e farmer is saved trouble; the clearing away of dirt and refuse;
and all the labour required to keep his cattle in condition: but
all that trouble,' Solomon says, if a man will but undergo it, will
repay itself; 'for much increase is in the strength of the ox.' For
the ox, in that country, as in most parts of the world now, is the
beast used for ploughing, and for all the work of the farm.

Now, herein, I think, Solomon gives us a lesson which holds good
through all matters of life. That it is a short-sighted mistake to
avoid taking trouble; for God has so well ordered this world, that
industry will always repay itself. No doubt it is much easier and
pleasanter for the savage to scratch the seed into the ground with
some rude wooden tool, and sit idle till the grain ripens: much
easier and pleasanter, than to breed and break in beasts, and to
labour all the year round at the different duties of a well-ordered
farm: but here is the mighty difference; that the savage, growing
only enough for himself, is in continual danger of famine, he and
all his tribe; while the civilized farmer, producing many times more
than he needs for himself, gains food, comfort, and safety, not only
for himself, but for many other human beings. The savage has an
easy life enough, if that be any gain: but it is a life of poverty,
uncertainty, danger of starvation. The civilized man works hard and
heavily, using body and mind more in one month than the savage does
in the whole year: but he gains in return a life of safety,
comfort, and continually increasing prosperity.

This is Solomon's lesson: and be sure it holds good, not only of
tilling the ground, but of all other labours, all other duties, to
which God may call us. 'Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do,' says
Solomon, 'do it with all thy might.' God has set thee thy work;
then fulfil it. Fill it full. Throw thy whole heart and soul into
it. Do it carefully, accurately, completely. It will be better for
thee, and for thy children after thee. All neglect, carelessness,
slurring over work, is a sin; a sin against God, who has called us
to our work; a sin against our country and our neighbours, who ought
to profit by our work; and a sin against ourselves also, for we (as
I shall shew you soon) ought to be made wiser and better men by our
work.

Oh, if there is one rule above another which I should like to bring
home to young men and women setting out in life, it is this--_Tak