large cities can,
it seems to me, even for a single moment, doubt the existence of good
chances for young men. Take any large city as a fair example: New York,
Boston, Philadelphia, or Chicago, and in each instance there exist more
opportunities than there are young men capable of embracing them. The
demand is far in excess of the supply. Positions of trust are
constantly going begging for the right kind of young men to fill them.
But such men are not common; or, if they be, they have a most
unfortunate way of hiding their light under a bushel, so much so that
business men cannot see even a glimmer of its rays. Let a position of
any real importance be open, and it is the most difficult kind of a
problem to find any one to fill it satisfactorily. Business men are
constantly passing through this experience. Young men are desired in
the great majority of positions because of their progressive 'ideas and
capacity to endure work; in fact, "young blood," as it is called, is
preferred in nine positions out of every ten, nowadays.

The chances for business success for any young man are not wanting. The
opportunities exist, plenty of them. The trouble is that the average
young man of to-day is incapable of filling them, or, if he be not
exactly incapable (I gladly give him the benefit of the doubt), he is
unwilling to fill them, which is even worse. That exceptions can be
brought up to controvert I know, but I am dealing with the many, not
with the few.

The average young man in business to-day is nothing more nor less than
a plodder,--a mere automaton. He is at his office at eight or nine
o'clock in the morning; is faithful in the duties he performs; goes to
luncheon at twelve, gets back at one; takes up whatever he is told to
do until five, and then goes home. His work for the day is done. One
day is the same to him as another; he has a certain routine of duties
to do, and he does them day in and day out, month in and month out. His
duties are regulated by the clock. As that points, so he points.
Verily, it is true of him that he is the same yesterday, to-day, and
forever. No special fault can be found with his work. Given a
particular piece of work to do, he does it just as a machine would.
Such a young man, too, generally considers himself hard-worked--often
overworked and underpaid; wondering all the time why his employer
doesn't recognize his value and advance his salary. "I do everything I
am told to do," he argues, "an