SOCIETY OF CENTRAL ILLINOIS. 305 



"ALJ. WORK AND NO PLAY MAKES JACK A DULL BOY." 



BY A. L. HAY. 



In rej^ard to mankind it may be truly said that "there is noth- 

 ing in a name." For instance, a man's name might be Johnson, and 

 it might even bear the prefix Andrew, and yet tlie application of the 

 name might not enable its possessor to rise from the position of a 

 country tailor, through the successive stages of life, to the Presi- 

 dency of the United States. In fact he might more easily fall from 

 an exalted position in the world to that of the lowest, and in much 

 less time then it required to make the ascent. 



I recently noticed an account of the arrest and confinement of 

 George Washington for drunkenness and false swearing. Evidently 

 this man did not desire to immortalize himself in the role of a wood 

 chopper, as did his illustrious predecessor, and he did not struggle 

 against the downward tendency of a man as one might suppose his 

 historic name would have impelled him to do. I was once personally 

 acquainted with a man by the name of Moody who never missed an 

 opportunity for filling hituself as full of bad whisky as his skin would 

 hold. Many other instances of a similar character might be cited, 

 but these will suffice to {)rove the truth of the old saying quoted 

 above. But however true this may be in regard to mankind it is 

 certainly not true when applied to books, papers, periodicals or liter- 

 ature of any kind. 



I believe it to be a fact that books are often sold by their titles, 

 when, if the buyer only knew their contents, they would not have 

 purchased. And, in saying this. T know whereof I affirm, for T have 

 been there myself. I have even heard of authors paying fancy prices 

 for an attractive title to a very unattractive book in order to pro- 

 mote its sale and add to its number of readers. How very important 

 it is then that anything written for the instruction or amusement of 

 others should be prefixed by an attractive title. I once knew a pa- 

 per, established by a Young Men's Christian Association, and in- 

 tended for a good purpose, but, unfortunately, they gave it an un- 

 popular name and it failed. Some over-enthusiastic member of the 

 Association proposed calling it Work, which title was adopted, and 

 it proved entirely too suggestive. The idea of having such an un- 

 po])ular subject thrust upon one's iu)tice every week during the hot 

 summer mojiths when hunting, fishing or absolute rest was upper- 

 most in the minds of all, was entirely too disagreeable to meet with 

 success, and it soon expired. 



With such incidents as these fresh in my mind, you may be sure 

 I was considcral^ly shocked when 1 received notice froui your Secre- 

 tary that this Society would be glad to listen to a paper from me at 

 this time, upon a subject which started out with the declaration 



20 



