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cases in allaying the abnormal excitement, which is a 

 frequent provocation of the practice of this form of 

 mental masturbation. 



But after all, the most must be done by the individ- 

 ual himselfo All that others can do for him is to 

 surround him with favoring circumstances, and arouse 

 him to proper sense of his real condition and danger." 

 If this can be thoroughly accomplished, there is much 

 reason to hope; but if the individual has become so 

 lost to all sense of purity, all aspirations toward purity, 

 that he cannot be made to feel the need of reformation, 

 his case is hopeless. 



How May a Person Help Himself ?— The follow- 

 ing suggestions will be found useful in fighting the 

 battle with vice and habit: 



1. Begin by a resolution to reform, strengthened by 

 the most solemn vows. 



2. Resolve to reform noiv; not to-morrow or next 

 week, but this very minute. Thousands have sunk to 

 perdition while resolving to indulge "only this once." 



3. Begin the work of reform by purging the mind. 

 If a lewd thought enters the mind, dispel it at once. 

 Cultivate a loathing for concupiscence. Never harbor 

 such ideas for an instant; for they will surely lead to 

 the overt act. If, perchance, the physical sin should 

 not be committed, the thought itself is sin, and it leaves 

 a physical as well as a moral scar almost as deep and 

 hideous as that inflicted by the grosser crime. 



4. As a help to purity of mind, whenever impure 

 thoughts enter, immediately direct the mind upon the 

 purest object with which you are acquainted. Flee 

 from the special exciting cause, if there is one, and 

 engage in some active labor or other exercise that will 

 divert the mind into another channel. 



