Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1905-06-17


Of the most famous stage routes of the
world. About every ten or twelve miles
the driver would rein In his team, and
then we would get relay of horses.
found that every little while he would
stop the horses and give them time to
catch their breath. Then l said: IL
suppose II Is very easy matter to find
drivers for this stage line. The pay Is
good. The positions are absolutely as
sured to the men as long as they be-
ers have been in the employ of this
company for ten, fifteen, even for twen-
ty years." "Oh, y0s," was the answer.
"It's easy enough for the company to
get drivers, but very difficult to get
the right kind of drivers. A driver
who Is careless can ruin these horses
in few weeks. He will water them
when they ought not to be watered. He
will push them hard when they should
thC.si when they should not be fed On
the other hand, the longer some drivers
handle their horses the stronger the
horses become" Then the driver lifted
his whip and cut the forward off horse
as he said: "That horse there Is over
twenty years old. He Is good, strong
animal yet. That one by his side Is
only five. He Is good for fifteen years
of future service. The reason our
horses last 30 long and do so much hard
work is because we treat them right"
The reason many mems physical bodies
give out and tumble into premature
graves is because their owners do not
look after them and care for them.
But as there are physical valetudi-
| narians, so there are mental. AS there
are scores and hundreds Of phys
ical crlpples who hobble around on
crutches because they have not taken
care Of their health, so there are scores
and hundreds of mental crlpples, who
never have right thinking, robust,
manly, Independent minds, because
they have never made an effort to
think. These mental weaklings are
always depending upon Others or bOr-
rowing from others, or trying to be
propped up by others. AS children,
they started their mental training
wrong. They have been very regular
| In their habits. Ever since childhood
days they have been living mentally
wrong.
Mental Cripples.
We first met these mental crlpples,
or mental dependents in our school
room. One of them was our seat mate.
| II there was a hard problem In equa-
| tions, or algebra, or trigonometry, he
| always sat by our side, chewing the
end of his pencil and looking around
| the room, until we had worked out
| the answer, and then he calmly copied
| It off and turned In our work as his
own. In school days l had one OF
those mental leeches by my side. For
| DAYS and weeks he always copied my
work. And what was my surprise In
| one examination, he received higher
mark than /, although his paper was
mine, practically in toto. He was
roeataly capable. but he simply would
not work.
We find these mental weaklings or
| dependents everywhere around us In
the world. You have one In all proba-
bIity in your domestic servant. She
will do what you tell her to do, but I'M
less YOU furnish her your brain and
| thinking power she is Of no more prac-
tlcal use In the world than a lifeless
stick. Instead of rising little earlier
than the family and getting her work
| well under way she does not get up
| till YOU call her. After breakfast she
| lust sits. Then you come to her and
say, MARY, wish you would sweep
up the parlor and dust the mantels."
Eyes. ma'am." Two hours later, going
into the room, you find Mary leaning
out of the window and watching the
children playing In the street You
say: MARY, this is cleaning day. Can't
you do something besides stare out OF
the window? Have you swept the par
Tor fioor?" Eyes, ma'am." Then why
did you not 60 ahead and make up the
bedsY Because, maam, you did not
tell me to do it, maam." "Well, then
20 ahead and make the beds" Yes,
ma'am." Two hours later you come
| back from some shopping and market
Ing, and there you find Mary gossiping
with the cook in the kitchen, and the
| front porch is dirty, and the rugs are
all askew In the halls, and the wash
| ing has not been put away. MARY,
Mary" you cry, losing all your pa
tience, what is the matter with you?
Why are you sitting idly there? Have
you fixed the halls and cleaned the
bathroom and put away the washing"
| mo. ma'am." "Why have you not
done these things" Because, ma'am,
you never told me to do that, ma'am."
"Well, 20 and do them now" Yes,
ma'am." Now, Mary Is not physical
weakllng She Is a mental cripple.
| She will not take an interest In thlr IS.
She will do what she ls told to do. Jut
| not one thing else will she do. And,
my friend, it is your duty and mine to
mentally wake up. 1t Is our duty to
prepare ourselves for mental toll.
Having eyes with which to see, it Is
our business to see. Having ears with
which to hear, 1t is our business to
hear God expects every man to bear
a physical burden. He also expects
every man TO bear a mental burden.
Beecher's illustration.
Manly independence In reference to
| the mental burdens we ought to bear
was we'll illustrated by Henry Ward
| Beecher in q remarkable address he
made some years ago. Here Is one
| young man seeking financial employ
ment. He knocks at the door OF the
world, and the call is sounded, Come
in! Want employment What can you
dor Oh answers the young man, L
| am laborer. l can do just what am
told to do, no more and no less Then