The wholesome sentiments which spring from country life are being overwhelmed by the ambitions and tendencies that flow out of our great cities. Few have the hardihood to withstand the swirl and rush of city life, or to remain indifferent to the promises of sudden wealth and the excitement of speculation in a metropolis, where immense fortunes are made and lost in a single day.
I believe that we must set ourselves against the fallacy that a city life is easier and the most productive of happiness.We are proud of our cities of course. But, we must not allow them wholly to shape our ideas and our ambitions. Nothing that the wealth of a city can buy, will atone for the loos that American sturdiness and independence which the farm and the small town have so frequently produced.It is unquestionably true that nearness to nature has an elevating influence upon heart and character. Nature is a school of all the hardier virtues.What, for instance can impart a more effective lesson in patience than a day of fishing.As I have said on a previous occasion, the real worth and genuineness of the human heart are measured best by it’s readiness to submit to the influences of nature, and to appreciate the goodness of the Supreme Power who is it’s creator. This is the central point of my philosophy of life.
We need more of those old fashioned, conscientious folk who adhere to the simple way of living and who believe that every fortune should be earned honestly and fairly by the man who gets it. The history of our country shows that the citizen who lives close to the soil and to the influences of nature is far more apt to shape his own political convictions instead of being a mere obedient fraction of a political machine.
He is certain to be more self-reliant and more stubborn in holding fast to his own idea of what is right. No matter how wonderful the progress of the future may be, the standard virtues of independence, industry, honesty and patriotism can never be improved. As long as the world lasts they will be the basis of true national greatness and properity. By: Grover Cleveland