Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1905-05-18

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neusa anG Meee' u monay IN ~ real
DeeDto oU6Dusee ~toN he 1aa Who took
Pour o@ses. He had no msss capital
10 start with than yeuy had, but be
hung on uutil,at laststhe dnsnciaI tide
turned his.way. Todhy bets one Of the
wealthy men Of tina city. Then you
failed a. a life Insurance agent. Next
you failed a. book pubiishsr. Then
you failed 40 q commercial traveller.
You have failed at everything you
touched. Yet men no brainier than
you who followed you have made sue.
eesses In every one Of these lines. You
dug your foupda lions: you erected one.
fourth. ouc-half, two-thirds. three
fourths Of your wallis. Then you said:
Let The un0nished towers stand. I
am too d1scoaragsA 20 climb any high.
er. I viii 20 and az elsewhere"
Bat I would not hale here. The COM
plsted tswess Of lie are due to grip
ard grit. They ere due to mere than
that. Their foundation stones. their ex-
cavattoas. their walls. are bs,llded by
character % well. Many . man has
had all The proper mental preparation
for NE and perseverance enough in bis
makeup 10 tear down stone wall with
his bare fingers II It were possible for
him 80 to do. But. on the other hand.
many a man has lost all simply be-
IN a.. n his choS a o%or <o,,ld MT atood the
test Of truth and Justice. No matter
how strong and stanch ship may be-
II 1t has no rudder that ship becomes
a playthine Of every current and q
menace to all ships saAAng the sees.
No matter how swift . locomotive. II
It has NO indicator to ii boiler that
engine u momeataPily In danger Of
blowing up. No msetsr how high the
walls Of a tower INT themselves, II
those wallis are not erected on q solid
base and N q straight tine they are in
danger Of topping over. what the rud'
der is to the ship. the indicator to the
engine. the plumb line to the mason
building he wall. character - to man.
1t 10 bis ballast. hts sheet anchor, his
safety valve, his protector, his all.
A SAD Example.
Let me illustrate my thought by the
sad and yet brilliant life Of one Of the
greatest statesmen England ever pro-
duced. Charles james Fox was one of
the greatest geniuses who ever stood In
the British house of commons. AT
twenty one years Of age he was ranked
among the ablest dsbaters ana at thlr'
ty had not superior or equal In all Eu
rope. But, though at times he was the
most applauded man In Europe. yet be
never could win the confidence Of the
people. They admired his intellect, but
they could not trust his heart. His
daily custom was to rise just in time
to stroll DOWN to the parliament house
There nightly" as a contemporary
wrote, "he would build up a chain OF
arguments for a bill he was attacking
greater and more powerful than any Of
his adversaries could forge. Then ht
would tear these arguments to pieces
as though they we're cotton threads.
Read bis speeches on the Impeachment
OF Warren Hastings. Read his mas
terpiece on the Rejection Of Napo
Icons OvertureS After parliament
adjourned then would come round o.
debauch. Gambling With him was {
mad passion. He was both spsndthrif
and libertine. How can he guard BIZ
kings hnanees." asked the people
when he cannot protect bis own peck
etbook?" Charles James Fox had ev
cry qualification to make himself tn
political dictator Of Europe save tn
single essential Of character. the lacl
Of which destroyed his whole caree
for practical good.
But you do not have to 60 back Il
history to prove the truth of my state
ment that character Is one Of the great
est builders Of the towers Of life ent
that without true character those tow
ers are always lett In q half completed
stage. Who was the most brillian
young man Of your school days Wit
whom you were associated? Tall, hand
some. Ane hooking he was. His brazil
became a perfect repository Of facts
While you had to sweat and piod an'
groan over your studies he seemed /
absorb his at q glance. On the footbal
field or the baseball diamond he wa
the schools star athlete. The girls al
hattered him. The young men ran aft
err him. But no one could trust hin
He was not true man. "Oh," said tn
world, "Winfred Will 60 right. to tn
front in life. Success Ia sure to be his.
Was It? No sooner had be left school
few years than his name got mixed VI
with some shady transactions. Wit
all hts brains and ability. what becam
Of him? know and you know. He I
dead now. a suicide: or be IL living.
social outcast: or hs 10 begging an
cheating bic way through liz. Oh. u
magniAcent ruins Of the half completes
towers Of liSe We 40 evsrywher
around Us! These towees should hay
been citadels foy dalsnse ana. safsty
They are mere 6unGsGns fsr tho owl
and the bats end tn vUanin Of sin Z
inhablt.
FssAI en-.
But 10 there No dtTvot lesson fror
this characteriess tower for the wome
as we'll a. the man? How 10 It,
woman. with the most brilliant frien
of your childhood days! You see he
now, a perfect dream Of beauty. As
little girl her teeth were a collection G
priceless pearls. When she laughed
the sunshine of the heavens seemed
n IT..