thought, by good acts; only he can
hurt himself by evil intentions and deeds. Therefore in your intercourse
with others remember always yourself, remember that no one can injure
you but yourself; be careful, therefore, of your acts for your own sake.
For if you lose your temper, who is the sufferer? Yourself; no one but
yourself. If you are guilty of disgraceful acts, of discourteous words,
who suffers? Yourself. Remember that; remember that courtesy and good
temper are due from you to everyone. What does it matter who the other
person be? you should be courteous to him, not because he deserves it,
but because you deserve it. Courtesy is measured by the giver, not by
the receiver. We are apt sometimes to think that this continual care of
self is selfishness; it is the very reverse. Self-reverence is the
antipode of self-conceit, of selfishness. If you honour yourself, you
will be careful that nothing dishonourable shall come from you.
'Self-reverence, self-knowledge, self-control;' we, too, have had a poet
who taught this.

And so dignity of manner is very marked amongst this people. It is
cultivated as a gift, as the outward sign of a good heart.

'A rough diamond;' no Burman would understand this saying. The value of
a diamond is that it can be polished. As long as it remains in the
rough, it has no more beauty than a lump of mud. If your heart be good,
so, too, will be your manners. A good tree will bring forth good fruit.
If the fruit be rotten, can the tree be good? Not so. If your manners
are bad, so, too, is your heart. To be courteous, even tempered, to be
tolerant and full of sympathy, these are the proofs of an inward
goodness. You cannot have one without the other. Outward appearances are
not deceptive, but are true.

Therefore they strive after even temper. Hot-tempered as they are,
easily aroused to wrath, easily awakened to pleasure, men with the
passions of a child, they have very great command over themselves. They
are ashamed of losing their temper; they look upon it as a disgrace. We
are often proud of it; we think sometimes we do well to be angry.

So they are very patient, very long-suffering, accepting with
resignation the troubles of this world, the kicks and spurns of
fortune, secure in this, that each man's self is in his own keeping. If
there be trouble for to-day, what can it matter if you do but command
yourself? If others be discourteous to you, that cannot hurt you, if you
do not allow y