Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1882-05-11
Broken Laws OF Life.

An incident went the rounds of last
weeks papers as occurring in one of the
interior towns of Pennsylvania, which
was marked with peculiarly dark lines
of tragedy. A young clergyman of ex-
ceptional talent and sensitive tempera-
ment gave himself during the last wear
to hard study, setting extraordinary
tasks for himself, such as committing
the whole Bible to memory, etc. His
brain suddenly gave way, and he be-
came Il violent maniac and was carried
20 an asylum in the sight of the sympa-
thiling town. manacled hand and foot,
and pleading wildly for his mother not
tU allow him TO be taken from his home
This is one OF the hard problems of
Life which make seepties invcigh most
bitterly against the justice of God.
Ilare was man whose purpose doubt
less was to serve his Master, to convert
souls from death; but, because he over
taxed physical organ, he drops use
less wreck by the Wayside There are
plenty of similar instances about us in
everyday life In the colleges, for ex-
Ample A. young fellow becomes by
dint Of natural ability and hard word a
iir>t-honor man; his classmates applaud
every triumphant step; his family a
mother and sister probably, dependant
on his future success for support, hang
eagerly on him with proud devotion;
his life is pure, his aims are high and
pure; aud suddenly he falls to rise no
more. Four such instances we recall
now: two are in insane asylums. one is
IN imbecile, the other, knowing that his
bc,ninuglx+ a a,,.lnI
his life in the waters of the Potomac.
Similar tragedies 90 on in every bust
ness and profession, though with differ
cut catastrophies. A man, let us say, is
born with peculiar talent or Gift for
music, art, literature; some capacity for
the high, fine expression of truth which
would make him q power tor good in
the world. Bnt he cannot make money
enough by it to keep wife and children
in the social rank which he thinks they
should hold. Hence he turns to some
lower but more remuneratiye work, or
he degrades his art into the manufacture
of Salable wares; paints cheap, false
pictures, writes popular, trashy books
on plays, When he grows old he tries
perhaps to take up his real work again,
but the magic power is lost forever,
The mill will never grind with the
water that is past Then he himself
and all his friends bemoan wasted life,
regard him rs in some sort martyr,
aud invariably, and in vague way,
hold God accountable for it and for the
cruel injustice of the fact that man
cannot be Pegasus and cart-horse at
once, cannot carry grist to the mill for
his family and touch empyrean heights
nit the same leap. God, too, is held re-
sponsible for the failure of overworked
brains, as in this last pitiabe case.
Now the popular error i'll this matter
j. that when u mans motive in life is
good, the public expect God To work a
miracle in his behalf to help him 10 ac-
complish it, and are aggrieyed with y
sense Of the Divine injustice if it is not
done. No man who was not fool, if
he had delicate machine for weaving
lace would 90 to work to make carpets
with il, or he surprised, if he did, that it
would break to pieces with the strain,
OR If he had an instrument of tone and
compass tit for rendering divine har-
monies, and chose To iangle only waltzes
and discords on it for years, he would
not be indignant ut Nature or God If it
WAS ont OF tune and forever incapable
of echoing heavenly music Yet every
man OF sense knows that his physical
brain is a material machine, an instru-
mint. subject % material waste and in
jury Just rs much IS any Cremona. Ii
he pcr>iStenty maltreats ii, he alone is
responsible for it's ruin God is not ac-
couHtahlt. He docs not work material
miracles for any man, however good IN
i4tr his motive NAV be Christ Himself
would not throw himself down from the
pinnacle even to prove that He was the
son ot God, in the hope that be woa,d
be miraculou>ly held UP. The man
who puts an iutelerahle weight on hi.
brain throws himself down in such q
hopes and the man who gives UP his
real mission for while in the world in
order 70 grub money OF 70 set his family
Oh fashionable basis. in the hope that
lie can 20 back to it al will. has thrown
himself down a suicidal height, from
W hich no angels will bear him mp.
Each man and women is set down
here IN tho world with 4 stock of phySi
cal and mental capacity subject to mex
orablc laws 10 which ordinary common
sense viii enable him or her to submit
Il he chooses 70 break them not all th'
4 le sa E9t u -
-H4 &.us r5 nEt .ktI, daN
niS father righteousness and mis- owl
late repentance may bring has pardon