EDWAED BURGESS. 123 



A person cannot expect mucli success here unless he is 

 thorough and possesses the power of patient, persevering 

 investigation. It is useless for one to engage in this 

 kind of work if he be easily discouraged and disheart- 

 ened. The habit of persevering effort is essential if any- 

 real achievement be expected. It is only by slow accre- 

 tions and from close and continaous observations that 

 any real advance may be made. Labors of this sort 

 must develop the mental qualities of thoroughness, per- 

 sistence, and the power of close and prolonged applica- 

 tion. 



No one will question the great value of such mental 

 traits. Their value is not only manifest in the special 

 line of work in which they are acquired, but their in- 

 fluence is diffused over everything that we do. One is 

 not content to do anything carelessly and incompletely, 

 if painstaking and thoroughness have been directed to 

 the doing of any one thing. In a world where a great 

 deal of careless, hurried, superficial work is being done; 

 where the training to fit one to do work is often so en- 

 tirely inadequate, the dissemination of the traits of 

 which we are speaking is a public benefit. 



There is also developed an analytic power, the power 

 of comparison, the power to distingush between real and 

 false resemblances, to look behind the appearance of 

 things and to discern the realities that belong to them. 

 To this is allied the power of logical reasoning, by which 

 irrelevant things may be cast aside, and the reaching of 

 correct conclusions facilitated. 



The worth of these mental traits is apparent. They 

 are a safeguard against forming opinions from super- 

 ficial data. A mind distingushed by these traits in- 

 stinctively refuses to be influenced by appearances, and 

 must, in order to satisfy its natural longings, analyze 

 and examine. This deliberation and investigation, justly 

 presumes the more certain avoidance of error, in what- 



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