300 ON MEDICAL EDLX'ATION xii 



done, to be the most important of all policies in 

 the conduct of practical life. It does not matter 

 how many tumbles you have in this life, so long 

 as you do not get dirty when you tumble; it is 

 only the people who have to stop to be washed 

 and made clean, who must necessarily lose the 

 race. And I can assure you that there is the 

 greatest practical benefit in making a few failures 

 early in life. You learn that which is of inesti- 

 mable importance — that tlierc are a great many 

 people in the world wlio are just as clever as you 

 are. You learn to put your trust, by and by, in 

 an economy and frugality of the exercise of your 

 powers, both moral and intellectual; and you very 

 soon find out, if you have not found it out before, 

 that patience and tenacity of purpose are worth 

 more than twice their weight of cleverness. In 

 fact, if I were to go on discoursing on this subject, 

 I should become almost eloquent in praise of non- 

 success; but, lest so doing should seem, in any 

 way, to wither well-earned laurels, I will turn 

 from that topic, and ask you to accompany me in 

 some considerations touching another subject 

 which has a very profound interest for me, and 

 which I think ought to have an equally profound 

 interest for vou. 



I presume that the great majority of those 

 whom I address propose to devote themselves to 

 the profession of medicine; and I do not doubt, 

 from the evidences of abilitv which have been 



