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Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 in 2011 with funding from 
 The Library of Congress 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/straighttopointOOcurr 
 
Straight To 
 
 THE POINT 
 
 by 
 
 CHARLES H. CURRAN 
 
 Author of 
 
 "Through Lands of Yesterday" 
 "Home-Spun Philosophy" 
 
 The happiest moments in the lives of 
 most people are when they plan for the 
 good things of life that they never receive 
 
 BOSTON, MASS. 
 
 Chappie Publishing Company, Ltd. 
 
 1918 
 

 Copyright, 1918 
 
 by 
 
 Chabl.es H. Cobban 
 
 OCT -3 1918 
 
 <Q>CU506036 
 
What we inherit, our most natural traits, 
 Soar us like wings, or sink us like weights. 
 
 The man who wears a sunny smile, 
 
 And grips your hand with hearty shake, 
 
 With cheerful words your fears beguile, 
 And laughs away the cares you make, 
 He is a friend! 
 
 When fate doth press her bitter cup, 
 
 And you are down from strife and pain, 
 
 And someone stoops to help you up, 
 
 That you may your former place regain, 
 He is a friend! 
 
 The man in whom you can confide, 
 Has judgment good to give advice, 
 
 Whose interests seem with yours allied, 
 No matter what the sacrifice, 
 He is a friend! 
 
 All men are not born equal, but all men 
 should have an equal chance. 
 
Behind the smile on many a face, 
 A look of sorrow we plainly trace. 
 
 There's nothing equal to peace of mind; 
 
 Among all the treasures that we hold, 
 The mental sunshine in it confined 
 
 Is worth far more to us than gold. 
 For if the heart is rent and torn 
 
 On every side by care and strife, 
 Gold seems a mockery, a thing forlorn; 
 
 A peaceful mind is the wealth of life. 
 
 Never get down upon your knees, only to 
 work and pray. 
 
 Children up at an early hour — 
 Don't let them lie in bed; 
 
 It teaches hustle, gives them power, 
 And a better life is led. 
 
 Good men and good women are wheat of 
 the earth, and the rogues and rascals 
 are the chaff. 
 
Judge men by their acts and deeds, 
 Not by color, race, or creeds. 
 
 I like to see a man well dressed, 
 For it looks tasty and refined; 
 
 But I like him better when he's blessed 
 With a good and cultured mind. 
 
 Prosperity makes friends; adversity proves 
 them. 
 
 Farewell! what sadness in the word 
 
 When heart from heart for time must sever; 
 But such is light when e'er it's heard, 
 
 Compared with farewell — farewell, forever! 
 
 When I see the way some women dress, 
 And what I think, I'll let you guess. 
 
 Time is everything, and killing time is 
 wasting life's most valuable asset. 
 
The man who dresses in a shabby way, 
 Sins against himself each day. 
 
 True patriotism never yet has sprung 
 
 From sudden events, our joys or tears; 
 It must be instilled when we are young, 
 
 And nurtured through succeeding years; 
 'Tis the friend of freedom, the enemy 
 
 Of all that favor the tyrant's rod; 
 Soul of the country, hope of the free, 
 
 All that leads man up to God. 
 
 Competition in business is the poor man's 
 friend. 
 
 In life, keep pace with things about; 
 
 If you advertise, keep changing, too; 
 Don't let your ways grow old, wear out, 
 
 For men like change and something new. 
 
 When we sacrifice everything for posterity, 
 we often cheat ourselves. 
 
When people oft a sin commit, 
 They soon o'erlook the wrong in it. 
 
 'Tis not in numbers I love to tell 
 How many friends I have indeed; 
 
 I higher prize the few who well 
 
 Have stood by me in time of need. 
 
 Many a man is down because he never 
 attempts to rise. 
 
 There's not a thing which is of earth, 
 That we hold impossible and of worth, 
 But man will solve as it now appears 
 Within the next one hundred years. 
 
 Our minds grow lazy, vain and hollow, 
 As every path of ease we follow. 
 
 Be sure you are right is a golden rule in 
 all places of trust. 
 
What the monkey sees, the monkey'll do, 
 And so it is with most humans, too. 
 
 To keep on winning the proper way 
 Is to keep on pegging every day, 
 And drive the pegs all down tight, 
 As you hit them, on the head all right. 
 To think that things will always stand, 
 You build your hopes upon the sand, 
 For time is wearing and tearing away, 
 And you must keep pegging if you'd stay. 
 
 The strong man leads and the weak man 
 follows. 
 
 Sweets will always lure the fly, 
 But if it's sour, it passes by; 
 Thus each man's good will entreat, 
 By mixing in your ways the sweet. 
 
 Man's importance these days is usually 
 estimated according to the size of his 
 purse. 
 
Men differ so much from each other, 
 That you must lead one and drive another. 
 
 There is a man we all despise, 
 And even God looks on no less; 
 
 'Tis the lazy man who never tries, 
 But wallows in his laziness. 
 
 But few of the big rascals that prey on 
 humanity are in jail. 
 
 The bee that hangs about the hive 
 
 Is poor to gather honey; 
 And men who will not work to thrive 
 
 Will never gain much money. 
 
 Gold never buys a true man or woman; 
 
 It buys only things with shapes that's human. 
 
 There is not a living thing so perfect in 
 strength but it has some imperfection 
 to weakness. 
 
Who rightly mixes work with play, 
 Makes his life as summer's day. 
 
 Time's mill is ever turning, 
 
 Its wheels spin day and night, 
 And its furnace fires are burning 
 
 With an eternal light; 
 The moments swift and flitting 
 
 Form the stream that turns the mill, 
 Tho' we cannot change their fitting, 
 
 We can shape the ways they fill. 
 For we rise o'er fate victorious, 
 
 Or we fail in shameful plight 
 As our loom of life weaves glorious, 
 
 And our warp and woof is right. 
 
 The clearer we see our future way, 
 The less we should to error stray. 
 
 Conditions and circumstances shape the 
 ways of nearly every man in life. 
 
It has ever proven a very good way 
 To look out for number one each day. 
 
 For all the ways that tend to health, 
 
 To strive we fully should, 
 For things that give us joy and wealth 
 
 Are with our feeling good. 
 
 Safeguard your interests by keeping 
 them within your reach. 
 
 The flatterer's tongue is sweet to hear, 
 And oft doth our senses thrill; 
 
 But though we lend to it an ear, 
 We hate the flatterer still. 
 
 Change of thought and change of scene, 
 Keeps the brain active and keen. 
 
 Lack of purpose is one of the reasons 
 why many men are carrying the big 
 end of the log in life. 
 
Little faults oft big ones show, 
 
 For the big ones from the little grow. 
 
 This is an age of spoil and pelf, 
 When everyone looks out for self. 
 So don't mistake what times create, 
 To find it out when it's too late. 
 
 Whenever in doubt in legal matters, 
 consult a good lawyer. 
 
 Patch the holes and save your clothes, 
 And better, neater, each part goes; 
 For very often a stitch or two 
 Will save a garment whole for you. 
 
 Happiness may come from little things, 
 As streams are formed from tiny springs. 
 
 A man may excel in some one thing and 
 be a failure in every other thing. 
 
 10 
 
'Tis seldom two men get together, 
 But they'll talk about the weather. 
 
 What solace it is when we stand at the bier 
 
 Of a friend whom death has called from our day, 
 And feel that our parting is but an end here, 
 
 That again we shall meet in a land far away; 
 Again we shall meet in the home of our Father, 
 
 In that beautiful land of. happiness and peace, 
 With angels to guide us to wonders which gather 
 
 And dissolve into joys that never shall cease. 
 
 Each day is another brick in our wall of life. 
 
 Not sick enough to be in bed, 
 But too ill to be about — 
 
 A harder course is often led 
 Than sick right out and out. 
 
 The ennobling influence of woman has 
 inspired man to his highest pinnacle 
 of achievement. 
 
 11 
 
The world it smiles and the world it frowns, 
 According as our ups and downs. 
 
 The truth is always easily told, 
 It's way is of the noblest kind; 
 
 A lie is of the vilest mould, 
 
 And ever weak to stand behind. 
 
 Wherever bigots and hypocrites flourish, 
 that place is a hell. 
 
 Men will hold you in the limelight 
 While as champion you're arrayed; 
 
 But when you're second in the fight, 
 They'll push you in the shade. 
 
 The rogue may fare well for awhile, 
 Then doubly suffer for his guile. 
 
 Most of the stumbling blocks that beset our 
 way in life are placed there by ourselves. 
 
 12 
 
Don't pay today tomorrow's debt, 
 If a good return you want to get. 
 
 There is a man we all admire, 
 
 And heaven above looks on with pride- 
 We feel the vim his ways inspire, 
 
 Till as his subjects we're allied: 
 It is the hustler. 
 
 The man that always gets the biz, 
 And consistent winner in the race, 
 
 Who knocks his rivals all to fiz, 
 The one that really sets the pace: 
 It is the hustler. 
 
 The man who builds the nation up 
 And conquers failure, care, and strife; 
 
 Who casts to earth Fate's bitter cup, 
 And turns dead issues into life: 
 It is the hustler. 
 
 The people who live nearest to the laws of 
 nature usually live nearest to the laws 
 of God. 
 
 13 
 
We oft forgive the ignorant man, 
 But the stupid one we seldom can. 
 
 How oft we're moved to doing good 
 By the tale of some cheap cuss; 
 
 We help him when no others would, 
 Then he goes back on us. 
 
 In calmness there is strength; in anger, 
 weakness. 
 
 Trouble may come unto the heart 
 In pain, and loss, and grief, alarm, 
 
 And should it aim at you its dart, 
 Meet the issue, firm and calm. 
 
 That man will usually prove a shirk 
 Who watches the clock while he's at work. 
 
 The man who cannot rise above his petty 
 feelings and jealousies is in reality a 
 small man. 
 
 14 
 
A thing that God will always ban, 
 And the devil favor — is an idle man. 
 
 Man can't be careless nowadays, 
 
 And hope that he can win; 
 He must be careful in his ways, 
 
 And always ready to pitch in; 
 Must keep a tight rein all the time 
 
 On things that don't drive right, 
 And hustle hard and save the dime 
 
 If he would win the fight. 
 
 Hope is the beacon light of the afflicted. 
 
 A man is always just as old 
 As his arteries are in part, 
 
 And conditions of his body hold 
 No better than his heart. 
 
 If calamity buries you beneath its 
 reverses today, dig out tomorrow. 
 
 15 
 
"Thank you," and a pleasant smile, 
 Will greatly help to make your pile. 
 
 The man who is too proud to fight 
 When he should make a stand, 
 
 You seldom find him to be right, 
 And usually he lacks the sand. 
 
 Money, like a greased pig, is easier to catch 
 than to hold. 
 
 Some people hate to hear the truth 
 That gabbling tongues so oft unfold; 
 
 With others the only thing uncouth 
 Is where and how the truth is told. 
 
 Favors are like borrowed things to get — 
 You must return them to remove the debt. 
 
 The phrase, "I thought it was so," has been 
 the wail of many a ruined man. 
 
 16 
 
A good training in life's early stage 
 Makes ease and comfort for old age. 
 
 When men reach fifty years today, 
 
 How many have this excuse — 
 I'm getting old and in the way, 
 
 I don't think I'm of any use. 
 With life's experience, it is the time 
 
 For men to make their fight; 
 At fifty years they're in their prime 
 
 If they've lived a life of right. 
 
 'I can't" is a lazy man's phrase. 
 
 When sad news brings remorse and pain 
 Unto a heart with hope filled strong, 
 
 And ignorance still lets joy remain, 
 To hide the truth is never wrong. 
 
 Life is not a game of chance, but a plain, 
 open game, where the man who makes 
 the best move wins. 
 
 17 
 
Full many a thing held right today, 
 Tomorrow may be absurd in way. 
 
 The man who runs from an affray, 
 May cowardly save himself that day; 
 But often he who turns in flight 
 Later regrets he did not fight. 
 
 The tongue that tells the secrets of 
 others will also reveal yours. 
 
 Of truest beauty in man or woman, 
 The face and form are not the goal; 
 
 'Tis found within the superhuman — 
 
 The mind, the character, and the soul. 
 
 Poverty allies us closer together, 
 
 With a kindlier spirit toward each other. 
 
 It is a good recommendation for a man 
 that he never meddles in other 
 people's affairs. 
 
 18 
 
To overload may mean a fall- 
 A warning that applies to all. 
 
 The cheap reformers of today 
 
 In numbers grow about; 
 They would change our present way, 
 
 And drive the devil out. 
 In social life, in church and state, 
 
 To stay our ways and sin, 
 And save us from damnation's fate 
 
 We find them butting in. 
 But as I look them fully o'er, 
 
 Their acts and lives apart, 
 I find them rotten to the core, 
 
 And hypocrites at heart. 
 
 The man who's slack and easy-going 
 Will ever make a faulty showing. 
 
 Don't boast about your great deeds; 
 if they are of worth, they will speak 
 for themselves. 
 
 19 
 
'Tis gold that rules the world today, 
 And the god to whom we homage pay. 
 
 Our greatest menace has ever been, 
 As through the microscope it's seen, 
 Germs that swarm in flesh and breath, 
 Which bring about disease and death. 
 
 A thoughtful mind always makes a silent 
 tongue. 
 
 Some have hearts that are brave and stout, 
 But ere its death they will retreat; 
 
 While others must be down and out 
 Before you can count on their defeat. 
 
 Upon hell's road there is no gate; 
 Its way is open, short and straight. 
 
 When you subtract from things that tend 
 to make good health, you never add 
 anything to your pocket. 
 
 20 
 
The man who is eager for the fight 
 
 Is worth two who stand back in affright. 
 
 The bulk of men who are born on earth 
 Are a common herd in skill and worth; 
 But now and then it's nature's game 
 To mould a prodigy of fame. 
 
 There is no greater recommendation than 
 a host of good friends. 
 
 The husband provides for the home 
 In most of ways, as we take it; 
 
 The wife looks after things that come, 
 But the children really make it. 
 
 As we mix and see and hear, we fare, 
 For we copy them ere we're aware. 
 
 Healthy pleasures and joys make light 
 hearts, and light hearts tend to make 
 long life. 
 
 21 
 
Cheat your stomach to save the dime, 
 And you'll doubly lose it every time. 
 
 "Keep everybody at arm's length" 
 
 Should be a business phrase. 
 In proper distance there is strength, 
 
 And it stops familiar ways. 
 To fraternize and gossip when 
 
 You should good sense regard, 
 Will lower you in the eyes of men, 
 
 And a loss is your reward. 
 
 It is better not to know a thing at all 
 than only half know it. 
 
 We always find that beasts of prey 
 Are brutes most cruel in their way; 
 
 But beasts of prey, where'ere we scan, 
 Seldom surpass the brute in man. 
 
 When the world seems to be going to the 
 dogs, and men lose heart, cheer up, for 
 it's only temporary. 
 
 22 
 
Some people creep till their end's attained, 
 But will walk defiantly when it is gained. 
 
 When you can take a man aside, 
 
 And know you have a friend that's true, 
 Who will keep the secrets you confide, 
 
 Bear in mind they're mighty few! 
 
 The man who is always putting things 
 off is a failure. 
 
 Never a slacker in any place, 
 
 When duty calls, do your share; 
 
 A liberal spirit in every case 
 Is doubly doing everywhere. 
 
 Man's ways change as he grows in age, 
 And become more set at every stage. 
 
 The better you treat some people today, 
 the meaner they'll treat you tomorrow. 
 
 23 
 
I always find the wisest mind 
 Is ever of the silent kind. 
 
 Many people in their ways 
 
 Live very queerly nowadays; 
 
 Nothing sinks into the heart — 
 
 Think there is no serious part. 
 
 Spend their money as they go, 
 
 As if they always could do so. 
 
 Nor save a cent for time of want, 
 
 That may creep on them, lean and gaunt; 
 
 'Tis very well all cares to ban, 
 
 And enjoy yourself as best you can; 
 
 But while you do, in this abide — 
 
 Remember there is another side. 
 
 Civility costs little, is often heard, 
 And wins its way by tact and word. 
 
 The secret of true beauty in mind and 
 body lies in pure thoughts and perfect 
 living. 
 
 24 
 
Two-thirds of the people nowadays 
 Are two-thirds bluff in all their ways, 
 
 The man who stoops to a mean act 
 Is just as mean himself in fact, 
 For speech and actions doth betray 
 Just what we are in every way. 
 
 Be slow in parting with things that are 
 of true worth to you. 
 
 Full many a thing is rent in twain 
 That skill can ne'er repair again, 
 And the secrets, too, that we reveal 
 Oft make the wounds that never heal. 
 
 One kind act wins more for you 
 
 Than a hundred kicks or blows could do. 
 
 Smiles and frowns are the sunshine and 
 shadows of the mind. 
 
 25 
 
Making friends is making good, 
 If you hold them as you should. 
 
 The merchant will gladly sell to you 
 
 His wares at the market price, 
 And men will for you labor, too, 
 
 And their pay — the regular slice. 
 That's when there's competition 'round, 
 
 Close to them fore and aft; 
 When none is found, their price will bound, 
 
 For then they're out for graft. 
 
 Carelessness is the mother of many faults. 
 
 You may spend a dime foolishly every day, 
 Which is a small sum, as to you appears; 
 
 But if you will put it as savings away, 
 It will buy you a home in twenty years. 
 
 You have no greater enemy in life than 
 imagination when it is turned against 
 you. 
 
We oft call a man a stingy cuss 
 
 When he's more generous than any of us. 
 
 Conduct the school on the liberal plan, 
 And keep the changing times in view; 
 
 Teach what makes the practical man, 
 And what gets bread and butter, too. 
 
 Effort is the soul of worth; they excel 
 who push ahead. 
 
 With God all men are free, 
 Each fills an equal grave; 
 
 But men, by their decree, 
 Inhumanly make the slave. 
 
 When a man's assailed behind his back, 
 He more keenly feels the foul attack. 
 
 A specific for the blues is to be found in 
 cheerful surroundings and pleasant 
 company. 
 
 27 
 
Man against man is the rule today, 
 And each for himself in every way. 
 
 The real Americans are going to seed, 
 For our aliens are the only ones that breed. 
 The days of large families are past and gone, 
 With foreigners outnumbering us, three to one. 
 The brainy and fittest ones of earth 
 Are the best to reproduce for worth; 
 But it ill forebodes what the future '11 be 
 With our best stock in descendancy. 
 
 Mingle with the people and keep up-to-date. 
 
 In the spring of life or spring of the year, 
 How hopeful and joyous things appear — 
 But when it's life or nature's fall, 
 Such thrills are slight, if felt at all. 
 
 Individuality is on the wane, as imitating 
 others is on the increase. 
 
 28 
 
To act first, and think after, 
 Will only bring on you disaster. 
 
 Many a shot of the mark goes wide 
 That at the time may cause unrest; 
 
 But how often later we decide 
 
 To miss was wholly for the best. 
 
 If we deceive people today, they will be 
 wise to our ways tomorrow. 
 
 When life is turned back, page on page, 
 As anxious minds doth o'er them run, 
 There's nothing gives more joy to age 
 
 Than find on each inscribed, "Well done!" 
 
 The fleshy man, like a pig, 
 Slower goes as he grows big. 
 
 To the man who goes about things right, 
 success is never difficult. 
 
 29 
 
With great events great men are allied, 
 And prattlers and bluffers are pushed aside. 
 
 A man's advice to a boy one day: 
 "Learn a trade that will always pay, 
 Work you'll love from morn till night, 
 Something that fits your nature right- 
 And stick. 
 
 But if you'd win o'er things of fate, 
 And vie with men of every state, 
 Men of brawn and men of brain, 
 The best way you can such attain 
 Is by work. 
 
 Don't ever be a slave to men, 
 But hold your head aloft, and when 
 You need a dollar to help you on, 
 Down in your pocket there'll be one — 
 If you save." 
 
 One good neighbor in time of need is 
 usually worth a dozen ordinary 
 relatives. 
 
 30 
 
The path that is of rightful trend, 
 Tho' hard, is surest in the end. 
 
 How often things that seemed a loss 
 Have later brought us gain, renown, 
 And often burdens that seemed a cross 
 Have proven in after years a crown. 
 
 Let it be mind over matter, not matter 
 over mind. 
 
 None seems dearer than a friend 
 
 When troubles come, we seek him out; 
 
 And tho' friends do assistance lend, 
 None cause us more ill luck about. 
 
 Good thoughts lift us to the skies, 
 With earth a heaven as we rise. 
 
 True modesty is fast becoming a thing of 
 the past; if you think otherwise, visit 
 the bathing beaches. 
 
 31 
 
Steal a dollar and to jail you go, 
 But steal a million and it's seldom so. 
 
 "My son," said a father, "if ever you marry, 
 
 Don't marry for money if happy you'd live, 
 But seek a good woman, bright, fond, and cheery, 
 
 She's worth all the gold the rich one can give." 
 Then to his daughter, saying most clearly: 
 
 "In choosing a husband, I'll add this bit more, 
 That he's sober, industrious, one you love dearly, 
 
 And pull well together, God's blessing in store." 
 
 Cheerfulness of mind speaks of sunshine of 
 the soul. 
 
 Keep a close watch all the time, 
 
 Full on your rivals all; 
 They're the steps by which you climb, 
 
 And the ones by which you fall. 
 
 The spirit "I don't care" is the reason why 
 many a man must dress in rags. 
 
 32 
 
The faltering man lacks force and tact, 
 And often is loser by the act. 
 
 I don't worry, I don't care, 
 If my rivals forty are. 
 I'll get my share, what e'er it is 
 If I strive and know my biz. 
 
 We usually hold things in value as they 
 cost us in effort. 
 
 We can forgive a wrong that's done 
 When passion's heat held sway; 
 
 But we never forgive or forget the one 
 That was done in a wilful way. 
 
 To raise a boy on the goodie plan 
 Will make a good-for-nothing man. 
 
 You cannot reap an autumn of peace 
 and plenty; from a summer of vice 
 and dissipation. 
 
 33 
 
Speak of one whom you think not near, 
 And how oft he suddenly will appear. 
 
 All is well that well remains; 
 
 The last hurrah is always best; 
 The roving man but little gains, 
 
 Worth will prove itself by test. 
 A discreet tongue is always right; 
 
 A guarded step may save a fall; 
 To be prepared is half the fight; 
 
 No definite law applies to all. 
 Each day of life we shape our end; 
 
 We prize too little our good health; 
 Worry is the graveyard's friend, 
 
 And economy the base of wealth. 
 
 Discretion wards off many an evil, 
 And many a thing that's of the devil. 
 
 The vast majority of the people of this 
 world simply exist and nothing more. 
 
 34 
 
A man that's always changing about 
 Gains less than he who sticks it out. 
 
 The man whose voice is honey sweet 
 
 And shakes your hand whene'er you meet, 
 
 Whose tactful ways are artfully thrust, 
 Is seldom one whom you can trust. 
 
 Waste no time on dead issues, but devote 
 them to live ones. 
 
 Tho' girt of form and length of limb 
 May place your vantage high; 
 
 You'll always find that brain and vim 
 Are the best to get you by. 
 
 If earth of meddling ones was free, 
 How much better off mankind would be. 
 
 A small amount of fret and worry are 
 essential for our welfare in life. 
 
 35 
 
"Tis not in life how much you do, 
 But how well that speaks for you. 
 
 We always find that schemers 
 
 Stand forth like showy fobs; 
 They love to shirk and hate to work 
 
 Unless they get good jobs; 
 And they always seem to get them 
 
 By their convincing ways, 
 Plot and plan and work the man 
 
 Till something fully pays. 
 
 The best way to keep a secret is to 
 forget it. 
 
 Of golden rules, this one is best 
 
 To win for you life's highest prize; 
 
 The base on which success doth rest, 
 'Tis work, and save, and advertise. 
 
 man may be perfectly good in ninety- 
 nine things in a hundred, but in that 
 one thing he will err and he can't help it. 
 
 36 
 
To confide a secret is often worse 
 
 Than to trust the people with your purse. 
 
 They ne'er succeed that rule severe, 
 The rod is but a poor endeavor; 
 
 It breeds dissension, hate and fear, 
 
 While kindness wins the heart forever. 
 
 The drunkard pays the price for his 
 evil course. 
 
 When we think we are most secure, 
 We are often nearest to a fall; 
 
 And many a loss that we endure 
 Is really a blessing, after all. 
 
 Taffy on earth it seems to be, 
 And epitaphy when eternity. 
 
 Some people acquire wealth by their own 
 efforts; others are kicked into it. 
 
 37 
 
No better crop can a nation raise 
 
 Than good men and women of sensible ways. 
 
 In men's appearances we may know 
 
 Whether their homes are peace or strife. 
 What were their parents, high or low, 
 
 Are they successful in ways of life? 
 Have they good health, or are they ill, 
 
 What are the thoughts within each mind, 
 What part in life do they fulfill — 
 
 All to the skillful eye outlined. 
 
 Put shackles on your desires quickly, 
 or they will put them on you. 
 
 There's many an act that is a sin, 
 That some may see a pleasure in; 
 But those who err for pleasure's way 
 Will sore repent some other day. 
 
 Efficiency and economy start early and 
 right. Inefficiency and extravagance 
 start late and hurry. 
 
 38 
 
God helps the man that also tries, 
 Whose goal is set beyond the skies. 
 
 The man while in midlife and health 
 
 Who would retire from work and strife, 
 
 For way of ease, whatever his wealth, 
 Finds ten times harder idle life. 
 
 Gabbling tongues, like babbling brooks, 
 have more noise than power. 
 
 Ten thousand men of common birth 
 May live their lives upon this earth, 
 And when they're gone, how oft we find 
 They hardly leave a trace behind. 
 
 Don't lose your temper, try and keep cool; 
 The one that gets angry is ever a fool. 
 
 We owe our present high state of civili- 
 zation to ideas, and each good idea 
 is a boost upward. 
 
 39 
 
Whenever flattery's voice is near 
 We always lend a willing ear. 
 
 When your conscience bids you heed 
 And sternly points to time of need, 
 And warns your ways tend to excess, 
 The word that should reform express, 
 Economize! 
 
 If you think you've got a thing 
 Which should fame and fortune bring, 
 And how to act you do not know, 
 Why, simply, if the thing is so, 
 Advertise! 
 
 When you win where others fail, 
 Along life's rough, uncertain trail, 
 And gain the prize as men proclaim, 
 The way to voice your deeds, the name 
 Enterprise! 
 
 The smile that does not wear off is the 
 one that has something behind it. 
 
 40 
 
Behind a pair of bewitching eyes, 
 What power for good or evil lies. 
 
 If ever you want to sell a thing, 
 And offered all that it should bring, 
 Sell it for the price that's set, 
 Or some day you may sore regret. 
 
 Industry warms the hearth, clothes the 
 back and provides for the pantry. 
 
 Wars of the future will be horrible to tell, 
 
 When armies and cities are destroyed from afar 
 
 By lightnings, explosives, poisons, ways of hell, 
 Then man must cease in making war. 
 
 Guard well your talk in all you say, 
 For words take wings and fly away. 
 
 The poor man is more often happier 
 with his dollar than the rich man is 
 with his millions. 
 
 41 
 
Filthy language is thought outlined, 
 And it always shows a filthy mind. 
 
 The tipping habit, at its best, 
 Is a nusiance, graft, and pest; 
 Tho' you pay for what you get, 
 Still they feel you owe them yet. 
 These beggars boldly come about, 
 The tip, you fail to hand it out — 
 And ever return, you'll get a frost, 
 For they'll have you double-crossed. 
 
 There is no greater slave than the willing 
 slave. 
 
 How often favors are partially shown 
 When tricksters look out for their own, 
 And unworthy drones fill places when 
 The call is for the fittest men. 
 
 It is always wise to hold something in 
 reserve to meet emergencies. 
 
 42 
 
Success is for those who'll cater to it, 
 And failure for those who will not do it. 
 
 Full many a man advises well, 
 
 And points to erring ways about, 
 
 But often he who best doth tell, 
 Himself may poorest act it out. 
 
 To err once makes it doubly easy to err 
 the second time. 
 
 Past sixty years, save your heart, 
 And don't climb hills for exercise; 
 
 Of active life take lesser part 
 According as decline implies. 
 
 Be careful how you make new friends, 
 For their object's often selfish ends. 
 
 When you try to step around lively after 
 you are forty years of age, your stiffen- 
 ing knees remind you that the years 
 are creeping on. 
 
 43 
 
A kick in the rear, or a biff in the jaw, 
 For some dirty curs, is really good law. 
 
 Many a man, who lives as he goes, 
 
 Ne'er thinks of the time or the day 
 When misfortune around him may close, 
 
 And he'll have naught to keep it away. 
 He laughs at advice, as money is spent, 
 
 In ways that are foolish and dim, 
 But feels if he's down and hasn't a cent, 
 
 That the world must take care of him. 
 I'm with the man of honor and pluck, 
 
 E'en tho' he has lost in the fight, 
 But never with him who makes his ill-luck, 
 
 Then looks for my aid in his plight. 
 
 A hateful, selfish word is greed, 
 That aptly applies to human breed. 
 
 It is heroic to fight when right, 
 
 and noble to apologize when wrong. 
 
 44 
 
The way of wrong hath steeper grade 
 As sin and vice are deeper laid. 
 
 The world goes on in the same old way, 
 But man is changing day by day, 
 He's restless, selfish, and less true, 
 And provides less for his future, too. 
 
 The man who accepts a bribe places 
 fetters on himself. 
 
 Nail a lie wherever you find it, 
 Expose a fraud and those behind it. 
 Point the rogue wherever he be, 
 That unsuspecting ones may see. 
 
 How often an outburst of passion may 
 The happiness of a whole life stay. 
 
 Behind the screen of everyday life is 
 the devil's backyard, where rogues 
 and sinners act their parts. 
 
 45 
 
The best way to kill an obnoxious law, 
 Is enforce the d — n thing without a flaw, 
 
 The big things from the little grow, 
 As flake on flake pile drifts of snow, 
 Or drops of water and grains of sand 
 Make mighty oceans and the land; 
 The coral reefs from insects came, 
 A single spark and seas of flame, 
 And all that makes our lives sublime 
 Creeps slowly up the steps of time. 
 
 Self-importance never gets far from home. 
 
 Books and beaux are always foes, 
 For they antagonize each other; 
 
 Books should be first, then the beaux, 
 To have them work together. 
 
 Don't always regard a man as good because 
 he is found in good company. 
 
 46 
 
The man who buys things by the slice 
 Is usually he who pays the price. 
 
 Charity and kindness, truth and love, 
 Are the four ideals of heaven above, 
 
 And no greater, nobler man can show 
 
 When he acts them out on earth below. 
 
 Impatience is a poor driver and seldom 
 wins a race. 
 
 Strive to shun the unlucky man, 
 In every way, wherever you can, 
 For fate on him may darkly frown 
 And also with him drag you down. 
 
 Two-thirds of those who commit a crime 
 Have mental depravity at the time. 
 
 The man who smiles and sings at his work 
 is worth two who scowl and complain. 
 
 47 
 
Great bodies of men under one great head, 
 Are doubled in strength and far better led. 
 
 Some men with common sense and grace 
 Can adjust themselves to any place, 
 They stoop and rise most artfully, too, 
 To meet conditions seen in you. 
 
 The poor man spends his money, but 
 the rich man saves it. 
 
 Fate and fortune act their parts, 
 
 And each acts opposite to the other, 
 
 Fate would sting us with its darts, 
 
 But fortune kindly smooths them over. 
 
 Though day dreams are often themes, 
 
 Yet some have proved man's greatest schemes. 
 
 When building for life, like building a house, 
 'tis well to start with a good foundation. 
 
 48 
 
In public life, in all your ways, 
 A fine appearance always pays. 
 
 Tho' we may boast of treasures 
 
 That are wrapt up in success, 
 And the many blissful pleasures 
 
 That a long life may possess, 
 But give me years of childhood, 
 
 As my boyhood days did know, 
 The streams, and fields and wild wood, 
 
 The ice and the hills of snow. 
 When my heart was joy o'erflowing, 
 
 And cares could not annoy, 
 With the future brightly glowing — 
 
 And I was a happy boy. 
 
 In time, all things their level find, 
 No matter how they wind and wind. 
 
 Our disappointments and reverses 
 often spur us on to our greatest 
 achievements. 
 
Who fights for you because he must 
 Is never one whom you can trust. 
 
 The mental sunshine 
 In a word of cheer 
 
 Is often a lifeline 
 
 To the heart that's drear. 
 
 The place that gives much for little will 
 always be popular. 
 
 The barking dog will seldom bite, 
 In the growling one look for a fight; 
 And so with man you'll also find 
 The staunchest are the silent kind. 
 
 Put contracts in writing, according to law, 
 And draw them up clearly, with never a flaw. 
 
 The man who is deceitful in little things 
 will be deceitful in big things. 
 
 60 
 
One flag, one language, a more friendly 
 
 relation, 
 Will mould us together more firmly, a 
 
 nation. 
 
 When you remember names and faces 
 
 Of the people whom you greet, 
 And recall events and places 
 
 Where formerly you did meet; 
 It will cause a friendly feeling 
 
 Deep in their hearts for you, 
 And o'er them it comes stealing 
 
 That you hold them kindly, too. 
 
 A good vacation each year is an extra lease 
 on life. 
 
 Few people these days save their money, 
 'Tis spent in foolish ways about, 
 
 And when they're down and haven't any, 
 The saving ones must help them out. 
 
 Treat your enemies as your enemies, and 
 your friends as your friends. 
 
 51 
 
In business affairs, strive to please, 
 You'll find it best for trade and fees. 
 
 Don't tell people your troubles and woes, 
 For it's seldom they want to hear them. 
 
 A pleasing good story far better goes 
 
 With a smile on your face to cheer them. 
 
 A good reputation will stand while you 
 hold it up. 
 
 We may have a habit in act or word, 
 But we don't realize how vile it is 
 
 Until in others it is seen or heard, 
 Then we awaken to its enormities. 
 
 'Tis easy to point the ones that fail, 
 For their very appearance tells the tale. 
 
 The wild animal often lives a more natural 
 life by instinct than human beings do 
 by intelligence. 
 
 52 
 
The willing man, like the willing horse, 
 Needs no urging on his course. 
 
 Full many a man should win in life 
 Who has the power to act and plan, 
 
 The traits that conquer fate and strife, 
 But lacks what makes successful man — 
 Nerve. 
 
 If you would gain the things that grace 
 Or vie with those who are round about, 
 
 And push yourself right into place, 
 And put your rivals all to rout — 
 Nerve. 
 
 When we consider the men who've won, 
 Who rose from obscurity up to fame, 
 
 The secret oft how it was done, 
 
 Acquired wealth, or got a name — 
 Nerve. 
 
 Many ignorant men pass well in a crowd 
 because they keep their mouths shut. 
 
 53 
 
Beware of men and women, too, 
 Whose looks do not appeal to you. 
 
 I help the man who helpeth me, 
 And I really think it's the way to be, 
 For in his kind acts I discern 
 A friendship that I should return. 
 
 Extravagance hath but one end, and that 
 is poverty. 
 
 'Tis the law that keeps men decent, right, 
 Were it not for the law, it would be might, 
 Wherever wrong against right is tried, 
 And the weak would be awed and pushed aside. 
 
 Never choose slackers to fill a place when 
 The occasion calls for the fittest of men. 
 
 If we do not prepare in youth for the 
 better conditions of life, we must be 
 content in age to elbow our way with 
 the rabble. 
 
 54 
 
Better a fish, tho' somewhat small, 
 Than not to catch a fish at all. 
 
 The things of life are up so high, 
 It's discouraging if we attempt to buy. 
 For food and clothes, fuel and rent, 
 From the laboring man takes every cent. 
 But the way to prevent this, I infer, 
 Is from producer to the customer. 
 Great central markets I would plan, 
 And do away with the middleman. 
 
 If you wish to be thoroughly done, let 
 your friends do it. 
 
 The men or race that rise again, 
 
 That's been trodden down as the earth, 
 Deserve the place that they attain, 
 
 And it also proves they are of worth. 
 
 Whenever the servant would live like his 
 master, he soon has creditors at his 
 heels. 
 
 65 
 
The best doctor for your ails and ills 
 Gives the best advice and the fewest pills. 
 
 If you have money nowadays, 
 It will be hats off to you; 
 
 And schemers in a thousand ways 
 Will try and get it, too. 
 
 Have and enjoy the good things of life 
 so far as you are able. 
 
 God sends each thing upon the earth, 
 However great or small its worth; 
 Each hath some purpose in its way, 
 Of which we're learning every day. 
 
 An object gained at a great cost 
 Is not much better than one lost. 
 
 That man will prove a failure who will 
 not accept the humble things of life 
 until he can get better. 
 
 56 
 
In a time like this of business greed, 
 You must think and act quick to succeed. 
 
 To every man there comes a day 
 When good luck surely runs his way, 
 And fortune, in her ways of guile, 
 Looks on him with a favored smile. 
 This is the time for him to try — 
 Not let these precious hours go by — 
 Improve the chance while tide is on, 
 Before it ebbs and is forever gone. 
 
 Selfishness is natural to every living thing. 
 
 Good sense at one time ruled mankind, 
 But, alas, to such we now are blind. 
 Instead of sense 'tis nonsense in way 
 That is overwhelming us today. 
 
 Tardiness is a fault, and the boy who is 
 often tardy at school will be late at 
 every thing all through his life. 
 
 57 
 
Youth and work fight off disease 
 That preys on age and luxurious ease. 
 
 I expect your friends will praise your name, 
 Your acts and deeds and friendship, too, 
 
 But when your enemies do the same, 
 I feel whatever they say is true. 
 
 Love your country, fight for your country, 
 and you will have a country. 
 
 Fixed rules are made to guide our way, 
 But as things change from day to day, 
 There's scarce a rule that should hold fast 
 With the present differing from the past. 
 
 Money that's gotten in an evil way 
 Oft brings ill-luck some other day. 
 
 For your remorse and regrets, three times 
 out of four, blame yourself. 
 
 58 
 
Give to the beggars you meet by the way, 
 Encourages rags, and beggars they'll stay. 
 
 Every man hath some good in him, 
 
 And every man hath something bad, 
 But pro or con as it may sin him, 
 
 Judgment should be carefully had. 
 Fate oft acts with grace or rudeness, 
 
 On one may smile, on another frown, 
 Don't praise too much because of goodness, 
 
 Nor condemn with haste if one is down; 
 For you may share life's best requirements 
 
 To shape your way", but with the other 'tis 
 Low heritage, ignorance, or environments, 
 
 These make man just what he is. 
 
 How often we oppose our bread and butter, 
 When angry words we defiantly utter. 
 
 Always keep your mind on things that 
 tend to success and happiness. 
 
 59 
 
A nation is a collection of people, that's all, 
 And each individual is a brick in its wall. 
 
 When men and women wed for money, 
 How oft we find they pay the price. 
 
 To wed for wealth is never honey, 
 For love, 'tis seldom sacrifice. 
 
 Rogues and rascals flourish wherever 
 honest criticism is suppressed. 
 
 We all admire the liberal man, • 
 Who gives to aid where'er he can, 
 And heaven above is also won, 
 As his deeds are nobly done. 
 
 Vain and self-important ways 
 Never gain for us much praise. 
 
 The good examples of great men and 
 women are beacon lights that guide 
 and inspire us along life's way. 
 
 60 
 
With the doctor we have a chance to win, 
 But the undertaker snugly tucks us in. 
 
 One man may sway ten thousand men 
 And make them subjects of him, when 
 By eloquence and tact combined 
 He moulds them as a single mind. 
 This shows the power of man o'er man, 
 When one with strength of mind ere can 
 Turn their ways to right and worth, 
 Or loose them, fiends, upon the earth. 
 
 The evil in a thing is often as we 
 make it. 
 
 If an error's once made, 
 I may doubt its intent, 
 
 But if twice it's arrayed, 
 I may feel it was meant. 
 
 The apparent greatness of many 
 men lies wholly in some position 
 which they fortunately hold. 
 
 61 
 
They attended his funeral, and dollars were spent, 
 But to help him in life, they hadn't a cent. 
 
 Don't hold the past as the time to win, 
 That today has nothing but loss and chagrin; 
 There is always a way in which to advance, 
 And live men and women have ever a chance. 
 
 Life's sunshine and shadows are very much 
 as we make them. 
 
 When things look bad on every hand, 
 Wherever you'd turn or go; 
 
 'Tis best at once to make a stand 
 Till you may better know. 
 
 Let things be done as they should be done, 
 It's the only way great ends are won. 
 
 In your race for existence, don't carry any 
 unnecessary burdens. 
 
 62 
 
Some men live by their tact and wit, 
 Others by hard work and plenty of it, 
 
 Always rising, always setting, 
 
 Rosy morn or dusty eve, 
 So our earth the sun is getting, 
 
 And so it's also taking leave. 
 Thus ever on the years are coming 
 
 And going as an endless train, 
 Swift and silent in their summing, 
 
 Never to return again. 
 
 When you argue with a fool, you make 
 a fool of yourself. 
 
 'Tis easy to win when others show 
 The way in which you ought to go, 
 But the man who waits for this to come 
 Seldom gets far away from home. 
 
 Know your business, keep your mind 
 on your business when you are 
 doing business. 
 
 63 
 
Whenever for gold we sacrifice 
 Our high ideals, we pay the price. 
 
 Exercise for health is good. 
 
 Be moderate in your ways, 
 Careful in your drink and food, 
 
 Long life and happy days. 
 
 Charity and ice are very near the 
 same temperature. 
 
 I like the man who'll do as he says, 
 No matter how it later befits, 
 
 Such is heroic and noble in ways, 
 But I hate the coward who quits. 
 
 Eight hours for work, eight hours for play, 
 Eight hours for sleep — a perfect day. 
 
 t 
 
 One of man's chief characteristics 
 is to want, and the more he has 
 the more he wants. 
 
 64 
 
Prepare for payments before they are due, 
 Is a good business way for all to pursue. 
 
 A boy once said, "When I am a man 
 I will own a big store if I can, 
 And sell the things that men will buy, 
 And have lots of wealth before I die" — 
 And he succeeded. 
 
 A great man toiled for years alone 
 To prove an invention, while everyone 
 Said impossible, with sneering laugh. 
 They looked on him as a simple calf — 
 And he succeeded. 
 
 Men have sought to conquer the sea, 
 And fly in the air like birds as free, 
 And solve the mysteries that were unwon, 
 Which skeptics said could not be done — 
 And they succeeded. 
 
 The word "failure" can be truthfully 
 written over nearly every grave. 
 
 65 
 
If a man can't pay a dollar due, 
 Don't look for it when he owes two. 
 
 Whenever we follow, we imitate, 
 To let others lead is servile state, 
 So never follow in thought or deed, 
 Only where it tends to lead. 
 
 The foundation that we build today 
 we stand on tomorrow. 
 
 Life has no neutral ground or zone, 
 No place to stop, or stand alone, 
 We're cast upon its billowy sea, 
 And its way leads on to eternity. 
 
 The menace of our people today 
 
 Is our weak home life and social decay, 
 
 In my dealings with men each day — 
 I don't care what their ancestors 
 were — I only want to know what 
 they are. 
 
 66 
 
Those who fall and rise again 
 Will firmer on their feet remain. 
 
 The man who laughs at danger, 
 
 Nor heeds not good advice, 
 And dines at folly's manger 
 
 Will some day pay the price; 
 For he is a desperate chooser 
 
 Who flirts with erring state, 
 And soon or late is a loser 
 
 If he casts the dice with fate. 
 
 The careless man is a misfit every- 
 where. 
 
 The man who goes back on his friends, 
 And throws them down for selfish ends 
 Is an ingrate cur of human plan, 
 And never should be called a man. 
 
 The further we go from childhood, 
 the more dearly it appeals to us. 
 
 67 
 
It is a poor day if you strive and wait, 
 That don't bring some good soon or late. 
 
 To live twice is to live well 
 So the sages love to tell. 
 But very few, if granted it, 
 Would improve their lives a bit. 
 
 Scowls and frowns are bad for friends 
 and business. 
 
 Life's first step is the hardest one, 
 Our greatest trial oft centers there, 
 
 But when that trying goal is won, 
 Fortune beckons everywhere. 
 
 When a man says "I will make you rich quick," 
 Nine times out of ten, his scheme is a trick. 
 
 It is always a good recommendation for 
 any young man that he is saving and 
 industrious. 
 
 68 
 
That man's religion is but a pretext, 
 Who prays with one breath and swears with 
 the next. 
 
 Don't wear your knees out praying 
 
 That heaven will be with you, 
 Nor feel in what you're saying 
 
 It is all that you should do; 
 For there are ways as holy 
 
 That prove our hearts each day, 
 'Tis to help the poor and lowly, 
 
 And the afflicted by the way. 
 Tho' God each life is viewing, 
 
 And hears each one's request, 
 'Tis the good deeds which we're doing 
 
 That pleases Him the best. 
 
 When to go around is the best way found 
 To help you on, then go around. 
 
 The connecting link between the hovel 
 and the palace is effort. 
 
 69 
 
A lie that's mixed with truth you'll find 
 Is ever of the dangerous kind. 
 
 A man may lead a popular cause 
 
 And shout aloud 'gainst greed and pelf, 
 But later we find his object was 
 One for us and two for himself. 
 
 The most honest man is the man who 
 must be honest. 
 
 When men don't know, yet pretend to know, 
 
 And tell you things that are not so, 
 
 They oft a selfish part do play, 
 
 And to gain their end lead you astray. 
 
 A gift is prized as it's from the heart, 
 So a generous spirit gains double part. 
 
 Over-confidence leads us to underestimate 
 our part, and we often lose where we 
 should win. 
 
 70 
 
When we help some needy one 
 God helps us as it was done. 
 
 We are never contented with our lot, 
 We crave for things that we have not, 
 Compared with ours oft not as good, 
 And perhaps, sometimes, 'tis well we should. 
 For when life runs upon one strain, 
 It brings us loss instead of gain; 
 A change is best, if well designed, 
 Both for the body and the mind. 
 
 The higher the price, the thinner the 
 slice. 
 
 Never buy things you do not need, 
 But if you see a bargain, make it; 
 
 It may be business, or may be greed, 
 But it's honest gain and take it. 
 
 The fountain of youth is usually found 
 in a happy and contented mind. 
 
 71 
 
When horses eat and children play, 
 Things are in a normal way. 
 
 I respect the man who respects himself, 
 And whose traits are good and true; 
 
 But when it's shame and guile and pelf, 
 Then I take a different view. 
 
 Talk may seem cheap, but sometimes 
 it costs us dear. 
 
 If you should a minute waste, 
 Make it up again in haste; 
 For time is golden in its way, 
 And grows more precious every day. 
 
 The shoddy man, like shoddy clothes, 
 When put to test, but shortly goes. 
 
 The men who make money, and the bees 
 that make honey, are the ones that 
 work. 
 
 72 
 
Unless you read and think and go, 
 Your mind will smaller, smaller grow. 
 
 Let others sing your praises, 
 
 If there be anything to sing, 
 And to listeners its phrases 
 
 Will far more sweetly ring. 
 It will sound less egotistic, 
 
 And will likewise seem more true, 
 And 'twill gain the optimistic, 
 
 When others shout for you. 
 
 To be careless in business is to invite ruin. 
 
 Work will seldom kill a man, 
 
 For work and health together blend; 
 But worry is the thing to ban — 
 
 Worry is death's greatest friend. 
 
 When talking on serious matters, it is 
 well to wear your thinking cap. 
 
 73 
 
All weeds are hateful, but more so when 
 You see them flourish in the minds of men. 
 
 This is an age of physical decay, 
 Man's first step down in every way; 
 There's too much luxury, too much ease, 
 And also too much go-as-you-please. 
 
 Our habits more often are a detriment 
 to us than a benefit. 
 
 Clouds, slowly gathering in their path, 
 
 Oft make the longest storm, 
 And the patient man, once roused to wrath, 
 
 Is the hardest one to calm. 
 
 A hearty laugh, backed up by sense, 
 Hath health and joy in its defense. 
 
 It is better to have the good will of a 
 dog than his enmity, and this 
 applies well to all. 
 
 74 
 
Whene'er it comes to yes or no, 
 Let wisdom point the way you go. 
 
 How oft, when others point your way, 
 It's only to set you astray; 
 For many men have envy strong, 
 And may selfishly advise you wrong. 
 Envy. 
 
 Wherever boys grow side by side, 
 Their futures usually seem allied, 
 But later one may strive for fame, 
 And his rivals sneer who guess his aim. 
 Jealousy. 
 
 You ne'er can keep a good man down, 
 He'll come to the top in city or town, 
 And he who laughs at pluck and vim, 
 Usually the laugh turns back on him. 
 Prejudice. 
 
 Look well after the little things, for they 
 are the foundation of the big things. 
 
 75 
 
The man who stands for a higher price, 
 Oft later sells at a sacrifice. 
 
 The fragrant flowers to beauty given 
 Seems lent to earth direct from heaven, 
 And many a soul that's pure and fond, 
 Speaks not of earth, but life beyond. 
 
 Slow but sure is a fast route in the end. 
 
 I always hate the evasive kind, 
 That never dare to speak their mind, 
 And while you talk in fearless way, 
 They try how little they can say. 
 
 Health, wealth, and enterprise 
 Are usually with the man who tries. 
 
 We are ourselves to blame for two-thirds 
 of the bodily ailments that prema- 
 turely afflict us. 
 
 76 
 
To think more and speak less 
 Is a good resolution to profess. 
 
 The men and women I love the best 
 
 Are those whom noble thoughts have blessed, 
 
 Who are ever ready to do their part, 
 
 And are true as steel within the heart; 
 
 Who feel for those who're down and out, 
 
 No matter how such came about, 
 
 And tho' they act sometimes with guile, 
 
 Still they scorn each thing that's vile, 
 
 By spreading sunshine as they go, 
 
 Envy and hatred are crushed below, 
 
 Their presence, ever welcome near, 
 
 Lifts us into a higher sphere. 
 
 We make our hell and we make our heaven, 
 As our earthly ways to right are given. 
 
 The real joys and pleasures of an ordinary 
 man's life can be summed up in about 
 ten years, the rest is a fight for existence. 
 
 77 
 
I have always found these words, "I can,' 
 Is the motto of the most successful man. 
 
 When scheming people suddenly pay 
 You marked attention, and it's such 
 
 That's foreign to their usual way, 
 
 Be wise, and guard against a "touch/ 
 
 God blesses our homes as we bless them 
 ourselves. 
 
 The thinking man must have remorse 
 When he looks back over his life's course, 
 To note how much of life he has lost, 
 How little gained, how great the cost. 
 
 A child's first lesson should be obey, 
 To fit it for its future way. 
 
 Many people keep falling over their 
 mistakes until they can rise no more. 
 
 78 
 
With your first move rightly done 
 How oft your case is two-thirds won. 
 
 Full many great men had good mothers 
 
 To shape their lives when they were young, 
 And owe to them more than all others 
 
 Their great deeds where'er they're sung. 
 Blest be the mother in town or wild wood, 
 
 'Tis from her knee life's battle's fought, 
 For all through life we turn to childhood, 
 
 And hear again the truths she taught. 
 
 Learn to think and act for yourself. 
 
 When men argue, 'tis well in a way 
 To simply listen to what they say, 
 And never butt in unless you should, 
 And only then for mutual good. 
 
 When I study the ways of most people, I 
 do not wonder at their failures. 
 
 79 
 
I've never seen might in any fight 
 When I thought that it was right. 
 
 Reforms are good when based on good sense, 
 Not the work of fanatics at our welfare expense, 
 For peace and for progress, wherever the test, 
 'Tis liberal reforms that always prove best. 
 
 Never be too proud to perform a kind act, 
 however humble it may be. 
 
 When to sell, if you want to sell 
 A thing without sacrifice, 
 
 Is when somebody wants it well 
 Enough to pay your price. 
 
 With vim for force and brains to guide 
 Gives you a lead where'er you're tried. 
 
 The man who is reconciled to his loss 
 hath overcome half of its affliction. 
 
 80 
 
Don't ever regret if you wear a big boot, 
 
 For good arches and strength are with a big foot. 
 
 Some are older in their bodies 
 
 Than they really are in years, 
 Through their erring and their shoddies 
 
 They have doubled, it appears. 
 But our bodies, that are tearing 
 
 As our clothes, untimely torn, 
 Will long prolong their wearing 
 
 If they are carefully worn. 
 
 Most people move and think on a 
 level with the things about them. 
 
 Whenever good thoughts elevate 
 Our bodies into a higher state, 
 The power rests on a firmer base, 
 And soars itself to nobler place. 
 
 If you take good care of your money today,- 
 it will take good care of you tomorrow. 
 
 81 
 
Always work and never play 
 Doubly hurries life away. 
 
 For every mean act that you do 
 Against some fellow one, 
 
 It will return again to you 
 As mean as it was done. 
 
 Little hills are high to those who 
 know no other. 
 
 The winter time is always drear, 
 Whether 'tis life's or nature's year; 
 So line your nest before it's fall, 
 For time which is before us all. 
 
 One bad fault tells of another, 
 
 For faults are begotten of each other. 
 
 'Tis the short and vivid sermons 
 that sink deepest into our souls. 
 
 82 
 
The little things as they abound, 
 Are usually near the bottom found. 
 
 There's too much shoddy, too much chaff, 
 
 In the ways of men these days; 
 From every quarter comes their gaff, 
 
 In cheat, deceit, a thousand ways. 
 Are their weights as they should be? 
 
 Or in their measures do they slight? 
 When they quote you quality, 
 
 Be sure and see that all is right. 
 
 Nothing makes friends or enemies 
 like money. 
 
 Enjoy yourself in a sensible way, 
 The pleasures of each passing day, 
 The great and good of life attain, 
 For you never will come this way again. 
 
 Never engage in a fight if you can 
 honorably avoid it, but once 
 therein, fight like h . 
 
 83 
 
\ 
 
 To be prepared before you act, 
 Adds greatly to your force and tact. 
 
 The jug and the jag, 
 
 What a story they tell! 
 
 The bum and the hag, 
 The poorhouse and hell. 
 
 Selfishness and ingratitude are a 
 hateful pair. 
 
 If prepared for war by air and sea, 
 In three out of four occasions, 
 
 As we are strong so our land will be 
 Immune from foreign invasions. 
 
 To overcome poverty, our truest defense 
 Is cling to the coin and cut down expense, 
 
 'Tis not the most deserving men and 
 women who always receive the 
 greatest reward for their efforts. 
 
 84 
 
When you boast and show your tin, 
 You may invite the robber in. 
 
 We reckon grandpa was some boy 
 
 When he tells of his young days, 
 And how the folks did once enjoy 
 
 Their good times in a thousand ways; 
 When he drove the oxen in and out, 
 
 And worked as boys now never could, 
 And dared the bear and lynx about 
 
 While chopping trees within the wood; 
 That he'd walked miles to see girls home 
 
 From dances, parties, near and far, 
 And in jumping, wrestling as they come, 
 
 None could beat our old grandpa. 
 
 Two heads are better than one, 'tis said; 
 They are, if together they'll act one head. 
 
 When men or nations do not prepare for 
 the dangers about them, some day 
 they will suffer for their negligence. 
 
 85 
 
For each man whom we underrate, 
 Full two do we over-estimate. 
 
 A nation is made like bricks in a wall, 
 
 And the homes are the bricks, as we take it; 
 
 As they are sound, it's proof against fall, 
 For they're the foundation that make it. 
 
 Though you may fool the other fellow, 
 don't fool yourself. 
 
 Sometimes in venture we're taken in, 
 For life is full of scheme and slight, 
 
 But to never venture is to seldom win, 
 So take a chance if things look right. 
 
 'Tis well to inspect important work, 
 For the tendency now is cheat and shirk. 
 
 Never entrust a man with your business 
 who is careless with his own. 
 
 86 
 
Whenever rich men their pockets fill, 
 The poor men always pay the bill. 
 
 Children should in the home be found 
 
 Under their parents guide and care, 
 When evening's hour has closed around 
 
 With eyes of day no longer there; 
 All that's wrong then stalks abroad, 
 
 For sin's a thing that shuns the light, 
 And millions now upon hell's road 
 
 Are there through being out at night. 
 
 A mean act is always a blot. 
 
 Go to your work with a cheerful spirit, 
 Don't ever dread it, nor ever fear it; 
 It will make it more easy for you to excel 
 If you will follow the ways that I tell. 
 
 Whenever a nation's interests are sacrificed 
 for party interests, that nation suffers 
 as it was done. 
 
 87 
 
Luxury and ease bring on decay, 
 And souls and bodies are their prey. 
 
 The merry hearts that scatter joy, 
 And ones that do God's ways employ, 
 The cheerful words, the tuneful song, 
 How they help mankind along! 
 
 When matters of serious import arise, 
 don't put them off lightly. 
 
 The calm and wise man keeps his head 
 When turbulent times run high; 
 
 But the rattle-head, by excitement led, 
 Will into its vortex fly. 
 
 'Tis not how oft your blow is driven, 
 Its effect is how and where it's given. 
 
 Don't estimate a man's worth as you 
 see him today, but as you see him 
 every day. 
 
 88 
 
If you take promises for your pay, 
 Poorer and poorer you will stay. 
 
 When it comes to act or talk 
 
 With men whom you must vie, 
 
 Be firm and steadfast, never balk, 
 And this essential method try — 
 Always look them in the eye. 
 
 If their minds you'd clearly trace, 
 
 Their deepest hidden thoughts to spy, 
 
 'Tis as the expression of the face, 
 And if you further still would pry, 
 Always look them in the eye. 
 
 'Tis ever well to know your man, 
 Tho' you judge him low or high, 
 That all deceitful ways you ban, 
 
 For the inner man doth outward lie 
 
 As you see him in the eye. 
 
 All great inventions that make the way 
 of life easy are a blessing to one 
 hand and often a curse to the other. 
 
 89 
 
The leaks and faults we hold as small 
 Are oft the most dangerous ones of all. 
 
 Where ever a woman toils like a man, 
 In her hundreds of trials each day, 
 
 And equals his efforts in work and in plan 
 'Tis right she receive a man's pay. 
 
 A disgruntled man is never welcome 
 anywhere. 
 
 A man may earn good wage each day, 
 And not save a nickel from his pay — 
 Another earns but half the amount, 
 Lives well, and has a bank account. 
 
 Go here, go there, go where you will, 
 Your past is always with you still. 
 
 The richest man in worldly treasures 
 is the one who gets the most happi- 
 ness out of life. 
 
 90 
 
Whenever passions rule the mind, 
 Common sense is left behind. 
 
 To gain a hold, and then let go, 
 You'll ne'er succeed by doing so; 
 'Tis stick, and plan, and work and fight, 
 That keeps you in your place all right. 
 So forge your way up fortune's stair, 
 A bull-dog grip when you are there; 
 But a step advanced, and lost again, 
 And you will in the rear remain. 
 
 Cut your hay in the summer of your life. 
 
 Some men are like a weather vane 
 
 That turns its front to every breeze; 
 
 They'll turn to you if it's their gain, 
 And bow in every way to please. 
 
 Love is the road to Paradise; 
 
 Truth is the gate that guards the way. 
 
 91 
 
Twice quicker ended is life's race, 
 When dissipation sets the pace. 
 
 Many a man doth work and save 
 That some favored ones may have, 
 And those for whom he hoards and tries 
 May oft his efforts little prize. 
 
 We too often underrate the men with 
 whom we are familiar. 
 
 Who ever substitutes in things, 
 
 And labels them as right amount, 
 
 For whatever harm it brings 
 
 Should be held to strict account. 
 
 When it's hell within and hell without, 
 Soon everything goes hell about. 
 
 Fortunate is the man whose yesterdays 
 can cast no shadow on today. 
 
 92 
 
Men who reform through fear or shame, 
 Are never reformed except in name. 
 
 Every morning a minute stay 
 
 In thought how you should act 
 In every way all through the day, 
 
 To display most skill and tact; 
 And among the many things you heed 
 
 And the good deeds that you'll do, 
 The way you'll lead the day, you'll lead, 
 
 Not let either one lead you. 
 
 Spend today and beg tomorrow. 
 
 A thing that you should always do 
 Is count the change that's paid to you. 
 Mistakes occur with the best of care, 
 And the time to act is then and there. 
 
 Love makes the load light, and to 
 eliminate worry, makes it easy. 
 
 93 
 
To specialize and save your tin 
 
 Is one of the very sure ways to win. 
 
 All good things hang high, 
 
 And all good things are rare; 
 
 They are for those who'll try 
 And all of those who'll dare. 
 
 When we cease to go forward in life, 
 we go backward. 
 
 Past forty years, and never a wife, 
 Man's but a half a man in life; 
 Married, he's on three-quarters plan, 
 With wife and children, he's a man. 
 
 With the right man in the right place, 
 Makes it doubly sure in every case. 
 
 The lives of some people are like open 
 books, while others are closed and 
 deeply hidden. 
 
 94 
 
As we grow in age, we grow pious, forsooth, 
 To atone for our sins and meanness of youth. 
 
 The cheeky four-flusher, whatever his roll, 
 
 Will let nothing stand in his way; 
 Deceitful and artful, regardless the toll, 
 
 For bluff is his greatest mainstay. 
 He poses as one who has plenty, forsooth, 
 
 As his suave ways and glib talk command, 
 When hardly a word he utters is truth, 
 
 That is why the four-flusher is banned. 
 
 Silent contempt is often a sharp rebuke. 
 
 Live and let live is the right way to live, 
 Justice to all is the noblest motive, 
 Receive and return must be on the square, 
 Or action's a failure, no matter where. 
 
 The man who points out your faults to 
 you is often performing a friendly 
 act. 
 
 95 
 
Too much care or too little care 
 Is ever wrong, no matter where. 
 
 Don't ever worry, don't ever wail, 
 
 More deadly sting death never gave! 
 
 Your arteries harden, your powers fail, 
 And long before your time — the grave. 
 
 Some people, like hogs, wallow in their filth, 
 
 Unless you have a dollar, you're a slave; 
 
 Want and sickness stares you in the face. 
 You'll bow to an employer lest you save; 
 
 It deprives you everywhere of proper place. 
 
 Place good men on guard, so they 
 Will see that Justice gets fair play. 
 
 The man who is too proud to deal with 
 little things will be a failure in deal- 
 ing with big things. 
 
 96 
 
Time sternly points from youth to age 
 As it deftly turns life's fleeting page. 
 
 Oh! for the life our parents lived, when 
 
 The homes were so happy and bright, 
 And standards were high with women and men, 
 
 And their ideals were lofty and right; 
 When fine healthy children in numbers did roam, 
 
 And when thrift and economy found place, 
 The family welfare was first law of the home, 
 
 And separation and divorce were disgrace. 
 Not money-mad, then, and their home life, too, 
 
 Was such as their means could sustain, 
 And man was a man, and friendship was true, 
 
 We shall ne'er see such good homes again. 
 
 The scheming men oft have mishaps, 
 And catch their fingers in their traps. 
 
 Our conditions in life are usually on a 
 level with our thoughts. 
 
 97 
 
Whenever a rogue gives you advice, 
 Before you act, 'tis well to think twice. 
 
 Endowed with free will, earth is our limit, 
 And we get out of life what we put in it; 
 
 For life's candle burns just as we burn it, 
 
 So our pilgrimage here is about as we earn it. 
 
 Have ready ears when danger sounds its 
 warning. 
 
 The secret for a healthy skin 
 Is not without, but from within; 
 Good health derived from ways we live 
 Will ever the best complexion give. 
 
 Every boy should be trained for something, 
 Or usually he amounts to nothing. 
 
 As you grow in years, guard against the 
 common evil of growing narrow in 
 your ways. 
 
 98 
 
There are man-eating sharks in the ocean and 
 There are man-cheating sharks upon the land. 
 
 Let's all delight in doing good, 
 Spread everywhere a joyous mood, 
 Man with man is made more dear, 
 And gloomy hearts are filled with cheer. 
 
 'Tis business to make every man come 
 across as he should. 
 
 Full many a man tells what he'll do, 
 
 That we later find a boasting gawk, 
 But men who prove both brave and true, 
 Are those who act, not those who talk. 
 
 The mind is our central zone, 
 And when that's gone, all is gone. 
 
 What is one man's good fortune is often 
 another man's misfortune. 
 
 99 
 
The thief that steals and gets away 
 Will steal again some other day. 
 
 I admire the man who has the vim, 
 
 Who dares the whole world when he's right, 
 Who never betrays the trust in him, 
 
 And whose face is ever toward the fight. 
 Such men are of heroic mould, 
 
 They lift mankind from lowly source, 
 When threat nor guile nor greed for gold, 
 
 Will sway them from their loftier course. 
 
 Look over your friends and pull out 
 the weeds. 
 
 As you treat your children human, 
 And with loving kindness, too, 
 
 When they're grown up man or woman, 
 They'll return the same to you. 
 
 The man who looks for trouble never 
 has much trouble in finding it. 
 
 100 
 
The first attempt by failure marred, 
 Oft makes a second doubly hard. 
 
 The rivers from the brooklets flow, 
 The oak trees from the acorns grow, 
 And men who stand as peers of kings, 
 Built day by day from little things. 
 
 The secret of true happiness is in the 
 living of a good life. 
 
 Whatever birth destines to give, 
 We must accept, tho' low or high, 
 
 But it's with us how we shall live, 
 And also, too, how we shall die. 
 
 When kind deeds unite heart with heart, 
 They seldom ever break apart. 
 
 Bear in mind that there is no man 
 so friendly with you today but what 
 he can become your enemy tomorrow. 
 
 101 
 
One thing at a time if you would excel, 
 When you try more, 'tis seldom as well. 
 
 In union there's strength as men pull together, 
 One mind and one effort as firm without awe, 
 
 They stand like one man in a cause, whether 
 It happens in peace or is an action of war. 
 
 For team work's a giant wherever it's driven, 
 Its force is concentrated all in one blow, 
 
 And it overcomes obstacles as it is given 
 As men act together their victory will grow. 
 
 Healthy thoughts tend to make a healthy 
 body. 
 
 A man may ride if he has the money, 
 If he has none, you'll find he walks. 
 
 This illustrates how "mon" is honey, 
 
 And one of the thousand ways it talks. 
 
 If you stumble and fall amid the difficulties 
 of life, don't lie there, but get up again. 
 
 102 
 
When man is blessed with a good wife, 
 No greater blessing in his life. 
 
 I often feel as most men do, 
 When not a wrong in it I see, 
 
 Whatever gives me three for two 
 Is usually good enough for me. 
 
 Love turned to hate hath vengeance in 
 its wrath. 
 
 A man may have been heroic and brave, 
 
 But if hurt badly, the smash and the pain 
 
 Will ever haunt him, e'en to his grave, 
 And he never is found as heroic again. 
 
 To be a good talker is a good thing, you bet! 
 But wisdom in talking is far better yet. 
 
 Bring children up to know the value of 
 money, and that work is necessary 
 for success. 
 
 103 
 
To upbraid a man for doing wrong, 
 Calmness makes it doubly strong. 
 
 The growing evil today is graft, 
 A thieving method, a menace, craft, 
 For often now to gain your end, 
 That w T ith which you must contend 
 Is the hand behind the back. 
 
 In public life it rules the man, 
 'Tis everywhere a hold-up plan; 
 Men are no longer on the square, 
 And for every favor there's a fare 
 In the hand behind the back. 
 
 As you come across, you get the biz, 
 Or gain your point, where'er it is, 
 And though you really pay what's right, 
 Your fate's uncertain if you slight 
 The hand behind the back. 
 
 Many of the sacrifices that man makes 
 for his fellow-man hath selfish mo- 
 tives behind them. 
 
 104 
 
The rogue oft pays a small account, 
 To catch you for a large amount. 
 
 With a dollar in your pocket, 
 And the game all going right, 
 
 And nothing 'round to knock it, 
 Makes yours a lucky plight. 
 
 Man's love of home and liberty is the 
 soul of his patriotism. 
 
 When from a seat you rise to go, 
 In a public place, you'll find, 
 
 'Tis well to look about and know 
 That nothing is left behind. 
 
 If a married man is twice as happy, 
 Are not his troubles twice as plenty? 
 
 If you will describe a man's enemies to 
 me, I will describe the man to you. 
 
 105 
 
Whatever money can once attain, 
 You'll find that money will buy again. 
 
 When you're at the dining table, 
 
 Lay all your cares aside, 
 And so far as you are able 
 
 In a joyous state abide. 
 Dyspepsia is less a question 
 
 To keep from worrying mood, 
 For it aids in your digestion, 
 
 And assimilation of the food. 
 
 Honesty is the foundation of every 
 virtue. 
 
 Early to bed and early to rise, 
 Moderate in diet and exercise, 
 Work and save, regard your health, 
 Brings happiness, peace and wealth. 
 
 In the majority of cases it is best to let 
 the other fellow do most of the 
 talking. 
 
 106 
 
Too many profess God's ways on Sunday, 
 And lay them aside for the devil's Monday. 
 
 Loads of things are thrown away, 
 That have worth for many a day. 
 This wilful waste the country o'er 
 Keeps the wolf at many a door. 
 
 In politics, the jobs are usually bigger 
 than the men. 
 
 Retire early and get your rest, 
 Sleep before midnight is always best. 
 Up in the morning to start the day, 
 With a cheerful mind to speed your way. 
 
 Whene'er two persons a car would guide, 
 You'll find it safer to walk than ride. 
 
 Don't sit down and wail about your 
 rivals, but go after them. 
 
 107 
 
To open your mouth and shut your eyes 
 Is always adverse to acting wise. 
 
 Twilight is creeping o'er the day, 
 The sun has sunk into the west; 
 
 I sit and think as I gaze away, 
 
 What have I done today that's best? 
 
 What have I done that will stand forth 
 
 Tomorrow that proudly I'll call my own? 
 
 I look east and west and south and north, 
 But wasted time is the picture shown. 
 
 Still in my youth I did outline 
 
 My future would be life's highest plane, 
 But if I've failed, the fault is mine, 
 
 And it spurs me on anew again. 
 
 Whenever a man is not on your side, 
 He is usually with another allied. 
 
 Generally speaking, the man who minds 
 his own business will be unmolested 
 to go about his business. 
 
 108 
 
Man thinks he lords o'er all things human, 
 But unconsciously he is ruled by woman. 
 
 Today we have mastered the sea and air, 
 But the future man will reap the fare, 
 When powerful forces we do not know 
 Will drive his ships above, below. 
 
 Character is the keystone to the human 
 arch. 
 
 Full many that money is spent upon, 
 
 You will find it is the rule, 
 When the spender is down and money gone, 
 
 They will seek some other fool. 
 
 Capital and labor will never agree 
 Till they share together a company. 
 
 Tell me how hard you have tried, and 
 I will tell you how well you have 
 succeeded. 
 
 109 
 
There is nothing sure on earth but death, 
 And that lurks about us at every breath. 
 
 Never follow the beaten path 
 Simply because the thousands hath, 
 But push aside wherever chance 
 And fortune points to you advance. 
 Good luck has ever proved a gem, 
 Who tries and dares it is for him. 
 'Tis everywhere, with all allied, 
 And oft for him who turns aside. 
 
 Good thoughts are always good 
 company. 
 
 Full often scandal vile is spread 
 To drag a name down in disgrace 
 
 That reacts upon the slanderer's head, 
 And lifts the other to higher place. 
 
 Never buy anything where the tide of 
 progress is going out, but where it is 
 setting in. 
 
 no 
 
A pretty face and that is all 
 Is like a painting on the wall. 
 
 A home is seldom in one room found, 
 
 But a cozy cottage, with yards around, 
 
 Thrift and happiness, and children some, 
 And love and truth, these make the home. 
 
 A minute too early is usually better than 
 a second too late. 
 
 We bow to the man who has the "mon," 
 As if earth's goal by him is won; 
 But an honest man in every case 
 Should hold with us a higher place. 
 
 Our war will bring about a new thinking man, 
 Are our women keeping abreast with this plan? 
 
 Never accept a thing of importance as 
 right until you know that it is right. 
 
 ill 
 
To systematize your work you will 
 Twice greater better work fulfill. 
 
 I like the man who's out and out, 
 
 I hate the sneaking hypocrite; 
 The first spreads truthfulness about, 
 
 The second would deceive in it; 
 To act a man in every way, 
 
 Has often brought calamity, 
 But deceit is only for a day, 
 
 While right is for eternity. 
 
 Work is the happy man's friend. 
 
 Sixty years old, rest all that you can, 
 Nerves at high tension is a bad plan; 
 Age with infirmities then on you frown, 
 And rest restores what effort breaks down. 
 
 Don't seek advice from a man who is 
 always a failure himself. 
 
 112 
 
Blest is the man whose acts of today- 
 Sheds sunshine on tomorrow's way. 
 
 During your life, how well you do, 
 Generally speaking, is up to you; 
 Whether you fail, or whether you win, 
 Is very much as you pitch in. 
 
 A cent's worth of bait will often catch a 
 dollar's worth of fish. 
 
 When I meet a man who is poorly bred, 
 Of vast knowledge I must doubt him; 
 
 Who never has traveled, and never has read, 
 He's no bigger than the things about him. 
 
 Pure air, good health with every breath, 
 While foul air breathed means sickness — death. 
 
 Every young man, wherever he can, 
 should learn a trade, join a good 
 fraternal order, and have a mother- 
 in-law. 
 
 113 
 
Life is a wrestle of catch-as-catch can, 
 
 And always hardest when man's against man. 
 
 To be poor should mean no slur, 
 
 If proved thrifty by inspection, 
 But if one is a lazy cur, 
 
 There's full cause for reflection. 
 God wants a man to be a man, 
 
 And to love and aid his brother, 
 But selfishly all this we ban 
 
 As we prey on one another. 
 
 Gems of thought are far more precious 
 than gems of gold. 
 
 Avoid, if you can, all drafts of air, 
 For sickness and death are lurking there, 
 And to keep your feet both dry and warm 
 Will also save you bodily harm. 
 
 Treat your employes well, pay them 
 well, and they will do their work 
 well. 
 
 114 
 
Good health, good habits, and twenty-one, 
 A greater wealth on earth there's none. 
 
 Money will get the man, 
 
 And honey will coax the bee, 
 
 If you follow out this plan, 
 
 You can catch 'em all, you see. 
 
 Most people go through life with their 
 eyes but half open. 
 
 To be prepared is the safest way 
 To avoid the source of sorrow, 
 
 For though the sun may shine today 
 It may be clouds tomorrow. 
 
 Our minds are ever pro and con, 
 As our selfish interests rest thereon. 
 
 Acting under the impulse of the moment 
 has sent more men wrong than right. 
 
 115 
 
Whenever a man can hold his own, 
 You'll usually find he's let alone. 
 
 If we're contented with our lot, 
 
 We have quenched ambition's fire, 
 When satisfied with what we've got, 
 
 Means we will rise no higher. 
 While I like those who feel, amen, 
 
 That they possess full store, 
 Yet I admire them greater when 
 
 They still want something more. 
 
 It is difficult to be fast in slow company. 
 
 To move with the crowd always suits him, 
 The lazy man, with no aim in view; 
 
 But not the man of force and vim, 
 
 Who feels the passing hours too few. 
 
 Do not allow your mind to dwell upon 
 yourself further than to safeguard 
 your personal interests. 
 
 116 
 
Two things are hurried every day — 
 'Tis when we eat and when we pray. 
 
 Know your business from A to Z, 
 Run it smooth, like A, B, C, 
 Buy when low and sell when high, 
 Be on the square, and you'll get by. 
 
 The world is all right while your purse 
 is all right. 
 
 To cast your hook beyond your sight, 
 You ne'er can tell what fish will bite, 
 And likewise in all games of chance, 
 There's nothing sure beyond your glance. 
 
 Many hearts are stung each day 
 By thoughtless words we idly say. 
 
 Success, inch by inch, and sure, is better 
 than foot by foot, and take chances. 
 
 117 
 
God and nature work together, 
 Their ways entwine into each other. 
 
 Hail to the men who'll do their part, 
 
 Whate'er it is, when duty calls, 
 Who ever have their cause at heart, 
 
 Nor grumble when it to them falls. 
 Such men are heroes in their way; 
 
 They grace the places where they are, 
 In time of need, the country stay 
 
 At home, abroad, in peace and war. 
 
 Work prolongs life, idleness shortens it. 
 
 Eat good food in your growing days, 
 Build up strong in all your ways, 
 A robust frame and organs, too, 
 Adds a hundred fold to you. 
 
 It is the will of some people to have 
 everybody share their misfortune 
 with them. 
 
 118 
 
For every lock there is a key, 
 No matter what that lock may be. 
 
 The common people in peace and war 
 To gain their rights poorly contend; 
 
 Dupes to the higher class they are, 
 Who use them for a selfish end. 
 
 Keep your hand on the brake at the 
 curves in life. 
 
 The man who lives beyond his means 
 Will soon have no means at all; 
 
 So keep your money in your jeans 
 Till common sense may call. 
 
 For years we oft keep step with fate, 
 Regardless of our dangerous state. 
 
 Books and travel are the two greatest 
 schoolmasters of the world. 
 
 119 
 
Too much sweets mean physical decay, 
 With a general breakdown every way. 
 
 The flag that our heroes lionized, 
 In whose lifeblood it was baptized, 
 That proudly floats o'er land and sea, 
 The emblem of freedom and liberty, 
 The flag of my country. 
 
 Its stars are from the heaven's blue, 
 Its stripes are of the rainbow's hue, 
 They represent the brave and free, 
 The home of freedom and liberty, 
 The flag of my country. 
 
 Long may its folds hallow the light, 
 Triumphant o'er wrong and tyranny's blight, 
 Hope of the patriot wherever he be, 
 Our refuge, freedom and liberty, 
 The flag of my country. 
 
 Strive to look on the bright side of 
 everything as well as you can, and 
 your life will be far more happy. 
 
 120 
 
Why many a man now begs for bread, 
 The reason's found in the life he's led. 
 
 Of all the centuries that are to be, 
 This is the worst the world will see; 
 Wars will rage, unrest and strife, 
 Then comes an era of better life. 
 
 We succeed best in the vocations for 
 which we are best fitted. 
 
 We are weaker and wiser in all that we do, 
 So the sages oft tell us most clever; 
 
 I'll admit we are wiser, a limited few, 
 
 But the fools are more numerous than ever. 
 
 The makers of laws, who have nothing at stake, 
 Are often severe in the laws that they make. 
 
 Pull aside the curtains of life and be 
 observant of the great and good 
 things about you. 
 
 121 
 
When fools and hypocrites talk, 'tis well 
 That we only listen to what they tell. 
 
 Opportunity, 'tis said, knocks once at each door, 
 
 And each one should answer or it will pass by; 
 
 But experience with me, three times out of four, 
 
 Opportunity is ever for those who will try. 
 It may come like a beggar, or richly arrayed, 
 
 The hand may be dirty it holds out to you, 
 But however it comes — early or delayed — 
 
 At once seize whatever it holds up to view. 
 We shape our destiny, we bless or we ban, 
 
 Chance ever is waiting, tho' timid and shy, 
 And deals out her mite as we work and we plan, 
 
 Opportunity is ever for those who will try. 
 
 An early start means less hurry, 
 With better work and far less worry. 
 
 In the great awakening that is now going on 
 among the peoples of the world for their 
 rights, it plainly forecasts that despotism 
 and misrule must go and that kindness and 
 fairness to all shall prevail in its place. 
 
 122 
 
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