Goldsboro weekly argus. [volume] (Goldsboro, N.C.) 1885-1909, 1903-08-20
TANGIBLE AND INTANGIBLE.
What Is Character: It Is Old AS
the Soul-of Which 1t Is
An Attribute.

A0AS 0PdOC d I1CuSHte UfTSLoIlOuS SGaBs
What beauteous visions filed this spot.
Whatdreams of pleasures long forgot,
Nor hope, nor love, nor Joy, nor fear.
Have left one trace of record here.
Be1eath thism oulderlng canopy
Once shown The bright and busy eye,
But start not at the dismal void
If social love that eye employed,
If with no lawless fire it gIeamed
But through the dews of kindness beamed,
That eye shall be forever bright
When stars and suns are sunk IN night.
Within this hollow cavern hung
The ready, swift and tnneful tongue.
If falsehood's honey it dlsdained,
Ans when il could net praise was chained;
II bold in virtues cause il spoke,
Yet gentle concord never broke.
Thts silent soDgue shall plead for thee
When Time unveils eternity.
What is ''character?!" The u
ton has been vdriously answered. It
sousads SIM lie; yet an attempt to
formulate a reply shows it to be diff
fct@t.
There is a mystery about it-this
intangible essence that makes a man
what he is; that transcends all physi-
cal shape and fiber. And it is an
old mystery-as old as the first be-
gin7-ings of human self-conscious-
neg. 1t dates back beyond the Chal-
deans, or the Nile worshippers. At
The very verge Of tradition man con-
ceired Of a !tsouiH as something
apast from the body.
And herhaps we have a key
whbch may at least unlock the outer
doCG Of the secret. For is there not,
after all, an Essential ego" quite
apsxt from the outward semblance,
and is not this the final element of
what we call character? When we
say that a mans character is mold
ed, we mean that the man himself
is nodded. While it may be conced-
ed that thoughts are but chemical
processes, and hat t~'character'' it.
self is in a sense dependent upon a
certain arrangement of brain cells,
yet there is no escaping the conclus-
ion that personality is a separate and
absolute fact; and that in some way
an mmateriai 'spirit' moves upon
and informs these atoms, and marsh
ais the quickened cells into thought
and impulse.
Nothing can be gained by elabor-
atespinning out of theories.
Therefore, when we sift it down to
the last analysis, what do we get as
the basis of character? If the soul is
"a derived personality, then character
must depend upon its relations with
the supreme Person. If in harmony
: with that primal Power, it derives
strength; if out of harmony, weak
ness.
Let us come TO the plain, ordinary
affairs of life. A young man is start
ing out to make his own way in the
world. Suppose we help him take
an Aaventory, and see what he has
to Start on. First he has youth, and
Vigorous health. Second, he has an
actiSs mind, a retentive memory, an
excellent school training. Third, he
belongs to a good family. Fourth, he
has, friends. Fifth, he is handsome,
and of pleasing address. Surely,
With such assets, he cannot fail to
suessad.
Bat let us examine the other side
of tf.e ledger. He is tickle and un-
certain. He lacks power of applica-
ton. He is lacking in ~self-control,
and keneath a mask of generosity, he
is at. heart selfish and mean.
So his chances of success are not sc
great, after all. In fact, we may
safely say that unless he radically al
tiers his habits and ''character'' he
will fail beyond redemption, for 3
mans character, after all, is self-de
yeloped. No artificial massage car
round out the moral sinews into
sturdy and excellent proportions
Like every thing worth having, i
comes by work and is an outware
expression of earnest labor.
Character is wealth. It is the mos
valuable of assets. A mans charac
ter is his capital stock, with which
he starts into the business of living
Whatever success he may achiev'
thereafter is but a surplus, earned b,
the proper use of his capital. Blu
without capital to start with he ca
do nothing. Character, too, is a
abiding reality. It changes not, no
does its value decline. To have tn
r,, Of self. tn love the truth an