Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1874-12-30
Saint and Sinner.
BY r. III. STODDARD.

w no IOT nlusoll d cave udu uduo,
Comfortless, in the waste Trebaid.
Where like wild beast in his den,
He passed long life far from men.
.Untroubled by the hateful sight
of womaI-tbis old man austere
Tasted, and scourged himself, and prayed,
'Renouncing all the world holds dear;
His sole thought being, day and night,
How to find favor in Gods eyes,
And thereby enter Paradise.
He led this life three score and ten
Starved years, pulled up with sanctity;
"Who more saint?" he thought, and thel
PRAYED God to show him what saint he
Should emulate to holierbe
Thinking, no doubt like many now,
Who kneel self-righteously and pray,
That Goa would stoop from Heaven, and ga!
"There is none holier than thou"
That night Gods Angel came to him
(The sun at MONDAY would be dim
BY the great light that filled the place.,
And said; IF thou in sanctity,
And in the growth of heavenly grace,
Would'st all surpass, thou must do more
Than fast, and scourge myself, and pray.
Thou must be like. or strive to be,
A certain man: poet he,
For he upon pipe doth play,
And sing and beg from door to door,"
He heard in great astonishment,
Arose, and took his staff, and went
Wandering the neighboring country round
To find this poet; whom, when found
Gle sat a-piping IN the sun,
And sang what songs came in his head),
He questioned earnestly, and said:
81 pray thee, brother. tell me now
What good and great work thou hast done?
What path that holy men have trod,
What fast, what penance or what vow
Makes thee acceptable to God?"
Ashamed to be so questioned, he
Hung down his head as he replied:
ssOh, father do not scott at me;
I know no good work have done,
And, as for praying, well-a-day,
I SO unworthy am to pray,
That. sinner, have never tried
/ go from door to door and play
you caught me piping in the SUM,
Cheering the simple people there,
Who something for my hunger spare"
The holy man insisted: 'Nay,
But in the midst of thy i'll life
s(For it is i'll, as thou dost say,
Perhaps some good work thou hast DONE"
The singer said 81 know of none."
Within the hermit's mind a strife
Now rose-the Angel-who could tell
Whether it were from Heaven or He'll?
q How hast thou" to the poet then,
Become the beggar that thou art2
Hast thou thy worldly substance spent
In riotous hving-women, wine,
Like most that idle craft of thine
Who follow HelIward-sinful menu .l..--
To whom the other, panied at heart,
But not a whit ashamed: cit went
Another way Twas thus. I found
A poor, pale woman, running round
Hither and thither, sick, distraught,
1T pains me to recall 1t yeti;
Her husband, children had been sold
In slavery to pay debt.
But she was comedy to behold;
So certain sons of Beliah sought
Her ruin, whom may God condemn
Her, weeping, to my hut [ brought,
And there protected her from them.
I gave her all that I possessed;
Went with her to the city where
Her wretched husband had been sold,
And her young children found them there
And brought them back. You guess the rest
For they are happy as of old.
But what of that In Heavens name
What man would not have done the same ~
The hermit, smitten to the heart
At the sad tale of that poor wife,
Wept bitterly saying g For my part,
L have not done in all my life,
I thought so holy, SO much good.
And thou art so misunderstood,
And yet thou makest no complaint
And men, because fast and pray,
While thou upon thy pipe dost play,
They call thee Sinner, and me Saint -
-Scribner for January.