Produced by Charles Keller
The man who makes it the habit of his life to go to bed at nineo'clock, usually gets rich and is always reliable. Of course, going tobed does not make him rich—I merely mean that such a man will in allprobability be up early in the morning and do a big day's work, so hisweary bones put him to bed early. Rogues do their work at night.Honest men work by day. It's all a matter of habit, and good habits inAmerica make any man rich. Wealth is a result of habit.
Victor Hugo says, "When you open a school, you close a prison."
This seems to require a little explanation. Victor Hugo did not havein mind a theological school, nor yet a young ladies' seminary, nor anEnglish boarding-school, nor a military academy, and least of all aparochial institute. What he was thinking of was a school wherepeople—young and old—were taught to be self-respecting, self-reliantand efficient—to care for themselves, to help bear the burdens of theworld, to assist themselves by adding to the happiness of others.
Victor Hugo fully realized that the only education that serves is theone that increases human efficiency, not the one that retards it. Aneducation for honors, ease, medals, degrees, titles,position—immunity—may tend to exalt the individual ego, but itweakens the race and its gain on the whole is nil.
Men are rich only as they give. He who gives great service, gets greatreturns. Action and reaction are equal, and the radiatory power of theplanets balances their attraction. The love you keep is the love yougive away.
A bumptious colored person wearing a derby tipped over one eye, and acigar in his mouth pointing to the northwest, walked into a hardwarestore and remarked, "Lemme see your razors."
The clerk smiled pleasantly and asked, "Do you want a razor to shavewith?"
"Naw," said the colored person, "—for social purposes."
An education for social purposes is n't of any more use than a razorpurchased for a like use. An education which merely fits a person toprey on society, and occasionally slash it up, is a predatorypreparation for a life of uselessness, and closes no prison. Rather itopens a prison and takes captive at least one man. The only educationthat makes free is the one that tends to human efficiency. Teachchildren to work, play, laugh, fletcherize, study, think, and yetagain—work, and we will raze every prison.
There is only one prison, and its name is Inefficiency. Amid thebastions of this bastile of the brain the guards are Pride, Pretense,Greed, Gluttony, Selfishness.
Increase human efficiency and you set the captives free.
"The Teutonic tribes have captured the world because of theirefficiency," says Lecky the historian.
He then adds that he himself is a Celt.
The two statements taken together reveal Lecky to be a man withoutprejudice. When the Irish tell the truth about the Dutch themillennium approaches.
Should the quibbler arise and say that the Dutch are not Germans, Iwill reply, true, but the Germans are Dutch—at least they are of Dutchdescent.
The Germans are great simply because they have the homely andindispensable virtues of prudence, patience and industry.
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