The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1905-02-02

by this that simplicity betrays itsel
in no visible signs, has not its owl
habits, its distinguishing tastes ant
ways; but this outward show, whicl
| may now and then be counterfeited
must not be confounded with its es
sence and its deep and wholly inwart
source. Simplicity is a state Of mind
1t dwells In the main intention of oul
lives. A man is simple when his
chief care is the wish to be what ht
ought to be-that is, honestly and nat
urally human. And this is neither sc
easy nor so impossible as one might
think. At bottom 1t consists In put
ting our acts and aspirations In ac
cordance with the law Of our being
and consequently with the eternal In
tention which wllled that we should
be at all. Let flower be a flower, q
swallow a swallow, rock rock, and
let man be man, and not fox, a
hare, hog or a bird of prey. This is
the sum of the whole matter.
Here we are led to formulate the
practical ideal of man. Everywhere
In life we see certain quantities of
matter and energy associated for GER
tain ends. Substances more or less
crude are thus transformed and car
ried to a higher degree of organization.
1t Is not otherwise with the life Of
man. The human ideal is to trans
form life into something more excel
lent than itself. We may compare ex-
istence to raw material. What 1t Is
matters less than what is made of 1t,
as the value Of work of art lies
In the Towering Of the workman's
SKILL We bring into the world with us
different gifts. One has received gold,
another granite, a third marble, most
of us wood or clay. Our task is to
fashion these substances. Every one
knows that the most precious material
may be spoiled, and he knows too,
that out of the least costly an immOr-
tai work may be shaped. Art is the
realization Of a permanent idea in an
ephemeral form. True life Is the
realization Of the higher vlrtues-jus
tice, love, truth, liberty, moral power
in our daily activities, whatever they
may be. And this life Is possible in
social conditions the most diverse and
with natural gifts the most unequal.
1t is not fortune or personal advan-
tage, but our turning them to ac-
count, that constitutes the value Of
life. Fame adds no more than does
length of days, Quality is the thing
Need we say that one does not rise
to this point Of view without a strug-
gle2 The spirit Of simplicity is not an
inherited gift, but the result Of labo-
rious conquest Plain living, like high
thinking, is simplifcation. We know
that science Is the handful Of ultimate
principles gathered out of the tufted
mass Of facts, but what groupings to
discover them! Centuries of research
are often condensed into a principle
that line may state. Here the moral
life presents strong analogy with the
scientific. 1t, too, begins in a certain
confusion, makes trial Of itself, seeks
to understand itself, and often mis-
takes. But by dint of action and ex-
acting from himself strict account Of
his deeds man arrives at a better
knowledge Of life. Its law appears to
him, and the law is this: Work out
your mission. He who applies himself
to aught else than the realization of
this end loses in living the raison d'etre
Of life. The egotist does so, the pleas
ure seeker, the ambitious; he con-
sumes existence as one eating the full
corn in the blade; he prevents 1t from
bearing its fruit; his life is lost. Who
ever, on the contrary, makes his life
serve a good higher than itself, saves it
In giving 1t. Moral precepts which to
superficial view appear arbitrary and
seem made to spoil our zest for life
have really but one obJect-to preserve
us from the evil Of having lived In
vain. That is why they are constantly
leading us back into the same paths;
that is why they all have the same
meaning: Do not waste your life; make
1t bear fruit; learn how to give it in
order that 1t may not consume itself!
Herein is summed up the experience Of
humanity, and this experience, which
each man must remake for himself, is
more precious In proportion as it costs
more dear. Illumined by its light, he
makes moral advance more and more
sure. Now he has his means of orien-
tatlon, his internal norm to which he
may lead everything back, and from
the vacillating, confused and complex
being that he was he becomes simple.
BY the ceaseless influence of this same
law, which expands within him and is
day by day verified in fact, his opin-
Ions and habits become transformed
Once captivated by the beauty and
of the true life, by what is
sacred and pathetic in this strife of
for truth, justice and broth
erly love, his heart holds the fascina-
tion Of it, Gradually everything sub
Ordinates itself to this powerful and
persistent charm. The necessary hier-
archy of powers is organized within
him; the essential commands, the Sec
ondary obeys, and order is born of sim
pliclty. We may compare this organ
ization of the interior life to that of
an army. An army is strong by its dis
ciplIne, and its discipline consists in re-
'"cct of the inferior for the superior
nj the concentration of all It's ener-
sies toward single end Discipline
once relaxed, the army suffers. 1t will
not do to let the corporal command the
general. Examine carefully your life
and the lives Of others. Whenever
halts or jars and complica-
tions and disorder follow 1t Is because
the corporal has issued orders to the