Evening star., 1925-07-08
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL..

| there should be no indecent ones, no
nasty ones, no utterly foolish ones,
but every printed book should hold,
somewhere, at least one idea woHth
while.
The "Meditations" of Marcus Azure.
lius constitute such a good book. II
, should be remembered that these re.
Elections were the jottings of the man
as he was in camp, or during other
times of his troubled reign.
He had no particular idea that they
would be preserved for posterity, sc
they are honest, IL fragmentary, and
to the point, if sometimes vague. This
man was a dreamer, and only the
dreamers among his readers will fully
understand and appreciate him.
Yet any one can so relate his words
TO 1925 as to get a, great deal of in
struction and entertainment from him
The one comes with the other, fol
every worthwhile book, in any branch
of learning, has to offer entertainment,
as well as knowledge, else who would
read 1t?
Men are animals who desire to be
amused, If in no other way than by
exercising their minds, much as they
exercise their bodies on the goli
course.
The first book of Marcus Aurelius
is a mere setting down of the gooC
traits and qualities of his relations
and teachers. George Long, whose
mastery translation Is the standard
says that it would be a mistake tc
i understand Marcus as saying that ht
possessed all the virtues which he
observed in his kinsmen and teachers
but he means that he observed certain
good qualities in them, or received
certain benefits from them. "and it Is
implied that he was the better for it
or at least might have been"
/ From his mother, Marcus Aurelius
tells us, he was exposed to piety anc
beneficence, "and abstinence, not onl,
from evil deeds, but even from evi
i thoughts"
If that is not the secret of decencS
In this world, do not know what 1t is
/ Abstinence, not only from evi
deeds, but even from evil thoughts"
There is no man living, no, nor WON
an, either, who cannot take thos,
words to heart, over the lapse of 2 2,00t
years, and be the better for littl,
meditation of his own over them.
"A counsel of perfection they may be
but at least they are direct, homes
statement of a fact, a fact which !.
really the basis of many modern phil
osophies of living
1t is not enough not to do evil; one
must abstain even from evil thoughts
Marcus Aurelius tells us, as all tn.
great teachers of the world have tolC
us. 1t is the old, old doctrine, so true
so difficult, so grand
/ From another mentor of his Marcu,
learned mot to NEEDLE with other peo
pies affairs. and not to be ready t
listen to slander."
Ouch.
There is no person reading here (anc
certainly not the writer) who has not
at some time or other, meddled a bit il
some one else's affairs. or been some
what ready to listen to a bit of deli
cious slander.
Listen, then, to this practical ole
Roman, whom we have tuned in will
our mental radio The old boy Ger
tainly has the right slant on life-w,
! admit II, you bet, we all admit it,
Why, If each one of us would nevel
NEEDLE in other peoples affairs, AM
never, no, never, listen or even b,
ready TO listen, TO slander. what
grand old world we would evolve al
most overnight
From another of his tutors Aureliu
learned to endure freedom of speech.
You see, he was just about l 800 year
ahead of the Constitution of tn,
| United States. Great minds do, in
deed, run in the same great channels