Show y yI I Thrills y I 4 By JOHN BL BLAKE KE It Is the gambling spirit that leads people to risk their most precious us possession possession in In in the pursuit of thrills Apparently the average human being being can get more of a kick out of t terror than than from any other emotion The scenic railway which originated In America and has proved one One One-Of of the chief attractions attractions' of ot the Wembley exposition In England provides Its passengers passengers passengers pas pas- with a few moments of fright to enjoy which they return again and nd again This instinct prompts gambling with life lite manifests Itself very early The little boy or girl begins to slide elide down balusters bal balusters balus balus- s- s almost as soon as he lie can walk When he grows up providing his parents can afford it H he buys bus a e. speed car and risks his neck doing thirty miles an hour down hills lills ms or around hairpin turns Then perhaps he climbs mountains mountains' or goes to Africa to shoot lions or to India to shoot tigers or orto orto orto to the Rocky mountains to shoot grizzly grIzzI bears This is not at atall all the scientific spirit which is possessed by the polar explorers or which was displayed displayed dis dis- played by the old pioneers The risk of ot life for tor some great purpose is ex ex- ex It Is necessary In war when men are fighting to save their country But merely in the pursuit of thrills it Is reckless reckless reckless reck reck- less gambling True people cannot live without some d degree gree of excitement The mind would become sluggish were one day dayto dayto dayto to pass exactly as another with no variety of ot ex experience experience ex- ex to give zest to existence Charity organizations complain that the poor families to to which they I give money for fo food d' d will often otten spend nd I 1 for tor ph phonographs or radio sets The reason for this is that the families have had food of ot a sort all their lives It is no novelty to them They crave something else and when the opportunity opportunity opportunity offers they get it But the pursuit of variety need not mean mean the pursuit of of needless danger We Ve are aro given life to use not only for tor our own enjoyment but for the good of ot others What with disease and risk of accident du duto due to our Imperfect civilization and with storm and earthquake it Is a gift girt that Is hard enough to pre pre- pre pre- ser serve e. e Yet for tor the sake of ot a little thrill we constantly Invite death or injury and when that cannot be provided by nature Itself we build machines to supply it I IMan Man is Js a reasoning creature He Ho has the faculty fac of thought All he needs Is to use it intelligently intelligently intelli intelli- gently and happiness will be his But too ot often n he becomes discontented with normal normal normal nor nor- mal life and goes out of his way to see how near he can come to the great divide without crossing it Copyright right 1925 by the Bell Syndicate |