Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1905-06-10
No Place For IdIeness.


frosts and the hunger unless he meant
man TO work; God would not have
made helplessness during infancy and
childhood unless he meant a parent to
work; God would not send sickness
and helpless old age unless he desired
all people to work during the strength
and vigor of manhood and womanhood.
IF any would not work, neither should
he eat" Is the Pauline invective against
slOth. go to the ant. thou sluggard
consider her ways and be wise" All
happiness and health. all mental. So
cial spiritual and financial progress
depend upon perseverlng toll. The SOON
er our growing boys and girls realize
that they must work for a-llvelihood
the better 1t will be for them and the
better II Will be for us who are caring
for them during the years OF their de.
velopment.
Unremitting toll, an essential for hui
man life, is the first lesson the ant hill
teaches us today But the ability to
make the right Use of toll, TO conserve
energy so that the maximum Of results
are produced from the minimum OF la
bor to perform work so thoroughly and
intelligently that it is not useless and
has to be done over, Is the second
teaching OF my text. "Go to the ant,
thou sluggard, consider her ways and
be WISE" does not allude any more to
| the ceaseless activity of the ant than 1t
does TO her marvellous foresight, with
which she plans out her work and ac-
cOmplshes her results.
The ant uses her brain as well as her
mandibles or legs. She uses her eyes
to see where she Is going as well as
her feet to walk. Study the ant as an
architect or a builder. Some of US
have stood In awe before the archltec-
| tural wonders of the cathedrals and
| the palaces of the east. We have seen
walls and columns and domes and
minarets and spires that are frozen
music I'm stone" We have climbed the
heights of Milan cathedral, whose tow
ers aud walls are peopled with almost
as great numbers of apostles and
saints and martyrs and priests carved
In solid stone as there are worshiperS
who ever gather at one time before its
sacred shrines. We have seen st. Pc
ter's of Rome connected with the Won
derful Vatican and st. Marks, more
poetic than the Venetian canals. We
have seen the marvellous conceptions of
a Christopher Wren and the wonderful
structure at Cologne, only few years
ago dedicated after having consumed
centuries In building. These transcend
ent buildings have lifted themselves up
even as did the temple OF King Solo
mon. Why? Every beam, every stone,
hao its appointed place. Each part, as
a small mite. fitted into a great united
while. But as | stand today before a
Westminster abbey or a ST. Paul of
London l emphatically assert that
these structures compared to the
st ength and intelligence Of the build
ers are not as wonderful as an Ordna-
ry, everyday, commonplace ant hive we
may see in the country road.
Building n Cathedral.
To build the Cathedral of St John |
powder had to be used The founda |
tions had to be eXcavated out of solid |
rock True. But the ants often build |
their hives by excavating the solid |
rock. The walls of Canterbury cathe-
dral must be absolutely straight. True |
But no mason's plumb line ever erected |
straighter walls than the walls of an |
ant hllI'~ chambers The rooms of the /
Vatican must be arranged in orderly |
fashion. All the chambers OF an ant |
bill open into long corridors Each |
room has its connecting Railways. A
well regulated cathedral must have its
proper system of drainage. The ant
hive is so built that it will shed all wa
ter. No rainstorm can deluge its Gel
lars. No water overhowing the river
bank can destroy its foundations The
ancient Romans always built their
cities upon the hllltops for protection.
The ants build their hives on high
places. where storm and water cannot
submerge them.
The ants wisdom should be emulat-
ed az much as her activity. The Ara
bIans held the ants wisdom In such re-
spect that after the birth Of a male
child they would place one Of these In.
sects in the baby's hand while they
made the earnest prayer. 20 God. may
the boy turn out as clever and as wise
as the antw The human being who
does not work with intelligent fore
thought Is useless and a dangerous
worker. Fire and steam are alike po-
tent. but the harm caused by Impris
oned fire may be greater than the good
that is done by harnessed steam. Will
ingness to labor will not weave togeth
er carpet unless intelligence has
loom and a shuttle.
The intelligence of the ant Is startling
ly significant 1t is as worthy Of mlta.
tion as Is her persevering energy.
Snowshoes are useless in Florida. Cal
leo dresses are an absurdity In the
uICllC. n SLIP htel III tuc |
Of the western prairles bad better be
split up into kindllngs A telescope is
utterly vaueless except for the power
of the brain which adapts the lens to
the astronomers eye. Be wise, be wlsel
Consider the ants ways and be very
wise.
Intelligent and wise architects are
they. Yes. But study the ants as sol.
diers and submissive members Of their
great cooperative social organizations.
In a factory the cogs fit into each 9th.
er. Because Of this perfect fitting the
great leather bands move round and
the spindles fly, the elevators lift and
the walking beams rise and fall, the
hammers strike and the wheat Is
ground and the wood is cut, and the
shoe and the ak and the saw and the
chair and the stove are offered for sale