The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1859-03-10

Notes from the Plymouth Paipis-By Aa-
gusea Mssre.
HENRY WAap BErcHrR, whatever may
be said Of his political proclivities-which
Con forgive-stands out amid the mass Of
preachers of bis time, like Q stalwart coun-
try bill, tree crovned, high and green above
the piles Of dead stone which bank the
thoroughfares-high above the artificial sys-
tens fashioned from the rubbish Of decayed
schools, and built up compact Of senseless
dogma along the way to heaven-the pa.
lace booths Of vanity fair, where small the.
ologians peddle their antique wares to
Christian Pilgrims. He is like green tree
in graveyard, crowned with the iewelled
diadem Of spring, and taking bis life and air
direct from COP, while the roots of bis ro-
bust heart Irvine lovingly around the tombs
where men tester in the corruptions Of the
day. He is fountain Of vigorous and spon.
taneous religious life, bursting with its own
internal force through the beaten pavement
Of creeds and conventionalities, right under
the feet and across the daily path Of men.
The very qualities which make him .
fanatic in politics-the essence Of which
is compromise him the most
efficient Of reformers in the fields con.
trolled by moral principles or religious ideas,
which are essentially uBcompromisipg. The
ideas Of abstract justice to which it would
be impossible to conform society. except
through revolution and anarchy, is not only
possible, but the very best possible stand.
ard Of private duty. While be uses bis fine
powers to give efficiency to these motives in
individual men, he is o reformer. When be
attempts to subvert government which
does not fulfill bis ethical theories, he
is q revolutionist. In the church be
is . LurHER-in politics be is MuNcER.
OF this remarkable man when dead, few tan
gible monuments will remain to measure the
extent Of bis powers, or the character Of bis
eloquence. He has written few books. He
ldom writes bis sermons. His light is in
fair danger Of being hidden under the bushel
OF Plymouth Church. Some female friends
OF his have, however, undertaken to rescue
some Of the most striking passages of his
sermons from oblivion. The attempt is
kindly meant, but it must Of course be only
partially successful. Although q good
many Of his sayings have certain roundness
and completeness in themselves, the electric
effect with which they fall upon bis audience
depends mainly upon the context. No frag.
ments can give just idea Of the power of
bis elOquence, and it is needless to say that
much of bis rhetoric is driven in BY graph.
ic force Of utterance and gesture, themselves
a panorama Of moving imagery.
Life thoughts has had on immense
sale. The Notes from the Plymouth
Pulpit are on the same plan. The work is
to be had at GEo. LlrrLE's Bookstore. We
give some extracts which illustrate the char.
acter OF its contents.
mans religion is not thing oil made in
heaven, and then let down, and showed into him.
II Ia his own conduct and life. man has no
more religion than he acts out in his life.
All truth is equilibratsd. Pushing any truth
out very far, You are met by . counter truth. A
man generally runs one truth out till he meets
another, and then he drops his first truth and
goes over to his counter. BY and byh swings
back AID gains his true position. that Of q hub
in wheel, with oil truth pointing towards him,
and meeting where he stands.
The truth OF mans freedom. carried to Ger.
tain extent, is met by his dependence upon,
and action according to, the will OF God. The
truth Of q mans individuality meets, at a GER
tain point, the truth Of his sociality Of being.
These things are all true, and 10 be night, q man
must be on both sidss
The Bible is the centre jewel Of which crsa.
ton Is the setting.
The most of everything is tina, which is IN.
expressed.
Words are bat little bubbles thrown up to
express what lies below, forever inexpressibie.
What man is. is not what he is on Sunday.
ter plays to him, and all good influences play
TO him but it is what he is in the week. day,
when his life Is wearing, and working, and wesv.
ing for him the garment IN which be Is to stand
and be judged.
Farmers have learned a lesson which many
moralists have not learned namely that when
seed Is sown grain must be looked for at the
latter end OF the harvest, and not At the begin.
ming.
some men are. in regard to ridicue, like tin.
rooted buildings. in regard 10 hsil-all that hits
them bounds rafting Of. not stone goes
through.
II IA q bad thing to live exclusively in taste
and refinement. II begets very wicked sort
OF selfshness. The man who lives too much in
these faculties will be perpetnally stumbling
upon things shocking TO his feelings. for God
forgot TO polish all the rocks in this world. He
didn't make trees ell smooth. There are 0
thousand thing that he didn't put velvet on.
lis pity men should grow too refined to keep
uith cd N hs nrnvidapeas