The conclusion, of course, is that men ought, as far as possible, to learn to consider their work apart from themselves, and to try to realize that the main thing is that the work should be done. "Whether it were I or they," one should rejoice that the task is performed, without thinking too much of one's relationship to it or part in it. No man, perhaps, is "meet to be called an apostle," and yet many men are doing an apostle's work. The standard by which such a one should measure himself is the ideal of apostleship, and not at all the achievements or character of another, who also may not be "meet to be called an apostle." Hypocrisy can not grow out of such a state of mind and soul. The man who has this point of view can hate hypocrisy as it deserves to be hated without being in the least danger of himself becoming a hypocrite. Sorrow that we are not what we ought to be, rather than joy because we seem to be better than some one else, should mark the lives of all serious and thoughtful men, should mark the lives, indeed, of all men who know themselves and the weaknesses of their own nature. What we are depends on our advantages, opportunities and powers

and these are gifts, things which we did not make for ourselves, and of which we have no right to be proud, except in a thankful and humble way. It was Thackeray who said that he might have played the part of lord mayor very creditably had the chance come to him, and that if he had been schooled in vice, tortured by hunger, kept from books and decent company, he would have been as quick as any highwayman to take a purse had it come in his

way.

There is much truth in this. Not that men can not resist and fight against evil, but that those who are favored by fortune ought to be charitable to those who are broken by adverse fate. A knowledge of oneself, and of human nature, ought to serve to make one wondrously gentle except toward hypocrisy, which is the sin of sins.

EFFECT OF POWER

MUCH may be learned from the dream of

Solomon-that dream in which the Lord appeared unto him and promised him the great gift of wisdom. The wise king prayed thus to God: "O Lord my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in. And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which Thou hast chosen, a great people, that can not be numbered nor counted for multitude." And so the king asked for “an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great people?" Few things are more interesting than the study of the effects of power on those who wield it. There is no reason to doubt that Solomon felt all the humility that he expressed, that he did honestly distrust himself and his capacities. No one has ever suggested that the attitude was

a mere pose. And yet he thought of himself as "a little child," and as such quite unequal to the responsibilities that were laid on him. On the whole, it is probably fair to say that this is not the modern view. Men who seek office in this country assert by their very quest that they are fit for the positions to which they aspire, and therefore they can not have any of that sense of inadequacy which was so strong in this king of Israel. On the contrary, one who felt that he was called by God would almost natur-. ally shrink from the burden of rule, as Moses did, for the mere thought of being the direct agent of the Almighty is enough to stagger any one. So it was easier for Solomon than it is for our modern rulers to appreciate his utter dependence on God. At any rate, it is certain that he did question his fitness to act as an agent for the fulfillment of the divine purposes.

Of course, it was true of many men in the old days, as it is true of men to-day, that they did actively seek high place, and were supremely confident of their ability to fill it. But this seems to be the general feeling at the present time. Men rush madly after power, crowd themselves into office, and take the ground, not

that they are not qualified, but that they are the only ones who are qualified. And when they are in office they carry themselves with a jaunty confidence that nothing can shake. Even the cares of office, which of themselves would almost crush a man who felt that he was "but a little child," are not enough to absorb their energies. Strangers to humility from the outset, they grow further and further away from it as the seductions of power begin to work in their souls. They look on themselves, not as charged with a trusteeship which they may, through their weakness, fail to perform, but as almost owners of the office which they use to force their views on the people. It is probably fair to say that no man is quite safe to trust with power who has not at least a glimmer of that humble spirit which shines out in the prayer of Solomon. Probably the nearest approach to the old model that we have had is Abraham Lincoln. On his journey to Washington to assume the great office to which he was elected, Mr. Lincoln made an address to the legislature of New York, in which he said: "It is with feelings of great diffidence, and, I may say, feelings even of awe, perhaps greater