The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1881-07-28
g1iscella
REV, I. DEWITT TALMAGE.
CHILDHOOD THE HAPPTEsT ERA
IN HUMAN LIFE
Full Of Promise and Sunshine, And the Hope Of
Better Days to COme-NO Light Like That
Which KIndles In the Face Of
BabyhOOd.
CHILDHOOD.

Text-II Kings 4:lS.20. "And when
the child was grown it fell on day that
he went out to his father, to the reapers.
And ne said to his father: my head, my
headw And he said to lad; Garry
him to his mother" And when he had
taken him, and brought him to his mo-
ther, be sat on her knees till noon, when
he died."
There is at least one happy home in
Shumap. To the luxurianCe and splen-
dor of a great house has been given the
advent of child. Even when the An
gel of Life brings new soul to the poor
mans hut star of joy shines over the
manger. Infancy, with its helplessness
and innocence had passed away, Days
of boyhood had Come-days of laughter
and froliC-days of sunshine and promise
days ofstrange questions, curiosity and
quick development. l suppose among
all the treasures of that house the bright.
est was the boy. One day there is the
shout of reapers heard afeld. A boys
heart always bounds at the sound of
sickle or sCythe. No sooner have the
harvesters cut swath across the field
than the lad joins them, and theswartly
Feapers feel young again as they look
down at the lad, as bright and beautiful
as was Ruth in the harvest fields of
Bethlehem cleaning after the reapers.
But the sun was too hot for him; Conges'
ton of the brain seized on him. see
the swarthy reapers drop their sckles,
and they rush out to sec what is the
matter, and they fan him and try to cool
his brow, but all is no avail. In the in
stant of consciousness he puts his hands
against his temples and cries: MY head,
my headp And the father said Gary
him to his mother" just as any father
would have said, for our hand is too
rough, and our voice too harsh, and our
step too loud to doctor a sick child; il
there be in our home gentler voice and
a gentler hand and lighter footstep.
But all of no avail. While the reapers
of Shuman were busy in the field there
came another reaper that way with shar-
per scythe and for richer harvest.
He reaped only one sheaf, but, oh, what
a golden sheaf was thai I do not want
to know any more about that heart-bro-
ken scene than what l see just in this
one pathetic sentence; "He sat on her
knees till noon and then died" Though
hundreds of years have passed away
since that boy skipped to the harvest
field and then was brought home and
died on his mothers lap, the story still
thrills us. Indeed, childhood has
a charm always and everywhere. l shall
point out the beauty of childhood, it's
susceptible y to impression, its power
over the parental heart, and its blissful
transition from earth to HEAVIER.
The child's beauty does not depend
upon form, or feature, or complexion, or
apparel. That destitute one seen on the
street, bruised with unkindness and in
rags, has a charm about her, even under
her desttution. You have forgotten a
great many persons whom you met, of
finely cut features, with erect posture and
faultless complexion, while you will al
ways remember the poor girl who, on
cold, moonlight night, as you we're pass
ing late home, in her thin shawl and
bare feet on the pavement, put out her
hand and said: please give me a pen
n.y." All, how often we have walked on
and said: "Oh, that is nothing but street
Vagabondism," but after we got block
or two on we stopped and said; "0h, that
is not right" and we passed up that same
way and dropped a mite into the suffer
ing hand as though it were matter of
second thought, so ashamed were we of
our rhaTd-heartedness With what admi
ration we all look upon group Of child
rem on the playground or in he school;
and we clap our hands almost involun
tarily and say: How beautifulw All
stiffness and dignity are gone, and your
shout is heard with theirs, and you fly
their kite, and trundle their hoop, and
strike their ball, and all your weariness
and anxiety are gone, as when a child
you bounded over the ground yourself.
That father who stands rigid and un.
sympathetic amid the sportfulness of
children, ought never to have been
tempted out Of a Crusted and unredeem.
able solitariness. The waters leap down
h,,t kI,ovy boV ~ H., f,1
step of childhood. The morning comes
out of the gates of the east, throwing it's
silver on the lake and its gold on the
towers, and it's fire on the cloud; but it
is not - bright and beautiful as the NOR
ming of life! There is no light like that
kindled ina Child's eye; no color like that
which blooms on Child's cheek; no mu.
sic like that of Child's voice. Its face in
the poorest picture redeems any imper
feCtion in art. When we are weary with
toll, their little hands pull the burdens
off our back. Oh, what dull, stale, nd
mean world this would be without the
sportfnlness OF children! When l find
people that do not like children, i'm
mediately doubt their moral and Chritt
ian character. But when the grace of
God comes upon a child, how unspeaka.
bly, attractivel When Samuel begins to
pray, and Timothy begins to read the
Scriptures, and Joseph shows himself in
vulnerable to ptation-hoW beau iful
the sCenel l know that parents some.
times get nervous when their children
become pious. because they think good
children always die. The strange ques-
tioDs about God. and ternity. and the
dead excite apprehension in the pareu-
tai mind rather than congratulation. In.
deco there are some children seem mar
ked for heaven. This world is TOO poor
a garden for them to bloom in. The hues
of hea zen are in the petals. There is
something about the forehead makes you
think the hand of Christ has been on it,
saying: LET this one come to nae, and
let it come soon." While that one tar
ried IL the house you felt there was an
th ,,,l . l. .l,t