人们将会看到，如果一个人沉溺于仇恨和复仇，发誓要报复所谓的敌人，那只会削弱他自己的力量，伤害他自己的事业。
当婴儿的手碰到火焰或热炉子时，灼痛感会警告他不要再去碰这些地方。
我们受够了那些令自己身心疲惫的想法，为了报复别人，我们付出的代价太大了，所以我们应该远离这种报复别人的想法。
如果昨天种下了恶果，我们就不应该抱怨今天的困境，因为我们难以逃避铁的法则。要想明天收获成功，最好的办法就是在今天种下善因。我们做的每件事，头脑中闪过的每一个念头，都是我们扔进土壤里的种子，肯定会生长出相应的果实。许多人抱怨命运不公平，让自己收获的全是荆棘、苦苣和野草；但是如果这些人回想一下自己走过的路就不难发现，他们以前种下的全是自私、妒忌、多疑的种子。如果他们种下的是慷慨、善良、快乐和仁爱的种子，他们肯定会有丰厚的回报。
我相信总有一天，绝大多数人宁愿赴死也不会让自己沉迷于对别人的仇恨、猜忌和嫉妒。可以断言，未来的人们不会用邪恶的念头折磨自己，不会用恶毒的情感刺伤自己的心灵，就像孩子不会把手放到火里一样，因为孩子的手曾被火焰灼伤过，他会避开那些曾经带来疼痛的祸根，正所谓“吃一堑，长一智”，绝不会让同样的石头再一次绊倒自己。
让信念力照亮你的人生：
◆ 看到果实想起种子固然很好，但是也不要忘记为那颗种子浇灌的每一滴水，施下的每袋肥料，它们同样影响着种子变成什么样的植物。TO
MY WIFE
PREFACE
EVER before in the history of mankind has there been such an awakening tothe great possibilities of the power of right thinking as we are now witnessing in allcivilized countries。
Metaphysical schools are springing up under different names in all parts of theenlightened world。 People are getting hold of little bits of one great divine truth，a new gospel of optimism and love， a philosophy of sweetness and light， whichseems destined to furnish a universal principle upon which people of all nations， ofvarying philosophies and creeds， can unite for the betterment of the race。
The basic principle of this great metaphysical movement has opened up manypossibilities of mind building， character building， body building， and successbuilding which are destined to bring untold blessings to the world。
We are all conscious that there is something in us which is never sick， neversins， and never dies， a power back of the flesh but not of it， which connects us withDivinity， makes us one with the Infinite Life。
We are beginning to discover something of the nature of this tremendous forceback of the flesh， this power which heals， regenerates， rejuvenates， harmonizes，and upbuilds， and which will ultimately bring us into that state of blessednesswhich we instinctively feel is the birthright of every human being。
To present in clear， simple language， shorn of all technicalities， the principlesof the new philosophy which promises to lift life out of commonness and discordand make it worth while； to show how these principles may be grasped and appliedin a practical way in every-day living to each person’s own individual case is theobject of this volume。
There is a growing belief that “God never made His work for man to mend。”
We are just beginning to discover that the same Principle which created us， repairs，restores， renews， heals us； that the remedies for all our ills are inside of us， inDivine Principle， which is the truth of our being。 We are learning that there is animmortal principle of health in every individual， which， if we could utilize， wouldheal all our wounds and furnish a balm for all the hurts of mankind。
The author attempts to show that the body is but the mind externalized， thehabitual mental state outpictured； that the bodily condition follows the thought， andthat we are sick or well， happy or miserable， young or old， lovable or unlovable，according to the degree in which we control our mental processes。 He shows howman can renew his body by renewing his thought， or change his body， his character，by changing his thought。
The book teaches that man need not be the victim of his environment， but canbe the master of it； that there is no fate outside of him which determines his life， hisaims； that each person can shape his own environment， create his own condition；that the cure for poverty， ill-health， and unhappiness lies in bringing one’s selfthrough scientific thinking into conscious union with the great Source of Infinitelife， the Source of opulence， of health， and harmony。 This conscious union with theCreator， this getting in tune with the Infinite， is the secret of all peace， power， andprosperity。
It emphasizes man’s oneness with Infinite Life， and the truth that when hecomes into the full realization of his inseparable connection with the creativeenergy of the universe， he shall never know lack or want again。
This volume shows how man can stand porter at the door of his mind，admitting only his friend thoughts， only those suggestions that will produce joy，prosperity； and excluding all his enemy thoughts which would bring dis-cord，suffering， or failure。
It teaches that “your ideal is a prophecy of what you shall at last unveil，” that“thought is another name for fate” that we can think ourselves out of discord into harmony， out of disease into health， out of darkness into light， out of hatred intolove， out of poverty and failure into prosperity and success。
Before a man can lift himself， he must lift his thought。 When we shall havelearned to master our thought habits， to keep our minds open to the great divineinflow of life force， we shall have learned the secret of human blessedness。 Then anew era will dawn for the race。
O。 S。 M。
January， 1909.
I。 THE POWER OF THE MIND TO COMPEL THE
BODY
Our destiny changes with our thought； we shall become what we wish tobecome， do what we wish to do， when our habitual thought corresponds with ourdesire。
“The ‘divinity that shapes our ends’ is in ourselves； it is our very self。”
LONG before Henry Irving’s death， his physician cautioned him against playinghis famous part in “The Bells，” on account of the tremendous strain upon his heart。
Ellen Terry， his leading woman for many years， says in her biography of him：
Every time he heard the sound of bells， the throbbing of his heart must havenearly killed him。 He used always to turn quite white—there was no trick about it。
It was imagination acting physically on the body。
His death as Matthias—the death of a strong， robust man—was different fromall his other stage deaths。 He did really almost die—he imagined death with suchhorrible intensity。 His eyes would disappear upward， his face grow gray， his limbscold。
No wonder， then， that the first time that the Wolverhampton doctor’s warningwas disregarded， and Henry played “The Bells” at Bradford， his heart could notstand the strain。 Within twenty-four hours of his last death as “Matthias” he wasdead。
As Becket on the following night—the night of his death—his physicians saidthat he was undoubtedly dying throughout the entire performance。 So buoyed upand stimulated was he by his great zeal for his work and the bracing influence ofhis audience that he actually held death at bay。It is a common experience for actors who are ill to be cured for a time and tobe entirely forgetful of their aches and pains under the stimulus of ambition and thebrain-quickening influence of their audiences。
Edward H。 Sothern says that he feels a great increase of brain activity when heis on the stage， and this is accompanied by a corresponding physical exhilaration。
“The very air I breathe，” says Mr。 Sothern， “seems more stimulating。 Fatigue leavesme at the stage door； and I have often given performances without any sufferingwhen I should otherwise have been under a doctor’s care。” Noted orators， greatpreachers， and famous singers have had similar experiences。
That “imperious must” which compels the actor to do his level best， whetherhe feels like it or not， is a force which no ordinary pain or physical disability cansilence or overcome。 Somehow， even when we feel that it is impossible for us tomake the necessary effort， when the crisis comes， when the emergency is upon us，when we feel the prodding of this imperative， imperious necessity， there is a latentpower within us which comes to our rescue， which answers the call， and we do theimpossible。
It is an unusual thing for singers or actors and actresses to be obliged to giveup their parts even for a night， but when they are off duty， or on their vacations，they are much more likely to be ill or indisposed。 There is a common saying amongactors and singers that they cannot afford to be sick。
“We don’t get sick，” said an actor， “because we can’t afford that luxury。 It isa case of ‘must’ with us； and although there have been times when， had I been athome， or a private man， I could have taken to my bed with as good a right to besick as any one ever had， I have not done so， and have worn off the attack throughsheer necessity。 It is no fiction that will-power is the best of tonics， and theatricalpeople understand that they must keep a good stock of it always on hand。”
I know of an actor who suffered such tortures with inflammatory rheumatismthat even with the aid of a cane he could not walk two blocks， from his hotel tothe theatre； yet when his cue was called， he not only walked upon the stage with the utmost ease and grace， but was also entirely oblivious of the pain which a fewmoments before had made him wretched。 A stronger motive drove out the lesser，made him utterly unconscious of his trouble， and the pain for the time was gone。 Itwas not merely covered up by some other thought， passion， or emotion， but it wastemporarily annihilated； and as soon as the play was over， and his part finished， hewas crippled again。
General Grant was suffering greatly from rheumatism at Appomattox， butwhen a flag of truce informed him that Lee was ready to surrender， his great joy notonly made him forget his rheumatism but also drove it completely away—at leastfor some time。
The shock occasioned by the great San Francisco earthquake cured aparalytic who had been crippled for fifteen years。 There were a great many otherwonderful cures reported which were almost instantaneous。 Men and women whohad been practically invalids for a long time， and who were scarcely able to waitupon themselves， when the crisis came and they were confronted by this terriblesituation， worked like Trojans， carrying their children and household goods longdistances to places of safety。
We do not know what we can bear until we are put to the test。 Many a delicatemother， who thought that she could not survive the death of her children， has livedto bury her husband and the last one of a large family， and in addition to all this hasseen her home and last dollar swept away； yet she has had the courage to bear it alland to go on as before。 When the need comes， there is a power deep within us thatanswers the call。
Timid girls who have always shuddered at the mere thought of death havein some fatal accident entered into the shadow of the valley without a tremor ormurmur。 We can face any kind of inevitable danger with wonderful fortitude。 Frail，delicate women will go on an operating-table with marvellous courage， even whenthey know that the operation is likely to be fatal。 But the same women might go allto pieces over the terror of some impending danger， because of the very uncertainty of what might be in store for them。 Uncertainty gives fear a chance to get in itsdeadly work on the imagination and make cowards of us。
A person who shrinks from the prick of a pin， and who， under ordinarycircumstances， can not endure without an anesthetic the extraction of a tooth or thecutting of flesh， even in a trivial operation， can， when mangled in an accident， farfrom civilization， stand the amputation of a limb without as much fear and terror ashe might suffer at home from the lancing of a felon。
I have seen a dozen strong men go to their deaths in a fire without showing theslightest sign of fear。 There is something within every one of us that braces us up ina catastrophe and makes us equal to any emergency。 This something is the God inus。 These brave firemen did not shrink even when they saw every means of escapecut off。 The last rope thrown to them had consumed away； the last ladder hadcrumbled to ashes， and they were still in a burning tower one hundred feet abovea blazing roof。 Yet they showed no sign of fear or cowardice when the tower sankinto the seething caldron of flame。
When in Deadwood， in the Black Hills of South Dakota， I was told that in theearly days there， before telephone， railroad， or telegraph communication had beenestablished， the people were obliged to send a hundred miles for a physician。 Forthis reason the services of a doctor were beyond the reach of persons of moderatemeans。 The result was that people learned to depend upon themselves to such anextent that it was only on extremely rare occasions， usually in a case of severeaccident or some great emergency， that a physician was sent for。 Some of thelargest families of children in the place had been reared without a physician evercoming into the house。 When I asked some of these people if they were ever sickthey replied， “No， we are never sick， simply because we are obliged to keep well。
We cannot afford to have a physician， and even if we could it would take so long toget him here that the sick one might be dead before he arrived。”
One of the most unfortunate things that has come to us through what we call“higher civilization” is the killing of faith in our power of disease resistance。 In our large cities people make great preparations for sickness。 They expect it， anticipateit， and consequently have it。 It is only a block or two to a physician； a drug-store ison every other corner， and the temptation to send for the physician or to get drugsat the slightest symptom of illness tends to make them more and more dependenton outside helps and less able to control their physical discords。
During the frontier days there were little villages and hamlets whichphysicians rarely entered， and here the people were strong and healthy andindependent。 They developed great powers of disease resistance。
There is no doubt that the doctor habit in many families has a great deal to dowith the developing of unfortunate physical conditions in the child。 Many mothersare always calling the doctor whenever there is the least sign of disturbance inthe children。 The result is that the child grows up with this disease picture， doctorpicture， medicine picture， in its mind， and it influences its whole life。
The time will come when a child and any kind of medicine will be considereda very incongruous combination。 Were children properly reared in the lovethought， in the truth thought， in the harmony thought， were they trained to rightthinking， a doctor or medicine would be rarely needed。
Within the last ten years tens of thousands of families have never tastedmedicine or required the services of a physician。 It is becoming more and morecertain that the time will come when the belief in the necessity of employing someone to patch us up， to mend the Almighty’s work， will be a thing of the past。 TheCreator never put man’s health， happiness， and welfare at the mercy of the mereaccident of happening to live near physicians。
He never left the grandest of His creations to the mercy of any chance， cruelfate， or destiny； never intended that the life， health， and well-being of one of Hischildren should hang upon the contingency of being near a remedy for his ills；never placed him where his own life， health， and happiness would depend upon thechance of happening to be where a certain plant might grow， or a certain mineralexist which could cure him。
Is it not more rational to believe that He would put the remedies for man’sills within himself—in his own mind， where they are always available—than thatHe would store them in herbs and minerals in remote parts of the earth wherepractically but a small portion of the human race would ever discover them，countless millions dying in total ignorance of their existence？
There is a latent power， a force of indestructible life， an immortal principleof health， in every individual， which if developed would heal all our wounds andfurnish a balm for the hurts of the world。
How rare a thing it is for people to be ill upon any great occasion in whichthey are to be active participants！ How unusual for a woman， even though in verydelicate health， to be sick upon a particular day on which she has been invited to aroyal reception or to visit the White House at Washington！
Chronic invalids have been practically cured by having great responsibilitiesthrust upon them。 By the death of some relative or the loss of property， or throughsome emergency， they have been forced out of their seclusion into the public gaze；forced away from the very opportunity of thinking of themselves， dwelling upontheir troubles， their symptoms， and lo！ the symptoms have disappeared。
Thousands of women are living today in comparative health who would havebeen dead years ago had they not been forced by necessity out of their diseasedthoughts and compelled to think of others， to work for them， to provide and planfor those dependent upon them。
Multitudes of men and women would be sick in bed if they could afford it； butthe hungry mouths to feed， the children to clothe， these and all the other obligationsof life so press upon them that they cannot stop working； they must keep goingwhether they feel like it or not。
What does the world not owe to that imperious “must”—that strenuous effortwhich we make when driven to desperation， when all outside help has been cut offand we are forced to call upon all that is within us to extricate ourselves from anunfortunate situation？
Many of the greatest things in the world have been accomplished underthe stress of this impelling “must”—merciless in its lashings and proddings toaccomplishment。
Necessity has been a priceless spur wich has helped men to perform miraclesagainst incredible odds。 Every person who amounts to anything feels within himselfa power which is ever pushing him on and urging him to perpetual improvement。
Whether he feels like it or not， this inward monitor holds him to his task。
It is this little insistent “must” that dogs our steps； that drives and bestirs us；that makes us willing to suffer privations and endure hardships， inconveniences，and discomforts； to work slavishly， in fact， when inclination tempts us to take lifeeasy。
II。 POVERTY A MENTAL DISABILITY
The worst thing about poverty is the poverty thought。 It is the conviction thatwe are poor and must remain so that is fatal to the gaining of a competence。
Holding the poverty thought keeps us in poverty-stricken and povertyproducingconditions。
POVERTY is an abnormal condition。 It does not fit any human being’sconstitution。 It contradicts the promise and the prophecy of the divine in man。 TheCreator never intended that man should be a pauper， a drudge， or a slave。 There isnot a single indication in man’s wonderful mechanism that he was created for a lifeof poverty。 There is something larger and grander for him in the divine plan thanperpetual slavery to the bread-winning problem。
No man can do his best work—bring out the best thing in him—while he feelswant tugging at his lives； while he is hampered， restricted， forever at the mercy ofpinching circumstances。
The very poor， those struggling to keep the wolf at bay， cannot be independent。
They cannot order their lives。 Often they cannot afford to express their opinions， orto have individual views。 They cannot always afford to live in decent locations orin healthful houses。
Praise it who will， poverty in its extreme form is narrowing， belittling，contracting， ambition-killing—an unmitigated curse。 There is little hope in it，little prospect in it， little joy in it。 It often develops the worst in man and kills lovebetween those who would otherwise live happily together。
It is difficult for the average human being to be a real man or real womanin extreme poverty。 When worried， embarrassed， en-tangled with debts， forcedto make a dime perform the proper work of a dollar， it is almost impossible to preserve that dignity and self-respect which enable a man to hold up his head andlook the world squarely in the face。 Some rare and beautiful souls have done this，and in dire poverty have given us examples of noble living that the world will neverforget； but on the other hand， how many has its lash driven to the lowest depths！
Everywhere we see the marks of pinching， grinding， blighting poverty。 Thehideous evidences of want stare us in the face every day。 We see it in prematurelyold， depressed faces， and in children who have had no childhood and who haveborne the mark of the poverty curse ever since their birth。 We see it shadowingbright young faces， and often blighting the highest ambition， and dwarfing the mostbrilliant ability。
Poverty is more often a curse than a blessing， and those who praise its virtueswould be the last to accept its hard conditions。
I wish I could fill every youth with an utter dread and horror of it； make himfeel its shame， when preventable， its constraint， its bitterness， its strangling effect。
There is no disgrace in unpreventable poverty。 We respect and honor peoplewho are poor because of ill-health or misfortune which they cannot prevent。 Thedisgrace is in not doing our level best to better our condition。
What we denounce is preventable poverty， that which is due to vicious living，to slovenly， slipshod， systemless work， to idling and dawdling， or to laziness； thatpoverty which is due to the lack of effort， to wrong thinking， or to any preventablecause。
Every man should be ashamed of poverty which he can prevent， not onlybecause it is a reflection upon his ability， and will make others think less of him，but also because it will make him think less of himself。
The trouble with many of poverty’s victims today is that they have noconfidence that they can get away from poverty。 They hear so much about the poorman’s lack of opportunities； that the great money combinations will compel nearlyeverybody in the future to work for somebody else； they hear so much talk of thegrasping and the greed of the rich， that they gradually lose confidence in their ability to cope with conditions and become disheartened。
I do not overlook the heartless， grinding， grasping practices of many of therich， or the unfair and cruel conditions brought about by unscrupulous political andfinancial schemers； but I wish to show the poor man that， notwithstanding all thesethings， multitudes of poor people do rise above their iron environment， and thatthere is hope for him。 The mere fact that so many continue to rise， year after year，out of just such conditions as you may think are fatal to your advancement， oughtto convince you that you also can conquer your environment。
When a man loses confidence， every other success quality gradually leaveshim， and life becomes a grind。 He loses ambition and energy， is not so carefulabout his personal appearance， is not so painstaking， does not use the same systemand order in his work， grows slack and slovenly and slipshod in every way， andbecomes less and less capable of conquering poverty。
Because they cannot keep up appearances and live in the same style as theirwealthy neighbors， poor people often become discouraged， and do not try to makethe best of what they have。 They do not “put their best foot forward” and endeavorwith all their might to throw off the evidences of poverty。 If there is anythingthat paralyzes power it is the effort to reconcile ourselves to an unfortunateenvironment， instead of regarding it as abnormal and trying to get away from it。
Poverty itself is not so bad as the poverty thought。 It is the conviction thatwe are poor and must remain so that is fatal。 It is the attitude of mind that isdestructive， the facing toward poverty， and feeling so reconciled to it that one doesnot turn about face and struggle to get away from it with a determination whichknows no retreat。
It is facing the wrong way， toward the black， depressing， hopeless outlookthat kills effort and demoralizes ambition。 So long as you carry around a povertyatmosphere and radiate the poverty thought， you will be limited。
You will never be anything but a beggar while you think beggarly thoughts，but a poor man while you think poverty， a failure while you think failure thoughts。If you are afraid of poverty， if you dread it， if you have a horror of coming towant in old age， it is more likely to come to you， because this constant fear sapsyour courage， shakes your self-confidence， and makes you less able to cope withhard conditions。
The magnet must be true to itself， it must attract things like itself。 The onlyinstrument by which man has ever attracted anything in this world is his mind，and his mind is like his thought； if it is saturated with the fear thought， the povertythought， no matter how hard he works， he will attract poverty。
You walk in the direction in which you face。 If you persist in facing towardpoverty， you cannot expect to reach abundance。 When every step you take is on theroad to failure， you cannot expect to reach the success goal。
If we can conquer inward poverty， we can soon conquer poverty ofoutward things， for， when we change the mental attitude， the physical changes tocorrespond。
Holding the poverty thought keeps us in touch with poverty-stricken， povertyproducingconditions； and the constant thinking of poverty， talking poverty， livingpoverty， makes us mentally poor。 This is the worst kind of poverty。
We cannot travel toward prosperity until the mental attitude faces prosperity。
As long as we look toward despair， we shall never arrive at the harbor of delight。
The man who persists in holding his mental attitude toward poverty， or whois always thinking of his hard luck and failure to get on， can by no possibility go inthe opposite direction， where the goal of prosperity lies。
I know a young man who was graduated from Yale only a few years ago—abroad-shouldered， vigorous young fellow—who says that he hasn’t the price of ahat， and that if his father did not send him five dollars a week he would go hungry。
This young man is the victim of discouragement， of the poverty thought。 Hesays that he does not believe there is any success for him。 He has tried many things，and has failed in them all。 He says he has no confidence in his ability， that hiseducation has been a failure， and that he has never believed he could succeed。 So he has drifted from one thing to another， and is poor and a nobody， just because ofhis mental attitude， because he does not face the right way。
If you would attract good fortune you must get rid of doubt。 As long as thatstands between you and your ambition， it will be a bar that will cut you off。 Youmust have faith。 No man can make a fortune while he is convinced that he can’t。
The “I can’t” philosophy has wrecked more careers than almost anything else。
Confidence is the magic key that unlocks the door of supply。
I never knew a man to be successful who was always talking about businessbeing bad。 The habit of looking down， talking down， is fatal to advancement。
The Creator has bidden every man to look up， not down， has made him toclimb， not to grovel。 There is no providence which keeps a man in poverty， or inpainful or distressing circumstances。
A young man of remarkable ability， who has an established position in thebusiness world， recently told me that for a long time he had been very poor， andremained so until he made up his mind that he was not intended to be poor， thatpoverty was really a mental disease of which he intended to rid himself。 He formeda habit of daily affirming abundance and plenty， of asserting his faith in himselfand in his ability to become a man of means and importance in the world。 Hepersistently drove the poverty thought out of his mind。 He would have nothing todo with it。
He would not allow himself to think of possible failure。 He turned his facetoward the success goal， turned his back forever on poverty and failure， and hetells me that the result of his positive attitude and persistent affirmation has beenmarvellous。
He says that he used to pinch himself in every possible way in order to savein little ways。 He would eat the cheapest kind of food， and as sparingly as possible。
He would rarely go on a street-car， even if he had to walk for miles。 Under thenew impulse he completely changed his habits， resolved that he would go to goodrestaurants， that he would get a comfortable room in a good location， and that he would try in every way to meet cultured people， and to form acquaintances withthose above him who could help him。
The more liberal he has been， the better he has been to himself in everythingwhich could help him along， which would tend to a higher culture and a bettereducation， the more things have come his way。 He found that it was his pinched，stingy thoughts that shut off his supply。
Although he is now living well， he says that the amount he spends is a merebagatelle compared with the larger things that come to him from his enlargedthought， his changed attitude of mind。
Stingy， narrow minds do not attract money。 If they get money they usually getit by parsimonious saving， rather than by obeying the law of opulence。 It takes abroad， liberal mind to attract money。 The narrow， stingy mind shuts out the flow ofabundance。
It is the hopeful， buoyant， cheerful attitude of mind that wins。 Optimism is asuccess builder； pessimism an achievement killer。
Optimism is the great producer。 It is hope， life。 It contains everything whichenters into the mental attitude which produces and enjoys。
Pessimism is the great destroyer。 It is despair， death。 No matter if you havelost your property， your health， your reputation even， there is always hope for theman who keeps a firm faith in himself and looks up。
As long as you radiate doubt and discouragement， you will be a failure。 If youwant to get away from poverty， you must keep your mind in a productive， creativecondition。 In order to do this you must think confident， cheerful， creative thoughts。
The model must precede the statue。 You must see a new world before you can livein it。
If the people who are down in the world， who are side-tracked， who believethat their opportunity has gone by forever， that they can never get on their feetagain， only knew the power of reversal of their thought， they could easily get a newstart。
I know a family whose members completely reversed their condition byreversing their mental attitude。 They had been living in a discouraging atmosphereso long that they were convinced that success was for others， but not for them。
They believed so thoroughly that they were fated to be poor that their home andentire environment were pictures of dilapidation and failure。 Everything was ina run-down condition。 There was almost no paint on the house， no carpets on thefloors， and scarcely a picture on the wall—nothing to make the home comfortableand cheerful。 All the members of the family looked like failures。 The home wasgloomy， cold， and cheerless。 Everything about it was depressing。
One day the mother read something that suggested that poverty was largely amental disease， and she began at once to reverse her thinking habit， and graduallyto replace all discouraging， despondency， failure thoughts with their opposites。
She assumed a sunny， cheerful attitude， and looked and acted as if life were worthliving。
Soon the husband and children caught the contagion of her cheerfulness， andin a short time the whole family was facing the light。 Optimism took the place ofpessimism。 The husband completely changed his habits。 Instead of going to hiswork unshaven and unkempt， with slovenly dress and slipshod manner， be becameneat and tidy。 He braced up， brushed up， cleaned up， and looked up。 The childrenfollowed his example。 The house was repaired， renovated within and without， andthe family forever turned their backs on the dark picture of poverty and failure。
The result of all this was that it brought what many people would call “goodluck。” The change in the mental attitude， the outlook toward success and happinessinstead of failure， reacted upon the father’s mind， gave him new hope and newcourage， and so increased his efficiency that he was soon promoted， as were alsohis sons。 After two or three years of the creative， inspiring atmosphere of hope andcourage， the entire family and the home were transformed。
Every man must play the part of his ambition。 If you are trying to be asuccessful man you must play the part。 If you are trying to demonstrate opulence， you must play it， not weakly， but vigorously， grandly。 You must feel opulent， youmust think opulence， you must appear opulent。 Your bearing must be filled withconfidence。 You must give the impression of your own assurance， that you are largeenough to play your part and to play it superbly。 Suppose the greatest actor livingwere to have a play written for him in which the leading part was to represent aman in the process of making a fortune—a great， vigorous， progressive character，who conquered by his very presence。 Suppose this actor， in playing the part，were to dress like an unprospcrous man， walk on the stage in a stooping， slouchy，slipshod manner， as though he had no ambition， no energy or life， as though he hadno real faith that he could ever make money or be a success in business； supposehe went around the stage with an apologetic， shrinking， skulking manner， as muchas to say， “Now， I do not believe that I can ever do this thing that I have attempted；it is too big for me。 Other people have done it， but I never thought that I shouldever be rich or prosperous。 Somehow good things do not seem to be meant forme。 I am just an ordinary man， I haven’t had much experience and I haven’t muchconfidence in myself， and it seems presumptuous for me to think I am ever goingto be rich or have much influence in the world。” What kind of an impression wouldhe make upon the audience？ Would he give confidence， would he radiate power orforcefulness， would he make people think that that kind of a weakling could createa fortune， could manipulate conditions which would produce money？ Would noteverybody say that the man was a failure？ Would they not laugh at the idea of hisconquering anything？
Suppose a young man should start out with a determination to get rich， andshould all the time parade his poverty， confess his inability to make money， and telleverybody that he is “down on his luck”； that he “always expects to be poor。” Doyou think he would become rich？ Talking poverty， thinking poverty， living poverty，assuming the air of a pauper， dressing like a failure， and with a slipshod， slovenlyfamily and home， how long will it take a man to arrive at the goal of success？
Our mental attitude toward the thing we are struggling for has everything to do with our gaining it。 If a man wants to become prosperous， he must believe thathe was made for success and happiness； that there is a divinity in him which will， ifhe follows it， bring him into the light of prosperity。
Erase all the shadows， all the doubts and fears， and the suggestions of povertyand failure from your mind。 When you have become master of your thought， whenyou have once learned to dominate your mind， you will find that things will beginto come your way。 Discouragement， fear， doubt， lack of self-confidence， are thegerms which have killed the prosperity and happiness of tens of thousands ofpeople。
If it were possible for all the poor to turn their backs on their dark anddiscouraging environment and face the light and cheer， and if they should resolvethat they are done with poverty and a slipshod existence， this very resolutionwould， in a short time， revolutionize civilization。
Every child should be taught to expect prosperity， to believe that the goodthings of the world were intended for him。 This conviction would be a powerfulfactor in the adult life if the child were so trained。
Wealth is created mentally first； it is thought out before it becomes a reality。
When a youth decides to become a physician， he puts himself in a medicalatmosphere just as much as possible。 He talks medicine， reads medicine， studiesmedicine， thinks medicine until he becomes saturated with it。 He does not decide tobecome a physician and then put himself in a legal atmosphere， read law， talk law，think law。 So， if you want success， abundance， you must think success， you mustthink abundance。
Stoutly deny the power of adversity or poverty to keep you down。 Constantlyassert your superiority to your environment。 Believe that you are to dominate yoursurroundings， that you are the master and not the slave of circumstances。
Resolve with all the vigor you can muster that， since there are plenty of goodthings in the world for everybody， you are going to have your share， withoutinjuring anybody else or keeping others back。 It was intended that you should have a competence， an abundance。 It is your birthright。 You are success organized， andconstructed for happiness， and you should resolve to reach your divine destiny。
When you make up your mind that you are done with poverty forever； thatyou will have nothing more to do with it； that you are going to erase every trace ofit from your dress， your personal appearance， your manner， your talk， your actions，your home； that you are going to show the world your real mettle； that you are nolonger going to pass for a failure； that you have set your face persistently towardbetter things—a competence， an independence—and that nothing on earth can turnyou from your resolution， you will be amazed to find what a reenforcing power willcome to you， what an increase of confidence， reassurance， and self-respect。
The very act of turning your back upon the black picture and resolving thatyou will have nothing more to do with failure， with poverty； that you will makethe best possible out of what you do have； that you will put up the best possibleappearance； that you will clean up， brush up， talk up， look up， instead of down—hold your head up and look the world in the face instead of cringing， whining， complaining—will create a new spirit within you which will lead you to the light。 Hopewill take the place of despair， and you will feel the thrill of a new power， of a newforce coursing through your veins。
Thousands of people in this country have thought themselves away from a lifeof poverty by getting a glimpse of that great principle， that we tend to realize in thelife what we persistently hold in the thought and vigorously struggle toward。III。 THE LAW OF OPULENCE
’Tis the mind that makes the body rich。
—Shakespeare。
One of the most vicious ideas that ever found entrance into human brain isthat there is not enough of everything for everybody， and that most people on theearth must be poor in order that a few may be rich。
“WE talk abundance here。” I was struck with this motto in a New York officerecently。
I said to myself： “These people are prosperous because they expect prosperity；they do not recognize poverty or admit lacking anything they need。”
The way to make the ideal the real， is to persistently hold the thought of theiridentity。 The way to demonstrate abundance is to hold it constantly in the mind，to frequently say to yourself， “All that my Father hath is mine。” “The Lord is myshepherd： I shall not want。” If all this is true （and you know that it is）， any want orlack in your life is abnormal。
The great fundamental principle of the law of opulence is our inseparableconnection with the creative energy of the universe。 When we come into fullrealization of this connection we shall never want again。 It is our sense ofseparateness from the Power that created us that makes us feel helpless。
But as long as we limit ourselves by thinking that we are separate，insignificant， unrelated atoms in the universe； that the great supply， the creativeenergy is outside of us， and that only a little of it can in some mysterious way beabsorbed by a few people who are “fortunate，” “lucky，” we shall never come into that abundant supply which is our birthright。
And where did the false idea of the absorption of all the good things by thefew， of the necessity of competition， originate？ It had its origin in the pessimisticassumption that it is impossible for everybody to be wealthy or successful； in thethought of limitation of all the things which men most desire； and that， there notbeing enough for all， a few must fight desperately， selfishly for what there is， andthe shrewdest， the longest headed， those with the most staying power， the strongestworkers， will get the most of it。 This theory is fatal to all individual and racebetterment。
The Creator never put vast multitudes of people on this earth to scramble fora limited supply， as though He were not able to furnish enough for all。 There isnothing in this world which men desire and struggle for， and that is good for them，of which there is not enough for everybody。
Take the thing we need most—food。 We have not begun to scratch thepossibilities of the food supply in America。
The State of Texas could supply food， home， and luxuries to every man，woman， and child on this continent。 As for clothing， there is material enough inthe country to clothe all its inhabitants in purple and fine linen。 We have not begunyet to touch the possibilities of our clothing and dress supply。 The same is true ofall other necessities and luxuries。 We are still on the outer surface of abundance， asurface covering kingly supplies for every individual on the globe。
When the whale ships in New Bedford Harbor and other ports were rotting inidleness， because the whale was becoming extinct， Americans became alarmed lestwe should dwell in darkness； but the oil wells came to our rescue with abundantsupply。 And then， when we began to doubt that this source would last， Sciencegave us the electric light。
Like Newton， the greatest scientists of the world still feel that they are playingwith grains of sand on the shore of our illimitable supply in every line of humanneed。 The possibilities of finding heat， power， and light in chemical forces should the coal supply fail are simply boundless。
The same thing is true of food。 The most advanced agriculturist feels that heis but an amateur when it comes to the possibilities of mixing brains with the soil。
Education and knowledge are enabling us to produce more from a few acres ofsoil than men formerly produced from hundreds of acres。 Agriculture is still in itsinfancy。 We know almost nothing as yet about the possibilities of getting nitrogenfrom the atmosphere， and of renewing the soil。 No matter which way we turn，Science matches our knowledge with her marvellous reserves and nowhere is therea sign of limit。
There is building material enough to give every person on the globe amansion finer than any that a Vanderbilt or Rothschild possesses。 It was intendedthat we should all be rich and happy； that we should have an abundance of all thegood things the heart can crave。 We should live in the realization that there is anabundance of power where our present power comes from， and that we can drawupon this great source for as much as we can use。
There is something wrong when the children of the King of kings go aboutlike sheep hounded by a pack of wolves。 There is something wrong when thosewho have inherited infinite supply are worrying about their daily bread； are doggedby fear and anxiety so that they cannot take any peace； that their lives are one battlewith want； that they are always under the harrow of worry， always anxious。 Thereis something wrong when people are so worried and absorbed in making a livingthat they cannot make a life。
We were made for happiness， to express joy and gladness， to be prosperous。
The trouble with us is that we do not trust the law of infinite supply， but close ournatures so that abundance cannot flow to us。 In other words， we do not obey the lawof attraction。 We keep our minds so pinched and our faith in ourselves so small， sonarrow， that we strangle the inflow of supply。 Abundance follows a law as strict asthat of mathematics。 If we obey it， we get the flow； if we strangle it， we cut it off。
The trouble is not in the supply； there is abundance awaiting everyone on the globe。The majority of us still believe in the idea of competition。 We regard it as anecessary principle of business， as is indicated by such maxims as “Competition isthe life of trade。”
If we could only realize and feel our close， intimate connection with the Powerof infinite supply， we could not want。
It is the feeling of separateness from the great Power that makes us fear， justas the child’s separation from its mother fills it with fear and terror。
When we shall learn the cause of this feelling of separateness， that it is wrongthinking， sin， which isolates us， we shall know how to get in touch again with thegreat supplying Principle of the universe。
When we feel a sense of unity， an at-oneness with the Creator， we cannot fear，we cannot want， because we are in the very midst of the supply， in the very lap ofabundance。
It is impossible for God’s image and likeness in man to reflect failure orpoverty。 Man’s divine image reflects prosperity， riches that are royal， divineabundance that never fails， plenty that can never grow less。
Many lives are like the great Sahara Desert， only here and there a little clumpof green trees and flowers where there happens to be a little moisture； a tiny oasishere and there， watered by a little encouragement—some good fortune that hascome even in spite of the fact that the mental attitude has been totally unfavorableto the production of prosperity。
A large， generous success is impossible to many people， because every avenueto their minds is closed by doubt， worry， fear。 They have shut out the possibility ofprosperity。 Abundance cannot come to a mind that is pinched， shrivelled， skeptical，and pessimistic。
Prosperity is a product of the creative mind。 The mind that fears， doubts，depreciates its powers， is a negative， non-creative mind， one that repels prosperity，repels supply。 It has nothing in common with abundance， hence cannot attract it。
Of course， men do not mean to drive opportunity， prosperity， or abundance away from them； but they hold a mental attitude filled with doubts and fears andlack of faith and self-confidence， which virtually does this very thing without theirknowing it。
Oh， what paupers our doubts and fears make of us！
No mind， no intellect is powerful or great enough to attract wealth while themental attitude is turned away from it—facing in the other direction。
Our pinched， dwarfed， blighted lives come from inability to unite with thegreat Source of all supply。 All our limitations are in our own minds， the supply isthere waiting in vast abundance。 We take little because we demand little， becausewe are afraid to take the much of our inheritance—the abundance that is ourbirthright。 We starve ourselves in the midst of plenty， because of our stranglingthought。 The opulent life stands ready to take us into its completeness， but ourignorance cuts us off。 Hence the life abundant， the river of plenty， opulenceunspeakable， flow past our doors and we starve on the very shores of the streamwhich carries infinite supply。
It is not in our nature that we are paupers， but in our own mean， stingyappreciation of ourselves and our powers。 The idea that riches are possible only tothose who have superior advantages， more ability； those who have been favored byfate， is false and vicious。
People who put themselves into harmony with the law of opulence harvesta fortune， while those who do not in many cases do not find enough to keep themalive。
There is everything in feeling opulent。 I know a lady who has such awonderful appreciation of everything about her， who has such superb ideas of lifeand the grandeur of its meaning， that it makes one feel rich to converse with her。
With her there is no such thing as commonness。 The most ordinary duties whenperformed by her are lifted into dignity and grandeur。 Things come to her withoutworrying or anxious thought。 She loves everybody and everybody loves her。 Shehas no grudges against anybody， because her very nature is sunshine。 There is no lack in her life， because she believes in and relies without doubt or shadow of fearon the Infinite Source of supply。 She is rich， opulent in the truest sense of the word。
Such people make others feel rich。
On the other hand， we all know those who， no matter how much money theymay have， never suggest opulence， never suggest anything rich or grand， becausetheir natures are starved， shrivelled， and stunted。 Greed and selfishness have sappedall the juices out of their lives and made them as barren of sweetness as suckedoranges。
We must think plenty before we can realize it in the life。 If we hold thepoverty thought， the penury thought， the thought of lack， we cannot demonstrateabundance。 We must hold the plenty thought if we would reach plenty。
When we realize the fact that we do not need to look outside of ourselves forwhat we need； that the source of all supply， the divine spring which can quench ourthirst， is within ourselves， then we shall not want， for we know that we only have todip deep into ourselves to touch the infinite supply。 The trouble with us is that wedo not abide in abundance， do not live with the creative， the all-supplying sourcesof things。
It is said of a remarkably successful man of our times that he is unable to seepoverty。 His mind is so constructed that he seems to see abundance everywhere，and believes so implicitly in the law of opulence that he demonstrates it easily。 Hehas no doubts to paralyze his endeavor。
In the main we get out of life what we have concentrated upon。 What we do，our environment， our position， our condition， are the results of our concentration，our life-focusing。 If we have concentrated upon poverty， and we have thus pinchedour inflow of prosperity， if our thoughts have， been of our unworthiness and theconviction that the best things in the world were not intended for us， of course weshall get what we have concentrated upon。 If， on the other hand， we have centredour thoughts along the lines of prosperity， of abundance， if we have believed thatthe best things in the world are for us， because we are the children of God， and that health， happiness， and prosperity are our birthright， and have done our best torealize our ideals， then our surroundings， our condition will outpicture our thought，our concentration， our mental attitude。
I have known people who have longed all their lives to be happy， and yetthey have concentrated their minds on their loneliness， their friendlessness， theirmisfortunes。 They are always pitying themselves for the lack of the good thingsof the world。 The whole trend of their habitual concentration has been upon thingswhich could not possibly produce what they longed for。 They have been longingfor one thing， and expecting and working for something else。
It is a great thing to learn to live in the All-Life， to keep close to infinitesupply。 Many of us imprison ourselves in the narrow limited poverty thought， andthen， like caged eagles trying in vain to get free， we beat out our wings against thebars we have ourselves put up。
Some natures are naturally filled with suggestions of plenty of all that is rich，grand， and noble。 Some minds are so constituted that they instinctively plunge rightinto the marrow of creative energy。 Producing is as natural to them as breathing。
These people are not hampered by doubts， fears， timidity， or lack of faith inthemselves。 They are confident， bold， fearless characters。 They never doubt thatthe infinite supply will be equal to their demand upon it。 Such an opulent， positivemental attitude is creative energy。
When we have faith enough in the law of opulence to spend our last dollarwith the same confidence and assurance that we would if we had thousands more，we have touched the law of divine supply。
“Charity giveth itself rich。 Covetousness hoardeth itself poor。”
A stream of plenty will not flow toward the stingy， parsimonious， doubtingthought； there must be a corresponding current of generosity， open-mindedness，going out from us。 One current creates the other。 A little rivulet of stingymindedness，a weak， poverty current going out from ourselves， can never set up acounter-current toward us of abundance， generosity， and plenty。 In other words， our mental attitude determines the counter-current which comes to us。
Train yourself to come away from the thought of limitation， away from thethought of lack， of want， of pinched supply。 This thinking abundance， and defyinglimitation will open up the mind and set thought currents toward a greatly increasedsupply。
When man comes into the full realization that God is his never-failing Supply，the Source of Abundance， the great Fountain Head of all that is good and desirable，and that he being His offspring， must be a part， an indestructible part of this supply，he will never more know poverty or lack of any kind。
The sons and daughters of God were planned for glorious， sublime lives， andthe time will come when all men will be kings and all women queens。 When manshigher brain shall have triumphed over his lower brain and the brute shall havebeen educated out of him， there will be no poverty， slavery， or vice。 The time willcome when the most miserable creature that walks on the globe to-day will behigher than the highest now on the earth。 The plan of creation will have failed ifevery human being does not finally come into his own and return to his God as aking。
IV。 CHARACTER BUILDING AND HEALTH
BUILDING DURING SLEEP
However discordant or troubled you have been during the day， do not go tosleep until you have restored your mental balance， until your faculties are poisedand your mind serene。
PHYSIOLOGISTS tell us that the mental processes which are active onretiring， continue far into the night。 These mental impressions on retiring， justbefore going to sleep， the thoughts that dominate the mind， continue to exerciseinfluence long after we become unconscious。
We are told， too， that wrinkles and other evidences of age are formed asreadily during sleep as when awake， indicating that the way the mind is set whenfalling asleep has a powerful influence on the body。
Many people cut off the best years of their lives by the continuation in theirsleep of the wearing， tearing， rasping influences that have been operating uponthem during the day。
Thousands of business and professional men and women are so active duringthe day， live such strenuous， unnatural lives， that they cannot stop thinking afterthey retire， and sleep is driven away， or only induced after complete mentalexhaustion。 These people are so absorbed in the problems of their business orvocations that they do not know how to relax， to rest； so they lie down to sleep withall their cares， just as a tired camel lies down in the desert with its great burden stillon its back。
The result is that， instead of being benefited by refreshing， rejuvenating sleep，they get up in the morning weary， much older than when they retired； when theyought to get up full of vigor， with a great surplus of energy and bounding vitality； strong and ambitious for the day’s work before them。
The corroding， exhausting， discord-producing operations which are goingon when they fall asleep and which continue into the night， counteract the goodthey would otherwise get from their limited amount of sleep。 All this shows theimportance of preparing the mind to exercise a healthful， uplifting influence duringsleep。
It is more important to prepare the mind for sleep than the body。 The mentalbath is even more necessary than the physical one。
The first thing to do is to get rid of the rasping， worrying， racking influenceswhich have been operating upon us during the day—to clean the mental house—totear down all the dingy， discouraging， discordant pictures that have disfigured it，and hang up bright， cheerful， encouraging ones for the night。
Never allow yourself， under any circumstances， to retire in a discouraged，despondent， gloomy mood， or in a fit of temper。 Never lie down with a frown onyour brow； with a perplexed， troubled expression on your face。 Smooth out thewrinkles； drive away grudges， jealousies， all the enemies of your peace of mind。
Let nothing tempt you to go to sleep with an unkind， critical， jealous thought towardanother in your mind。
It is bad enough to feel unkindly toward others when under severe provocation，or when in a hot temper， but you cannot afiford to deliberately continue this stateof mind after the provocation has ceased and spoil your sleep。 You cannot afifordthe wear and tear。 It takes too much out of you。 Life is too short， time too preciousto spend any part of it in unprofitable， health-wrecking， soul-racking thoughts。 Beat peace with all the world at least once in every twenty-four hours。 You cannotafford to allow the enemies of your happiness to etch their miserable images deeperand deeper into your character as you sleep。 Erase them all。 Start every night with aclean slate。
If you have been impulsive， foolish， wicked during the day in your treatmentof others； if you have been holding a revengeful， ugly， or jealous attitude toward others， wipe off your mental slate now and start anew。 Obey the injunction of St。
Paul， “Let not the sun go down upon your wrath。”
If you have difficulty in banishing unpleasant or torturing thoughts， forceyourself to read some good， inspiring book； something that will take out yourwrinkles and put you in a happy mood， and will reveal to you the real grandeurand beauty of life； that will make you feel ashamed of your petty meannesses andnarrow， uncharitable thoughts。
Saturate your mind with pleasant memories and with dreams of greatexpectations。 Just imagine yourself the man or woman you long to become， filledwith happiness， prosperity， and power。 Hold tenaciously the ideal of the characteryou most admire， the personality to which you aspire—the broad， magnanimous，large-hearted， deep-minded， lovable soul which you wish it were possible for youto become。 The habit of such beautiful life-picturing and the power of reverie onretiring will very quickly begin to reproduce itself， outpicture itself in your life。
After a little practice， you will be surprised to see how quickly and completelyyou can change your whole mental attitude， so that you will face life the right waybefore you fall asleep。
A prominent business man told me recently that his great weakness was hisinability to stop thinking after retiring。 This man， who is very active during the dayand works at a high tension， has a sensitive nervous organization， and his brainkeeps on working both before and after he falls asleep as intensely as it did duringthe day。 In this way he is robbed of so much sleep and what he gets is so troubledand unrefreshing， that he feels all used up the next day。
I advised him to cultivate the habit of closing the door of his business brain atthe same time that he closed the door of his business office， “You should，” I said，“insist on changing the current of your thoughts when you leave your businessfor the day， just as you change your environment， or as you change your dress fordinner when you go home in the evening。 Turn your thoughts to your wife andchildren， to their joys and interests； talk to them， play games with them； read some humorous or entertaining story， or some strong， interesting book that will lift you，in spite of yourself， out of your business rut。 Go out for a long walk or a ride； fillyour lungs with strong， sweet， fresh air； look about you and observe the beautiesof nature。 Or have a hobby of some kind to which you can turn for recreation andrefreshment when you quit your regular business。 Be master of your mind。 Learn tocontrol it， instead of allowing it to control you and tyrannize over you。
“Hang up in your bedchamber， in a conspicuous place where you can alwayssee it， a card bearing in bold illuminated letters this motto： ‘No Thinking Here。’
“Shut off all thinking processes of every kind when you retire for the night，relax every muscle； let there be no tension of mind or body， and in a short time youwill find that sleep will come to you as easily and naturally as to a little child， andthat it will be as untroubled， as sweet and refreshing as that of a child。”
To all who are troubled as this man was， I would offer the same advice， for itsadoption has proved very successful in his case。
It is a great art to be able to shut the gates of the mental power-house onretiring， to control oneself， to put oneself in tune with the Infinite， in sympathy withthose about him， and in harmony with the world； to expel from the mind everythingwhich jars or irritates—all malice， envy， and jealousy， the enemies of our peaceand happiness—before we go to sleep。 Yet it is an art that all can acquire。
It is possible for everyone， either by thinking， reading， or pleasant socialinfluences， to conquer all discordant moods， to overcome every unkind feeling， tobanish every frown from the face， every wrinkle from the mind， and to go to sleepwith a smile on the face。
When you go to sleep in the right mental attitude you will be surprised to findhow serene and calm， how refreshed and cheerful， you will be when you awakein the morning， and how much easier it will be to start right and to wear a smilefor the day than it was when you went to bed worrying， illhumored， or full ofungenerous， uncharitable thoughts。
The devotional attitude on retiring to sleep is of very great value， inasmuch as it tends to soothe， cahn， and reassure the mind， to destroy all fear， worry andanxious thoughts and to put one in tune with higher， nobler thoughts。
Persistency in preparing the mind for peaceful， healthful， happy sleep willprolong your life and your youth。 More important still， it will have a far-reachinginfluence on your health and the foundation of your character。 The habit of clearingthe mental temple of all discords， error， hatred， revenge， everything which tends togloom and darkness before going to sleep， and persisting in holding bright picturesin the mind， in dwelling on noble and uplifting thoughts， will in time revolutionizethe whole life。
We are just beginning to realize that there is an enormous power lyingdormant in the Great Within of us， and that this latent force or power seems to bevery susceptible to stimulus during sleep， when the objective world and its manydisturbing conditions are absent。
We little realize the amount of activity—undirected activity—that goes on inour subconscious minds during sleep。
There is a lot of unconscious philosophy in the expression one so often utters，“I would like to sleep over this proposition，” problem—or whatever it is。 Withoutknowing the secret of it， we realize that things somehow clear up during sleep ina remarkable way。 We see things in a different light in the morning。 Perhaps thething we were most enthusiastic over the night before， and which， had we carriedout， would have been obviously injurious， often seems silly， ill-advised， impossibleto us in the morning， not because we really consciously thought much about it， butbecause there is something in our subconscious mentality which often solves knottyproblems for us while asleep—problems which staggered us in our waking hours。
Great mathematicians， scientists， and astronomers have many times beensurprised to find very difficult problems that their reason could not elucidate duringthe day solved without apparent effort during sleep。
There is no doubt that much of our moral education and character-forming iscarried on during sleep subconsciously， and since the psychology of this education and character forming during sleep is based on the fact that the processes which aregoing on in the brain when we fall asleep tend to continue during the night， we canreadily see what marvellous possibilities lie in the right direction and guidance ofthis mysterious subconscious power。
I know persons who have performed wonders in reforming themselves by selfsuggestionon retiring at night， holding the happy， inspiring， helpful suggestion inthe mind up to the point of unconsciousness。 Persons have overcome ugly tempersand dispositions in this way as well as other unfortunate traits。 The holding of thevigorous， robust， healthy ideal—the ideal and the spirit of youth—has immensepossibilities in the way of self-refreshment， reinvigoration， and rejuvenation， and isespecially helpful to those who are advanced in years。
If those who are inclined to melancholy and the “blues” would， just beforegoing to sleep， insist on the nothingness of these delusions， and substitute thebright， cheerful， hopeful， optimistic thought， they would very soon overcome thisunfortunate tendency。
If poverty is grinding us under its heel， we should affirm before going tosleep that the Creator has provided sufficient to give everyone the necessaries andcomforts of life， without any worry about them on our part。 Instead of thinkingof poverty we should hold in the mind the suggestion of opulence， of prosperity。
We thus make the action of the subconscious mind attract to us what we need anddesire。
If we have any defect or weakness， we should hold firmly and persistently inmind， before we go to sleep， just the opposite characteristic or quality； this willtend to attract to us the thing we long for。 If we desire to overcome any vice， weshould plead the wholeness， the completeness which we long to attain。
Bad temper， inebriety， selfishness and deceitfulness， all sorts of vicious andimmoral tendencies， have been eradicated in this manner。
Children seem especially susceptible to suggestion， or what， for a better name，may be called the “going-to-sleep” treatment。 This is because the subconscious mind is particularly active in the young and much more easily reached， especiallyduring the first stages of sleep， when just dropping into unconsciousness。
Truths emphasized at this time will be remembered more readily by the childand are more likely to be acted upon during the waking hours than those which areemphasized while he is awake， for when he is in the subconscious state he does notantagonize advice。
Some very remarkable results in the correction of vicious tendencies inchildren have recently been accomplished by appealing to their divine natures—their better selves—through mental suggestion during sleep。
The effective treatment of sickness in infants and children through the mediumof such suggestion shows how easily the subcon-sciousness can be influenced whenthe child is in the unconscious， or semiconscious state。
If a child is naturally timid， and afraid of “ghosts，” the darkness， or any otherthing， the mother can often help it to overcome these fears by talking to it while itis dropping to sleep。 If it is weak， delicate or ill， she can suggest the healing Christtruth，the health-ideal， strength， vigor， harmony。 If it is timid， she can suggestconfidence and courage。
The suggestion of success to the child who has been backward in school，or who has failed in his studies， will often have a wonderful effect in the way ofestablishing confidence and hope。
If the mother talks to her child and reasons with it as it drops off into sleep，just as she would if the child were awake， she will find that her words will havefar more effect than if he were conscious， for the stubbornness， the naturalinclination to resist， to do that which is forbidden， which is present in the child’smind during its waking hours， is quiescent， and it listens to and heeds its mother’sadvice quietly， naturally， unquestioningly。 The wise mother who makes all sortsof good suggestions to her children in her talks—substituting the good for the bad，love for hatred and jealousy， unselfishness for selfishness—soon finds a markedchange in their dispositions。 By injecting into the little Hfe confidence， hope， love， joy， courage， self-reliance， purity—all the higher and nobler attributes—she canwonderfully change her child’s disposition。
The time will come when all mothers will understand the importance ofsuggestion in influencing a child’s conduct and shaping its character。
A few already recognize the power of mental suggestion in all its forms， butin the new age that is coming， none will be ignorant of its wonderful characterformingand life-transforming possibilities。
If those who have not tried it before begin now， I am sure that in a very shorttime they will be surprised at the beneficent results that will follow this persistentpractice of flooding the mind with pure and noble thoughts before going to sleep—close up to the very point of unconsciousness。
I am sure those who try it will find delight and satisfaction in the habit notonly of clearing the mind before going to sleep of all worry and anxiety， all grudgesand jealousies—of everything that clouds the intellect—but also in stoutly andpersistently claiming the things which they long for as already theirs。
Be sure that when you fall asleep there is only that in your consciousnesswhich will help you to be more of a man—more of a woman。 Determine that yourmind， when you lose conscious thought， shall have in it no black images and nodark spots， but only beautiful images and thoughts of hope and good will towardevery living creature； that there shall be no failure thought， no poverty thought，no ugly， discordant thought， but that everything shall be bright， cheerful， hopeful，helpful and optimistic。
V。 HEALTH THROUGH RIGHT THINKING
There is a nobleness of mind that heals Wounds beyond salves。
—Cartwright。
“God never made his work for man to mend。”
PROFESSOR WILLIAM JAMES， of Harvard University， says “we are justnow witnessing a very copious unlocking of new ideas through the converts tometaphysical healing， or other forms of spiritual philosophy。 The ideas are healthymindedand optimistic。 The power， small or great， comes in various shapes to theindividual； power not to ‘mind’ things that used to vex one； power to concentrateone’s mind； good cheer； good temper； a firmer and more elastic tone。 The mostsaintly person I have ever known is a friend now suffering from cancer of thebreast。 I do not assume to judge of the wisdom or unwisdom of her disobedience tothe doctors， but cite her case here solely as an example of what an idea can do。 Herideas have kept her practically a well woman for months after she would otherwisehave given up and gone to bed。 They have annulled pain and weakness and givenher a cheerful， active life； a life unusually beneficent to those around her。”
Few people realize how largely their health depends upon the saneness oftheir thinking。 You cannot hold ill-health thoughts， disease thoughts， in the mindwithout having them outpictured in the body。 The thought will appear in the bodysomewhere， and its quality will determine the results—sound or unsound， healthfulor unhealthful。 As it is impossible for a person to remain absolutely pure whohabitually holds pictures of impurity in the imagination， so it is just as impossibleto be healthy while holding the disease thought。 There cannot be harmony in thebody with disease in the mind。
The health stream， if polluted at all， is polluted at the fountain-head—in thethought， in the ideal。
The different organs seem to be especially susceptible to certain kinds ofmental influence。 Excessive selfishness， covetousness， envy， especially affect theliver and the spleen。 Hatred and anger have a very aggravating influence upon somediseases of the kidneys。 Jealousy seriously affects both the liver and the heart。
If there is fear， worry， anxiety in the mind， the heart’s action indicates itquickly。 There is no doubt that where mental discord， such as worry， anxietyand jealousy， have become chronic， the heart suffers accordingly。 Thou-sandsof people have died from heart troubles which have been induced by mentaldiscord。
Dr。 Snow in the London Lancet asserts his conviction that the vast majorityof cases of cancer， especially of breast and uterine cancer， are due to mentalanxiety and worry。 Jaun-dice from anxiety is reported by Dr。 Churton in the BritishMedical Journal。
great mental shocks， especially frequent great and prolonged outbursts oftemper。
It is well known that many people are made bilious by long-continueddespondency and worry。
Dr。 Murchison， an eminent authority， says： “I have been surprised how oftenpatients with primary cancer of the liver have traced the cause of this ill-health toprotracted grief or anxiety。 The cases have been far too numer-ous to be accountedfor as mere coincidences。”
The functions of the skin are seriously affected by the emotions。
Sir B。 W。 Richardson， in his work “The Field of Disease，” says：
“Eruptions on the skin will follow excessive mental strain。 In all these， andin cancer， epilepsy， and mania from mental causes， there is a predisposition。 It isremarkable，” he adds， “how little the question of the origin of physical disease frommental influences has been studied。”
We can never gain health by contemplating disease， any more than we canreach perfection by dwelling upon imperfection， or harmony by dwelling upondiscord。
We should keep a high ideal of health and harmony constantly before themind； and we should fight every discordant thought and every enemy of harmonyas we would fight a temptation to crime。 Never affirm or repeat about your healthwhat you do not zvish to be true。 Do not dwell upon your ailments nor study yoursymptoms。 Physicians tell us that perfect health is impossible to the self-dissector，who is constantly thinking of himself， studying himself， and forever on the alert forthe least symptom of disease。
Librarians report that there is an astonishing demand among readers formedical books。 Many who imagine they have some particular disease often developa morbid curiosity or desire to read everything they can get hold of that bears uponthe subject。 When they find， as they do frequently， that some of the symptoms ofthe disease they are reading about coincides with their own， the conviction is stillmore deeply fastened in their minds that they have this disease。 The strength of thisconviction is often their greatest hindrance to a cure。
Nervous people with vivid imaginations rarely see life in a perfectly sane andhealthful way； they are very apt to become morbid and to make mountains out ofmolehills。 Every little ache or pain is exaggerated and interpreted as a symptom ofsomething worse to come。
These people are powerfully affected by hereditary convictions。 If they havean unfortunate family history； if their ancestors died of consumption， cancer， orany other of the dread diseases， the conviction that they are likely to develop one orthe other of these fatal maladies hangs like a pall over their lives， seriously impairstheir health， and paralyzes their efficiency。
What a terrible thing to go through life with such a nightmare staring one inthe face！ How foolish， and destructive of all power， to live with the spectre of deathconstantly by one’s side； to drag through years with the settled conviction that you are not going to live long； that there are terrible disease seeds within you which areliable to develop at any time and carry you off！
Think of a person spending years in getting a college and professionaleducation， and more years still in training for a specialty， while all the time hauntedby the possibility that he may be thwarted by the development of some terriblehereditary disease which may prematurely cut off his life！ It would be enough tokill the ambition of a Napoleon。
I know people in delicate health who habitually hold in their minds sick anddiscordant thoughts。 They are always thinking and talking of their ailments。 Theygloat over their symptoms， watch them， study them， look for them， until theyhave what they expect—for like produces like； it cannot produce anything else。
A reversal of the thought—thinking of health instead of disease， and holding inmind the health picture instead of the disease picture—would cure many an invalidwithout medicine。 Healthy thought is the greatest panacea in the world。
Many people not only cripple their efficiency， but keep themselves sick， or ina condition of semi-invalidism or diminished power， by holding constantly in theirminds negative suggestions as indicated by such expressions as： “Oh， I do not feelwell to-day”； “I feel miserable”； “I am weak”； “I am half sick”； “My food does notagree with me”； “I did not sleep well last night， and I know I shall not be good formuch today。”
If you are constantly saying to yourself， “I am wretched， weak and sick，” “Iam running down all the time，” how can you expect to become strong and well？
“According to thy word be it unto thee。”
Health and vigor will never come to you if you perpetually harp upon yourweakness and pity yourself because of your poor health。 Health is integrity。 Healthis wholeness， completeness， If you talk anything else， you will get it， for “Accordingto thy word be it unto thee。”
Imagine yourself an attorney pleading the cause of your health。 Summon upevery bit of evidence you can possibly find。 Do not give away your case to your opponent。 Plead it vigorously with all the strength you can command。
You will be surprised to see how your body will respond to such mentalpleading； such robust， vigorous， healthy affirmative argument。
I know of a case where a physician in passing through a ward thoughtlesslysaid to the nurse， in a voice loud enough for the patient to overhear， “That mancannot live。” The young man happened to know enough about the power of themind as a restorative to assert himself， and said to the nurse with great emphasis， “Iwill live。” He got well。
We do not realize how we weaken ourselves and destroy our powers ofdisease resistance by harboring the sick， the disease thought， by holding in themind the idea of physical weakness and debility。
If we could always keep in the mind the strong， robust， vigorous ideal，the health ideal， the ideal of power instead of weakness， the ideal of perfection，wholeness， completeness； if we could only keep in the mind the ideal of the divineman God intended， and not the mere burlesque of a man which the breaking oflaws， bad living， and sinning have produced； if we could only carry the ideal ofpersonal power， which is our birthright， there would be no room for the harboringof the sickly ideal—the weak， debilitated， decrepit ideal。
If it were possible to have the mind in us which was in Christ， we should nothave disease。 Disease could not attack us any more than impurity or sin could findlodgment in His mind。 The time will come when right thinking will be the greatpreventive medicine for all mankind， and when physical discord will indicate thatsomeone has sinned in his thought。 Humboldt said， “The time will come when itwill be considered a disgrace for a man to be sick， when the world will look upon itas a misdemeanor， the result of some vicious thinking。”
I believe the time will come when disease will not be able to fasten itself uponthose whose thought is pure， clean， and strong， because this quality of thought ishealing。 We used to regard dyspepsia， for example， as the result of a disorderedstomach。 Now we know it is the result of the disordered， discordant thought。 It is the legitimate child of worry and anxiety， of jealousy and remorse。
The time will come when greed and all forms of selfishness will be lookedupon as a disease which we pay very dearly for in the outpicturing of some physicaldiscord。 People little realize what price they pay in physical suffering for theirselfishness。
We cannot think ill-health； we cannot hold the thought of disease； we cannotharbor convictions that this disease or that is lurking in the system—that there areseeds of disease within us only waiting for an opportunity to develop and destroyus without seriously impairing the harmony of the body and its efficiency。
Every discordant thought， every thought of ill-health， all the vivid picturesof unfortunate physical conditions held in the imagination， all the horrible ghostsof fear—the things we dread and are anxious about—all the passions of angerand hatred， jealousy and envy， greed and selfishness， impair or ruin digestion andassimilation， and affect the integrity of all physical functions。
The mind is the health sculptor， and we cannot surpass the mental healthpattern。 If there is a weakness or a flaw in the thinking model， there will becorresponding deficiencies in the health statue。
So long as we think ill-health and doubt our ability to be strong and vigorous；so long as we hold the conviction of the presence of inherited weaknesses anddisease tendencies； so long as the model is defective—perfect health is impossible。
The life， the health follow the thought， the conviction。
Somehow most people seem to think that health is something fixed by a sortof destiny or fate； that it is largely a question of heredity and constitution whichcannot be materially altered。
But why should we not think the same about our happiness， about ourvocation？ We take infinite pains and spend many years in preparing ourselves forour life-work。 We know that a successful career must be based upon scientificprinciples of training， of system and order； that every step of a successful careermust be taken only after great thought and consideration。 We know that it means years of hard work to establish ourselves in life in a profession or business； but ourhealth， upon which everything else hangs—upon which it depends absolutely—wetake very little trouble to establish。
When we remember that the integrity and efficiency of all the mental facultiesdepend upon health； that robust health multiplies tenfold the power of our initiative；increases our creative ability； generates enthusiasm and spontaneity； strengthensthe quality of judgment， the power of discrimination， and the force of decision， thepower of execution， we should be very diligent to establish it。
We should lay a foundation for our health just as we establish anything ofimportance—by studying and adopting the sanest and the most scientific methods。
We should think health， talk health， hold the health ideal， just as a law studentshould think law， talk law， read law， live in a law atmosphere。
Health is largely a moral question。 Systematic living alone will not produce it。
We must establish it by right thinking， sane thinking。
Health can be established only by thinking health instead of disease， strengthinstead of weakness， harmony instead of discord， truth thoughts instead of errorthoughts， love thoughts instead of hatred thoughts； by upbuilding thoughts whichare constructive instead of destructive—tearing down。
Confidence is a powerful factor in health。 We should thoroughly believe in ourability to keep ourselves well by healthful， harmonious， happy thinking。
So long as we doubt our ability to maintain health， so long as we picture toourselves disease and physical weakness and vicious or in herited tendencies—itis impossible to attain to a strong， normal physical condition。 The time will comewhen we will no more allow discordant thoughts in our mind than we would scatterthistle seeds over our gardens。 Knowing well that thinking is building， our thinkingwill be reflected in our bodies。
To make ill-health an excuse for non-performance of our great life duties willbe a reflection upon our integrity； will indicate weakness or deception。 Sicknessand disease will show that we have not been true in our thought—in our motives—that we have sinned and are paying the penalty in suffering and thwarted ambition。
Many people today are ashamed to say they are ill， because they know thatit indicates sin somewhere—a violation of the law of harmony， of health。 We arebeginning to see that it is not only unnecessary to be sick， but that it is a disgracefor God’s creatures to be whining and ailing and complaining when they ought tobe doing the great things they were made to do。 We ought to be living the abundantlife which it was intended that we should live。 We were so planned that existencealone should be a perpetual joy。
When we get a glimpse of our real divinity， we shall absolutely refuse to besick。 We shall be as much ashamed to confess that we are suffering from a cold，rheumatism， dyspep or gout as we should now be to acknowledges， theft。 Thecoming man will radiate health and gladness as naturally as the rose exhales beautyand fragrance。 He will radiate life and vigor as naturally as he breathes。 Because hewill think only healthful thoughts， he cannot possibly radiate anything unhealthful。
We reflect only the results of our thinking。
Thoughts are things， and they leave their characteristic marks on the mind。 Nojoy thought can produce gloom， or health thought disease。 The fear thought heldconstantly in the mind cannot produce a state of courage。 It is only the courageousthought that can produce confidence。
Some great physician has said that there is something in man which wasnever born， is never sick， and never dies； and it is this something—this divine，omnipotent force—which heals our diseases。 No matter what else we may call it，it is the force that creates， that restores us。 We may call it the God principle， theChrist within us， the divine principle， the omnipotent force， or any name we please；it is the creative， the all-sustaining， infinite force。
The same Power that created us repairs us。 If we could only harmonize ourlives with this immortal principle， this best thing in us， we would reach our highestefficiency， our greatest possible happiness； and until we can harmonize ourselveswith this something within us which was never born and never dies， this divine principle which never sins， we can never be efficient or very happy。 This is the onlyreality in us—the only truth of our being。
The rust which gradually eats away the piano strings cannot destroy the greatlaw of harmony。 The disease which destroys the nerve cells， the brain cells， doesnot affect in the least our reality—the truth of our being。 That is indestructible，immortal—beyond the reach of what we call death。 We all feel， like the greatGerman physician， that there is something within us which can never be sick，which is not subject to disease， and which is as immortal as God Himself。
Man is Mind。 That is the great reality of life。 The way to establish health isto think hourly that you “live and move and have your being” in the great Godprinciple。 That is the underlying truth in all harmony。 Like Paul， believe that nopower can separate you from this divine love principle， this omnipotent power。
Love and truth are always working for you。 Carry the conviction constantly thatthe God principle is the only power in the universe。 All creation， all life， have theirorigin in this。
VI。 MENTAL CHEMISTRY
Every volition and thought of man is inscribed on his brain。 Thus a manwrites his life in his physique， and thus the angels discover his autobiographyin his structure。
—Swedenborg。
THE experiments made by Professor Elmer C。 Gates have shown thatirascible， malevolent， and depressing emotions generate in the system injuriouscompounds， some of which are extremely poisonous； and that agreeable， happyemotions generate chemical compounds of nutritious value， which stimulate thecells to manufacture energy。
“For each bad emotion，” says Professor Gates， “There is a correspondingchemical change in the tissues of the body。 Every good emotion makes a lifepromotingchange。 Every thought which enters the mind is registered in the brainby a change in the structure of its cells。 The change is a physical change more orless permanent。
“Any one may go into the business of building his own mind for an houreach day， calling up pleasant memories and ideas。 Let him summon feelings ofbenevolence and unselfishness， making this a regular exercise like swinging dumbbells。
Let him gradually increase the time devoted to these psychical gymnasticsuntil it reaches sixty or ninety minutes per diem。 At the end of a month he will findthe change in himself surprising。 The alteration will be apparent in his actions andthoughts。 It will have registered in the cell structure of his brain。”
There are many ways of ruining the body besides smoking or getting drunk，or indulging in other sensual vices。 Anger changes the chemical properties of the saliva to a poison dangerous to life。 It is well known that sudden and violentemotions have not only weakened the heart in a few hours， but have also causeddeath and insanity。
It has been discovered by scientists that there is a chemical difference betweenthat sudden cold exudation of a person under a deep sense of guilt， and the ordinaryperspiration； and the state of the mind of a criminal can sometimes be determinedby chemical analysis of the perspiration， which， when brought into contact withselenic acid， produces a distinctive pink color。
“Suppose half a dozen men in a room，” says Professor Gates； “one feelsdepressed， another remorseful， another ill-tempered， another jealous， anothercheerful， another benevolent。 Samples of their perspiration are placed in the handsof the psychophysicist。 Under his examination they reveal all those emotionalconditions distinctly and unmistakably。”
It is well known that fear has killed thousands of victims， while， on the otherhand， courage is a great restorer。
Anger in the mother may poison a nursing child。 Rarey， the celebrated horsetamer，said that an angry word would sometimes raise the pulse of a horse ten beatsin a minute。 Experiments with dogs show similar results。
If this is true of a beast， what can we say of its power upon human beings，especially upon a child？ Strong mental emotion often causes vomiting。 Extremeanger or fright may produce jaundice。 A violent paroxysm of rage has causedapoplexy and death。 Indeed， in more than one instance， a single night of mentalagony has wrecked a life。
The Almighty never intended that we should be the sport of our passions， orthe victims of harmful suggestions。 The power of mastery is within ourselves， butwe must develop it， cultivate it， use it。
That man is truly great who can rule his mental kingdom， who at will canmaster his moods； who knows enough of mental chemistry to neutralize a fit of the“blues，” to anti-dote any evil， poisonous thought with the opposite thought， just as a chemist neutralizes an acid which is eating into his flesh by applying an alkalineantidote。 A man ignorant of chemistry might apply another acid which would eatstill deeper into his flesh； but the chemist knows the antidote of the particular acidthat is doing the mischief， and can kill its corrosive， eating quality in an instant。
So the mental chemist knows how to counteract the corrosive， wearing，tearing power of the despondent， depressing thought by its cheerful antidote。 Heknows that the optimistic thought is sure death to the pessimistic thought； thatharmony will quickly neutralize any form of discord； that the health thought willantidote the ailing， sick thought； that the love thought will kill the hatred thought，the jealous， revengeful thought。 He does not need to suffer mental anguish， becausehe always has his mental remedy with him。 The moment he applies its antidote， thefatal corrosive power of the malignant thought is neutralized。
If children were taught mental chemistry， as they are taught physicalchemistry， there would be no ailing pessimists， no victims of the “blues。” Weshould not see so many long， dejected， gloomy faces everywhere。 We should notsee so many criminals， so many sorrowful， tragic failures in every rank of society，in every walk of life。
Many of us keep our minds more or less poisoned much of the time becauseof our ignorance of mental chemistry。 We suffer from mental self-poison and donot know it。 Neither do we know how to antidote the poison passions which areworking havoc in our bodies。
Nothing else will so exhaust the vitality and whittle away life as violent fits ofhatred， bitter jealousy， or a determination for revenge。 We see the victims of thesepassions worn out， haggard， old， even before they have reached middle life。 Thereare cases on record where fierce jealousy and hatred raging through the systemaged the victims by years in a few days or weeks。
Yet these mental poisons are just as easily antidoted， conquered， as physicalpoisons which have well-known antidotes。 If we are sick with a fever we go toa physician for an antidote； but when jealousy or hatred is raging within us we suffer tortures until the fever gradually wears itself out， not knowing that by anapplication of love which would quickly antidote it， we could easily have avoidednot only the suffering but also the wear and tear of the entire system， especially ofthe delicate brain structure。
As there is no filth， no impurity， in any water which cannot be removed by thescience of chemistry， so there is no human mind so filthy， so poisoned with viciousthinking and vicious habits， so saturated with vice， that it cannot be cleared up byright thinking； by the counter suggestion of the thing that has polluted it。
It is the poison-specialist’s， the toxicologist’s duty to know what will antidoteevery kind of poison。 He would not try to save a patient from arsenic poison withthe antidote for morphine。 He must have the arsenic antidote， and he can tell by thesymptoms in each case what poison has been taken。
Many a precious life has been lost which could have been saved if peoplearound the victim at the time had only known the antidote of the poison taken。
I have known a man poisoned with carbolic acid to be given the antidote forprussic acid， which， of course， did not save the patient， because it was not the rightantidote。
The time will come when every intelligent person will be expert enoughin mental chemistry to be able to apply the proper antidotes for special forms ofmental poisoning。
We shall find that it is just as easy to counteract an unfriendly， disagreeable，vicious thought by turning on the counter thought， as it is to rob the hot water of itsburning power by turning on the cold-water faucet。 We shall be able to regulate thetemperature of our thought as the temperature of water。 If the water is too hot wesimply turn on the cold faucet。 If we feel our brain heating up with hot temper， weshall simply turn on the love thought， the peace thought， and the anger heat will beinstantly counteracted。
In other words， it is perfectly possible， and not very difficult， to absolutelycontrol the quality of the thought， to regulate our peace of mind， to maintain poise and balance， a sweet， peaceful mental serenity， under the most tryingcircumstances。
It will be absolutely impossible， by any kind of aggravation or work or passionor torture， to disturb the balance， the dignified serenity， of the coming man。 It willbe impossible to make him suffer， because he knows the secret of counteracting thevicious， harmful thought so that it will be neutralized or will fall flat。 If the comingman feels the “blues” coming on， he will be able to counteract this condition inan instant。 He will know how to stop the eating of the acid thought with the alkalithought。 If he feels a sense of weakness coming on he will immediately annihilateit by a flood thought of strength and robustness—vigor。
Think， for example， how many human ills can be antidoted by the magicalchemistry of the love thought！ It is a solvent for selfishness and greed， a destroyerof hatred， envy， and jealousy， of revenge， criminal intent， and a score of othermental and physical enemies。
Think what it would mean if we could only keep the mind filled with loving，helpful， hopeful， encouraging， cheerful， fearless suggestions！ We would not thenneed to deny their opposites， for， when the positive is present， the negative flees。
We cannot drive the darkness out of a room。 We let in the light and thedarkness flees。
The way to get rid of discord is to flood the mind with harmony； then thediscord vanishes， as darkness flees before the light。
The way to get despondency and discouragement out of the mind is to fill itwith encouraging， hopeful， cheerful pictures。 Discouragement and despondency arekilled by their opposites。 They are the natural antidotes。
An acid is instantly killed by the presence of an alkali。 Fire cannot exist inthe presence of its opposite， carbonic-acid gas or water。 We cannot drive hatred，jealousy， revenge out of the mind by will power， by trying to force them out。 Loveis the alkali which will immediately neutralize， antidote them。
Hatred cannot live an instant in the presence of love。 The Golden Rule will kill all jealousy and revenge。 They cannot live together。
The trouble with most people is that they try to drive out the bad in themselvesinstead of antidoting it with the good。 They try to force hatred out of their mindswithout the assistance of its antidote。
Change the mental attitude—think love， feel love for that object which wehated， and the hatred is instantly neutralized。 Whenever you are timid， inclined toexpress doubt， fear or anxiety in any form， expel these destructive suggestions withtheir counter suggestions。
Remember that every morbid mood， every discordant， weak thought is asymptom of a poisoned mind。 You have the antidote—just the opposite thought。
Your mind remedy is always present。 The antidote for all error is truth， for alldiscord， is harmony。 You do not have to pay a physician。 You have your ownrecipe always with you。 When you have learned the secrets of mental chemistryyou can instantly stop every symptom and check every approach of mind disease。
Every true， beautiful， and helpful thought is a suggestion which， if held inthe mind， tends to reproduce itself there—clarifies the ideals and uplifts the life。
While these inspiring and helpful suggestions fill the mind their opposites cannotput in their deadly work， because the two cannot live together。 They are mutuallyantagonistic， natural enemies。 One excludes the other。
I know a woman of beautiful character who has acquired the art of quicklyrefreshing her mind even in the most trying and exacting conditions。 Knowing thepower of mental images to renew the mind， she has made a study of her thoughtenemies and learned to eliminate all those which suggest dark， unfortunate images，by dwelling on their opposites—those which bring beautiful， cheerful， uplifting，encouraging pictures to her mind。
By cherishing one and excluding the other， she freshens and clarifies herthought and rejuvenates her life at will。
Through her thorough knowledge and practice of mental chemistry， shehas been able to maintain a calm， sweet serenity， a cheerful mental balance and harmony of disposition which endears her to all who know her。
The human body is made exclusively of cells。 We are nothing but a massof cells of twelve different varieties， such as brain cells， bone cells， muscle cells，etc。 The maximum of health and power depends upon the absolute integrity ofevery cell。 Sickness and disease simply mean that some of the cells in the body areimpaired。
Many people seem to think that thought only affects the brain； but the fact iswe think all over。
Physiologists have found gray brain matter in the tips of the fingers of theblind。 The marvellous feats of the blind； the fact that they can distinguish mostdelicate textures， denominations of money， colors， even fine tints， shades， all showthat thinking is not confined to the brain。 We think all over。
The body is a sort of extended brain。 Every thought that enters the braincells is quickly communicated to every cell in the entire body， thus accounting forthe tremendous instantaneous influence of a shock caused by fatal news or someterrible catastrophe to every part of the body， instantly affecting all the secretionsand functions。
The effect of bad news in a telegram often instantly affects the heart， stomach，and brain。 This explains the numerous cases in medical history where the hair hasturned white in a few hours， sometimes in a few minutes， from the shock of badnews。 The transmission of the shock from the brain to every cell in the body isalmost instantaneous。
The billions of cells in the body are all tied together in the closest contact—byaffinity， sympathy。 What injures or helps one， injures or helps all。 Every cell suffersor is a gainer， gets a life impulse or a death impulse， according to the character ofthe thought。
It has been established by experiments that we pay for all our unfortunate，vicious thinking in impaired cell life。 Innumerable experiments have establishedthe fact that all healthful， hopeful， joyous， encouraging， uplifting， optimistic， cheerful thoughts improve the cell life of the entire body。 They are creative， whilethe opposite thoughts are destructive of cell life。
When we learn the fact that every thought and emotion is quickly registered，even in the remotest cell in the body， then we shall learn to be extremely careful ofthe character of the thought and the emotion。 We shall then know that the harboringof sick， discouraged， despondent thoughts， thoughts of fear， worry， jealousy， hatred，anger， and selfishness， will deteriorate the integrity of the entire cell life， and thatthe health standards will not only drop， but that our mental and physical energyalike will be diminished accordingly。 We shall then know that the health thought，the robust， vigorous thought will react upon and give an uplift to every cell in thebody。
The greatest work a human being can do is to keep his entire cell life in thesuperbest possible condition。 Then he will be absolutely normal； and when normalhe will be right， truthful， honest， sincere， noble。
Much of the unhappiness， the inefficiency and the wretched， slipshodwork， much of the crime of the world， are due to impaired cell life from vicious，unscientific thinking。
When a person is perfectly normal， he has no desire to do wrong。 It is whenhis cell life is demoralized by bad thinking， which leads to vicious living， dissipatedhabits， that he is tempted to go wrong。 So， not only the highest morality， thesupremest happiness， but the highest efficiency， depend upon the healthy conditionof the cell life。
How comparatively easy it would be to do right and to be successful if thebody were always in the best condition！
It is when the cell life is demoralized that the standard is lowered； it is becausewe are abnormal， that we are tempted to vicious living。 The blood is poisoned fromvicious thinking and we go wrong in spite of ourselves。
Every individual is afloat in a sea of thought， where currents are running inevery direction。 When we are subject to all sorts of opposing influences， conflicting thought-currents， we soon come to grief in this turbulent sea， if we do not know thelaws of mental chemistry。 We must know how to neutralize our enemy thoughtsby applying their antidotes。 We must be able to master our moods， to direct ourthoughts， and thus protect our lives from all evil influences within and without。
One of the great problems in establishing wireless telegraphy was theneutralizing or getting rid of the influence of conflicting currents going in everydirection through the atmosphere。 The great problem of character-building， lifebuilding，is to counteract， to nullify conflicting thought-currents， discordantthought-currents， which bring all sorts of bad， injurious suggestions to the mind。
Tens of thousands have already solved this problem。 Everyone can apply mentalchemistry， the right thought-current to neutralize the wrong one。
He is a fortunate man who early learns the secret of scientific mental culture，and who acquires the inestimable art of holding the right suggestion in his mind， sothat he can triumph over the dominant note in his environment when it is unfriendlyto his highest good。
There is nothing truer than that “we can make ourselves over by using anddeveloping the right kind of thought-forces。”
Not long ago a young man whom I had not seen for several years called onme， and I was amazed at the tremendous change in him。 When I had last seen himhe was pessimistic， discouraged， almost despairing； he had soured on life， lostconfidence in human nature and in himself。 During the interval he had completelychanged。 The sullen， bitter expression that used to characterize his face wasreplaced by one of joy and gladness。 He was radiant， cheerful， hopeful， and happy。
The young man had married an optimistic wife， who had the happy faculty oflaughing him out of his “blues” or melancholy， changing the tenor of his thoughts，cheering him up， and making him put a higher estimate on himself。 His removalfrom an unhappy environment， together with his wife’s helpful “new-thought”
influence and his own determination to make good， had all worked together tobring about a revolution in his mental make-up。 The love-principle and the use of the right thought-force had verily made a new man of him。
We are beginning to learn that man carries the great panacea for all ills withinhimself； that the antidotes for the worst poisons—the poisons of hatred， jealousy，anger， revenge， a false ambition， and of all evil thoughts and passions—exist in hisown mind in the form of love， charity， and good-will essences。VII。 IMAGINATION AND HEALTH
Fancy can save or kill； it hath closed up wounds when the balsam couldnot， and without the aid of salves—to think hath been a cure。
—Cartwright。
NOT long ago a clergyman was sent to a hospital， suffering terribly， and soweak that he could scarcely hold up his head。 He said he had swallowed severalfalse teeth and the plate， and that he felt the horrible grinding and cutting of thesein his stomach。
The physician in attendance tried to talk him out of this idea， but to nopurpose。 A little while later a telegram from his wife informed him that the teethhad been found under the bed。 Mortified and chagrined at having made such a foolof himself， the clergyman， free from his imaginary suffering， immediately got up，dressed himself， paid his bill and went home without assistance。
As long as the man was convinced that the false teeth were in his stomach， allthe talking in the world could not have made him believe that his suffering was adelusion。 This conviction had to be changed first。
Physicians tell us that susceptibility to contagious diseases depends verylargely upon the mental condition， that it is possible for a person during greatexcitement to work with perfect immunity among patients suffering from the mostmalignant diseases。
I have seen a vigorous， athletic man so completely paralyzed by the shockfrom an accident that he could scarcely lift a pound weight。 He was as weak andnerveless as a child。 No material substance had touched him or opposed him—justa terrifying thought， which came like lightning， did the work， made a pygmy of a giant in an instant。
Well-authenticated cases have been recorded by physicians where patients，who had a mortal fear of chloroform， went into syncope before a whiff ofchloroform had been given。 They became perfectly unconscious through thesuggestion of their own minds。
I know of a physician who， while away from home on a fishing trip， wassummoned to attend a patient who was suffering indescribable agony。 He had nomedicine case， no drugs with him； but the tactful physician， knowing the power ofsuggestion， made small powders out of ordinary flour and gave instructions withthe greatest care as to the exact time and manner of taking。 They were to be givenevery few minutes。
The patient was told that he was being treated by a noted physician， and hisgreat faith in the physician and the remedy in a short time wrought a marvellouschange in his condition。 He said that he felt the effects of the medicine throughouthis entire being。 Flour and faith did the work。
In the medical report， after the great epidemic of yellow fever in Philadelphia，we find this reference to the remarkable healing balm in the spiritual influence ofthe great Dr。 Rush。
“Dr。 Rush’s presence was a powerful stimulant； men recovered to whom hegave no medicine， as if his word was enough to turn the fever。”
The sick thought must go before the sick condition will depart。 When thediseased thought goes， the body at once rebounds and becomes normal。
I recently heard of a young lady who， while at the theatre with her fiance，complained suddenly of feeling faint。 Her fiance， a young doctor， took somethingout of his pocket， and， giving it to her， whispered， “Keep this tabloid in your mouth，but don’t swallow it。” The young lady did as directed， and immediately felt better。
Curious to know what the “tabloid” was， which， although it had not dissolved，had given her such relief， she examined it on her return home， and found—a smallbutton！
Medical history shows that thousands of people have died the victims of theirimagination。 They were convinced they had diseases which in reality they neverhad。 The trouble was not in the body but in the mind。
Few of us realize the almost superhuman power of the imagination in its effectupon the body。 Nothing is better known than that many people every year die withimaginary hydrophobia。 It is a very common thing to regard a dog as mad whichsimply has a fit， or is so frightened at being pursued by those who are afraid of it，and who project their state of mind to its brain that it appears to be mad。
A short time ago I read a story about a young officer in India who consulteda great physician because he felt fagged from the excessive heat and long hoursof service。 The physician examined him and said he would write to him on themorrow。 The letter the patient received informed him that his left lung was entirelygone， his heart seriously affected， and advised him to adjust his business affairsat once， “Of course， you may live for weeks，” it said， “but you had best not leaveimportant matters undecided。”
Naturally the young officer was dismayed by this death warrant。 He grewrapidly worse， and in twenty-four hours respiration was difficult and he had anacute pain in the region of the heart。 He took to his bed with the conviction that heshould never rise from it。 During the night he grew rapidly worse and his servantsent for the doctor。
“What on earth have you been doing to yourself？” demanded the physician。
“There was no indication of this sort when I saw you yesterday。”
“It is my heart， I suppose，” weakly answered the patient in a whisper。
“Your heart！” repeated the doctor。 “Your heart was all right yesterday。”
“My lungs， then，” said the patient。
“What is the matter with you， man？ You don’t seem to have been drinking。”
“Your letter， your letter！” gasped the patient。 “You said I had only a fewweeks to live。”
“Are you crazy？” said the doctor。 “I wrote you to take a week’s vacation in the hills and you would be all right。”
The patient， with the pallor of death in his face， could scarcely raise his headfrom the pillows， but he drew from under the bed-clothes the doctor’s letter。
“Heavens， man！” cried the physician； “this was meant for another patient！ Myassistant misplaced the letters。”
The young officer sat up in bed immediately， and was entirely well in a fewhours。
When I was in the Harvard Medical School， one of the best professors there，a celebrated physician， who had been lecturing upon the power of the imagination，warned the students against the dangers of imagining that they themselves had thedisease about which they studied。 During this very time the professor told me thathe got it into his head that he was developing Bright’s disease in his own system。
This conviction became so strong that he did not even dare to have an examinationmade。 He was so certain that he was in the grasp of this so-called fatal disease thathe preferred to die rather than be told of his condition by another physician。 He losthis appetite， lost flesh rapidly， and became almost incapable of lecturing， until oneday a medical friend， astonished at the change in his appearance， asked what wasthe matter with him。
“I have Bright’s disease，” was the reply。 “I am sure of it， for I have everysymptom。”
“Nonsense，” said his friend； “you have nothing of the kind。”
After a great deal of persuasion， the professor was induced to submit to anexamination， and it was discovered that there was not the slightest evidence ofBright’s disease in his system。 He rallied so quickly that even in a day those whoknew him noticed the chansre。 His appetite returned， his flesh came back， and hewas a new man。
Medical history is full of examples of people who have been made sick purelythrough the domination of the imagination。 A London medical journal gives thefollowing instances：
“Two London men stayed in the country at a house where scarlet fever wasreported。 One， an unimaginative， healthy-minded fellow， awoke all right in themorning。 The other， a nervous， sensitive man， was very ill—had not slept and hadbroken out into a terrible rash， which both declared to be scarlet fever。 A wire to aLondon medical man was despatched， and by the first train he hurried down。 Thesupposed fever patient proved to have no fever at all beyond an imaginative one。 Infact， there was no scarlet fever in the house。 The case had been wrongly diagnosed，and the frightened visitor had tortured himself into a violent rash， all without cause。
“At another house two men stayed， where an inmate had died of cholera。 Oneman placed in the room in which the patient had died was in ignorance of whathad occurred。 He slept well and was no worse。 The other， wrongly told that theroom in which he slept was that in which the cholera patient had died， spent a nightof mental agony and in the morning was actually found to be suffering from thiscomplaint。 He died of cholera。”
People read these stories and believe them， yet cannot see that their ownperverted imaginations， their own sick， discordant， discouraged thoughts willproduce similar effects upon themselves。
We are all at some time in our lives victims of the imagination。 The convictionthat we have been exposed to a terrible malady， to some incurable， contagiousdisease， completely upsets the entire system and reverses the processes of thevarious functions； the mind does not act with its customary vitality and power andthere is a general dropping of physical and mental standards all along the line， untilwe become the victims of the thing we fear。VIII。 H O W S U G G E S T I O N I N F L U E N C E SHEALTH
By holding the thought of what we wish to become， we can in a large measurebecome what we desire。
Man is beginning to find that the same Principle which created him， repairs，restores， renews him。
SOMEONE has said： “The mortalest enemy you can have is the friend whomeets you and says： ‘You are not looking well today； what’s the matter？’ From thatmoment you don’t feel well。 Your friend has blasted your hope and spread a pallover your brain。”
The power of suggestion is strikingly illustrated by the fact that a hypnoticsubject under control may be burned until a blister is raised， by the application of acold coin。
Now， if it is possible for the thought suggested by another to produce a blisteron the body， it does not seem strange that a suggestion can cause or cure dyspepsiaand other ills。 If it is possible to make the hypnotic subject stagger and reel like adrunken man， just by holding in his mind the suggestion that a glass of pure waterhe drank was whiskey， it is certainly possible to produce all sorts of effects bymental suggestion。
Some examples of the marvellous power of suggestion are given by Dr。
Frederik Van Eden， a graduate of medicine at the University of Amsterdam， andan advocate of the psychotherapeutic method of healing the sick。 In speaking ofProfessor Debove， of Paris， an authority in such cases， he said：
“At his clinic in the hospital of St。 Andral he showed me how he could givea patient a glass of water， telling him that it was wine， and how the patient took it for wine。 I saw how he told a man that a cold silver spoon was glowing hot， andhow the man dropped it with every token of burning pain。 How he gave anothera book and said： ‘Look at it； it’s all white paper！ all blank！ … Now blow on it。
Look again！—it’s all portraits， all portraits！ Now blow again！—all landscapesand pictures！ Look！’ And the man saw everything in great amazement， and evendescribed the landscapes and portraits which nobody saw but I self。 ‘Well， I neversaw magic like this，’ said the man。
“I’ll do better，” said Debove。 ‘Shut your eyes。 When you open them， I have nohead。’ And as the man looked up he stared at the professor with a wild， scared look。
‘Well，’ said Debove， ‘how do you like me without my head？’ And the poor manstruck his own head with a violent blow and said： ‘For sure， I have gone mad！’”
I have seen an experiment tried on a horse， to make him believe he was sick。
He was covered with blankets， rubbed with medicines， pitied and petted until helost his appetite， and could not be induced to eat or drink。 Another perfectly soundhorse was so thoroughly convinced， in a short time， by the holding up of his foot，feeling of it， bandaging it， and rubbing it with liniment， that he was lame， that heactually limped when he attempted to walk。
It is well known that the fears， the anxieties， and the worries of mothers have agreat deal to do with the diseases of their children。
The expectant mental attitude of nervous mothers who are always on thelookout for the enemies of their darlings tends to invite， to attract， the very thingsthey fear。 Constantly watching for symptoms of any disease that happens to be intheir neighborhood， the mental pictures photographed on their brains are quicklycommunicated to the impressionable mind of the child and impair his bodilyfunctions。
In a home which I visited recently， the mother kept telling her little boy howill he looked， asking him how he felt， and giving him doses of this and doses ofthat。 At least half a dozen times during the evening she asked the different childrenof the family how they felt， if they had a headache or a cold。 She was worried all the time about them； afraid they would get into draughts， go outdoors bareheaded，or get their feet wet。 She was constantly warning them to avoid these things， andtelling them that if they didn’t they would get croup， or pneumonia， or somethingterrible would happen to them。 In other words， she kept the picture of physicaldiscord constantly in the minds of her children。 The result was that some memberof the family was sick most of the time。 The mother said she could not go out muchbecause there was so much sickness in her family。
The father was almost as bad as the mother in worrying about the health ofthe family。 He would call his little boy to him， feel his pulse， tell him his skin washot， that he was feverish； he would look at his tongue and remark that he was a sickboy。 The result was the boy actually thought himself sick and had to go to bed。
How little parents realize the harm they do in projecting their own discordantthoughts and fears into their children’s receptive minds， thus tending to develop thevery thing they are trying to avoid！
Think of children being brought up in such an atmosphere of fear and anxietyand disease-picturing， constantly warned of danger， and cautioned all the time notto do this or that， until they begin to think there are very few things that a personcan do with safety！ They grow up with a terrible fear of disease that becomes aperpetual nightmare。
If parents only knew what an unmitigated curse fear of disease is， they wouldtry to drive it out of their children’s minds； they never would picture symptoms ofphysical discord of any kind。
We are just beginning to appreciate the marvellous power of suggestion touplift or depress the mind。 Only recently I heard a very intelligent woman saythat she was forced to take to her bed for the greater part of a day because of thedepressing influence of a magazine story she had just read。 The story was writtenby a famous writer。 It was strong， but brutal。 It appealed to what was morbid in hermind and completely prostrated her。
It is common for medical students to become ill through the horrible suggestions of the dissecting rooms， and the depressing influence which comesfrom the constant study of disease conditions。
On the other hand， the constant mental contact with cheerful， hopeful， healththoughts， must tend to reproduce the corresponding qualities in the body。
The mind of a sick person is in more or less of a helpless， subjective， negativecondition， and is very susceptible to thought influences， good or bad。 In health， thepositive， creative mental attitude gives the mind the power of resistance， whichprotects it from its enemies。
Most of us know what a glorious uplift and stimulus we have received whenill， from a call from one who is cheerful and optimistic， and who injects hope andcourage into us。 And we know how we dread to have some people call on us whenwe are ill， because they rob us of hope and leave us in such a dejected mood bytheir long faces and pessimistic minds。 They always leave the depressing shadowsof gloom and discouragement behind them。
Sick people， like children， require a great deal of encouragement。 They wanthope held out to them。
Imagine what an uplift it would be to a patient if his physician， nurse，relatives， and friends were all trying to radiate hope， good cheer， and courage， aswill be the common custom in the future！
The cheerful， optimistic physician， who is always reassuring his patients，arousing their healing energies （potencies which are in all of us）， telling themhow well they look， holding out hope to them， and trying to cheer them up， has apowerful influence for good。 The optimism of many physicians is worth infinitelymore to their patients than all the remedies they prescribe。
I once knew two physicians in hospitals in Boston who illustrated this point。
One was an extreme optimist with a keen sense of humor。 He was always crackingjokes with the patients， cheering them up， and telling funny stories。 The wholeatmosphere of the wards was entirely changed after he had passed through them。
His bright， cheerful face and sunny optimism gave the patients a great uplift。The other physician was morose， stern， silent， profound， a man of greatlearning but of few words and who seldom smiled。 If he found a patient not lookingquite so well as usual he did not hesitate to tell him so， and that he was losingground。
He was conscientious and always said what he thought， even when it wascruel。 The sick one， thus discouraged， would often immediately lose heart andcollapse。
Physicians little realize how implicitly patients pin their faith to them and howclosely they watch their faces for signs of encouragement， a ray of hope。
The most advanced physicians of all schools are beginning to see the upliftingforce and healing power in a patient’s own confidence in his recovery。
Some conscientious physicians think they should always tell the patientexactly how he is， that it is his right to know， especially when in extreme danger。
Now， there might be reason in this if the physician were omniscient， if he nevererred in his diagnosis， if he could measure with exactitude every force acting in theman； but even the most learned physicians feel that they know comparatively littleabout the human mechanism。 They know that patients often recover after eminentphysicians in consultation have given up all hope。 Why should they not give thepatient the benefit of a doubt， especially when they know the power of a depressingthought or unfavorable verdict on one in an extremely weak condition？ Does aphysician owe his patient a greater duty than to help him all he can to recover？
There is a great healing power in hope， in confidence。
The influence of the strong mind of the physician on the weak， discouraged，exhausted patient is far-reaching and he should give him as much mental uplift andhope as possible。 There are times when a physician owes his patient an infinitelygreater duty than to tell him the truth， or what he believes to be the truth。
The power of suggestion on expectant minds is often little less thanmiraculous。 An invalid with a disappointed ambition， who thinks he has beenrobbed of his chances in life， and who has suffered for years， becomes all wrought up over some new remedy which is advertised to do marvels。 He is in such anexpectant state of mind that he is willing to make any sacrifice to obtain theremedy， and when he gets it， he is in such a receptive mood that he respondsquickly to the suggestion and thinks it is the medicine he has taken which hasworked the magic。
Religious history is full of examples of peopie who have been cured by goingto famed springs， by bathing in sacred waters， or streams supposed to have greatcurative qualities。
People who go to health resorts attribute their improvement to change of air orto the waters they drink， when， as a matter of fact， it has probably been wrought bychange of environment， change of mental suggestion， as much as by the change ofair or water。
Buoyancy of mind， courage， hope， and cheerfulness are factors that faroutweigh drugs in the cure of the sick， and should be encouraged in every possibleway。
The trouble with us is that we do not realize the omnipotent remedies that liewithin our own minds。 There is not a human ill which does not have its specificremedy—not a palliative， but an absolute cure—named in the Bible。
Nothing is more strongly emphasized in the Sacred Book than the fact thatlove heals。 We have suggestions of this in the balm of the mother love whichsoothes and cures the child’s fears and all its little hurts and ills。 How naturallythe child runs to the mother for a kiss to heal its bruises， and into the shelter of herarms to ward ofif whatever it fears！
If the child feels this healing power of the mother love， what shall we say ofthe potency of divine love—love that is selfless？ The Bible assures us that “perfectlove casteth out fear，” and fear is one of the most potent sources of discord anddisease。
What better remedy could be imagined for those suffering from fear—thegreatest enemy of the human race—than is to be found in the study and application of the ninety-first psalm？ Could anything be more reassuring than the openingwords of this grand psalm—“He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most Highshall abide under the shadow of the Almighty”？
There is no fear， no fit of the “blues，” no despondency or discouragement，which this psalm， if properly studied and applied， would not cure。 Think what itsrealization would mean to those who are in the very depths of despair。 Could therebe any other refuge such as that “under the shadow of the Almighty”？
He who lives close to God （good）， who abides in His love， fears nothing，is not worried or anxious， because he feels always the protection of omnipotentPower and infinite Wisdom。
A few passages from the Scriptures will show how freely and fully abundantlife， health， strength—all good things—are promised to those who heed the wordsof God， who love Him and put their faith in Him。
Attend to my words… For they are life unto those that find them， and healthto all their flesh。—Prov。 iv， 20， 22.
They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength； they shall mount upwith wings as eagles； they shall run， and not be weary； and they shall walk， and notfaint。—Isaiah xl， 31.
He sent his word and healed them。—Psalm cvii， 20.
I cried unto thee， and thou hast healed me。—Psalm XXX， 2.
His flesh shall be fresher than a child’s。—Job xxxiii， 25.
For I will restore health unto thee， and I will heal thee of thy wounds。—Jer。
xxx， 17.
Behold， I will heal thee。—H Kings xx， 5.
Then shall thy light break forth as the morning， and thine health shall springforth speedily。—Isaiah Iviii， 8.
I am the Lord that healeth thee。—Exodus XV， 26.
There shall be no more death， neither sorrow， nor crying， neither shall there beany more pain； for the former things are passed away。—Rev。 xxi， 4.“Neither shall any plague” （discord or harm） “come nigh thy dwelHng” （Psalmxci， 10）， is the promise to him that “dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High”
（Psalm xci， i）。
Let thine heart keep my commandments： For length of days， and long life， andpeace， shall they add to thee。—Prov。 iii， 1-3.
When we are thoroughly intrenched in the conviction of our unity with theAll-good； when we realize that we do not take on health from outside by acquiringit， but that we are health； that we do not absorb a bit of justice， here and there， butthat we are justice； that we do not take on truth， a little here and a little there， butthat we are truth itself， principle， then we shall really begin to live。
I believe that most people are conscious of a power deep in their nature whichwould remedy all their ills if they only knew how to get hold of it。 We all feel thatthere is something divine in us， something in the flesh that is not of it， a power backof the flesh that will ultimately redeem us and bring us into the state of blessednesswhich we instinctively feel is the right of the children of the King of kings。 Thegreat end of life is to train ourselves to find this creative， rejuvenating， life-givingforce and to apply it to our everyday life。 IX。 WHY GROW OLD？
“The face cannot betray the years until the mind has given its consent。 Themind is the sculptor。”
“We renew our bodies by renewing our thoughts； change our bodies， ourhabits， by changing our thoughts。”
NOT long ago the former secretary to a justice of the New York SupremeCourt committed suicide on his seventieth birthday。
“The Statute of Limitations； a Brief Essay on the Osler Theory of Life，” wasfound beside the dead body。 It read in part：
“Threescore and ten—this is the ural statute of limitations。 After that，active work for man ceases， his time on earth has expired…“I am seventy—threescore and ten—and I am fit only for the chimneycorner…”
This man had dwelt so long on the so-called Osler theory—that a man ispractically useless and only a burden to himself and the world after sixty—and thebiblical limitation of life to threescore years and ten， that he made up his mind hewould end it all on his seventieth birthday。
Leaving aside Dr。 Osier’s theory， there is no doubt that the acceptance in astrictly literal sense of the biblical life limit has proved a decided injury to the race。
We are powerfully influenced by our self-imposed limitations and convictions， andit is well known that many people die very near the limit they set for themselves，even though they are in good health when this conviction settles upon them。 Yetthere is no probability that the Psalmist had any idea of setting any limit to the lifeperiod， or that he had any authority whatever for so doing。 Many of the sayings inthe Bible which people take so literally and accept blindly as standards of living are merely figures of speech used to illustrate an idea。 So far as the Bible is concerned，there is just as much reason for setting the life limit at one hundred and twenty oreven at Methuselah’s age （nine hundred and sixty-nine） as at seventy or eighty。
There is no evidence in the Scriptures that even suggests the existence of an agelimit beyond which man was not supposed or allowed to pass。
In fact the whole spirit of the Bible is to encourage long life through sane andhealthful living。 It points to the duty of living a useful and noble life， of making asmuch of ourselves as possible， all of which tends to prolong our years on earth。
It would be a reflection upon the Creator to suggest that He would limit humanlife to less than three times the age at which it reaches maturity （about thirty） whenall the analogy of nature， especially in the animal kingdom， points to at least fivetimes the length of the maturing period。 Should not the highest manifestation ofGod’s creation have a length of life at least equal to that of the animal？ Infinitewisdom does not shake the fruit off the tree before it is ripe。
We do not half realize what slaves we are to our mental attitudes， what powerour convictions have to influence our lives。 Multitudes of people undoubtedlyshorten their lives by many years because of their deep-seated convictions that theywill not live beyond a certain age—the age， perhaps， at which their parents died。
How often we hear this said： “I do not expect to live to be very old； my father andmother died young。”
Not long ago a New York man， in perfect health， told his family that he wascertain he should die on his next birthday。 On the morning of his birthday hisfamily， alarmed because he refused to go to work， saying that he should certainlydie before midnight， insisted upon calling in the family physician， who examinedhim and said there was nothing the matter with him。 But the man refused to eat，grew weaker and weaker during the day， and actually died before midnight。 Theconviction that he was going to die had become so intrenched in his mind that thewhole force of his mentality acted to cut off the life force， and finally to stranglecompletely the life processes。
Now， if this man’s conviction could have been changed by some one who hadsufficient power over him， or if the mental suggestion that he was going to live toa good old age had been implanted in his mind in place of the death idea， he wouldprobably have lived many years longer。
If you have convinced yourself， or if the idea has been ingrained into thevery structure of your being by your training or the multitudes of examples aboutyou， that you will begin to show the marks of age at about fifty， that at sixty youwill lose the power of your faculties， your interest in life； that you will becomepractically useless and have to retire from your business， and that thereafter youwill continue to decline until you are cut off entirely， there is no power in the worldthat can keep the old-age processes and signs from developing in you。
Thought leads。 If it is an old-age thought， old age must follow。 If it is ayouthful thought， a perennial young-life thought， a thought of usefulness andhelpfulness， the body must correspond。 Old age begins in the mind。 The expressionof age in the body is the harvest of old-age ideas which have been planted inthe mind。 We see others about our age beginning to decline and show marksof decrepitude， and we imagine it is about time for us to show the same signs。
Ultimately we do show them， because we think they are inevitable。 But they areonly inevitable because of our old-age mental attitude and race habit beliefs。
If we actually refuse to grow old； if we insist on holding the youthful idealand the young， hopeful， buoyant thought， the old-age ear-marks will not showthemselves。
The elixir of youth lies in the mind or no-where。 You cannot be young bytrying to appear so， by dressing youthfully。 You must first get rid of the last vestigeof thought that you are aging。 As long as that is in the mind， cosmetics and youthfuldress will amount to very little in changing your appearance。 The conviction mustfirst be changed； the thought which has produced the aging condition must bereversed。
If we can only establish the perpetual-youth mental attitude， so that we feel young， we have won half the battle against old age。 Be sure of this， that whateveryou feel regarding your age will be expressed in your body。
It is a great aid to the perpetuation of youth to learn to feel young， howeverlong we may have lived， because the body expresses the habitual feeling， habitualthought。 Nothing in the world will make us look young as long as we are convincedthat we are aging。
Nothing else more effectually retards age than the keeping in mind thebright， cheerful， optimistic， hopeful， buoyant picture of youth， in all its splendor，magnificence； the picture of the glories which belong to youth—youthful dreams，ideals， hopes， and all the qualities which belong to young life。
One great trouble with us is that our imaginations age prematurely。 Thehard， exacting conditions of our modern， strenuous life tend to harden and dry upthe brain and nerve cells， and thus seriously injure the power of the imagination，which should be kept fresh， buoyant， elastic。 The average routine habit of modernbusiness life tends to destroy the flexibility， the delicacy， the sensitiveness， theexquisite fineness of the perceptive faculties。
People who take life too seriously， who seem to think everything dependsupon their own individual efforts， whose lives are one continuous grind in livinggetting，have a hard expression， their thought outpictures itself in their faces。 Thesepeople dry up early in life， become wrinkled； their tissues become as hard as theirthought。
The arbitrary， domineering， overbearing mind also tends to age the bodyprematurely， because the thinking is hard， strained， abnormal。
People who live on the sunny and beautiful side of life， who cultivate serenity，do not age nearly so rapidly as do those who live on the shady， the dark side。
Another reason why so many people age prematurely is because they cease togrow。 It is a lamentable fact that multitudes of men seem incapable of receiving oraccepting new ideas after they have reached middle age。 Many of them， after they havereached the age of forty or fifty， come to a standstill in their mental reaching out。Don’t think that you must “begin to take in sail，” to stop growing， stopprogressing， just because you have gotten along in years。 By this method ofreasoning you will decline rapidly。 Never allow yourself to get out of the habit ofbeing young。 Do not say that you cannot do this or that as you once did。 Live thelife that belongs to youth。 Do not be afraid of being a boy or girl again in spirit， nomatter how many years you have lived。 Carry yourself so that you will not suggestold age in any of its phases。 Remember it is the stale mind， the stale mentality， thatages the body。 Keep growing， keep interested in everything about you。
It has been shown that the conviction that one is going to die at about a certaintime， a certain age， tends to bring about the expected dissolution by strangling thelife processes。
If you wish to retain your youth， forget unpleasant experiences， disagreeableincidents。 A lady eighty years old was recently asked how she managed to keepherself so youthful。 She replied： “I know how to forget disagreeable things。”
No one can remain youthful who does not continue to grow， and no one cankeep growing who does not keep alive his interest in the great world about him。
We are so constituted that we draw a large part of our nourishment from others。 Noman can isolate himself， can cut himself off from his fellows， without shrinking inhis mental stature。 The mind that is not constantly reaching out for the new， as wellas keeping in touch with the old， soon reaches its limit of growth。
Nothing else is easier than for a man to age。 All he has to do is to think heis growing old； to expect it， to fear it， and prepare for it； to compare himself withothers of the same age who are prematurely old and to assume that he is like them。
To think constantly of the “end，” to plan for death， to prepare and provide fordeclining years， is simply to acknowledge that your powers are waning， that youare losing your grip upon life。 Such thinking tends to weaken your hold upon thelife principle， and your body gradually corresponds with your conviction。
The very belief that our powers are waning； the consciousness that we arelosing strength， that our vitality is lessening； the conviction that old age is settling upon us and that our life forces are gradually ebbing away， has a blighting，shrivelling influence upon the mental faculties and functions； the whole characterdeteriorates under this old-age belief。
The result is that we do not use or develop the age-resisting forces withinus。 The refreshening， renewing， resisting powers of the body are so reduced andimpaired by the conviction that we are getting on in years and cannot stand whatwe once could， that we become an easy prey to disease and all sorts of physicalinfirmities。
The mental attitude has everything to do with the hastening or the retarding ofthe old-age condition。
Dr。 Metchnikoff， of the Pasteur Institute in Paris， says that men should live atleast one hundred and twenty years。 There is no doubt that， as a race， we shortenour lives very materially through our false thinking， our bad living， and our old-ageconvictions。
A few years ago the London Lancet， the highest medical authority in theworld， gave a splendid illustration of the power of the mind to keep the bodyyoung。 A young woman， deserted by her lover， became insane。 She lost allconsciousness of the passing of time。 She believed her lover would return， and foryears she stood daily before her window watching for him。 When over seventyyears of age， some Americans， including physicians， who saw her， thought she wasnot over twenty。 She did not have a single gray hair， and no wrinkles or other signsof age were visible。 Her skin was as fair and smooth as a young girl’s。 She didnot age because she believed she was still a girl。 She did not count her birthdaysor worry because she was getting along in years。 She was thoroughly convincedthat she was still living in the very time that her lover left her。 This mental beliefcontrolled her physical condition。 She was just as old as she thought she was。 Herconviction outpictured itself in her body and kept it youthful。
It is an insult to your Creator that your brain should begin to ossify， thatyour mental powers should begin to decline when you have only reached the half-century milestone。 You ought then to be in your youth。 What has the appearanceof old age to do with youth？ What have gray hair， wrinkles， and other evidencesof age to do with youth？ Mental power should constantly increase。 There shouldbe no decline in years。 Increasing wisdom and power should be the only signsthat you have lived long， that you have been many years on this planet。 Strength，beauty， magnificence， superiority， not weakness， uselessness， decrepitude， shouldcharacterize a man who has lived long。
As long as you hold the conviction that you are sixty， you will look it。 Yourthought will outpicture itself in your face， in your whole appearance。 If you holdthe old-age ideal， the old-age conviction， your expression must correspond。 Thebody is the bulletin board of the mind。
On the other hand， if you think of yourself as perpetually young， vigorous，robust， and buoyant， because every cell in the body is constantly being renewed，decrepitude will not get hold of you。
If you would retain your youth， you must avoid the enemies of youth， andthere are no greater enemies than the convictions of age and the gradual loss ofinterest in things， especially in youthful amusements and in the young life aboutyou。 When you are no longer interested in the hopes and ambitions of youngpeople； when you decline to enter into their sports， to romp and play with children，you confess in effect that you are growing old； that you are beginning to harden；that your youthful spirits are drying up， and that the juices of your younger daysare evaporating。 Nothing helps more to the perpetuation of youth than muchassociation with the young。
A man quite advanced in years was asked not long ago how he retained sucha youthful appearance in spite of his age。 He said that he had been the principal ofa high school for over thirty years； that he loved to enter into the life and sports ofthe young people and to be one of them in their ambitions and interests。 This， hesaid， had kept his mind centred on youth， progress， and abounding life， and the oldagethought had had no room for entrance。
There is not even a suggestion of age in this man’s conversation or ideas， andthere is a life， a buoyancy about him which is wonderfully refreshing。
There must be a constant activity in the mind that would not age。 “Keepgrowing or die” is nature’s motto， a motto written all over everything in theuniverse。
Hold stoutly to the conviction that it is natural and right for you to remainyoung。 Constantly repeat to yourself that it is wrong， wicked for you to growold in appearance； that weakness and decrepitude could not have been in theCreator’s plan for the man made in His image of perfection； that it must have beenacquired—the result of wrong race and individual training and thinking。
Constantly affirm： “I am always well， always young， I cannot grow old exceptby producing the old-age conditions through my thought。 The Creator intended mefor continual growth， perpetual advancement and betterment， and I am not going toallow myself to be cheated out of my birthright of perennial youth。”
No matter if people do say to you： “You are getting along in years，” “Youare beginning to show signs of age。” Just deny these appearances。 Say to yourself：
“Principle does not age， Truth does not grow old。 I am Principle。 I am Truth。”
Never go to sleep with the old-age picture or thought in your mind。 It is ofthe utmost importance to make yourself feel young at night； to erase all signs，convictions， and feelings of age； to throw aside every care and worry that wouldcarve its image on your brain and express itself in your face。 The worrying mindactually generates calcareous matter in the brain and hardens the cells。
You should fall asleep holding those desires and ideals uppermost in the mindwhich are dearest to you； which you are the most anxious to realize。 As the mindcontinues to work during sleep， these desires and ideals are thus intensified andincreased。 It is well known that impure thoughts and desires work terrible havocthen。 Purity of thought， loftiness of purpose， the highest possible aims， shoulddominate the mind when you fall asleep。
When you first wake in the morning， especially if you have reached middle life or later， picture the youthful qualities as vividly as possible。 Say to yourself：
“I am young， always young—strong—buoyant。 I cannot grow old and decrepit，because in the truth of my being I am divine， and Divine Principle cannot age。 It isonly the negative in me， the unreality， that can take on the appearance of age。”
The great thing is to make the mind create the youth pattern instead of theold-age pattern。 As the sculptor follows the model which he holds in the mind， sothe life processes reproduce in the body the pattern which is in our thought， ourconviction。
We must get rid of the idea embedded in our very nature that the longer welive， the more experiences we have， the more work we do， the more inevitably wewear out and become old， decrepit， and useless。 We must learn that living， acting，experiencing， should not exhaust life but create more life。 It is a law that actionincreases force。 Where， then， did the idea come from that man should wear outthrough action？
As a matter of fact， Nature has bestowed upon us perpetual youth， the powerof perpetual renewal。 There is not a single cell in our bodies that can possiblybecome old； the body is constantly being made new through cell-renewal； and asthe cells of these parts of the body that are most active are renewed oftenest， it mustfollow that the age-producing process is largely artificial and unnatural。
Physiologists tell us that the tissue cells of some muscles are renewed everyfew hours， others every few days or weeks。 The cells of the bone tissues are slowerof renewal， but some authorities estimate that eighty or ninety per cent of all thecells in the body of a person of ordinary activity are entirely renewed in from six totwelve months。
Scientists have proved beyond question that the chemistry of the body haseverything to do with the perpetuation of youthful conditions。 Every discordantthought produces a chemical change in the cells， introducing foreign substancesand causing reaction which is injurious to the integrity of the cells。
The impression of age is thus made upon new cells。 This impression is the thought。 If the thought is old， the age impress appears upon the cells。 If the spiritof youth dominates the thought， the impression upon the cells is youthful。 In otherwords， the processes which result in age cannot possibly operate except through themind， and the billions of cells composing the body are instantly affected by everythought that passes through the brain。
Putting old thoughts into a new set of cells is like putting old wine into newbottles。 They don’t agree； they are natural enemies。 The result is that two-year-oldcells are made to look fifty， sixty， or more years old， according to the thought。 It ismarvellous how quickly old thoughts can make new cells appear old。
All discordant and antagonistic thought materially interferes with the lawsof reconstruction and self-renewal going on in the body， and the great thingis， therefore， to form thought habits which will harmonize with this law ofrejuvenation—perpetual renewal。
Hard， selfish， worry， and fear thoughts， and vicious habits of all kinds， producethe appearance of age and hasten its coming。
Pessimism is one of the worst enemies of youth。 The pessimist agesprematurely because his mind dwells upon the black， discordant， and diseasedside of things。 The pessimist does not progress， does not face toward youth； hegoes backward， and this retrogression is fatal to youthful conditions。 Brightness，cheerfulness， hopefulness characterize youth。
Everything that is abnormal tends to produce old-age conditions。 No one canremain young， no matter to what expedients he may resort to enable him to erasethe marks of age， who worries and indulges in excessive passion。 The mentalprocesses produce all sorts of things， good or bad， according to the pattern in themind。
Selfishness is abnormal and tends to harden and dry up the brain and nervecells。 We are so constituted that we must be good to be happy， and happiness spellsyouthfulness。 Selfishness is an enemy of happiness because it violates the veryfundamental principle of our being—justice， fairness。 We protest against it， we instinctively despise and think less of ourselves for practising it。 It does not tend toproduce health， harmony， or a sense of well-being， because it does not harmonizewith the fundamental principle of our being。
With many people， old age is a perpetual horror， which destroys comfort andhappiness and makes life a tragedy， which， but for it， might have been a perpetualjoy。
Many wealthy people do not really enjoy their possessions because of thatawful consciousness that they may at any moment be forced to leave everything。
Discordant thought of every kind tends to shorten life。
As long as you think old， hard， grasping， envious thoughts， nothing in theworld can keep you from growing old。 As long as you harbor these enemiesof youth， you cannot remain in a youthful condition。 New thoughts create newlife； old thoughts—canned， stereo-typed thoughts—are injurious to growth， andanything which stops growth helps the aging processes。
Whatever thought dominates the mind at any time is constantly modifying，changing the life ideal， so that every suggestion that comes into the mind fromany source is registered in the cell life， etched in the character， and outpictured inthe expression and appearance。 If the ideal of continual youth， of a body in a stateof perpetual rejuvenation， dominates the mind， it neutralizes the aging processes。
All of the body follows the dominating thought， motive and feeling， and takes onits expression。 For example， a man who is constantly worrying， fretting， a victimof fear， cannot possibly help outpicturing this condition in his body。 Nothing inthe world can counteract this hardening， aging， ossifying process but a completereversal of the thought， so that the opposite ideas dominate。 The effect of the mindon the body is always absolutely scientific。 It follows an inexorable law。
There is a power of health latent in every cell of the body which would alwayskeep the cell in harmony and preserve its integrity if the thought were right。 Thislatent power of health in the cell can be so developed by right thinking and livingas to retard very materially the aging processes。One of the most effective means of developing it is to keep cheerful andoptimistic。 As long as the mind faces the sun of life it will cast no shadow before it。
Hold ever before you， like a beacon light， the youth ideal—strength，buoyancy， hopefulness， expectancy。 Hold persistently to the thought that yourbody is the last two years’ product； that there may not be in it a single cell morethan a year and a half old； that it is constantly young because it is perpetually beingrenewed and that， therefore， it ought to look fresh and youthful。
Constantly say to yourself： “If Nature makes me a new body every fewmonths， comparatively， if the billions of tissue cells are being perpetually renewed，if the oldest of these cells are， perhaps， rarely， if ever， more than two years old，why should they appear to be sixty or seventy-five？” A two-year-old cell could notlook like a seventy-year-old cell of its own accord， but we know from experiencethat the old-age conviction can make these youthful cells look very old。 If the bodyis always young， it should always look young； and it would if we did not make itlook old by stamping old age upon it。 We Americans seem very adept in puttingthe old-age stamp upon new tissue cells。 Yet it is just as easy to form the youthfulthoughthabit as the old-age-thought habit。
If you would keep young， you must learn the secret of self-rejuvenation， selfrefreshment，self-renewal， in your thought， in your work。 Hard thoughts， too seriousthoughts， mental confusion， excitement， worry， anxiety， jealousy， the indulgence ofexplosive passions， all tend to shorten life。
You will find a wonderful rejuvenating power in the cultivation of faith in theimmortal Principle of health in every atom of your being。 We are all conscious thatthere is something in us which is never sick and which never dies， something whichconnects us with the Divine。 There is a wonderful healing influence in holding theconsciousness of this great truth。
Some people are so constituted that they perpetually renew themselves。 Theydo not seem to get tired or weary of their tasks， because their minds are constantlyrefreshing themselves。 They are self-lubricators， self-renewers。 To keep from aging， we must keep the picture of youth in all its beauty and glory impressed uponthe mind。 It is impossible to appear youthful， to be young， unless we feel young。
Without realizing it， most people are using the old-age thought as a chisel tocut a little deeper the wrinkles。 Their old-age thought is stamping itself upon thenew cells only a few months old， so that they very soon look to be forty， fifty， sixty，or seventy years old。
Never allow yourself to think of yourself as growing old。 Constantly affirm，if you feel yourself aging， “I am young because I am perpetually being renewed；my life comes new every moment from the Infinite Source of life。 I am new everymorning and fresh every evening because I live， move， and have my being in Himwho is the Source of all life。” Not only affirm this mentally， but verbally when youcan。 Make this picture of perpetual renewal， constant refreshment， re-creation， sovivid， that you will feel the thrill of youthful renewal through your entire system。
Under no circumstances allow the old-age thought and suggestion to remain in themind。 Remember that it is what you feel， what you are convinced of， that will beoutpictured in your body。 If you think you are aging， if you walk， talk， dress， andact like an old person， these conditions will be outpictured in your expression， face，manner， and body generally。
Youthful thought should be a life habit。
Cling to the thought that the truth of your being can never age， because it isDivine Principle。 Picture the cells of the body being constantly made over。 Holdthis perpetual-renewal picture in your mind， and the old-age thought， the old-ageconviction will become inoperative。
The new youth-thought habit will drive out the old-age-thought habit。 If youcan only feel your whole body being perpetually made over， constantly renewed，you will keep the body young， fresh。
There is a tremendous youth-retaining power in holding high ideals andlofty sentiments。 The spirit cannot grow old while one is constantly aspiring tosomething better， higher， nobler。 Employment which develops the higher self； the frequent dwelling upon lofty themes and high purposes—all are powerfulpreservatives of youth。 It is senility of the soul that makes people old。
The living of life should be a perpetual joy。 Youth and joy are synonymous。
If we do not enjoy life， if we do not feel that it is a delight to be alive， if we do notlook upon our work as a grand privilege， we shall age prematurely。
Live always in a happy mental attitude。 Live in the ideal， and the agingprocesses cannot get hold of you。 It is the ideal that keeps one young。 When wethink of age， we think of weakness， decrepitude， imperfection； we do not think ofwholeness， vigor。 Every time you think of yourself make a vivid mental pictureof your ideal self as the very picture of youth， of health and vigor。 Think health。
Feel the spirit of youth and hope surging through your body。 Form the most perfectpicture of physical manhood or womanhood that is possible to the human mind。
The elixir of youth which alchemists sought so long in chemicals， we find liesin ourselves。 The secret is in our own mentality。 Perpetual rejuvenation is possibleonly by right thinking。 We look as old as we think and feel because it is thoughtand feeling that change our appearance。
Let us put beauty into our lives by thinking beautiful thoughts， buildingbeautiful ideals， and picturing beautiful things in our imagination。
I know of no remedy for old-age conditions so powerful as love—love for ourwork， love for our fellow-men， love for everything。
It is the most powerful life-renewer， re-freshener， re-creator， known。 Loveawakens the noblest sentiments， the finest sensibilities， the most exquisite qualitiesin man。
Try to find and live in the soul of things， to see the best in everybody。 Whenyou think of a person， hold in your mind the ideal of that person—that which Godmeant him to be—not the deformed， weak， ignorant creature which vice and wrongliving may have made。 This habit of refusing to see anything but the ideal will notonly be a wonderful help to others， but also to yourself。 Refuse to see deformity orweakness anywhere， but hold persistently your highest ideals。 Other things be-ing equal， it is the cleanest， purest mind that lives longest。
Harmony， peace， and serenity are absolutely necessary to perpetuate youthfulconditions。 All discord， all unbalanced mental operations， tend to produce agingconditions。 The contemplation of the eternal verities enriches the ideals andfreshens life because it destroys fear， uncertainty， and worry by adding assuranceand certainty to life。
Old-age conditions can only exist in cells which have become deterioratedand hardened by wrong thinking and vicious living。 Unrestrained passion or fits oftemper burn out the cells very rapidly。
People who are very useful， who are doing their work grandly， growingvigorously， retain their youthful appearance。 We can form the habit of stayingyoung just as well as the habit of growing old。
Increasing power and wisdom ought to be the only sign of our longcontinuance on this earth。 We ought to do our best work after fifty， or even aftersixty or seventy； and if the brain is kept active， fresh， and young， and the brain cellsare not ruined by too serious a life， by worry， fear， selfishness， or disease， the mindwill constantly increase in vigor and power。
If we are convinced that the life processes can perpetuate youth instead of age，they will obey the command。 The fact that man’s sin， his ignorance of true living，made the threescore years， with the possible addition of ten more， the averagelimit of life centuries ago， is no reason why any one in this man-emancipating ageshould narrow himself to this limit。
An all-wise and benevolent Creator could not make us with such a greatyearning for long life， a longing to remain young， without any possibility ofrealizing it。 The very fact of this universal protest in all human beings against theenormous disproportion between the magnitude of our mission upon earth and theshortness of the time and the meagreness of the opportunities for carrying it out；the universal yearning for longevity； and all analogy in the animal kingdom， allpoint to the fact that man was not only intended for a much longer life， but also for a much greater freedom from the present old-age weaknesses and handicaps。
There is not the slightest indication in the marvellous mechanism of manthat he was intended to become weak， crippled， and useless after a comparativelyfew years。 Instead， all the indications are toward progress into a larger， completer，fuller manhood， greater power。 A dwarfed， weak， useless man was never inthe Creator’s plan。 Retrogression is contrary to all principle and law。 Progress，perpetual enlargement， growth， are the truth of man。 The Creator never madeanything for retrogression； it is contrary to the very nature of Deity。 “Onward andupward is written upon every atom in the universe。 Imagine the Creator fashioninga man in his own likeness for only a few years of activity and growth， and then—retrogression， crippled helplessness！ There is nothing of God in this picture。 Whateverthe Deity makes bears the stamp of perpetual progress， everlasting growth。
There is no going backward in his plans， everything moves forward to one eternaldivine purpose。 A decrepit， helpless old man or woman is a burlesque of the humanbeing God made。 His image does not deteriorate or go backward， but moves foreveronward， eternally upward。 If human beings could only once grasp this idea， that thereality of them is divine， and that divinity does not go backward or grow old。 theywould lose all sense of fear and worry， all enemies of their progress and happinesswould slink away， and the aging processes would cease。
The coming man will not grow old。 Perpetual youth is his destiny。
The time will come when people will look upon old age as an unreality， anegative， a mere phantom of the real man。 The rose that fades is not the real rose。
The real rose is the ideal—the idea which pushes out a new one every time wepluck the one that fades。
The real man is God’s ideal， and in the light of the new day that is dawningman will glimpse that perfect ideal。 He will know the truth， and the truth will makehim free。 In that new day he will cast from him the hampering， age-worn vestureswoven in the thought-loom of mankind through the centuries， and stand erect—theperfect being， the ideal man。
X。 THE MIRACLE OF SELF-CONFIDENCE
If there be a faith that can remove mountains， it is faith in one’s ownpower。
—Marie Ebner-Eschen-bach。
“Instead of being the victims of fate， we can alter our fate， and largelydetermine what it shall be。”
“Your ideal is a prophecy of what you shall at last unveil。”
“WHY，” asked Mirabeau， “should we call ourselves men， unless it be tosucceed in everything everywhere？” Nothing else will so nerve you to accomplishgreat things as to believe in your own greatness， in your own marvellouspossibilities。 Count that man an enemy who shakes your faith in yourself， inyour ability to do the thing you have set your heart upon doing， for when yourconfidence is gone， your power is gone。 Your achievement will never rise higherthan your self-faith。 It would be as reasonable for Napoleon to have expected toget his army over the Alps by sitting down and declaring that the undertaking wastoo great for him， as for you to hope to achieve anything significant in life whileharboring grave doubts and fears as to your ability。
The miracles of civilization have been performed by men and women of greatself-confidence， who had unwavering faith in their power to accomplish the tasksthey undertook。 The race would have been centuries behind what it is today had itnot been for their grit， their determination， their persistence in finding and makingreal the thing they believed in and which the world often denounced as chimericalor impossible。
There is no law by which you can achieve success in anything without expecting it， demanding it， assuming it。 There must be a strong， firm self-faithfirst， or the thing will never come。 There is no room for chance in God’s world ofsystem and supreme order。 Everything must have not only a cause， but a sufficientcause—a cause as large as the result。 A stream cannot rise higher than its source。
A great success must have a great source in expectation， in self-confidence， andin persistent endeavor to attain it。 No matter how great the ability， how large thegenius， or how splendid the education， the achievement will never rise higher thanthe confidence。 He can who thinks he can， and he can’t who thinks he can’t。 This isan inexorable， indisputable law。
It does not matter what other people think of you， of your plans， or of youraims。 No matter if they call you a visionary， a crank， or a dreamer； you mustbelieve in yourself。 You forsake yourself when you lose your confidence。 Neverallow anybody or any misfortune to shake your belief in yourself。 You may loseyour property， your health， your reputation， other peoples’ confidence， even； butthere is always hope for you so long as you keep a firm faith in yourself。 If younever lose that， but keep pushing on， the world will， sooner or later， make way foryou。
A soldier once took a message to Napoleon in such great haste that the horsehe rode dropped dead before he delivered the paper。 Napoleon dictated his answerand， handing it to the messenger， ordered him to mount his own horse and deliver itwith all possible speed。
The messenger looked at the magnificent animal， with its superb trappings，and said， “Nay， General， but this is too gorgeous， too magnificent for a commonsoldier。”
Napoleon said， “Nothing is too good or too magnificent for a French soldier。”
The world is full of people like this poor French soldier， who think that whatothers have is too good for them； that it does not fit their humble condition； thatthey are not expected to have as good things as those who are “more favored。”
They do not realize how they weaken themselves by this mental attitude of self-depreciation or self-effacement。 They do not claim enough， expect enough， ordemand enough of themselves。
You will never become a giant if you only make a pygmy’s claim for yourself；if you only expect a pygmy’s part。 There is no law which can cause a pygmy’sthinking to produce a giant。 The statue follows the model。 The model is the inwardvision。
Most people have been educated to think that it was not intended they shouldhave the best there is in the world； that the good and the beautiful things of lifewere not designed for them， but were reserved for those especially favored byfortune。 They have grown up under this conviction of their inferiority， and ofcourse they will be inferior until they claim superiority as their birthright。 A vastnumber of men and women who are really capable of doing great things， do smallthings， live mediocre lives， because they do not expect or demand enough ofthemselves。 They do not know how to call out their best。
One reason why the human race as a whole has not measured up to itspossibilities， to its promise； one reason why we see everywhere splendid abilitydoing the work of mediocrity； is because people do not think half enough ofthemselves。 We do not realise our divinity； that we are a part of the great causationprinciple of the universe。
We do not think highly enough of our superb birthright， nor comprehend towhat heights of sublimity we were intended and expected to rise， nor to what extentwe can really be masters of ourselves。 We fail to see that we can control our owndestiny； make ourselves do whatever is possible； make ourselves become whateverwe long to be。
“If we choose to be no more than clods of clay，” says Marie Corelli， “then weshall be used as clods of clay for braver feet to tread on。”
The persistent thought that you are not as good as others， that you are a weak，ineffective being， will lower your whole standard of life and paralyze your ability。
A man who is self-reliant， positive， optimistic， and undertakes his work with the assurance of success， magnetizes conditions。 He draws to himself the literalfulfillment of the promise， “For unto every one that hath shall be given， and heshall have abundance。”
There is everything in assuming the part we wish to play， and playing itroyally。 If you are ambitious to do big things， you must make a large programmefor yourself， and assume the part it demands。
There is something in the atmosphere of the man who has a large and trueestimate of himself， who believes that he is going to win out； something in hisvery appearance that wins half the battle before a blow is struck。 Things get outof the way of the vigorous， affirmative man， which are always tripping the selfdepreciating，negative man。
We often hear it said of a man， “Everything he undertakes succeeds，” or“Everything he touches turns to gold。” By the force of his character and thecreative power of his thought， such a man wrings success from the most adversecircumstances。 Confidence begets confidence。 A man who carries in his verypresence an air of victory， radiates assurance， and imparts to others confidence thathe can do the thing he attempts。 As time goes on， he is reenforced not only by thepower of his own thought， but also by that of all who know him。 His friends andacquaintances affirm and reaffirm his ability to succeed， and make each successivetriumph easier of achievement than its predecessor。 His self-poise， assurance，confidence and ability increase in a direct ratio to the number of his achievements。
As the savage Indian thought that the power of every enemy he conquered enteredinto himself， so in reality does every conquest in war， in peaceful industry， incommerce， in invention， in science， or in art add to the conqueror’s power to do thenext thing。
Set the mind toward the thing you would accomplish so resolutely， sodefinitely， and with such vigorous determination， and put so much grit into yourresolution， that nothing on earth can turn you from your purpose until you attain it。
This very assertion of superiority， the assumption of power， the affirmation of belief in yourself， the mental attitude that claims success as an inalienablebirthright， will strengthen the whole man and give power to a combination offaculties which doubt， fear， and a lack of confidence undermine。
Confidence is the Napoleon of the mental army。 It doubles and trebles thepower of all the other faculties。 The whole mental army waits until confidenceleads the way。
Even a race horse cannot win the prize after it has once lost confidence initself。 Courage， born of self-confidence， is the prod which brings out the last ounceof reserve force。
The reason why so many men fail is because they do not commit themselveswith a determination to win at any cost。 They do not have that superb confidence inthemselves which never looks back； which burns all bridges behind it。 There is justuncertainty enough as to whether they will succeed to take the edge off their effort，and it is just this little difference between doing pretty well and flinging all oneself，all his power， into his career， that makes the difference between mediocrity and agrand achievement。
If you doubt your ability to do what you set out to do； if you think that othersare better fitted to do it than you； if you fear to let yourself out and take chances；if you lack boldness； if you have a timid， shrinking nature； if the negativespreponderate in your vocabulary； if you think that you lack positiveness， initiative，aggressiveness， ability； you can never win anything very great until you changeyour whole mental attitude and learn to have great faith in yourself。 Fear， doubt，and timidity must be turned out of your mind。
Your own mental picture of yourself is a good measure of yourself and yourpossibihties。 If there is no out-reach to your mind， no spirit of daring， no firm selffaith，you will never accomplish much。
A man’s confidence measures the height of his possibilities。 A stream cannotrise higher than its fountain head。
Power is largely a question of strong， vigorous， perpetual thinking along the line of the ambition， parallel with the aim—the great life purpose。 Here is wherepotver originates。
The deed must first live in the thought or it will never be a reality； and astrong， vigorous concept of the thing we want to do is a tremendous initial step。
A thought that is timidly born will be timidly executed。 There must be vigor ofconception or an indifferent execution。
All the greatest achievements in the world began in longing—in dreamingsand hopings which for a time were nursed in despair， with no light in sight。 Thislonging kept the courage up and made self-sacrifice easier until the thing dreamedof—the mental vision—was realized。
“According to your faith be it unto you。” Our faith is a very good measure ofwhat we get out of life。 The man of weak faith gets little； the man of mighty faithgets much。
The very intensity of your confidence in your ability to do the thing youattempt， is definitely related to the degree of your achievement。
If we were to analyze the marvellous successes of many of our self-made men，we should find that when they first started out in active life they held the confident，vigorous， persistent thought of and belief in their ability to accomplish what theyhad undertaken。 Their mental attitude was set so stubbornly toward their goal thatthe doubts and fears which dog and hinder and frighten the man who holds a lowestimate of himself， who asks， demands， and expects but little， of or for himself，got out of their path， and the world made way for them。
We are very apt to think of men who have been unusually successful in anyline as greatly favored by fortune； and we try to account for it in all sorts of waysbut the right one。 The fact is tliat their success represents their expectations ofthemselves—the sum of their creative， positive， habitual thinking。 It is their mentalattitude outpictured and made tangible in their environment。 They have wrought—created—what they have and what they are out of their constructive thought andtheir unquenchable faith in themselves。
We must not only believe we can succeed， but we must believe it with all ourhearts。
We must have a positive conviction that we can attain success。
No lukewarm energy or indifferent ambition ever accomplished anything。
There must be vigor in our expectation， in our faith， in our determination， in ourendeavor。 We must resolve with the energy that does things。
Not only must the desire for the thing we long for be kept uppermost， but theremust be strongly concentrated intensity of effort to attain our object。
As it is the fierceness of the heat that melts the iron ore and makes it possibleto weld it or mold it into shape； as it is the intensity of the electrical force thatdissolves the diamond—the hardest known substance； so it is the concentrated aim，the invincible purpose， that wins success。 Nothing was ever accomplished by ahalf-hearted desire。
Many people make a very poor showing in life， because there is no vim， novigor in their efforts。 Their resolutions are spineless； there is no backbone in theirendeavor—no grit in their ambition。
One must have that determination which never looks back and which knowsno defeat； that resolution which burns all bridges behind it and is willing to riskeverything upon the effort。 When a man ceases to believe in himself—gives up thefight—you cannot do much for him except to try to restore what he has lost—hisself-faith—and to get out of his head the idea that there is a fate which tosses himhither and thither， a mysterious destiny which decides things whether he will ornot。 You cannot do much with him until he comprehends that he is bigger than anyfate； that he has within himself a power mightier than any force outside of him。
One reason why the careers of most of us are so pinched and narrow， isbecause we do not have a large faith in ourselves and in our power to accomplish。
We are held back by too much caution。 We are timid about venturing。 We are notbold enough。
Whatever we long for， yearn for， struggle for， and hold persistently in the mind， we tend to become just in exact proportion to the intensity and persistenceof the thought。 We think ourselves into smallness， into inferiority by thinkingdownward。 We ought to think upward， then we would reach the heights wheresuperiority dwells。 The man whose mind is set firmly toward achievement does notappropriate success， he is success。
Self-confidence is not egotism。 It is knowledge， and it comes from theconsciousness of possessing the ability requisite for what one undertakes。
Civilization today rests upon self-confidence。
A firm self-faith helps a man to project himself with a force that is almostirresistible。 A balancer， a doubter， has no projectile power。 If he starts at all， hemoves with uncertainty。 There is no vigor in his initiative， no positiveness in hisenergy。
There is a great difference between a man who thinks that “perhaps” he cando， or who “will try” to do a thing， and a man who “knows” he can do it， who is“bound” to do it； who feels within himself a pulsating power， an irresistible force，equal to any emergency。
This difference between uncertainty and certainty， between vacillation anddecision， between the man who wavers and the man who decides things， between “Ihope to” and “I can，” between “I’ll try” and “I will”—this little difference measuresthe distance between weakness and power， between mediocrity and excellence，between commonness and superiority。
The man who does things must be able to project himself with a mighty force，to fling the whole weight of his being into his work， ever gathering momentumagainst the obstacles which confront him； every issue must be met wholly，unhesitatingly。 He cannot do this with a wavering， doubting， unstable mind。
The fact that a man believes implicitly that he can do what may seemimpossible or very difiicult to others， shows that there is something within him thatmakes him equal to the work he has undertaken。
Faith unites man with the Infinite， and no one can accomplish great things in life unless he works in oneness with the Infinite。 When a man lives so near tothe Supreme that the divine Presence is felt all the time， then he is in a position toexpress power。
There is nothing which will multiply one’s ability like self-faith。 It can make aone-talent man a success， while a ten-talent man without it would fail。
Faith walks on the mountain tops， hence its superior vision。 It sees what isinvisible to those who follow。
It was the sustaining power of a mighty self-faith that enabled Columbus tobear the jeers and imputations of the Spanish cabinet； that sustained him when hissailors were in mutiny and he was at their mercy in a little vessel on an unknownsea； that enabled him to hold steadily to his purpose， entering in his diary day afterday—“This day we sailed west， which was our course。”
It was this self-faith which gave courage and determination to Fulton toattempt his first trip up the Hudson in the Clermont， before thousands of his fellowcitizens， who had gathered to howl and jeer at his expected failure。 He believed hecould do the thing he attempted though the whole world was against him。
What miracles self-confidence has wrought！ What impossible deeds it hashelped to perform！ It took Dewey past cannons， torpedoes， and mines to victoryat Manila Bay； it carried Farragut， lashed to the rigging， past the defenses of theenemy in Mobile Bay； it led Nelson and Grant to victory； it has been the great tonicin the world of invention， discovery， and art； it has won a thousand triumphs in warand science which were deemed impossible by doubters and the faint-hearted。
Self-faith has been the miracle-worker of the ages。 It has enabled the inventorand the discoverer to go on and on amidst troubles and trials which otherwisewould have utterly disheartened them。 It has held innumerable heroes to their tasksuntil the glorious deeds were accomplished。
The only inferiority in us is what we put into ourselves。 If only we betterunderstood our divinity we should all have this larger faith which is the distinctionof the brave soul。 We think ourselves into smallness。 Were we to think upward we should reach the heights where superiority dwells。
Perhaps there is no other one thing which keeps so many people back as theirlow estimate of themselves。 They are more handicapped by their limiting thought，by their foolish convictions of inefficiency， than by almost anything else， for thereis no power in the universe that can help a man do a thing when he thinks he cannotdo it。 Self-faith must lead the way。 You cannot go beyond the limits you set foryourself。
It is one of the most difficult things to a mortal to really believe in his ownbigness， in his own grandeur； to believe that his yearnings and hungerings andaspirations for higher， nobler things have any basis in reality or any real， ultimateend。 But they are， in fact， the signs of ability to match them， of power to make themreal。 They are the stirrings of the divinity within us； the call to something better， togo higher。
No man gets very far in the world or ex-presses great power until self-faith isborn in him； until he catches a glimpse of his higher， nobler self； until he realizesthat his ambition， his aspiration， are proofs of his ability to reach the ideal whichhaunts him。 The Creator would not have mocked us with the yearning for infiniteachievement without giving us the ability and the opportunity for realizing it， anymore than he would have mocked the wild birds with an instinct to fly south in thewinter without giving them a sunny South to match the instinct。
The cause of whatever comes to you in life is within you。 There is where it iscreated。 The thing you long for and work for comes to you because your thoughthas created it； because there is something inside you that attracts it。 It comesbecause there is an affinity within you for it。 Your own comes to you； is alwaysseeking you。
Whenever you see a person who has been unusually successful in any field，remember that he has usually thought himself into his position； his mental attitudeand energy have created it； what he stands for in his community has come from hisattitude toward life， toward his fellow men， toward his vocation， toward himself。 Above all else， it is the outcome of his self-faith， of his inward vision of himself；the result of his estimate of his powers and possibilities。
The men who have done the great things in the world have been profoundbelievers in themselves。
If I could give the young people of America but one word of advice， it wouldbe this—“Believe in yourself with all your might。” That is， believe that yourdestiny is inside of you， that there is a power within you which， if awakened，aroused， developed， and matched with honest effort， will not only make a nobleman or woman of you， but will also make you successful and happy。
All through the Bilile we find emphasized the miracle-working power of faith。
Faith in himself indicates that a man has a glimpse of forces within him whicheither annihilate the obstacles in the way， or make them seem insignificant incomparison with his ability to overcome them。
Faith opens the door that enables us to look into the soul’s limitlesspossibilities and reveals such powers there， such unconquerable forces， that weare not only encouraged to go on， but feel a great consciousness of added powerbecause we have touched omnipotence， have a glimpse of the great source ofthings。
Faith is that something within us which does not guess， but knows。 It knowsbecause it sees what our coarser selves， our animal natures cannot see。 It is theprophet within us， the divine messenger appointed to accompany man through lifeto guide and direct and encourage him。 It gives him a glimpse of his possibilities tokeep him from losing heart， from quitting his upward life struggle。
Our faith knows because it sees what we cannot see。 It sees resources， powers，potencies which our doubts and fears veil from us。 Faith is assured， is neverafraid， because it sees the way out； sees the solution of its problem。 It has dippedin the realms of our finer life， our higher and diviner kingdom。 All things arepossible to him who has faith， because faith sees， recognizes the power that meansaccomplishment。
If we had faith in God and in ourselves we could remove all mountains ofdifficulty， and our lives would be one triumphal march to the goal of our ambition。
If we had faith enough we could cure all our ills and accomplish the maximumof our possibilities。
Faith never fails； it is a miracle worker。 It looks beyond all boundaries，transcends all limitations， penetrates all obstacles and sees the goal。
It is doubt and fear， timidity and cowardice， that hold us down and keep us inmediocrity—doing petty things when we are capable of sublime deeds。
If we had faith enough we should travel Godward infinitely faster than we do。
The time will come when every human being will have unbounded faith andwill live the life triumphant。 Then there will be no poverty in the world， no failures，and the discords of life will all vanish。XI。 AFFIRMATION AND AUDIBLE SUGGESTION。
Look out for the man who dares assert the “I。”
“What I can do， I ought to do。 What I ought to do， I can do。 What I can andought to do， by the grace of God I will do。”
“I HAVE promised my God that I will do it。”
Who can estimate the tremendous， buttressing power which reenforcedLincoln when on the 22d of September， 1862， he resolved upon the EmancipationProclamation， and entered this solemn vow in his diary： “I have promised my Godthat I will do it。”
Up to this time doubt， uncertainty， his natural precaution， had influenced himand kept him from coming to a decision； but now he solemnly resolved to burn allbridges behind him and henceforth to dedicate himself to the accomplishment ofthis great purpose。
After the false report that Dreyfus had escaped from Devil’s Island， his guardswere doubled， and he was chained to a plank every night with heavy irons， untilhis legs were so chafed that they became bloody and gangrenous。 The wretchedprisoner thought his jailers had orders to torture him to death， but he doggedly andpersistently repeated to himself： “I will live！ I will live！” Who can doubt that—conscious as he was of his innocence—this vehement affirmation， in conjunctionwith the man’s almost superhuman will-power， had much to do with his survival ofthe revolting cruelty to which he was subjected in his island prison。
Few people realize the force that exists in a vigorous， perpetual affirmationof the thing we long to be or are determined to accomplish。 Great things are doneunder the stress of an overmastering conviction of one’s ability to do what heundertakes； under the tremendous power of the affirmative， expressed with un-flinching determination。 The very intensity of your affirmation of confidencein your ability to do what you attempt is definitely related to the degree of yourachievement。 We need great projectile power。 It is easier to force a huge shellthrough the steel plates of a ship when projected with lightning speed from thecannon than to push it through slowly。
People who always say “God willing，” or “If Providence so wills，” they willdo this or that， little realize how the doubt expressed by the “if” takes the edge fromtheir positiveness， and tends to produce negative minds。 If the Creator has given aman the inclination and the power to do a thing that is right and good He is alwayswilling that he should do it。
Yet I know a man—and there are thousands like him—who says that henever makes a positive statement of what he is going to do， because it would bequestioning the will of God—a reflection upon the Deity。
There is no one thing which will give a timid soul such assurance， which willso brace up one who is inclined to depreciate and efface himself， as the constantafiirmation of the “I am。” “I am courage； I am health， vigor， strength； I am power；I am peace； I am plenty； I am a part of abundance， because I am one with the verySource of Infinite Supply。 I am rich， because I am heir to all the resources of theuniverse。”
Stoutly， constantly， everlastingly afiirm that you will become what yourambitions indicate as fitting and possible。 Do not say “I shall be a successsometime”； say， “I am a success。 Success is my birthright。” Do not say that youare going to be happy in the future。 Say to yourself， “I was intended for happiness，made for it， and I am happy。”
The habit of claiming as our own， as a vivid reality that which we desire， hasa tremendous magnetic power。 The constant vigorous assertion of “I am health； Iam vigor； I am power； I am principle； I am truth； I am justice； I am beauty； becausemade in the image of perfection， of harmony， of truth， of justice， of immortalbeauty”—tends to the manifestation of these things in our lives。“I am that which I think I am—and I can be nothing else。” The man immersedin material things and who lives only to make money， believes he can make it；knows that he can make it。 He does not say to himself every morning， “Well， I donot know whether I can make anything today。 I will try。 I may succeed and I maynot，” He simply and positively asserts that he can do what he desires and then startsout to put into operation plans and forces which will bring it about。
If you affirm “I am health； I am prosperity； I am this or that，” but do notbelieve it， you will not be helped by affirmation。 You must believe what you affirm。
Few people realize the tremendous creative power there is in stout selfassertion；in the vigorous affirmation of the ego， the “I，” the “I am。” But those whohave once properly put it in practice never again doubt its efficacy。
A prominent music master in New York who trains opera singers advised agirl with great musical ability， but with deficient self-confidence and self-assertion，to stand before a mirror every day and， assuming a magnificent pose， say to herself，“I， I， I，” with all the emphasis and power she could muster。 He told her to assertherself and to think of her-self as a prima donna of great power； that by constantlyassuming the part， playing the role， she would acquire the habit of self-confidence，which would be worth everything to her。 “Imagine that you are Nordica or Patti，”
he said。 “Assume that part boldly and fear-lessly—and hold yourself with a dignityand power corresponding with the character。” This advice， which she followedliterally， was worth more to this timid girl than scores of music lessons。 Thepractice in it increased her confidence in herself wonderfully， and she was sooncured of her shyness and timidity。
Audible self-suggestion， which is merely a continuation or extension of theaffirmation principle， is one of the greatest aids to self-development。 This form ofsuggestion—talking to oneself vigorously， earnestly—seems to arouse the sleepingforces in the subconscious self even more effectually than thinking the samething。 We all know how we are strengthened by the vigorous affirmation of ourdetermination to do this or to do that。 We know the virtue in a robust determination backed by the vigorously spoken resolve。 These are but other forms of arousing inour subconscious selves latent powers which， when understood and developed， willdo wonders for us。
There is a force in words spoken aloud which is not stirred by going over thesame words mentally。 They sometimes arouse slumbering energies within us whichthinking does not stir up—especially if we have not been trained to think deeply；to focus the mind closely。 They make a more lasting impression upon the mind—just as words which pass through the eye from the printed page make a greaterimpression on the brain than we get by thinking the same words； as seeing objectsof nature makes a more lasting impression upon the mind than thinking about them。
A vividness， a certain force， accompanies the spoken word—especially if earnestly，vehemently uttered—which is not apparent to many in merely thinking about whatwords express。 If you repeat to yourself aloud， vigorously， even vehemently， afirm resolve， you are more likely to carry it to reality than if you merely resolve insilence。
We become so accustomed to our silent thoughts that the voicing of them， thegiving audible expression to our yearnings， makes a much deeper impression uponus。
The audible self-encouragement treatment may be used with marvellousresults in correcting our weaknesses； overcoming our deficiencies。
A remarkably successful friend of mine says that he has been wonderfullyhelped by talking to himself about his faults and short-comings。 “Heart-to-hearttalks” with himself he calls these little exhortations。
If he thinks his ambition is lagging， he gives himself a mental exercise whichtends to sharpen and improve it。 If he thinks his standards are lowering， he bracesup his ideal by perpetually affirming his ability to do better and to climb higherevery day。
He says that he starts out every morning with the determination that he isgoing to be a bigger man at night than he was in the morning； that he is going to stand for more； that he is going to carry more weight in his community。 He talks tohimself about his failures of the day before and about his programme for the day，while he is dressing in the morning， something after this fashion：
“Now， John， you lost your temper yesterday； you went all to pieces over amistake that some one made in the office； you made a fool of yourself， so thatyour employees thought less of you than before， and it totally unfitted your mindfor doing the large things that were clamoring for your attention。 Don’t makethat mistake to-day。 You are a pretty small man if you cannot rise above the pettydetails which confuse and block shallow minds。 If you cannot rise above the trivialdetails of your office you are not a leader。”
One of his great weaknesses was that of indecision。 He had a perfect horrorof settling an important thing so that it could not be reopened for consideration。
He would always leave things until the last minute—his letters unsealed， papersunsigned， contracts open， until he was actually forced to close them， for fear hemight want to reconsider his decisions。
He tells me that he finally overcame this weakness by constantly tellinghimself how foolish it was； how this vacillating habit would handicap his wholecareer， and how all men of executive ability—men who do great things—arecharacterized by their quick， strong decisions。
It does not matter what the fault is—whether it is the habit of dawdling， ofbeing late in keeping appointments， of losing his temper， of being fractious andunreasonable with his employees—whatever it may be， he talks himself out of it。 Inhis talks， he calls himself by name， and carries a picture of his other， better， divinerself in his mind； persistently holding before himself the image of the man he wantsto be， longs to be， and constantly affirms his ability to be。 He says that nothing elsehas done half as much for him as this habit of talking things over with himself。
Another young man in New York recently told me that he tries to walkthrough Central Park every morning on his way to business in order to get a chanceto talk to himself alone。 During these talks， he tells himself that， let what will come during the day， he must not lose his self-control； he must be a gentleman underall circumstances； that he must not allow worry， anxiety， or unfortunate moods towaste his energy， but must work it all up into effectiveness。
He says that this self “jacking-up”—as he calls it—this self-tuning in themorning， not only helps him to get a larger efficiency into his day’s work， but alsoto do the work with much less wear and tear。 It is a tremendous tonic。 It stimulateshim to better and better work。 Since he has adopted the self-communing， selfbracinghabit， he has gone ahead by leaps and bounds。
Every man would be helped as these young men have been by the habit oftalking to himself just as though he were another person in whom he was verymuch interested and to whom he was giving his best advice。
Whenever you can do so， it is a good plan to get so far away from others thatyou will not be conscious of their presence， and then go through your resolutionsverbally—with vehemence， if necessary。 You will soon be surprised to find howmuch better they will stick in your consciousness， and how much more likely youare to follow your own advice when you give it orally。
If you have some vicious habit which is keeping you back， sapping the life outof you， you will be greatly strengthened in your power to overcome it by constantlysaying to yourself， “I know this thing （calling it by name） is destroying my vitality。
I am not so vigorous； so robust physically and mentally； I am not so efficient as Ishould be； I do not think so clearly， I cannot control my mind so well as I couldwere I not hampered by this weakness。
“The paralyzing habit is placing me at a great disadvantage in life； it isholding me up to ridicule， to unfavorable comparison with others。 I know that Ihave more ability than many of those about me who are accomplishing a great dealmore。 Now， I am going to conquer this thing which is destroying my prospects。 Iam going to get freedom for myself at any cost。”
If your sin is immorality say to yourself： “Nothing will blacken my soulquicker than this。 I am ruining my chances of future happiness。 This cursed thing is an insult to my ideal of womanhood， an insult to my future wife， a crime to myfuture children。 There is no other thing which will so deteriorate my manhood，which will so honeycomb my very character and destroy my self-respect as thisdamnable thing。 I hereby take a sacred oath never to repeat that which will lessenmy chances in life， that which will make me think less of myself。 I despise the thingwhich will keep me back in life， which will tend to make me a failure and anythingless than a man。 I will not take the risk of indulging a little longer with the hopethat something may help me break the habit， or that something will assist me to getstrength later， because I know that every indulgence in the vicious habit binds memore strongly to it， and makes my chance of breaking away so much less。”
Just talk to yourself in this way whenever alone and you will be surprised tosee how quickly the audible suggestion will weaken the grip of the vicious habit。 Ina short time your self-talks will so strengthen your will power that you will be ableto entirely eradicate your weakness。
But you must be very positive in the affirmation of your ability to overcomeit。 If you simply say to yourself， “I know that this thing is bad for me； I knowthat if I continue to drink， or to smoke cigarettes， or to practice immorality， it willinterfere with my success， but I do not believe I shall ever be able to overcome it；it has gotten such a hold on me that I cannot give it up”—you will never make anyheadway。
Always stoutly affirm your ability to conquer。 Say to yourself， “I was notmade to be dominated by a vice， a weed， or an extract of grain。 God’s image in mewas not intended to wallow in filth。 I can never use the ability I have to the bestadvantage， never be the man I was intended to be or am capable of being， while Iharbor this enemy which will sap my ability and weaken my chances in life。 It iscreating structural changes in my body； it is destroying my ability and blunting mymoral sensibility。 I am done with it once and forever； the appetite for it is destroyedin my being。 I do not want it—I do not need it—I will not touch it。 I was madeto hold up my head and be a man—to do the work of a man。 There is something divine within me—the God-man—perfectly able to overcome this thing which iscrippling my career and holding me back， and I am going to do it。”
Don’t be disappointed if you do not get immediate relief。 Continue to talk toyourself in this confident manner， especially upon retiring， always affirming yourability to overcome your weakness， whatever it may be， and you will conquer。
Your will power will assist you， but conviction is a thousand times stronger thanwill power； and the constant affirmation of the ability of the divinity within you toovercome the thing which handicaps you will finally help you to conquer。 Whenyou once get a glimpse of the divine power within you， and experience its help；when you learn to trust to the God in you for assistance， you will find yourself andthe Divinity always in the majority。 No power can stand against you then。
At first it may seem silly to you to be talking to yourself， but you will deriveso much benefit from it that you will have recourse to it in remedying all yourdefects。 There is no fault， however great or small， which will not succumb topersistent audible suggestion。 For example， you may be naturally timid and shrinkfrom meeting people； and you may distrust your own ability。 If so， you will begreatly helped by assuring yourself in your daily self-talks that you are not timid；that， on the contrary， you are the embodiment of courage and bravery。 Assureyourself that there is no reason why you should be timid， because there is nothinginferior or peculiar about you； that you are attractive， and that you know how to actin the presence of others。 Say to yourself that you are never again going to allowyourself to harbor any thoughts of self-depreciation or timidity or inferiority； thatyou are going to hold your head up and go about as though you were a king， aconqueror， instead of crawling about like a whipped cur。 You are going to assertyour manhood， your individuality。
Man was planned to stand erect， to look up， to go through life with hisbackbone straight， to look the world in the face with a fearless eye—he was nevermade to cower and flinch， to whine， to apologize and to depreciate his ability。
If you lack initiative， stoutly affirm your ability to begin things， and to push them through to a finish。 And always put your resolve into action at the firstopportunity。
If you are bashful， diffident in company， and inclined to depreciate yourselfand think that you are not quite as good as other people， just deny all of this toyourself， and resolve that you will never lose an opportunity for cultivating andstrengthening your deficient conversational faculties。
Never allow yourself to imagine that you are being watched or laughedat。 Always think of yourself as a king or a queen。 If you suffer from selfconsciousness，oversensitiveness， say to yourself constantly： “I am a king。 There isno reason why I should consider myself inferior to others。 I will just walk about asthough I were governor of my state， or mayor of my city； a full， complete man—master of the situation。”
If you are the victim of indecision； if you are inclined to weigh and balanceand reconsider tilings all the time， just deny all this to yourself verbally， strongly，emphatically， and resolve that hereafter you are going to act before your doubt hasa chance to weaken your decision or ask for a reconsideration。 Say to yourself thatyou would better make mistakes than not to act at all， or to be forever on the fence。
If you have hard work to make up your mind to undertake what you knowyou ought to， just get by yourself somewhere alone and brace yourself up。 Talk toyourself as you would to some friend whom you love； some one whom you knowhas ability but lacks courage and pluck。 Reenforce yourself； reinvigorate yourmind； reassure yourself。
Through these self-talks， if you will be sincere with yourself and strong andpersistent in your affirmations， you will be surprised to see how you can increaseyour courage， your confidence， and your ability to execute your ideas。
I know a young man who was so self-conscious when a youth that he wouldcross the street to avoid meeting any one he knew。 He was completely confusedwhen any one he was not accustomed to see chanced to speak to him。 He wasconstantly depreciating himself and belittling his ability。 Indeed， I have rarely seen anyone who depreciated a splendid ability so much as he did。 Yet he has so entirelyovercome these faults by audible suggestion that no one would suspect that he hadever lacked self-appreciation or confidence， or that he had been a victim of shyness。
He tells me that he used to go out in the country and talk to himself seriouslyabout his failings。 “Now， Arthur， either there is something in you or there is not；and I am going to find out，” he would say。 “Do not be a fool。 You are just as goodas anybody else， so long as you behave as well。 Hold up your head and be a man。
Do not be afraid to face anybody。 Go about among people as though you weresomebody。 Quit this everlasting self-depreciation， self-effacement。 You are God’schild， and you have just as good a right on this glad green earth as anybody else。
Do not go about apologizing for being alive， or imagining you are taking up roomwhich belongs to others。”
He says that he also derives very great benefit from praising and appreciatinghimself audibly when he has done unusually well， or has acquitted himself as aman。 On such occasions he will say： “Arthur， that was fine！ You did splendidly！
I am proud of you。 That just shows what you are capable of。 Do as well in everyinstance， and you will amount to something in the world and be somebody。”
I know of nothing so helpful for the timid， those who lack faith in themselves，as the habit of constantly affirming their own importance， their own power， theirown divinity。 When a man once sees that he is divine， once gets a glimpse of hisown capability， he will never be content to wallow in the mud and mire of things；nor will he doubt his own kingship。 The trouble is that men do not think halfenough of themselves； do not accurately measure their ability； do not put the rightestimate upon their possibilities。 We berate ourselves， belittle， efiface ourselves，because we do not see the larger， diviner man in us。
The objective side of man has a wonderful power to inspire and to encouragethe subjective side； to arouse the subconscious mentality where all latent powerand possibilities lie。 Deep within man dwell those slumbering powers； powersthat would astonish him， that he never dreamed of possessing； forces that would revolutionize his life if aroused and put into action。
The majority of people call out but a very small percentage of these latentforces which are waiting to serve them。 Many pass the half-century mark beforesome emergency or crisis in their life lifts the lid off their possibilities， andmultitudes go through life without ever getting a glimpse of their powers。
Many a family has eked out a miserable existence in poverty and drudgerywhile there was a fortune in minerals or oils in the very soil which they owned。
Millions have died in mental penury， died weaklings， when they had within theirown natures vast possibilities of power which they never uncovered， never utilized。
As miners have died poor while holding claims which covered great wealth， sovast multitudes of people die poor without ever working the rich mines within them。
The trouble with us is that we do not make a loud enough call upon the GreatWithin of us， our higher， more potent selves。 We are too timid， too tame in ourdemands。
“Affirm that which you wish， and it will be manifest in your life。” Affirm itconfidently， with the utmost faith， without any doubt of what you affirm。
Assert your possession of the things you need； of the qualities you long toown。 Force your mind toward your goal； hold it there steadily， persistently， for thisis the mental condition that creates。 The negative mind， which doubts and wavers，creates nothing。 “Nerve us with incessant affirmatives； do not bark against the bad；but chant the beauties of the good。”
“I， myself， am good fortune，” says Walt Whitman。
If we could only realize that the very attitude of assuming that we are the realembodiment of the thing we long to be or to attain， that we possess the good thingswe long for， not that we possess all the qualities of good， but that we are thesequalities—with the constant affirming， “I myself am good luck， good fortune； I ammyself a part of the great creative， sustaining principle of the universe， because myreal， divine self and my Father are one”—what a revolution would come to earth’stoilers！
XII。 DESTRUCTIVE AND CONSTRUCTIVE
SUGGESTION
CRIMINALS are mental criminals first。 The deed itself is merely thephysical acting out of the crime which they have rehearsed so many times in theirimagination。
An exconvict who served twenty-five years in the different penitentiaries ofNew York State said that he did not have the slightest conscious thought of everbecoming a criminal。 But he had a natural love for doing things which seemedimpossible to others， and when he went by a rich man’s residence he could nothelp thinking out different ways of entering the house in the night， until he finallyattempted it。 He took great pride in going from room to room while everybodywas asleep and getting out without waking any one。 Every time he did this he felta sense of triumph， as though he had done something worthy of praise。 He said hedid not rob so much for the value of the things he stole as to gratify his passion fortaking risks， and he could hardly believe it when he found that he was actually doingthe things he had contemplated until they became a part of his nature。 When he wasarrested the first time， it did not seem possible to him that he could be a criminal。
This shows what a dangerous thing it is to hold in the mind a wrongsuggestion， for it tends to become a part of us， and， before we realize it， we are likeour thought。
Professional burglars tell us that for years before they fell they committedall sorts of thefts in their imagination。 They would think out ingenious ways ofentering houses and accomplishing their ends without detection。
They dwelt upon the thought of crime so long that， before they were awareof it， they had actually committed the deed。 The criminal suggestion was held in mind until it became incorporated in their life structure， and they were amazed tofind themselves criminals。 Many of them had no thought of ever committing actualcrime when they first began to think about it， but the criminal thought， the criminalsuggestion， did its work。
Who can picture the havoc which the suspicious suggestion has wroughtin innocent lives？ Think of the influence of employers holding the thought ofsuspicion regarding their servants or other employees。
Servants have actually been made dishonest by other persons perpetuallyholding the suspicion that they were dishonest。 This thought suggests dishonestyto the suspected perhaps for the first time， and being constantly held takes rootand grows， and bears the fruit of theft。 The old proverb， “If you have the name，you might as well have the game，” is put into action many times。 It is simplycruel to hold a suspicious thought of another until you have positive proof。 Thatother person’s mind is sacred； you have no right to invade it with your miserablethoughts and pictures of suspicion。 You should not indulge in such thoughts ofyourself， any more than you would allow yourself to hold thoughts of blacker sinor crime。 Many a being has been made wretched and miserable for years； has beendepressed and borne down by the uncharitable， wicked thoughts of others。
Many people scatter fear thoughts， doubt thoughts， failure thoughts whereverthey go； and these take root in minds that might otherwise be free from them andtherefore happy， confident， and successful。
Who can ever estimate the human tragedy， the suffering， the failures， causedby hypnotizing oneself by vicious thoughts， or becoming hypnotized through thewrong thoughts of others？
The time will come when we shall have more sympathy for those who gowrong， and even for criminals； because we shall know how powerfully humanminds are influenced by the vicious thoughts of others。
Many a youth who has been thrown into prison for some minor offense hasbeen changed into a hardened criminal by constant association with the criminal classes； by being cut off from all communication and association with the good，and with no possibility of even seeing good books。 The perpetual criminalsuggestions about him were held in his mind so long that he became morbid，surcharged with criminal tendencies。 If， instead of being locked up， he could be putupon a huge farm in a beautiful section of the country， with beautiful surroundingsof mountains， lakes， flowers， trees and grass， and placed under kindly， educativeinfluences， it would be possible to reform the criminal in a great majority of cases。
The substitution of prison surroundings， the consciousness that he is cut off fromthe world he loves—from friends， from healthy influences， from all possibility ofcarrying out his ambitions—disheartens and discourages him， and his mind sooncoincides with the continual suggestions around him。
We are creatures of suggestion。 We get them from newspapers， books， fromevery one with whom we come in contact。 The atmosphere is full of them。 Weare constantly giving them to ourselves。 In other words， our characters are largelymade up from various kinds of suggestion。
We all know how we are influenced by a powerful play or a powerful book。
I know a lady who reads the most tragic and emotional stories she can gethold of； and she says she is often so aflfected by a book that she is obliged to go tobed for an entire day at a time。 So powerfully does the suggestion in the book takepossession of her， that， for the time， she lives the life that is depicted there。 Shefeels that she is one of the characters she is reading about。
It is not difficult to trace many a criminal’s acts to the graphic suggestions ofcriminal novels， the exciting stories of murder and plunder which he began to readwhen a child。
People with criminal tendencies love to read stories of crime and hairbreadthescapes。 They are great detective-story readers。 Some youths unconsciouslyinflame their imagination thus until they become abnormal。 They develop a morbiddesire actually to do the criminal deed which they have performed so many timesmentally。
Think of the awful responsibility of throwing out in picture， in cartoon， inprint， the daily suggestion of scandal， of murder， of suicide， of crime in all itsforms， with all the insidious suggestiveness which lives in detailed deion！
Some time ago the mayor of one of our western cities requested the editors ofthe daily papers to refrain from publishing the details of suicides， because he saidtheir publication had caused an alarming epidemic of suicides in that community。
There is no doubt that many a criminal is serving a sentence which ought tobe served by those who have influenced him to commit the crime for which he isbeing punished。
Indelible and satanic is the taint of the evil suggestion which a lewd，questionable picture or story leaves in the mind。 Nothing else more fatally mars theideals of life and lowers the standard of manhood and womanhood。
The suggestion of impurity in trashy literature is responsible for a great deal ofdissipation； for blasted hopes and blighted lives。 The same is true of suggestivenessin art。 Many impure artists have made their fortunes and their reputations bytreading upon forbidden ground， by going just as near the point of legal prohibitionin their pictures as possible。
If young people only realized what a terrible thing it is to get even asuggestion of impurity into the mind， they would never read an author whose linesdrip with the very gall of death。 They would not look at those dangerous bookswhich lead their readers as near the edge of indecency as possible without steppingover。 To describe impurity in rosy， glowing， seductive， suggestive language， is butthe refinement of the house of death。
We have all had the exalted experience， the marvellous tonic， the uplift， thathas come from the suggestion in a play or a book depicting a great hero。 Howheroic and noble and self-sacrificing we feel for a long time， and how resolved weare to become like the hero in the play or the story！ This is a good illustration of thepower suggestion is constantly playing in our experience all through life。
How important it is that from childhood we should be in the atmosphere of uplifting， encouraging， cheerful， optimistic， loving ideals！
Teachers tell us that in the schools in the slums of cities there are children whonever smile， who are always sad and gloomy because of the terrible influence intheir homes； where there is a constant suggestion of suffering， of filth， of profanityand of impurity； where all the ideals are low and debasing。
I have known bright， healthy， refined orphan children to be completelytransformed by being placed in coarse families， where hard， brutal suggestionswere held constantly before their minds until their dispositions and characters werehardened， and all that was noblest and best in their natures was petrified。
It is easy to account for a hard， cold， selfish nature when we find that thechild has held these qualities as perpetual suggestions in the mind from infancy。
Sweetness and light and beauty of character are not developed in an atmospherethick with hatred and envy and poisoned with jealousy and selfishness。 Likeproduces like； this is an inexorable law everywhere。 Love is not generated inan atmosphere of bitterness； unselfishness and sympathy are not fostered in anenvironment of greed and heartlessness。
Dr。 Elwood Worcester， leader of the Emmanuel movement in Boston is afirm believer in the power of suggestion to mould the character of the child。 Hesays： “There is a very easy and rational way by which many childish faults can beremoved； that is， by making good suggestions to our children while they are in astate of natural sleep。
“My method is to address the sleeping child in a low and gentle tone， tellingit that I am about to speak to it， and that it will hear me， but that my words willnot disturb it nor will it awake。 Then I give the necessary words， repeating themin different language several times。 By this means I have removed childish fearsand corrected bad habits。 I have checked nervous twitchings， anger， violence， adisposition to lie， and I have improved speech in stammering children。”
We are so largely products of our environment； we are so sensitive to thesuggestion dominant in our minds， that we can have a powerful influence over our destiny by auto-suggestion。 We can often so dominate a vicious thought in ourenvironment by a counteracting self-suggestion as to completely destroy it。 Thepowerful self-suggestion of purity will quickly annihilate the opposite suggestionfrom others。 The self-suggestions of justice and truth will quickly overmaster thesuggestions of injustice and falsehood from those about us。
“As a therapeutic agency and an uplifting ethical force，” says Dr。 Worcester，“auto-suggestion can hardly be exaggerated。 The various troubles， physical andmental， which are amenable to its influence make a long list。 In these and othertroubles the patient can， as Shakespeare says， ‘minister to himself。’ What a gospelof hope is here for the depressed and unhappy！ What a chance of redemption forthose who are the slaves of circumstance or of their own folly！”
It is wholly a question of making the demand， the call， upon our better self soemphatic， so vigorous， and so appealing that it will arouse our higher nature。 Thenthere will be a leaping forth of an overpowering energy of the Godlike in us。
When we see a man who has been but a mere apology for a human being， acurse to the race for half a lifetime， converted， transformed， by the love of somenoble woman or friend， become a great power for good， we are apt to think that thistransformation， this miracle is due to some force， some power outside of himself。
But the power was within him all the time， waiting to be aroused， to be awakened。
When the right suggestion comes， and is made emphatic， vigorous enough， thedivine within us will respond。
People who are “down on their luck” are， as a rule， the victims of their ownnegative suggestion。 If they could only substitute the positive， the creative， for thenegative， the destructive suggestion which enslaves them， they would win instead of losing。
Darwin has shown that every mental state has a corresponding physicalexpression， and that if you assume one you are likely to experience the other。
Anger， for instance， expresses itself physically in violent language， clenching thefists， slamming the door， or in other forms。 And as a man may make himself angryby doing these things， so he can put himself into a devotional frame of mind by assuming an attitude of prayer。
Some people are so happily constituted that they are constantly rejuvenatingand refreshening and elevating themselves by the habitual appeal to their mindsthrough suggestion。 They keep so close to the divine power that they feel its thrilland are propelled by the great divine current。
How often we are surprised at the discovery of some unexpected poweror possibility within ourselves， which has been brought to the surface by thesuggestion of some book， or by some friend who believed in us， or saw in us whatwe could not see ourselves！
The human mind may be attuned to any key， high or low， base or noble， bythe power of suggestion。 The suggestion may be in a word spoken by oneself or byanother； it may come from a book or a picture； it may emanate from the presenceof a friend or of an enemy， from a grand， heroic character， or a mean， cowardlyone。 From hundreds of sources it may come， from within or without， but whereverit comes from， it leaves its mark on the life for good or ill。
Suggestion in its highest form is the appeal to our higher self to come intorecognition of its own。 No matter how bad a man may seem to be， there is a betterman within him。 No matter how low he may have sunk morally， to all outwardappearance， there is something absolutely spotless within him， something whichhas never been smirched and can never be， and which will ultimately claim itsbirthright and come to its own in splendor and power。
No matter how soiled a banknote becomes it is always redeemable so longas there is any distinguishable mark of its genuineness。 There is something withinevery human being which will ultimately redeem him， no matter how far he mayhave drifted from the right。 There is a better self in the worst criminal in ourpenitentiaries which will some day， somewhere， redeem him， bring him to hisown。 The God within him will finally triumph。 Every human being some time，somewhere， will come into harmony with the divine。 Every child of the King willultimately inherit his kingdom。
XIII。 WORRY， THE DISEASE OF THE AGE
Some people bear three kinds of trouble—all they ever had， all they havenow， and all they expect to have。
—Edward Everett Hale。
ONE who could rid the world of worry would render greater service to therace than all of the inventors and discoverers that ever lived。
We Americans pity ignorant savages who live in terror of their cruel gods，their demons which keep them in abject slavery， but we ourselves are the slaves ofa demon which blasts our hopes， blights our happiness， casts its hideous shadowacross all our pleasures， destroys our sleep， mars our health， and keeps us in miserymost of our lives。
This monster dogs us from the cradle to the grave。 There is no occasion sosacred but it is there。 Unbidden it comes to the wedding and the funeral alike。 It isat every reception， every banquet； it occupies a seat at every table。
No human intellect can estimate the unutterable havoc and ruin wroughtby worry。 It has forced genius to do the work of mediocrity； it has caused morefailures， more broken hearts， more blasted hopes， than any other one cause sincethe dawn of the world。
What have not men done under the pressure of worry！ They have plunged intoall sorts of vice； have become drunkards， drug fiends； have sold their very souls intheir efforts to escape this monster。
Think of the homes which it has broken up； the ambitions it has ruined； thehopes and prospects it has blighted！ Think of the suicide victims of this demon！
If there is any devil in existence， is it not worry， with all its attendant progeny of evils？
Yet， in spite of all the tragic evils that follow in its wake， a visitor fromanother world would get the impression that worry is one of our dearest， mosthelpful friends， so closely do we hug it to ourselves and so loath are we to partfrom it。
Is it not unaccountable that people who know perfectly well that success andhappiness both depend on keeping themselves in condition to get the most possibleout of their energies should harbor in their minds the enemy of this very successand happiness？ Is it not strange that they should form this habit of anticipating evilsthat will probably never come， when they know that anxiety and fretting will notonly rob them of peace of mind and strength and ability to do their work， but alsoof precious years of life？
Many a strong man is tied down， like Gulliver， by Lilliputians—bound handand foot by the little worries and vexations he has never learned to conquer。
What would be thought of a business man who would keep in his serviceemployees known to have been robbing him for years， stealing a little here and alittle there every day？ Yet one may be keeping in his mental business house， at thevery source of his power， a thief infinitely worse than one who merely steals moneyor material things； a thief who robs him of energy， saps his vitality， and bankruptshim of all that makes life worthwhile。
Do we pity the pagans who lacerate themselves in all sorts of cruel ways intheir worship？ Yet many of us constantly torment ourselves by all sorts of mentalinstruments of torture。
We borrow trouble； endure all our lives the woe of crossing and recrossingbridges weeks and years before we come to them； do disagreeable tasks mentallyover and over again before we reach them； anticipate our drudgery and constantlysuffer from the apprehension of terrible things that never happen。
I know women who never open a telegram without trembling， for they feelsure it will announce the death of a friend or some terrible disaster。 If their children have gone for a sail or a picnic， they are never easy a moment during their absence；they work themselves into a fever of anxiety for fear that some accident will befallthem， that something awful will happen to them。
Many a mother fritters away more energy in useless frets and fears for herchildren， in nervous strain over this or that， than she uses for her daily routine ofdomestic work。 She wonders why she is so exhausted at the close of the day， andnever dreams that she has thrown away the greater part of her force。
Is it not strange that people will persist in allowing little worries， pettyvexations， and unnecessary frictions to grind life away at such a fearful rate that oldage stares them in the face in middle life？ Look at the women who are shrivelledand shrunken and aged at thirty， not because of tht hard work they have done， orthe real troubles they have had， but because of habitual fretting， which has helpednobody， but has brought discord and unhappiness to their homes。
Somewhere I read of a worrying woman who made a list of possible unfortunateevents and happenings which she felt sure would come to pass and be disastrousto her happiness and welfare。 The list was lost， and to her amazement， whenshe recovered it， a long time afterwards， she found that not a single unfortunateprediction in the whole catalogue of disasters had taken place。
Is not this a good suggestion for worriers？ Write down everything which youthink is going to turn out badly， and then put the list aside。 You will be surprised tosee what a small percentage of the doleful things ever come to pass。
It is a pitiable thing to see vigorous men and women， who have inheritedgodlike qualities and bear the impress of divinity， wearing anxious faces and filledwith all sorts of fear and uncertainty， worrying about yesterday， today， tomorrow—everything imaginable。
In entering New York by train every morning， I notice business men withhard， tense expressions on their faces， leaning forward when the train approachesthe station， as if they could hasten its progress and save time， many of them gettingup from their seats and rushing toward the door several minutes before the train stops。 The anxiety in their every movement； the hurried nervousness in theirmanner； and their hard， drawn countenances—all are indications of an abnormallife。
No man can utilize his normal power who dissipates his nervous energy inuseless anxiety。 Nothing will sap one’s vitality and blight one’s ambition or detractfrom one’s real power in the world more than the worrying habit。
Work kills no one， but worry has killed multitudes。 It is not the doing thingswhich injures us so much as the dreading to do them—not only performing themmentally over and over again， but anticipating something disagreeable in theirperformance。
Many of us approach an unpleasant task in much the same condition as arunner who begins his start such a long distance away that by the time he reacheshis objective point—the ditch or the stream which is to test his agility—he is tooexhausted to jump across。
Worry not only saps vitality and wastes energy， but it also seriously affects thequality of one’s work。 It cuts down ability。 A man cannot get the highest qualityof efficiency into his work when his mind is troubled。 The mental faculties musthave perfect freedom before they will give out their best。 A troubled brain cannotthink clearly， vigorously， and logically。 The attention cannot be concentrated withanything like the same force when the brain cells are poisoned with anxiety aswhen they are fed by pure blood and are clean and unclouded。 The blood of chronicworriers is vitiated with poisonous chemical substances and brokendown tissues，according to Prof。 Elmer Gates and other noted scientists， who have shown that thepassions and the harmful emotions cause actual chemical changes in the secretionsand generate poisonous substances in the body which are fatal to healthy growthand action。
The brain cells are constantly bathed in the blood， from which they draw theirnourishment， and when the blood is loaded with the poison of fear， worry， anger，hatred， or jealousy， the protoplasm of those delicate cells becomes hard and is thus materially injured。
The most pathetic effect of worry is its impairment of the thinking powers。
It so clogs the brain and paralyzes thought that the results of the worrier’s workmerely mock his ambition， and often lead to the drink or drug habit。 Its continuedfriction robs the brain cells of an opportunity to renew themselves； and so afterawhile there is a breakdown of the nervous system and then the worrier suffersfrom insomnia and other nervous ailments， and sometimes becomes hopelesslyinsane。
If you never accomplish anything else in life， get rid of worry。 There areno greater enemies of harmony than little anxieties and petty cares。 Do not fliesaggravate a nervous horse more than his work？ Do not little naggings， constantlytouching him with the whip， or jerking at the reins， fret and worry him much morethan the labor of drawing the carriage？
It is the little pinpricks， the petty annoyances of our everyday life， that marour comfort and happiness and rob us of more strength than the great troubleswhich we nerve ourselves to meet。 It is the perpetual scolding and fault-finding ofan irritable man or woman which ruins the entire peace and happiness of many ahome。
An habitual worrier—an aged woman—said to her physician， “My headfeels dull-like， and I’ve kinder lost the power to worry over things。” A great manypeople would be much troubled were they to lose the power to worry over things。
They think it their duty to worry。 They would not feel that they were conscientiousor faithful if they were not always anxious over what they were doing。 They wouldnot think they were showing a proper interest in it。
Anticipating a thing tends to bring it to us。 Worry about disease is a diseaseproducer。 It is well known that many victims of the great plagues of history havebeen slain simply by fear and dread。
Professor Gates says that by directing his thought to one of his thumbs， andholding it there， in ten minutes’ time the thumb was gorged with blood， and the temperature was two degrees higher than in the other thumb。 This is what happenswhen the worry thought—the terror thought—of some disease is continuallyfocused on a part of the body which we think has been affected by heredity。
Great numbers of men and women become hypochondriacs by dwelling fora long time on diseases they fear。 If they happen to feel a little stupid or absentminded，if their minds do not always work just right， as is often the case with eventhe most healthy brains， they immediately surmise that there is something wrongwith their heads。
There is no doubt that the “quick lunch” habit， the habit of bolting the foodwithout proper mastication， is a fruitful source of indigestion， and this has a greatdeal to do with the worry habit of the American people。
The digestive organs are extremely sensitive to worry， and when the digestionis interfered with the whole physical economy is thrown into disorder。
Worry and fear will not only whiten the hair， but will also cause prematurebaldness—a condition known as nervous baldness。 Another result is a loss of toneand elasticity in the facial muscles。 “The lips， cheeks， and lower jaw，” says Darwin，“all sink downward from their own weight。”
Worry not only makes a woman look older， but also actually makes her older。
It is a chisel which cuts cruel furrows in the face。 I have seen one so completelychanged by a few weeks of anxiety that the whole countenance had a differentexpression and the individual seemed almost like another person。
One of the worst forms of worry is the brooding over failure。 It blights theambition， deadens the purpose and defeats the very object the worrier has in view。
Some people have the unfortunate habit of brooding over their past lives，castigating themselves for their shortcomings and mistakes， until their whole visionis turned backward instead of forward， and they see everything in a distorted light，because they are looking only on the shadow side。
The longer the unfortunate picture which has caused trouble remains in themind， the more thoroughly it becomes imbedded there， and the more difficult it is to remove it。
Did you ever hear of any good coming to any human being from worry？ Didit ever help anybody to better his condition？ Does it not always—everywhere—do just the opposite by impairing the health， exhausting the vitality， lesseningefficiency？
Are we not convinced that a power beyond our control runs the universe， thatevery moment of worry detracts from our success capital and makes our failuremore probable； that every bit of anxiety and fretfulness leaves its mark on thebody， interrupts the harmony of our physical and mental well-being， and cripplesefficiency， and that this condition is at war with our highest endeavor？
Let us then cease to worry。 Let us stop the habit—if we have it—of tellingeverybody about our troubles。 What we want to do， in order to drive out troubles， isto forget them—bury them—not keep them alive by airing them continually。
A great deal can be done to correct the causes of worry by keeping up thehealth standard。 A good digestion， a clear conscience， and sound sleep kill a lot oftrouble。 Worry thrives best under abnormal conditions。 It cannot get much of a holdon a man with a superb physique—a man who lives a clean， sane life。 It thrives onthe weak—those of low vitality whose reserve force has been exhausted。
We see women resorting to massage， electricity， exercises， chin straps， wrinkleplasters， and all sorts of things to erase the terrible ravages of worry and anxiety；apparently ignorant of the fact that the supreme remedy—the great panacea—isin the mind， they continue to worry as to how they shall get rid of the effects ofworry！
Nothing else will so quickly drive away worry as the habit of cheerfulness， ofmaking the best of things， of refusing to see the ugly side of life。
When you feel fear or anxiety entering your thought， just fill your mindinstantly with courage， hope， and confidence。 Refuse to let any enemies of yourhappiness and success camp in your mind。 Drive out the whole brood of vampires。
You can kill worry thoughts easily when you know the antidote； and this you always have in your mind。 You do not have to go to a drug store or a physician forit。 It is always with you—always ready。 All you have to do is to substitute hope，courage， cheerfulness， serenity， for despondency， discouragement， pessimism，worry。 Opposite thoughts will not live together。 The presence of one excludes theother。
“People ask me daily，” said Patti， “when they look at my face， without awrinkle， what I do to keep so young。 I tell them that whenever I have felt a wrinklecoming I have laughed it away。 My advice to the woman who wants to remainyoung is： ‘Be happy—don’t worry， but walk。’”XIV。 FEAR， THE CURSE OF THE RACE
Fear makes man a slave to others。 This is the tyrant’s chain。 Anxiety is aform of cowardice embittering life。
—Channing。
Fear is an acid which is pumped into one’s atmosphere。 It causes mental，moral， and spiritual asphyxiation， and sometimes death； death to energy andall growth。
—Horace Fletcher。
WHAT is fear？ It is absolutely nothing。 It is a mental illusion。 There is noreality behind it。 It is to the sane adult what the ghost is to the child。
There is not a single redeeming feature about fear or any of its numerousprogeny。 It is always， everywhere， an unmitigated curse。 Although there is noreality in fear， no truth behind it， yet everywhere we see people who are slaves tothis monster of the imagination。
Fear is one of the most deadly instruments for marring human lives。 It has aparalyzing， blighting influence upon the whole being。 It impoverishes the bloodand destroys health by impairing the digestion， cutting off nutrition， and loweringthe physical and mental vitality。
It crushes hope， kills courage， and so enfeebles the mind’s action that it cannotcreate or produce。
All work done when one is suffering from a sense of fear or foreboding haslittle efficiency。 Fear strangles originality， daring， boldness； it kills individuality，and weakens all the mental processes。 Great things are never done under a sense of fear of some impending danger。 Fear always indicates weakness， the presenceof cowardice。 What a slaughterer of years， what a sacrificer of happiness andambitions， what a ruiner of careers this monster has been！ The Bible says，“Abroken spirit drieth the bones。” It is well known that mental depression—melancholy—will check very materially the glandular secretions of the body andliterally dry up the tissues。
Fear depresses normal mental action， and renders one incapable of actingwisely in an emergency， for no one can think clearly and act wisely when paralyzedby fear。
When a man becomes melancholy and discouraged about his affairs， when heis filled with fear that he is going to fail， and is haunted by the spectre of povertyand a suffering family， before he realizes it， he attracts the very thing he dreads，and the prosperity is crushed out of his business。 But he is a mental failure first。
If， instead of giving up to his fear， a man would persist in keeping prosperityin his mind， assume a hopeful， optimistic attitude， and would conduct hisbusiness in a systematic， economical， far-sighted manner， actual failure would becomparatively rare。 But when a man becomes discouraged， when he loses heart andgrip， and becomes panic-stricken， he is not in a position to make the effort which isabsolutely necessary to bring victory， and there is a shrinkage all along the line。
He is in no condition to ward off the evil before which he cowers。 His mentalattitude lowers his vitality， lessens his powers of resistance， vitiates his efficiency，and ruins his resourcefulness。
One of the worst forms of fear is that of a foreboding of some evil to come，which hangs over the life like a threatening cloud over a volcano before aneruption。
Some people are always suffering from this peculiar phase of fear。 They areapprehensive that some great misfortune is coming to them， that they are going tolose their money or their position； or they are afraid of accident， or that some fataldisease is developing in them。 If their children are away they see them in all sorts of catastrophes—railroad wrecks， burning cars， or shipwrecks。 They are alwayspicturing the worst。 “You never can tell what will happen，” they say， “and it isbetter to prepare for the worst。”
I know a woman who went through the most heartrending experiencesfor years in anticipation of a catastrophe which she believed would prove sooverwhelming that it could not possibly leave any hope behind； but when the thingoccurred that she had dreaded for so long， she was surprised to find that it did notoverwhelm her。
How we suffer all our lives from the fear of accident—the fear of beingrun over in the streets， the fear of being mairaed， of losing our limbs， the fear ofrailroad accidents， of accidents on the ocean， the fear of lightning， of earthquakes—fear of all kinds！ And yet here we are at the present moment， most of us withoutthe loss of a finger， and many without even a scratch or a scar， although we have，perhaps， travelled a great deal over the world for a lifetime。
How we are dogged with this fear fiend all our lives！
Many women have such a terror of snakes that they never take any comfortwhile in the country。 They are always imagining they are going to step on oneor run across one。 This dread ruins their vacations， for they never dare go in thewoods or walk on the grass。
I have known women who lived in rattle-snake regions to be so terror-strickenfor fear they should run across these snakes that they never dared go anywherealone， and always lived in anticipation of seeing these terrible creatures。
Some people who travel in the tropics have such fear of poisonous insects andreptiles that they never have a minute’s peace while they are there。 They are alwaysimagining these terrible creatures are crawling over them in the night。
I know a man who is a born coward regarding physical pain， and who lives insuch terror of sickness and disease that he makes himself constantly wretched byanticipating maladies which never affect him。 If he feels a cold coming on， he issure he is going to have an acute attack of the grip。 If he has a sore throat， he thinks it is going to develop into tonsillitis， and that he will not be able to swallow。 If hehas a little palpitation after eating a hearty meal， caused by undue pressure upon theheart， he imagines he is going to be a victim of serious heart trouble。
He has become so finicky about his health that he is a perfect nuisance to hisfamily and to his friends。 He is always wanting windows closed， or more heat， orhe wants—nobody knows what he will want。 His friends do not like to invite himto go anywhere with them， because he is so particular about his food， and he alwaysimagines he is going to be burned up in a hotel or killed on a train or steamboat。
It is true this is an exaggerated case； but there are vast multitudes of peoplewho are under a similar domination of fear and apprehension all their lives。 I knowpeople who never get happiness out of life， except in little snatches。 They work likeslaves to get together enough property to carry them through， as they say， yet theynever enjoy it。 They look on life as terribly serious。 They are always afraid they aregoing to lose their property， or that something fearful is going to happen。
The most deplorable waste of energy in human life is caused by the fatal habitof anticipating evil， of fearing what the future has in store for us， and under nocircumstances can the fear or worry be justified by the situation， for it is always animaginary one， utterly groundless and without foundation。
What we fear is invariably something that has not yet happened。 It does notexist； hence is not a reality。 If you are actually suffering from a disease you havefeared， then fear only aggravates every painful feature of your illness and makes itsfatal issue more probable。
The fear habit shortens life， for it impairs all the physiological processes。 Itspower is shown by the fact that it actually changes the chemical composition ofthe secretions of the body。 Fear victims not only age prematurely but they also dieprematurely。
Sensitive， nervous people， and those who are physically weak， suffer mostfrom fear。 We all know how the imagination tends to exaggerate everything， andpeople with sensitive， nervous organizations， and those in feeble health usually imagine that the worst possible will happen。 Strong， robust health itself will killa great many fears which cause intense suffering when the vitality is low and thepower of resistance is weak。
Many people live so perpetually under the dominion of this demon， that theynever develop normally。 As children， their lives were starved and stunted； theywere inoculated with the germ of fear way back in childhood when the motherwas constantly reminding the little ones of terrible results which would follow ifthey did this or that。 Fear shadows were constantly projected into their susceptiblelittle minds， until the demon became so thoroughly intrenched in their lives thatit follows them through the years like a hideous ghost， hovering round to destroytheir peace of mind and happiness。 Every ugly thing told to a child， every shock，every fright given him will remain like splinters in the flesh to torture him all hislife long。 Anxiety， fear， horror， will twine themselves round these memories。
A mother little realizes the cruel thing she is doing when she impresses upona child’s plastic mind the terrible image of fear， which， like letters cut on a sapling，grows wider and deeper with age。
A perfectly normal child， with no inherited fear tendencies， would not knowthe meaning of fear。 It was not intended that we should be followed and houndedthrough life by this demon。 It is a creature born in our own brain， the offspringof our own thinking and acting。 Everywhere we see the terrible havoc that fearhas wrought in human lives。 The premature wrinkles， the gray hair， the stoopingshoulders， the anxious faces we see on all sides are the out-picturing of forebodingfear thought。
A noted nerve specialist says： “Thousands of times I have been compelled torecognize the sad fact that at least eighty per cent of morbidly timid children couldhave been cured and saved， in time， by common-sense principles of psychologicaland physiological hygiene， in which the main factor is suggestion inspired bywholesome courage。”
It is much easier for the mother or nurse to frighten a child into submission than to soothe it， reason with it， and the weak， ignorant， thoughtless motherconstantly appeals to the child’s fear as the quickest， most effective means ofsecuring obedience。
“Fear runs like a baleful thread through the whole web of life from beginningto end，” says Dr。 Holcomb。 “We are born into the atmosphere of fear and dread， andthe mother who bore us had lived in the same atmosphere for weeks and monthsbefore we were born。 We are afraid of our parents， afraid of our teachers， afraid ofour playmates， afraid of ghosts， afraid of rules and regulations and punishments，afraid of the doctor， the dentist， the surgeon。 Our adult life is a state of chronicanxiety， which is fear in a milder form。 We are afraid of failure in business， afraidof disappointments and mistakes， afraid of enemies， open or concealed； afraid ofpoverty， afraid of public opinion， afraid of accidents， of sickness， of death， andunhappiness after death。 Man is like a haunted animal from the cradle to the grave，the victim of real or imaginary fears， not only his own， but those reflected upon himfrom the superstitions， self-deceptions， sensory illusions， false beliefs， and concreteerrors of the whole human race， past and present。”
Most of us are foolish children， afraid of our shadows， so handicapped in athousand ways that we cannot get efficiency into our life work。
The recent spectacle of multitudes of people （many of them waiting in line allnight） drawing their money out of perfectly solid banks and trust companies is agood illustration of the power of fear to bring about a financial panic， even in themidst of prosperity。 There was absolutely no real cause for this panic which， fora time， played such havoc in the financial world。 It was started by gamblers andpromoters， who were posing as bankers； men who used sacred trust assets to rigthe stock market， and to promote their own schemes generally。 This financial stormcame out of a clear sky， and when we were enjoying unusual prosperity。 Capitalwas well employed； comparatively few people were out of work in the entirecountry。 Almost any one， with any sort of ability， who was willing to work， couldfind employment。 There was no extended economic disturbance anywhere， and the business of our marvellous country was never in better condition。
The moment a distrust is expressed by a few leading financiers in a town，weaker， less acute minds naturally magnify their fears and spread their doubtsuntil the whole community is affected。 Then the panic contagion trickles throughthe masses until we hear hard times talked about by the day laborer， discussedeverywhere， in the cars， on the streets， in the saloons， and the imagination picturesmultitudes out of work and hungry。
In other words， the mind is set toward the things people expect and believeare coming， and， of course， this tends to bring them about。 If they would stoptalking down and would talk up， they could arrest these mental hardtime panics， asconfidence is almost omnipotent。 Of course panics often have a real cause—as theshortage of crops—but even then they are exaggerated very greatly by fear， whichalways predicts infinitely worse conditions than actually materialize。
What sufferers many of us are for fear of the criticism and ridicule of others！
How many people live in terror of Mrs。 Grundy， or what people will think！ Everystep they take in life they suffer from fear of what others will say。 Many people aremore afraid of ridicule than almost anything else。 Oh， how many victims fear hasput into the grave！ It has driven people into all sorts of crime through unbalancingthe mind。 It has caused terrible tragedies in human life。
One pathetic case is that of an Indiana farmer who was asked to come to theoffice of his friend， a physician， supposedly for a friendly purpose。 He found themembers of the lunacy board there to inquire into his sanity。”
“My God， John！” he exclaimed， looking at his friend， “would you send me tothe madhouse？” After this exclamation he became speechless， then unconscious，half paralyzed， and died in a few hours。
A Dutch painter went into a room filled with skeletons and other anatomicalsubjects， in order to make sketches for a painting。 He was weary， and fell asleep。
Suddenly he was aroused by an earthquake shock。 The awful picture of shakingskeletons that confronted him on awakening so terrified the painter that he threw himself out of a window， and， although he received no physical injury， he died of anervous tremor。
There are many instances of soldiers who have died of fright becausethey thought they had been fatally shot， when the bullets or shells had not evenpenetrated the body。
Dr。 William E。 Parker， of New Orleans， says he was once asked to attend abig negro who had been taken to the hospital in an ambulance。 The students incharge of the ambulance had frightened the man by telling him that he had beenmortally wounded by the bullet which had struck him during a fight。 Although thisnegro was big， robust， and black， yet he became almost white with fear， and “theconvulsive tremors that shook him from time to time revealed a state of collapsethat might end in death at any time。” Investigation showed that there had beenno outward flow of blood， but that the negro had been told by the students thatthere might be a fatal internal hemorrhage。 He knew he had been hit， for he hadseen the hole made by the bullet in his clothing， and his fear increased rather thandiminished。 Examination revealed the fact that the bullet had not entered his bodyat all。 It had struck a button and flattened out， and when his clothing was removedit dropped to the floor。 When the doctor held up the flattened bullet for the negroto see， he was in a state of collapse。 In an instant the blood returned to his face，the pulse and the temperature quickly became normal， a grateful sparkle lit up thealmost glassy eyeballs， and the broadest possible grin spread over the face of theerstwhile dying man。
The negro got down from the table and， after apologizing for the trouble hehad given， walked away in perfect health， although only a few minutes before hehad been very near death。
It is well known that when a man’s foot is caught in what is called a “frogin the switch” of a railroad track so that he cannot withdraw it， and he realizesthat a train is rushing upon him with no possibility of his escaping， the terror ofimpending death from the approaching train so poisons his blood that， even though he is rescued， death usually results。
Courage should be taught in the schools， because everything that men strivefor—success and happiness—are dependent upon it。 Then， again， it enhancestremendously the power of all the other mental faculties。 Courage compensates formany defects and weaknesses。
A man who is filled with fear is not a real man。 He is a puppet， a mannikin， anapology of a man。
Quit fearing things that may never happen， just as you would quit any badpractice which has caused you suffering。 Fill your mind with courage， hope， andconfidence。
Do not wait until fear thoughts become intrenched in your mind and yourimagination。 Do not dwell upon them。 Apply the antidote instantly， and the enemieswill flee。 There is no fear so great or intrenched so deeply in the mind that it cannotbe neutralized or entirely eradicated by its opposite。 The opposite suggestion willkill it。
Once Dr。 Chalmers was riding on a stagecoach beside the driver， and henoticed that John kept hitting the off leader a severe crack with his whip。 When heasked him why he did this， John answered： “Away yonder there is a white stone；that off leader is afraid of that stone； so by the crack of my whip and the pain inhis legs I want to get his idea off from it。” Dr。 Chalmers went home， elaborated theidea， and wrote “The Expulsive Power of a New Affection。” You must drive outfear by putting a new idea into the mind。
Fear， in any of its expressions， like worry or anxiety， cannot live an instantin your mind in the presence of the thought， the image of courage， fearlessness，confidence， hope， self-assurance， self-reliance。 Fear is a consciousness of weakness。
It is only when you doubt your ability to cope with the thing you dread that fear ispossible。 Fear of disease， even， comes from a consciousness that you will not beable to successfully combat it。
Napoleon used to visit the plague hospitals even when the physicians dreaded to go， and actually put his hands upon the plague-stricken patients。 He said the manwho was not afraid could vanquish the plague。
Dr。 Tuke， in his splendid book， “Influence of the Mind Upon the Body，” saysthat many diseases are produced by fear， in its various forms。 “Insanity， idiocy，paralysis of various muscles and organs， profuse perspirations， cholerina， jaundice，turning of the hair gray in a short time， baldness， sudden decay of the teeth， nervousshock followed by fatal anaemia， uterine troubles， malformation of embryo throughthe mother， skin disease—such as erysipelas， eczema， and many other diseases，” hedeclares， “are produced by these terrible health enemies。”
He further says that “when yellow fever， cholera， smallpox， diphtheria， andother malignant diseases obtain a footing in a community， hundreds and thousandsof people fall victims to their mental conditions， which invite the attack （bydestroying the resisting and protecting power of the body） and insure its fatality。”
During an epidemic of a dreaded contagious disease， people who are especiallysusceptible and full of fear become panic-stricken through the cumulative effectof hearing the subject talked about and discussed on every hand and the vividpictures which come from reading the newspapers。 Their minds （as in the case ofyellow fever） become full of images of the disease， of its symptoms—black vomit，delirium，—and of death， mourning， and funerals。
Dr。 W。 H。 Holcomb， an authority upon contagious diseases， gives it as hisopinion that， in a case of extreme fear， no microbes or bacteria are needed toproduce an outburst of yellow fever。 Fear itself is a contagious disease。 It needs nospeech or sign to propagate it。 It passes from one to another with lightning speed，he says。 Thus， malignant influences may be cast around us by even our best friendsand would-be helpers。
Dr。 Holcomb refers to an extensive epidemic of fear throughout the SouthernStates， in 1888， when yellow fever was in Jacksonville， Fla。 This mental malady，he says， visited all the little towns and villages in the South。 There was exhibitedon a small scale in those localities that same principle of terror which is manifested in a burning theatre， on a sinking ship， or in a stampeded army， when brave mensuddenly become cowards， wise men fools， and merciful men brutes。 Truly，something ought to be done for the moral treatment of yellow fever。
A noted authority says that in the case of pulmonary consumption we arenow witnessing a non-contagious disease in the very process of transformationinto a contagious disease through centuries of fear， worry， and terror。 There is nodoubt that multitudes of people have developed this dreaded disease mentally fromthe very deterioration in the body caused by the constant presence of terror in themind。 Dr。 Loomis actually classifies tuberculosis among the miasmatic contagiousdiseases—fear will do the rest。
The recent cholera epidemic in Russia gave a remarkable instance of theparalyzing effect of fright or terror upon people， especially the ignorant classes。
Many persons who were taken to the hospitals apparently affected with all thecharacteristic symptoms of the disease， were found， upon examination， to be sufferingfrom nothing whatever except fear。 There was not in reality a single physicalindication of the disease itself。 The prefect of St。 Petersburg was obliged to issuea proclamation to allay the fear panic。 Even in cases of real cholera， persons diedin fifteen minutes after contracting the disease。 There is no doubt that the dreadof it increased the fatality of the disease， and hastened the end by destroying orparalyzing the natural resisting power of the body。
The sacred books of all nations， except the Chinese， give much prominence tothe motive of fear。 It has been used for spiritual control， even as it has been， timeout of mind， for discipline in the domestic circle。
Much of our so-called “Christianity” has been merely nominal； superstitionsof pagan Europe have intermingled with the religious teachings of Christendom，the fear motive being thus so emphasized as to terrorize the common mind。
Think of the terrible suggestions which the old-time preacher put into theminds of his flock through his sermons on eternal punishment and the unpardonablesin。 Think of projecting such horrible pictures upon the mind of a child！The happiness of vast multitudes of people has been ruined by the fear ofpunishment after death。 I have seen mothers made miserable for many yearsbecause their sons or daughters could not accept the doctrine of eternal punishment；could not believe that the Creator would be ultimately foiled in His effort to bringHis own children into harmony and happiness。
Who can ever estimate the suflfering， the anxiety， the baseless remorse，which the old doctrines of everlasting punishment and hell fire caused among theearly Puritans and their descendants？ Doubtless the old-time clergy-men honestlybelieved they were justified in using the fear club as a check to crime， and nodoubt many people have been kept from committing great offences through fear ofeternal punishment； but who can ever estimate the harm， the awful suffering， whichthese frightful suggestions have caused good people？ If the Church in all ages hadput the same emphasis upon the power of love to reform and to regenerate as it hasupon the awful consequences of sin， the world would be much further advancedtoday and the race would be free from its worst fetter， its greatest enemy—Fear。
Most of us are haunted by fear of something great or small， either in the seenor the unseen world。 Millions are tied down by all kinds of foolish superstitions； weare still hampered by traditions， by “bogies” and fears， by myths of good luck andbad luck， that have been handed down from generation to generation。 We are stillthe slaves of ideas born of ignorance， and that have long ago been swept aside byeducation and science as the baseless figments of a crude civilization or utter sav-agery。
Many， even， who affect to laugh at silly superstitions， are unconsciouslyinfluenced by them。 How many intelligent people， for instance， are affected by thesuperstitions about Friday and the number thirteen！ It does not seem possible thata child ten years old can be so silly as to believe that there is any power in merefigures to harm him， yet mature men and women dread them as some tangible evilthing。 Some hotels have no room or suite of that number， because they find themunrentable， and many builders will not allow their houses to be so numbered。 Theyuse twelve and a half instead。
Think of an inanimate sign， or mechanical figures， which could not even movethemselves a hairbreadth in eons of time， think of their moving human beings orhaving anything whatever to do with their fate！ If the number thirteen can influencea human being， how does it do it？ There can be no effect without a cause。 Canthese figures move？ Is there any life， any force in them？ Can they cause anything？
Do they know anything？ Is there any intelligence in them？ Did any one ever seeanything that they have accomplished？
Actors and singers， as a class， are particularly noted for their superstitions。 Anamusing instance of their slavish subservience to the “13” superstition occurredrecently in New York。
Signor Campanini， the Italian director of the Manhattan Opera House， witha number of grand opera “stars，” arrived in New York harbor aboard the NorthGerman Lloyd steamer， Kaiser Wilhehn der Grosse， on October 13th。 In spite ofthe pleadings of Oscar Hammerstein， impresario of the Manhattan Opera House，neither the director nor any of the singers could be persuaded to land， because， theysaid， they dared not take the chance of having bad luck by landing on the thirteenth。
“It is curious， no doubt，” Campanini said to an interviewer， “but most Italiansand all artists avoid doing anything important on the thirteenth of the month。 HadI landed last night I should have been most unhappy。 So would my wife [EvaTetrazzini]。 We would have feared for the success of the Manhattan opera season。
Not that we feel ourselves to be the greatest element of success of the company，but some dire catastrophe might come to the company through us。 Feeling thus， Iwould not have braved the hoodoo of landing on October 13th for anything。”
What possible power can an arbitrary day of the week have upon anyhuman being？ The day we call Friday is a mere mechanical division of time， amere arbitrary name of the sixth day of the week， given it by man for his ownconvenience。 Is there any intelligence in the word Friday， any brain， force， or lifethere？ Then， if not， how can it cause any disaster to your enterprises？ Nevertheless，the superstition of “Unlucky Friday” has a powerful influence upon multitudes of lives。 There are thousands of men and women who would never think of starting ona journey or of beginning an important undertaking on this day。
Then there are others who are slaves to the clairvoyant fortune-tellers。 Thinkof the thousands of people who are made wretchedly unhappy and lose courageand heart because of the cruel predictions of these ignorant people！ I know somevery intelligent men and women who live under the domination of these fortunequacks。 They undertake nothing of importance without consulting the astrologer orclairvoyant。 If they lose anything， they immediately go to these people for advice。
Think of the influence of being told that some misfortune will overtake one ata certain age， that he will lose his wife and children at a certain time， or that he willdie at the age of forty！
No wonder that many of these things come to pass， because it is a scientificlaw of thought that what we greatly fear tends to come to us。
When Lord Byron was a boy， he was told by a fortuneteller that he would diein the thirty-seventh year of his age。 The thought haunted him， and when he becameill during that year he said there was no hope of his recovery， that it was destinedhe should die within that year。 This conviction destroyed his power of diseaseresistance， and he succumbed to the malady from which he was suffering。 Onlyrecently a New York man committed suicide because his horoscope warned him ofthree fatal days in his life—the thirteenth， the twenty-seventh， and the thirtieth of acertain month。
It is impossible to convince children who have had colored mammies fornurses that there are not such things as ghosts。 They people the darkness with allsorts of hobgoblins， and think the “Bogey Man” will spirit them away if they darego into a dark place alone。 Many white people of the South are saturated withsuperstition absorbed from their colored mammies。
A volume could be filled with the silly and ignorant superstitions that fetterand hold down not only savage peoples and the uneducated of the higher races， butalso millions of the intelligent and educated all over the world。 Superstition has always and everywhere accompanied ignorance； the more ignorant a people， themore superstitious they are； and the more enlightened and educated they become，the freer they are from all superstitious ideas。
All errors die hard， but the school and the college， the periodical and thenewspaper of today are burying-grounds for vast numbers of superstitions。 Whena young student begins to think for himself， to get his eyes open， he associates hisold fears and superstitions with ignorance and is ashamed to be influenced by themany longer。
The best of all cures for superstition or fear is the knowledge that it has noreality， but is only a creature of the imagination， a picture drawn by a morbid mind。
The perfectly healthy mind knows no fear。
If fear， in all its phases， could be removed from the human mind， civilizationwould go forward by leaps and bounds。 It is this ghastly spectre that is holdingmany people down。 It causes more suffering， more loss， more misfortune， morefailure， and makes more real slaves than any actual factor in human life。 Yet，notwithstanding the terrible grip this monster has upon human life， it can beconquered， thrust out of our lives absolutely， as easily as any other mental foe orenemy of our peace and happiness。
The new philosophy teaches us that we are practically the masters of our owndestiny； that we can， by counter suggestions， kill any of our prosperity or happinessenemies。 It teaches us that there is no great power in the universe that sendsmisfortunes， but， on the contrary， that there is a great creative Power which holdsus， shields us， and bestows on us all the bounty and prosperity， all the happinessand blessedness we open our minds to receive。
The coming man will not be fettered or held down by superstitions of anykind； he will have no fear， because he will have the knowledge which showshim that all fears are but ghosts， without entity—mere phantoms， creations of adisordered imagination， children of ignorance。XV。 SELF-CONTROL VS。 THE EXPLOSIVE
PASSIONS
“PROVE to me，” says Mrs。 Oliphant， “that youcan control yourself， and I’llsay you’re an educated man； and without this， all other education is good for nextto nothing。”
No one can expect to accomplish anything very great when he is not king ofhimself。
The lack of self-control has ruined multitudes of men with high ambition， rareability， and great education， men of immense promise in every way。
Every day the papers tell us of those who， in a fit of anger， have struck thefatal blow or fired the cruel shot that has cost them a friend and their own lives orliberty。
Ask the wretched victims in our state prisons and in our penitentiaries what ahot temper has cost them。 How many of these unfortunates have lost their libertyfor life through a fit of hot temper which may have lasted but a minute！ The cruelshot was fired， the trigger was pulled in an instant， but the friend returned never，the crime could not be undone。
Oh， the tragedies that have been enacted when the blood was hot with anger！
Many a man has lost a good position， has sacrificed the opportunity of alifetime in a fit of bad temper。 He has thrown away in the anger of a moment，perhaps， the work and experience of years in climbing to his position。
I know a very able editor who has occupied splendid positions on the bestand greatest dailies in the country。 He is a forceful， vigorous， masterful writer on agreat variety of subjects， a fine historian， and a warm， tender-hearted man， who willdo anything for any one in need， and yet he is almost a total failure because of his explosive temper。 He does not hesitate in the heat of a moment’s anger to walk outof a position which it has taken him years to get。 This man is conscious of abilitysecond to none， yet he has drifted from pillar to post， hardly able to support hisfamily， and he must go through life conscious that he is the slave of a bad temper。
Everywhere we see victims of an uncontrolled temper tripping themselves up，losing in a few moments， perhaps， all they have gained in months， or maybe in alifetime。 They are continually climbing and dropping backward。
I know several old men whose whole careers have been crippled by theirhot tempers。 They could not refrain from giving people with whom they haddifferences “a piece of their mind。” No matter how adversely it affected their owninterests， or what was at stake， they would let their tongues and tempers have fullsway。
A pretty costly business， this， of giving another person “a piece of your mind”
when your temper is up！
I know a very able business man who has practically ruined his reputation andhis business by his passion for telling people what he thinks when he gets angrywith them。 When his temper is aroused there is nothing too mean or contemptiblefor him to say。 He calls them all sorts of names。 He raves without reason or sense。
He drives his employees away from him。 It is almost impossible for him to keepany one with any spirit or ability。
I have seen people in the grip of passion or anger act more like demons thanhuman beings。 I recall one man who， when possessed by one of these terrible fits ofanger， would smash everything he could lay his hands on， and pour forth a volleyof the vilest abuse upon any one who got in his way or attempted to restrain him。 Ihave seen him almost kill animals in his rage by striking them with clubs or fencesticks。 His eyes would glare like a madman’s and people who knew him would runfor their lives。 He was for the time a maniac and did not seem to have the slightestidea of what he was doing when this demon of anger had possession of him。 Afterhis passion storm had subsided， although a robust man， he would be completely exhausted for a long time。
A man in a fit of uncontrolled passion is really temporarily insane。 He is undercontrol of the demon in him。 No man is sane when he cannot completely control hisacts。 While in that condition he is liable to do things which he would regret all therest of his life。 Many a man has been obliged to look back over a scarred discordantlife， a life filled with unutterable mortifications and humiliations because of a hottemper， because he did not learn to control himself。
What writer， what artist could ever depict the havoc which the whole broodof evil passions—anger， jealousy， revenge， and hatred—have played in humanlives。 Just think of the effect on one’s character of harboring for many years thedetermination， the passion to get square with an imagined enemy， and of waitingfor the opportunity to wreak vengeance upon some one。
Think how much a violent explosion of temper takes out of one’s entiresystem， mental and physical！ Much more than many weeks of hard work whenin a normal condition。 And then picture， if you can， the terrible after suffering， thehumiliation of it all， the remorse and chagrin， the loss of self-respect， the shock toone’s finer sensibilities， when one comes to himself and realizes what has happened！
A fit of anger may work greater damage to the body and character than adrunken bout。 Hatred may leave worse scars upon a clean life than the bottle。
Jealousy， envy， anger， uncontrolled grief may do more to wreck the physical lifethan many years of excessive smoking。 Anxiety， fretting， and scolding may instil amore subtle poison into the system than the cigarette。
“Many a soul is in a bad condition today because of the fire of anger whichrecently burned there。”
There is no doubt that an uncontrolled temper shortens many lives。 Somepeople fly into such a rage that they will tremble for hours afterwards and bewholly unfitted for business or work。
I have known a whole family completely to upset their physical conditionsand make themselves ill by a violent quarrel。 They would almost tear one another to pieces by their explosive passions。 In a short time their faces were transformed。
You could see the demons of passion fighting there。 We all know that suchquarrelling， as well as backbiting， twitting， denunciation， and criticism can producebut one result， and that it would be simply impossible for such causes to produceharmony。
How many people at the mercy of an uncontrolled passion have slainmembers of their own family or friends whom ten minutes before nothing couldhave induced them to harm！ Naturally good people commit fiendish crimes whenblinded by passion。
I know a woman who allows herself to be so swept away by a storm of ragethat after it has subsided she is completely exhausted； for days she is as weak asa child and looks as though she had been through some terrible ordeal。 A violentheadache， or some other form of physical disturbance， invariably follows。
Physicians well know how violent fits of jealousy tear the nervous system topieces so that the victim is often a complete wreck for a long time。 I have seen awoman so transformed in a single year by the domination of this terrible demon inthe mind that her friends scarcely knew her。
When jealousy once gets possession of a person it changes and colors thewhole outlook upon life。 Everything takes on the hue of this consuming passion。
The reasoning faculties are paralyzed， and the victim is completely within theclutches of this thought fiend。 Even the brain structure is changed by the harboringof this fearful mental foe。
Every little while we see accounts of people who have dropped dead in a fit ofpassion。 The nervous shock of sudden and violent rage， no matter what the cause， isso great that it will sometimes stop the action of the heart， especially if that organ isweak。 Violent paroxysms of anger have often produced apoplexy。 A temper stormraging through the brain develops rank poison and leaves all sorts of devastationbehind。
We often suffer tortures from the humiliation and loss of self-respect we bring upon ourselves by indulgence in fits of anger， in jealousy， hatred， or revenge； butwe do not realize the permanent damage， the irreparable injury， we inflict upon ourentire physical and mental being。
An uncontrolled passion in the mind actually changes the chemicalcomposition of the various secretions of the body， developing deadly poisons。
Because the mental forces are silent， we do not realize how tremendously powerfulthey are。 We have been so accustomed to think of disease and all forms of physicalills as the result of some derangement in the body， and have associated their curewith drugs or other remedies， that it is difficult for us to look upon them as causedby mental disturbances or discords。
It is well known that a violent fit of temper affects the heart instantly， andpsychophysicists have discovered the presence of poison in the blood immediatelyafter the mental storm has passed。 This explains why we feel so depressed， soexhausted and nervous after all storms of passion， fear， worry， jealousy， or revengehave swept through the mind。 It is because of the mental poison and other harmfulsecretions they have left in the brain and blood。
There is no constitution so strong but it will ultimately succumb to theconstant racking and twisting of the nerve centres caused by an uncontrolledtemper。 Every time you become angry you reverse all of the normal， mental， andphysical processes。 Everything in you rebels against passion storms； every mentalfaculty protests against their abuse。
If people only realized what havoc indulgence in hot temper plays in theirdelicate nervous structure， if they could only see with the physical eyes the damagedone， as they can see what follows in the wake of a tornado， they would not dare toget angry。
The poison generated by angry passions circulating in the blood， affects thecentres of life throughout the whole body。 The delicate cells of the brain and nervesand all of the internal organs， are deteriorated by the poison-vitiated blood。
One reason why so many people either have poor or indifferent health is because the cell life is continually starved and dwarfed by vitiated blood。 Noone can have abundant， abounding life， a superb vitality； can reach his greatestefficiency， when this mental poisoning process is constantly going on in his system。
Nothing else racks and wrenches the delicate nervous system more than fits ofuncontrolled temper， jealousy， or raging passion of any sort。 The brain and nervousmechanism were intended to run quietly， smoothly， harmoniously， and when sorun they are capable of an enormous output in good work and happiness。 But， likea delicate piece of material machinery， when overspeeded or not properly oiled， orwhen run without a balance wheel to steady their motion， they will very quicklyshake themselves to pieces。
The man who scolds and frets and fumes and lets his temper get the betterof him， little realizes what havoc his humor is playing inside of him， or how he isbreaking down his health and shortening his life。
There is something wrong in the education， the training of the man whocannot control himself， who has to confess that he is a man part of the time only，that the rest of the time he is a brute； that often the beast in him is loose and runsriot in his mental kingdom and does what it will until he can get control of himselfagain。
Zopyrus， the physiognomist， said： “Socrates’ features showed that he wasstupid， brutal， sensual， and addicted to drunkenness。” Socrates upheld the analysisby saying： “By nature I am addicted to all these sins， and they were only restrainedand vanquished by the continual practice of virtue。”
The Creator has implanted in every man a divine power that is more than amatch for his worst passion， for his most vicious trait。 If he will only develop anduse this power he need not be the slave of any vice。
Shakespeare says： “Assume a virtue if you have it not。”
Emerson also says， in eflfect： “The virtue you would like to have， assume itas already yours， appropriate it， enter into the part and live the character just as thegreat actor is absorbed in the character of the part he plays。” No matter how great your weakness or how much you may regret it， assume steadily and persistentlyits opposite until you acquire the habit of holding that thought， or of living thething， not in its weakness， but in its wholeness， in its entirety。 Hold the ideal ofan efficient faculty or quality， not of a marred or deficient one。 The way to reachor to attain to anything is to bend oneself toward it with all one’s might， and weapproximate it just in proportion to the intensity and the persistency of our effort toattain it。
If you are inclined to storm and rage， or if you “fly all to pieces” over the leastannoyance， do not waste your time regretting this weakness， and telling everybodythat you cannot help it。 Just assume the calm， deliberate， quiet， balanced composurewhich characterizes your ideal person in that respect。 Persuade yourself that youare not hot-tempered， nervous， or excitable， that you can control yourself； that youare well balanced； that you do not fly off at a tangent at every little annoyance。 Youwill be amazed to see how the perpetual holding of this serene， calm， quiet attitudewill help you to become like your thought。 No matter what comes up， no matterhow annoying， or exasperating things may be， or how excited or disturbed otherpeople around you may be， you will not be thrown off your centre。 All we are orever have been or ever will be comes from the quality and force of our thinking。
A bad temper is largely the result of false pride， selfishness， and cheap vanity，and no man who is worthy the name will continue to be governed by it。 There isnothing manly or noble in the quality which lets loose the “dogs of war，” which inan instant may make enemies of our best friends。
We all know how hard it is to control our feelings and our words when theblood flows hot through the frenzied brain， but we also know how dangerous， howfatal it is to become slaves to temper。 It not only ruins the disposition and cripplesefficiency， but it is also very humiliating； for a man who cannot control his ownacts has to acknowledge that he is not his own master。
It is dangerous for you even for a few minutes to get down off the throne ofyour reason and let the beast in you reign。 Many a person has become permanently insane by the growth of the habit of losing his temper。
Think of a man who was intended to be absolutely master of all the forces ofthe universe， stepping down off the throne of his reason and admitting that he is nota man for the time being， confessing his inability to control his own acts， allowinghimself to do the mean and low things， to say the cruel words that hurt and sting，to throw the hot javelin of sarcasm into the mind of a perfectly innocent person！
Think of that madness which makes a man strike down his best friend， or cut himto the quick with the cruel word！
Anger is temporary insanity。 A man must be insane when he is in the clutchesof a demon that has no regard for life or reputation， a demon which would bid himkill his best friend without an instant’s hesitation。
The child learns by experience to avoid touching hot things that will burn him，sharp things that will cut him； but many of us adults never learn to avoid the hottemper which sears and gives us such intense suffering， sometimes for days andweeks。
The man who has learned the secret of right thinking and self-control knowsjust as well how to protect himself from his mental enemies as his physical ones。
He knows that when the brain is on fire with passion， it will not do to add morefuel by storming and raging， but will quietly apply an antidote which will putout the fire—the serenity thought， the thought of peace， quiet， and harmony。 Theopposite thought will very quickly antidote the flames。 When a neighbor’s houseis on fire， we do not run with an oil-can to put out the flames； we do not throw onkerosene， but an antidote。 Yet when a child is on fire with passion we have been inthe habit of trying to put out the fire by adding fuel to it。 What misery， what crime，what untold suffering might be prevented by training children to self-control， bydirecting their thought into proper channels！
If we see a person who is mired in a swamp and desperately struggling toextricate himself， we run to his rescue without hesitation。 We would not think ofadding to his distress or danger by pushing him in deeper。 But somehow when a person is angered， instead of trying to put out the fire of his passion， we only addfuel to the flames。 Yet people who have bad tempers are often grateful to thosewho will help them to do what they are not able to do themselves， to control themand prevent them from saying and doing that which will give them much chagrinafterward。
When next you see a person whose inflammable passion is just ready toexplode， and you know that he is doing his best to hold himself down， why nothelp him， instead of throwing on more inflammable material and starting theconflagration？
By doing this， you will not only render him a great service， but you will alsostrengthen your own power of self-control。 The man who cannot control himselfis like a mariner without a compass—he is at the mercy of every wind that blows。
Every storm of passion， every wave of irresponsible thought buffets him hither andthither， drives him out of his course， and makes it wellnigh impossible for him toreach the goal of his desires。
Self-control is the very essence of character。 To be able to look a man straightin the eye， calmly and deliberately， without the slightest ruffle of temper underextreme provocation， gives a sense of power which nothing else can give。 To feelthat you are always， not sometimes， master of yourself gives a dignity and strengthto character， buttresses it， supports it on every side， as nothing else can。 This is theculmination of thought mastery。
XVI。 GOOD CHEER—GOD’S MEDICINE
Mirth is God’s medicine， everybody ought to bathe in it。 Grim care，moroseness， anxiety—all the rust of life—ought to be scoured off by the oil ofmirth。
—Oliver Wentjell Holmes。
“Talk happiness。 The world is sad enough without your woe。”
A WOMAN in California， who， because of crushing sorrow， had fallen avictim to despondency， insomnia， and kindred ills， determined to throw off thegloom which was making life so heavy a burden to her， and established a rulethat she would laugh at least three times a day， whether occasion presented or not。
Accordingly， she trained herself to laugh heartily at the least provocation， andwould retire to her room and make merry by herself。 She was soon in excellenthealth and buoyant spirits， and her home became a sunny， cheerful abode。
If people only knew the medicinal power of laughter， of good cheer， of theconstant unrepressed expression of joy and gladness， half the physicians would beout of work。
Did not Lycurgus set up the god of laughter in the Spartan eating-hallsbecause he thought there was no sauce like laughter at meals？
Laughter is undoubtedly one of Nature’s greatest tonics。 It brings thedisordered faculties and functions into harmony； it lubricates， the mental bearingsand prevents the friction which monotonous， exacting business engenders。 It is adivine gift bestowed upon us as a life-preserver， a health-promoter， a joy-generator，a success-maker。
Laughter， like an air cushion， eases you over the jolts and the hard places on life’s highway。 Laughter is always healthy。 It tends to bring every abnormalcondition back to the normal。 It is a panacea for heartaches， for life’s bruises。 Itis a life prolonger。 People who keep themselves in physical and mental harmonythrough hearty laughter are likely to live longer than those who take life tooseriously。
In order to become normal， the natural fun-loving forces within us must bereleased。 Laughter is one form of exercise which sets them free， rescues men fromthe “blues。”
Somewhere I have read of a man whose “laughing muscles” were so paralyzedthat his laughter sounded like a voice from the tombs。 American life is so seriousthat many men lose their power to laugh。 They can force a little sepulchral chuckle，but the genuine side-shaking laughter is almost a stranger to their experience。
They are in such a serious chase after the dollar， their life is so strenuous， so givento scheming and planning， that they do not have much time to laugh。 They donot know the medicinal value there is in the habit of laughter， how it clears thecobwebs out of the brain， disposes of the fangs of worry and anxiety and businesspressure， takes the mind off the grind of things， removes friction， and helps to makelife worthwhile。
To people who have lost the laughing habit I would say： Lock yourself inyour room and practise smiling。 Smile at your pictures， furniture， looking-glass，anything， just so the stiff muscles are brought into play again。
In a corner of his desk Lincoln kept a copy of the latest humorous ichork， andit was his habit when fatigued， annoyed， or depressed， to take this up and read achapter for relief。 Humor， whether clean， sensible wit or sheer nonsense—whateverprovokes mirth and makes a man jollier—is a gift from heaven。
Laughter is a very important element in a successful career。 Many a man whocould have been a success sleeps in a failure’s grave today because he took life tooseriously。 He poisoned the atmosphere about him， so that it became unhealthy， andparalyzed his own powers。
We often hear people， especially delicate women who have nervous dyspepsia，say they do not understand how it is that they can go out to late suppers or banquetsand eat heartily all sorts of incongruous food without feeling any inconvenienceafterward。
They do not realize that it is due to the change in the mental attitude。 Theyhave had a good time； they have enjoyed themselves。 The lively conversation，the jokes which caused them to laugh heartily， the bright， cheerful environment，completely changed their mental attitude， and of course these conditions werereflected in the digestion and every other part of the system， for laughter and goodcheer are enemies of dyspepsia。 Anything which will divert the dyspepsia’s mindfrom his ailments will improve his digestion。 When they were at home worrying overtheir health， swallowing a little dyspepsia with every mouthful of food， of coursethese women could not assimilate what they ate。 But when they were having a jollygood time they forgot their ailments， and were surprised afterward to find that theyhad enjoyed their food and that it did not hurt them。 The whole process is mental。
Use the laugh-cure—the fun-cure—in the home。 Throw away the drugs andsave doctors’ bills。
“The power of cheerfulness to do good，” says Dr。 Sanderson， “…is not anartificial stimulus of the tissues， to be followed by reaction and greater waste， asis the case with many drugs； but the effect of cheerfulness is an actual life-givinginfluence throughout a normal channel， the results of which reach every part ofthe system。 It brightens the eye， makes ruddy the countenance， brings elasticityto the step， and promotes all the inner force by which life is sustained。 The bloodcirculates more freely， the oxygen comes to its home in the tissues， health ispromoted and disease is banished。”
There is no drug which can compete with cheerfulness。 A jolly， whole hearted，sunny physician is worth more than all the remedies in an apothecary shop。 Whatmagic we often see wrought by the arrival of the physician， especially when thepatient is frightened and nervous。 Discouragement， the hopeless expression， are driven away by his reassuring， confident smile， and many times even severe pain isrelieved by his mental uplift and encouragement。
How eagerly the patient watches the doctor’s face for a ray of hope。 No drugcould work such magic as does that one encouraging look。
A friend remembers how， as a boy， when the old family physician usedto come to the home so full of life and joy and gladness， with sunshine beamingfrom every pore， members of the family would feel absolutely ashamed to be sick，ashamed to think that God’s work， which was made perfect， should need patching up。
“The whole atmosphere of the house，” he said， “seemed to change the minutethe doctor entered。 His hearty laugh， ringing through the rooms， as he rubbed hishands before the fire on a cold winter day， and his mere presence， did us more goodthan pills or potions。 Somehow， the very thought of his coming after we had sentfor him seemed to drive away our troubles。”
One of the most successful physicians in Boston gives very little medicine。
His merry face and cheerful disposition take the sting out of pain。 He replacesdespair with hope， discouragement with confidence and a cheerful reassurance，so that the sick feel a decided uplift in his presence and are filled with a strongerdetermination to get well。
Too many of us dry up and become stale， uninteresting， and abnormal fromlack of the development of the cheerful habit。 There is no one thing which willdo so much for the life， for health， for happiness， as the cultivation of the cheerfulhabit， the habit of flinging out one’s joy and gladness everywhere， radiating goodcheer。
The constantly increasing success of the vaudeville playhouses and otherplaces of amusement all over this country shows the tremendous demand in thehuman economy for fun。 Most people do not appreciate that this demand must bemet in some form or the character will be warped and defective。
What a complete revolution in your whole physical and mental being takesplace after seeing a really funny play！ You went to the play tired， jaded， worn out， discouraged。 All your mental faculties were clogged with brain ash； you could notthink clearly。 When you came home you were a new being。
A business man， on returning home after a perplexing， exasperating，exhausting day’s work， may experience the same thing。 Romping and playing withthe children， spending a jolly evening with his family or friends， telling stories andcracking jokes， rest his jaded nerves and restore him to his normal condition。
I have been as much refreshed by a good， hearty laugh， by listening towholesome stories and jokes， by spending an evening with friends and having agood time， as by a long， sound night’s sleep； and I look back upon such experiencesas little vacations。
Anything that will make a man new， that will clear the cobwebs ofdiscouragement from his brain and drive away fear， care， and worry， is of practicalvalue。
We should not look upon fun and humor as transitory things， but as solid，lasting， permanent medicinal influences on the whole character。
Why should not having a good time form a part of our daily programme？
Why should not this enter into our great life-plan？ Why should we be serious andgloomy because we have to work for a living？
There is a moral as well as healing influence in things which amuse and makeus enjoy life。 No one was ever spoiled by good humor， but tens of thousands havebeen made better by it。 Fun is a food as necessary to the wholeness of man asbread。
Who can estimate the good our great humorists have done the world in helpingto drive away care and sorrow， in lightening burdens， in taking drudgery out ofdreary occupations， in cheering the discouraged and the lonely？
A writer known for his cheerful sayings received a letter from a lady， statingthat one of his humorous poems had saved her life。
Any one who has brought relief to distressed souls， who has lifted the burdenfrom saddened， sorrowing hearts， has done as much good as any of those who have been civilization builders。
Few of us really understand the full value of good cheer and laughter asphysiological and psychological factors。 An eminent French surgeon says that weought to train children to habits of mirth。
“Encourage your child to be merry and laugh aloud，” he says。 “A good heartylaugh expands the chest and makes the blood bound merrily along。 Commend meto a good laugh—not to a little snickering laugh， but to one that will sound rightthrough the house。”
We realize that it is very necessary to train the mind in business principles； totrain certain faculties to do special things， but do not seem to think it necessary tocultivate the habit of cheerfulness。 Yet not even an education is as necessary to thechild as the formation of the cheerful habit。 This ought to be regarded as the firstessential of the preparation for life—the training of the mind toward sunshine； thedeveloping of every possibility of the cheerful faculties。
The first duty we owe a child is to teach it to fling out its inborn gladnessand joy with the same freedom and abandon as the bobolink does when it makesthe meadow joyous with its song。 Suppression of the fun-loving nature of a childmeans the suppression of its mental and moral faculties。 Joy will go out of the heartof a child after a while if it is continually suppressed。 Mothers who are constantlycautioning the little ones not to do this or not to do that， telling them not to laughor make a noise， until they lose their naturalness and become little old men andwomen， do not realize the harm they are doing。
An eminent writer says： “Children without hilarity will never amount to much。
Trees without blossoms will never bear fruit，”
There is an irrepressible longing for amusement， for rollicking fun， in youngpeople， and if these longings were more fully met in the home it would not be sodifficult to keep the boy and girl under the parental roof。 I always think there issomething wrong when the father or the children are so very uneasy to get out ofthe house at night and to go off “somewhere” where they will have a good time。 A happy， joyous home is a powerful magnet to child and man。 The sacred memory ofit has kept many a person from losing his self-respect， and from the commission ofcrime。
Fun is the cheapest and best medicine in the world for your children as well asfor yourself。 Give it to them in good large doses。 It will not only save you doctors’
bills， but it will also help to make your children happier， and will improve theirchances in life。 We should not need half so many prisons， insane asylums， andalmshouses if all children had a happy childhood。
The very fact that the instinct to play—the love of fun—is so imperious in thechild， shows a great necessity in its nature which if suppressed will leave a faminein its life。
A sunny， joyous， happy childhood is to the individual what a rich soil andgenial sun are to the young plant。 If the early conditions are not favorable， the plantbecomes starved and stunted and the results cannot be corrected in the later trees。
It is now or never with the plant。 This is true with the human plant。 A starved，suppressed， stunted childhood makes a dwarfed man。 A joyful， happy， fun-lovingenvironment develops powers， resources， and possibilities which would remaindormant in a cold， dull， repressing environment。
How many lives are blank， dry， as uninteresting as a desert becausecheerfulness was crushed out of the child life； because the joys of childhood werenever developed。 Their young lives were suppressed and all that was sweet andjuicy crushed out of them in their early years。
Everywhere we see men and women discontented and unhappy because of thelack of play in their early life。 When the young clay finally hardened it was unableto respond to a joyful environment。
Happy recreation has a very subtle influence upon the mental faculties，which are emphasized and heightened by it。 How our courage is strengthened， ourdetermination， our ambition， our whole outlook on life changed by it。 There seemsto be a subtle fluid from humor and fun which penetrates the entire being， bathes all the mental faculties， and washes out the brain ash and debris from exhaustedcerebrum and muscles。 We have all experienced the transforming， refreshing，rejuvenating power of good， wholesome fun。
Many people make anything like joy or happiness impossible by dwellingupon the disagreeable， the unfortunate， unlucky things of life。 They always see theugly， the crooked， the wrong side of things。
I once lived in a clergyman’s family where I scarcely heard a person laugh inmonths。 It seemed to be a part of the inmates’ religion to wear long faces and to besober-minded and solemn。 They did not have much use for this world； they seemedto be living for the world to come； and whenever the minister heard me laugh， hewould remind me that I had better be thinking of my “latter end，” and preparing forthe death which might come at any moment。 Laughter was considered frivolous andworldly； and as for playing in the house—it would not be tolerated for an instant。
Melancholy， solemnity used to be regarded as a sign of spirituality， but it isnow looked upon as the imprint of a morbid mind。 There is no religion in it。 Truereligion is full of hope， sunshine， optimism， and cheerfulness。 It is joyous and gladand beautiful。 There is no Christianity in the ugly， the discordant， the sad。 Thereligion which Christ taught was bright and beautiful。 The sunshine， the “liliesof the field，” the “birds of the air，” the hills， the valleys， the trees， the mountains，the brooks—all things beautiful—were in His teaching。 There was no cold， drytheology in it。 It was just happy Christianity！
Cheerfulness is one of the great miracle-workers of the world。 It reenforcesthe whole man， doubles and trebles his power， and gives new meaning to his life。
No man is a failure until he has lost his cheerfulness， his optimistic outlook。 Theman who does his best and carries a smiling face and keeps cheerful in the midst ofdiscouragements， when things go wrong and the way is dark and doubtful， is sureto win。
“Laugh until I come back，” was a noted clergyman’s “good-by” salutation。 Itis a good one for us all。
XVII。 THE SUN-DIAL’S MOTTO
ON a famous sun-dial it is written： “I record none but hours of sunshine。”
Every human life would be beautified by making this a life motto。
What a great thing it would be if we could only learn to wipe out of ourmemories forever everything unpleasant， everything which brings up bittermemories and unfortunate associations and depressing， discouraging suggestions！
If we could only keep the mind filled with beautiful thoughts which uplift andencourage， the efficiency of our lives would be multiplied。
Are not some people so unfortunately constituted that they are unable toremember pleasant， agreeable things？ When you meet them they always have somesad story to tell， something that has happened to them or is surely going to happen。
They tell you about the accidents， narrow escapes， losses， and afflictions they havehad。 The bright days and happy experiences they seldom mention。 They recall thedisagreeable， the ugly， the discordant。 The rainy days make such an impressionupon their minds that they seem to think it rains about all of the time。
There are others who do just the reverse。 They always talk of the pleasantthings， good times， and agreeable experiences of their lives。 I know some of thesepeople who have had all sorts of misfortunes， losses， sorrows， and yet they soseldom speak of them or refer to them， that you would think they never had hadanything in their lives but good fortune， that they had never had any enemies， thateverybody had been kind to them。 These are the people who attract us， the peoplewe love。
The habit of turning one’s sunny side toward others is a result of the practiceof holding charitable， loving， cheerful thoughts perpetually in the mind； whilethe gloomy， sarcastic， mean character is formed by harboring hard， uncharitable， unkind thoughts until the brain becomes set toward the dark， so that the life canonly radiate gloom。
Some people’s minds are like a junk shop； they contain things of considerablevalue mixed with a great deal of rubbish。 There is no system or order in them。
These minds retain everything—good， bad， or indifferent。 They can never bearto throw anything away， for fear it might be of service at some time， so that theirmental storehouses are clogged with all sorts of rubbish。 If these people wouldonly have a regular house-cleaning and throw away all the rubbish， everythingof a doubtful value， and systematize and arrange what is left， they might amountto something； but no one can do good work with his mind full of discord andconfusion。
Get rid of the mental rubbish。 Do not go through life burdened with nonessential，meaningless things。 Everywhere we see people who are handicapped，doing everything to a great disadvantage， because they never will let go ofanything。 They are like the over-careful housekeeper， who never throws anythingaway， for fear it may be of use in the future， and whose attic and woodshed， andevery closet and corner in the house， are piled up with rubbish which “mightbe wanted some time。” The practice of throwing away rubbish of all kinds is ofinestimable value。
Occasionally we come across minds that are like public cabs。 Now you see inthem a good-looking man or woman—a beautiful character； a little later a drunkardor vicious woman。 In other words， the cabman picks up the first customer he finds，not caring whether he is good or bad。 So this order of mind picks up all sorts ofideas， good， bad， and indifferent， without selection or choice。 It is like a sponge；it absorbs everything that comes near it。 It is impossible for such a mind to beclean， pure， free from enemy thoughts， conflicting thought currents， inharmoniousvibrations or demoralizing influences。
One of the greatest accomplishments of the finest character is the ability toorder his mind and to exclude from it all the enemy thoughts—thoughts that bring friction and discord into the life， thoughts that depress， that stunt， that darken。
No mind can do good work when clouded with unhappy or vicious thoughts。
The mental sky must be clear or there can be no enthusiasm， no brightness，clearness， or efficiency in our mental work。
If you would do the maximum of which you are capable， keep the mindfilled with sunshine， with beauty and truth， with cheerful， uplifting thoughts。 Buryeverything that makes you unhappy and discordant， everything that cramps yourfreedom， that worries you， before it buries you。
The mental temple was not given us for the storing of low， base， mean things。
It was intended for the abode of the gods， for the treasuring of high purposes， grandaims， noble aspirations。
It is a shame， and will some time be looked upon as a disgrace， for ahuman being bearing the stamp of divinity to be dominated by base， unworthy，demoralizing thoughts。 The time will come when one will be as much ashamedof harboring a disagreeable， discordant， contaminating thought as he would feelif he were caught stealing。 When a man once gets a true perception of himself， ofhis grandeur and dignity， and infinite possibilities， he will not allow himself to bedominated by the mental enemies which now dog him from the cradle to the grave。
Man was not made to express discord， but harmony； to express beauty， truth，love， and happiness； wholeness， not halfness； completeness， not incompleteness。
No one has learned the art of true living until he has trained his mind to forgetevery experience from which he can no longer derive any advantage—that willhinder his progress and make him unhappy。 No matter how great a mistake youhave made， it should be forgotten， buried forever。 Don’t keep digging it up。 Youhave learned the lesson there is in it for you。 The only good use you can make of anunfortunate mistake is to make it a starting-point for something better。
What is there to be gained by harboring injuries， by dwelling upon misfortunes，by morbid worrying over our failures？ Did it ever pay to harbor slight and imaginedinsults？
There is only one thing to do with a disagreeable thought or experience， andthat is， get rid of it； hurl it out of your mind as you would a thief out of your house。
You cannot afford to give shelter to enemies of your peace and comfort。
If you have hard feelings， unkindly thoughts toward others， if you are tryingto “get square” with someone who has injured you， or if you are suffering fromjealousy， envy， or hatred， dispel these killing emotions， these discordant feelings，as vicious enemies。 Say to yourself： “This is not manly， this is not friendly， this isnot humane； these are the thoughts for the base， degraded； they are not the sort ofthoughts for one who is trying to stand for something in the world。”
So long as you harbor the hatred thought， the jealous thought， the revenge，worry， anxiety， or fear thought， you must suffer—just as a pedestrian with gravel inhis shoes must suffer until he removes it。
We cannot harbor any grudge， any hatred against another without suffering afrightful loss in our own nature。 It coarsens， animalizes， brutalizes us。 On the otherhand， the holding of the kindly feeling， the love thought， the helpful， charitable，magnanimous thought， ennobles the life， beautifies the character， enriches thenature。 Our mental attitude gives its color to the life。 What it is， we are like towardothers。 If that is hateful， we are hateful； if that is revengeful， we have a revengefuldisposition。 We are like our ideals。 I have never known a really good person whohad a mean， contemptible estimate of other people， or who was always criticisingthem， questioning their motives， imputing to them low， selfish motives。
Do not go about nursing some fancied wrong or insult or grudge againstsomebody， cherishing unkind feelings toward any one。 Such thoughts poison thebrain。 They sting and corrupt。 Bitterness in the heart is like a leaven， which worksits way through the entire system。 The constant dwelling upon bitter things sapsyour vitality and lessens your ability to do something worth while。 These areenemies of your youthfulness， of your happiness and success。 You cannot afford tohave them festering in your heart and tormenting your mind。
Do not remember anything disagreeable which can cripple your efficiency or mar your work。 Just wipe it out of your memory， no matter how much it may hurtyour pride to do so。 Your great aim should be progress， and you cannot afford tohave a lot of rubbish clinging to you which keeps you back or hinders your speedin your life race。 You need all your energy， every ounce of power you possess， forthe race。 Husband your strength for the main issue。 Make every ounce of force tell。
Make up your mind to be large， generous， and charitable， to forget slights orinjuries， not to harbor malice， but to remember that most people are kind at heartand would not intentionally slight or injure you。 Show your charitable side to everyone。 Be cheerful， kind， and helpful， no matter what others may do to you or sayabout you。 Learn always to put a charitable interpretation upon people’s motivesand you will be surprised at the effect of your attitude， not only upon yourself， butalso upon those with whom you are associated。 The kindly， helpful， sympatheticthought held toward your enemies will work like a leaven in their characters andchange them for the better a thousand times quicker than seeking revenge or tryingto get even with them。
The man who radiates good cheer to everybody， who says kind things aboutpeople， who sees in his fellow-man the man God made， the immortal， perfectman—not the sin-racked， the vice-scarred man—is the one we love and admire。
Why should we remember the unkind things people say of us？ If we practisedthe art of forgetting these things we should learn to love where we once hated，to admire where we despised， to help where we hindered， to praise where wecriticised。
The good excludes the bad； the higher always shuts out the lower； the greatermotive， the grander affection excludes the lesser， the lower。 The good is more thana match for the bad。
A wpman who has had great sorrows and afflictions says： “I made theresolution that I would never sadden any one with my troubles。 I have laughed andtold jokes when I could have wept。 I have smiled in the face of every misfortune。 Ihave tried to let everyone go away from my presence with a happy word and bright thought to carry with them。 Happiness makes happiness， and I myself am happierthan I would have been had I sat down and bemoaned my fate。”
When you were in the dumps， “blue” and discouraged， worried and almostready to give up the struggle for the thing you were trying to reach， did you nevermeet some sunny， jovial， humorous character， through whose influence it seemedthat the whole world was changed in a few minutes—the whole atmosphere clearedof bogies and haunting skeletons—and you caught the contagion of the humor andgood cheer， and were another person？ This was due only to your change of thought。 the new suggestions held in your mind。 It was only a question of the expulsivepower of a stronger motive， affection， or idea。 If we only knew the philosophy ofthis expulsive power of a stronger， higher motive to drive out the weaker or thelower， we could quickly clear the mental atmosphere of all the clouds of doubt anddespair， of all worry and anxiety and uncertainty by substituting their opposites。
If we did not harbor in the mind the things that are not good for us， they wouldnot make such a lasting impression upon us。 In fact， they would not get hold ofus。 It is the harboring of them， turning them over and over， thinking of them， thatintrenches them in the mind。
The way to get rid of error is to keep the mind full of truth； the way to get ridof discord is to keep saturated with harmony， the love thought。
Harmony is the reality， the entity， the creative force。 The time will comewhen the child will be taught from the outset how to protect himself from insidiousenemies of mind and body， how to keep himself in harmony by always living inthe light of hope and truth， where ghosts and hideous shadows cannot live。 Hewill be trained in the knowledge that truth and beauty， joy and gladness， harmony，goodwill thoughts， health thoughts， will kill their opposites； that they have the sameeffect upon them that water has upon fire。XVIII。 “AS YE SOW”
Thought is another name for fate， Choose， then， thy destiny， and wait—For love brings love， and hate brings hate。
—Ella Wheeler Wilcox。
“Beautiful thoughts crystallize into habits of grace and kindness， whichsolidify into genial and sunny circumstances。”
IS it not a strange fact that while men know with absolute certainty thatwhat they sow or plant in the soil will come back to them in exact kind， that it isabsolutely impossible to sow corn and get a crop of wheat， they entirely disregardthis law when it comes to mental sowing？
On what principle can we expect a crop of happiness and contentment whenfor years we have been sowing seed thoughts of exactly the opposite character？
How can we expect a crop of health when we are all the time sowing diseasethought seeds？
We would think a farmer insane who should sow thistle seeds all over hisfarm and expect to reap wheat。 But we sow fear thoughts， worry thoughts， anxiousthoughts， doubt thoughts， and wonder that we are not in perpetual harmony。
The harvest from our thoughts is just as much the result of law as that of thefarmer’s sowing。 Seed corn can only produce corn。 A man’s achievement is theharvest， big or little， beautiful or blighted， abundant or scarce， according to thecharacter of the thoughts he has sown。
A man who sows failure thoughts can no more reap a success harvest thanthe farmer can get a wheat crop from thistles。 If he sows optimistic seed， theharmony， health， purity， truth thoughts， the thoughts of abundance and prosperity， of confidence and assurance， he will reap a corresponding harvest； but if he sowsdiscord he will reap discordant conditions。
Harmony is power； discord is weakness。 Pessimistic thoughts are thistleswhich check the good products and ruin the harvest。
How simple our great life problems would become if we could only realizethat the mental laws are just as scientific as the physical laws！ Every thoughtgenerated in the brain is a seed which must produce its harvest—thistle or rose，weed or wheat。
Our careers are the harvests of our mental sowing。 If we sow the wind weshall reap the whirlwind。
If we sow the thoughts of abundance， of plenty， we shall reap accordingly；but if we sow the mean， pinched， stingy， failure thought we shall reap a povertyharvest。 In other words， the life harvest must follow the thought。 When we see aselfish， repulsive face， we know that it is the harvest of selfish， vicious sowing。 Onthe other hand， when we see a calm inspiring face， we know that it has come fromthe sowing of harmonious， helpful thought seeds。
If there is any one law of the universe emphasized over and above all others， itis that like produces like everywhere and always。
A person who should take a knife and begin to slash his flesh until the bloodflowed would be shut up in an insane asylum； but we are all the time slashing ourmental selves with the edged thought-tools—hatred， revenge， anger， jealousy—andyet we think ourselves sane， normal。
Every thought is a seed which produces a mental plant exactly like itself。 Ifthere is venom in the seed thought-plant there will be venom in the fruit which willpoison the life， which will destroy happiness and efficiency。
If you sell yourself to your desires， you must expect the harvest to correspond。
A man who sells himself to a selfish life， a life of getting and never giving， mustnot complain if there are thistles and thorns in his harvest。 Life is just to us。 It givesus what we pay for。 The truth is， many of us ask for things without being willing to pay the price， and， of course， we receive only as we pay， for Nature keeps a cashstore。 She gives us everything we pay for； we take away nothing without leavingthe price。
The coming man will know that if he wants to produce a crop of prosperityhe must not sow failure or poverty seeds， seeds of discouragement or doubt。 Hewill sow the seed that will produce the crop he wants。 If he wants to producea character-crop of beauty， sweetness， and loveliness， he will sow the seeds ofkijidness， love， and helpfulness； and he will know that if he sows seeds of hatred，jealousy， bitterness， and revenge he will get the same kind of a crop—hideous，noxious weeds。
The coming man will live scientifically。 He will know that there is only oneway to produce physical harmony， vigor， strength； that is， by sowing thought-seedswhich are akin to the health crop he seeks。 He will be just as certain of the characterof his thought-crop as the farmer is certain that his harvest will correspond with hisseed。
The body is simply a reflection of the mind； it cannot be anything else。 Itwould be impossible for a person to hold only beautiful， loving thoughts in themind and not have the body correspond and come into harmony with the habitualthinking。 It is only a question of time。 There is no guess-work about the processes。
There is an absolutely inexorable law： Like must produce like。
It is impossible for a thief to injure the person he steals from half so muchas he injures himself。 He inconveniences his victim， but stabs himself with avenomous weapon。 We are so constituted that it is impossible to injure anotherwillingly without injury to ourselves。 If we would be good to ourselves we must begood to others also。 We cannot possibly strike our neighbor without receiving theblow ourselves。 This is the new philosophy which Christ taught。 Before his day itwas “An eye for an eye，” an unkindness for an unkindness， a thrust for a thrust， ablow for a blow； but he taught that we must not strike back。 “Ye have heard that ithath been said。 An eye for an eye， and a tooth for a tooth： but I say unto you， That ye resist not evil： but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek， turn to him theother also。”
“Ye have heard that it hath been said。 Thou shalt love thy neighbor， andhate thine enemy。 But I say unto you。 Love your enemies， bless them thatcurse you， do good to them that hate you， and pray for them which despitefullyuse you and persecute you。” This is as scientific as the laws of chemistry ormathematics。
The coming man will find that indulgence in retaliation for real or fanciedinjury， indulgence in hatred or revenge， will only rob him of power and mar hisown achievement。
The infant puts his hand in the flame or on the hot stove until the pain teacheshim better。 After we have tortured ourselves with thoughts which tear and lacerateus， after we have had experience enough of this kind， we shall learn that it is tooexpensive a business， that we cannot afford to pay such a price for the sake of“getting square” with another。 Self-protection will keep us from it when we knowenough。
We may complain of our condition to-day， but we are simply reaping what wesowed yesterday。 There is no dodging this reaping。 The only way to get a differentharvest tomorrow is to sow differently to-day。 Everything we do， every thought thatpasses through our mind， is a seed which we throw out into the soil， the world， andwhich must give a harvest like itself。 Many people complain because their harvestis so full of thorns， thistles， and weeds； but if they analyzed their lives they wouldfind that they had been sowing seeds of selfishness， jealousy， and envy。 If they hadsown seeds of unselfishness， kindness， happiness， and love， they would have had avery different kind of harvest。
The time will come when an intelligent person will no more think of indulginga cruel， envious， jealous thought toward another than he would put his hand intothe flames。
The future man will not lacerate himself with vicious thoughts。 He will not stab himself with jealousy or hatred thoughts， with fear or sick thoughts， because，like the child who will not put his hand in the fire after he has learned that it burns，he will want to avoid the pain they cause。
THE END