The Sun. [volume] (Price, Utah) 1915-1932, 1916-07-28
MENTAL EMBROIDERIES.

The trouble with the average student, in the
opinion of the Boston Transcript, is that he does
not go TO college to form his mind, but TO decor
ate it. The confidence of youth is the sublimest
thing in the world. Contemplating his assur-
ance of certainty about the principles of all
things, the elder man, some If not all of whose
bases have been shaken by experience, feels
about the sophomore at college as Peel felt about
Macauley that he would give all his worldly
wealth If he could be as sure of anything as that
chap is of everything. Looking back over his
life, the elderly man can find in IL no other mo-
ment when his knowledge was so completely sat
isfactory to him as when he was 20 years old
Nor is the reason for this far to seek. Relative
ly to his understanding as boy of Is, the knowl-
edge of young man of 20 is enormous. He finds
himself in the possession of the keys that unlock
the secrets of the gods. He unlocks the door. Il
is natural for him TO suppose that the glittering
and glorious prospect that he beholds constitutes
the whole treasure house. The enlightenment
has fallen upon him. II is enough. His task
thereafter, as the Transcript has expressed t.,
is to decorate his mind with the jewels that lie
at his hand. lie does not think about changing
others or himself-all he wants is to shine.
The confidence of the youth in the abidingness
of his knowledge, in the completeness of his dis
coveries, in the correctness of his accepted way
lis very beautiful thing. But some time he
is likely TO lose all its glamour and discover that
ornamentation is not going TO carry him through
a busy and critical world. For that is what he
goes out In the world TO do-to lose his sublime
assurances and 10 awake 10 the realization that
what he had valued as precious jewels were poor
substitutes for the tools Of intellectual and ply
steal industry with which he must hew his way
through busy and Indifferent world His mind,
II IL be not opened in college must be enclosed
by the rude processes of everyday existence and
struggle. The necessity Of this disilusioning
experience is the very thing which has caused
so many grownup men 10 complain that college
taught them nothing-that they had to learn
everything afterward and sometimes unlearn a
great deal Of what they had thought was most
worth while. but which failed when put 10 the
test Of practical use. And Il Is also this same
fact that has enabled so many men of good abil-
ity, men who never went 10 college. but who
were getting this mental Enclosing experience
while their brothers in college were busy ac-
cumulating mental embroidery and lace, TO sur.
pass in the achievements Of life the best efforts
Of the college graduate.
The important thing, il seems to The Sun, Is
for the young man who goes TO college TO have a
well defined object TO attain, and concentrate as
far as possible his greatest endeavors toward
mastering that which will enable him TO most eff
fectively grasp the goal Of his ambition. II is
not necessary TO avoid the ornamental, in educa-
tion no more than in any other phase Of life.
Beauty is a great thing and art is jewel. But
ornamentation should be valued only as orna-
mentation and should not be allowed TO take up
too much time and attention that belong TO the
serious things Of life. For there is no more seri.
Gus thing in young mans life than the acquire
ment Of those things which will best help him TO
make n useful and a successful citizen