READING MAKETH A FULL MAN.
By W. P. A.
Mirrored in the epigram at the head of this article, is the soul of the great man to whose force of intellect the world is indebted for the “Inductive Method” of investigation, which has made man a prince over the mysteries of science and a minister of nature’s sweet and bountiful gifts.
Never did Bacon philosophize more wisely, or frame epigram more in accordance with comprehensive truth than when he uttered this sentiment: “Reading maketh a full man.”
Let us stress for a few moments the abstract idea of reading, and the consequent concrete idea of a full man. The vexatious problem which immediately confronts us with mountainous proportions, is how can we make the vast number of scientific languages and dialects, in which are couched so many thousand volumes of literature, wholesome, pure and classic, compatible with the brief period allotted to human life, and the miniature portion of even this time that can be spared from the bread-and-butter warfare to the reading of other men’s thoughts? We do not propose a solution of this problem, nor do we believe it possible for any man to indulge in one grand review of the world’s literature; but it is the blessed privilege of every man to become moderately well read, in proof of which we would have only to cite illustrious names already familiar. “In books lies the soul of the past,” and if we would quaff the sweet ambrosia which is the world’s inestimable heritage, and develop in ourselves minds which shall prove everlasting sources of profit and pleasure, we must wed ourselves, with unmistakable devotion, to the acquisition of useful knowledge; if we do not inherit opportunities, we must make them, and read selectively, comprehensively and retentively.
One individual can’t select for another the books best adapted to the mental growth of that person; individuality of taste is an idiosyncrasy of the human race. Give a person free access to a well-regulated library, and you need not fear but that person will suit himself. Let the flocks graze at will upon the verdant plains where grow the herbs both bitter and sweet, and where flow the waters of both life and death, and an unerring instinct will always avoid the bad and feast upon the good; then is the reason of man less to be relied upon than the instinct of the dumb brute? But far be it from us to argue that any man should cloister himself within the walls of his own imagination, feasting upon his own secluded judgment, and thus refuse to lend an ear to a wise suggestion.
A lack of space forbids a more thorough discussion of this tempting subject—reading; so let us pass to a brief contemplation of the sequel—a full man. If a young man is devoid of a noble ambition, he would do well to examine himself and bring about a correction as soon as possible. Honest labor is praiseworthy in whatever field it may be expended, but there is something nobler, more inspiring, more appreciated, and more remunerative than hewing wood or drawing water; and if a man can, by thorough preparation, ally himself with the intellectual aristocracy of the country, then are the possibilities of a true life spread before him.
What a sublime and God-like spectacle is a full man. These are the men that wear the crowns of earth; in their hands are the sceptres of state; and in their lives are the world’s treasures.
The Alps may be hard to scale, but the Italy that lies beyond is worthy of the most giant effort; and those who put on the whole armor for the contest and stand as full and well-rounded men will be the Hannibals of unrecorded history.