The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1916-02-03
THE JOYS OF FRIENDSHIP

INo open MS nt2ft TO It's 1ull meaning With
out being strengthened and beautifed in his own
life. 1t is influence delicate and SO fine that
it comes like the dew Of the morning upon the
world making it a better place. If we knew how
much friendship is doing every hour of the worlds
history to make better and stronger our hearts
would rejoice. 1t is not noisy power, neverthe-
less i, is power, of the greatest, indeed, that
the world knows
Even lives that are otherwise evil take on q
certain beauty and Gneness because of some strong
friendship by which they are blessed. Dumas
Three Musketeers" are very far from being true
examples Of honor, truth and
virtue. Yet their friendship for one another has be-
come proverbial 1t fairly seemed to transform
their lives. Their motto was. Each for all, and all
for each.'' and there was nothing that they would
not do for another.
Friendship has been large factor in history.
1t shapes lives and controls destinles. It molds
communities and creates society. 1t leaps over
mountains and deserts and seas 1t outlives
death even and lives as vital force in the men,
cries of men.
One of the best ways to measure the influence
of friendship is to observe how has figured in lit
erature. If the devotion and sacrifice of friends
taken out of literature. it would lose of it's
chief charms. Many persons regard Thackerays
Henry Esmond'' as one of the few great books of
English literature. Il is the story of to whom
friendship was master passion.
What is it that makes the Old Testament story
of David and Jonathan. and the classical story Of
Damon and Pythas, such favorItes with menu 1t is
the admiration that all feel for true friend. We
know in our hearts that life would be bare and un-
attractive without friendship.
Some of the worlds greatest essayists wrote a.
bout friendship. Nor let forget to mention
Cicero's DE Amicita," which is fine Latin and
finer still for its praise of friendship. Speaking of
beloved friend who had died, Montaigne, the
Frenchman, said: IF you should importune me TO
tell you the reason why loved him, would say
because it was he. because 1t was IT, Emerson
wrote: I awoke this morning with devout thanks
giving for my friends. the old and the Shall
call God the Beautiful, who daily sho weth him
self so to me in his gfts?' Cicero thot that of all
the gifts the gods had bestowed upon him. his friend
Scipio was the BEST These noble sentiments re-
mind us that we too should be grateful to God for
the friends he has given When we begin to
think of our friends as COTS gifts to us, friendship
at once rises 10 higher plane and takes on new
meaning There are two great English poems that
may be called monuments of friendship One of
them is Millions Lycdas, which was written by
the poet in memory of his friend; the other is
Tennyson's In Memoriam," ore of the most i'm
portant poems of the English language. 1t was the
death of Tennysons friend, Arthur Hallam that led
to the writing of In Memoriam."
Forgive my grief for one removed
Thy creature, whom found fair.
trust he lives in thee, and there
found him worthier to be loved,
The world is better for having witnessed this
noble example of friendship.
There is an old saying that rims thus There
must be many pair of friends" If men do not
open their hearts to one another and practice freely
and gracousy the fine of friendship. life becomes
less worthy and less beautiful. There is SO much
selfshness and much hate in the world that there
must be much friendship that these may be over
come The more true friendship there is the safer
and better the world becomes, for friendship ever
an uplifting force.
Just because friendship is at it's best an unself-
ish thing, degrades but re6nes and strength
ens Dsinterested friendships tend to build up
character One who enjoys true friendship has
literally gone outside of himself, and has given his
heart to another This, in ITSELF is enlareinR to the
soul. But one who shuts himself up within him