The People's vindicator. [volume] (Natchitoches, La.) 1874-1883, 1878-03-02


buy it subject to those deductions, and
the margin is ftarfully wide, for it takes
in sickness and sorrow and pain, remorse
and death.
Men who have gained the world have
found that their purchase was encnmher
ed with all Of these, and have had awful
doubts, even in the midst Of wealth and
power and fame, whether after all the
purchase was worth the price, for to-day
he may he worth millions and own his
broad acres; tomorrow all that is
left is the silver plate on his coffin and
the six feet by two of grave yard earth.
How does the world look to dying man:
How does he estimate its worth? What
does he think it profits man to gain the
who'e world and loose his own soul? Oh
of how little value does property appear
to him in comparison with the value Of
the soul, which ages after this world has
passed away will have but entered upon
the infancy of a being which knows no
age, and bushes with the rosy dawn of a
morning to which the shades of evening
never come.
Now this great spiritual, immortal,
blood-bouyht soul, is the thing which lis
proposed IS the price of the world and
million of men who call themselves thrift
ty and sagacious, are making this very
bargain every day: and are rushing on to
Eternal Bankruptcy. can see the his
tory Of snch a man pass before me as in
vision. Let us look at it as it passes
can see an ardent ingenious youth,
the pride of his father, the idol of his mo-
thcr going forth from the paternal roof to
embark in the business of life, full of life,
pride and enthusiasm he plurgcs into the
rapid current of business, he is marked as
one born to success, all predict for him a
triumph in the arena of trade: his mark
in the world is great, influence, power,
and wealth thoughts of his soul, of sin,
of repentance and Judgment will now and
then force themselves into his mind, he
cannot forget his mothers prayers He
says he cannot attend to religious duties
now, but he will after while, and 80
life's young tender years go by, never to
return again.
1see now man of middle age, the OK.
preston of his youth has tled-care,
thought, anxiety, have left deep marks
npou his brow, a gray hair is seen here
and there, his business is extensive, his
hands head and heart are absorbed with
profit and loss, he has no time for the SER
vice of God, he puts off that matter until
he retires from business, and then says in
the calm evening of life he will make pre-
partitions for another world and thus
middle age passes away, the time when
he could do work for God passes away
and ]ife's great work has not begun.
see an aged man now, tottering along
on his cane, this is the mothers pride, the
strong man we just saw, vigor, activity is
gone, his mind is losing its tone. lie is
encountered with the care of fortune
lie has spent his life in buying the world
He has large share Of it, but it has cost
him the prime of his life, and now totter
ing on the very border line of eternity
the world for which he paid SO much il
slipping from his nerveless grasp.
We look once more, the room is dark
lights lowered He is surrounded b,
weeping friends, and is struggling in TIN
!, grippe of that relentless foe before whom
you must bow, that thrifty sagaclous maj
is dying Bring up his wealth it amounts
to millions, and tell him he set his worl
on this, he obtained it and now he ough
to be willing to die; and mark the ex
, preston of his face as the shades of eter
nifty gather around his wasted form.-
Doubt, fear, despair, are painted there
listen to his answer. Oh, am a dyin
man, l am poor and needy at last. g
to meet a Holy God and l am full of sin
what wreck have made of my life.
sought the world. thought had game
it, but oh fearful, maddsning thought
have lost my soul.
3 Tell me now ye who traffic in immorta
i, souls answer me the question, solve tn
> mighty problem, "What shall it profit
. man if he shall gain the whole world an
lose his own SOUL"
How awful is tho thought Of los
companion lost child, the cry is raise
the woods arc trailed until if possible th
u child is found and restored to it's mother
arms. But the stupendous thought of
ost soul, who shall 90 in search of it an
when will you 60, it is beyond recover!
it is banished into outer darkness, wal
/ dering from night to night, from deep
deep, ever falling and never stopping-n
/ light, no friendly face of wife, son {
daughter, to cheer the soul, no mornin
star to rise in all the gloom of etern'
. night, black storms ever rise and thur
" ders ever mutter, and if any ray Of ligl
- is seen it will be only the pickering ligh
= nings' flashing from the bottomless pit,
u tell of the darker clouds of despair ro]lin
up from the great deep. What, oh wh'
will it profit a man to gain gold an
lands and office and lose his own soul
But hear you say II must work
must make money! agree with you az
10 90 further. and say q lazy man cannot