the action on every occasion. The man who forms the habit of rising at the same hour saves not only much time but much nervous strain. For it is a strain to know that one ought to do a thing, and yet feel unable to will it. And such an incapacity to will what we know we ought to do, if indulged in such a small affair as lying a-bed of a morning, is apt to appear in a very startling way when much graver matters are at stake.
Willed action is often "in the line of greatest resistance." We have to overcome obstacles to the attainment of some ideal end, and our inclination would lead us to turn aside from this difficult task and follow the line of least resistance. But we know that we ought to act in obedience to the ideal, however rough the path may be. Most willed action involves a struggle. There is a saying of the Greek sage Pittacus, which deserves to be inscribed in letters of gold in every schoolroom and in every home: "It is hard to be good."
It is "hard to be good" because—to mention one reason—it is often difficult to will to do what we ought to do. So far, we have been assuming that we know what we ought to do. But the difficulty of being good is sometimes due to our ignorance what really is the right thing to do. Now, it is the function of the self, acting as conscience, to tell us what is and what is not the right thing to do. We must therefore go on to ask what exactly we mean by conscience, and what is its place in the moral life.
§5. The Meaning of Conscience. There are two mistaken views of conscience, which are so commonly held, that it is impossible to pass them
