The Caucasian. (Shreveport, La.) 1900-192?, 1905-05-16

! Tim t"II! iyi}:i!-. many tVngueu world
c::",:i-, lntHj!ig t.'r authority and little
fH. IKE !"'$t, hut full Of its living
:ii.:-:-',,- and living issues, in dealing
| N.:I which ,Ir"p WAS no man who did
n, stand in PRESSING and constant need
of every y >SSil,]r preparation as re-
SprrtS knowledge and eXactitude and
tho, ;;.snnrSS- the poor old college pre-
p1l"l lis t. play our parts in this world
l'y roInpciiilS us, directly or indirectly,
to 'lrv't" the best part Of our school
Hives IL acquiring Il confeSsedly super
ii':iHl knOWlctg" of two dead Ian
guA@"S. Such is the testimony Of
Charles Francis Adams in reference to
one OF the educational feticheS of our
college life. Such, on a broader scale,
are the fctlcheS in reference to the ed
ucation Of the average young man or
woman of today.
! Let us take the average Young man
on rolnmtiictmrnt day College or
school days are over. The foundations
OF the educational towers have been
laid. "Iuun@ man. what can you do:"
asks the hard headed world. Are you
an expert III any one line? Are you
capable mining enyneerf Are you
first class advertising agent? can you
sell goods: Are you an authority as a
real estate man? What can you dog"
"NOthing.' says the young man. Il
| am willing to DO anything, but do not
know Il trade l have not become pro-
ticient in any one line of work. But l
am willing to do what am told to do
THAT is not enough. To be willing is
not necessarily to be capable What
can you dO!'
The Wheel of Fortune.
The wheel of fortune turns. The
daughters, brought up in luxury, have
to 90 out and make Il living. Can you
cook? Arc you an expert stenogra
phcr? Have you papers which signify
that you are a we'll trained nurse or
schOoltcachrr or dreSsmaker? Are
you enough of an authority on French
to become Il translator, or are you a
proofreader, master hand as a mu-
stefan or a capable artist? The ques-
tons which face you, 0 woman, are
hrsc: what can you do thoroughly and
we'll? On what subject can you speak
as an Al althority:' Half built towers
are uninhHhitaDlc houses. Half built
ships are absolutely useless to brave
the Tomatoes of the Atlantic ocean
What can you do? What can you do?
What one thing can you do as we'll as
if not better than any one else?
But the half built educational tow
ers are not to be condemned nearly as
much as the deserted, half built enter
DriScS Of life which we see everywhere
around us. 1t was only here and there
that man OF woman In the past had
an opportunity to get complete edu-
cation. The higher schools Of our IA
Tiers and mothers were few and far
between. Besides that, even If there
were fine schools in the past all chill
dren were not able to go to them. Per
haps you were like my grandfather.
He was the oldest of a large family of
children. He had to stay at home and
help work the farm that the younger
members of the family might have
enough bread to cat and enough cloth
ing to wear Thus the only education
you received outside of the three RS
was out Of the "University Of Hard
Knocks" But in spite Of this handicap,
my friend, YOU have good mind, a
good body and you have had a good
many of the. essential capabilities of
success. Now, why have you been
such failure? Why Is your life in its
uselcssness to be likened unto that half
built tower which Plate, the governor.
erected and toward which Christ point
ed when he spoke the words Of my
text? l will tell the reason. You went
to work and worked hard. You de-
ve!oped yourself along one line. You
laid your foundations; you partly COM
pleted your walls, but just when you
were about to complete your work and
win success you deserted the line Of
work you We're following and went to
dig in some other field to build another
kind of tower.
Dbl Not Stick to 1t.
Is not this emphatically true with
you in business? What are you doing
today? "Oh," you answer, Il am In the
mining business. Some of my friends
and myself have dozen claims up in
the new gold fields. am bound soon to
be rich There is no doubt about 1t.
We are within a quarter of mile of
one mine where they have taken out
81 100000 in one year. We are on the
same vein or line of ore. We are bound
to get rich. Will you take some stock
in our mine? You can get rich too"
No, thank you. In the first place, l
have no money to invest; in the Sec
ond, If l had I would not invest it
in your mine. You are almost certain |
to make failure out Of it. If there is
no gold there, then, of course, you can
not get blood out of a turnip." If !
there is any gold there you will let go !
Of it before you develop that mine
Some one else will get the |
profits. How do l know? Why, that |
has been your record for twenty-five
years. In the last quarter Of century |
you have dabbled in at least ten differ
ent businesses, at any one Of which you |
could have made success If you had |
only stuck to it. For five years you |
10 ych ~. q 70 rn A flor fhoso |