Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1879-02-12
A Dream OF the Year,
al saw vision IN my sleep,
That gave my spirit strength to sweep
Adown the gulf Of time"

That gave my spirit strength to sweep
Adown the gulf OF timc!"
u, Campbell.
We have more dreams awake than
when we sleep, a large part Of every
ones life is passed amid 'Hhc stun that
dreams are made Of. Al times we
hardly know Whether We have been
asleep not, a vision of past and future
appears and then vanishes away.
1t was in one Of these moods be-
tween walking and sleeping. before
rising on the morning Of the first day
of the year, that this vision passed
before me, with all the viyidness OF
the sun, and left its impress so that !
can tell you what saw and heard.
Twas walking on the bank OF a
deep. broad, silent river, flowing on
ward toward the sea. The stream
w
was covered with vessels Of various
names and rig; all going with the
current; making progress some more,
some less, but all getting on. Some
of these ships were so near me that
could see the men on board, and with
little care I could discover the work
that each was set to do, from the
master to the cabin boy. There was
enough for all, and each vessel kept
on its course. when every man did his
own work, faithfully and well. There
was some bad steering and slovenly
handling the sails, and here and there
captain was tipsy and things were
out of sorts, and one ship would run
into another or get aground f; and l
saw that the neglect Of any one to do
bis duty, made mischief that brought
trouble to all on board.
Before me in the path stood man
whose white hair and wrinkles told
me of his great age, and even if he
had not carried q scythe over his
shoulder, would easily have known
him as Father Time. He said to me
in firm and manly tones
''Whither goest thou p
"With the current replied call
things seem tending to the sea, some
90 by water, some by land, and | sup
pose we are all going the same way
:Turn,' he said, sand go back with
me. on the path thou hast travelled"
We reversed our steps, and he
spoke to me of the path OF human
life; it is often called journey, a
pilgrimage; but it should rather be
spoken of as q place, house, field,
battle, a service he said it is wrong
to think of lite rs sort Of space or
distance between two goals, race to
be run and then over; a voyage to be
made and then the port to be enjoyed ::
and as we walked side by side he dis
coursed to me Of the duties OF lite, OF
the works that each man has to do,
and neglecting which, he makes a
failure. We came in our walk, upon
wrecks of vessels stranded and rotten
on the shore: by the side of the path
way, and now and then in the very
road itself, were the remnants Of brok'
en- engines, and the scattered members
of beautiful machinery and the bones
of human beings lying in the grass BY
the wayside. Puzzled with the sight
of these things, not one which l had
noticed when pursuing my journey
alone and with the current Of the
stream, I looked up with wonder to
my patrarchal guide and asked;
"What are these wrecks that strew
the road I"
Lost opportunities" were the only
words that tell from his lips, but they
fell as from out of the sky, so far Oft,
and so solemn did they sound in my
ear. ! was silent, awe struck, and
anxious, for a faint suspicion came to
nv mind that this was in part my
work, epd these RUNS were memorials