The Columbus journal. (Columbus, Neb.) 1874-1911, 1908-04-29

ne m6jOTlty Ol men tndt AuO"
look forward to the time when they
are not to take any pleasure in this
e iife," said old Linn Jucklin, and his
neighbOrs who were standing about
the horse block wherein the old man
p. had just taken his seat looked at him
in establishment
Il don't see how that can be-" spoke
up Sam Niles, goat-whiskered. squirt
eyed, and a liar on most occasions.
but like most liars, the inheritor of a
sort of engaging wisdom.
Old Lin cleared his throat And
the reason you can't see il, Sammy. Is
because you are morally blind. The
average man looks forward to the
o time when he won't have to work, and
when this time comes he almost al
ways finds that for him there is no
more enjoyment. Next to the enjoy
ment of work itself, We get the most
pleasure out of rest and
And when We rest We are enjoyin'
ourselves" Sam broke in.
e. Old Lin nodded. Yes. but when
We haven't worked We can't rest, for
rest means the luther side Of bein
:. tired. After climbin' hard TO reach the
top of the hill We take q long breath
and it is as sweet as spring water.
and the reason il seems SO deep and
fetchin' is because the breaths comm
up the hill were short But II We set
down on the top of the hill and stay
there the breaths amt SO sweet. After
"a a while they get to be like the b-eaths
down in the valley. To make EN-
sweet you've got to climb for EN-. In
this life all the way through it is al
most Impossible to get any real good
out Of thing you don't work for.
That's the reason the gamblers money
dent amount to anything. 1t hasn't
any sweat value. And even if he
hadn't done anything to cause him to
he driven out, Adam couldn't have
stayed much longer in the Garden OF
Eden. He never had worked. il is
true, and he didn't know what il was.
bat the fact that he had nOthin' to do
had, accordin' to my notion. begun TO
make him wish that Sunday was over
with. reckon old Miz Eve could
. have stood it little while longer, I'M
til the fall of the year, when the
leaves. changin' their color brought
about a new fashion. and that would
have held her a while longer. But
Adam would have had something to
do if she had given him a leaf and
told him to 60 out and match it for
her. Every leaf in the garden might
have been green. all of an exact shade.
but. if Adam had tried TO match one 1t
would have changed color like one of
these here lizards they fetch from
Florida. And lay you the sweetest
: meal he ever eat in his life was the
first bread he earned by the sweat of
his brow. 1t has been writ that man
was made TO mourn. but I've noticed
that he don't mourn so much when he
il at work He starts out lookin' for
place where he can ease his mind.
He never finds it. but when at work
he seems TO feel that he is gettin'
there"
But the happiest man l ever saw
was the LATEST said Sam. and the
smiled. for no matter in what rev.
erence a country oracle is held the in
grained envy of his neighbOrs ap-
plaud the threat of his overthrow.
I'm not here to deny truths, but to
bring 'em out" replied the old man.
I've known lazy men that appeared
to enjoy themselves simply because
they want at work, and l can so lit
tie further and say that the happiest
Teller ever saw was an idiot. All he
had to do was to jolt himself and he
was tickled mighty nigh to death. The
sight of dog a scratchin' of himself
was better to him than the keen joke
: Of a wise man. But when | spoke of
the average man l meant the man
with a mind"
But one of the smartest men l ever
saw was lazy" said Sam.
60 Yes. that may be a fact. and some
of the plainest truths have been told
by. liar, but the liar amt the man
that fills the world with truth. But
still insist that I'm talkin' about the
average man, and | don't think the
average man is lazy. The brightest
minds have had the most beautiful
thoughts. enjoyed mebby by the few,
but it is the work of the average mind
that has built up civilization. If every
mind had been as great as Shake
speare's. the world would have been a
swhirlwind Of ideas. ike light'ni bugs
!: in swamp. and there wouldn't have
been anybody to stoop low enough to
dig food out of the ground. There
wouldn't have been anything to learn,
and the universe would have been a
great. mental starvation. There is
mere happiness in hein' able 10 enjoy
:the wisdom of the wisest than to be
the wisest. Wisdom is sometimes a
sort of savior. crucified for the bene-
fit. of mankind. 4 man at the top is a
little too lonesome. | should tank. and
we'd get mighty tired havin' TO look
down all the time. In my blUnderin'
way I've read some of the great books.
and il don't seem to ME that the
writers of them We're happy. | can
understand that new and SurpriSin'
thought sbcotin' through a mans mind
would thrill him to his marrow, but
after. a great light there is always
darkness: after great joy a corrc-
Spendin' sorrow. And no matter how
many big words a man may have he
Ys,snSrS= that no cant toll lhGnt
In every drop of our blood there is