Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1904-12-02
CHAPTER III.
SIMPLE THOUGHT.

1t is not only in the practical mani
festations of our life, but also in the
domain of our ideas that there is a
need Of clearing. Anarchy reigns
in human thought. We walk among
the underbrrsh, without compass or
sun, and without direction lost in the
infinity Of detail.
AS soon as man has recognized that
he has an aim, and that this aim is to
be man, he organizes his thoughts
accordingly. Every mode of thinking,
to understand or to judge, which
does not make him stronger or better,
he throws aside as unwholesome.
First of all. he avoids the too common
plan Of amusing himself with his own
/ thought. Thought is a fool, having
its own proper function in the whole.
1t is not plaything. Let us take an
example. Here is the studio Of
painter. The implements are all in
their places. Everything indicates
that that assemblage of means is dis
posed in view of an aim to reach
Open the door to monkeys. They
climb on the benches, hang to the
cords, wrap themselves in the draper
les, Golf themselves with slippers, Jug
gle with the brushes, taste the colors,
and pierce the canvas to see what the
portraits have inside their bodies.
do not doubt their pleasure. They
must surely find this kind Of exercise
very interesting. But studio is not
made to let monkeys run loose in.
Nor is thought a ground for acrobatic
evoutions. A man worthy of the
name thinks as he is and as his tastes
are. He goes into everything with
all his heart, and not with that fitful
and sterile curiosity, under pretext OF
wishing to see and know everything,
and thereby exposing himself to the
risk Of never feeling one healthy or
deep emotion, or doing one right &C.
tio1
One other habit in urgent need OF
correction, ordinarily attendant on
this fictitious life, Is the mania for
examining oneself and for analyzins
oneself at all times. l do not advise
man to neglect the interpretive exam
nation of his own conscience. To en-
deavor to see clearly into ones own
mind and motives of conduct IS an
element essential to right living. But
quite another is the vigilance, another
thing the incessant endeavor to watch
ones life and thought, and to demon
strate ones self like piece OF me
chanism It Is to lose ones time and
to lose ones way. The man who. to
better prepare himself for a race.
would first deliver himself to mi.
mute anatomical examination regard
ing his powers of locomotion would
risk having his members dislocated
before he took one step. you have
all that you require to walk with. SO
go ahead. Take care not to fall and
use your strength with discretion"
Seekers for insignificant things and
the merchants of scruples reduce
themselves to inaction. 1t suffices to
have but a glimmer of common sense
to understand that man is not made
, to pass his life in Buddhistic trance.
, Common sense-do you not find
, what is designated by that name Is
becoming as rare as the sensible GUS
toms of other days? Common sense
; is an old story. We must have some
thing new-something else-and we
seek it in impossible places. 1t Is
I refinement that the vulgar would not
: understand how to procure, and 1t is
r so agreeable to distinguish oneself
r Instead of conducting ourselves as
! natural person would who uses the
t clearly indicated means at his dis
3 posal, we reach the most astonishing
, singularities by the force Of genius
= They would prefer to be off the track
' than follow the simple line. All the
. bodily defects and deformities treated
Q by orthopedy, give but feeble idea
4 of the humps, the twistings, the dislo
/. cations we have inflicted upon our
: selves in order to escape from the
Y right of good sense. And, we learn at
= our own cost that one does not deform
: oneself with impunity. Novelty is
, after all, ephemeral. There is moth
4 ing durable but the eternal common
A place, and II one turns aside 1t is &c
!. seek the most dangerous adventures
:. Happy is he who is able to return and
v learns to become simple again. Good
g simple common sense is not, as some
think, the Unborn property of the first
4 conner, a vulgar and trivial baggage
> which costs no labor to anyone.
: compare it to those old popular songs
!. imperishable and anonymous, which
|, seem to have come from the very
q hearts of the people. Good sense ID
v the capital slowly and painfully 40
:. cumulated by the labor of centuries
!. 1t is a pure treasure which only hi
= understands the value of who ha'
a lost 1t or who sees people live aftel