Mexico Missouri message. (Mexico, Audrain County, Mo.) 1899-1918, 1905-03-02
CHAPTER VII.
SIMPLE pITASIrI.I.S.

SIMPLE PLEASURES.
~ o you find lif" amusing il
these days: For my part. or
the whole, it seems rather de-
- pressing. and | fear that my
opinion is not altogether personal A.
| observe the lives Of my cunlcmpn.
rarics and listen to their talk find
myself unhappily confirmed in the
opinion that they do not get much
plcHsur" out Of things. And certainly
II Is MT from lack of trying. But il
must he acknowledged that their sue
cess is neager. Where can tie fault
be!
Some accuse politics or business,
others social problems or miitnrism
We meet only I'M embarrassment OF
choice when we start To unStrin@ the
Chaplcl Of our Carkin" cares Sup
pose we SCt out In pursuit of pleasure
There is too much pepper in our soup
TO make IL Palaiuhlc. our arms are
filled with a multitude of. emharrass.
mCntS. any one of which would hC
enough 10 spoil our temper, From
morning til night. wherever we 20
the people we meet are hurried. wor
ried. pTCoCcupicd. Some have spill.
their good blood In the miserable con.
flictS of petty politics; others are dis
hearlcn"d by the mCanncsS and iCal.
ouSv they have encountered in the
world Of literature or art. COmmNrcil.
competition troubles the sleep Of NOT
n few The crowded curricula 81
study ana the cNgcncicS Of their OpCn-
ing careers spoil life for youn" men.
The working classes suffer the cOnSo-
quen,cS Of CcasccSS struggle II is
becoming disagTCeable to govern bn-
cause authority Is diminishing: to
teach because respect is vanishing
Wherever one turns there is matter for
discomfort.
And yet history shows lis certain
epochs Of upheaval which were as
lacking in idyllic tranquility as is our
own, hut which the gravest events
did not prevent from being gay. It
even Sccm.Sas II the seriousness Of af-
fairs, the uncertainty OF the morrow,
the violence Of social commissions,
sometimes became Il new source of
vitality. 1t is not Il rare thing to hear
soldiers singing between two battles,
and | think myself nowsc mistaken in
saying that human Joy has celebrated
its finest trlumphs under the grentcs.
tests of endurance. But to sleep peace
fully on the eve of battle, or to CXult
at the stake, men had then the slim
illus of an internal harmony which
we perhaps lack Joy is not in things;
it is i'm us, and hold to the belief that
the causes Of our present unrest, Of
this contagious discomfort spreading
everywhere. are in Us mt least MS much
as I'm exterior conditions.
To give oneself up heartily to diver
sion one must feel himself on solid
basis, must believe in life ana find it
within him. And here lies our weak
ness. So many Of us-even. alas, the
younger men - are at variance with
life, and do not speak of philosophers
only. How do you think a man can be
amused while he has his doubts wheth-
or, after all, life Is worth living? Be
sides this, one observes Il diSqueting
depression Of vital force, which must
be attributed to the abuse man makes
Of his sensations. Excess of all kinds
has blurred our senses and poisoned
our faculty for happiness. Human ma
ture succumbs under the Irregularities
imposed upon It. Deeply attainted at
its root, the desire to live, persistent in
spite of everything, seeks satisfaction
in cheats and baubles. In medical sci
encc We have recourse TO artificial res
piration, artificial Authorization and gal
vanism. So, too. around expiring pleas
ure we see crowd of its vOtarles OK
CTting themselves To reawakeu it. to re-
animate 1t. Most ingenious means
have been invented: it can never be
said that expense has been spared
Everything las been tried, the possible
AMI the impossible But in all these
complicated alembics no one has ever
arrived at dlstilling drop of yeritablc
joy. We must not confound pleasure
with the Instruments Of pleasure. To
be a painter, does II suffice to arm
oneself with a brush, or does the pur-
chase at great cost Of Stradlvnrius
make one a musician? No more, If
you had the whole naraDhernalia Of