Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1933-08-24

This. people say, is an intellectual
age. And so it rightly is If we choose
10 make book knowledge" and dlplo-
mas the criterion for this, so-called'
intellectualism. However, in the
strict orthodox meaning of the term,
these things do not signify lntellec-
tualism, but mere knowledge and So
cial color.
l will grant you that in this day
and age there are walking ehcy-
clopaedias" of no mean numbers, anu
that the number of diplomas kept IN
tinted cages fall into the category
of the uncountable. Yet, when was
there an age when man was so nlieo
with misconceptions, so entangled III
false notions, and so subject to be
led hither and thither on erroneous
tangents. vet so fond of boasting, as
now? NEVER!
Intellectualism embodies not only
knowledge but also intelligence. Now
KNOWLEDGE embodies merely the
acquired contents of the brain, while
INTELLIGENCE is the application OF
KNOWLEDGE ability of per-
son to adjust himself to the realities
of life. KNOWLEDGE is merely the
means to the end which is INTEL
LIGENCE, just as the spoon Is mercy
the means to an end. the end, let us
say. being the conveying of the pud-
ding from the dish to the mouth.
1t follows, therefore, that the oe-
gree of intelligence which people
possesses will depend wholly Tor al
most sol upon the nature OF the ac-
uuired knowledge, and that, conse-
auently, in order that individuals
shall be able to cope properly with
the diverse problems of life-that ls'
for the highest welfare of themselves
and of their fellowmen-their knowl-
edge must invariably possess exact
ness and definiteness.
l will not apologize for stating that
we are living in an age of deplor-
able instability, for all evidences
converge into this very conclusion.
And why? Because it is scaffold on
rationalism.
Easily Swayed.
In general, people have very few
definitely fixed ideas concerning vital
problems of life. Most people Will
flock, like sheep, with the last article
they read or with the last speaker
they hear. Or others, completely
drowned in scepticism, will dismiss
everything with a passive smoker,
and move on as aimless vagabonds,
having no particular interest in any
thing possessing real and spiritual
value. Still others, in order to de-
fend some personal act or fancy, Will
often permit themselves to fall into
the most absurd paths of reasoning
reasoning which belongs neither here
nor there.
Such conditions as these are, in
themselves, clear-cut manifestations
of instability. They simply tell us
this, that man has now come to the
stage where he is either lacking SUI
ficient and correct knowledge about
the fundamental principles OF life, OF
else that the acquiring of knowledge
Is cherished, not as a medium to a
higher and more perfect life as hui
man beings, but merely as tool fol
defending and manipulating selfish
motives,-not as an altruistic and
noble ultimatum, but as selfish i'm
mediator. Both of them are, of course
correct and they are highly danger.
Gus to civilization.
The nature of an individuals per
sonality is, of course, merely an out
ward manifestation of the environ
mental conditions through which he
has passed. Man learns by means o.
what he has already learned; he
thinks and acts on the basis of what
he already knows; and he observes OF
the basis of what he has already
learned and observed. In order, there
fore, to observe, judge, and decide cor
rectly on the numerous and diverse
problems of life. people must neces
sarily possess definite and corree
knowledge concerning the fundamen
tai aspects of life. Our knowledge Il
merely tools which we needs mus
use on our life's journey, and 1t Il
just as absurd to try to meet life will
insufficient tools as it is to attemp
to overhaul a motor with an insult
ficient set of tools-it just can't b.
done.
Intellectual Needs are Greater.
1t is simply impossible to exist nov
as a lone pebble in the desert. Tn
machine" and the new system OF in
dustriahsm has bound the who'll
civilized world together, as 1t were
into one large family, and we mus
all share one another's problems, SO
cially and economically. Therefore
the intellectual needs of every per
son has and is becoming increasingl
greater for every circuit of the sur
But! as mans intellectual need