Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-02-02
The Foolish Pursuit Called Time
Killing.

whoever invented the phrase killing
time chose a striking combination Of
words with which to portray a practice
more or less in vogue. 1t means fool
ISM dissipation of time. and strength that,
might be better employed, a filling OF
the passing days with airy nothings and a
palnfnl effort to add spice and zest to a n
existence which would be otherwis, in-
sipid. And how the expression makes ma
vince whenever l hear IL used with re-
gard TO the life of another person as
whole or with regard to his use OF any
| brief portion of time. even single dav.
To me there is something quite personal
about time. II is valued friend and
when | hear that anv one is killing or
manning time or DETECTING it from its
proper uses or degrading or dshonorlns il
| feel almost as should if | learned that
some one had been lifting murderous
hands against dear old chum of m;ns
Time. why :.me is the stuff out OF which
all that is sweet and enduring in the uni
verse is constructed. Time is the essential
factor in the construction of great canals
and highways Time is the bass of All
achievement in the realm of music of arr.
of literature The forward march of civil
u
time. How. then. can we bear to do any
; thing with time other than honoring and
Identifying it?
We would hardly think that in this busy.
strenuous age the tribe of time killers
would be Very numerous And Vet de-
spite the race for wealth and position here
ana there person can be found Kho
looks upon existence as the whole A
curse and resorts in desperation 10 what
ever devices he can find to pass away the
I time until the burden is rolled off his
shoulders. Out of this class our suicides
over 10s9o las; year-ara recruited
And vet | have almost much respec;
for that class Of time killers as | do for
the butterfly type, the men and women
whose philosophy is that of the Epcu-
fean and not that of the Stole, VINO
filling I'D their DAYS with ona new sensa-
ton after another. dragging themselves
more or less sayiy through successive
rounds of gayety skipping off blthely to-
morrow 10 Florida and next summer 10
Europe All the while they are living Oh
money that some one else earned: they arr
making not one honest contribution To tue !
life OF the world. They renounce all civic,
family and church obligations that are IN
any way drain on time and thought. and
they simply hold out their hands day by
day for hired servants or obsequious
friends to fiji with the passing sat!sfac-
tons OF the hour.
We grow scornfu as we enumerate the
characteristics of this type Of time killer.
but lest we become Pharisaic let us ask
ourselves If we supposedly busy and fairly
unselfsh people never Kill time Not in
great blocks probably. but are We not
daily killing fragments OF time? Our
car is slow and we fume with the rest
when we might be memoriziug some great
poem or bit of prose. We spend an hour
or more day getting into and out OF our
clothes. Could not seauester a portion
of that time for elevated thoughts. for the
reckoning up of our blessings. for the de-
visng of large and liberal things for our
fellow-men? And is not "A considerable
fraction of the time OF even us busy peo-
pie frittered away in desultory reading in .
gossip in mental Vacuity?
Nobody need belong to the tribe OF time
killers If he will only get deeply rooted IN
his mind the right conception Of what $
time is for Times main function Is the
chance II gives us for character building.
for the service OF Our fellow-men. Not
that we are to he always keyed up and
never be at all frivolous. But the prow
OF our boat must ever be kept headed to- :
ward the great headlands of duty. Thea
time will grow more precious to us day by
day We shall not suuander IL Rather
shall we pray swift days more hours 10 :
bring Then the irresistible current of
time will sweep us on to life that IS T
constantly deepening because Ii already ID
the eternal life. THE PARSON-s -