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OTHER BOOKS By NIXON WATERMAN
OTHER BOOKS By NIXON WATERMAN
Cloth, 12mo, each, $1.25. FORBES & COMPANY, CHICAGO CABIN IN WHICH LINCOLN WAS BORN “BOY WANTED” A BOOK OF CHEERFUL COUNSEL BY NIXON WATERMAN AUTHOR OF “THE GIRL WANTED,” “A BOOK OF VERSES,” ETC. TORONTO McCLELLAND & GOODCHILD Limited Copyright, 1906 by NIXON WATERMAN All Rights Reserved Acknowledgments are hereby made to the publishers of Life, Success, Saturday Evening Post, Woman’s Home Companion, St. Nicholas, Christian Endeavor World, Young People’s Weekly, Youth’s Companion
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PREFACE
PREFACE
In presenting this book of cheerful counsel to his youthful friends, and such of the seniors as are not too old to accept a bit of friendly admonition, the author desires to offer a word of explanation regarding the history of the making of this volume. So many letters have been received from people of all classes and ages requesting copies of some of the author’s lines best suited for the purpose of engendering a sense of self-help in the mind of youth, that he deems it expedient to offer a num
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“BOY WANTED”
“BOY WANTED”
No, the world does not insist that you are to accept a position and begin work with your hands at once, but it wishes you to begin to think right things. “As he thinketh in his heart, so is he.” What you think will have much to do in determining what you are to become. This influence of the mind in thus shaping the man is very well set forth by James Allen, who says: “A man’s mind may be likened to a garden, which may be intelligently cultivated or allowed to run wild; but whether cultivated or
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“COULDN’T” AND “COULD”
“COULDN’T” AND “COULD”
By reading between the lines we can infer from the foregoing that what the world really wants is men—good men. But the world is old enough and wise enough to know that if it does not train up some good boys, there will be no good men, by and by. “As the twig is bent the tree is inclined.” “The child is father of the man.” So the world simply wishes to inform you, here and now, that it will count on your assistance as soon as you have had sufficient time and opportunity to prepare properly for th
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DELIVER THE GOODS
DELIVER THE GOODS
PATRICK HENRY DELIVERING HIS CELEBRATED SPEECH You hope, and perchance believe, no doubt, that when you have a full opportunity to show the world what sort of timber you are made of that it will look upon you as being a “genius.” Almost every boy cherishes some such aspiration. And why not? Such a trend of thought is to be encouraged. It is proper and commendable. We would all be geniuses if we could. The world admires a genius. If he is the genuine article it seeks his autograph, prints his pic
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STICK TO IT
STICK TO IT
Genius has a twin brother whose name is Patience. The one is quite often mistaken for the other, which is not strange since they resemble each other so closely their most intimate friends can scarcely tell them apart. These two brothers usually work together, which enables the world to tell who and what they are, for whenever either of them is employed singly and alone he is hardly ever recognized. One of these brothers plants the tree and the other cares for it until the fruit is finally mature
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KEEP PEGGING AWAY
KEEP PEGGING AWAY
The Chinese tell of one of their countrymen, a student, who, disheartened by the difficulties in his way, threw down his book in despair, when, seeing a woman rubbing a crowbar on a stone, he inquired the reason, and was told that she wanted a needle, and thought she would rub down the crowbar till she got it small enough. Provoked by this example of patience to “try again,” he resumed his studies, and became one of the foremost scholars of the empire. After more than ten years of wandering thro
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THE SECRET OF SUCCESS
THE SECRET OF SUCCESS
WHITTIER’S BIRTHPLACE HAVERHILL MASS. [Pg 34] [Pg 35] If you just get a chance? Oh, certainly, it would be unfair for us grown-ups to expect you, a mere inexperienced youth, to win without giving you a fair opportunity. But what is a fair opportunity? Opinions regarding what is best for the making of a boy differ greatly. Some assert that a child born with a silver spoon in its mouth is not likely to breathe as deeply and develop as well as one that is born without any such hindrance to full r
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“MYSELF AND I”
“MYSELF AND I”
Dr. Arnold, whose long experience with youth at Rugby gave weight to his opinion, declared that “the difference between one boy and another consists not so much in talent as in energy.” “The longer I live,” says Sir Thomas Buxton, another student of human character, “the more certain I am that the great difference between men, between the great and the insignificant, is energy, invincible determination, an honest purpose once fixed, and then death or victory. This quality will do anything in the
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RIGHT HERE AND JUST NOW
RIGHT HERE AND JUST NOW
Jean Paul Richter, who suffered greatly from poverty, said that he would not have been rich for worlds. “I began life with a sixpence,” said Girard, “and believe that a man’s best capital is his industry.” Thomas Ball, the sculptor, whose fine statues ornament the parks and squares of Boston, used as a lad to sweep out the halls of the Boston Museum. Horace Greeley, journalist and orator, was the son of a poor New Hampshire farmer and for years earned his living by typesetting. Thorwaldsen, the
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KEEP A-TRYING
KEEP A-TRYING
WATT DISCOVERING THE CONDENSATION OF STEAM [Pg 48] [Pg 49] Learn to do, without overdoing. Too much striving for success is as bad as too little. Bishop Hall says: “Moderation is the silken string running through the pearl chain of all virtues.” “You have too much respect upon the world,” Shakespeare tells us. “They lose it that do buy it with much care.” Do not cram books into your head until you crowd pleasant thinking out of it. A moderately informed man standing firmly on his two good legs i
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MAKING A MAN
MAKING A MAN
A sorry picture, isn’t it? No doubt it sets forth, in an extreme manner, the evils that arise from crowding a child into boyhood, and a boy into manhood; still, no one who observes carefully will doubt that such wrongs are constantly being committed by hundreds of ambitious parents and well-meaning teachers. Yet, I think you have little to fear along the lines of over-study. You must train your mind to grapple with tasks while you are young, for if you do not begin now you may not, later on, be
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HOW TO WIN SUCCESS
HOW TO WIN SUCCESS
The right-minded boy will be thoughtful but not so much absorbed that he is unable to take in the educative, uplifting sunshine all about him. Sharpen your wits as the woodman must sharpen his axe, but counsel moderation. The woodman who would stay at the stone and grind his axe all away in attempting to put a razor edge on it would be deemed very foolish. Of course you will be, you must be thoughtful, for as Ruskin says: “In general I have no patience with people who talk about ‘the thoughtless
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THE STEADY WORKER
THE STEADY WORKER
LONGFELLOW’S BIRTHPLACE PORTLAND ME. [Pg 60] [Pg 61] “If I had the time!” Yes, indeed! Time is a very necessary factor in the doing of things. Time is money. Money is capital. Capital is power. The one who is in the possession of the most power and uses it to the best purpose has the best chance for winning success. Other things being equal, the boy who devotes an extra half-hour every morning or evening to the study of the forthcoming day’s lessons will get on better than his classmates who d
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THE “GOING-TO-BEES”
THE “GOING-TO-BEES”
“Lost, yesterday, somewhere between sunrise and sunset, two golden hours, each set with sixty diamond minutes. No reward is offered, for they are gone forever.” How clearly these words of Horace Mann set forth the experience of thousands of persons, day by day. Channing tells us, “it is astonishing how fruitful of improvement a short season becomes when eagerly and faithfully improved. Volumes have not only been read, but written, in flying journeys. I have known a man of vigorous intellect, who
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“JUST A MINUTE”
“JUST A MINUTE”
If we make a careful study of the lives of the world’s great men and women, we shall find that their distinction was achieved by making the most of their spare minutes. The ordinary, commonplace, and inevitable tasks of life and the effort required to make a living are remarkably similar in the daily experience of most men and women. It is what one does with the remaining leisure moments that determines his individual taste and trend, and eventually gives him such distinction as he may attain. I
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DO IT NOW!
DO IT NOW!
GARFIELD AS A CANAL BOY [Pg 74] [Pg 75] Let us suppose that you must go into partnership for life with some other boy, as the world is about to go into partnership with you, would you not wish him to have, first of all, a cheerful disposition? Has it ever occurred to you that the world entertains the same thought regarding yourself? It is easy to understand why a partnership, the members of which pleasantly pull together, is more likely to thrive than is one wherein they are always complaining o
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“TO KNOW ALL IS TO FORGIVE ALL”
“TO KNOW ALL IS TO FORGIVE ALL”
“If a word will render a man happy,” said one of the French philosophers, “he must be a wretch, indeed, who will not give it. It is like lighting another man’s candle with your own, which loses none of its brilliancy by what the other gains.” Another wise writer says: “Mirth is God’s medicine; everybody ought to bathe in it. Grim care, moroseness, anxiety—all the rust of life, ought to be scoured off by the oil of mirth.” Orison Swett Marden, than whom no man’s golden words have done more to mak
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A CURE FOR TROUBLE
A CURE FOR TROUBLE
“Give, O give us, the man who sings at his work!” says Thomas Carlyle. “Be his occupation what it may, he is equal to any of those who follow the same pursuit in silent sullenness. He will do more in the same time—he will do it better—he will persevere longer. One is scarcely sensible to fatigue while he marches to music. The very stars are said to make harmony as they revolve in their spheres. Wondrous is the strength of cheerfulness, altogether past calculation its powers of endurance. Efforts
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THE ONE WITH A SONG
THE ONE WITH A SONG
The one who thinks the world is full of good people and kindly blessings is much richer than the one who thinks to the contrary. Some men live in a world peopled with princes of the royal blood; some in a world of want and wrong-doers. Those whom we distrust are likely to distrust us. To believe a man is a man helps to make him so at heart. To think him a rascal is a start for him in the wrong direction. The world smiles at us if we smile at it; when we frown it frowns. It is the armor of war an
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A SMILE AND A TASK
A SMILE AND A TASK
“Of all virtues cheerfulness is the most profitable. While other virtues defer the day of recompense, cheerfulness pays down. It is a cosmetic which makes homeliness graceful and winning. It promotes health and gives clearness and vigor to the mind; it is the bright weather of the heart in contrast with the clouds and gloom of melancholy.” These words from the writings of one of our sunniest philosophers are worth much gold to one who will ever keep them in mind. Sydney Smith says that “all mank
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AN OPEN LETTER TO THE PESSIMIST
AN OPEN LETTER TO THE PESSIMIST
BIRTHPLACE OF BENJAMIN FRANKLIN BOSTON [Pg 88] [Pg 89] “Hitch your wagon to a star!” Such is the advice Emerson gave to ambitious youth. He meant well, no doubt, and indeed, his words are all right if taken with a pinch of salt. A boy should dream great dreams, of course, but he ought to set his dream-gauge so as to have it indicate a line of endeavor it will be possible for him to follow. The type of boy the world counts on to do it the most lasting good is the youth that does not permit the
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THE PLEASURES OF “IFFING”
THE PLEASURES OF “IFFING”
When the time arrives for a boy to cease dreaming and to begin doing he should seize upon the highest duty that comes to his hands and waste not a moment in dilatory uncertainties. “Thrift of time,” says Gladstone, “will repay you in after-life with a thousandfold of profit beyond your most sanguine dreams.” Hopes are good, but patiently worked-out realities are better. Hope is for to-morrow. Work is for to-day. The hope that lulls one into a dreamy inactivity, with the promise that all will be
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THE POWER OF HOPE
THE POWER OF HOPE
Hope is the architect but brawn is the builder. An architect’s most elaborate design for a mansion, on paper, cannot protect one from the elements as well as can the crudest little cabin actually built by hands. Those who spend much time in dreaming wonderful plans and waiting for a ready-made success to come and hunt them up may be interested in learning about...
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HANK STREETER’S BRAIN-WAVE
HANK STREETER’S BRAIN-WAVE
But it is to be remembered that the youth who does not think well of himself is not likely to do well. “Ability, learning, accomplishment, opportunity, are all well,” says Mathews, “but they do not, of themselves, insure success. Thousands have all these, and live and die without benefiting themselves or others. On the other hand, men of mediocre talents, often scale the dizzy steeps of excellence and fame because they have firm faith and high resolve. It is this solid faith in one’s mission—the
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THE VALLEY OF NEVER
THE VALLEY OF NEVER
When we come to observe life very closely we learn that the law of recompense is always in operation, and that when all things are considered, one man’s lot does not seem so much better or another’s so much worse than the fortune of those about him as a superficial glance might lead us to think. Says Hamerton: “I used to believe a great deal more in opportunities and less in application than I do now. Time and health are needed, but with these there are always opportunities. Rich people have a f
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THE DIFFERENCE
THE DIFFERENCE
The country boy is sure that if he could get into the large city where there are more and greater chances for doing things he would make a great success. The city boy is quite as certain that if he could get out into a country town where the competition is not so fierce and where there is more room to grow he would do something worth while. In discussing this subject, Edward Bok says: “It is the man, not the place that counts. The magnet of worth is the drawing power in business. It is what you
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“YENDER GRASS”
“YENDER GRASS”
WASHINGTON AND LAFAYETTE AT MOUNT VERNON “Trifles make perfection, but perfection is no trifle.” The saying is old but the truth is ever new. It is the little things that count, day by day, in the forming of character. The way in which we employ our moments finally becomes the way in which we employ our years. As a matter of course every boy will, if he can, do some big, beautiful thing out there in the years to come. But it is a foregone conclusion that every boy must do a vast number of little
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“I WISH” AND “I WILL”
“I WISH” AND “I WILL”
“Trifles” are the beginnings of things which finally develop into all that is worth while. The acorn is a trifle, yet within it is hidden an oak tree, and a whole forest of oak trees. The tiny little brooklet is only a trifle yet it flows on and on till it becomes a mighty river. The first rude little pencil sketch made by the child that has an inborn love of drawing is but a trifle, yet it may be the beginning of an art career that shall brighten the whole world. The first few lines written by
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“NOW” AND “WAITAWHILE”
“NOW” AND “WAITAWHILE”
Of what value is this book to you? Perhaps there is more involved in the answer to this question than a careless consideration of it might lead one to think. Shakespeare says: “A jest’s prosperity lies in the ear of him that hears it, never in the tongue of him that makes it.” So it is that the value of advice depends not so much upon the giver as it does upon the one who receives it. Emerson has observed that he who makes a tour of Europe brings home from that country only as much as he takes t
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THE WORLD’S VICTORS
THE WORLD’S VICTORS
Of the multitudes of boys who are to become the world’s victors, he will succeed best who earliest in life learns carefully to observe and to appreciate the character of his surroundings, and to build into the structure of his manhood the high and abiding influences that come to his hands. As one of our great thinkers given to deep introspection has so impressively said, life, itself, may be compared to a building in the course of construction. It rises slowly, day by day, through the years. Eve
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MY BOYHOOD DREAMS
MY BOYHOOD DREAMS
This somewhat overdrawn picture of human conceit and egotism holds a lesson for each and all of us. He who knows it all can learn no more, and he who can learn no more is likely to die ignorant. There are guide-posts all along our ways which if heeded will direct us toward the very destinations we should reach. And nothing else is so full of suggestion and inspiration as is a good book. In it we can enter the very heart of a man without being abashed by the author’s august presence. When quite y
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ON GETTING RICH
ON GETTING RICH
The wide-awake boy will see the advantage of carrying in his thought these words of Lavater: “He who sedulously attends, pointedly asks, calmly speaks, coolly answers, and ceases when he has no more to say is in possession of some of the best requisites of man.” “There is a gift beyond the reach of art, of being eloquently silent,” says Bovee, and Caroline Fox tells us that “the silence which precedes words is so much grander than the grandest words because in it are created those thoughts of wh
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