Manawatu Herald. SATURDAY, DEC. 30, 1893. The New Year.

Manawatu Herald, 30 December 1893, Page 2

Manawatu Herald. SATURDAY, DEC. 30, 1893. The New Year.

Years steal Fire from the mind as vigour from the limb ; And life's enchanted cup but sparkles near the brim. So saith one of England's greatest poets, and those who have passed many years in this world are bound to admit the justice of the statement. We cannot keep our youth for ever and the constantly recurring"' anniversary of the commencement of a New Year forces one and all to a serious consideration of the past and the future. The discoveries made amongst the old tombs of the Egyptian monarchs teach all a lesson that possibly we are not very much more improved in civilizalion than were the people who dwelt on the shores of the Bid Sea in the year 1500 B.C. According to chronologers the world is made to be some 5897 years old, but geologists claim a date farther back by thousands of years. It little matters to man how old the world is, or how i long it is likely to last, as the time that he influencies it is of the very shortest span, his actions affecting himself and bis neighbours to a far larger extent lhan his successors, It is as well, tinie and again, 'to admit our own littleness, so that we may not suffer from the swellings of pride. Take our own history as an example, we all feel proud to be the offspring of the mighty English nation, yet our ancestors were living in mud huts when the Egyptians had come to look upon the monuments, standing to this day, as being ancient; and it is only 827 years ago since the Norman Conquest. We may be the people now, but we | need not be exceedingly proud of our lineage, trace it back as far as is possible. The very celebrations we continue at Christmas and the New Year most awkwardly point to our savage and pagan extraction ; the mistletoe hung in our halls and rooms, beneath which young people pledge their love, was esteemed by the Druids most sacred, and was cut with peculiar ceremonies as New j Year's gifts to distribute among the people. Having admitted so much it follows naturally that what has been cone and what has been left undone is more a personal than important matter, and our lives are bound up so much for good or ill with one another that the comfort, advancement and happiness of our neighbours is of more stirring importance than questions affecting nations thousands of miles away. We are happily placed in this colony, and it thus makes more possible to give a trial to the imaginings ot thinkers than other countries can, and therefore if we do suffei from •' ideas run mad " which we honestly iear we do and are still more likely to do, we must comfort ourselves with the reflection that we resemble the animals skilful surgeons operate upon to trace the effects of experiments, and trust that pur sufferings may be of benefit to humanity generally. We* may also further hope that in this " isle of the sea ,.»• the true deeds , so necessary for the advancement and elevation of the pedpl* may be diwovertd and then

;arne3fcly adopted, Here we have 10 class and must sec that there aever is any, a man is as good as ni3 brother, if not a good deal better. Another year lias past, and a New Year la commencing. " The year is dead. Long live the „year. n _ How much has, during the past twelvemonths, been attempted, how much done ? What alterations have taken, place ill the relations of the. sexes, as Byron has said, so it appears' now. A year ago, yo-.i swore fond she ! "To love, to honour " : and so forth ' ,'^.ich was the vow you pledged to me; And here's exactly What t ! U vvdrthi . Lovely woman has an equal say with handsome man. The ballot gives her the liberty which many think her marriage vows did not anticipate. Our hope is that woman will make the best use of her new power. It is little use complaining that trade is not so brisk, and stock do not realise such high prices, and that flax is so low, as these are matters we cannot command, we produce, and do not manufacture and are therefore bound by the markets of the world. Our local bodies, institutions of Very uiuch consequence to the dweller upon the land have shown a decided waking up which we trust will be energetically endorsed by the ratepayers. Good roads have more to do with the business and prosperity of the district than is often credited to them, and it is well when the fact is admitted. We do not desire to pretend to the gift of prophecy and therefore cannot foretell what' may befall within the next twelvemonths, but we may be very sure it will be much as we chose to make it. A kind heart and cheerful temper will cause a dull day to look brighter, and a pleasant word and prompt action will lighten many another's load. We wish all our readers a very " Happy New Year," and may good appetite await on sound digestion. There is a deal in health, which is worth more than a king's ransom or untold riches, and that good health may be the lot of all is our earnest wish. Let not the worrying of the outer world bother us, our lives and those of our dear ones are inseperably connected with our neighbours and the world is just as it is described in the following epigram : — The world is a bundle of hay, Mankind are the asses who pull ; Each tugs it a different way, And the greatest of all is John Bull.