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Show REDUCE YOUR DENOMINATOR. Two Ways of Equalizing Attainment! and Desires. Harper's Magazine. To most earnest people life is hard and fast and growingcontiuually harder and faster, and to many it is becoming more and more a burning question how they shall meet, like men and women, the demands of each day, without falling fall-ing under the condemnation of that law. It would be comtiarativelv easv law. It would be comparatively easy for the society followers', if they had any desire so to do, to settle their problem by following Carlyle'S plan, and rediiciug their denominators. denomina-tors. 11a makes it very clear to all those who have passed beyond the stage of childhood, aud consequently do comprehend the nature of a fractionan frac-tionan impossible thing for a child to do, because it lies in tho region of relativity rela-tivity that our wishes and desires stand to our abilities, either pecuuiary or mental, in tho same relation as a denominator de-nominator of a fraetion to its numer- ator, and that the value of the fraction of each one of us expresses in terms easily written down the total amount of our solid happiness or contentment. In this view it follows that there are always two possible ways of increasing the amount of the latter and this is no doubt the main object toward which are directed most of the eilorts of most men namely, to increase our numerator numer-ator by increasing our possessions, or to diminish our denominator by de-creasingthe de-creasingthe total amount of ourdesires. The lirst of these ways is the only one generally perceived by the majority of people, ud the ono to which they bend all their elforts, but it is often the impossible im-possible way, while the other path lies always open to most people, with ab-eolutuly ab-eolutuly sure result. Since that result --that alteration in the value of the fractionis what we are mauy of us after, it may be surprising that the always available aud sure method is not more generally teleeted. Hut, us has been said, to many of us there is no liberty of choice left open. Forced by thedemand of the working world to which we belong, we have already reduced our denominator to a surprisingly low figure. We find a positive pleasure, as we walk in the city, in seeing shops loaded with innumerable in-numerable things that ve do uot want, and would not have even if we could. Kven in the matter of books the number num-ber which we care to own grows smaller day by day instead of larger. We have learned the great lesson that it is easier to climb at once to the high hills and drink from the springs which run there than to accept the diluted stuir which is delivered to us in conduits often not of the cleanest. This lesson, once acquired, ac-quired, liees one from many perplexities, perplexi-ties, and coufers a not inconsiderable amount of liberty, beanie civinir us a feeling of buoyant health which the dwellers in the lowlands, who depend upon aqueducts, aud are subject to all tho inconveniences resulting from negligent neg-ligent or incompetent contractors and eupi..eois, ever can know. H itii regard to society, too, the number num-ber or houses into which we do not de- j sire to enter is infinitely larger than that of those to winch we aspire. And it confers almost a feeling of royalty to see wo many people around us who do not hesitate at any sacrifice or any effort ef-fort to obtain an introduction into curtail! cur-tail! circles of society to n Inch no entreaties en-treaties of our best meaning friends would be able to drag us for a single evening. We have had , so much to do all our lives that we have learned the value of tinwi, and we arc blessedly thankful for it, for nobody who has not lived a life of constant labor can possibly know tho e.tijtiisire delight of a whole half hour in which one has at.last the right to do what -she jileases. The lifty years of F.urope held more conscious throbbing life than a cycle of Cathay, and even if we had the liberty of choosing, we would take the fifty years. |