New-York tribune., 1905-04-25
DULL, DEAD WORK.
Yet Distressing Makes for Chaac-
ter Building, Says Prof. Gnggs.

"of al dull. blind. sordid drudgery the ne plus
ultra. to my mind, is dishwashing said Professor
Edward Howard Grtggs yesterday in talking on
Vacations at the Brooklyn Institute. and the
hearts Of the women in his audionce-it was pre-
pondoIanty a feminine audience-rushed out 10
meet him IN gratitude for the words
~ asling dishes is so much worse ttan "a, ing
them dirty continued the lecturer sympath seea>
Is That's good. wholesome work R,,t 10 wash
your way through lot OF dirty dishes and put
them an back in their places with the certain con-
hdent knowledge that four hours later they Will
al have 10 come Gown and get dirty again. and
10 keep Il up meal after meal week after week
year after year, Is the essence Of blind dead work
And yet 10 do that blind. dead work Loyalty
and faithfully without protesting is 10 build char
GcteT and 10 get culture For what is culture
bur patience, fidelity, quiet wisdom loyalty to
uus1-iAoSe simple, primitive qualities on which
human life is based?
when trouble comes on us, TO whom 90 we go?
Sometimes 10 our physician. Sometimes TO our
minister but often We 60 10 some woman whose
Gays nave Deen spent in just such routine this
who has lived quietly and brought up her children
but IS able 10 siFe Us the help that comes from a
Eandgrip with life
Professor Grisgs had begun his lecture by COM
lneUtIs or The Indifference with 7 hich philos-
ophers had always treated the subject Of vocation
Wilhelm Neister' being practically The only
treatise that deals with worK a Of self
realization.
III is only in the one hundred years since the
4af-+~ fNA-A-'lis ne Ssllt. Alal We have come
10 respect men In proportion 10 their personal
contribution TO humanity. Now We see that our
must Zoe 10 live. make a living: that
We must get our culture out OF work. instead
q leaving il I'LL We grow too old too rich TO
work that we must make work a medium
io- se!f-eA precision, and finally that We must make
il au opportunity for serving others.
Vacations tend TO become matters Of such
routine that II is often hard any ideal
inspiration in Them and this holds true OF much
M MON = 0f -
50 little inspiration little Of The outlook into
the bigger world. iH mucn that pertains 10 the
care Cf children. for instance.
You dress your child up nice and clean and
lie goes 0ut 10 play and gets al dirty. Then you
have him come III aUd dress him nice and clean,
and be goes out 10 play and gets all dirty. And
sou have MIN come in and dress him nice and
The audience laughed and clapped us hands at
~Bar then." Professor Grggs added encour-
asaGEly -I-s so much easier 10 see tlie oe2dness
their brilliant a1alev venlonts, ne dom know any
thing about the druageIy Jhat has gone to pro-
'.Th.s lie is no lottery. No,hing worth while
essiE that which seems 70 be done most easily
Is bought with the hardest work, Iheie Is no
royal road 70 anything worth Nhile, % "a do, ~.
Yet ne ru's ot routine e may , & sT2T SO qfep S Ne
higher vocation, The more sure II IS 10 nave It's
special danger Take the minister HIS people put
rto-r.te he IS a saint Then think Of All the lne.,l
petty sitefu gosspy criticism he IS SUBJECTED 70.
15e works much among women he tends 10 grow
effernluate. I've always thought II 1 clergy
man should cultivate the ha5l, 9f temperate
smoking tor the sake Of The masculine society II
would bring
And The teacher. II after wears OF her vocation
she escapes without high .ltehcI Voice a straillcd
manner and pedant.c insjstence on tribes she is
usual woman.
As refuge from The dead monotony OF The deep
-Gfs 0I tre vocation cultivate an aNocail0n.
Blessed be the man with a good, 'ively noDly! You
can carry Ol q vocation and IA aNocauOE with ldT
Jess strain than you can keep grEdI2s away ali the
time al tho one thing Its hard thing TO prove
the platform, bur tle student who has ten hours
= study and spends one in tbeuc sports viii stll
have ten hours for study. The mother who lakes
half hour Or hour from her children
daily do great deal fo- them il the time left
her