Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1919-07-01
SECRETS OF SUCCESS
Clarence Poe Discusses Some OF
the Fundamentals.
SENSIBLE TALK TO farm BOYS
Best Possible Capital is a Sound
Body, a Trained Mind, Disciplined
Spirit-Besinning With Things as
They are the Boy Must Develop
These.
Clarence Poe in Progressive Farmer.
MY Dear Boy:

|
My Dear Boy:
You wish to know how a boy ma!
get ahead in the world. You say tina
you wish first of all to develop a wor
thy character, but you also wish to b'
a success in material things.
/ am glad you have this ambition. A
boy who has it will be a better man
a better citizen, man of greater In
dustry and prudence, than a boy who
lacks 1t.
First of all be sure you make gooo
use of the capital you already have
But perhaps you say that you have nc
capital; your father is poor mar
and you will get no property from
him.
This may be true and yet you may
have far better capital than some boy
who inherited herds and flocks, stock:
and bonds and broad acres
A sound body, trained mind,
Disciplined spirit-these three eonsti.
tute any mans most important capi'
tai. Out of this capital some Of the
worlds wealthiest men have carved
their fortunes. Lacking this capital
many a young fellow inheriting mil.
lions has gone straight into bankrupt
cy.
| The main thing, as I have otter
said, is to see to it that you are boss OF
yourself, your whole self-body, MIND
and spirit-so that you can contro
each and make each count for most ir
useful living.
| Have you not heard the expression
used concerning some man that he IL
"his own worst enemy?" The man has
lost self-control. He is not boss OF
himself. An appetite for drink has
gotten control of him. On the throne
where the Almighty intended that the
man should sit sovereign this terrible
appetite sits enthroned like tyran'
and usurper. 1t bosses the man; he
no loI ger bosses it. Or it may be
some vice, or an ungovernable temper
which dominates the man-"possesses
him, as the old phrase has 1t. He Is
not boss of himself. And no boy OF
man can get ahead in life unless he
knows "the kingship Of self control
It am emperor Of myself" is the proud
boast of one of the great figures in lit
erature, and it is a phrase worth re-
membering.
| How many a man, as have suggest
ed, is boss of himself in part, but Is
not boss of his whole self Conse'
qucntly. am emphasizing that word
whole"
| And this remark brings to mind
boyhood memory 1 have once before
mentioned il the Progressive Farmer
NV father and 1 were standing at the
gate of the old country church, and
two of our neighbor farmers were
talking. Il am not lazy with my
muscles. I don't mind doing any haro
work that comes to hand" said one OF
them, but l do mortally hate menta
work. When it comes to sitting down
and figuring and studying out some
problem, 1 always dodge it If can."
It has been many years since
heard this conversation; but it has
fingered in my memory ever since
This man was only half boss Of him
self-boss of his muscles, but not Of
his mind. And one great reason why
farming doesn't pay better and pro-
gress faster is that too many othel
farmers are like our neighbor. The
man who is to succeed at farming OF
ANYTHING else, must be boss OF himself
boss both of his muscle and mis-
mind. He must be neither lazy bodied
nor lazy minded. He must be able to
look at any necessary job on the farm
and say: This job ought to be DONE
and straightway make himself do IT.
and he must be quite as ready TO sa!
of some matter about which he needs
information: This lesson ought to bt
learned" and straightway make him
self learn it.
A disciplined spirit, spirit Of
which the boy is master, is the thlro
element of his natural capital which
any boy may use in getting ahead II
the world. No matter whether ne
works for other men, or has other mer
work for him, he needs to be boss OF
his spirit.
7 think right now Of two men who
illustrate my point. Each man is bos:
of his body and seemingly boss OF MS
mind. Each man works hard and uses
his head. But neither man is boss o1
his spirit, and for this reason each has
failed to make the success in life he
ought to have made. One man lets mis-
temper rule him, and this makes 1t al
Imost impossible for him to work WitE
other men or for other men 10 worn
with him-and no man can get very
far in life without an easy faculty FOL
teamwork. The other man is not boss
of his spirit, because he lets worry rule
him. He has the unhappy faculty OF
making the worst of things. He looks
back at any mistake and worries abou'
it instead of saying: "Well, made
mistake there, but 1 have learned
lesson from it and will not make thai
kind of error again" No matter
whether you arc driving an automo'
bile or driving your business, yot
can't make progress by perpetual!
looking back and Lots wife may wei
teach US a lesson in this respect.
If you are going to make the mos
. of your natural capital, you will d'
well to remember an excellent phras'
of a country doctor l know. "a man,
he says, must learn to cooperate
, with the inevitable" In other words
, he must use all of his energy in chang
in, things that can be helped, insteat
of wearing himself out in futile hght
, ing against things that can't be help
ed. Some folks remind me Of calves
, When l was a boy and would tie tn
calf to the fence while L MIXED tn
COW, the little rascal would almos