The Freedom of Life

l Indep

er, the body is perfectly healthy and vigorous; and, in proportion as every organ of the body is receivin

f them quietly for a little while, they will lead us

do their own work, independently and freely; and y

ndent upon the heart, the stomach, or any other organ,-if the lungs should insist upon taking this independent stand, they would very soon stop breathing, the heart would stop beating, the stomach would stop digesting, and the body would die. Or, suppose that the heart should refuse to supply the lungs with the

ion of the blood, if the heart should insist that it could inhale and exhale better than the lungs, and should neglect its own work in order to a

with his left hand, when what he has to do only needs the right! How often we see people trying to listen with their arms and shoulders! Such illustrations might be multiplied indefinitely, and, in all cases, the false sympathy of contraction in the parts of the body w

its analogy to the healthy relations of members of a community

n s

sizing his individuality. The truth is that John is warping himself every day by his weak dependence upon his own prejudices. He is unwilling to look fairly at another main's opinion for fear of being dependent upon it. He is not only warping himself by his "independence," which is

y to watch the growing slavery

ll, and he is gradually becoming a parasite,-an animal which finally loses all its organs from lack of use, so that only its stomach remains,-and has, of course, no intelligence at all. The examples of such men as James are much more numerous than might be supposed. We seldom see them in such flabby dependence upon the will of an individual as would make them conspicuous; but they are about us

lligent men should order their lives on certain lines just because their neighbors do,-just because it is the custom. If the custom is a good custom, it can be followed intelligently, and because we recognize

but, having once decided, he will respect public opinion much more truly by acting quietly against it with an open mind, than he would if he refused to do right, because he was afraid of what others would think of him. To defy carelessly the opinion of others is false independence, and has in it the elements of fear, however fearless it may seem; but to res

ommon for a p

st not see so much of him,-I am

ch lead in the end to greater freedom, then to give up such companionship, out of regard for the criticism of others would, of course, b

ople wi

ely short time that we may need for a definite, useful purpose. If a man is right in his mental and moral attitude merely because his friend is right, and not because he wants the right himself, it will only be a matter of time before his prop is taken away, and he will fall back into hi

aring dependent, and true dependence lead

nce-that is, of receiving wise help from any one through whom it may be sent-will give us an equal love for giving help wherever it will be welcome. Our respect for our own independence will make it impossible that we should insist upon tryi

a true perspective. There is a sort of familiarity that arises sometimes between friends, or even mere acquaintances, which closes the door to true friendship or to real

ned to understand and live on those principles himself. Then if he finds his own power for usefulness and his own enjoyment of life increased by his friendship, it would indeed be weak of him to refuse such companionship from fear of being dependent. The surest and strongest basis of freedom in friendship is a common devot

if, to gain the habit of such obedience, we need a he

o out of the world alone, and yet we are exquis

body is dependent upon every other atom for its true life and action. This principle of balance in the macrocosm and the microcosm is equally applicable to any community of people, whether large or small. The quiet study and appreciation of it will enable us to realize th