The Washington times., 1922-01-11
a Man Without Ambition
Is a Watch Without
a Mninspring
A reader sends in this letter, which we answer:

reader sends in this letter, which we answer:
Editor Of The TImss
not SIR .n rs ss n %
@
e
1:ss's;s:
That interesting twolegged animal in charge Of this
earth, called man, is wound up in complicated fashion
Twelve passions, instincts atractonsname them
you pease-anmate and control him.
OF these twelve passions NINE actual moving forces
THREE direct and control the other nine.
Among the nine MOVING forces in there three
that dominatewe will ignore the others for the present
First, and most necessary is THE INSTINCT OF SELF
PRESERVATION. That instinct kept alive, forced
them to continue living this earth under horrible cond
tions of cold and hunger and brutality Natures wisdom
made the instinct of self preservation very powerful in
primitive to keep him this earth, to do his work
here In the savage Of thirty thousand years and
Of today the instinct Of sepreservation is apoweruL
You see that in burning heater, sinking ship or else
where, when the real nature of man comes out.
The second great moving force in mankind is tho
PATERNAL instinct the instinct of reproduction. This
guarantees that there shall be other human beings earth
to follow each generation away In the
brutal the instinct Of reproduction is the strongest
next to the instinct of self-preservaton.
The third great passion Of the human mind is AMBI
TION desire for change for improvement
AS have told you before, and shall often repeat the
instinct of SELF keeps this EARTH
our work after death, AMBITION PREVENTS sTAGNA-
TION BRINGS ABOUT PROGRESS.
The friend whose letter quote of many that ask
whether ambition really worth WHILE what sort of amb
ton a ought to have etc.
The first question may be dsregarded you have amb
tou YOU'VE GOT IT. It's like the measles, and it doesn't
make any difference whether it is worth while mott
must its
Every human being has ambition in youth The young
man without ambition is creature almost IN
thinkable.
AS advance in years. however forces diminish in
ntensty-or have not yet reached the real stage OF
development which will bring about constant increase of
intellectual force and interest at least for the first hundred
years of life
Ambition is the human emotion that dies most quickly
1t attacked and devoured by just such questions as
friend puts in his letter.
But taking the gloomiest possible view of the question
that is asked and assuming that it does NOT make
difference to hereafter whether he did well or i'll
How about the man that lives selfshy, fills the little
stomach decorates the foolish body fancifuyives only
for himsefi
What good will that do HIM after he is deadi
What good will it do him. after he is dead to have eaten
and drunk muchi
Life passes second, and the dull unmaginatve
man who believes that this life ends all might we'll deter
mine do at least the best work possible during his little
moment on the stage.
The only man worth while is the ambitious man. The
only child or woman worth while is the ambitious child
woman.
Ambition the world, the handspring moves the
watch hands.
And the human being without ambition is like the watch
without handspring.
Such watch and such human being looked at from the
outside are quite satisfactorysmooth and pleasing BUT
THERE IS NO USE IN THEM
The business of every human being is to cherish the
spring of ambition within him. and do what little he can to
move forward the world in generaif he be big enough
or at least that little Of it in which his life is passed
The thing to do is to have THE RIGHT AMBITION.
Don't mistake foolish egotism for ambition.
The frog in La Fontanes fable ambitious in the