society, to their own homes; and I call upon them to guard against it by the deep and vital duty they owe to themselves. "See then that ye walk circumspectly."

III. In the next place, as one of the duties which young men owe to themselves, I would mention Industry. I care not what the situation of a young man may be; he is not placed above work. If he is so situated that he is exempt from the necessity of severe manual labor, it is all very well; let him otherwise employ his talents and his time. But, at all events, let him see to it that these are employed. We will borrow here the construction of a very bad principle in order to teach a good one. It has been said, by some one, "Get money, honestly if you can; but get money." but be industrious: without severe manual labor if you can; but be industrious. There are a few young men, I know, who are possessed of a competency which precludes the necessity of any labor for the mere purpose of subsisting. But I believe that these constitute a very small minority. The great bulk of those whom I particularly address, belong to a community the members of which, in the old world, would be called the middle classes; but who, in this coun

We say

- not so;

try, are ours and nature's noblemen.

This is

a land for labor. It has been sneeringly termed

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one great workshop; " but it is honorable to toil here; it is necessary; we are proud of it. We have but a few dronish scions of aristocracy, to live and fatten upon the mechanic and the husbandman. We all work, with the strong hand or the busy brain. The jewelled garters and the starred badges which our nobility wear, have been won and woven among the hills and valleys, in storm and sunshine; or by thundering loom and sooty forge; or in the counting-house or the mart. When our mightiest councils meet, voices are listened to that have been heard behind the plough and among the reapers, and toil-scarred hands are uplifted in solemn acts of suffrage; and these are our honors. Our great charter of liberty bears the signature of hands that have worked the printing-press, and wielded the lap-stone and the last; and we know that such men have been our strong defenders, and they are buried with the white bones of our battle-fields. No, no! we are not ashamed of work; it is a weak and pointless satire that sneers at us for this.

But I wish here to correct what appears to be a somewhat prevalent impression, and then I will endeavor to apply the remarks which I have

made upon this topic. I trust that I am not biased by circumstances, when I say that it is a mistaken impression which limits the term "working men" to a particular class. This epithet does not belong solely to those who delve with the spade or smite with the hammer. All who toil, whether with the head or the hand, are working men. You tell me that he who raises the corn which I eat, or who weaves the fabric that I wear, is a working man. True; and so is he who exports that corn, or he who educates my children, or he who ministers to my bodily or spiritual diseases. Men often mistake the relations which they bear to each other in society. They forget their mutual dependence. The laborer is he who toils, and whose labors are needful; and he is worthy of support. Grant that the food I eat, the clothing I wear, are necessaries of the last importance; and so they are to my animal comfort; but if you would preserve society in some condition beyond that of the mere animal state, if you would preserve education, and literature, and justice, and religion, you will find that the principles which appertain to these are necessaries of the last importance also. It is idle and wrong, this clamor of one class against another. We are

all working men, and our labor is useful and

essential. And this brings me to my application. If this is a country in which work is honorable and necessary, industry is a duty which each young man owes to himself. There are various courses open to him, any one of which he may take, and he will be a working man; but one of these he must take, unless he will bear the disgrace of living upon others, unless he will suffer want, or will fall into the evil results to which a life of idleness is so apt to lead. If he would be honored, and independent, and happy, let him be industrious and economical, and practise all the virtues which accompany diligent labor. As he stands upon the threshold of life and looks around him in the wide arena of this new world, as he views the thousand sources of subsistence and profit, as he beholds the many springs of competence and wealth that are ready to his touch, let him resolutely, vigorously, step forth and lay hold upon what his hand findeth to do. Self-duty, I say, calls upon him to do this, especially in a country like ours. And if he is affluent, let him not be idle. Let not that be said of him which Sir Horace Vere said of his brother. Pray of what did your brother die ? said the Marquis of Spinola. "He died of having nothing to do," replied Sir Horace.*

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* Austin's Voice to Youth.

Let

each one remember that he has other ends than mere subsistence and pleasure to attain; and that industry is an important medium to this effect. Let each one be industrious. Whether high or low, rich or poor, "See that ye walk circumspectly."

IV. Another self-duty which I have to mention, is Perseverance. This principle is in some respects allied to that just named, and is highly requisite to success in any undertaking. It has been the life-spring of some of the most important results that man has ever accomplished. By it he has discovered continents, bridged cataracts, tunnelled rivers, and scaled mountains. By it he has linked distant regions with bands of iron, and has channelled a pathway of intercourse through the solid granite. By it he has attempted and failed, and tried again; has dared and suffered, and triumphed. And in this he has had lessons from objects around him. He has seen the tiny water-drops, one by one, wearing away the rugged rock, and, atom by atom, the minute insect rearing its coral islands in the sea. And the exercise of this untiring principle, we say, is a duty which every young man owes to himself. Without it, it is quite possible that he will fail in the very vestibule of action. His