Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1868-03-17
Mans Immortality.

There are few who do not feel
deeply interested in ali that can throw
any rays of light on the world be-
yond tina tomb. As men advance in
years, and in mature thought, there
is a general tendency to look hope>
fully and with faith on the arguments
favorable to a continued existence
after death. A remarkable illustra-
ton of this is found in recent ex-
preston of Ralph Waldo Emerson,
the philosopher and poet. 1t was
supposed that he was of too skepti,
cal turn of mind 10 give the subject
of immortality the weight it deserves.
Sc far from this, however, being the
case, be has recently delivered lec~
ture vigorously defending the doc
trine of immortality. After saying
that be valued most highly those
truths received by all ages and cons
ditions of mankind, he declared that
among these he gave chief place to
the one under consideration. The
benevolenee of Nature. he consider
ed, furnished strong evidence in ia
vor of it. From the universal desire
of continued being, he thought such
continuance of being might be ex-
pected.
The earliest records show belief
in the life beyond this life. Herodo-
tus, in his second book, for Instance,
has this passage "The Egyptians
are the first of nations who believe
in the immortality ofthe SOUL" Nor
does the doctrine of metempsychosis,
which they connected with it, destroy
the value of the testimony; the chief
fact is that they believed that truth.
So did the Greeks, who took quite
another view of life and beauty, and
who made their very sepulchres not
so much tombs as luxurious chambers
for immortal spirits. The early
Christians again took yet another
and quite distinct view of life, but
maintained most firmly the doctrine
of immortality, and buried their dead
in the places of worship, until the
churches of Europe became, in fact,
sepulchres for the departed. A great
man, after visiting Melrose, wrote,
"Think on Living" This is the beet
preparation for the future.
A child said "What, shall we new
er die !? NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. 1t
makes me feel so tired" Two Sena.
tors, from different sections of the
Union, used frequently to converse,
while in Washington, closely and in
timately, on immortality. They
parted, and never met again but once
afterward-some twenty five years
later-at the Presidents house, in
Washington. Pushing through the
crowd, one said to the other: "Any
more light, Abbot ?" mo. Any
more light, Lewis ?" "No." 1t was
all they said, and each went his way,
to meet the other on earth no more.
But their own deep interest in the
subject is far stronger evidence in
fovor of immortality than their fail
ure to find the evidence is any dis
proof
lift is the best that life should COM
tinue after death, it will continde, and
our delight in permanence is thus the
best evidence Of Immortality. Ruskin
says of bouses in Europe, that some
of them are not their prime until five
hundred years old; and we know of
pyramids in Egypt five hundred years
old, and earth mounds perhaps older
yet. The love of life is quite dispro>
portioned to the value set by US on
single day. This seems to indicate
resources not yet touched. In EN-
erson's own words GAIL | have
seen leads me to trust the Creator
for what have not seen. / do not
wish to live for my house or my pic
lures, or to wear out my boots. Not
for anything material as an end. But
the mind has within it creative
force, not satisfied by any material
or temporal object" The laborer's
work ends at night, but the man of
mind works for that which is beyond
Courage in the use of arms comes to
those who use them, and so courage
in faith to those who exercise faith.
Natural science suggests perma-
nence, and moral law docs this still
more abundently, for it is said, "He
that doeth the will Of God obidath
forever" and the greater the sacri-
fee made in doing it, the greater the
evidence afforded of permanence is
however, stronger than any we can
put in arguments. But of this each
one may be we'll assured, ''you shall
not get out of nature till you have
paid your debt-fulfilled your des>
tiny" By arguments such as these,
put with quaint simplicity and
keenncss ali unanswerable, and with
force of illustration quite irresisti>
BILE, does one Of the most original
thinkers of our day seek to impress
on his hearers the Immortality of the
soul. That he is himself very far re-
moved from the materialist he was
supposed to be-is made perfectly