St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1884-04-27

are not usually men who have sincere pur.
pose of right-doing, and therefore the COM
munity cannot except them to put themselves
aside, and pursue ''without haste or rest the
way upward into truth and right A per
son must have some greatness of soul as well
as power of character who can look over the
little half bushel which holds himself and
work for God and humankind.
What is any man that he should block the
way Of the well being of the community
BY what right does he make some pet aim OF
his own party question, and ask the public
! to satisfy some grudge of his, instead of aid
ing the great work so imperatively demand
ed by the desolated homes and ruined lives
of drunkards?
''To no private advantage sought or gain
ed'' did Massachusetts, royal son prostitute
his power. For God and humanity he labor
ed, and left behind legacy which shall en-
dure when gold and silver shall become
cankered, and name which shall grow
brighter until he shall be called by his thew
name"
! Another trait of his character was decision.
| ''He knew how to obtain a determination, y
and thus his thinking had some effect; and
when once he had decided, all his interest and
energy were employed to accomplish the aim
sought. He owned himself, and no person
or party had any right to obstruct his work.
No obstacle daunted, no threat intimidated,
but with the declaration, ''every thing for hui
mainly, nothing for party or self, he prose-
cuted his determination from its conception
to is very last consequence.
! Mistaken he often was in his estimates of
men aud measures. ''Every SOUL" says a
writer, sis born into Mistakes - but the
soul was cleangand true, the purpose strong,
and his eye was single. In this, his single
ness of purpose, lies the secret of his exalted
views, and his true estimate of life. Gods
words are If thine eye be single, thy whole
body shall be full of light" and no Ameri-
can ever proved the truth of this promise in
a greater degree than did Wendell Phillips
He saw what light weight riches, fame and
power are when weighed against the good of
mankind, and he put himself with his indi-
vidual preferences, his personal aims for
ever behind him and followed with all his
powers the sole purpose of making the world
better
When men and women of any degree can
do that, when they live so that when ''the
ear heard them r it blessed them; and when
the eye saw them it gave witness to them,
because they delivered the poor that cried,
and the fatherless, and him that had none to
help him." when they can forget themselves
in thoughts for others, then will the light of
eternal truth make clear to them the sig
nificance of life
Wendell Phillips walked on the mountains
and we may tread the valleys; but character
depends not upon position or place: it is the
embodiment Of eternal principles, whether its
possessor has one or ten talents. We may
not be endowed with the ability or wisdom of
the dead philanthropist, but his purely true I'M
selfish character may be ours if we will. If
life is for us only an opportunity for eating
and drinking or dressing, or for piling up
one piece of money upon another, or for
making ourselves famous for its feeting
hour, such good we may gain; but If with
clearer, truer vision we can see how this life
is the seed time for that which is to come,
we must look to the seed we SOW.
st. Paul says, "as one star differeth from
another star in glory, so shall it be at the
resurrection of the dead" We cannot ex-
pect to burn our little candle for ourselves
under our half bushels, and hope to shine
hereafter in its light reflected from others it
has lighted and guided. We have the con
ditions and must govern ourselves accord
ingly.
Wendell Phillips remained outside the
Christian church, but his life was ordered by
the great commandments upon which hang
all the law and the prophets" His charac
ter reflected the purity and beauty of the
teachings of Christ. Who can doubt that his
name, among those of the church of the
first born, is written in heaven? Everybody
trusted him, every one knew him to be per-
fectly honest, fearless, unselfsh. He had
no hostility to men, except when they rep
resented principles.
His life teaches the important lesson that
better than wealth, power or fame is the life
of an honest, unselfish man, and that there
is no success like that of purity of heart.
That true greatness of mind and character
leaves little for the soul to wish, or earth to
confer; and that if we would be honored
and trusted we must unfold to the world the
honor and truth in ourselves. These words
written for another apply to him:
''He needs no tears who lived noble life
We will not weep for him who died so well;
But we will gather round the hearth, and tell
The story of his strife;
Such homage suits him well,
Better than funeral pomp or passing belll''