EARLY RISING.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume IX, Issue 8, 20 February 1892, Page 186

EARLY RISING.

BY I -'ANNIE L. FANCHER. From a very ancient date there has been a class of wiseacres who were unwilling to admit that any good could emanate from those who did not ‘ rise with the lark.’ These wouldbe philosophers held mere early rising to be a virtue which covered a multitude of sins, and that early retiring, and early rising, would make men * healthy, wealthy and wise,’ despite the fact that milkmen, chimney-sweeps and others, who are earliest out of their bed, were never distinguished for these said characteristics or acquirements. Should one argue that early rising, like cold baths in winter, did not agree with all constitutions, they would lefer to the sluggard, or to the early bird, or to some other person or thing having not the least possible relation to our circumstances. Imagine the comfort (?) of having one of these early-rising philosophers as a near neighbour, or perchance a dweller under the same roof, ami he not only rising at unreasonable hours, but insisting upon disturbing • the forty morning winks ’ of the other inmates. " These good people are not awaie that they have mistaken a habit for a charactei istic, and you could not convince them that it is as often a bad as a good trait. They have never observed that many evil doeis are frequently stirring about early in the morning. Indeed the drunkards, the gamblers,

and the marauders are not usually found in bed in the morning. If. however, early rising is nsed by them as an argument for forehandedness, then much that is said may be time ; still it is really more important that a man should obtain a sufficient amount of refreshing sleep than that he should rise each morn at a given hour. Poor Richard averred that ‘ a man who rises late may trot all day without overtaking his business,’ but that depends wholly upon his gait. If his sleep has been plenty and refreshing, he can trot pretty fast without causing fatigue. In a word, it is the recuperative power which we have gained by sleep, much more than the time we arise, which determines our working power in any direction for the day. To be sure it will not do for the bakers or the milk men to lie in their beds too late in the morning ; but the merchants or the professional men need not get about so early, providing of course that their business has been properly attended to before retiring. The merchant need not be on hand much before his customers, who are not wont to stir about until they have partaken of their morning meal. More recreation and healthful sleep, therefore, is the demand of the hour, rather than early rising, which entails a, yawning, stupid existence the live long day. Should one’s business demand early rising, early retiring should then be religiously followed in order to obtain the requisite number of hours in sleep, that best and only restorer of tired nature. The ability to exist without much sleep is nothing to boast of, neither is it worth while to plume one’s self above ordinary mortals on the ground of being out of bed an hour or two before the rest of mankind.