, 1876-11-20

lty can draw no spiritual power any longer from
tho ideas TINT distinguished sect, but like tho
leaders ot nat[on lie nuat cast down tho Aag
ol lif Iittlc clan Rud wave nloft the banner uf
the great kingdom Ut God toward which fold MI
who lovD God nrc marching and into which all
shall be gathered when the great nightfall shall
come.
OUR POLITICS.
SERMON NJ THE nEv. L. ". epn1N0, or LAW
HENCE, KAN.
Special Correspondence n TAe Tribune
LAWRENCE, Kan, Nov. 17-The following
sermon WIS preached Sunday, the 9Th inst, by
The Rev. l.. W. Spring, VI Plymouth Cougre-
gational Church, this city, FROM tho text:
Render thercfuro unto CHrar tho thlnvs which
arc >nsar's. .-.fati., rti,., II.
When hunters In tho wilds Of AfrIca, who arc
In pursuit Of tho large iyory-bcarng game, :
come to q spot where grasses, brushes, and all
the various tropical underground, ara trodlen
tlat, they know that the great heavy-footcd
beasts arc not fur away. So, 1t there were no
other means OF Information, an observer Of our
social conditions md u our polit!cal iustitu-
tfons, would detect, every fourth year, the ad-
vent Of Presidential election by the gen.
ernl absorption Of public interest Ia political
Quc8tlons nnl the consequent disturbance
II not pEostration Of business fntcrc1ts It Is
inevitably the foremost theme Of thought and
discussion, taking precedence, for the time, Of
al topics whatsoever. Bince human nature is
wl,At It Is, we ought 10 expect nothing else. Tho
highest positions OF in1uunee In the country,
posts Of tho arst importance financially and 9TH
crwisc, arc flung open to public competitions,
and It is natural enough that general. rclltnel
scramble for them should set III among all
classes, races and colors. The utility Of these
so frequent national conyulslons, involving
clangcs Of policies and officials which nobody
can predict, Is certainly open to grave doubts.
At least the Intervening spaces might be length.
ot,Dtl with good effect.
SInre, however, there Is to bc n rcconatruc-
tluil, or MI attempted reconstruction, Of the
personnel Of tho Executive Department Of Our
Government every fourth year, II is desirable
that the purest mad nob|cst elements Of society
should take part In It. Tho basur clements Will
10 present without fall, but THUS for Il has not
bcsn possible to enlist the full strength Of the
better classes. 1t s quito tho hnb!t to cal poll
tics dirty pool, IN which It Is not welt To
get sollet, forgetting, evidently, though We
sanic must co1nu to us III thc allape oi corrupt
laws and a vicious civil service. II u man will
iiot throw the diBlnfcctaut Of lila honesty
and virtue Into tho befoM1el spring, let
stream below 1 found to bo unpalatab!u,
AMI for one shall not bo greatly paiEed ut tho
sight Of i,!s wry inccs. II has been thought tlat
thcpulDit IN particular should carcfnlly nbsta!n
from noliticai discussion as Il there were somc
inunl Burke, ~ hls Reflections on the kcvolu-
cla.actcrlstic force. "No. aouud," said he,
sought to 10 hsard 10 tho Church 6ut The ileal:
civil liberty mud civil government gains as littlo
as that Of religion by this confusion Of duties.
F: =. Surely tho Church is q plare wherc ono
days truce ought to be allowed to the disscn-
ou,erowth Ut tho idea that religion is to
bu restricted TO singing and praying anu
exl,ortinR while It is warnnd olt as M Intruder
from large trncts of our IT.. Why sh9ul'i not
heard among tho "disscns!ons and aniaioslttcs
Of lnarkindhl As To truecs, the fewer dishonest,
unprlnc!plcd men In oiliec arc allowed thu but
ter. Tho fact is that religtun. clalns authority
III tho things that buloug to Caesar as well rs iii
Nc Nov ills shrinking from politics, this disgust
At thu very sound Of ths word Which IL nottcu.
does politics in It's true eunsc fn iss original AMI
higher meaning. involvct What Kind aud
guilty of interests docs It colnprisc2 Let us
rao oil so' 81 the ,co1'tsmnorry smoke aud SEQ
LII the Arst place cur politics Ia c9,nmissoned
to preserve wl.at tho past las contributed to tbs
present mud future. We have III charge grcnt
Treasure. w ought to l,aVo tho earnostness
and solcmnity Of men who arc nudcr vast re-
sponslh!lltics. 1we1l know that some will laugh
at such a thought Al though II were an idle
ssn't!u,snt!alIty yet It seems 60 nc Tint splrt
who hnvn gonc before uB, Is " bo profoundly
pittlcd. Nay, we 40 back Of them. Tho roots
q our prosperity, penetrate TO Greece aud
lsolae, and Paleatlno;., penetraie where.
i've sye ssse anaa 'pa'''h pna hopsa sna fsesS EyeS
generation las added something tu our welfare.
1t Ia because the past las lived uad died that We
arc Whist and where We arc. ltelnc's suying
touching tho critics Of Luther, thnt mahy u
abu 70 SEQ as far as himself after first climbing
upon hts shoulders, llas pretty wide applicar
tloa., Nothing noblcE or Kranupr csn be found
IN history than tho glorious deeds q o',I own
and Revolutionary ora wcto most g nspicuous
both for capacity AMI. patriotism. Tho caln,
,aEactou; @sl!y Of Wssngton the tn
tic poli.l aud literary skin Il Jefferson; lhu
genius, tho saerlAcc, tho l.erols then and ator,
known and unknown, are oil built Into this
great fabric whtch wo call our Fatl!ersand.
sort Of building. We. ~ the Machncrles of
ous politics. in thu fornlalItios Of our elections,
adsntn!stcr upon these blood-statncd lcgac1es,
arc To determine for the time tho Issue 0l these
secret trlss&s. The struggled, tho prlyat!ons.
tllu wisdom, the lie Of gcnerations aru lodged
in our hands to do with then! Us VIC Will. There
are unseen spectators who once toilcd whero wo
arc iaboring; who lived whero our homes now
arc; who died for liberty, for the future, for US,
-speetators Watching the citizens Of to-day who
have taken up their taaka. Ought there not to
bo in this trust spur to adelityl Shal! We
not complete tho work, with Gods
heln In tho spirit that inaigurated III Or shall
we, by indifference and scltlshness, compel con-
fcssion tl,it the poets melancholy lines were
only tho sober truth:
a. by tho shoro at break Of day,
A vAnQulshed chief. expiring lay
Upon The 8ands, with bluken sw1El,
lo traced his farewelt TO tho Tree,
And thers tbs last unfinished word
lie dylng wrots wa ''LibeEtv."
At night seA- bird shricked the kncll
Of him wh0 thus for freedom fell;
Tho words ha wrUta eHo evening cana
Were covered by Tho bounding Aea.
H pass away tho Gauss and name
OF him who dies for Liberty.
So they pass away when politics falls Into dis.
gracc, whGn men forget country iu pursuit Of