Thethingisimpossible。
Y。M。ThereMUSTbeagenuinelyandutterlyselfsacrificingactrecordedinhumanhistorysomewhere。
O。M。Youareyoung。Youhavemanyyearsbeforeyou。
Searchoneout。
Y。M。Itdoesseemtomethatwhenamanseesafellowbeingstrugglinginthewaterandjumpsinattheriskofhislifetosavehim
O。M。Wait。DescribetheMAN。DescribetheFELLOWBEING。
StateifthereisanAUDIENCEpresent;oriftheyareALONE。
Y。M。Whathavethesethingstodowiththesplendidact?
O。M。Verymuch。Shallwesuppose,asabeginning,thatthetwoarealone,inasolitaryplace,atmidnight?
Y。M。Ifyouchoose。
O。M。Andthatthefellowbeingistheman’sdaughter?
Y。M。Well,nnomakeitsomeoneelse。
O。M。Afilthy,drunkenruffian,then?
Y。M。Isee。Circumstancesaltercases。Isupposethatiftherewasnoaudiencetoobservetheact,themanwouldn’tperformit。
O。M。ButthereishereandthereamanwhoWOULD。People,forinstance,likethemanwholosthislifetryingtosavethechildfromthefire;andthemanwhogavetheneedyoldwomanhistwentyfivecentsandwalkedhomeinthestormtherearehereandtheremenlikethatwhowoulddoit。Andwhy?Becausetheycouldn’tBEARtoseeafellowbeingstrugglinginthewaterandnotjumpinandhelp。ItwouldgiveTHEMpain。Theywouldsavethefellowbeingonthataccount。THEYWOULDN’TDOITOTHERWISE。
TheystrictlyobeythelawwhichIhavebeeninsistingupon。YoumustrememberandalwaysdistinguishthepeoplewhoCAN’TBEAR
thingsfrompeoplewhoCAN。Itwillthrowlightuponanumberofapparently"selfsacrificing"cases。
Y。M。Oh,dear,it’sallsodisgusting。
O。M。Yes。Andsotrue。
Y。M。Cometakethegoodboywhodoesthingshedoesn’twanttodo,inordertogratifyhismother。
O。M。HedoessevententhsoftheactbecauseitgratifiesHIMtogratifyhismother。Throwthebulkofadvantagetheotherwayandthegoodboywouldnotdotheact。HeMUSTobeytheironlaw。Nonecanescapeit。
Y。M。Well,takethecaseofabadboywho
O。M。Youneedn’tmentionit,itisawasteoftime。Itisnomatteraboutthebadboy’sact。Whateveritwas,hehadaspiritcontentingreasonforit。Otherwiseyouhavebeenmisinformed,andhedidn’tdoit。
Y。M。Itisveryexasperating。Awhileagoyousaidthatman’sconscienceisnotabornjudgeofmoralsandconduct,buthastobetaughtandtrained。NowIthinkaconsciencecangetdrowsyandlazy,butIdon’tthinkitcangowrong;ifyouwakeitup
ALittleStoryO。M。Iwilltellyoualittlestory:
OnceuponatimeanInfidelwasguestinthehouseofaChristianwidowwhoselittleboywasillandneartodeath。TheInfideloftenwatchedbythebedsideandentertainedtheboywithtalk,andheusedtheseopportunitiestosatisfyastronglonginginhisnaturethatdesirewhichisinusalltobetterotherpeople’sconditionbyhavingthemthinkaswethink。Hewassuccessful。Butthedyingboy,inhislastmoments,reproachedhimandsaid:
"IBELIEVED,ANDWASHAPPYINIT;YOUHAVETAKENMYBELIEF
AWAY,ANDMYCOMFORT。NOWIHAVENOTHINGLEFT,ANDIDIE
MISERABLE;FORTHETHINGSWHICHYOUHAVETOLDMEDONOTTAKETHE
PLACEOFTHATWHICHIHAVELOST。"
Andthemother,also,reproachedtheInfidel,andsaid:
"MYCHILDISFOREVERLOST,ANDMYHEARTISBROKEN。HOW
COULDYOUDOTHISCRUELTHING?WEHAVEDONEYOUNOHARM,BUT
ONLYKINDNESS;WEMADEOURHOUSEYOURHOME,YOUWEREWELCOMETO
ALLWEHAD,ANDTHISISOURREWARD。"
TheheartoftheInfidelwasfilledwithremorseforwhathehaddone,andhesaid:
"ITWASWRONGISEEITNOW;BUTIWASONLYTRYINGTODOHIM
GOOD。INMYVIEWHEWASINERROR;ITSEEMEDMYDUTYTOTEACHHIM
THETRUTH。"
Thenthemothersaid:
"IHADTAUGHTHIM,ALLHISLITTLELIFE,WHATIBELIEVEDTO
BETHETRUTH,ANDINHISBELIEVINGFAITHBOTHOFUSWEREHAPPY。
NOWHEISDEAD,ANDLOST;ANDIAMMISERABLE。OURFAITHCAME
DOWNTOUSTHROUGHCENTURIESOFBELIEVINGANCESTORS;WHATRIGHT
HADYOU,ORANYONE,TODISTURBIT?WHEREWASYOURHONOR,WHERE
WASYOURSHAME?"
Y。M。Hewasamiscreant,anddeserveddeath!
O。M。Hethoughtsohimself,andsaidso。
Y。M。Ahyousee,HISCONSCIENCEWASAWAKENED1!
O。M。Yes,hisSelfDisapprovalwas。ItPAINEDhimtoseethemothersuffer。HewassorryhehaddoneathingwhichbroughtHIMpain。Itdidnotoccurtohimtothinkofthemotherwhenhewasmisteachingtheboy,forhewasabsorbedinprovidingPLEASUREforhimself,then。Providingitbysatisfyingwhathebelievedtobeacallofduty。
Y。M。Callitwhatyouplease,itistomeacaseofAWAKENEDCONSCIENCE。Thatawakenedconsciencecouldnevergetitselfintothatspeciesoftroubleagain。AcurelikethatisaPERMANENTcure。
O。M。PardonIhadnotfinishedthestory。WearecreaturesofOUTSIDEINFLUENCESweoriginateNOTHINGwithin。
Wheneverwetakeanewlineofthoughtanddriftintoanewlineofbeliefandaction,theimpulseisALWAYSsuggestedfromtheOUTSIDE。RemorsesopreyedupontheInfidelthatitdissolvedhisharshnesstowardtheboy’sreligionandmadehimcometoregarditwithtolerance,nextwithkindness,fortheboy’ssakeandthemother’s。Finallyhefoundhimselfexaminingit。Fromthatmomenthisprogressinhisnewtrendwassteadyandrapid。
HebecameabelievingChristian。Andnowhisremorseforhavingrobbedthedyingboyofhisfaithandhissalvationwasbittererthanever。Itgavehimnorest,nopeace。HeMUSThaverestandpeaceitisthelawofnature。Thereseemedbutonewaytogetit;hemustdevotehimselftosavingimperiledsouls。Hebecameamissionary。Helandedinapagancountryillandhelpless。A
nativewidowtookhimintoherhumblehomeandnursedhimbacktoconvalescence。Thenheryoungboywastakenhopelesslyill,andthegratefulmissionaryhelpedhertendhim。Herewashisfirstopportunitytorepairapartofthewrongdonetotheotherboybydoingapreciousserviceforthisonebyundermininghisfoolishfaithinhisfalsegods。Hewassuccessful。Butthedyingboyinhislastmomentsreproachedhimandsaid:
"IBELIEVED,ANDWASHAPPYINIT;YOUHAVETAKENMYBELIEF
AWAY,ANDMYCOMFORT。NOWIHAVENOTHINGLEFT,ANDIDIE
MISERABLE;FORTHETHINGSWHICHYOUHAVETOLDMEDONOTTAKETHE
PLACEOFTHATWHICHIHAVELOST。"
Andthemother,also,reproachedthemissionary,andsaid:
"MYCHILDISFOREVERLOST,ANDMYHEARTISBROKEN。HOW
COULDYOUDOTHISCRUELTHING?WEHADDONEYOUNOHARM,BUTONLY
KINDNESS;WEMADEOURHOUSEYOURHOME,YOUWEREWELCOMETOALLWE
HAD,ANDTHISISOURREWARD。"
Theheartofthemissionarywasfilledwithremorseforwhathehaddone,andhesaid:
"ITWASWRONGISEEITNOW;BUTIWASONLYTRYINGTODOHIM
GOOD。INMYVIEWHEWASINERROR;ITSEEMEDMYDUTYTOTEACHHIM
THETRUTH。"
Thenthemothersaid:
"IHADTAUGHTHIM,ALLHISLITTLELIFE,WHATIBELIEVEDTO
BETHETRUTH,ANDINHISBELIEVINGFAITHBOTHOFUSWEREHAPPY。
NOWHEISDEADANDLOST;ANDIAMMISERABLE。OURFAITHCAME
DOWNTOUSTHROUGHCENTURIESOFBELIEVINGANCESTORS;WHATRIGHT
HADYOU,ORANYONE,TODISTURBIT?WHEREWASYOURHONOR,WHERE
WASYOURSHAME?"
Themissionary’sanguishofremorseandsenseoftreacherywereasbitterandpersecutingandunappeasable,now,astheyhadbeenintheformercase。Thestoryisfinished。Whatisyourcomment?
Y。M。Theman’sconscienceisafool!Itwasmorbid。Itdidn’tknowrightfromwrong。
O。M。Iamnotsorrytohearyousaythat。IfyougrantthatONEman’sconsciencedoesn’tknowrightfromwrong,itisanadmissionthatthereareotherslikeit。Thissingleadmissionpullsdownthewholedoctrineofinfallibilityofjudgmentinconsciences。MeantimethereisonethingwhichIaskyoutonotice。
Y。M。Whatisthat?
O。M。Thatinbothcasestheman’sACTgavehimnospiritualdiscomfort,andthathewasquitesatisfiedwithitandgotpleasureoutofit。ButafterwardwhenitresultedinPAINtoHIM,hewassorry。Sorryithadinflictedpainupontheothers,BUTFORNOREASONUNDERTHESUNEXCEPTTHATTHEIRPAINGAVEHIM
PAIN。OurconsciencestakeNOnoticeofpaininflicteduponothersuntilitreachesapointwhereitgivespaintoUS。InALLcaseswithoutexceptionweareabsolutelyindifferenttoanotherperson’spainuntilhissufferingsmakeusuncomfortable。
ManyaninfidelwouldnothavebeentroubledbythatChristianmother’sdistress。Don’tyoubelievethat?
Y。M。Yes。YoumightalmostsayitoftheAVERAGEinfidel,Ithink。
O。M。Andmanyamissionary,sternlyfortifiedbyhissenseofduty,wouldnothavebeentroubledbythepaganmother’sdistressJesuitmissionariesinCanadaintheearlyFrenchtimes,forinstance;seeepisodesquotedbyParkman。
Y。M。Well,letusadjourn。Wherehavewearrived?
O。M。Atthis。Thatwe(mankind)haveticketedourselveswithanumberofqualitiestowhichwehavegivenmisleadingnames。Love,Hate,Charity,Compassion,Avarice,Benevolence,andsoon。ImeanweattachmisleadingMEANINGStothenames。
Theyareallformsofselfcontentment,selfgratification,butthenamessodisguisethemthattheydistractourattentionfromthefact。AlsowehavesmuggledawordintothedictionarywhichoughtnottobethereatallSelfSacrifice。Itdescribesathingwhichdoesnotexist。Butworstofall,weignoreandnevermentiontheSoleImpulsewhichdictatesandcompelsaman’severyact:theimperiousnecessityofsecuringhisownapproval,ineveryemergencyandatallcosts。Toitweoweallthatweare。Itisourbreath,ourheart,ourblood。Itisouronlyspur,ourwhip,ourgoad,ouronlyimpellingpower;wehavenoother。Withoutitweshouldbemereinertimages,corpses;noonewoulddoanything,therewouldbenoprogress,theworldwouldstandstill。Weoughttostandreverentlyuncoveredwhenthenameofthatstupendouspowerisuttered。
Y。M。Iamnotconvinced。
O。M。Youwillbewhenyouthink。
III
InstancesinPointOldMan。HaveyougiventhoughttotheGospelofSelf
Approvalsincewetalked?
YoungMan。Ihave。
O。M。ItwasIthatmovedyoutoit。ThatistosayanOUTSIDEINFLUENCEmovedyoutoitnotonethatoriginatedinyourhead。Willyoutrytokeepthatinmindandnotforgetit?
Y。M。Yes。Why?
O。M。Becausebyandbyinoneofourtalks,Iwishtofurtherimpressuponyouthatneitheryou,norI,noranymaneveroriginatesathoughtinhisownhead。THEUTTEREROFA
THOUGHTALWAYSUTTERSASECONDHANDONE。
Y。M。Oh,now
O。M。Wait。Reserveyourremarktillwegettothatpartofourdiscussiontomorrowornextday,say。Now,then,haveyoubeenconsideringthepropositionthatnoactiseverbornofanybutaselfcontentingimpulse(primarily)。Youhavesought。
Whathaveyoufound?
Y。M。Ihavenotbeenveryfortunate。Ihaveexaminedmanyfineandapparentlyselfsacrificingdeedsinromancesandbiographies,but
O。M。Undersearchinganalysistheostensibleselfsacrificedisappeared?Itnaturallywould。
Y。M。Buthereinthisnovelisonewhichseemstopromise。
IntheAdirondackwoodsisawageearnerandlaypreacherinthelumbercampswhoisofnoblecharacteranddeeplyreligious。AnearnestandpracticallaborerintheNewYorkslumscomesupthereonvacationheisleaderofasectionoftheUniversitySettlement。Holme,thelumberman,isfiredwithadesiretothrowawayhisexcellentworldlyprospectsandgodownandsavesoulsontheEastSide。HecountsithappinesstomakethissacrificeforthegloryofGodandforthecauseofChrist。Heresignshisplace,makesthesacrificecheerfully,andgoestotheEastSideandpreachesChristandHimcrucifiedeverydayandeverynighttolittlegroupsofhalfcivilizedforeignpauperswhoscoffathim。Butherejoicesinthescoffings,sinceheissufferingtheminthegreatcauseofChrist。YouhavesofilledmymindwithsuspicionsthatIwasconstantlyexpectingtofindahiddenquestionableimpulsebackofallthis,butIamthankfultosayIhavefailed。Thismansawhisduty,andforDUTY’SSAKE
hesacrificedselfandassumedtheburdenitimposed。
O。M。Isthatasfarasyouhaveread?
Y。M。Yes。
O。M。Letusreadfurther,presently。Meantime,insacrificinghimselfNOTforthegloryofGod,PRIMARILY,asHE
imagined,butFIRSTtocontentthatexactingandinflexiblemasterwithinhimDIDHESACRIFICEANYBODYELSE?
Y。M。Howdoyoumean?
O。M。Herelinquishedalucrativepostandgotmerefoodandlodginginplaceofit。Hadhedependents?
Y。M。Wellyes。
O。M。InwhatwayandtowhatextenddidhisselfsacrificeaffectTHEM?
Y。M。Hewasthesupportofasuperannuatedfather。Hehadayoungsisterwitharemarkablevoicehewasgivingheramusicaleducation,sothatherlongingtobeselfsupportingmightbegratified。Hewasfurnishingthemoneytoputayoungbrotherthroughapolytechnicschoolandsatisfyhisdesiretobecomeacivilengineer。
O。M。Theoldfather’scomfortswerenowcurtailed?
Y。M。Quiteseriously。Yes。
O。M。Thesister’smusiclessenshadtostop?
Y。M。Yes。
O。M。Theyoungbrother’seducationwell,anextinguishingblightfelluponthathappydream,andhehadtogotosawingwoodtosupporttheoldfather,orsomethinglikethat?
Y。M。Itisaboutwhathappened。Yes。
O。M。Whatahandsomejobofselfsacrificinghediddo!ItseemstomethathesacrificedeverybodyEXCEPThimself。Haven’tItoldyouthatnomanEVERsacrificeshimself;thatthereisnoinstanceofituponrecordanywhere;andthatwhenaman’sInteriorMonarchrequiresathingofitsslaveforeitheritsMOMENTARYoritsPERMANENTcontentment,thatthingmustandwillbefurnishedandthatcommandobeyed,nomatterwhomaystandinthewayandsufferdisasterbyit?ThatmanRUINEDHISFAMILYtopleaseandcontenthisInteriorMonarch
Y。M。AndhelpChrist’scause。
O。M。YesSECONDLY。Notfirstly。HEthoughtitwasfirstly。
Y。M。Verywell,haveitso,ifyouwill。ButitcouldbethathearguedthatifhesavedahundredsoulsinNewYork
O。M。ThesacrificeoftheFAMILYwouldbejustifiedbythatgreatprofituponthethewhatshallwecallit?
Y。M。Investment?
O。M。Hardly。HowwouldSPECULATIONdo?HowwouldGAMBLE
do?Notasolitarysoulcapturewassure。Heplayedforapossiblethirtythreehundredpercentprofit。ItwasGAMBLING
withhisfamilyfor"chips。"Howeverletusseehowthegamecameout。Maybewecangetonthetrackofthesecretoriginalimpulse,theREALimpulse,thatmovedhimtosonoblyself
sacrificehisfamilyintheSavior’scauseunderthesuperstitionthathewassacrificinghimself。Iwillreadachapterorso……Herewehaveit!Itwasboundtoexposeitselfsoonerorlater。HepreachedtotheEastSiderabbleaseason,thenwentbacktohisolddull,obscurelifeinthelumbercamps"HURTTO
THEHEART,HISPRIDEHUMBLED。"Why?WerenothiseffortsacceptabletotheSavior,forWhomalonetheyweremade?Dearme,thatdetailisLOSTSIGHTOF,isnotevenreferredto,thefactthatitstartedoutasamotiveisentirelyforgotten!Thenwhatisthetrouble?Theauthoressquiteinnocentlyandunconsciouslygivesthewholebusinessaway。Thetroublewasthis:thismanmerelyPREACHEDtothepoor;thatisnottheUniversitySettlement’sway;itdealsinlargerandbetterthingsthanthat,anditdidnotenthuseoverthatcrudeSalvationArmyeloquence。ItwascourteoustoHolmebutcool。Itdidnotpethim,didnottakehimtoitsbosom。"PERISHEDWEREALLHIS
DREAMSOFDISTINCTION,THEPRAISEANDGRATEFULAPPROVAL"Ofwhom?TheSavior?No;theSaviorisnotmentioned。Ofwhom,then?Of"HisFELLOWWORKERS。"Whydidhewantthat?BecausetheMasterinsideofhimwantedit,andwouldnotbecontentwithoutit。Thatemphasizedsentencequotedabove,revealsthesecretwehavebeenseeking,theoriginalimpulse,theREAL
impulse,whichmovedtheobscureandunappreciatedAdirondacklumbermantosacrificehisfamilyandgoonthatcrusadetotheEastSidewhichsaidoriginalimpulsewasthis,towit:withoutknowingitHEWENTTHERETOSHOWANEGLECTEDWORLDTHELARGE
TALENTTHATWASINHIM,ANDRISETODISTINCTION。AsIhavewarnedyoubefore,NOactspringsfromanybuttheonelaw,theonemotive。ButIprayyou,donotacceptthislawuponmysay
so;butdiligentlyexamineforyourself。Wheneveryoureadofaselfsacrificingactorhearofone,orofadutydoneforDUTY’S
SAKE,takeittopiecesandlookfortheREALmotive。Itisalwaysthere。
Y。M。Idoiteveryday。Icannothelpit,nowthatIhavegottenstarteduponthedegradingandexasperatingquest。Foritishatefullyinteresting!infact,fascinatingistheword。AssoonasIcomeacrossagoldendeedinabookIhavetostopandtakeitapartandexamineit,Icannothelpmyself。
O。M。Haveyoueverfoundonethatdefeatedtherule?
Y。M。Noatleast,notyet。Buttakethecaseofservant
tippinginEurope。YoupaytheHOTELforservice;youowetheservantsNOTHING,yetyoupaythembesides。Doesn’tthatdefeatit?
O。M。Inwhatway?
Y。M。YouarenotOBLIGEDtodoit,thereforeitssourceiscompassionfortheirillpaidcondition,and
O。M。Hasthatcustomevervexedyou,annoyedyou,irritatedyou?
Y。M。Well,yes。
O。M。Stillyousuccumbedtoit?
Y。M。Ofcourse。
O。M。Whyofcourse?
Y。M。Well,customislaw,inaway,andlawsmustbesubmittedtoeverybodyrecognizesitasaDUTY。
O。M。ThenyoupayfortheirritatingtaxforDUTY’Ssake?
Y。M。Isupposeitamountstothat。
O。M。ThentheimpulsewhichmovesyoutosubmittothetaxisnotALLcompassion,charity,benevolence?
Y。M。Wellperhapsnot。
O。M。IsANYofit?
Y。M。IperhapsIwastoohastyinlocatingitssource。
O。M。Perhapsso。Incaseyouignoredthecustomwouldyougetpromptandeffectiveservicefromtheservants?
Y。M。Oh,hearyourselftalk!ThoseEuropeanservants?
Why,youwouldn’tgetanyofall,tospeakof。
O。M。Couldn’tTHATworkasanimpulsetomoveyoutopaythetax?
Y。M。Iamnotdenyingit。
O。M。Apparently,then,itisacaseofforduty’ssakewithalittleselfinterestadded?
Y。M。Yes,ithasthelookofit。Buthereisapoint:
wepaythattaxknowingittobeunjustandanextortion;yetwegoawaywithapainattheheartifwethinkwehavebeenstingywiththepoorfellows;andweheartilywishwewerebackagain,sothatwecoulddotherightthing,andMOREthantherightthing,theGENEROUSthing。Ithinkitwillbedifficultforyoutofindanythoughtofselfinthatimpulse。
O。M。Iwonderwhyyoushouldthinkso。WhenyoufindservicechargedintheHOTELbilldoesitannoyyou?
Y。M。No。
O。M。Doyouevercomplainoftheamountofit?
Y。M。No,itwouldnotoccurtome。
O。M。TheEXPENSE,then,isnottheannoyingdetail。Itisafixedcharge,andyoupayitcheerfully,youpayitwithoutamurmur。Whenyoucametopaytheservants,howwouldyoulikeitifeachofthemenandmaidshadafixedcharge?
Y。M。Likeit?Ishouldrejoice!
O。M。EvenifthefixedtaxwereashadeMOREthanyouhadbeeninthehabitofpayingintheformoftips?
Y。M。Indeed,yes!
O。M。Verywell,then。AsIunderstandit,itisn’treallycompassionnoryetdutythatmovesyoutopaythetax,anditisn’ttheAMOUNTofthetaxthatannoysyou。YetSOMETHING
annoysyou。Whatisit?
Y。M。Well,thetroubleis,youneverknowWHATtopay,thetaxvariesso,alloverEurope。
O。M。Soyouhavetoguess?
Y。M。Thereisnootherway。Soyougoonthinkingandthinking,andcalculatingandguessing,andconsultingwithotherpeopleandgettingtheirviews;anditspoilsyoursleepnights,andmakesyoudistraughtinthedaytime,andwhileyouarepretendingtolookatthesightsyouareonlyguessingandguessingandguessingallthetime,andbeingworriedandmiserable。
O。M。Andallaboutadebtwhichyoudon’toweanddon’thavetopayunlessyouwantto!Strange。Whatisthepurposeoftheguessing?
Y。M。Toguessoutwhatisrighttogivethem,andnotbeunfairtoanyofthem。
O。M。Ithasquiteanoblelooktakingsomuchpainsandusingupsomuchvaluabletimeinordertobejustandfairtoapoorservanttowhomyouowenothing,butwhoneedsmoneyandisillpaid。
Y。M。Ithink,myself,thatifthereisanyungraciousmotivebackofititwillbehardtofind。
O。M。Howdoyouknowwhenyouhavenotpaidaservantfairly?
Y。M。Why,heissilent;doesnotthankyou。Sometimeshegivesyoualookthatmakesyouashamed。Youaretooproudtorectifyyourmistakethere,withpeoplelooking,butafterwardyoukeeponwishingandwishingyouHADdoneit。My,theshameandthepainofit!Sometimesyousee,bythesigns,thatyouhaveitJUSTRIGHT,andyougoawaymightilysatisfied。
SometimesthemanissoeffusivelythankfulthatyouknowyouhavegivenhimagooddealMOREthanwasnecessary。
O。M。NECESSARY?Necessaryforwhat?
Y。M。Tocontenthim。
O。M。HowdoyoufeelTHEN?
Y。M。Repentant。
O。M。ItismybeliefthatyouhaveNOTbeenconcerningyourselfinguessingouthisjustdues,butonlyincipheringoutwhatwouldCONTENThim。AndIthinkyouhaveaselfdeludingreasonforthat。
Y。M。Whatwasit?
O。M。Ifyoufellshortofwhathewasexpectingandwanting,youwouldgetalookwhichwouldSHAMEYOUBEFOREFOLK。
ThatwouldgiveyouPAIN。YOUforyouareonlyworkingforyourself,notHIM。IfyougavehimtoomuchyouwouldbeASHAMED
OFYOURSELFforit,andthatwouldgiveYOUpainanothercaseofthinkingofYOURSELF,protectingyourself,SAVINGYOURSELFFROM
DISCOMFORT。YouneverthinkoftheservantonceexcepttoguessouthowtogetHISAPPROVAL。Ifyougetthat,yougetyourOWN
approval,andthatisthesoleandonlythingyouareafter。TheMasterinsideofyouisthensatisfied,contented,comfortable;
therewasNOOTHERthingatstake,asamatterofFIRSTinterest,anywhereinthetransaction。
FurtherInstancesY。M。Well,tothinkofit;SelfSacrificeforothers,thegrandestthinginman,ruledout!nonexistent!
O。M。Areyouaccusingmeofsayingthat?
Y。M。Why,certainly。
O。M。Ihaven’tsaidit。
Y。M。Whatdidyousay,then?
O。M。Thatnomanhaseversacrificedhimselfinthecommonmeaningofthatphrasewhichis,selfsacrificeforanotherALONE。Menmakedailysacrificesforothers,butitisfortheirownsakeFIRST。TheactmustcontenttheirownspiritFIRST。
Theotherbeneficiariescomesecond。
Y。M。Andthesamewithdutyforduty’ssake?
O。M。Yes。Nomanperformsadutyformereduty’ssake;theactmustcontenthisspiritFIRST。HemustfeelbetterforDOINGthedutythanhewouldforshirkingit。Otherwisehewillnotdoit。
Y。M。TakethecaseoftheBERKELEYCASTLE。
O。M。Itwasanobleduty,greatlyperformed。Takeittopiecesandexamineit,ifyoulike。
Y。M。ABritishtroopshipcrowdedwithsoldiersandtheirwivesandchildren。Shestruckarockandbegantosink。Therewasroomintheboatsforthewomenandchildrenonly。Thecolonellineduphisregimentonthedeckandsaid"itisourdutytodie,thattheymaybesaved。"Therewasnomurmur,noprotest。Theboatscarriedawaythewomenandchildren。Whenthedeathmomentwascome,thecolonelandhisofficerstooktheirseveralposts,themenstoodatshoulderarms,andso,asondressparade,withtheirflagflyingandthedrumsbeating,theywentdown,asacrificetodutyforduty’ssake。Canyouviewitasotherthanthat?
O。M。Itwassomethingasfineasthat,asexaltedasthat。
Couldyouhaveremainedinthoseranksandgonedowntoyourdeathinthatunflinchingway?
Y。M。CouldI?No,Icouldnot。
O。M。Think。Imagineyourselfthere,withthatwaterydoomcreepinghigherandhigheraroundyou。
Y。M。Icanimagineit。Ifeelallthehorrorofit。Icouldnothaveenduredit,Icouldnothaveremainedinmyplace。
Iknowit。
O。M。Why?
Y。M。Thereisnowhyaboutit:Iknowmyself,andIknowI
couldn’tDOit。
O。M。ButitwouldbeyourDUTYtodoit。
Y。M。Yes,IknowbutIcouldn’t。
O。M。Itwasmorethanthousandmen,yetnotoneofthemflinched。Someofthemmusthavebeenbornwithyourtemperament;iftheycoulddothatgreatdutyforduty’sSAKE,whynotyou?Don’tyouknowthatyoucouldgooutandgathertogetherathousandclerksandmechanicsandputthemonthatdeckandaskthemtodieforduty’ssake,andnottwodozenofthemwouldstayintherankstotheend?
Y。M。Yes,Iknowthat。
O。M。ButyourTRAINthem,andputthemthroughacampaignortwo;thentheywouldbesoldiers;soldiers,withasoldier’spride,asoldier’sselfrespect,asoldier’sideals。TheywouldhavetocontentaSOLDIER’Sspiritthen,notaclerk’s,notamechanic’s。Theycouldnotcontentthatspiritbyshirkingasoldier’sduty,couldthey?
Y。M。Isupposenot。
O。M。ThentheywoulddothedutynotfortheDUTY’Ssake,butfortheirOWNsakeprimarily。TheDUTYwasJUSTTHESAME,andjustasimperative,whentheywereclerks,mechanics,rawrecruits,buttheywouldn’tperformitforthat。Asclerksandmechanicstheyhadotherideals,anotherspirittosatisfy,andtheysatisfiedit。TheyHADto;itisthelaw。TRAININGispotent。Trainingtowardhigherandhigher,andeverhigheridealsisworthanyman’sthoughtandlaboranddiligence。
Y。M。Considerthemanwhostandsbyhisdutyandgoestothestakeratherthanberecreanttoit。
O。M。Itishismakeandhistraining。Hehastocontentthespiritthatisinhim,thoughitcosthimhislife。Anotherman,justassincerelyreligious,butofdifferenttemperament,willfailofthatduty,thoughrecognizingitasaduty,andgrievingtobeunequaltoit:buthemustcontentthespiritthatisinhimhecannothelpit。Hecouldnotperformthatdutyforduty’sSAKE,forthatwouldnotcontenthisspirit,andthecontentingofhisspiritmustbelookedtoFIRST。Ittakesprecedenceofallotherduties。
Y。M。Takethecaseofaclergymanofstainlessprivatemoralswhovotesforathiefforpublicoffice,onhisownparty’sticket,andagainstanhonestmanontheotherticket。
O。M。Hehastocontenthisspirit。Hehasnopublicmorals;hehasnoprivateones,wherehisparty’sprosperityisatstake。Hewillalwaysbetruetohismakeandtraining。
IV
TrainingYoungMan。Youkeepusingthatwordtraining。Byitdoyouparticularlymean
OldMan。Study,instruction,lectures,sermons?Thatisapartofitbutnotalargepart。ImeanALLtheoutsideinfluences。Thereareamillionofthem。Fromthecradletothegrave,duringallhiswakinghours,thehumanbeingisundertraining。IntheveryfirstrankofhistrainersstandsASSOCIATION。Itishishumanenvironmentwhichinfluenceshismindandhisfeelings,furnisheshimhisideals,andsetshimonhisroadandkeepshiminit。Ifheleavethatroadhewillfindhimselfshunnedbythepeoplewhomhemostlovesandesteems,andwhoseapprovalhemostvalues。Heisachameleon;bythelawofhisnaturehetakesthecolorofhisplaceofresort。Theinfluencesabouthimcreatehispreferences,hisaversions,hispolitics,histastes,hismorals,hisreligion。Hecreatesnoneofthesethingsforhimself。HeTHINKShedoes,butthatisbecausehehasnotexaminedintothematter。YouhaveseenPresbyterians?
Y。M。Many。
第2章