THE great test of individual character is not struggle but
attainment; not failure but success; not adversity but prosperity. When Nature
wants to put a man through the third degree, she places near him his laurel
wreaths of victory; she megaphones to him the world’s plaudits of success; she
parades stacks of newspaper clippings and magazine articles with his portraits;
she clinks his money-bags in his ears, and she tells him confidentially of the
world-changing power of his influence. She smiles on him kindly and murmurs, “Poor fellow, is he able to stand it?” Then she sends him for his test through
— the
dark valley of prosperity.
Few pass through it immune; few acquire no perversion of mind, few escape fractures
of ideals or new dents in character. But when one, through it all, remains just
as good and simple and lovable as when he began the trip, remains kindly, strong,
sympathetic, sincere, and unspoiled, Nature is glad indeed to admit she has found—a
real man, a big man, a great man. The Power of Purpose by William George Jordan (1909)
William
George Jordan (1864–1928) was an American editor and essayist.
Jordan was editor for several
magazines during his lifetime, including the Ladies Home Journal and TheSaturday Evening Post, and he was author of a number of books. He lectured on
education, and it was his suggestion that the governors of the states organize
which led to their first meeting in Washington in 1908.
