The Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1855-1875, 1874-09-02
THE GOLD MAN"
BY HENRY WARD BEECHER.


By HENRY WARD BEECHER.
Old men are the ugliest and
of mortals. If serene.
pure, and noble of heart, their
beauty is far superior to the mere
sparkle of eye and color of cheek
that make youth attractive. If they
are mean and selfish, the old mans
face is a corrugation of snakes.
The passions have hardened into
permanent expression.
But of all ugly men, there is not
one other half SO ugly as that one
OF whom Paul speaks laos
''Lie not one to another; seeing
ye have put off the old lnan, will
his deeds" This old man was tho
devil of lying. The swarm of lying
devils must have been immense,
since there is enough to furnish
almost every man with one. And
such riders as they are!
They ask no saddle, no rein, no
seat. They can bestride the back.
or sit on the shoulder, or mount
the head, and they can ride on the
eyelash, or the smooth lip, without
slipping or sliding. They nestle in
the hair, swing in the curls, peep
out of ribbon bows, hang by the
girdle, sit astride of the comb; in
short, no circus rider ever was so
nimble, SO expert, so various as are
these lyinp devils. Each NAL
seems by nature to own one. At
first the old man is annoying; but
he soon breaks in his subject, and
soon rides without being perceived.
If he only rode for his own pleasure
"a kind of parasite, sucking hi.
good out of men his presence
would be more tolerable. But his
only pleasure seems to consist in
the mischief and wickedness which
he urges his victims to do.
Now and then men get tired of
this old man, and sling him off.
This usually happens after some
misadventure into which the me-
licious rider has urged his dupe.
But he has been flung off too otter
to be troubled by it. In few mo-
ments he is quietly up, and in his
saddle again. At length men not
only get used to this load. but come
to like it. They do not feel easy
without their old man. They CON
ceive high opinion of his skill and
wisdom, and they trust him to
secure success and to ext. icate
them from difficulties; and that too.
though every day he is the cause ol
disgrace to them, and loss and
annoyance.
But now and then one succeeds
in putting off the old man, and il
is to be hoped that it is done SO az
to break his neck. This ''old man
deserves no favors It is the one
that should receive no mercy. 4si
| But oil are not SO lucky. Men
often throw him of for while. an
then take pity and let him ride 6
while. They often carry him owe,
difficult places. They keep him fol
emergencies, and think that the,
have done we'll in getting rid of hin
for even half their time.
But, ali, how much easier it is
/ go single than double! No on,
who has not tried it can conceiv,
how much pleasanter life is will
tho cold map" IF thsr ,L On, Iii Eil
mhr 81 san 4t1Msff 1Mffl1s 1shaoalders' q atds 70 be rit
of him is to save world of anxiou
/, thought and calculation. The Span
lard say--and if there is anything
about lying that they do not know
it is hardly worth knowing-tha
"a liar should have good memory.
But when once man has learnet
to s'speak the truth, every ma,
with his neighbor." he need not b
anxious. Truth always takes car
: of itself. A lie needs two watches
one for day and one for night, an,
then hundred to one but it vii
be detected.
I dreamed the other right that
had power to bring things out
Z the sight, just as they were
f shall not tell what sad things / saw
) nor what transcendently beautifr
: ones. But, as I was going dow
Broadway to wall street, it itoccurre
to me that would see how me
E locked. And 80 I commanded th
), old man on every ones shoulder
e to appear. And appear they die
: Such a sight was never before in
J agined out of bedlam. All sorts {
: sprites, of goblins, of imps, of d,
! formed dwarfs, Of grotesque an
E hideous faces, all sorts of keen an
s sharp faces all sorts of ugly an
J, demoniac faces, grinned at me frol
8 shoulder and back and head till
. fairly shuddered- By the sam
J power which had evoked them
q commanded that every man shoul
y see what was on everybody's bac