OCR Text |
Show THE LI8TENER. Evory man who does not know anything, any-thing, nnd most men who do know something, love to talk about what thoy think thoy know, or do know. Tho closa-mouthed merchant, tho "yea, yea, nay, nay" sort of a follow, who uses his mind moro thnn his mouth, will, if encouraged, talk for hours upon any subjoct in which ho Lj Intensely Intcrcstod. Ills head is c storehouse of Information, and, although al-though It may havo moro entrances thnn oxits, ho will open hlmsolf to anyono who knows how to knock nt tho door of his mind. I havo a friend .who, nlthough not liberally educated, possesses moro gcnornl Information to tho squnro Inch thnn 99 per cent of educators havo to tho square foot, and that Is ono hundred hun-dred and forty-four to ono. Ho ob-talnod ob-talnod this knowlodgo lnrgoly bocause ho was n good llstonor nnd poBsesBet tho ability to mako ethers talk. If ho woro riding on a train ho would soloct from among tho passengers tho man who ho thought was Intelligent and carried with him a heavy stock of Information. In a diplomatic way ho would discover tho stranger's business busi-ness or profession and tho subject In which ho was tho most lnterostod. Ho would turn tho conversation In thnt direction, asking nn Intelligent question horo nnd thoro, nnd showing doop Intorost In. tho subject. Ho boI-dom boI-dom fallod to obtain tho doslred result. re-sult. Ho mot nil classes of people, from tho classical student to tho keep-or keep-or of n meat markot, and from each ho drew a supply of Information, much of which, naturally, was valueless. Ho had sonso enough, howovor, to reallzo that ho could not expect to rocolvo valuablo Information nfono; that ho must bo contont with chaff as woll as with wheat; but from each ho drow somothlng worth whllo. Tho worth whllo ho romomborod; tho worthless ho forgot. Conversation Is, I boliovo, tho best medium for tha obtaining of Information. Informa-tion. Evoryhody has somothlng of hit owi of which ho Is proud, and which ho is willing to distribute Bear In mind, howovor, that tho listener is only half a man. Ho must glvo, If ho would rocelvo. Ho, thoro-foro, thoro-foro, Is not only a good listener, but a good distributor. Ho exchanges what ho knows for what othors know, plays n gamo of mutual winning, giving giv-ing what ho can afford to sparo, and taking from othors what they aro willing will-ing to distrlbuto. Social as woll as business II fo Is based upon oxchango. Education does not consist of receiving receiv-ing nnd of not distributing. If you glvo freoly to othors, thoy will as freely glvo to you. Conversation, rightly turnod, leads to profit, and is that kind of work which Is both' recreation nnd buslnoss. Whllo you should glvo tho preference prefer-ence to tho acquiring of information which is directly In your lino, do not conllno your montal receipts to that alono. Familiarity with general affairs, af-fairs, oven though many of thom may not bo of dlroct benefit to you, broad-onds broad-onds tho mind and makes you bettor ablo to uso that part of tho Information Informa-tion rccolved which Is a part and par-col par-col of your Uvollhood-maklng. Don't bo afraid of knowing too much. |