Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1888-02-22

Dull on wall street may scatter it.
Is the wife's ambition the political pre-
ferment of her husband2 Then that will
probably direct him. What God-forsaker
realm is American politics those best know
who have dabbled in them. After they
have assessed man who is a candidat
for office which he does not get, or as-I
sessed him for some Office attained, and
be has been whirled round and round ant
round and round among the drinking
smoking, swearing crowd who often gel
control Of public affairs, all that is left Of
his selfrespect or moral stamina would hno
plenty of room on q geometrical point
which is said to have neither length,
been satisfied till her husband went into
politics, but would afterward have gwen
all she possessed to get him out.
know highly moral man, useful in the
chnrcb, and possessor of a bright home. He
had useful and prosperous business, but
his wife did not think it genteel enough.
There were odors about the business and
sometimes they would adhere to his gar
ments when he returned at night. She in
sisted on his doing something more elegans.
although he was qualified for no business
except that in which he was engaged. 10
please her he changed his business, and IN
order to get on faster, abandoned church at
tendance, saying after he had made Ger
tain number of hundreds OF thousand ~
of dollars he would return to the churchill
and its services. Where is that family to-
dayp Obliterated. Although succeeding
in business for which he was qualified, he
undertook style of merchandise for which
he had no qualification, and soon went into
bankruptcy. His new style of business put
him into evil association. He lost his NOR
ais az we'll as his money. He broke up not
only his own home, but broke up another
mans home, and from being kind, pure,
generous, moral man as any of you who sit
here to-day, has become homeless, pennl-
less ibertine. His wife's ambition for
more genteel business destroyed him, and
disgraced her, and blighted their only child.
But suppose, now. there bs in our homes,
as thank God there are in hundreds of
homes here represented, on the wifely
throne one who says not only by her words
but more powerfully by her actions !: "My
husband, our destinies are united let US
see where industry, honesty, common
with you in all your enterprises. cannot
be with you in person as you 60 to your
daily business, but will be with you in
my prayers. Let us see what we can
achieve by having God in our hearts, and
God in our lives, and God in our homes
Be on the side Of everything good. Go
ahead and do your best, and though every
thing should turn out different from what
we have calculated, you may always count
on two who are going to help you, and
| God is one and l am the other" That
man may have feeble health, and may meet
with many obstacles and business trials,
but he is coming gloriously through, for he
is reinforced, and inspired, and spurred on
| by woman's voice, as much as was Barak
| by Deborah when Sisera with nine hundred
| iron chariots came on to crush him and his
army, and Deborah shouted in the ear of
Barak: Cup! for this is the day ip which
the Lord hath delivered Sisera into thine
hands," And the enemy fell back, and
| Sisera's chariot not getting along fast
enough in the retreat, the general jumped
out and took it afoot, and ran till he came
to place where woman first gave him a
drink of milk and then sent spike
through his skull, mailing him to the floor.
Some of US could tell of what influence
upon us has been wifely ambition conse-
Grated to righteousness. AS my wife is
out of town and will not shake her head
because say it In public, will state that
in my own professional life I have often
been called of God, as 1 thought, to run
into the very teeth of public opinion, and
all outsiders with whom advised told me
l had better not, it would ruin me and ruin
my church, and at the same time l was re-
ceiving nice little letters threatening me
with dirk and pistol and poison if l per-
sisted in attacking certain evils OF the day,
until the Commissioner of Police considered
it his duty TO take his place in our Sabbath
services with forty officers scattered through
the house for the preservation of order ;
but in my home there has always been one
voice to say go ahead and diverge not
an inch from the straight line. Who cares
| if only God is on our side % And though
sometimes it seemed as if l was going out
against nine hundred iron chariots, l went
ahead cheered by the domestic voice: "Up!
for this is the day in which the Lord hath
delivered sisera into thy hands,"
A man is no better than his wife will let
him be. Oh, wives of America, swing your
sceptres of wifely influence for God and
good homes Do not urge your husbands
to annex Naboth' S vineyard to your palace
of success, whether right or wrong, lest the
dogs that come out to destroy Naboth come
out also to devour you. Righteousness will
pay best in life will pay best in death, will
pay best in the judgment, will pay best
through all eternity.
In our effort to have the mother OF every
household appreciate her influence over heI
childrea-we are apt to forget the wife's in
fluence over the husband. In many house
holds the influence upon the husband is the
only home influence. In a great multitude
of the best and most important and most
talented families Of the earth, there have
been no descendants. There is not child
or grandchild or any remote descendant ol
Washington, or Charles Sumner, or Shaks:
peare, or Edmund Burke, or Pitt, or Lord
Nelson, or Cowper, or Pope, or Addison,
or johnson, or Lord Chatam, or Grattan,
or Isaac Newton, or Goldsmith, or Swift,
or Locke, or Gibbon, or Walpole, or Can
ming, or Dryden, or More, or Chaucer, OF
Lord Byron, or Walter Scott, or Oliver
Cromwell, or Garrick, or Hogarth, OIL
Joshua Reynolds, Or Spencer, or Lord
Bacon, or Macauley. Multitudes of the
finest families of the earth are extinct. Al
though they had done enough for the world
BY their genius or wit, or patriotism, or in
yention, or conservation, God withdrew
them. In multitudes of cases all woman's
opportunity for usefulness is with her con.
temporaries. How important that it be ar
improved opportunity.
i While the French warriors on their way
to Rheims had about concluded to give uI
attacking the castle at Troyes because il
was so heavily garrisoned, Joan, of Arc
entered the room and told them they would
be inside the castle in three days. "We
would willingly wait six days." said one Of
the leaders. ''Six p' she cried out, 'you
shall be in it tomorrow, and under hel
leadership on the morrow they entered
On smaller scale every man has garrisons
to subdue and obstacles to level, and every
wife may be an inspired Joan of Arc to hel
husband.
What noble, wifely ambition, the de
termination, God helping, to accompany
her companion acr) )ss the stormy sea o.
this life and together gain the wharf of the
Celestrial City Coax him along with you
You cannot drive him there. You canno
nag him there but you can coax him there
That Is Gods plan. He coaxes US all the
way-coaxes us out of our sins, coaxes III
to accept pardon, coaxes US to heaven.
we reach that blessed place it will bt
through prolonged and divine coaxing.-
By the same process take your companion
and then you will get there as we'll, and al
your household. Do just the opposite t.
your neighbor Her wifsly ambition is al
for this world, and a disappointed and vex-
ed and unhappy creature she will be all th'
way. Her residence may be better thar