y
acquired--that glory which it will be your happiness and pride to
transmit unspotted to your posterity." Such was the dignified view which
she took of her husband's honour; and when he fell at Pavia, though
young and beautiful, and besought by many admirers, she betook herself
to solitude, that she might lament over her husband's loss and celebrate
his exploits. [162]

To live really, is to act energetically. Life is a battle to be fought
valiantly. Inspired by high and honourable resolve, a man must stand
to his post, and die there, if need be. Like the old Danish hero, his
determination should be, "to dare nobly, to will strongly, and never to
falter in the path of duty." The power of will, be it great or small,
which God has given us, is a Divine gift; and we ought neither to let it
perish for want of using on the one hand, nor profane it by employing
it for ignoble purposes on the other. Robertson, of Brighton, has
truly said, that man's real greatness consists not in seeking his own
pleasure, or fame, or advancement--"not that every one shall save his
own life, not that every man shall seek his own glory--but that every
man shall do his own duty."

What most stands in the way of the performance of duty, is irresolution,
weakness of purpose, and indecision. On the one side are conscience and
the knowledge of good and evil; on the other are indolence, selfishness,
love of pleasure, or passion. The weak and ill-disciplined will may
remain suspended for a time between these influences; but at length the
balance inclines one way or the other, according as the will is called
into action or otherwise. If it be allowed to remain passive, the lower
influence of selfishness or passion will prevail; and thus manhood
suffers abdication, individuality is renounced, character is degraded,
and the man permits himself to become the mere passive slave of his
senses.

Thus, the power of exercising the will promptly, in obedience to the
dictates of conscience, and thereby resisting the impulses of the lower
nature, is of essential importance in moral discipline, and absolutely
necessary for the development of character in its best forms. To acquire
the habit of well-doing, to resist evil propensities, to fight against
sensual desires, to overcome inborn selfishness, may require a long and
persevering discipline; but when once the practice of duty is learnt, it
becomes consolidated in habit, and thence-forward is comparatively ea