"And yet, the land is cursed with these dram shops whose owners care only for the money which comes to them and which should go to the advancement of the happiness and the uplift of him who is their victim. Boys, may we plead with you today never to allow this thing to enter your life to keep you from being all that God wants you to be?" THE SIMPLE LIFE --Haste --Quietness The True Christian Life is the Safe, Sensible, Simple Life. THE LESSON--That speed and greed must of necessity end in dire disaster. It is a splendid thing to teach the boys and girls the lesson that true happiness attends the quiet, yet active life, while the race after vain things brings only bitterness and disappointment. ~~The Talk.~~ [Because of the details in the drawing of the boat, it is advisable, we think, to complete Fig. 64 before beginning the talk.] "In these days the very air seems filled with the 'speed germ.' Automobiles whiz here and there, and many a hen which now tries to cross the country road never gets more than half way. We who live in town have to keep a sharp lookout or we are apt to share the fate of many a valuable Buff Cochin or Plymouth Rock. Trains speed along their glistening rails faster than ever before. Great ships skim across the ocean in days instead of weeks. The aeroplane, which needs neither steel rails nor water to glide upon, darts through space still more rapidly. Everybody seems to be in a hurry, whether he is or not. We are impatient if the street car is half a minute late, when we are fully aware that we have plenty of time to reach our destination. "Again, we fret and work because we aren't getting rich fast enough. We get mad at our neighbor because he buys an automobile and despise him because we can't figure where he got the money with which to do it. We aren't satisfied with having $50,000. We want $500,000. And if we should get it, we would be just as dissatisfied and go chasing after a million. What's the matter with us? Are we crazy? Some women spend $50,000 a year on their clothes, whose mothers dressed better, looked better, felt better and were better on $500 or even a single hundred! In our mad chase after vain things how blind we are to the things of true worth and usefulness! "Every little while we get a shock that ought to bring us to our senses. When we learn of a terrible railroad wreck, we may expect to find the blame placed on someone for disobeying orders, or for other carelessness, but the true cause in nearly every instance is the cry of the public--of you and me and the other fellow--for speed--more speed--and still more speed! [Illustration: Fig. 64]