The Washington herald., 1914-12-09

- Rod he would hever have been
permitted to instruct the youth of any respectable
educational institution Sometimes he goes far
that even his admiring students are shocked. In
fact suspect that he particularly enjoys shocking
the established conventions Of youth. He knows
that there is no other conservatism in the world
more rigid.
For several months l happened to be in fire.
quent contact with this professor. He had an
amazingly brilliant mind and l used to enjoy hear
ing his talk His was the kind OF talk one couldn't
reply to unless happens to be brilliant oneself
The best one could do to listen in silence while
ones pet ideas were rolled in the dust and then
to go home quietly and think
The professor rather liked this attitude the
part of his listeners. 1t stimulated him to superb
flights. Whenever a bold spirit ventured to argue
with him or in any way to resist him, he was likely
to become angry and to keep repeating himself. He
was at his best when soaring into the blue, sweep
ing contemptuously and yet with humorous joy
business over preposterous world.
After few weeks of listening, at frequent in
tervals, to this talk, began to find method in
it. At first l was thrown off the scent by uncon-
sciously assuming that the professor thought he
saw the truth and was industriousy pursuing it
Here was my mistake He wasn't pursuing the
truth at all what he believed to be the truth
In the truth he felt no real interest. He sim
ply indulging in the great passion of his nature
the desire pit himself against the world, against
every idea in the world to show himself superior.
His briIiancy was simply form OF egotism, as
brilliancy often is.
The truth is seldom brilliant. 1t is simple
homely, unassertve, rather slow.
One cannot think of man like Abraham Lin
coin as brilliant.
That professor asserted his superiority in a way
not uncommon, by denying virtually everything
within his range of vision. Once idea was estab
lished, he would deny that idea. He had the kind
of mind that resented what was accepted, or re-
spected, conventional, or popular. In the natural
bunders OF the human race, the expression Of hu-
man fallibility, he found a wide play for his in
tellectual ability and for his humor. By topping
over accepted ideas, he always sure to make
sensational appeal to admiration.
The longer knew that professor the palmer it
became to me that he talked, not for the sake OF
the TRUTH but for the sake of finding the flaw when
ever he could and Of setting himself up in oppo
sition. On more than one occasion l heard him
furiously resenting opinions that on other occa-
sions he had advocated. And then l saw that, no
matter if he were to achieved the social revolu
ton that he declared he hoped for he would never
be satisfied. He would always be against the estab-
lished order He would always dislike and resent
the thing that was. Incidentally, he would always
be happy for in his opposition he seemed to thrive
and to achieve fierce JOY
Spirits of this kind add to the excitement, some
times to the interest of life. But the moment we
find them out they are liked pricked balloons. In
cidentaly, they do some good. For, naturally they
find plenty of real errors to exploit But they do
far more harm. They create in life vast amount
of disturbance. They upset and irrtate. They have
very damaging influence on harmony. 1t is
through harmony that people are going to think
things out, if they ever think things out at all,
through the power of thought that comes, not from
disorganization, argument and resentment but
from the concentration achieved through sympathy
and cooperation