Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1884-03-26
Keeping the Peace.

away two or three days in every week
from her large family of little children.
purchased an illuminated motto
''B.ts5cd are the Peacemakers"
had it framed and hung In tho family
room. For many weeks after the cerc-
mony OF placing 1t on the walls, and
the talk that accompanied the cere-
mony, wheneye er any unpleasant differ
enco Threatened 10 arise between tho
children, some one OF them would shout
out. "Blessed are the Peacemakers.
with perceptlbls happy effect. After a
while. however. the novelty wore out.
aud when q call was made for pictures
10 cover the Lareness OF the walls Of the
new school-house, a consultation was
held by the family TO see which Of their
precious pictures could be spared. Each
one had history; almost every ono
was framed with associations and men,
ories tlat made IL precious. At last tho
younger little girl exclaimed "Why,
send BLESSED are the Peacemakers;'
we're all through with that"
Now, il does seem sometimes rs
though that beatitude-the natural pen
dent to the Golden Rule-was quite ig-
nored and forgotten In some professed-
ly Christian households, rs though they
had got "all through with that" and
yet W at is family where there are no
peacemakers, where each seeks his
own and none "follow after tho things
which make for peace, and things
whcrcwith one may edify anotherP'
Whatever such n family may be, II Is
not an Eden, not Paradise, not little
"heaven to go to Heaven In"
These arc noble quarrels. The fight
going on within us all between the evil
and the good, between Apollyon and
God, is a noble fight. The fight against
ignorance, poverty, intemperance. is
noble; the fight for any true principle is
noble. But it Is not always easy to dis
tinguish between principle and people;
we are apt to get them confused with
each other, and sometimes we turn upon
our lends the energy that should be
used only in fighting our foes, and even
in fighting them we are to "hate the sin
with all our hearts, yet still the sinner
love" A great many people Of execu-
! tive, aggressive temperaments strike
because they feel like striking, not be-
cause they see some great wrong to be
ri GIFTED, some abuse to be corrected,
some evil TO be rebuked. Wisdom sug-
gcsts getting out of the way OF such folk
ill tao paroxysm be past. Sharp
words flow as naturally from some lips
as gentle words from others. Is any
em1llicnt better in such cases than ut
ter silencop Some are never so happy
rs when they can "stir up the animals"
and set them all TO bowling. Prudence
sd gcsts that when such persons appear
all the clubs and long sticks lying round
b. ca 'efuly put away out of reach.
"a soft answer turneth away wrath.
but gricvoas words stir up anger"
"The bale OF pail measures no more
lying Jwn than II does standing up"
| Engineers never go over mountain or
tunnel through 1t, when they can more
advantage 60 aroundit. The self
respe ted person will not permit him
self to b. dragged into petty quarrel
and suffer all his fine enthusasms to be
worn away by such mean attrition. He
W II rather with both fingers In his ears
run away, crying "Lifo, life" Silence
has q wonae; fully healing influence
Wen properly employed. II people
can be induced TO keep their voices
keyed low waen they are in an irritable
! humor. this will allay strife. Children
rar ly disagre9 widely in whispers, or
! grown people, either; as their tempers
rise their voices rise, until high words
are followed by hard blows. We knew
man once who was married 10 wo-
man VIII ha q temper of her own, and
| he kept her o smothercd with honeyed
wor AMI actions that to him she was
| always sweet.
The love Of whatsoever things arc
lovely and of good report, will keep
people from evil as eHectually as tho in
tclse a1d active hatred of evil, and the
cultIvati n of this principle of love, of
! the good for its own sake, brings with
it mildness and genlleness; brings with
! i, balmy airs in which the genial fruits
| of charity and peace naturally ripen.
| Ii people could divest themselves of en-
aggerited ideas of their own self-impoy-
| tance there would be far less strife than
thero is Ii "he who would be greatest
of all' were content to be servants of
all" social and domestic quarreling
would be rare.
A man drunk with wine can notreally
insult u gentleman. The gentleman APP
peals from philip drunk TO Philip
sober" a man crazy with passion or
anger is lunatic to degree, and is to
be treat Il accordingly. When lie
"comes to himself he may be induced
to make amends for what he has done
when he was beside himself. The per-
son who can hold himself true TO truth
and virtue, and front with q serene face
fretfulness, unreasonable irritation, un-
just accusations, groundless fault-find-
ing, and that ceasclcss friction that is
found in al grades and stations in life,
! has wealth within himself beyond COM
| putation. Such person is u treasure
in the family circle, in the church and
| in society
A little girl in the midst of large
family once set herself the task of keep
ing the peace among those around her.
She tried to case at every point she
could the burdens of her parents; she
did not answer back when reprovcd, or
say biting words when provocations
arose. She constituted herself the guar
dian of the children younger than she
was, aud had leagues with them OF
mutual kindness and forbcarancc. She
| tried to pour oil on the waters when
ever they were troubled. and remove
all causes Of strife she could reach. As
"onc sinner destroyeth much good" so
one peacemaker not only planted the
seeds OF concord but destroyed much
evil in that family, and received ample
recompense for her labor.-N y
| Tribune.
A Fatal MisappreIleusjOn.