Dallas herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1849-1873, 1868-12-26
The bankruptcy OF the Heart.


vests OF purple and goldg How
many hearl-soars Are covered iron
the rude gaze al the worll by az
Ostentalious display of eternal hap
pinessg Like the spartan boy whS
covered his wounds with hi
cloak, or like Iho Nouided dove
, which covers with its bright
est plumage the arrow which pier
ces its breast, tho world is ever
drawing = veil over the wounds OI
tho human heart There il poison
deadller lhan that which destroyed
the Egyptian Queen, Its venom
dlIluses itself through the heart
creating n moral Asphyxia which
none but the waters of Sloan can
ever olenrsc, Where flowers should
bloom and make home rodOlent with
lhoir perfume, there Is u cherries
Sahara, over which the iilfnl winds
Of passion and rcmOrso hold their
revcls, with nothing but the deadly
nightshadc, with its poisonous
breath, To relieve the dreariness %
the scene. Whore the noble
thoughts should blossom forth, in
deeds Of sacrifice, they turn and
feed ON themselves, aud worship u
god which incarnalcs thcir selfish
passions, Where sweet fountains
should throw their tinted spray and
sing their gurgling anthems, bitter
Marahs pour their asphaltic tides
over lost hopes,
Suppose there was appointed for
every city and village 4 Register in
heart bankruptcy. Suppose he had
in his possession the fabulous look.
ing glass of Lso, which gives por.
feet por,raiture of the heart, with
all It's wounds, its crushed hopes, it's
baillcd ambitions, its vanities aud
rivalrics, how many who now wear
the outer garb OF happiness would
be adjudged deplorable bankrupts?
Alas! many. The purest human
beings could not bear to have the
world gaze into their hearts. There
would be on every page of its his.
tory, some sinful stain which would
become II fostering sore under the
eyes Of the world. There is an All
Seeing Eye, whose piercing sight
sees all the dcf0rmitics of the human
heart No false returns can ever
deceive His penetrating gaze. The
decree of the court discharges the
earthly bankrupt, but nothing save
the blood Of the Lamb can give n
discharge in tho bankruptcy of the
heart. Were faithful photograph
taken of every heart, how many
memorial columns would there be
seen above broken hopes? how
many weeping willows would swing
their mourntnl, trailing boughs
over the grave Of disappointed
loves ? For, after all, so far as
earthly happiness is concerned, there
is to woman no bankruptcy like
that Of bllghted affection. 1t is the
only sorrow from which she refuses
to be divorced. She may wear n
placid smile, as oceans face is often
without ripple while sea monsters
are fighting beneath its surface. She
writes upon the tomb Of her lost
love,
"ClouIs pass the moon, nor leave trace
on her s'very brow;
Stars which have been vciled in storms
shine on as brightly now
Ocean leaves no shade of wrath upon the
peaceful shore,
But the fragile reed of humsn love once
broken, blooms no more
A chaste writer has beautifully
said, "a woman's whole life is q his
tory of the affections. The heart is
her world it is there her avarice
seeks for hidden treasures; it is
there her ambition strives for EN-
pire. She sends forth her sympa-
.hics in adventure; she embarks
Ter whole soul in traffic of affection,
md if shipwrccked, her case is
hopeless, for it is bankruptcy Of
he heart"
What sad record would be the
inventory of the heart How
many unpaid VOWS would mar its
,age How many selfish thoughts,
low many ignoblc ambitions would
Use up like accusing spirits to con
lemn us That little heartache of
which WAS considered a
mere whim, and at which the world
aughed, is n scar. The tears which
oil from our childish eyes when the
lome tics were broken, and you
we're cast out upon the world, are
corchod spots. Every little sor-
ow has left its impress. That little
'rayer which you murmured around
our mothers knee has blossomed
NO flowers which give fragrance to
he heart. As the tiny fern leaves
is impress on the granite rock, so
very transient hope or sorrow
caves its mark on the human soul, I
Iet us all remember we make up
ur own inventory. 1t may be full
f generous thoughts, noble deeds !
nd pious action, or it may be re-
ord of vanity, selfshness and sin. ,