Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1877-02-10

stand for themselves. l have taken
these three verses from the three
psalms which have been sung this even
ing to express what | mean. The first
is from the 9Th Psalm. 1t is psalm
which almost certainly was written by
David. He wishes to unravel his
thoughts, and to have a clear idea of
God. and he finds it in two things-the
moon and the stars which we see in
the sky on a cloudless night. That
gives him to the thought of the order
with which God has arranged this
great universe. He sees it also in the
bright faces and the blameless conduct
of little children. They give him the
idea of what man, who was born in
the image of God, was meant to be.
No doubt, there are bad children,
naughty children, and even in good
children there is something which may
become very bad; still, in children
there is an innocence, a Hghtness of
heart, an ignorance Of evil, a joyous
ness and simplicity which ought to be
refreshing to every one. 1t was that
which made our Saviour so fond Of
them, taking them up in His arms and
saying, "Of such is the kingdom of
Heaven" 1t is this which is so we'll
expressed by good English poet, who
says he looks back with regret to his
childhood:
Happy those early days when
Shined IN my angel-infancy!
Before Taught my tongue to wound
My conscience with aSinful sound,
Or had the black art to dispense
Aseveral sin to every sense,
But felt through all this feShly dress
Bright shoots of everlaStingneSs."
This it is which gives such a soothing
thought to any who have lost their dar-
lings in infancy, or in early childhood.
Their lives were completes; they had
shown US the glory of God in their
dear little ways. They are gone-they
are with Him. We do not count by
months or years where they are gone
to dwell. May | read the words of a
great scholar and philosopher, after
death of such a sweet daughter ?
Parents may take it to themselves;
children may know from it what COM
fort they may be to their parents il
they have been good, gentle, and dill
gone | was able to thank God that He
had taken my child into His arms,
where she is safe for ever, from all the
troubles and sorrows of life. The first
chapter of her existence was closed.
Who knows what troubles were in
store for her when she was found
worthy to enter the kingdom of Heaven
as a child" Here we have toiled for
so many years, and have been troubled
with so many questions-and what is
the end of it all? We must learn to
become simple again like little child
ren-yea, like little children-that is
all we have right to be, for this life
was meant to be the childhood of our
souls, and the more we continue to be
what we were meant to be better for
US. Let us use the power of our minds
with the greatest freedom and loving
truth, but never let Jus forget that wear
on a sea shore, while the great ocean Of
good lies undiscovered before us. !"
We must not, in speaking of children,
think only of them in the past; we
must think of them in the future, and
here let us look at the other Psalm (the
127th), which some OF the Jewish
teachers long ago thought might have
been written by the great King Solo
mon. At any rate, 1t expresses what a
man of vast experience of human life
might well have said, Light as the
arrow in the hands of giant, even so
are the young children 1t tells us
that we must console ourselves in the
sorrows and troubles of the present
time by thinking of what the children
who stand around US may be in the
time that is coming. May we, like the
arrows which the mighty archer can
shoot far away into distance and dark
ness, and strike target which we.
perhaps, can hardly see, but which, if
these little arrows are winged with
good thoughts, and filled with good
resolves, and nurtured with a good
training, they will surely reach. We
sometimes, as we look towards the i'm
mediate future, and think, regretfully
perhaps, how few there are Of any rising
character or glorious gifts to enlight-
en- the close of this nineteenth century,
as we and our fathers were enlightened
by the great character and the glorious
gifts of those who adorned its begin
ming; but our consolation may be that
those who are the children of this gener-
alton shall grow up to fill this void, and
comfort those who are still unborn.
Among those little children who are
here present tonight there must be
many who will live to the twentieth
century. Let them remember, when
the first year ofthe next century should
dawn upon them, that they were called
upon in this Abbey to take their part
in rendering this country great, a
happy, and a Christian country.
Where we have failed let them sue
coed; where we have succeeded let them
what we have lost let them re-
cover. Happy is the country which
has its culver full of good, strong, &C
tive, honest, Christian children. she
shall not be afraid, when she speaks
with her enemies in the gate" There
is long, long day before most of you.
Make the very most of it. Let US feel
assured that when we die and pass
away, we have left our country, our re-
ligion, our honor safe in your hands.
And this brings me to the third lesson
which you may take from these Psalms !
The 18th Psalm was almost certainly
written by David. 1t was what he |
wrote, we suppose, when he had con-
Iuered Jerusalem, and asked who was
o live in the Holy City-"Who shall |
lbide in Thy tabernacle; who shall |
lwell in Thy holy hill?" What are the |
characters that God loves and wishes to
3e with him? There is no difficulty |
n understa nding what David says in
be verses that follow and when peo-
lie sometimes talk of the difficulty of
eaching religion to children, let them
emember these different verses of the
9th Psalm, and they will find how
-ery easily they can be. learned, how
cry easily they can be applied to the
hiidren they have to teach. And so
will try to apply them now; and so
o you, my children, having told you
low much we and your country expect
rom you. will tell you how you shall
,e thought worthy of the house of God
nd His holy hill. | will ask those
7ho are parents and friends, or who
AVE any influence over any of these
hildren, to try to make good atmos-
here round about them. so that these