OCR Text |
Show H OPPORTUNITY. H In claiming tliut tho huccchh wo H nahiovo in lifo doponds to 11 coiiHldor- H ablo extent upon our opportunities, H 170 shall doubtless como in contact H with tbo idoiiH of 11 curtniu class of B pooplo who profoss to boliovo tliut it H lion within tho roach of ovory in- H dlvldunl to curvo out his own curoor, H .mid that it dopoudH ontlroly upon his H dllllgouco and application as to what H measure of huccohh lie wliall havo in H lifo. Thin is a doctrine that In a H .grunt favorito witli what nro known H tut "solf-mado" mon. That in, inon H vrlio liaro risen by what thoy claim H tu havo boon individual elfort, from H conditions of poverty and dopoudonco H to clroumstancos of nllluonco and H power. Thin class of pooplo aro H prono to fool and Bay that tbo mouHuro H f Biiccoriri thoy havo attained is at H trjbutablo to their luduHtry and por- H hovorauco. It 1h a pleasant thought, H no doubt, and is calculated to put H thorn in morit oxcollont huinor with W iboniHolveH; and where thoy miccood b in converting othor pooplo to thoir H -wpy of thin king, is productive of ro- H Milts that aro nattering to thoir fool- H iiign of solf-importnuco. H It is astonishing to t-oo how easily H satisfied some of tho pooplo who nd- B vocato tills theory nro, iu view of H thoir claim .that it nil doponds upon H thorn an to how high thoy Hliall Hoar. H Undor Hiioh conditions thoro aro pooplo who would nover bo satisfied H with anything loss than a placo at tho H very top. Hut hoiho of tlioso pooplo H Hcom BatluQod to take a comparatlvo- H. iy humble placo rothor than oxort T thoir Irrosietablo powers to obtain a B" higher ouo. And again, in somo H ' -iiiku r i r S JL'1JJ0P-it falcon ta.muoh longer tlmo to H T. r r "" iron dlovntiou than it does H ' (ti diAiorH, reu among solf-mado H'' iKKiplo, which ia.Qithor to bo account- H cd for on the .groundx of lack of do- H ira or of ability. Jf wo Bay it in H Iack of dosiro, wo inuHt ngroo that tiio H porson hua uut .dono his boat, and H conaoquoutly 1b couaurablo womo- H thiug that your fieif-niado man would H not liko to huvo tliougitt of him al- H though ho would purhapa rathor havo H that idoa jirovnil than .that J10 could H not do more if ho would. H To tho porson that dooH .not bolinvo H in thoir claima, or ratlior in thia doc- H tcino, it in ovidont that Jack of ablll- H ty la tho roal cause of tho altuatiou. H If nil woro oiiunlly able thoro would H ho but litlo inoquallty, ub x moat H pooplo would want to ba equally H aaccoasful. .Thia would moan that all H w.ould ho at tho top, if iich u thing H xpro posaiblo, which of course it is H not. If wo admit an inequality lu H ability, thia of itaolf will show that M Htrivo na wo liko It 1b impoaaiblo that H all can bo equally auccoasful in tho B raco of lifo, and on thoao grounda alono tho contention that tho inoamiro M of buccoss dopouda upon tho dilli- B gOuco and application of tho indivld- H ual fall a to tho ground. Hut tho M inequality of tho raco, groat though H it is, ia not nil that ia to b reckoned H with in accounting for tho diiroronco iu tho oircumstnncoa in which wo H Had mankind placed. It may lio log- H loal to urgo tho survival of tho llttoat, H hut in thia problom of lifo iu tho H nolutiou of which wo nro ongngod, it H ia a fact that it ia not alwaya tho H ilttost that aurvlvo, in proof of which wo find that wrong frequently over- H cornea right, vico virtuo and kuavory H houoaty, tho fool tho philosopher H and tho weak tho strong. Iu account- H ing, thou, for tho conditions as thoy H nro, thoro ia something else more- potout than any of tho cnuuoa that wo ' Jmvo diRcuwod that ia ucoountablo H iu n great dogroo for tho situation. To this somothlng wo havo, for lack of n bottor nnino, given tho tltlo of H opportunity. H Wo often hoar it snid whoa aponk- H ing of tho beauties of our ropublionn H form of govornmont, that ovory native B fxra citizen of our commonwealth fl has it within his power to bocomo H prcnidoat of tho United States. That H owing to tho constitutional provision H Uiat prohibits tho oonforring of any JH title of nobility, tbo highoat ofllcoa of tho nation aro opou . to tho lowo&t born of hor pooplo. Thooroticnlly this ia corroct, but how ia it practically? pract-ically? Doea nnyono in hia Bobor hoiibob boliovo that tho bou of tho crossing awooporor thomondiennt hna tho eamo chanco na tho son of tho proaidont of tho United States, tho congrowminn, tho milllonnlro or tho many othor favored sons 6t fortuno, of bocomiug i)ro8ident? la it not a patont fact that tho opportunities of tho latter clasa givo thorn an im-moaaurablo im-moaaurablo advantago in tbo raco for tho Whito IIoubo? It ia truo that in somo instancoa wo hoar of pooplo who huvo como up from tho lower walka of lifo to tho front ranks, and tho very fact of our hoaring of such-cases provos that thoy aro oxcoptions to tiio rulo, as, if this condition woro common, com-mon, it would not bo thought worthy of romnrk. And when thia condition lin.8 occurred thoro hna ulwaya been exceptional ability and unusual opportunity aomowhoro along tho lino. Suitable opportunity ia tho grout fnctor of buccoss, nil othor thlnga bo-lug bo-lug equal, Thoro nro thousands and hundreds of thousands of just as able mon in thoeo United States as thoso that occupy tho highoat poaitiona, who havo not; had tho opportunity to roach tlioso placos. Opportunity 1b mudo up of numor-oiiR numor-oiiR constituents. Education, whilo doubtless n great holp, is not indis-ponslblo, indis-ponslblo, ovon in its brodnost intor-protatlou; intor-protatlou; us history is roploto with liiBtttticos whoro mon havo secured tho foromoat positions without its aid, whilo wo do not havo far to go to ilnd pooplo well vorsed in scholastic knowlodgo and woll trained iu tho school of exporlonco, that do not sue-cood sue-cood iu making a good living. , Ouo of tho most imorptant, in fact wo may say tho moat important constituent of opportunity, is wealth. With wealth there is but littlo iu this world but what may bo attained if common souso is applied in its uso; without it, whilo somo progress may bo made, no foromost placo iu oithor tho social, commercial or political world can bo obtaiuod and maintained. main-tained. And oven in roilgious circles its iniluonco cannot bo overlooked. Noxt to woalth is tho possession of woalthy frionds, whicn in n groat do-groo do-groo amounts to about tho same thing. Thoro nro othor things that go to make opportunity, but wo havo not spaco to mention thorn iu thlsnrticlo. Try wealth and common sonso and you will havo no ciuiso to oomplalii' |