The Jackson standard. [volume] (Jackson C.H., Ohio) 1847-1888, 1883-11-08

EZeklel Deen Gne experience Oh CnOSe
who came after him! In the long SER
les Of successes and failures, Of trials
and triumphs, Of temptations and VIC
tories, which 60 to make up human
life, we are by no means infrequently
cast into valleys filled with dry bones
the dry bones of frustrated hopes,
of neglected opportunities, of lost pri-
vileges. And it is happy and trust
full mind which can see, in the un-
slightly and lifeless aspect of this val
ley Of death, some signs of promise Of
future usefulness.
Ezekiel was commanded Of God to
"pass by these bones, round about,
and behold, there were many in the
open valley, and they were very dry"
This experience of Ezekiel has had
many parallels, all along down the
years. Society has contained many a
valley of dry bones; in every depart
ment and phase Of life, this solemn
''bone-yard" has put in an appearance.
Even the Church has from time to
time had its little corner filled with
dry bones. And the political field has
its share of these solemn pictures.
While meditating upon this gloomy
subject we were carried away in a
dream, to the field of active political
life, and to scenes not long gone.
Acting upon a sudden impulse-so
our dream ran, but the impulse may
have been superinduced by an impetus
coming through an overwhelming
political defeat-we took solemn
walk along a mythical stream which
has become somewhat proverbial as a
resort for those who have sustained
SERIOUS defeat. We had not travelled
far along this lonely and somewhat
uninviting stream until we began to
come upon small valleys filled with
dry bones. These began to increase
in number and size as we passed on
up the stream. In one of these we OBJ
served the bon Of a colored slave
mother and her mulatto child. 'Tis
solemn place, surrounded by the
graves of many thousands of brave
men. and washed by the tears Of thou
sands of women. Near by lay the
loao, oe H. f,4bo, oe 4b;S ,,,u1otto
child, but not the husband Of the
women. Mother and child are, so far
as this earth is concerned, dead-forev-
er dead. But, while we gaze, awe
struck, upon the scene, the bones of the
father seem to bear out the words of
Ezekiel: when [ beheld, 10, the
sinews and flesh came up upon them"
The old bones hogan to thrill with
new life; the body moved; it sat up
right; the sad eyes opened; they look
I'd long and earnestly back in the di-
rection from which we came; the jaws
moved; listening closely, we caught
that old and familiar, but oft-times
forgotten sound: "Rah fur Ginral
Jacksonw
Further along, the bones became
more plentiful still. and more pitiful
in their loneliness and quietude.
There was q grim skeleton grasping
the pistol which had murdered Lin
colin; there was no sign of life about
these bones; there was the skeleton of
statesman who had hoped to be
great benefactor to mankind, and be-
side him, broken and rusty, lay the
stamp with which he expected to
stamp corn-stalks and put them into
circulation as money. Still further
along lay the remains Of distin-
guished orator who had given great
deal of time to the work Of figuring
out how many more soldiers there
were in the War for the Union who
we're Democrats, than there were who
were Re publioans Raking the mold
and dust from his tablet we couldstill
decipher the entries.
The list showed grear preponder-
ance Of Democrats-bu that column
was headed &c. S. Al These bone,
were dead eternally dead. Arriving
1t the head-waters Of this lonely
stream, and in the centre of this hab-
itation Of the dead, we remembered
the Divine injunction to Ezekiel:
Therefore prophesy aud Say unto
them, Behold, o, my people, [ will
open your graves, and cause you to
come up out of your graves, and bring
you into the land Of Israel"
Thus remembering, We sought-in
our dreams-a convenient elevation,
where, swinging our hat, we shouted
at the top of our voice: "Hurrah for
Hoadiy-Ohio is Democratic Stater'
Immediately, and like an echo to
the shout, there W;:s such deafening
clatter Of dry bones as seemed like all
the bone-yards of earth were engaged
in a pitched battle. Immediately
there was rush down the stream.
There Was a gathering of fieshless
jaws; a distiuguishable articulation of
office! office! and long, bony fingers
clutching wildly in the direction OF
: Ohio. -
The noise of these rushing thou.