The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1882-05-25
INNOCENT PASTIAIES.
Continued from Page 1.

OF the ABANDON OF ublu SIOI U.s. Clg OuV |
for it in behalf of the Church of God as |
well as i'm behalf of secular interests L |
wish that every winter our ponds, our !
rivers and our CapitOllnc Grounds mlgh, /,
be all auuake with the heel and shout Of |
the swift skater. | wish that when the |
warm weather comes the graceful oar
might dip the stream, and evening tlde
| be resonant with bOatman's song, the
| bright plOw splitting the crystalline bill
low. We shall have the smooth and
grassy lawn and we will call out people
of ali occupations AMI professions, and
ask them to Join in the ball-player'5 8
| sport. You will come back from these
| outdoor sports and recreatlOnS with
strength in your arm and color in your
cheek and a flash in your eye ana cour-
age in your heart. In the great battle
| that is opening against the Kingdom OF
| darkness we want not only cOnSecra-
ted soul, but strong arm and stout
| lungs and mighty muscle. / bless God
/ that there are so many rrcreatlOnS that
| have not on them any faint Of lnlqulty,
recreatiOns i'm which we may engage for
! the Strengthening of the bOdy,the clear
| ing of the intellect for the illumination
| of the soul.
There is still annother form of Tecrea
| tiOn which | commend to u,and that Is
| the pleasure of doing good. L have seen
| young men, weak and cross and sour
| and repelling in their dispositions, who,
| by one heavenly touch have wakened up
and become blessed and buOyant the
| ground under their feet and the sky over
their heads breaking forth into music.
'Oh," says some young man in the house
| to-day, II should like that recreation
| above all things, but | have not the
means" My dear brother, let us take
| an account of stock this morning. You
have a large estate if you only realize 1t.
| Two hands, two feet, you Will have per-
| haps, during the next year at least $40
| for charitable distribution, 1Ou Will
have twenty-five hundred cheerful looks
ifyOu want to employ them. You VIII
| have five thousand pleasant words IL you
want to speak them. Now, what an
amount that is to start with! You go
out tomorrow morning, and you see
case of real destitutiOn by the wayslde.
You give him two cents. The blind
man hears the pennies rattle in his hat
and he says, "Thank you, sir; God bless
your You pass down the street trying
to look Indifferent, but you feel from the
very depths of your soul a profound
sense of satisfaction that you have made
that man happy. You go on still further
and find poor boy with wheel-barrOW
| trying to get it up on the curb-stOne. He
fails in the attempt. You cay, stand
back. my lad, let me try" You push 1T
up on the curb-stOne for him and pass
on. He wonders who that well-dressed
man was that helped him. You did
kindness to the boy, but you did great
iOy to your own soul. You will not get
over it all the week. On the street to-
morrow morning you will see a sick
man passing along. "Oh," you say,
what can do to make this man hap
py? He certainly does not want
money. He is not poor, but he IS SICK
Give him one of those twenty-five hun
dred cheerful looks which you have gar
nered up for the whole year. Look joy
and hOpefulness into his soul; 1T Will
thrill him through, and there will be
reaction upon your own soul. Going a
little further on you will come to the
store of a friend who is embarrassed in
business matters. You will go in and
say: "What fine store you have! |
think business will brighten up, and
you will have more custom after WHILE
Good morning. You pass out. You have
helped that young man, and you have
helped yourself. And that night you go
home, you sit by the fire; you talk lit
tie, you laugh a little. You say, 81
really don't know what is the matter
with me. never felt so splendid in my
life" l will tell you what is the matter
with you. You spent only two cents
out of the SO. You have contributed
|
cheerful looks. You have given ten,
fifteen or twenty of the five thousand
pleasant words you were going to speak
during the year; you have with your
own hands helped the boy with the
! wheelbarrOw, and you feel in body, mind
and soul the thrill of that recreation.
, Which do you think was the happier
Colonel Gardner, who sat with his ell
| bow on a table spread with all eXtraYa-
giant viands, looking at the dog on the
rug, saying: " How l would like to
change places with him; / be the dog
and he be Colonel Gardner" or those
two MOraYian missionaries who wanted
to 90 into the IazaTettO for the sake of
attending the sick, and they were told:
eff you go in there you will never
come out; we never allow any one to
come out, for he will bring the cOntag-
ion" Then they made their wills and
went in first to help the sick, and then
to diel Which was the happier-COlOnel
Gardiner or the MOravian missionaries,
diving for others? Was it all sacrifice
when the missionaries wanted to bring
the gospel to the negroes at the Barba-
does, and being denied the privilege
j.. sold themselves into slavery, standing
side by side, and lying side by side down
l in the very ditch of suffering, in order
, that they might bring those men up to
life and God and HeavenP
Go forth, o people, to your lawful
| amusementsl God means you to be
: happy. But when there are so many
t sources of innocent pleasure, why tam
per with anything that is dangerous
l and polluting? Why stop our. ears to a
:. heaven full Of sOngsters to listen to the
l.. hiss of dragOnP Why turn back from
the mOuntafn-side, all ablOom with
wild flowers and adash with the nimble
q torrents, and, with blistered feet, at
! tempt to climb the hot sides of fire
belching COtOpaxiP How brightly the
! path of unrestrained amusement opens
. The young man says: "NOw Pm off fOl
4 a good time! Never mind economy; III
: get money somehow. What fine road
n What beautiful day for ride! Cracl
4 the whip, and over the turnpike. Come
q boys, fill high your glassesl Drink
Long life, health, plenty of rides jus
like thisp' Hard-wOrking men hear tn
clatter of the hoOfs ank look up and say
n "Why, wonder where those fellows ge
u their money fromP We have to toll an
d drudge. They do nothing" To thes
a CAV men life is a thrill and an excite
~ ment. They stare at other people, an
)I in turn are stared at. The watch-chall