Sacramento daily record-union., 1881-09-27

mingled with the sentiment OF personal devotion to
the representative head OF the nation the spectacle
of this tender SO ietude and SYM athy for the
President, because he was the President, because he
represented the dignity and sacredness and glory Of
the naton-the spectacle Of this regard for the
in the office felt alike by those Of different parties
ali over the land, and depriving many a sym.
pathetic heart of sleep during the weary nights
should put that question forever at rest. Perhaps
there never was case where the head of a nation
was more closely followed with tender, patriotic de-
votion And when he died, We all feIt-lnen, women
and children, everywhere-as deeply and tenderly
as ii we had lost personal friend and felt we
had. Nor was the national sympathy confined to
the Presdet. It extends to the family and the aged
mother, all of whom have found warm and sacred
place in the hearts of the people.
But the nation has been borne up into the
presence of Cod, beyond the President and his
family, by this trial While it stood by the bed
side of the dying man-slowly dying all these
anxious weeks-it has realized that it was in the
presence of the Almighty. Human skill and atten
tion were sure to play only secondary part God
reigned and the people stood in before him. And
now that death has come and the nation is follow
ing him 10 the grave, there lessons more use
full for us to learn than the very ones which God
seems to be teaching at this time. He is revealing
his supremacy, showing our dependence; in a word,
manfesting himself to the conscience and heart of
tn nation, and inviting its confidence and devotion.
is a providental theophGuy, descent of God
among the people, TO bring US into closer union
with him. Our effort should be to retain him to
carry him with us, practically into the affairs OF the
future to try to stimulate and maintain a working
sense of God through the land God has come to
in this dark tabernacle OF sorrow, unmistakably,
and tarred with US +: let us enter into such
lose and faithful alliance with him, as a people
at We shall have him with US in the lighted pa
von of absorbing joy and prosperity in the future
Leaving to those who shall follow me the other
points, will simply mention some of the special
lessons which God seems to be teaching us by this
aflicton. He is teaching US individually our per-
s)nal dependence him in the perils of society
He is showing how delicately adjusted and con-
troled social forces must be by him to preserve our
lines. The occurrence, occasionally of such crime
as laid the President low reveals what an invisible,
inaudble swirl OF human passions prejudices, mis-
conceptions envyings and hates, possible assassina
tions, wei are unconscously moving in every day,
which must be kept in subsection for our safety.
There are weak brains enough, misdirected and
disappointed ambition enough, fantastic and mad
passion for notorety enough, in every community,
to make several Guiteaus. And these men are free
beings and Gods method Of controlling them is not
to break down their Wills nor deprive them OF their
motives, but to make their wild motives and pas
sions and ambitions limit and check another,
causing the outcome, ordinarily to bear some faint
I l..1.
through the suppressed perils- Our beloved Presi-
dent walked forth in nnocense in bright morning.
He had wronged no man. He had invited no muir
derous weapon. But he stepped out into this swirl
of human passions with its unknown hates and
ms gnities flying to and fro and filling the air like
rife balls and one OF them struck him, and he fell
A hundred times before he had had as much reason
to die. Millions upon millions of his fellow
citizens have had much reason to die Yet throufh
all these eccentric passions and lncalcuable magni-
ties God generally opens way of safety But oh how
dependent are upon him for holding in check
those mysterious forces of evil which we cannot
see society cannot suspect and law cannot repress
We are in Gods hands. Let the nation see it. 1t
has cost great price to teach the lesson that in
Him we each live and move and have our being"
Let it never be forgotten.
This afHction is also teaching a higher and
broader truth. It shows us how dependent our
national prosperity is Gods protection and bless
ing in little things. This Divine care is not only
needed in respect to great matters, to protec 5
against wars, the approach OF Asiatc cholera, nan
cia convusions the failure of harvests, general
tastrophies by Ere, or flood, or tornado, and yellow
fever, but also against the uncontrolled vagaries of
e
single man, of as little personal conse-
quence as the most Insignificant being wear
ing the human form, may change the COM
pleXion of the whole country's thought, feeling
and life in a moment and if it does not alter the
current of the nations history, the result will be
different from what it has been in the past in smi
lar circumstances. Thus that the nation is
dependent on Providence that concerns itself with
single pistols and the meeting of men, with the de-
tails of the daily life of fifty millions of human
beings for any one of these trivial matters, so far
as we know, may be the beginning of a new cast of
national history. We see now that we cannot leave
God out anywhere and have the nation safe. We
need his guidance and blessing in everything. We
stand to-day face face with the necessity of this
all-encompassing merciful Providence as the back
ground of our hopes.
Another national lesson, think, is taught by the
circumstances out of which the assassination grew
The lesson is this: Our political action should be
inspired by devotion to principles not by the love of
office or personal partisanship. a republic is
gauized on basis OF faith in principles, and in
rs capable OF serving principles and being swayed
by them. Our Ship of State cuts adrft from the
odtime policies sefshness prescriptions, injustice
and craft of monarchies and arbitrary governments,
and sails boldly out towards principles. Love for
principle must be the party watchword and spirit
or We fall from the genius of the republic and ose
its organizing quality. But strange to say, wien
the fatal blow fell upon the nation, it fell out OF
atmosphere Of political wrangling about Office and
men, with apparent strange disregard and confusion
of principles Grave Senators had been contendipg
for months about place, and providing for their
favorites. 1t looked like medieval struggle, or
struggle among those vino had not come to mans
estate. AS the bolt eaped cut of this element, does
not the fact reveal the Divine dsapprova? II lead
ing politicians descend to the low level of place and
fAvoritsm is it strange that wild brain precipi-
tated the philosophy of seshness and partisanship
into fatal stol-shot? And if political parties
are to have higher inspiration is it not clear that
they will rapidly dissolve the moral cement of the
republic Can the structure Of freedom long en-
dure, when the mighty forces of party spread out
over the land and swaying the whole people, instead
of pushing upwards towards rights and questions of
political economy and the interests of the nation,
and the profound policies OF craftsmanship let
themselves down to a scramble for power and gain,
or personal favoritism2
This affction thus calls the nation to its senses.
1t at once gives moral cast to the nations thought.
1t shows us that the moment the nation forgets
the great matters of principle and drops down to
the level of vulgar selfshness and greed in its DO
litica action and spirit produces social condition
out of which peculations and frauds and star
contracts and assassinatons spring as naturally
the lightning fash from the cloud that has en-
gendered and nursed it in its BOSOM
God is teaching US deeper lesson. The political
life OF people is the outcome of their character SO
are the crimes that darken their history. The fact
that we have had two Presidential assassinations
shows that we have great work to do in the moral