The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-03-11
The Elements Of Success
 ARDSHIPSy
ARTICLE U--"HARDSHIPS"
By JOHN H. FRYE Pres Traders Nation al Rnnk of Hirmingha


 There is value in obstacles which few of us appreciate while facing them. They cultivate courage and resourcefulness in the mental makeup, just as exercise in creases physical development It has been said that the mental and physica! equipment of the Scotch which has made them so conspicuous throughout the tons they have contended with a soil and climate in which the most hardy | traits were essential to existence. The men who returned to the south from the Confederate army had not only
 had experience of great privations and danger in war, but in civil life they faced poverty and other untoward conditions. There was nothing in the way of hard ships left for these men to fear, and many of them, by reason of lelr train ing, accomplished undertakings which under other conditions would nave been impossible
 A story is told of a King of Abyssinia, who employed a man to train 2S lions, and in due time they were turned over
 to the King under excellent control. The
 latter was so delighted with the skill
 of the trainer that he promptly made him
 a present of the lions. Commenting on this incident, someone says that in life
 You may have all the lions you tame.
 You may have all the earth over which
 you win dominion. You may have all the
 secrets you dig up. You may have all
 the power you can harness. You may
 have all the Canaan you conquer. You
 may have all the character you may ac- Quire."
 It is generally supposed that poets, or atorS and musicians are in class by themselves, and not dependent on the same methods as the average person. But
 the testimony of many of them is to the contrary The most thoughtful and fin
 shed address the writer ever heard was made by man whom he had the oppor-
 tunity to talk with a short while after. When asked how much time he had spent in the preparation of his address, he an swered: "A little more than 20 years. y If men of unusual ability are under ne- cessity to labor. it is certain that the rest Of us cannot succeed without it.
 HEALTH
 The requirements for success are more exacting now than possibly they have ever been, competition being with men pre- pared in every way for the battle of life. It is therefore essential that one be equipped physically. as well as mentally and morally, for the undertaking. The human body is the most wonderful piece of mechanism known. and with reason able care it works well.
 Among the very necessary factors in health are regular hours, good food though not too much of it-an adequate quota of sleep. and sufficient exercise. Each person must work out the problem for himself, for programme which is
 suited to one is often unsuited to an- other There are times when person must work longer hours than would be wise to observe permanently. Bu this should not be continued indefinitely, for no reward compensates for an unneces- sary impairment of ones constitution. The following apt, if not poetical. lines ap- peared recently in one of the magazines: There was man in our town Invested all his health,
 With madly avaricious aim,
 To win the goal of wealth;
 And when the same he had attained, With all his might and main,
 He vanly lavished all his wealth To get his health again."
 Each person should have some means of relaxing the tension which his daily work involves. A very considerable pro- portion of men who make a success Tn cities have come from the country. It is said that life there is not only good for one on account of the outdoor element but because the nervous strain is less, and /, the opportunit. for leisure and commun- | ion with natun develops imagination. II would be splendid thing if each alter ] na te generation could live in the country l Under the most favorable conditions, life, whether successful or otherwise, is 1 not easy, and one needs the very best possible physical equipment. Occasions arise when much depends on ability to en- | dure tremendous mental, as we'll as : physical strain. For lack of this, men | in public. as well as in private life. have 1 surrendered cherished ambitions. In re- cent years prominent citizen of our 1 country declined very flattering pros pect of election to the presidency because his strength was not equal to the demands that would be made upon 1t. ECONOMY
 The argument is frequently made that q large fortune cannot be accumulated by the mere exercise of economy, and this is Iyobably true. However. under the law of averages, the vast majority of peo- ple will never accumulate fortune. and are fortunate to secure a modest compe-
 teLcy or even home. And either com