The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-11-08

"HERE was buried yesterday man
of great riches and great folly,
Z dead at 81. His end was undoubt-
edly hastened by excesses, though these
were not all of the vulgar. roistering kind.
1t was a case, rather. of temperamental
debauchery, an entirely perverse and mis-
taken attitude toward life. His coming
into control of millions of money went to
his head. He could think of nothing but
speed and glitter and splurge. For him
travel must mean special trains breaking
the record. The thing to do was to toss
the waiter $1,000 bill and tell him to keep
the change. Son of stock exchange
''plunger,' his sole idea seemed to be to
make of life one prolonged plunge. Plen-
ty of lights and a continual parade We're
closely bound up with his notion of human
happiness. He ostentatiously took for his
motto: "a short life but merry one."
1t was certainly short, but was it
merry? Putting the matter merely on the
ground of the 'fun" to be got out of life,
did not this man make a sad mess of his
opportunities? Reckless prodigality and
riotous living are often preached against
and condemned as sinful. and SO they are.
But mere reproach on moral or religious
grounds, or reminders of the fearful look
ing for Of Judgment which at times must
haunt the sinner, cannot strike home as
does the very spectacle of mad career
defeating itself and carrying it's own pun
Hishment along with it day by day. With
many, we think, a more powerful appeal
could be made on the score of stupidity
and futility than on that of wickedness
alone. The argument underlies President
Eliot's address on 1.-THE Durable Satisfac-
tions of Life. Satisfactions may be
sought, and pleasures but they ought to
be of the sort that go on mounting from
year to year. and do not burn out mis-
erably to the socket. What punishment
of habitual sins could be more severe than
the safety which dogs them? A giddy
youth cannot get flown with wine more
than so many times; he cannot very long
find exhiliration in lighting cigarettes with
500 bills; his most wild and foolish in
ventions in the way of indulgence and
revelry soon pail upon him. An immense
WEAKNESS inevitably descends upon him,
and the moments recur oftener when he
turns with something like loathing from
the devices which he has resorted to in
order to make his jaded sensibilities vi
brate, with the mournful confession, Il
have no pleasure in them" And often, as
in the instance referred to, just as the
period has been reached when plans
should be maturing and the outlook for
durable satisfactions broadened the furies
come and slit the thin spun thread of
life.
The rake is an old typ, 49, have the
poor always with US, we seem to have
the gilded fool. But there is some COM
fort in the thought that the type is, on
the whole, disappearing. Especially in
this country has the placing of large
wealth in the hands of young man
ceased to mean the almost inevitable
moral degeneration which was once
thought of as the general rule. 1t is not
so much an access of virtue which is re-
sponsible for the change. as an access of
good sense. with improved social stand
ards and new convictions of public duty.
1t is. no longer good form" to be a
harum- -scarum debauchee. Instead OF be-
ing thought amusing, he is regarded as
disgusting. And there is a gain in the
very fact of being more accustomed to
large fortunes. Our society is steadier
about them now. They do not so fire.
quently intoxicate youth coming into their
possession. 1t would be possible to name
considerable number Of young men,
.I. \.
with a great deal of, ,mQnWtRt nnn
posal, who are am ~
minded of citizens. "a
time and money to
old type of jeunesse -
with it's warnings, the'l kvad
going and useful young p's al
the time becoming more
Fashion, even in mora kGrea
thing to have on the right 81 .th
matter of which we are 81 Dr
can be no doubt that the fash
than it used to be. What ~
to contend against is a kind q
tradition in favor Of the
young "spender." He is pictured
how far more genial than his
Give Newcome is pitted against
But we are coming to see the fl IN
all this. To be good fellow y" N0>