Spirit of the age. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1849-1865, 1850-08-23
Good and Evil Scenes.

Good and Evil Scenes
There are many lovely sights in our world
There are many scenes upon which we delight to
gaze. They are goodly sights-they look well.
When we enter the neat parlor of the sober man,
and behold him with Bible in hand, while his be-
loved andhappy wife and children areseated around
him. attesfiyely listening to the word OF lie .
now theyJ4k kneel, and the father pOurs out his
soul in ora er this is a lovely picture. To stand
in the sanctuary of God, and gaze upon a group OF
COMMUNICATES as they surround the sacramentai
board, forthe purpose Of commemorating the death
and suffeTngs of Jesus Christ: and this group
composedof young and old, children and parents
this is a sene which reaches through the windows
of the SOU and touches the tender senslblilties OF
the innertnan, awakening a thousand sacred and
plesasurabe emotions. Since man must die, what
~lovelier shit could be exhibited to our view, than
his triumph over the last enemy? Behold the
righteousnnan, as the scene Of mighty conflict IS
about to cone he is calm, tranquil, undlsmayed;
now he grapples with the grim monster, and
lh0nGh ! rtemple Of clay is marred and crushed
the iaagy Is to its fall, it trem ii glya p tiers forth
a scene, We almost involuntarily exclaim-" Let
me die the death of the righteous" What more
noble spectacle, than to witness the courageous
youth, or he man who has drank the bitter waters
of experieace, stand up and with manly voice de-
clare !" neither to make, buy, sell or use" any OF
the dark hverages of hell taking lessons in the
great mora school of self government-a lesson
which an Alexander, with all his conquering lau-
rels, was unable to practice. Such a scene is well
calculated 10 call forth the admiration of angels.
But the world is not filled with goodly sights.
There are many things which look badly. AS
3 we have referred to but few Of the goodly scenes,
we must refer to but a few Of the opposite charac-
y ter. Go to the house Of the drunkard-see him
with bloodAhot eyes, as he arises from his bed.
$ with bottle in hand, instead Of his bible his mouth
is filled vida cursing and bitterness, instead o.
n prayer to God. His house is poorly furnished
e his children ragged, his wife broken-hearted TIT
r whole presents a scene Of woe, desolatlon and want
of ~depravity and wickedness. Does not this lOol
n badly? Does it not shock the tenderest sensibil
d tiles of the human heart? Yet, upon such a seen,
you may frequently gaze. Go to the Sanctuary o
God, and even there sometimes your eyes will be
N hold a man degraded, miserable and vile, ejecte'
m from the sacred court, because Of his low, wicke
and sacrilegious conduct. Is not this a humilia
ting sight? Does it not look badly? Go, stan
beside the dying couch of the poor lnebrlate Sc
him as he istossed to and fro witness his heay
E. nature gives way, and as he sinks into the iro
embrace of death, amid the dreadful catastrophe
he shrieks in broken accents o s-t-L-o-s-t-
IS, and sinks into a drunkard's grave and drunkard
o. hell! O! what a horrible sight! Is not this a
til evil scene indeed These horrible looking ph
O. lures are drawn by the hand Of the liquor vende
ks He is an artist Of most revolving and heartless c.
lot lebrity. Would to God he could never draw AM
nd ther picture. o! that men would cease to pa
Vn ronize him!f