Omaha daily bee., 1916-03-23
The Turn
of the Tide
BY FoRrrNE FREE.

III YOU have a job which lasts long.
which demands all your spirit ami
energy, puts you on every bit of mettle
you have in you, there perhaps arrives
a time when you come to the unhappy
conclusion that It is mo good" It's
hard, that waiting the turn OF the tide
! met a friend the other day who had
been through recent experience of the
no good" kind lie is the captain OF a
small ship engaged in very humble
voyages. but such as are occasionally
fun Of danger and exciting incident. lie
is one OF the toughest old sea dogs 1 can
imagine. \ week or two back II seemed
as IL we had taken farewell of him for
the last time. There was an ominous
silence respecting his ship-only news of
huge seas. terrific gales and ships in dis
tress in that part where his vessel ought
to have been.
Each day my heart sank lower as I
knocked at the door of his little home
and It was opened to me by the daily
paler woman-his wife-with the eyes
that grew more sleepless looking and
marked with tears. Clinging TO the skirts
Of her dress would. perhaps, be tiny
youngster, who seemed to grow wider
eyed and paler each day. too. II really
appeared useless hoping any more
was prepared for anything that last day
when knocked at the door-for anything
save the thing that happened
The lost man" opened the door to mo
himself
He told me all about his experiences
in nautical language full of words l
didn't understand. But it seemed as IL
every accident that possibly could happen
had happened to that ship except the
bottom coming out He and his men had
fought desperately for their lives.
AT last l began to think it was hope
less-nothing was any good he told me.
And what did you do then?" l asked.
We'll. you see." he replied. scratching
his head, I'd been in many tight holes
before when ia thought the same and all
had turned out right in the end, so Just
went on
And there he was, safe and sound.
You battle with things going wrong
till at last the day comes when the mo
good" fit is upon you-everything looks
hopeless and black. Where is the real
ization Of those hopes you once had? II
seems as far off as ever-farther, per
haps, and hope deferred maketh the
heart sick" 1t is a. condition which
many people go out OF their way to make
as bad as they possibly cannot inten-
tlonally. Of course. At that time all their
failures are recalled and all their success
is resolutely ignored.
The luekiest for US can't live for many
years without having failures OF one
| kind or another When things GO wrons,
till we begin to feel that it's mo good, "
those failures simply tumble over one
another's heels in their hurry to thrust
themselves upon us. and assure us that
we are quite right--it really is no good, "
none whatever.
Just at the time when one most wants
courage and stimulation to fresh efforts, .
said Lord Beaconsfield Il find numbers
of people plunge themselves into the
most dismal recolIections OF catastrophes
By certain mental management the most
fortunate persons can make their lives
appear to themselves one long succession
OF failures. They then persuade them
selves they are persons marked for mis-
fortune. 1t is a mere trick Of the i'm
agination, and one to be carefully
avoided. Don't give in to it,
And then he gave the following advice
Remarkably similar TO that of Edison
himself:
THE courageous person win recall how
many difficulties he has been in and sur
mounted. II he has come triumphant out
OF those, why should he not out of this
That spirit almost certainly assures a
happy result"