Evening star., 1933-05-10
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES Z. TRACEWELL.

There Is no more obnoxious visitor to
Q garden, not even an tnimical insect
which threatens to ruin all ones plants,
than the ignorant friend who neverthe-
less wants to tell the gardener all about
how to do 1t.
Usually such . person blandly ad-
mits, upon entrance, that he (or She)
knows nothing ct all about flowers, yet
in the very next breath he (or she) Is
glibly Offering advice and warning.
A nice specimen Of Virginia creeper,
with its groups Of flve leaves, grows
around the old stump which supports
. sundial.
Madame instantly proclaims 1t poison
ivy.
DO not touch thatl" she shrieks, in
great alarm. 1T Is poison ivy"
No amount Of explanation that the
leaves Of the Ivy grow In groups of
three, not five, can sway her opinion.
The fact that she knows the gar
dener does know about such things, and
that she, herself, has just admitted her
own ignorance, never seems to enter
her head.
This type of "know-it-all" grows worse
with the years.
There Is no hope of salvation, be-
cause the primary need in all reforma-
tion,> the inner desire, based upon hu-
mility, to grow better, Is utterly lacking.
Supposed knowledge, or at least
claimed knowledge, soothes some tenn
pers beyond belief.
Prior confession Of ignorance is Just
. blind.
Such . victim Of himself (or herself)
has discovered that q profession Of ig-
d hot fe - S,o
ones face, in case some one else, rather
obdurately, to be sure. attempts to call
ones bluff.
1t might seem to the innocent that
few persons would attempt this sort of
thing, but the truth Is just the oppo-
site, and it will not take long to dis
cover why.
This person has real ability at
picking those who will put up with such
an outrageous method, which one sec
ond proclatms utter lack of knowledge,
the very next sets itself up as both
Judge and jury.
The one who must suffer this indig-
nifty to intelligence always Is selected
because Of that touch Of genuine .hu-
mility which is always associated with
some knowledge. Only the man or
woman who has achieved at least an
approach to real knowledge Of any SUP
ject Is ever humble
The dabbler, the sheer dilettante in
any line. Is grossly egotistical, because
he does not know enough to be ashamed
Of all he does not know. Especially
he lacks reverence for all that yet re-
mains to be known.
4
The more one knows, on any subject,
the more inclined he IS to deprecate
his own knowledge, in view Of the vast
realms as yet unexplored.
The one who knows little, and Is
even willing to admit 1t. nevertheless
Is willing almost instantly to show his
true colors by claiming everything In
sight.
What can this be but an attempt
to carry over into the realm OF the
mind the tricks that work In the
physical world?
Big talk, loud talk, bluster-these
normally succeed better than they de-
serve.
Confidence, that divine quality, is
abused along with the rest.
No one could be more confident, In
loudly proclaiming an error, than our
many, scattered all over the world.
Let no one anywhere fiatter himself
Cor HERSELF with the belief that he or
she Is unique.
They all get away with it" because
they DO possess q certain ability In Sc
lecting their victims.
Almost without exception they talk
their loudeSt and are their most Su-