The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1912-08-17
A SERMON.

A SATURDAY SERMON.
The way of a fool is right in his own
eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel
is wise. Proverbs XII: Is.
Many of the larger, as well as the
smaller troubles of life. and most of
the misfortune that develops in it,
are due to an al too general habit
among people of going ahead and do
ing things alone, and wholly as their
own judgments dictate. Such folk
are altogether too prone to believe
that they are quite capable of stand
ing on their own feet; that they could
not be benefited in any way by help
from any source; that they will, IN
fact, be belittling themselves in their
own estimation, and also in the re-
gard of Others, if they seek advice
about anything, or any move they in
tend to make.
Never were ideas more mistaken
than those of c a character. AS a
matter of fact, a man, alone by him
self and left entirely to his own ideas
and devices, is but a frail creature. 1t
is possible, of course, for a man of
rugged physique to go into a wilder
ness with an axe on his shoulder and
a knife in his belt and exc out a liv-
ing, such as it is. He can build him
self a shelter and provide the fuel to
keep it warm. He can trap a few
birds of the air and conquer a few
beasts of the forests and fields. He
can put some of these animals to
work for him and make the rest Of
them yield the mere necessities of life
in the way of food and clothing. But
the sum-total of everything that he
is able to accomplish, during the span
of an ordinary life, can never amoun
to much materially. However, let a
number of men and women band to-
gether and go into the same wilder
ness; let them combine their efforts
and ideas, one helping the other and
all working together, and, eventually,
what has been little more than
barren waste since the world began
will become a settlement of diverse
human activity. In time the settle
ment Will develop into a community
thai will grow into a>state and a ma
ton, if there is HI necessary room
for it to spread out. Such was the
beginning of these wonderful United
States. Such has been the beginning
of almost every nation that has ever
held a commanding place in history.
1aIn1lldE ana 1Ql0ISGly SSl1AAS
story of Robinson Crusoe tells what
one man can do all by himself. But
all that he was really able to do did not
amount to much, except that it
merely kept his body and soul togeth-
er. All of his accomplishments did
not help the world progress by so
much as one iota. On other hand,
chronicles of the illustrious Hume
- It IoL1-f0T1 in0ord fo11-nf the !
magnificent monuments in the way
of glorious nations that ave been
by the united efforts of many
men.
A spirit of independence, an ability
and a desire to AXE the initiative. are
OF strong character and
should be encouraged. But these cant
not be developed in any man to their
highest and best degree without the
help, the advice, and the wisdom IF
others who have had the benefit of
wider and larger experiences. 1t is
often unnecessary to go to persons
direct for counsel Of this sort, al
though no one should ever hesitate TO
such a step. Much of the adj
vice that one needs can be obtained
selected books, standard works
of reference concerning all things un-
der the sun, recognized authorities on
science and philosophy in all of their
ramifications.
The man who insists IN going it
alone, who thinks that he is clever
enough to develop a way Of his own
for the doing of anything he may
nave set his mind upon, will sooner
or later reach the end of the rope that
ts fae4apad on failure and disaster
unless, of course, he is a real genius.
But real geniuses have been few and
TAR between in the history of all ages.
Because a man thinks he is right in
MS own eyes, and that his way of do
ng things is the best and only one,
hats pretty good evidence that such
S not the case. And as the words
above, suggest: The wise man
seeks counsel in all things and needs
which is best. +