ess a liability for the
single reason that he lacks a sense of responsibility. Could his teachers
have foreseen his present attitude no efforts, on their part, would have
seemed too great if only they could have forestalled his misfortune. And
it is for the teachers to determine whether the boy of today shall become
a duplicate of the man here portrayed.

Every man who lives under a democratic form of government has the
opportunity before him each day to raise or lower the level of democracy.
When the night comes on, if he reflects upon the matter, he must become
conscious that he has done either the one or the other. Either democracy
is a better thing for humanity because of his day's work and influence, or
it is a worse thing. This is a responsibility that he can neither shift
nor shirk. It is fastened upon him with or against his will. It rests with
him to determine whether he would have every other man and every boy in
the land select him as their model and follow his example to the last
detail. He alone can decide whether he would have all men indulge in the
practices that constitute his daily life, consort with his companions,
hold his views on all subjects, read only the books that engage his
interest, duplicate his thoughts, aspirations, impulses, and language, and
become, each one, his other self. Every boy who now sits in the school
must answer these questions for himself sooner or later, nor can he hope
to evade them. Happy is that boy, therefore, whose teacher has the
foresight and the wisdom to train him into such a sense of responsibility
as will enable him to answer them in such a way that the future will bring
to him no pang of remorse.

Thomas A. Edison is one of the benefactors of his time. He reached out
into space and grasped a substance that is both invisible and intangible,
harnessed it with trappings, pushed a button, and the world was illumined.
There were years of unremitting toil behind this achievement, years of
discouragement bordering on despair, but years in which the light of hope
was kept burning. We accept his gift with the very acme of nonchalance and
with little or no feeling of gratitude. Perhaps he would not have it
otherwise. We do not know. But certain it is that his marvelous
achievement has made life more agreeable to millions of people and he must
be conscious of this fact. At some time in his life he must have achieved
a sense of responsibility to his fellows and this worthy se