The Middlebury Register

Be Neighborly,

A few genial, neighborly, kind-hearted citizens will transform a gloomy village into an earthly paradise. Selfishness is apt to color even our thoughts, and he who begrudges kind words and pleasant smiles is a miser. The happiness and comfort of each individual member of society is so thoroughly dependent on the bearing and disposition of his neighbor that it becomes at once the duty, as it is the pleasure, of each person to strive to contribute his quota of generous feelings and considerate actions to the common fund of human happiness. To be pleasant, neighborly, good natured, is not necessarily connected with an outlay of money: a sympathetic look, an encouraging word will often accomplish a far higher mission than a dollar bill could hope to reach. A hearty shaking of the hand and a frank "good morning, sir" awaken a kindly feeling that the clink of silver dollars would quickly dissipate.

One who is suffering from pain or writhing under misfortune receives vastly more comfort from a neighbor's kindly offices and generous sympathies than any pecuniary gift can bestow. Society itself is held together by mutual forbearance of its members. Did each one assert his supposed rights by physical force, instead of mutual forbearance and consideration for the rights of others, cities, villages and neighborhoods would be impossibilities, since peace could only be procured by widely separating the contending factions.

Aside from the satisfying and elevating influence of neighborly acts of kindness and social enjoyment, aside from the quiet, peaceful atmosphere of an unselfish, self-sacrificing community, such qualities have a mercenary value. Value of real estate, desirability of certain localities for residence, depend largely upon the reputation of the community for generous and commendable neighborly qualities; and even public spirit, as asserted in good schools, churches, parks, roads and public works, has its origin in an enlarged neighborly feeling, a desire to see all about us the comforts and inestimable blessings of happy, pleasant homes.—[Selected.

All men are not homeless, but some men are home less than others.