The Buchanan County guardian. (Independence, Buchanan County, Iowa) 1858-1864, 1859-12-22
For the Guardian.

Mr.. EDIroR-
1t is Immortality which constitutes
the dignity of man. It is tEat intssmi-
nable existence, reaching onward bsyond
the grave, that invests life wih It's ire.
mendous importance. We are assured by
him who cannot lie that the existence
here commenced, never, never shall ter
inmate /; though this globe may crumble,
though the sun, which has so long blazed
in the heavens, may go u in eternal
night, though all the worlds which an
Almighty hand has scattered through in
fnity may fall and decay like the leaves
of Autumn, the soul of man, unimpaired
in its energies. shall survive all.
With what grandeur does this invest
the nature of man! Immortality !! Who
can conceive the idea? What magma
ton can reach onward in the compre
hension Of the limitless ages in which the
mind of man is destined I o exist :? When
we compare the three score years and
ten of human existence, with the millions
and millions yet untold of coming ages,
what a speck, what a pothingness, does
life become. When we contemplate the
probable object our creator had in view
when he brought us into existence-an
existence which is to run parallel with
his-can we avoid sending up loud and
repeated concentrations to his praise,
sweet hallelujahs to his sacred name ?
"But, bark! I fancy some one exclaims,
+" there is no God, there is no immortal
ity. all beings come by chance. all i'm
mortality is swallowed up in death."-
Strange man who cherisheth such
thoughts /; how at variance with the
whole economy and order Of the universe
is such a belief. Every where around
us we see activity and life /; the very
body which we throw off goes to lend
vitality to new forms of beings the
clouds come and vanish, and return again,
and now lie stepped in sun-beams, and
now send down refreshing rains. Moth
ing is stationary /; the very rocks under
our feet, the ocean, and sands beneath it,
the whole visible universe over our heads,
are slowly but perpetually undergoing
changes ; they are never idle for a mo-
ment. And amid this stupendous work
shop must the soul of man be inert and
unconscious ? Must the active principle
within him be suspended and kept tor.
pid as long as eternity endures, while
the very clods Of the valley are teeming
with life Alas how can a belief so
incompatible with the evidence Of Gods
natural and revealed laws find a resting
place in the soul ofcivilized man? How
strange and unnatural the creed that looks
to the damp and dismal tomb as the
eternal sleeping place of this intelligent
being, this immortal spirit! Who can
resist the belief when they hear the
mighty thunders rolling in the heavens,
and see the lightnings flash, that there
is one who governs all things. and is able
in a moment to suppress the raging OF
the elements? Who can resist the belief
when they see the finger Of an invisible
God SO evidently portrayed in the con-
struction of our earth, together with the
whole works Of creation, hat there is a
supporter and upholder of them? Rest
assured, there is a God, a Ruler, King.
who created man and put within him a
vital principle. an Utmost soul, which
will exist, sporting through Paradise un-
der the smiles of acceptance from the
God-head, interchanging sweet
sympathy with angels Of Hottest nature ;
or, exist forever-where i?
Quasqueton, Dec. 10th, 1859.
K.