observations Of philosophical friend
oi HOW charming IS divine philosophy;
Not harsh and Grabbed as duh 1oois
suppose.
But musical as Is Apollo 8 Sinte,
And perpetual feast of rectared sweets,
Whore no crude surfeit reigns Sc S.
S. Continue your resolve
TO such the sweets Of sweet philosopnyss
Is Shakespeare.
Philosophy means the love OF wisdom
The word has been used to express SO
many and divers phases OF human
thought, such mixed varieties. that men
have come to, regard it not only with sus-
,icion. but as everything else but wis
DOM The widest and most extravasah,
exercises of the human intellect have
passed. with the general world. as philoso-
ply.
Wisdom, as beautifully described by
Solomon and by the son Of sirach In the
Book Of Proverbs and In the book OF wis
dom, is the light Of life. But the lover OF
that pure effulkence and essence Is not
known as philosopher. The beginning
Of wisdom is the fear OF God. The begin
ming OF philosophy, In its various forms
and schools. is the exaltation OF human
intellect and reason. and supercedng
Diety. It is the planets. in evil mixture
and confusion, questioning the suprcm-
.acy Of the sun, 1t is the voice of the
devil to our mother, Eve, promising and
daring equality with God.
But there are honest, unambitious ways
OF regarding philosophy. They identify
it with wisdom; with light and goodness.
And when plain men rhilosephize they
are thinking and studying things and
men and events under the providence and
control Of heaven in tho light
The beautiful figure Of the true phllos-
opher Is that of a man sitting on hlsn
tower, calmly regarding tie raging OF the
storm and the rolling of the bilieWs be-
meath him; eternal sunshine sitting on his
mead; the Eternal God his refuge; about
him the everlasting arms.
Indeed. the same great philosopher pro-
pounds almost the handsomest thing in
human writing. Surely it is heaven upon
earth to have mans mind move in
charity, rest in Providence and turn upon
the poles Of Truth
Thinking In. these ways, INDUCING in
these considerations, is suggestive of calm
resting In the sweet vale Of Avoca, grow
ing and feeding among lilies, without
e. re, without fear. only living, breathing.
enjoying, hoping. There's no harm in this
sort of philosophizins in the light of
nature and in sympathy with all the
works of God that praise Him. 1t is very
suggestive of harnonising in the long
distance with the four beasts and the
Jour and twenty elders about the Great
White Throas in the Song Of Triumph
1t is after tiis style Of philosephizing and
seeing and acknowledging the wisdom and
goodness Of the Almighty that the sweet
Fzaln1st OF Israel wrote and sung. On q
lower key and with less devotion, the
Frenchran, Bastiat, has written on So
cial harmonies, and ST. Pierr. on the
aarmoniss Of nature. All Of them make
pleasant philosophizins
On lower plane, common, ordinary
people look at the mad world wagsing.
and grandeeb and giants Of one STYLE anu
another struggling for suprer(,cy. ap-
2earing on the great arena. as kings,
queens bishops. knights, castles, ane
pawns on the chess board. And presently
the game is over and the Great Hand
sweeps them all together into one box.
It's only show foi the lowly people
gazing on the common And they en-
Joy their lives, and philosopher, Just as
the old COW chcws her cud, and pu.s
drewsfly goes on purring. What do they
care for the stock market or the course
OF politics?