St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1886-12-16

But the preparing of kindlings of
the other kind-the kindlings for the
sweet, sacred inner fire in hearts and
souls, fires of happiness, trust, sympa-
thy, assistaRce-this is, indeed, ev-
cry body's business business of every
| body who loves or is loved wishes to
love or be loved wishes to help or be
| hepled; to give or to receive; to have
or to hold the best of life. In no house
hold can it be especially assigned to
one or to another. All must do it; do
it equally, do it regularly. If one
fails all suffer.
1t sometimes happens that, by de-
grees, nobody knows just when, how,
or why, the furnishing of these 'kin-
dlingsn comes to be considered the
work of, or falls into the hands of one
member of family Oftenest it is the
mother. She it is who speaks the
soothing word to the hasty temper,
the cheering word to the weary, the
laughter bringing word to the despOn-
dent. She it is who plans the small
pleasures and surprises that break up
the monotony of living; the gifts for
birthdays and Christmas the friends
to dinner or tea the trip to the sea-
shore. Yet, in all families where the
conditions of life press at all heavily,
the heaviest pressure must come on
the mother. She it is who must have
the brunt of care in times of illness !;
the brunt of all troubles in matter of
service; the brunt of planning, fOrsee-
ing, and providing; last, but not least,
in all families but those of the rich,
the brunt of making a dollar do its ut
most of buying. All this is the moth
er's work. Ought she not to have
plenty of bindings 2" always ready
to her hand lovingly prepared, un-
failingly offered by every member OF
the family for which she spends her
whole strength, body and soul
once heard young lady speaking
of a family in which she had been gov
erness for a year. 1t was one of the
exceptional houses in which the father
furnished the "kindlings."
at was truly wonderful" she said,
''to see how that whole family chang
ed the minute Mr. came home.
He used to come straight home from
his bank as soon as it was closed,
and the minute his voice was heard in
the hall every body felt CHEEKY. He
took his wife out to drive; made the
girls 90 out to walk or ride, if they
had been in the house all day always
was bringing home something to read
or to look at. He was just the sunshine
of that house. l never saw such a
man."
This was home where money was
abundant. But it was not the money
that made the sunshine.
| knew, in my own youth, another
home, in which money was just as
abundant, where the wife-an invalid
needed lust such sunshine, but none
came to her; the husband, generous
enough when the opportunity was dis
tinctly stated to him, never refusing
any reasonable request which was
formally made, yet never of his own
accord suggesting or providing any
recreation, any change, any cheer, in
the daily life. At last, when the wife
became so feeble she could no longer
keep up the brave face and front she
had shown to the world for Il quarter
of century, and a physician was call
ed in, who said to her, "Mrs.@, you
need a change of scene your husband
must take you on a journey" she re-
piled, 81 know it; and Mr.. - is
very kind. He will do whatever must
be done but he never proposes any
thing. l have often wished he would"
She had no intention of making a
complaint There was no fault-fnding
iu her heart. But the involuntary re-
mark told a story.
Fires were low in that house, and
hearts chillier than they knew; all for
want of "kindlings."
There is text in the Christian
Scriptures which is usually quoted as
bearing upon evil speaking, gossiping,
and tale bearing; but it appears to
me to be equally pertinent to this sub
ject of fire-making, literal and meta
phOrical, the warming up of hearts as
well as hearths And why should not
the end of a sermon be It's good place
for the text as the beginnings A bet
ter one, for one reason; for cannot it
be far more clearly seen then whether
it suits the sermon or nOtR
This is the text:
"Behold how great matter little
fire kindleth ~