The Manawatu Herald. TUESDAY, JULY 9, 1907. THE FORCE OF EXAMPLE.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXIX, Issue 3769, 9 July 1907, Page 2

The Manawatu Herald. TUESDAY, JULY 9, 1907. THE FORCE OF EXAMPLE.

Once, upon a,,time (a phrase which shows the force of example) a man stood still in- the street of a city and gazed at the sky. There was nothing at all. remarkable in the sky, but he kept looking at it. By the time he had kept looking at it for five minutes, twenty other people were also gazing anxiously at the same sky. Before the people had found that there was nothing whatever to cause them to continue to stare, the crowd had to be handled by the police. The original starer was merely demonstrating the force of example, and won a bet about it. A crowd will stand watching a funeral.. One man raises his hat. The people follow bis example, not out of respect to the dead person, but because of the force of example. People drop threepenny bits into the church collection plate for the same reason, and the man who has the effrontery to stand'on a street corner telling the people that the world will give up business to-morrow at 3.30 p.ra., will have his followers. Murderers and suicides set examples which ate frequently followed by an epidemic of murder and suicide. As an instance of the force of example, the present epidemic of crime in Melbourne in ay be cited. Since Mr Bauer, diamond sel’er, was murdered, criminals of all kinds have followed the example of the criminal who Started the epidemic. A strong man may completely dominate a party in Parliament. Just as a crbwd may take their hats off at file instigation of one man, so will a political party follow their leader to'the lobby, like a mob of Merinos through a gap in a fence. One man. in a crowded theatre yells ‘‘fire.” Generally, the crowd doesn’t question the truth of the man’s statement. If he rushes out and kills somebody in the rush, his example spreads. In five minutes everybody is yelling “fire,” and killing everybody else. Originality of thought and action is rare. Canada is a large country. It is 2800 miles across, and about 2000 miles long. It has also between five and six millions of people. It is the ‘‘Dominion of Canada.” New Zealand is about 1100 miles long, and it varies in breadth. It will have to use glove-stretchers to become as wide as Canada. It has over eight hundred thousand people. It is also a “ Dominion,” or intends to be. It is another illustration of the force of example. The King wears wide trousers and a green shirt to-day. All smart men the day after, or as soon as possible, follow his example.- It is not because the King has better taste than anybody else. It is because ot the peculiar unoriginal kink in people. The world isn’t run by the ‘‘follow my leader” sort of person. You have never seen a genius who cared twopence about doing something because everybody else did it. The desire

of the rank and file of the people to drop into a rut and keep there, is all due to the force of example, not the example of the man who specialises, but the example ol the man who doesn’t. The desire of the educationalists of the past was to turn out every scholar equipped with the alleged knowledge that every scholar had possessed before him. Thus the boy who hadn’t a notion of geography and was aching to become a doctor, would be beaten for not knowing his arithmetic lessons. If he didn’t follow the example of the boy who could do sums in his sleep, he was looked upon as a dullard. No allround school marvel has ever achieved distinction in an essential science or industry. It is the duty of a State and of educationalists to discover the “bent” of the individual and to train it. It is absolutely pathetic to observe the faithfulness with which one person will express the sentiments of another person and by the same words. Public speakers would consider they had done something quite “ outre ” if they opened a speech in any other way than has been the custoni for hundreds of years. An expression that is not really marvellous ’ becomes a classic by use—and example. Who does not know ‘ ‘ Mary had a little lamb ”? It is a classic/mot : because of any literary merit or genius of sentiment, but because it is simple enough to be understood. Is there a person in the English-speaking world who does not know that “ Punch’s ” advice to those about to marry is ” Don’t,” or that the only way to begin a speech is “ It gives me great pleasure.” Some people like to break away from convention. For instance, the common greeting “How d’ye do? ” is beautifully varied in the “Dominion” by “How yer doin? ” or “ How yer poppiu up? ” or “Where yer workin?” by the thousands of followers of this beautiful example. All the same, you don’t often meet a man who is original enough to open his conversation without saying its a fine day or it is going to be wet, or something about the weather. The dreadful lack of originality is so keenly felt that conversation generally languishes until one of the parties conceives the brilliantly original idea of asking the other to “ Come an’ have a drink.” This invitation is usually a great relief. If people were a little more original what a- falling off in hotels there would be ? The power of example is being constantly shown in many fields, even in the religious vineyard. If it is possible to find something new in beliefs, be sure that there will be hundreds of people stirred out of their usual sluggishness of thought who will become converts to the power. How often does one hear that there “ is no precedent” for a certain line of action ? How is anyone to do anything that no one else has ever done ? Flow powerful is the example that induces a man to work for ten shillings a week because his father and his grandfather also worked for that sum ! The theatrical adventurer who pays a crowd of people to congregate before a theatre two hours before the show is certain of a “full house,” and, the paid hapd-clappers at any show can popularise the worst performance ever shown; The person who hisses at a meeting gets a following at once. He has the courage to hiss alone. The others have not the originality or the courage to begin until someone shows them the way. One stone thrown at an arresting policeman will encourage a dozen others to murder it necessary, and the town that has the effrontery to institute a tramservice becomes the example for the whole “Dominion.” Every original idea, whatever the outcome or the vast possibilities may be, is the property of one mind. So persistent is the desire to copy, to imitate, that few originators get the credit of their performance. Who built the Eand Bill ? Both sides of the House claim the origination of the best ideas, and both disclaim the origination of the poor ones. It is, however, a good thing that geniuses are few and far between. If everybody had the power of specialising and of having unalterable opinions, there would be no discipline. Still a great many people whose powers are not allowed to develop because of the rut and the groove and the bell-wether system, might do distinctive wqrk iff convention was less exacting and the national system furthered diversity. , But the man who is original enough to walk the streets without a hat or without boots is looked upon as a lunatic, until the bell-wether crowd show their admiration of him by doing likewise. No reformer ever did a single thing that did not bring contumely (and imitation.) The majority aim to live in the same way, and to wear the same kind of clothes. If “ fashion ” says a man shall have a coat slit up the back, the man who doesn’t have a coat of that breed is somehow looked upon as behind the times. You have never heard of a Gladstone or a Churchill or an Edison, a Maxim, a Marconi, or a Botha rushing to the outfitter to get a new kind of collar because the Prince of Wales or the King of Spain or the Czar of Russia has set the example. We must have great exemplars and it is a good thing people follow them. But following the examples that simply keep people in the same rut, when by the exercise of individuality they might rise superior to example is a matter, the gravity of which doesn’t seem to worry Parliament, which, in itself, is probably a better example of the bell-wether business than anything one might name.

WOLPES’S CHNAPPS stimulates tke organs of urination.

LOCAL & GENERAL NEWS The Council call tenders for felling and removal of trees at Cemetery. Mrs Hamer, of the Economic, notifies that she is giviug up selling boots and shoes, and the present stock is to be sacrificed at 5s in the £ discount. A person, who is leaving the district, has 21 volumes of Dickens’ work for sale, for £i. Books can be seen at this office. Foxton and district was visited by a heavy hail storm this morning. The weather during the past few days has been very cold and, wet.

At last night’s Borough Council meeting, eulogistic references were made by Councillors to the efficient manner in which the lamp-lighter was carrying out his duties. .

At the Police Court this morning, before A. Cockburn, Esq., J,P., two first offending young men, who bad been imbibing not wisely but too well, were each fined 5s or 24 hours.

A councillor’s excuse for absence from last night’s council meeting w r as whooping cough... Cr Coley desired that this excuse would apply to him when absent from future meetings! It should be hardly necessary for us to remind the general public of the concert and play to be held in the Public Hall on Thursday evening next. The names of those taking part in the Breach of Promise trial, Bardell v. Pickwick, appear elsewhere in this issue, Danevirke according to a witness in the Arbitration Court, is in a very bad way commercially at the present time. “The district is now in a transition stage,” said the witness. ‘ ‘ The sawmills have gone out, and the farmers have not yet come in, and the result is that business is suffering severely. ’ ’ A Californian, U.S.A., paper states that a resident of Carpentaria took first prize at a recent exhibition in the States of the Cosmopolitan Farmers’ League with a pumpkin which weighed 3301b5. The 14 year old son of the grower of this remarkable vegetable, it is stated, recited a nursery rhyme from within the pumpkin.

William Druce, son of the claimant to the Dukedom of Portland, has sailed form Melbourne for London to assist in preparing the claimant’s evidence also to look after his father’s personal safety. The trial is expected to begin in October. A very strong bar has been retained. Counsel for Claimant’s syndicate will be led bv Mr Rufus Isaacs, K.C.

Charles Jenkins* jockey, received an injury at Bulls recently, and the matter was explained by bis friends saying he fell on a scythe while sky-larking, says tne Feilding Star. Inspector Wilson, of the Police Force, heard of the .occurrence, and investigations followed. It is alleged that Jenkins received the injury during a brawl, and the police will make fullest inquiry into the question. If an offence has been committed, the guilty parties will be brought to justice.

From a cable message from Melbourne which has just come to hand we learn that the great fight between Burns, the champion of America, and Squires, champioq of Australia, resulted in a sen : sational victory for Burns. The contest, which took place last Thursday (American Independence Day), near San Francisco, only lasted one round. Each man deposited 5000$, and the world’s exchampion,. James J. Jeffries, acted as referee. Squires had never previously been beaten in Australia.

William Clarke, a farmer residing at the Upper Hutt, met with an accident on Saturday night which terminated fatally. After alighting from a train at the Upper Hutt, he went to cross the line while shunting was in progress. By some means he was struck by a truck, both legs being crushed. Clarke died in Wellington, Hospital at 2.30 yesterday. Deceased was a married man about 23 years of age. The quantity of gold exported from New Zealand during the past half-year was 226,415 ounces, valued at ,£904,946, a decrease of 38,606 ounces of a value of £165,486 compared with the corresponding period of last year. The export of gold last month was 26,702 ounces, valued at £104,459, against 48,640 ounces, valued at in June last year. The quantity of silver sent out of the colony last month was 91,231 ounces, of a value of ,£9,342.

Mrs May Tumble, who weighs nearly thirty stone, accidentally fell on her eighth husband and crushed him to death. She is the stoutest woman in America, and known in Washington (says the Evening Standard) as “Mother Rumble Tumble.’’ Mr Tumbles wealthy merchant, was roller-skat-ing and fell. Mrs Tumble immediately behind, fell upon him. He was unconscious when rescued, an examination by a physician showed that the pelvic bone was crushed, and that he had sustained other internal injuries. He died before reaching the hospital. In nearly every case Mrs Tumble’s husbands have met with misadventure, causing untimely death. Her seventh husband was killed by the sudden closing of a folding bed caused by the breaking of a spring under her weight. llimuMO has cured thousands of sufferers from rheumatism, gout, sciatica, lumbago. It will cure you. Try it. All stores, and chemists 2s 6dand 4s 6d A positive cure. 5

\ Tenders are invited for the purchase of the two-storeyed dwelling, m Thynne Street, on section 61. Most of the timber is in a good state on preservation, and the iron on the roof is in splendid condition. Tliere is enough timber and iron in the, dwelling to erect a comfortable fouil-roomed cottage. Tenders for purchase close on Saturday next at noort, Anlast night’s Borough Council meeting the following resolution, proposed by Cr Baker and seconded by Cr Hennessy was carried unanimously ; —That Mr Stevens, M.h[R., be respectfully requested to endeavour to obtain a verandah for the local railway station ; also a new Post Office, as the present building has more than served its day arad with the general progess of the town is not a suitable building. For Children's Hacking Cough a night Woods’ Great Peppermint Cure 1/6 and 2/0 THE LATEST AND THE BEST. Remedy forVQliest complaints is Dr. Sheldon’s NeV. Discovery for Goughs, Colds, and Consumption. Jt cures when all else 3s. Obtainable at E. Healey’s, Chemist. / . . Did you ever stop to think that Chamberlain’s /Pain Balm is a general family liniment, especially good for rheumatism ? / The • quick relief afforded by applying it is worth many times its cost/ Makes rest and sleep possible. For sale by Messrs Gardner and Whibloy, JFoxton.

Liniments jeannot remove the real trouble in rheumatism, gout, sciatica, and lumbago, Ehecmo does, by removing the excess uric acid from the blood. Ehecmo effects a thorough cure. 2s 6d and 4s 6d. 4

Ask tor WOLFE’S. Insist and demand the real schnapps.