C. U. C. p. ALUMNI JOURNAL 



195 



and of art, to absorb the experience and 

 to share the ambitions and the hopes of 

 mankind, all this is primarily a matter 

 of character and of will. The materia! 

 obstacles that stand in the way of its 

 accomplishment are too often sternly- 

 present, but they are far from insur- 

 mountable. Effort, persistent directed 

 effort, will bring us quickly to the King- 

 dom of Light and keep us within its 

 kindly governance. 



The philosophers rule the world, and 

 they have always ruled it since philos- 

 ophy began. The man of action ma\ 

 not know what those ruling ideas and 

 purposes are. Nevertheless they are 

 there and they are ruling. They may 

 be the product of a good philosophy, 

 or they may be the product of a bad phil- 

 osophy ; but of some philosophy they 

 are certainly the product. Ideas direct 

 conduct. He who has entered into the 

 Kingdom of Light moves easily and in 

 friendly converse among ideas. He 

 chooses those that he would have guide 

 him in his daily business. At nightfall, 

 perhaps, he retires within the quiet 

 boundaries of this Kingdom to refresh 

 himself anew by pondering, by weighing 

 again those thoughts that console and 

 those thoughts that elevate. 



There is no such thing as a common, 

 a humdrum or a sterile life, unless we 

 make it so ourselves. "The rainbow and 

 the rose," says my author, "will give 

 their colors to all alike. The sense of 

 beauty that is born in every soul pleads 

 for permission to remain there." If we 

 will but look for it, there is something 

 ennobling and uplifting in every voca- 

 tion to which a man can put his hand. 

 Every activity of life has its material 

 aspect and its spiritual aspect. It has 



its result in visible accomplishments, and 

 it also has its result in invisible mind- 

 building, will-building and intellectual 

 enjoyment. 



Just now we have been speaking much 

 of a little town on the river Avon, a 

 town which, compared with London, 

 with jManchester, with Liverpool, is 

 negligible in size ; but we have been 

 speaking of Stratford because the fo" 

 tunes and the influence of letters are in- 

 dissolubly linked with it. It is a capital 

 city of the Kingdom of Light. It is not 

 potent as are the cities of commerce and 

 of capital and the homes of great popu 

 lations ; but when the rising tide of time 

 has swept all these into the valley ol 

 forgetfulness, the capital cities of the 

 Kingdonx of Light will remain safel) 

 seated upon their high hills. 



It is into this kingdom that I would" 

 have each son and daughter of Columbia 

 enter. Its gates are many and various 

 its high places are of different kinds and 

 of different ages; but from them all one 

 looks eastward to tomorrow's rising sun 

 The purpose of performance is to pave 

 the way for new promise ; the purpose 

 in looking back is to fix the direction of 

 the line that guides us in moving for- 

 ward. If we can but learn the lessons 

 that the Kingdom of Light has to teach^ 

 if w^e can but share the enjoyment and 

 the elevation of spirit that the Kingdom 

 of Light has to offer, we shall be made 

 u-ise and strong for new^ accomplish- 

 ment that will bring to man new com- 

 fort, new happiness, and new satisfaction 



In setting out upon this journey, you 

 carry with you the blessing and the 

 goodwill of the University of your 

 choice. 



Nicholas Murray Butler. 



