Common Sense, How To Exercise It | Page 5

reason which does not produce one act alone but a series of acts sometimes dependent, always inferred.
"The spirit of consistency banishes all thought derogatory to the subject in question; it is the complete investiture of sentiments, all converging toward a unique purpose."
This purpose can be of very great importance and the means of attainment multiform, but the dominant idea will always direct the continuous achievements; under their different manifestations--and these at times contradictory--they will never be other than the emanation of a direct thought, whose superior authority is closely united to the final success.
Wisdom, continued the philosopher, should be mentioned here only as the forerunner which permits us to analyze experience.
It is from this never-ending lesson which life teaches us that the wisdom of old age is learned.
But is it really necessary to reach the point of decrepitude, in order to profit by an experience, actually useless at that time, as is always a posthumous conquest.
"Is it not much better to compel its attainment when the hair is black and the heart capable of hope?
"Why give to old age alone the privileges of wisdom and experience?
"It is high time to combat so profound an error.
"Is it not a cruel irony which renders such a gift useless?
"Of what benefit is wisdom resulting from experience if it cannot preserve us from the unfortunate seduction of youth?
"Why should its beauty be unveiled only to those who can no longer profit by it?" This is the opinion of Yoritomo, who says:
"What would be thought of one who prided himself on possessing bracelets when he had lost his two arms in war?
"It is, therefore, necessary, not only to encourage young people to profit by lessons of wisdom and experience, but, still further, to indicate to them how they can accomplish the result of these lessons.
"It is certain that he who can recall a long life ought to understand better than the young man all the pitfalls with which it is strewn.
"But does he always judge of it without bias or prejudice?
"Does he not find acceptable pretexts for excusing his past faults and does he not exaggerate the rewards for excellence, which have accorded him advantages, due at times to chance or to the force of circumstances?
"Finally, the old man can not judge of the sentiments which he held at twenty years of age, unless it be by the aid of reminiscences, more or less fleeting, and an infinitely attenuated intensity of representation.
"Emotive perception being very much weakened, the integrity of memory must be less exact.
"Then, in the recession of years, some details, which were at times factors of the initial idea, are less vivid, thus weakening the power of reason which was the excuse, the pretext, or the origin of the act.
"This is why, altho we may honor the wisdom of the aged, it is well to acquire it at a time when we may use it as a precious aid.
"To those who insist that nothing is equivalent to personal experience, we shall renew our argument, begging them to meditate on the preceding lines, drawing their attention to the fact that a just opinion can only be formed when personal sentiment is excluded from the discussion.
"Is it, then, necessary to have experienced pain in order to prevent or cure it?
"The majority of physicians have never been killed by the disease they treat.
"Does this fact prevent them from combatting disease victoriously?
"And since we are speaking of common sense we shall not hesitate to invoke it in this instance, and all will agree that it should dictate our reply.
"Then why could we not do for the soul that which can be done for the body?
"It is first from books, then from the lessons of life that physicians learn the principles underlying their knowledge of disease and its healing remedies.
"Is it absolutely indispensable for us to poison ourselves in order to know that such and such a plant is harmful and that another contains the healing substance which destroys the effects of the poison?
"We may all possess wisdom if we are willing to be persuaded that the experience of others is as useful as our own."
The events which multiply about us, Yoritomo says, ought to be, for each master, an opportunity for awakening in the soul of his disciples a perfect reasoning power, starting from the inception of the premises to arrive at the conclusions of all arguments.
From the repetition of events, from their correlation, from their equivalence, from their parallelism, knowledge will be derived and will be productive of good results, in proportion as egotistical sentiment is eliminated from them; and slowly, with the wisdom acquired by experience, common sense will manifest itself tranquil and redoubtable, working always for the accomplishment of good as does everything which is the emblem of strength and peace.

LESSON II
THE FIGHT AGAINST