18 SKETCHES OF GEEAT TRUTHS

obtained is endless and the source of knowledge
we may liken to a bottomless pit, but in one
sense no time is wasted, for each stage is neces-
sary, each stage has its lesson, each stage must
be gone through. Our method of obtaining
knowledge varies according to our own tempera-
ment, to the race to which we belong, to our
conditions, to our climate, to the country of our
birth and hundreds of other things; also we
must not forget the important factor of the
influence of our past lives. There is no royal
road to knowledge save the road of life. It is
in our hands whether we make use of the object
lessons on the road or whether we miss oar
opportunities. All have opportunities and it is
because of this large variety of methods of
obtaining knowledge that we 'find the vast
variety, almost limitless, amongst human beings.
In the stage of the savage the opportunities
must be more or less alike and yet it is evident
that even here there is a great variety of how
these opportunities are taken. It is the same
now to a certain extent—I rather refrain from
adding those words " to a certain extent" ; for
I often find that, in our present stage (which I
have counted as the second stage for the very
large majority), we are apt to make excuses for
not taking opportunities and to blame our past