Jeffersonian Republican. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1840-1853, 1842-08-10
Value of The Soul.

Leaving, for moment, the littIeness oil the
nresent dav. let us return our minds 10 a loltlcr
sphere, and nobler theme.
Long before the Gospel was preached by the
fishermen Of GalIiIee, the tribes on the earth
sci high value upon the human soul, and de-
creed to the r1ed casket, the dead body oi
man. the rites of sepucre.
Was this because the human dust was any
better than other dust! because the beetles that
fed upon the lip of manly beauty and maiden
loneliness were different from the ones that
penetrated the carcase of The antelope or the
(awn? No But because the temple, once IN
habited by god was deemed TO be conse-
Grated place, and superstition and ignorance
united with learning and religion, to treasure
up its ashes. Hence, the pyramid, with It's
embalmed Pharaohs; hence, the tumeli IN ASIA
and America; hence, the swinging collins oil
the North American savages.
The old Irish, when an infant smiled IN It's
sleep, believed that the angels were whisper
ng TO it of The Joys of Heaven, and looked on
in awe-s,ruck silence Through the Scan
dinavan mythology, the Immortality OF the soul,
and The value Of ii, are seen like things sllghty
hin,ed at. but not positively asserted. The In
dians of Oceanica, before sail ever whltened
the blue bays of their lovely islands, worship
ped God by symbols, and sang rcqulems to the
| spirit of their dead.
Man, from ,he beginning, in darkness and
light, in ignorance and learning, has valued the
soul.
No animal takes care Of its nelghbor's car
case The siikworm weaves its sllken shroud,
it is lrue but it does it 10 preserve lille, and put
on, in the shape of the butterfly, the gorgeous
livery of Heaven Man, only. saves the ashes
Of his species.
If the soul is not immortal, what senseies:
mockery it is TO build monument TO lis mem
ory.
And can men, in the 10Th century, believe
that they will die like cattle, and be changed
into grass, TO be eaten by others! Horrible
thought! o, If it was not for the belief that II
brighter world the poor and the suffering
would reap their reward, who would live!
Would a man suffer year, TO be annihllatet
at the end of III Would he starve on, 10 die
and be forgotten! The soul, then, is OF I'M
mense value-it has worth in places where
nothing else has intrinsic value-it is worship
ped where God is scarcely worshipped IN any
FORM The red man believes it will be swll
hunter upon the fowery prairles OF Paradise
the Mahomedan believes 1t will be TURK
luxurianlly smoking the sacred hooker in
harem of houris; the Christian believes 1t viii
be a bright creature, in robes of purest white
striking golden harp to The seraph's voice
around The throne of God The whole worl'
value it. Il keeps men from seli-deslructlon
and brings joy 10 the vale of tears. The win
Ter and the spring show that after death Their
will dawn brighter life, and The water ina
goes up in the clouds and comes down in crys
tai showers, painted with the bright colors
The rainbow, proves that troubled spirits ma.
be raised from the earth in tcmpess, and re
> turned in purity and glory. ,, i,
Let the politician and The wording thel
act in character with such soul. lie that
to live forever should begin life well, Tor oil
men seldom become converted TO new course
in The autumn of life, and habit, like letter
, will bind the most restless spirit down.