The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1888-03-24

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way that forbids one to feel that he
lives unto himself and dies unto himself
alone. One is sometimes tempted to
declare 81 have trodden the vine press
alone, and of the people there are none
with me" but it cannot be, some eyes
have seen, some hearts lave under
stood; were it otherwise, the blood of
the martyrs would never have become
the seed of the church. There is such
a thing as law of compen 'ation run
ming through this word, and it is not
confined to one particular specie of cur
rency; it is found in things spiritual
no less than in things material; 1t pro-
ceeds from the heart and life more fire.
quently and abundantly than from the
pocket. Action and reaction, il is in
the midst of these we live. We know
but in part how others influence us,
and less perhaps of the influence we
exercise upon them; that we help or
hinder, hasten or retard as they move
forward to the winning of life's prize.
Too many fail to see it so: what" they
cry, Il help or hinder the world how
can it be? l am poor; l am unknown;
L am ignorant; it must be a mistake,
and you make too much of me-" Not
so; hardship and its consequent suffer
ing have befallen you, and you have
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above it; more hearts have taken cog
nlzance thereof than you do know, and
found therein wellspring as from on
high, from which they have drank
deeply and been inspired to manlier
Things. 1t was but a triaing act, it
may be, for a young woman ON Broadway
to step into the gutter and take from
thence the ragged begger's hat and
place 1t on his head, but seemingly all
the thronged street knew 1t, and faces
beamed the happier, seemed to glow
with pride, because humane deed had
been performed. 1t was refusal to
an appeal for IA few pennies which
caused beggar down near Fulton mar
ket to say, THAT voice and them
words are better than money, sorl"
L believe the words went farther in
warming the body scantily clothed than
would the "few pennies" have done:
and so it is that your words spoken in
a manly way, Christly way, ''tender
and true" though they float out upon
the air and seemingly are quickly lost,
60 wlnging their way from heart to
heart, from land to land, without haste it
may be, and yet without rest, enduring
longer than the marble, granite, bronze
and brass which men mold and shape
for lasting memorial, for they are the
aids approved of God for the bringing
in his kingdom of blessedness, peace
and joy.
And thus duty is made manifest,
one which owes its existence to the
fact that each holds in his hand some
measure of the life of the world, shap-
ing it for good or i'll in each mingling,
at every touch, through the influence
he possesses. To fill the demand of
this imperative duty, the standard Of
manliness must be upheld, and to this
end self-watchfulness, self discipline
and self control must be in constant
exercise; and because of the discour-
agements which beset, patience must
be possessed in such degree that we
shall hold on, hold in and hold out.
Every effort directed to these ends is
an inspiration and an increase of vigor,
and though like an arrow upward shot,
we fail to reach the sun, we have as
cended higher, carrying thoughts and
hearts of others with US in our flight,
than we would had wenever attempted;
and he who hath assembled from the
vale up the mOuntain-side and so wide
ened his horizon, though he rest there
but moment, can never be as near
sighted as before he climbed. So long
as it is the individual and the spirit
which he has enthroned within that
determines the durability of society
and sets its moral tone, the duty which
is exhibited as the concomitant of in
dividual influence is that man be high
minded, virtuous, honest and full OF
courage; and the knowledge that one is
ga spectacle to the world" that he is
one of the multitude who mold the
future in some degree to such charac-
ter as it may possess, should enthuse,
encourage and inspire to faithful, con-
secrated effort for the welfare of the
world, no less than for the Individual
self.
Not only as an individual is man a
spectacle" but man associated,
leagued and bound to others and with
others to certain cause, is one as
well. "We are a spectacle" says
Paul; that is, the Christians as a peo-
pie, class, sect or church, as one man
were such thing. We may make his
words our own. Professionals of Protes-
tants, the democracy of Christianity as
we liberal Christians are, his word is
true of us in special sense; we are,
emphatically 8 spectacle" The eye
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