46.
The ego is in us. It is a good thing to have, but egotism needs the soft pedal when we speak or do things.
Many people are unconscious of their egotism, yet their conversation carries the suggestion, "Even I, who am superior to the herd, would do this or that."
[Sidenote: The Personal p.r.o.noun.]
For instance, two persons were arguing about the merits of an inexpensive automobile. Parenthetically, I may say that one belonged to the Ford cla.s.s, and the other to the can"t-afford cla.s.s. A can"t-afford sn.o.b came to the rescue of the Ford champion by saying, "That"s a good car; why, I wouldn"t mind owning one of them myself," and he beamed at the party with the consciousness of having settled the matter and removed the stigma from the Ford car.
This egotism often crops out when one shows a group picture in which he appears. He doesn"t wait for you to find him; he pokes his arm over your shoulder and says, "That"s me."
To each of us, in the very nature of things, the "I" is the center of our world. We see things always through our I"s.
If we wish to get along without friction, we must remember that the other fellow has his I"s also, and when we try to make him see things through out I"s, it makes trouble.
[Sidenote: Good Breeding.]
The hall mark of education, refinement and character, in the broad sense, is the ability to exclude the personal so far as possible from our conversation. And be big enough to grant to others their undoubted right to see and think from their own standpoint.
Argument develops egotism more than almost anything else will.
How often have you convinced another in an argument?
How often have you been convinced in an argument?
The world is big; there are millions of others in it, and our job is a big one if we "tend pretty well to our own knittin".
47.
Four hundred and twenty-six years ago Christopher Columbus landed on an island which he thought was India.
Chris was mighty happy as he put his foot on good old Mother Earth, not so much because he had discovered a new way to India, as he thought, but because his foot touched land.
Two days before he landed on San Salvador, his crew pitched into him and threatened to throw him in the sea and turn back with the ship to Spain.
[Sidenote: The Last Step Counts.]
If Chris had shown the white feather, 1492 would not be the date of the first line in the geography, announcing the "Discovery of America."
Chris had perseverance--the stuff that makes men successful. He started to find India by sailing westward. He didn"t succeed in his purpose, but his determination was rewarded just the same, for he found a new country, and that was worth while.
Before he started, he was promised ten per cent of the revenue from any lands he might discover. Just imagine what that would mean to-day.
Columbus had perseverance and pep, and his unwavering fidelity to his cause brought him success in his efforts.
The world has improved since 1492, but the percentage of men who would keep everlastingly at it like Columbus did, has not increased, perhaps.
Columbus sailed with three ships, the largest sixty-six feet long. He steered in the direction of the setting sun. His crew was 120 men. None of them were enthusiastic at the start; all of them disgusted, discouraged and ready to mutiny toward the last.
[Sidenote: Keeping Everlastingly at It.]
But Christopher kept the ships pointed West, through rain and shine, through drifting, breezeless days and through wild stormy nights. He kept on and on and on, and he brought home the bacon, which, being interpreted, means that success crowned his efforts.
Perseverance and pep--when all is said and done, these are the factors without which no great achievement is possible.
It was the mileage made on October 12th, 1492, that counted.
It is the last step in a race that counts.
It is the last stroke on the nail that counts.
The moral is that many a prize has been lost just when it was ready to be plucked.
Perseverance--patience--pluck--pep--these are magic words. They are the "Open Sesame" of modern life. They open the door to opportunity, and will bring you prosperity, peace and plenty.
48.
The man who ridicules everything is on the toboggan slide, and he will end up by becoming an out-and-out grouch.
You and I know men who never have a pleasant word to say of anyone, or a serious commendation of anything.
[Sidenote: Ridicule and Humor.]
Ridicule and sarcasm are often coated with would-be humor, and are sometimes decked out as puns. By and by, however, this bias toward ridicule and sarcasm gets to be a habit, and the coat of humor becomes threadbare.
Just at this time friends depart, for the grouch phase of the disease has started.
Sarcasm and ridicule are powerful weapons when used adroitly and for good purposes. But when sarcasm and ridicule are used constantly as a means to generate fun, or as vehicles for humor, then the evil commences. The fun disappears; the sting remains.
People will listen to you for awhile if you good-naturedly ridicule a thing, but when you are known to have the habit, that is when friends give you the go-by.
Sarcasm and ridicule wound deeply; they are hot pokers jabbed in quivering flesh.
[Sidenote: A Dangerous Weapon.]
Don"t juggle with ridicule or sarcasm, for people look beneath the veneer nowadays. They remember and repeat the axiom, "There"s many a true word spoken in jest." There are so many beautiful things to say, so many kind expressions to utter, so many helpful hints to give, that we should be ashamed to say or do things even jokingly that may hurt another.
When you ridicule a thing or a person, you may ridicule the tender heart of one you should cheer and help.
Ridicule is the negative approach to a subject anyway; the only good it can accomplish is by reflex action or rebound force.