Conceit shows a great shallowness and absence of earnestness. Could any one who was thoroughly in earnest, and had any deep purpose at heart, ever be conceited? First of all he would have an ideal in his mind, and even though he might partially succeed in reaching it, he would immediately see an endless range more to be achieved, which, till he reached this point, was invisible to him, like climbing a hill where the prospect constantly widens as he ascends. And so his desires would increase with and out of all proportion to his achievements, i.e. they would spread out before him in a wider and more endless reach, as he climbs only two or three steps with difficulty. Next, his earnest pursuit of his object would not leave him any time for thought of himself; he cannot stop to admire how clever he is, or how much he has done; if ever he turned his face away from his object, he would lose some step which in that moment might have been won. There is no time to stop and admire ourselves; if we do, it is equivalent to giving in altogether, and going no further.

Has not God put all possibilities before us, and is it not the very height and folly of emptiness ever to think we have attained anything to speak of? and if we had attained something great, whom should we have to thank for it? Is it in the last resort ourselves? Who gave us the power-who breathed into us the breath of life, and kept on breathing in all the aspiration that could enable us to do anything? It is true that we had the

alternative to do or not to do; but is it not poor and mean to the very last degree to go priding ourselves that we accepted the best possible offer that could be made to us, rather than refused it, and instead of accepting one which at the minute might have better suited our laziness, but which we knew to be less good in the long run? (The nigger's boast, "God Almighty made me a little bit of a thing, no bigger than that, and I did all the rest myself.")

If we regard (or look at) ourselves too much, we shall increase all our faults, as a painter who sees no pictures but his own has no standard by which to compare them-nothing by which to correct them, and so confirms all his errors. This (both for painting and generally) is why young people are so often sent from home, and ought not to be entirely shut up in a narrow circle. A conceited boy or girl is best cured by being sent amongst many companions, where jarring ideas, and wishes, and characters rub off the edges. Where all are equal, and all want much the same, no one can take a larger share than his own.

Conceit is sure to meet with ridicule; it gets wounded and hurt; but one can really very seldom, if ever, be sorry for it to be so. It springs from emptiness and want of purpose, and leads to selfishness, want of consideration for others, etc.

XIII.

PRIDE.

PRIDE is a feeling of exaltation in the mind, which may be aroused by many different causes. It is always a more or less self-regarding feeling. It is not generally a really superior quality to conceit; and inasmuch as it is deeper and less superficial, it is worse when it is bad; but the word may be used with qualifications for qualities which are good and respectable, and help to make a good citizen and member of society.

There is Pride of Possession.

In a child it is a delight which is allied to gratitude. If a little girl is "proud" of a new doll, and likes all the other little girls she meets in the street to see it and think, "Oh, what a lovely doll! How I wish I had one like it!" it is because she is so delighted to have it, and not ungrateful to her mother or friend who gave it to her. In a grown-up person real "pride" of possession is seldom connected with gratitude, else we should call it so, and not pride; and I do not think real

pride of possession in an adult can ever be otherwise than bad. But we often say we are "proud" of things, when we only mean a perfectly innocent and proper delight in having what we have wished for, a feeling which it would be wrong not to have. If a man is proud of his riches, in the sense of liking people to know that he is rich, and in a servile way worship his riches, rather than in the sense of using them well for the good of those who are not so rich, then his pride is despicable, and he does not deserve to have any riches.

One of the possessions people are apt to be proud of is good looks or beauty. This is often closely allied to conceit, and a person who is proud because he or she is handsome is in no way more to be respected than one who is conceited. At the same time there is such a thing as what we call "proper pride" with regard to appearance: a self-respect and consideration for others which prevent a person from appearing untidy or slovenly, or dressed in any outrageous style.

Another "possession" of which people are proud is their children. This is a feeling which seems only very partially dependent on the characters of the children, yet though the affection belongs to them however they behave, the pride in reality only is theirs inasmuch as they do well and deserve approbation. Yet a mother is often "proud" of her big son, for little besides his strength and size : but it is with a lingering feeling (even when he is selfish and naughty) that the size and strength

are signs and symbols of something behind that is good. Pride of mothers in children, brothers and sisters in each other, and of elder children in their babies" are all wholesome and good feelings, and a great help and stimulant through life. A sister's pride in her brother may often keep him from evil, by making him ashamed to do wrong, and unwilling to forfeit her pride in him. So may a mother's pride in her son.

Pride of Birth or Family.-This also may be either a vain and foolish or a good feeling. If a man is proud of his family and descent because they have for generations shown strength of character, strict honour and uprightness, and unflinching truth, then his pride is good, and springs from admiration of their fine qualities: if this pride leads him to do his best to keep up, in his own life, the traditions of his family, and bear down the good name untarnished, then it is good and has a priceless result. But if a man is proud of his birth or family because his ancestors have been wealthy, because they have had the biggest houses or lands, or the best horses, etc., etc.,then his pride is empty folly and mere vanity. It is then equally to be classed under the following head.

Pride of Position.—But this is also not altogether without its good side: for it may make a man ashamed to do a wrong thing, which in a less conspicuous position or one which he cared less to