nt years in the Western world
regarding the effect of the Mental Attitude upon Success and attainment
upon the material plane. While much of this is nothing but the wildest
imagining, still there remains a very firm and solid substratum of truth
underlying it all.

It is undoubtedly true that one's prevailing mental attitude is
constantly manifesting and objectifying itself in his life. Things,
circumstances, people, plans, all seem to fit into the general ideal of
the strong mental attitude of a man. And this from the operation of
mental law along a number of lines of action.

In the first place, the mind when directed toward a certain set of
objects becomes very alert to discover things concerning those
objects--to seize upon things, opportunities, persons, ideas, and facts
tending to promote the objects thought of. The man who is looking for
facts to prove certain theories, invariably finds them, and is also quite
likely to overlook facts tending to disprove his theory. The Optimist and
the Pessimist passing along the same streets, each sees thousands of
examples tending to fit in with his idea. As Kay says: "When one is
engaged in seeking for a thing, if he keep the image of it clearly before
the mind, he will be very likely to find it, and that too, probably,
where it would otherwise have escaped his notice. So when one is engaged
in thinking on a subject, thoughts of things resembling it, or bearing
upon it, and tending to illustrate it, come up on every side. Truly, we
may well say of the mind, as has been said of the eye, that 'it perceives
only what it brings within the power of perceiving.'" John Burroughs has
well said regarding this that "No one ever found the walking fern who did
not have the walking fern in his mind. A person whose eye is full of
Indian relics picks them up in every field he walks through. They are
quickly recognized because the eye has been commissioned to find them."

When the mind is kept firmly fixed upon some ideal or aim, its whole and
varied powers are bent toward the realization and manifestation of that
ideal. In thousands of ways the mind will operate to objectify the
subjective mental attitude, a great proportion of the mental effort being
accomplished along sub-conscious lines. It is of the greatest importance
to one who wishes to succeed in any undertaking, to keep before his
mind's eye a clear mental image of that which he desires. He should
picture the thing desired, and h