| Show MONTAGUE Has Something to Say About The Noble Art of Self Mastery B BJ BV Bv Br J V v r t tr r r The Thc Young Man Ian Looked at Me Mc As I Took Up the Slick Gave Ga a Low Iov Cry and Darted Out of oC the House By ny JAMES JA J IO I MONTAGUE TAGUE VERY few ye years rs or so I hear maga-J maga EVERY E a lecture or read a maga- maga magazine magazine zine zinc article or am assured by some friend that I ought to be something besides a mere creature of habit Then I get to thinking about what an aimless and miserable thing I am to drift along without any rudder to allow circum circum- circumstances circumstances circumstances stances to shape my career for tor me and probably ruin it it I dont don't know just exactly what a career is but it is something that sounds important important tant and I always wanted one My turning point as you might call caU it came a few weeks ago when talking to a young nephew who had been studying in a college a branch of learning he called behaviourism He said that there Is no need for a person to continue to be what he is provided that what he is is not as valuable to him as what he Isn't but could be if he changed his hab hab- habits habits habits its It was all aU a little vague to me meat meat meat at first first but after he had talked to tome tome tome me for three quarters of an hour one evening it dawned on me that possibly possibly bly I had not built up within my my- myself myself self sell the character that I ought to possess and that it might not hurt I any it if I uprooted some of my old I habits and substituted new ones for them So I asked him which habit I ought to begin with The most te- te tenacious te tenacious one you have got he said Get rid of that first and then you will be so Imbued with self sell confidence confidence confidence dence that the other habits will al- al almost al almost most get rid of themselves What is your worst habit Well my worst habit is probably golf goll No I dont don't mean that That's more of an affliction than a l habit Why not break yourself of drink drink- drinking drinking ing big I dont don't drink enough to hurt me meI I cant can't afford to Maybe after enough states have voted for tor repeal I can drink enough for a while tomake to tomake tomake make reformation a task worth tak tak- taking taking ing up But for the last 12 years or orso orso orso so drinking hasn't been one of my addictions What else could I do doto doto doto to build or rebuild my character How about cutting out tobacco Dont be foolish How could I Ido Ido Ido do any work without tobacco How could I aim my golf shots except by sighting down over a cigar to keep my eye on the ball How would I solace myself when I looked at my card after a game it if it were not for forthe forthe forthe the narcotic and soothing influence of the weed weed-No weed No Ill I'll have to give up something else Said the young character rebuild rebuild- rebuild rebuild-cr er cr At last we have it It The thing that will be the hardest for you to do dois doIs doIs is the thing you must do Remember Remember Remember ber that when the pioneers came to thIs country they had to start with the job of killing off oft the Indians which was very disagreeable and dangerous Not until they had the noble Red men thoroughly cowed and afraid of them did they possess the normal stamina and self sell confidence confidence dence to build up a new nation My nephew enlarged on this sub sub- subject subject till he had me worn out even though I was not convinced But Iwas I Iwas Iwas was eager to do all I could to gain that self control whose lack had been a fatal flaw in my system so soI soI soI I agreed to try to stop smoking lor for fora tora a trial period of two weeks My mentor insisted that this was not a sufficient period to prove anything but It was the best bargain he could make so he let it go at that And dont don't think Im I'm going to trust you he said warningly I shall personally see sec that there Is no tobacco in the house and secure from you a pledge not to buy any when you are down town It would be foolish to try to help you if it every time my back was turned you lit a pipe or a cigar Bear in mind that Ill I'll have my eye on you or get in- in information in information formation from other people about what you are doing And so I began my training Sell Self confidence and a desire to prove to tills this young man that I was not a amere amere amere mere creature of addictions carried me through the first three days I soon felt as if there was something to me after alL Then I began to sniff the air when anyone in fn the vicinity was smoking and In- In iny in J IF- IF y tl tc r l as the fragrance of the weed titillated my nostrils to be- be begin be begin gin pawing through my pockets for fora fora fora a cigar or a pouch Presently how how- however however ever I would remember my determination determination nation to go through with this test and setting my teeth together try to concentrate on my job But I found that every time I tried to work I would feel that some some- something something something thing was missing and be unable to get a start If H I did by a su- su supreme supreme su supreme preme effort brush away this yearn yearn- yearning yearning yearning ing along would come somebody smoking a pipe or a cigar or a ciga ciga- cigarette ciga- ciga cigarette cigarette rette and I would have to come to toa toa toa a full mental stop until the scent of the tobacco had been blown away by a breeze or a draught Then came the chewing period It If there was not a butt or a pipe stem between my teeth I was seized with s sense of incompleteness It seemed to me that I was not all there I would pick up any object that met my eye and chew on it till my jaws ached from weariness Gum I was not allowed to use so soI soI soI I chewed lead pencils bits of sticks spools which I found on my wife's sewing table handfuls of grass that I plucked from the front lawn and now and then the leaves that fell from the trees Presently I found myself gnawing gnaw gnaw- gnawIng gnawing ing at the door jamb and biting at atthe atthe atthe the corners of fence posts as I passed them on the way to the of- of office office of office fice Work became practically out of the question for tor I was wholly unable to persuade my office mates not to smoke and whenever they lit litany litany litany any nicotine-containing nicotine object the scent came to me as the scent of the lotus must have come to travelers trav trav- travelers travelers elers nearing an oasis and all abil- abil ability abil ability ity to think straight departed from frem fromme fromme me I must have had far more resolution resolution resolution tion during these days than I have had before or since for I kept this asceticism up the full two weeks hile while I constantly grew thinner and my temper gained such a sharp edge that I would throw a book at atthe atthe atthe the cat if it it lashed its tail while dreaming before belore the fireplace fu It U the reek reck from a pipe in the mouth of a delivery man seeped into the house and I sat up and sniffed the air my nephew would pat me affectionately on the head and whisper Be strong Then one day on a little motor trip tripI I took to get away from it all aU and breathe in a little gasoline smell which anyway was something I found sitting by the roadside an elderly man whose car had broken down He lie had telephoned to a ga- ga garage garage ga garage rage for assistance but it was slow in coming and he was whiling away the time with a short clay pipe I fell into conversation with him and discovered that he was an old gen gen- gentleman gen gen- gentleman gentleman of some considerable distinction distinction distinction tion whose name if I told it you would Immediately recognize lIe He said he was five eighty-five years old and still hale and strong able to eat anything he liked which I judged was practically everything to drink whatever he chose which Included many beverages now temporarily tem tem- temporarily temporarily proscribed and to smoke a pound of strong tobacco every day You dont don't happen to have an- an another another an another other pipe about you sir I asked him Yes I always carry tour lour or five of these Ulese They're the only kind that dont don't soak up any of the nicotine from tobacco and allow I you to get all aU the strength of the weed But they break easily so I always carry extra ones He lIe filled one and handed it to me meI I half hall shut my eyes drew in and omitted a blue cloud and there and then put into words a declaration of independence which I proclaimed to tomy tomy tomy my nephew when I reached home lie He said merely I knew you couldn't keep it up But youre you're a better man for the fight you made I thought of all I had missed for those weeks Then I rose and seized a cane merely Intending to take a short walk out of ot doors and give the tho birds a breath of tobacco smoke The young man looked at atme atme atme me as I took up the stick gave a alow alow alow low cry and darted out of the house bouse I often wonder what he thought I Iwas Iwas Iwas was going to do to him p o Dell Bell alc Service t 1 J t t |
