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About Hesperian student / (Lincoln [Neb.]) 1872-1885 | View Entire Issue (April 1, 1876)
BBiMKSJPWWiBMHjMKMMM j HutfcalflfcBliijiFB5H Hesperian Student. VOL. 5, University or Nebraska. NO 4. APK"'- Qvil non Proilolt. Dollolt. 187C; Hooks and their Influence. Nearly three thousand yeiirs ago, Solo mon exclaimed, "Of making many books there is no end ;" and to-day, after the lapse of so many years, I seem to hear the ccjl0 0f making many hooks there Is no end" A. multiplicity of hooks, com pared with which those of Solomon's time arc as a drop to the ocean. Books, largo nnil small; hooks of sombre, forbidding appearance musty old volumes now cast amid the dust and rubbish of the garret; books in plain, unpretending dress, yet re plete with choicest thought; books decked out in gaudy colors and Hunting titles to entice the nlrendy surfeited reader; books bound in morocco and gold ornaments for the centre table, but " loo bright or not)d. For human nature's dally food." A few years ago, fifty books were con sidcrod a fair library, while those for chil dren scarcely exceeded half-a-dozen. In deed, Webster remarked "Wc had so few booKs that to read litem once or twice was nothing; we thought they were all to be got by heart." Now, he who would own a library must count his volumes by hun. dreds or even thousands. Tito general reader, so far from "getting by heart," skims over volume after volume, merely for the story, and rarely masters a single work. Ho becomes HicA-rend, not well read. When we consider how rapidly the mod crn steam-press multiplies the productions of an author, placing them within the reach of the poor, as well as the rich, when wc think of the vast army of per bons, each, like Holland's M'ss Gilbert, seeking a literary "career," it is pertinent to enquire, What h the influence of liter attire upon the people? And though it may seem like presumption on my part, to attempt to add anything, where such wen us Ruskin, Col. Higginson, Disraeli, and many others, have written so admira bly, yet if l shall move even one to feel the great necessity for improving and pit rifying the literature of the masses, and for creating u taste for that which is more elevated and healthful in its character, I shall not have spoken in vain. We have laughed ntthe hero or Oervnn tes, so completely crazed by long leading of hooks of chivalry !hat he believes them true, and himself the daring knight-errant who must defend the oppressed and avenge the wrongs of the injured; yet we must admit that he is a good illustration, though exaggerated, of the powerful influence of books. Some timid author, in hie quiet chamber, has inscribed thoughts for which nations have battled long after ho has passed away. By reading u book, n young man has become a misanthrope, sneered at all that is pure and noble, bias phemed his maker, and made his life a burden ami a disgrace. On the other lutnd, another young man, by reading some other book, has aspired after a better, a purer, a nobler existenco a more perfect manhood. Robinson Crusoe alone, ii has been said, has sent more boys to sea than any other Influence. Has not each one of you been transported from this bustling, quivering world into a world peopled with creatures of the imagination, who were, to you, real beings, moved by the same desires, emotions, passions sub ject to the same hopes and pleasures, the same sorrows and bitter disappoint ments? You have been amused at the "Father of the Marshalsca," while you pitied, yea despised, his weak ness, and your heart has gone out with compassion towards Little Dorril, work. ing so patiently, and enduring so much for the pompous, simple minded old gen tleman, as she faithfully strove to restrain the vain longings of her heart to conceal the skeleton u; the closet. How the an gry blood has tingled in your veins as lovely Amy Robsart, on her knees, her eyes suffused with tears, pleaded with her husbnnd to take her to Ivenilworth. and, before the Queen, acknowledge her as his wife! Little Nell wins your heart at once. Pure and fair as a sunbeam, she always at tends the footst"ps of her childish old grandfather, lighting up many a troubled scene; hut the burden of life is too greut for her delicutc spirit, und gently she lnys it down. As you read of her death and burial, nnd the helpless grief of the poor old man, your heart is softened and, for the time at least, you are mule better. This influence is stronger in works of fiction than in those portraying the real. All the characters are players. In descrip tions of real life the actors play their parts and their motives can only be surmised from the deeds they perform. But in fic tion you are borne behind the scenes. You know the very thoughts of the actors; the- trials and temptations, the emotions and passions, the desires, struggles and eager aspirations. Nevertheless, can you help admiring the noble hearing ot Mary, Queen of Scots, at her execution ? Are you no inspired to make your own life more perfect when reading that of Waller Scoltv By reading the lives of all great men, are you not led to avoid their errors and to emulate their virtues? Do you not bear more cheerfully the "sacred burden of life" after knowing of their failures and sucesses? The influence of literature is beyond all computation; so silently, almost imper ceptibly, the thoughts of an author inter twine with those of the reader. But let us consider briefly this influence as it affects the people of our own continent. At no lime, perhaps, has our nation been moro prosperous; at no time has educa tion been inoro universal. Yet, while learning is so widely diffused, the intoll"c tual activity of the masses is deplorably superficial. There is a continuous olfort to gain a position in society, and money is considered the magic talisman to effect it; therefore, "Put money in thy purse." Everything must give place to this; and education is only valuable as a means to accomplish it. Society becomes a puppet- Bhow for the display of dress and costly jewels, and the puppets bow, smile, and utter flattering speeches, us dame Fashion pulls the wires. We cannot deny that this is the rule rather than the exception. But there is hope for the future. Improved methods of instruction give bright prom, isu of a better condition of things. But, while the influences acting upon the pco. pie are many, there is, in my judgment, none so powerful, none whose importance should be so deeply impressed upon the minds of all, as that of the books wc read. Wc are a nation of readers. Every city, village and hamlet has its newspaper, and books arc within the reach of all. As reading has become more general, authors have arisen to supply the demand. A lit tie over half a century ago, Sidney Smith remarked that America did not possess "one mnn of any considerable talents;" but the genial Irving, worthy a place in every library, soon found a ready welcome, even in old England; and to-day we can proudly point to Hawthorne and -Cooper in tho realm of fiction; to the refined and classic Longfellow, and the eminently picturesque Bryant in. poesy; to "Webster, Clay and Wendell Phillips in oratory; to Motley and Prescott in history; and to a host of other writers in almost every do partment of letters. At the same time, there is oflercd to the public a great quan tity of reading often loosely and imper fectly constructed requiring little or no thought to understand. It serves to pass away time, but enervates the mind enfee bles the memory. This class of reading is by far the most popular the best evi dence of a superficial education, of anno- senco of thinkers. How is this demand for sensational lit erature to he arrested and directed aright? Manifestly, a heavy responsibility rests upon parents. It is from what has been waste your time with the worthless? Read tho best on every subject. Think of what you read. A book is but the thoughts of a man, not necessarily true nor perfect, and you should ever search for truth. Literature affords a never ending sourco of enjoyment. We may seek pleasure in society, turn night into day with our revel lings, perchance gain transitory populnri ty with Fashion's votaries; but at last, weary, and sick at heart, wc turn from the gilt and tinsel and enter intoour libra ries, where we can say, like Heiusius of old, "I bolt the door to me, excluding lust, ambition, avarice, ami nil such vices, whose nurse is idleness, the mother of ig norance and melancholy herself, and in the very lap of eternity, amongst so many divine souls, I lake my seat with so lofty a spirit and sweet content, that I pity all our great ones, and rich men that know not this happiness." Here wo can hold communion with poets, orators nnd states men, or the more abstruse philosophers. The conquests of Science and Art arc laid at our feet. The waters divide, and the countless wonders and beauties of tho submarine world meet our gaze; and again, with upturned eyes, we behold tho circling worlds silently, solemnly moving through illimitable space, until we arc ov erwhelmed with the thought of our own insignificance. One moment we arc shiv ering amid the frozen seas of the North, and anon dreamily wandering through the orange groves of the South. Now penetrating the dense jungles of Africa, or walking over Alpine snows. "With tho the swiftness of thought we are transport, ed to sunny Italy, and as we stroll through the crumbling ruins what a Hood of thou "rlils come rushing upon us the Ro- fitly termed "domestic leading" that the man Empire with all Its associations. child obtains its first ideas of the world And now we seem to stand on the shores and of life. It is at this early period that its mind is most easily influenced. If H is the duty of parents to provide their child with proper clothing and healthful diet, is it not much more obligatory upon them to care for its moral and intellectual growth? It is not enough to send the child to school. It must have books to read, and if it cannot have proper books it will read improper ones. It will not sullicj to forbid it to read such nnd such a kind of books. They must surround it with books suited to its ngc, that are en tcrtaining, that arc healthful and stimula ting in their tone. Let thorn do this and there will be less reading in secret of "ten cent novels" and "blood-and-thunder sto. ries." But many have already formed the habit of reading everything (unless it con tains solid thought) that falls in their way. The mind becomes a great sieve into which every kind of literature is poured the pure meal runs through; the bran and other impurities remain behind. Young man, if you find that n book exerts a bad influence over you, or adds not to your store of knowledge, nway with it! Young woman, does the book you are reading make you discontented nnd cnuso you to falter at tho call of duly, lay it aside! You can read but few books utmost; why of Attica and hear blind Ilomersing. Wo visit Athens the nursery of letters, phil osophy and art whose influence on tho intellectual world is more enduring than the granite rock. Would you know the the de'ights of literature, read; and read wisely. In health and in sickness, in ad versity and prosperity, your best, your truest friends are books. In the language of Channing, I exclaim: "God be thanked for books! They -aro the voices of the distant and dead,and mako us heirs of the spiritual life of the past ages. Books arc the true teachers. They give to all who will faithfully use them the society, the spiritual presence ol tho best and greatest of our race. No matter how poor I am. No matter though tho prosperous of my own time will not enter my obscure dwelling. If the sacred writers will enter and take up their abode under my roof, if Milton will cross my threshold and sing to mo of Paradise, or Bhakspearo open to mo words of imagination and the workings of tho human heart, and Frank lin enrich me with his practical wisdom, I shall not pine foi want of intellectual companionship; and I may become acul livated man, though excluded from what is called the best society in tho place where Hive." "Waltbu. mmKmnrntssvL