Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1917-10-17
STUDENTS OF HIGH
SCHOOL LISTEN TO
A HELPFUL TALK
B.R. vARDAMAN OF DIES MONIES
TELLS THEM THEY CAN DO
WHAT THEY WILL TO DO
STRIKING INSTANCES
ILLUSTRATE POINTS
'.MOre Is In Me-" Is Slogan of Euro.
pean Duke That Everyone Could
Adopt With Help to Living


When Ben r. Vardaman stated that
he could talk for five days on a given
subject, the high school stuGents, be-
fore whom he was standing last Fri
day morning, gave a deep sigh. When,
however, he told them that he would
only use a few minutes of their time
that morning, they were interested.
After that few minutes they were
still more interested and wanted him
to go on, for Mr.. Vardaman gave
them a most wonderful talk.
In beginning his talk Mr.. Varda-
man said, "Don't you know it is the
hardest thing in the world for peo-
pie to realize they are living. You
ask the boy in the high school what
he is studying for and he answers i
am preparing to live Ask him the
same question when he gets into col
lege and he will reply that he is get
ting ready to accomplish some speci-
fic work. Ask the business man
what he is doing by planning his
business and he will invariably an
swer that he is getting ready to do
some bigger and better thing. And
even when you ask the old man what
he is expecting to accomplish by the
work he is doing you will bet an an
swer limiting at preparation to live.
We don't seem to realize that we are
living right now.
"Now | want to talk TO you a few
minutes this morning about your pos
sibilities in life. What you get out
of life depends upon what you put in
to it today and every day. Hence l
want to talk to you about ECHOES.
To illustrate my point | want to tell
you about a little bob-tailed dog |
used to own The little fellow would
go out in the field close TO a wood
and begin to bark. AS he barked an
other dog seemed to be barking back
from the woods. Then the little dog
would bark louder and the voice in
the woods would increase in volume.
1t was echo of my little dog as he
barbed in the field coming back to
him. So is life what we do from
day to day is echoed back to US. We
reap what we SOW.
Should / come in TO your COM
munity it analyze your life and offer
suggestions for betterment l would
not go to the prominent men of the
community, not to the business men
along the streets, nor to the profess
sional men, but to the young business
men of tomorrow, the boys and girls
in the school, just like you young
people here. | know more about you
than you think | do, although / new
er saw you before. The future of
this community will be your echoes.
You must work today to make the
future of your community better. q
"When ex-President Cleveland was
asked by a college student what he
thought was the greatest thing in
America, his reply was: The greatest
opportunity in the United States is
the fact that you can be just what
you want to be- | have thought of
this saying of Cleveland's much.
have heard men complain because
they don't get their just dues. But
tell you they are getting just what is
due them. You cannot get out Of life
more than you put into it.
1.-THE other day | stood in Keolsul5
Iowa watching the water flow over
the big dam there. / inquired about
the beginning of the great dam and
was informed that it was originally
the idea Of Robert K. Lee, the great
general known to you all. Lee came
there years and years ago and dream
ed of the possibilities of the power to
be gotten from the waters of the Mis-
sissippi. He went away without re-
ducing his dream to practical use.
But his dream enthused second man
by the name of Cook. Cook came
there when young. He looked the
possibilities over and went away.
Months after he returned with some
papers and figures which he Showed
to some other men. Then he went
away and in later months returned
with blue prints. After studying the
whole situation he again departed.
The next time he came he had men,
horses and machinery. The dirt began
to move, the river was damned, cof-
ferdams were built to exclude the wa
ter and blasting began for the foun-
dations of the great dam. Finally
the dam was completed and as a re-
suit Keokuk, st. Louis, Quincy, and
scores of other cities are receiving
light and power. All the echo of the
life and dream and actions of the
men who conceived it.
CONTINUED on Page Five)