University of Santa Clara - Redwood Yearbook (Santa Clara, CA)

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THE REDWOOD. 17 that I feel as if I had been in this delightful spot all my life? This is your first intellectual delight, he said, you have done well so far and in the eternal order of things.it is so or- dained that man does not labor long without some sensible re- ward, but you must guard against the fatal error of such as, hav- ing reached this point, think that it is their goal, whereas it is but a foretaste of what is to come. I have seen some pause at that fountain yonder for years and years, although if you take the pains to examine the inscription thereon you will not be able to understand how they could do so. I did take the pains, and to my great surprise found these immortal lines of Pope, which were written there by this great high priest of an age of reason and prose, when he was strug- gling up this self-same mountain side: A little learning is a dangerous thing. Drink deep or taste not the Pierian spring; There shallow draughts intoxicate the brain, And drinking largely sobers it again. Returning, I begged my guide to lead me on, promising t » stay with him until we reached the summit, in spite of any dif- ficulties, and again we started off. Soon, however, and to my great chagrin, notwithstanding strong resolves, we came to a slide of broken shale rock through which the trail led. This shale rock, I may remark here, when broken in small fragments, forms a very disagreeable path, for the feet sink into it as in sand, and when in addition to this the path is steep, it is all but impossible to make any progress. 1 started to climb, however, nothing daunted, but was so very soon exhausted that I paused and turned to my friend, who smiling gently moved cautiously along through the treacherous stuff, step by step, giving the rock a chance to settle beneath one foot before moving the other. I did likewise and soon found myself on solid ground. This place, I was informed as we proceeded, was the Grade of Perseverance. As I had the good fortune lO work my way through it, the remaining part of the journej was comparative] y easy. As we approached the top, there being few obstacles, we naturally made great progress. But, alas! I w as not accustomed to the rare atmosphere and so was seized with a sudden dizz? ness, which gave to surrounding objects a peculiar whirling

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16 THE REDWOOD. less exertion, but the Home of Wisdom cannot be reached thereby, because it does not rise, but running along the level country, ends in the brush of obscurity, where the wayfarers are entangled and so lost to the world and to themselves forever. And who are those who follow that path I asked, be- coming more interes,ted and more attached to my learned guide. Alas! he said, their number is legion ! But I can e mbrace them all under two general divisions, the Utilitarians and the Talented. The former are unwilling to labor unless they receive, at the same time, some sensible reward for their toil, unless they see immediate results. When told what to expect when they reach the summit, they sneeringly say : Yes, but what can we en- joy as we climb the hill? ' To the answer, nothing but work, work, work, ' they turn away, enjoy for a brief span the scenery of this by-path, and then are lost intellectually. The Talented have a similar temptation and oftentimes succumb. Endow ed with superior mental capacities, as they are, they know not what work is, and so drift into slothful habits, and when called upon to make an earnest effort, they fail to respond and are ruined. It is a mistake to imagine that any real success can be obtained without labor and this is emphatically true in the in- tellectual strife. That part of the road is called the Eclectic ' because some of the guides allow their charges at this point to choose for themselves, and the latter being naturally unwilling to Avork and ignorant of what to expect, when they reach the summit (nor can all guides inform them on this point), invariably, T might say, choos3 the easy path. I was satisfied with his arguments and again began to as- cend, the way becoming more difficult at every step. I was ready to give in, when to my great relief, we reached a pretty little flat, with a delightful spring of water issuing from the rocks in the center and falling gently on the surrounding luxuriant growth of grass and flowers. It was indeed a surprising contrast to the dry, barren country we had traversed, and I, wishing to reap some little reward of labor,sat down and gazed on the valley below, congratulating myself that, with the assistance of the good guide, I had made some progress, and feeling an inward complacency I had never experienced before. Can you explain to me, kind sir, I asked, after having enjoyed the surrounding country for some time, how it is that the toil heretofore submitted to has passed from my mind and

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18 THE REDWOOD. motion. I could see my companion no longer. Victory is mine! I have conquered V I am at last among the great ones of the world V and similar thoughts rushed through my mind, causing me to experience a sensation which I recall now with grief, be- cause I afterwards learned it was the sensation of Pride. Pride has cast many a man down from the elevated heights of wisdom and of power and this would have been my fate, had it not been for the kindness of my friend. ' You are dizzy, said he. That I am, murmured I. Then fall to the earth or you Avill be carried from this height to the very depths of humiliation. I did as he said and after this little act of humiliation was once more able to stand erect and view the surrounding scenery. WM. JOHNSON, Sophomore. CHAPTER III.— On the Summit. And what a grand vista spread out before us on all sides! Behind us, stretching beyond the limits of our vision, lay the wintry clouds, their white and black so blended that they resem- bled a turbulent sea, and in fact for a moment I imagined that from some tall cliff I was in reality gazing on the storm-tossed ocean. Somewhere beneath that vaporous mass was the busy, restless city with its millions struggling on in search of hap- piness ; the same coming and going and wrangling and discussing that I had heard but a short while ago ! But what a different prospect when I looked out over the scene before me! Instead of the expanse of darkness, I beheld a brilliantly illuminated panorama; instead of the dark clouds my eyes rested on a wonderfully picturesque valley. Nothing was disturbed, nothing agitated. All was serene and calm. Wood- land, hill and river were clothed in wondrous beauty, and as I gazed on the scene in rapture, some soft sweet strains, such as ideal birds might sing, broke out from all quarters of the valley and mingling with the fragrance that rose incense-like from the surrounding foliage, floated sweetly through the tranquil air. But more wonderful still were the varied streams of light pour- ing from the trees, from the waters, and from the many build- ings. I could not contain myself and in ecstacy I exclaimed : Hail, holy light,offspring of Heaven first born ! Or of the Eternal, co-eternal beam ! (To be Continued.)