The Hartford herald., 1880-05-05

the truth, and never prone to condemn
anything because 1t Is she mere fashion
to do so. Like him who has stood the
buffetings Of party rage and rancor un-
moved, still firm to patriotism and
truth, until his unswerving virtues have
exalted his name to the highest among
high. 1--WE should ever rather be right
than be President II Is not only intel
lectual improvements, however, We
should make; we everywhere see tow
ering intellect and trascendent acquire
ments, like n tornado, aweing and
astounding the world with magnificent
grandeur, and like the tornado, spread
ing destruction and desolation wherever
they pass. intellectual improvement
may secure our advancement, but
moral culture alone, can secure our hap
piness in life. Our moral ~ well as In
tellectual faculties, were given us by
an all-wise Creator for our culture and
Improvement; il b BY their culture
alone, that peace, order and harmony
can be secured In society. II should Be
the aim OF everyone tn cultivate In his
own heart fixed and undertaking prin-
ciples Of truth, justice, honor and char
ity. These are the great land marks Of
social life, obliterate them In the heart
and that heart Is the seat of every
thing that Is base, vile and corrupting,
remove them from society, and that
society is hell, destroy them In a gov
ernment and that government Is des-
potism. Famine may sweep over q
land, desolation, devouring flames, and
blights may blot out the beauties Of ere
alton, but portion Of the starved pop
ulation may survive, the gentle dews
and showers of Heaven will restore the
verdure, and bounties Of creation.
War may raze the towers and battle
ments, burn up the buildings, ,devour the
fields and drench the plains with the
blood of the devoted people, pestilence
may steal through our ranks, withering,
eongealing the hearts blood with its ST.
lent secret horrors, till naught Is heard
but the groans of the dying, and the
wall of surviving friends, yet all these
evils have their end, there is a regen-
erative influence In nature that will
heal and resuscitate, and peace, happi-
ness and plenty will smile again.
But not so with moral desolations !;
let a country become disgraced in her
moral standard, let avarice, ambition,
disqualification, fraud and immortal
ity sway the actions of q country, and
that community sinks down, down,
down, and finds no resting place. Ii is
a blight that is followed by no verdure.
II Ii a death that has no resurrection,
Ii Is a desolation that has no resuseita-
ton.
Our duties to our fellow-beings are
closely allied To our duties to ourselves
and our country; and in fact, includ-
ed in them, for the most important du-
ties that we can discharge to our fel-
low-beings. In to set them q good exam
pie, and one OF the most important du-
ties that we can discharge to our coun-
try, Is by performing all the duties Of q
good citizen i'm the community In which
We live. There are other considerations
and duties I'm our intercourse with those
around us, not only Of the greatest Inn
portance, but Of the utmost difficulty,
to discharge Alright. In truth, II h In
our daily intercourse with the world,
where our weak points are most ex-
posed, and where our principal sources
of trouble originate. A man may re-
solve to be just, be honorable, be chari-
table, but practicing those virtues IL
the difficulty. A man may be truthful
in his dealings, but avarice may lead
him astray. The temptations Of wealth
and grandeur may lead him to over
reach his neighbor In trade, exact high
er profits ON his labor or merchandise,
than q fair compensation would require.
All this Is tolerated and legAlized by
the community, but it IL through these
legal erevices in our moral code that
avaricc creeps into the heart, and too,
often converts the warm hearts blood
into baser gall
Our standard Of honor may be formed
in that mould which would lead US to q
pistols mouth for an imaginary in
suit, whilst we, ourselves, had wounded
the feelings of some poor human being
laboring under want and dependency,
by passing him by with a look of con-
tumely aud seorn. Our charity may
evaporate in ostentatious display Of our
names to subscription lists or the vari-
Gus frauds and humbugs Of the eommu-
nifty, principally gotten up for the pur-
pose of creating Offices and officers,
whilst we daily infiict the most wanton
cruelty upon those around US, by mock
ing at their infirmities and Weakness,
wound their feelings by satire, or filch-
ing their fame and reputation by mag
nifying their vices, or putting false con-
struction upon their virtues
But the great importance Il that in
our daily Intercourse with the world, We
have often to act under the influence of
impulse, passion and excitement and
when thus acting, we seldom act dis
creetly. The cloister's and hermit's cells
have produced many saints, but the
crowded city has produced but one
Socrates. To govern and control our
passions within reasonable bounds is of
the utmost importance to all and can
no doubt be more or less done by all,
but the modus operayadi by which to
gain their entire control, Is, / must con-
fess, beyond my knowledge and per-
haps ii was never designed by nature,
that man should submit tamely and
quietly to every insult and injury; and
1 know not how it may be with Others,
but am free to confess, that IL history
had recorded the fact that Socrates had
administered one or two fiaglitstions to
Zantippee il would not have lessened
him the least in my estimation.
Perhaps upon view Of the whole