St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1871-10-06
VOLUME 35 -NUMBER 1884.

d mcnt TO the place and the old pride in
C ITS prosperity have not somewhat abated
, | would not bc unjust, but | have sus
; ipcioE that, with Greater pecuniary pros
: pcrity, there Is less Of public spirit than
: there was in the oldcn time with far
greater means and opportunities, dull
er sense of individual responsibility in re
, Spcct to public affairs. In the DAYS
when there were no railroads, and even
the mail-coach was but intrequently
| seen, the people by their very isolation
from the outside world were made ho-
mogcneous and iratcrnal They were
often in each others house, and the af-
ialra OF the little tOwn, its struggles and
MS growth, were subjects Of daily consid-
; Grafton. lln~l,ing<, quiltings, applc-par-
n% bees, and other social gatherings
were frequent and the farmers so loved
TO see and converse with each other, that
instead OF working each one alone on his
own farm, day after day, they were oft
en-, Ly a system Of exchange, brought to
@cther by the dozen in the same field.
All this served TO give intensity to the
social life OF the town. Now, however,
the facilities of intercourse with distant
places are 50 multiplied, ami So many Of
You have sons or daughters, brothers or
sisters, in llr"cr and more hourishinn
places, that You are under a constant
temptation TO travel and the ncwSpa-
pcrS 50 excite you with their reports of
whatever is going on in all parts of the
world that your sympathc' are prone to
be diverted from your neighbors and
what Immediately concerns the welfar.
Of the town. The Church, the Acl,le-
my. and the District School are dwarfed
in your eyes, i'll comparison with greater
institutions ol the same sort elsewhere
and before you are aware OF it, perhaps
your interest in them, and the sense of
individual responsibility for their charac-
ter are sadly diminished. 1t Is 4 good
thing, no doubt. to lave our sympathc-
enlarged > Il. 10 embrace the whole
world but ii j. not 4 good thing to for
get the duties we owe to the place in
which we live, and the people among
whom our lot is east. On the contrary,
these duties should be tie first to claim
attention. No man can love his coun-
try as he ought who does not first love
his home and the place of his birth. The
best way, indeed, to serve ones country
Is 10 make its towns what they should
be. These lovely hills and wales were
meant to h. the abOdeS of virtue, intcli-
gence, enterprise, and high aspiration
ana they can he male such only by your
patriotism and devotion. 4 conscem.
tiuus tullillmcnt OF your duties viii
make pcacham aS attractive in its moral
and social aspects u i; certainly Is in it,
natural scenery
1t you ask me TO tell You more speci-
ideally what yOu ought to do, | say in
the first place, see to it that your Church
i, not permitted TO langui,h either for
waLt Of spiritual life or temporal sup-
port. 1t it not b. snOthcrcl by too
great IN attachment to crecds and forms,
to the NEGLECT OF things OF higher import
ance. Let it BE- kept abreast OF the age,
with an ear open for the Truth, ever old
and ever new, which God by his Holy
Spirit is always waiting to reveal to his
faithful children. You have done wisely
in repairing and bc;lutitying your L,cc;-
ln@ house. The money thus expended
is - much capital invested for the bene-
fit ut the town, which las thereby been
mad. 4 more desirable place of residence
There i not Il farm within its limits that
has not been enhanced in value 10y tins
expenditure. Then you Shoull give
your minister Il Generous support, and
encourage him 10 declare the whole coun-
'ri "t God according to the dictates of
his own conscience, even though in 50
doing he should disturb your prciudices
and rrhukr You for your shortcomings
and sins. Ii your minister - To be
blessing TO you and not curse, lac must
bc free to proclaim the truth rs he un-
der-tand- it and you should be NOR.
ready 10 support him when lie givrS You
mamma fresh from heaven, than when ne
iuils yuu to sleep with thrcadbarc doc
trincS and lllclc>S forms. The object ol
pr,arhin" is to make men wiser and bet
ter, AMI this cannot he done by humar
in" their prejudice. and ministcrina t.
their selt-complacency. Above all, do
not rals- AGAINST your minister the COW
arlly cry OF ''hcre>y," ii he should some
times venture To express thoughts and
convictions that seem Incompatible with
the ancient tormullrieS Of doctrine The
effort TO conlinc Coils truth within the
exact limits OF Il creed is not less absurd
than 1t would b. to attempt to bottle up
the rays OF the sun and You should 1--WE
YOUR minister TO understand that Won pX
pect him 10 use all the faculties that God
has Yivcn him for the discovery OF the
truth, and never to withhold it ior fear
OF g;vlng you oiien-e.
counsel you, moreover, to expect
AMI encourage your minister to apply tha
OF Christianity to every human
interest and relation; To your private,
social, and political life. and to the liv-
ln@ questions OF the time-lhc questions
upon which you are called 10 act-quc.-
tiunS OF reform and progress, involving
the ri9Lts oil human nature, the purity
OF government, and the welfare OF socic-
ly. The distinction between things re
liyious and things secular is too often
made cover tor practices that corrupt
religion to the core, making it but an
empty tormality. Religion, if it is rood
Ior anything, will not be an affair of
sunday alone, but Of every day of the
week, gong with Us into the field and
The shop, INTO the caucus and the town
meeting, guidim" AMI controlling US in
our labor AMI our rest, III our amu>c-
mcnfS As well aS our ,I,yntiOnS and iu