Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1915-09-29
PAT MuRPhY...A PARABLE.

Bernard Murphy, Familiarity known
as Pat" among his conferees, editor
Of the Einton Eagle, has had a BIRTH
day. Not tina. birthdays have been I'M
known 10 him heretofore but that ne
was IS years old on this occasion and
Mr.. Murphy thinking over his long
stretch in harness and impeIed him
to take his readers into touch with his
musings and conclusions. TIE birth
ay is notable by reason Of Mr. Muir
phys position as pioneer newspaper
man and erstwhile active politician
during a formative and reconstructive
period OF Iowa politics and because Of
his wide acquaintance over the state.
Murphy has retired from the severe
work OF the county newspaper profess
sion and IS taking i, easy. having
shifted his burden to the shoulders
Of a willing son. And sitting in the
cool OF the evening watching the sun
set ne, like most other men, Cicero in
Guided. finds himself phi.osophiz!ng
and, rnconscicusly perhaps. advancing
q philosophy that would have been
strange to him twenty years ago. He
confesses that he does not know how
much Of good and evil ne has sown but
rests his case upon the statement that
he has done the best he could Thus:
| We could not say now that if we
| were 70 live our life over again that
We could better il much. We might
run into more errors. Our aim has
/ been, is now and will be in the future
(. to LOOK to the better things, and add
| cur little influence in bringing them
about For many things We have done
| We haze been blamed: out for many
| things we have been praised hence
We never have had time 10 bewail our
| fate. We have always been inclined TO
| think that our riches exceed our Ills.
That is good philosophy. 1t is also
an enviable frame OF mind wherein a
man Of SIS shall find himself. To have
! been too busy 10 bewail fate, to have
/ mad JOB ahead Of every day, to have
| gone to res at night and risen with
hope and responsibility and a task
worth while is to have been happily
| situated and to count the possible
years beyond SIS as opportunity to aid
in bringing about the better things, to
cast the accounts of life and find a
balance where the real riches exceed
the ills on the ledger Of existence Is
the ultimate of personal success.
And this IS true of other men as OF
Murphy Life, like golf, is practically
state OF mind. 1t isn't to be counted
III millions or measured in acres. NJ
tax receipt includes happiness and con
tent. The man who having cultivated
philosophy which is not altogethe!
selfish is the happier man at S. Five
or fifty figures on a bank book can no
buy them. The real reward OF lie e
it's close is the self assurance-if i
can be honestly made-that We hav
done the bas- we could. that we meal
to go on doing the best we can, tina
we owe the world the best we have lef
in US and offe, payment freely in ser
| vice. That's really al There Is to 1t.
Whoever comes to the age of 81
whether he be Murphy or Oleson o
Brown or Macintosh and finds himsel
fairly at peace with the world an
with the purpose and the hope ahea
that it shall be even better world 70
, his grandchildren than it has been fo
him. who refuses to bewail the com
mon fate, which is to grow and ripe
old gracefully and happily is fort