The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Chief End of Man, by George S. Merriam

This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or
re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.net

Title: The Chief End of Man

Author: George S. Merriam

Release Date: August 22, 2007 [EBook #22371]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CHIEF END OF MAN ***

Produced by Al Haines

THE CHIEF END OF MAN

BY

GEORGE S. MERRIAM

BOSTON AND NEW YORK

HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN AND COMPANY

The Riverside Press, Cambridge

1897

Copyright, 1897,

BY GEORGE S. MERRIAM.

_All rights reserved._

_The chief end of man,--to define it anew, and cite the witness of the
ages, may seem an audacious attempt, likely to issue in failure or in
commonplace. By the scholar this work must often be judged as crude,
to the churchman it will sometimes seem mischievous, and to the man of
science it may appear to lack solidity of demonstration. But its
essential purpose is to utter afresh, though it be with stammering
tongue, the message with which the universe has answered the soul of
man whenever he listened most closely and obeyed most faithfully._

_It is the assurance that Fidelity, Truth-seeking, Courage, and Love
are the rightful lords of human life, and its sufficient guides and
interpreters. It is the knowledge that as man is true to his best self
he finds the universe his friend._

_That message the seeing eye reads in the face of earth, and the
listening ear hears it in the song of the morning stars. The will
finds it as answer to its loyal endeavor. The heart wins it through
rapture and through anguish. It is our dearest inheritance, it is our
most arduous achievement. It is the sword with which each man must
conquer his destiny. It is the smile with which Beatrice welcomes her
lover to Paradise._

CONTENTS

PROLOGUE

I. OUR SPIRITUAL ANCESTRY

II. THE IDEAL OF TO-DAY

III. A TRAVELER'S NOTE-BOOK

IV. GLIMPSES

V. DAILY BREAD

THE CHIEF END OF MAN

PROLOGUE

It sometimes happens that a man is confronted by a perplexing crisis,
before which he is quite at a loss how to direct his course. His
familiar rules and habits seem to fail him, an