Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1868-06-01
DECISION.

Il.
was not, in his later years, mn inhdel,
though no at one time protested TO
DO skeptical. lie doubted, he halted,
he was very undecided. But no used to
read the Bible daily, and his friend
Shelley wrote to Thomas Moore, the
poet, who had besoughs him not to iu-
jure Lord Byron's principles, IL I Ind
any influence over him in this respect,
which I have not, I should certainly
employ it to eradicate from his noble
miAd the vestiges Of Christianity which,
in spite of his reason, seem ps~rpOtually
to recur and lie in ambush for his hours
Of sickness and Distress"
Is religion nothing but a delusion
as such men as Shelley would repre-
sent? Why then is it, "in spite OF
their reasons, it will rerpetually recut
and seem to lie in ambush. for their
hours Of sickness aud distress 2" Thou
sands quote Byron and Shelley for their
brilliant poetry who have, however, no
idea what undecided and wretched men
they werc in their private and solitary
hours. One would ut least have
supposed that Shelley, when no pro-
posed so earnest q desire to eradicate
from Lord Byron's mind tho last YES
tiges of Christianity, had no such YES
tiges left to haunt bis own hours OF
sickness and distress. And yet, it is an
uudeniable fact that Shelley's " OK
ample did moro than anything else
to convince Lord Byron of the folly
of his protested infidelity, he being so
manifestly overcome by unmanly ter
rors in hours Of danger. Sailing to-
gether in tho Mediterranean, they were
overtaken by a sudden storm aud
wero for half an hour in great danger,
when Shelley, throwing himself on the
dock in the greatest, agony and terror,
prayed most earnestly and cxcitedly to
that God whose creative providential
power he had 10 his writings almost or
quite denied. From that time Lord By
ron re~pudiated all affinity with Shelley's
religious principles. Several months
after this it was that Shelley, sailing
again in the Same waters, was yer
taken by smother storm, in which his
boat was overturned and all on board
drowned. His body was, after some
days of search, recovered and cared for
by Lord Byron, who, after that period,
partly through the conversations of an
honest, earnest friend, aud partly
through the written prayers of a de-
ceased acquaintance Of formes times,
by which he was very deeply impressed,
became a far more serious nan on all
religious subjects than no had been
before.
Indeed Lord Byron did not hesitate to
express that he had no pleasure or sat-
isfaction in tho irresolute and undecided
state of mind, as to the claims of Chris
%tianity, in which he found himself, and
many Of his conversations were very
candid and touching. His chief fault
was a certain changcablsncss and lickle-
ness Of mind, which mono regretted
moro than he did himself; n sort Of re-
ligious indecision which none who ever
had carefully studied his character
would regard rs other than perhaps the
greatest weakness Of this wonderful
genius. There are, however, many who
copy the faults Of Lord Byron, who
have neither the genius which he pos
scssed, nor yet even the desire which
he manifested to overcome them. Very
few could, perhaps, havo so justly
pleaded the faults Of tho worst possible
education for such u character MS he
naturally possessed, or the example of
such a mother, whose capricious and
violent extremes produced the most ter
rible consequences in the formation Of
her sons character. Unrestrnined i'm
pulse, as the source Of action, had been
on both sides Of his house and for gen.
CREATIONS the most characteristic trait.
Impulsiyeness and INDIGESTION often go
together, and are tho,ruin of characters
otherwise. the noblest. Some are unde-
cided as to the truth and claims Of all
systems Of religion, hating between n
speculative iufdelity and tho truth Of
Christianity. Others, clear on that
subject, are undecided MS to the personal
submission Of their own characters to
the guidance OF this system.
Many there arc whose INDIGESTION Of
character on all these subjects is the
only decided thing about them. They
are almost persuaded to be Christians
I'LL their lives, but never are quite dcci-
ded. They approach the worry gates, as
it were, of the Celestial City, but yet
ever fail Of entering. Like Felix, they
tremble and parlsy aud converse, but at
last push aside all the claims Of reason
and Of religion. When they have u con-
venient season, thoyf will coll for it.
The mother pleads the cares of a family,
and tho man of business his pressing
occupations, aud the young, afraid Of
being even suspected Of the seriousness
they would yet most desire to cherish,
assume an air Of unusual gaity and tit
ter, lest they should be ever suspected
of an anxiety that Expresses their
dreams BY night and thoughts by day.
And yet religious decision is the first
and highest Of all duties. Man was
Of God, and ever inteuded to be
religious being. He who ineglects
this violates the great end Of his being
and wrongs his own soul. We all "
to society, 10 our friends and our
and though none can judgo for
another how he can best fulfill those
on his eYamnle and influence.