The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1871-06-07
We are Passing Away Forgotten!
BY J. d. CUNDIFF.

rrorvtbine human or inhnman,
ute or inanimate, that dweils OF
ah :a.s mon earth, points to those
EXIST .hful words, 1--WE are passing
tfua,'n The rich and poor, the young
avid the learned and iliterate, the
a ,:a1, and low, the happy and unhappy,
his aoy and sad, 1.-The good and bad, all,
'h m are are "passing away" The falling
,at Of the mighty forest, that Is swept
i n,n from its native tree by the autumn
Id Id Gales, speaks to us OF the TACT
llas s aried and withered grass upon the
Inc int VT hills proclaims it. The crushed
a's," s.aed rose, that but n few days
anu ', mos lovely with its blooming
ago agsShuess. and whose sweetness was
treslna,1 last upon the morning breeze.
wa,eeG; The ferco and destructive
tei's \" ,hat rise and hurl their fury
sso,mS oor outtheir venom as though
ana pu uore maddened, reminds us OF it.
they -isine tide, that swells upon the
. in, of the great ocear, ana then
s soUl reeedes, tells it. The grand old
g eL or chestnut, that has withstood the
o oaarms and decay of centuries, but at
, s'Ol Ioosening its hold upon its parent
Ess' is hurled before the sweeping
eaieI to the ground, there to lie and
sa.1 ~ " he made the victim of the wood
,o axe. causes us to think Of it.
IN Notwithstanding our sojourn upon
9TH is of such short duration, and
we are so rapidly passing from this
tarrest,ial heme to that place 'we
know not Of" we occupy the brie
nar;od of our existence in using every
device and means within our power t
nerpctuate our memory upon earth
+ + Is the zenith of our ambition to vii
honor and fame, that our names ma.
not be forgotten, but that the teemlnl
millions oil future generations may a.
honor TO our memory. How we strive
and toll, and fret, and wear out on
lives to secure riches, hoard gold, sill
yer, bonds and precious stones; an
be the owners of vast domains, all thi
we may be fattered during LIE an
remembered after death. Some, whe
thev have amassed fortune, dispenS
it with liberal hand to the poor, an
found charitable institutions, tn a
thew NAV be remembered after this IL
for their liberal gifts, while others hi
the gold and bonds with misery tigll
ness. and nothing but death can sep
rate them from their treasure; y
they expect their names to live
after they have passed away. Hon
and fame may clothe our names WI
seeming Immortality and history spe
of us on its brightest pages; but in
century, perhaps less, we are "forg'
tent" Riches. that we bequeath
posterity may cause our progeney, a
those whom it benefits directly,
think kindly of us for time, but 500
as years roll on. we are thought OF
more-forgotten 1t is noble a
laudable to give to the poor nee
and helpless, and to donate money
the erection of suitable edifces for
education of the homeless and faith
less but even such q monument
this will not cause our names to l
ON and on through the ceaseless az
to come.
In vain do men strive to build MOI
ments of marble and erect shafts
granite that will resist and withsta
the ruthless hand of Time it requi
but few years for the effacing fling
of Time to erase their names Fl
marble or granite. and soon their
resting place is unknown and they
forgotten. What, then, will cause
never to be forgotten 2 Is there
monument which we can build t
will safely bear our names through
timea
Yes, we may build upon Jesus's l
amonument that shall last forever.
building upon Him who ''gave his
aranson for u.s. shall endure
perpetuate our names for all con
time. Let us, then, become rich In
benefcent blessings of the Son,
stand upon a firm and unchanse
rock that can never be shaken.
MS consecrate more of our time
talents to His service-do more
His cause and kingdom upon es
Let us 60 and do something grand
the salvation of men and glory of
and thus immortalize our names. !
in triumphant song we will marcf
to the glory land confident that We
not nor never shall be forgotten.