East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1906-03-15
ELEMENTS OF THE CHARAC-
TER OF THE CITIZEN.
scholarly Treatment Of Fascinating
Observation-Disclosures of Good Citi-
zenship Reviewed in Most Thor
ough Manner-Young Men Warned
of the Dangers of Evil Associations
and Dcceitful Practices.

Essential Elements of Character Il
the Making of Citizen" and Mayo
Fee handled the subject in scholarl
and forceful manner. The East ore
gonian regrets that lack of space for
bids the use of the entire address, II
order that its readers might enjo,
the excellent sentiments expressed II
! it.
Mayor Fee at once entered into hi
subject and spoke in part as follows
The line of demarkation between
| the good and the bad citizen Is wei
defined. We readily distinguish tn,
good, the quasi good and the bad IL
our daily intercourse with our fellow
men, when we ourselves are uninflu.
enced by passion, prejudi,e or self.
interest. BY the subject for tonight
is meant a citizen of the republic OF
today, and 1t was designed to include
only the good, hence it means the
man who obeys the law. discharges
his duty to his fellow men. and lives
according to his highest moral and in
tellectual conceptions.
The essential elements of charac-
ter in the making of such a citizen,
are the love of truth, justice duty.
equality honesty and humanity,
coupled with physical and mental
courage of conviction. Truth, JUS
tice, honesty and humanity are the
corner stones upon which the temple
of citizenship is built, duty and equal
ity are laid between. and the whole
is cemented together and held I'm
place by courage of conviction.
The architect who constructs a
great edifice commences with the
square, he tries its walls with the
level to see that they are true. and
with the plumb to see that they are
correct. If he selects his material
well, if he lays its foundation stones
broad and deep, it will endure for
ages, a monument to his skill and
genius, as the pyramids of Egypt have
resisted the shock of earthquakes.
the ravages of time and of the ele-
ments; but if he intrusts this import
ant duty of trying it by the plumb. the
square and the level, of laying the
foundation and selecting the materi-
al to some incompetent servant the
structure will be weakened, and will
soon fall asunder piecemeal. notwith-
standing its beauty or correctness of
design.
In the building of the character of
the citizen, society performs the func-
ton of the architect. 1t furnishes,
through the agency and force of en-
lightened public opinion and of high
er education, a strong, correct and
beautiful plan. Yet, it leaves the Sc
lection of the material, and the work
of the construction frequently in
weak and Incompetent hands. and
hence, it is necessary to have jails.
pOorhOuses and penitentiares for the
wrecks; the result of ignorance and
stupidity. However, it is not always
to the present generation that the
failure is to be charged, for heredi-
tary influences and predisposition
frequently have a powerful effect
upon the character of the citizen.
The iniquities of the fathers being
visited upon the children unto the
third and fourth generations"
There is no iron-clad rule for the
building of character; nor can it be
done in a day; it is the result Of pa
tience-the gradual process of years.
There should be unity in the design;
the physical, spiritual and intellectu-
al should not be sacrificed, the one
to the other; but developed equally
A good body usually indicates a
healthy mind-fit habitation for NOR
al and progressive ideas.
The home and its influence, in the
building of character, cannot be over
estimated. There. unconscious to the
future citizen himself, imperceptible
to the eye, his character is built, and
dedicated to a love and reverence
for the grander principles, the more
lofty ideals of life ana of duty-that
distinguish the worlds highest and
best types Of manhood and woman
hood its workers, thinkers, heroes,
martyrs, patriots and statesmen.
This home may be hut instead of a
palace, a house, not of ease and luxu-
ry, but one of poverty, hardship and
privation, yet it is the abiding place
Of love and of duty.
In it respect for honest labor Is in
stilled, and a contempt for idleness-
breeder of dissipation and sensuality.
He is not kept in ignorance of the
evils that men do; he is not closed up
in darkness from the ways of the
world, but he is given light; he is
shown that 1t requires less moral eff
forts to resist the allurements of vice
and of crime If he knows not the
taste Of evil; that the man who has
once fallen has less power OF resist
ance than he who has never sinned,
for
Vice is a monster Of so frightful
mien
AS to be hated, needs but to be seen |;
Yet seen too oft, familiar with her
face,
We first endure, then pity then en-
brace"
Behind the lives of most great men
We detect the shadow of a noble,
self-sacrificing mother, not the moth
er depriving herself of intellectual
pleasure, and social intercourse, not
the slave of mis-alliance from whose
life the light of hope and ambition
has gone out, but the mother who has
schooled her intellect, who detects