Proper Education
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devote a portion of their time to mental and moral culture. Those of
sedentary and literary habits should take physical exercise, even if they
have no need to labor so far as means are concerned. Health should
be a sufficient inducement to lead them to unite physical with mental
labor.
Moral, intellectual, and physical culture should be combined in
order to have well-developed, well-balanced men and women. Some
are qualified to exercise greater intellectual strength than others, while
others are inclined to love and enjoy physical labor. Both of these
classes should seek to improve where they are deficient, that they may
present to God their entire being, a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable
to Him, which is their reasonable service. The habits and customs
of fashionable society should not gauge their course of action. The
inspired apostle Paul adds, “And be not conformed to this world; but
be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove
what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.”
The minds of thinking men labor too hard. They frequently use
their mental powers prodigally; while there is another class whose
highest aim in life is physical labor. The latter class do not exercise
the mind. Their muscles are exercised, while their brains are robbed
of intellectual strength; just as the minds of thinking men are worked,
while their bodies are robbed of strength and vigor by their neglect to
exercise the muscles. Those who are content to devote their lives to
physical labor, and leave others to do the thinking for them, while they
simply carry out what other brains have planned, will have strength
of muscle, but feeble intellects. Their influence for good is small in
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comparison to what it might be if they would use their brains as well
as their muscles. This class fall more readily if attacked by disease,
because the system is vitalized by the electrical force of the brain to
resist disease.
Men who have good physical powers should educate themselves
to think as well as to act, and not depend upon others to be brains for
them. It is a popular error with a large class to regard work as degrad-
ing. Therefore young men are very anxious to educate themselves to
become teachers, clerks, merchants, lawyers, and to occupy almost
any position that does not require physical labor. Young women regard
housework as demeaning. And although the physical exercise required
to perform household labor, if not too severe, is calculated to promote