“An Englishman does his usual hobby of fox-hunting, unflinching as war approaches his homeland. Is it virtuous that he should carry on, unaffected? An example of stern peace of mind? No, of course not. He's a coward and an escapist, who doesn't understand that the purpose of fox-hunting is only to keep you strong and manly in preparation for more important tasks. Any hard physical work, and in fact all work, serves to steel our minds for harder things later on—'to do work that counts when the time arises.'

When a man so far confuses ends and means as to think that fox-hunting, or polo, or foot-ball, or whatever else the sport may be, is to be itself taken as the end, instead of as the mere means of preparation to do work that counts when the time arises, when the occasion calls—why, that man had better abandon sport altogether.”
Tagged: Life
Appears In: Quotes About Life

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