Section 45:  Reflections

Even a long life is too short to accomplish much in this world. The old Emperor of Germany, who has just died, February 9th, 1888, is numbered with the dead just when it is most important that he should live, and the peace of the nations of Europe may be broken by the snapping of the thread of his life. The world may be growing better, and I hope it is, but the mind of an old man reverts to the past and to the associations and warm friendships of his younger days. With blunted perceptions and weakened powers he sees but little sunshine in the short remnant of his life and instinctively he turns back to the days of his boyhood and younger life and to the events that brightened those halcyon days, and without regret he contemplates the day when he will sleep with his fathers and like his compeers be forgotten; and this don't necessarily imply that his days of senility are unhappy. The mere matter of rest is grateful to him, and if unburdened with unusual cares and at peace with his God, looks forward to a future life -- it may be with uncertainty but still with trust and a consciousness that he is ripening for a future world and losing his interest in the life around him.

When I was a boy of twelve years old, I often thought how unfortunate it was that I was not born sick so I could wear my Sunday clothes all the week, and have nothing to do; and I often studied what I could do to make money so I could wear my store clothes all the time to work and make fifty dollars a year for twenty years and then I would be worth a whole thousand dollars which I thought would be ample to keep me in affluence the balance of my life. The difficulty seemed to be that this calculation left out a very important item -- that of getting and supporting a wife, and the twenty years would put me away beyond the proper age for securing that valuable acquisition. I had read of lotteries and I thought it would be a nice thing to buy a ticket and draw a handsome prize and save all those twenty years of weary labor, but that savored too strongly of gambling, and I had been taught that all games of chance were mortal sin; but I revolved a great many schemes to set myself up in life and all seemed to center in the one great desire to get along comfortably through life without work.

Our Father and Mother raised us in the old Scotch-Irish rule of strict observance of the Sabbath. The stock had to be attended to, but no cutting of wood for the fire was allowed on that day; no play or noise was tolerated.

After worship in the morning, most of the family got ready and went to church. After church, along about three o'clock, a meal was cooked and sometimes in a summer evening, Father and Mother would take a quiet walk down the lane and when a small boy it was my delight to join them, but I was not permitted to throw stones at the birds or catch butterflies.

Towards dark Mother would gather us all around her and have us recite the shorter catechism. Father would sit at the table reading the Bible and when we were through then family worship and then to bed. At that time I thought very hard of these restrictions on my natural liberty. The right and wrong of it I then traced no farther back than the orders of Father and Mother and I thought the farm was a very hard place on boys.

The children of our tenants had easier times than we had. It was not the mere matter of work that troubled me for I don't know that I was specially indolent, but to have to wear poor clothes and work for a living when I saw other boys playing and idle I thought was not quite fair. It never occurred to me that I was drinking in fresh air on the farm and by steady work and exercise I was gathering strength and vigor and acquiring habits of industry, and it was keeping me out of mischief and contracting vicious habits and was worth more to me in after life than fifty thousand dollars. And now, after having lived nearly three-quarters of a century, I regard the farm the very best place in the world to raise boys and when matured to make the highest and best grade of men as has been shown in thousand [sic] instances in all the higher walks of life. When to this is added the careful training of a religious Father and Mother, it is the best inheritance ever left to a healthy and intelligent boy, and is a better send-off than Vanderbilt's millions.

It doesn't require the highest order of talent to make a successful business man. The labor and business of the country is done by ordinary minds -- common sense, industry and education give tone to the world. The extraordinary intellects and original thinkers are apt to be erratic and their use is to make suggestions in science or morals which are reduced to practice by the common sense and working minds of the world. The worst fate that can befall a young man is to be raised without care, work or the necessity of making his own living. A high moral tone, integrity and a conscientious discharge of duty are the traits that will most certainly insure success in business and the greatest amount of happiness in life and secure the influence and respect of neighbors.

It is said "that an idle brain is the Devil's workship [sic]." However this may be, I have known but few men who followed no regular calling and led lives of indolence who did not sooner or later fall into evil habits and they were men of peculiar temperament and not naturally active or energetic. In this country I have no doubt all men possessing health and common sense may by industry and economy acquire property. It may not be a great deal, but enough to raise a family and live comfortably, and I believe the best citizens and the happiest men we have are those who follow regularly some healthy work and save a little money every year. His home grows more attractive and he has no time to wrangle and quarrel with his neighbors, or loaf in a bar room and he will always have a dollar to pay to the church or a loaf of bread to feed hungry children.