his brain-fiber partakes of the same superior quality.

The very granite hills, the mountains, the valleys, the brooks, the
miracle of the growing crops are every moment registering their mighty
potencies in his constitution, putting iron into his blood and stamina
into his character, all of which will help to make him a giant when he
comes to compete with the city-bred youth.

The sturdy, vigorous, hardy qualities, the stamina, the brawn, the grit
which characterize men who do great things in this world, are, as a
rule, country bred. If power is not absorbed from the soil, it
certainly comes from very near it. There seems to be a close
connection between robust character and the soil, the hills, mountains
and valleys, the pure air and sunshine. There is a very appreciable
difference between the physical stamina, the brain vigor, the solidity
and the reliability of country-bred men and that of those in the city.

The average country-bred youth has a better foundation for
success-building, has greater courage, more moral stamina. He has not
become weakened and softened by the superficial ornamental, decorative
influences of city life. And there is a reason for all this. We are
largely copies of our environment. We are under the perpetual
influence of the suggestion of our surroundings. The city-bred youth
sees and hears almost nothing that is natural, aside from the faces and
forms of human beings. Nearly everything that confronts him from
morning till night is artificial, man-made. He sees hardly anything
that God made, that imparts solidity, strength and power, as do the
natural objects in the country. How can a man build up a solid,
substantial character when his eyes and ears bring him only sights and
sounds of artificial things? A vast sea of business blocks,
sky-scrapers and asphalt pavements does not generate character-building
material.

Just as sculpture was once carried to such an extreme that pillars and
beams were often so weakened by the extravagant carvings as to threaten
the safety of the structure, so the timber in country boys and girls,
when brought to the city, is often overcarved and adorned at the cost
of strength, robustness and vigor.

In other words, virility, forcefulness, physical and mental stamina
reach their maximum in those who live close to the soil. The moment a
man becomes artificial in his living, takes on artificial conditions,
he begins to deteriorate, to soften.

M