Treated in this light, the question becomes for all earnest men great
and arresting. Our friend, who may have smiled, will discuss it readily
now. Yet he may not be convinced; he may point his finger over the
wasted land and contrast its weakness with its opponents' strength, and
conclude: "Your philosophy is beautiful, but only a dream." He is at
least impressed; that is a point gained; and we may induce him to come
further and further till he adopts the great principle we defend.
III
His difficulty now is the common error that a man's work for his country
should be based on the assumption that it should bear full effect in his
own time. This is most certainly false; for a man's life is counted by
years, a nation's by centuries, and as work for the nation should be
directed to bringing her to full maturity in the coming time, a man must
be prepared to labour for an end that may be realised only in another
generation. Consider how he disposes his plans for his individual life.
His boyhood and youth are directed that his manhood and prime may be the
golden age of life, full-blooded and strong-minded, with clear vision
and great purpose and high hope, all justified by some definite
achievement. A man's prime is great as his earlier years have been well
directed and concentrated. In the early years the ground is prepared and
the seed sown for the splendid period of full development.
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