314 POT-POURRI FROM A SURREY GARDEN 



fortunately conscientious persons to fall into the contrary 

 error. They may perseveringly linger over unattractive 

 studies, merely because they offer certain difficulties, on 

 the ascetic principle of hair shirts and peas in our shoes. 

 To these I would say : ' If you were pursuing a country 

 path and turned back at the first stile, instead of climbing 

 over it, you would never reach your destination. If, on 

 the other hand, you decided that because climbing a stile 

 is a disagreeable and tedious process, therefore it must 

 be good for us, and you promptly climbed back again, 

 you would delay your progress to no purpose. There 

 is a distinction between overcoming obstacles which 

 obstruct our onward and upward path, and idly 

 creating difficulties for the fancied glory of conquering 

 them.' 



Progress depends on a general brain power, and is not 

 so surely proportioned to effort as the sanguine and the 

 clever are apt to believe. It is unfortunately quite 

 possible for amateurs to spend a great deal of time over 

 their drawings, to take a real interest in the pursuit, and 

 yet to achieve but small, very small, results. Such 

 failure is sometimes due to circumstances and to pre- 

 ventable causes. The most common of them is the 

 constant interruption to which all home work, and 

 especially women's work, is liable. The curious selfish- 

 ness in this matter of even the best of mothers often 

 immensely surprises me. It is hard indeed to convince 

 parents and relations that women have any right to the 

 undisturbed use of any portion of their time. I think a 

 great deal of that desire, so commonly displayed now, for 

 girls to leave their homes and undertake some work, has 

 been brought about by this want of realisation of the 

 necessity of quiet, if work is to be done. These inter- 

 ruptions, so often quite needless, not only cause an 

 immense loss of time, but are actually a great hindrance 



