The coastland times. [volume] (Mnateo [i.e. Manteo], N.C.) 1947-1959, 1959-02-06
CONFIDENCE, ONCE CUT OFF
LIKE A LEG, GONE FOREVER
BIZ VICTOR MEEklNS

commence comes from the
hearts desire to be good and to
accept all persons as one believes
himself to be. Confidence can be
torn down like hot water melts a
lump of sugar. Confidence is like a
limb that is amputated, there is no
way to ever put it back.
1t is the tendency of youth to
put faith, into any and every per-
son or thing that claims right
to confidence. 1t is the nature of
youth to accept everyone at face
value. No one suffers more than
youth upon establishment that
follows the frightful realization
that all men are not honest and
true, that sometimes those who
pose as friends are merely wolves
in sleeps clothing, using any and
tvery device, art, stratagem or Chi
canery to convert everything to
personal profit. Youth sometimes
learns that there actually are peo-
pie who have so much greed they
will betray a good friend, who will
despoil and destroy trust and con-
fidence of one who has sacrificed
for them, in order to wiring from
the spoils a trifling bit Of treas
ure.
After knocking around this old
world for more than half cen
fury, one would have to be mighty
dumb indeed not to wake up to
some of the facts of life. 1t is sad
indeed that some of them cannot
be learned earlier and a better APP
praisal made of the outcome of
many trusts and friendships dur
ing the days when greater bene-
fits might be gained. But this
much is sure, there are crooks and
traitors. We must admit it and
act accordingly, and if we did this
always, the world would be the
better off.
Personally, for myself, once
have become convinced that man
is unworthy of trust and conf
dence, he never again has my es-
TEEN. Respect and confidence fol
little, narrow-gauge souls meyer
come back to me any more. would
never again give them more than
their due; l would always be-
grudge giving them anything
more. just cannot love chiselers,
hypocrites, perpetual free-loaders,
congenital double crossers, or any
other kind of thieves and thugs.
have learned to predict pretty
we'll the kind of person who is not
to be trusted. He is invariably a
mean and selfish man. Most al
ways he is "a stupid man. He is
dumb enough to assume all others
are fools and they cannot see
through his schemes. He never
learns that he cannot be one thing
to a mans face and something else
to his back without it being found
out. He doesn't know there is no
such thing as excepting a secret
if that secret is shared with either
sucker or knave.
The selfish man of little soul
is always the man to watch. He is
greedy and he loves profits, and
such man who loves money above
all else will always be likely to
betray his best friend if he ex-
poets gain by so doing. The self
Nish man is the sort of guy who
never gives more than lip service
to things that sustain him. He is
the man who gives next to nothing
to his party, while living on it fol-
8 lifetime. He is the man who
pirates loudly of his Christianity
but pays nothing to the preacher
whom he is always applauding. He
is the man who so often promises
but never pays when the hat is
passed for those in need. He is the
man who is on both sides and in
the middle also. He stays on the
fence as long as he can, and when
he must get off his undying
friendship is pledged by whispers
only to each of both sides of the
issue.
The kind of man to watch i:
the man who will charge his coun
ty, state and nation double price
for what he could get in private
trade. He will phenagle arount
to make his trusting people pa!
more than he is worth anywhere
else, and at the same time spen'
his energies in doing work TO
private gain while neglecting hi
duties to those who feed him reg
ularly.
He is the kind of man who viii
use good friends to get himself
advanced to places of trust o
preferment, and then will be to-
selfish to permit those friends t
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