The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1888-11-29

y
American art? Take some OF that money
that would otherwise spoil your chill.
dren and build an art gallery that
shall associate your name forever,
not only with the great mas
ters OF painting who are gone, but with
the great masters who are trying to live;
and also win the admiration and love OF
tens of thousands of people who, unable
to have fine pictures of their own, W ould
bs advantaged by your benefaction.
Build your own monuments, and not
leave it to the within OF others. Some OF
the best people sleeping in Greenwood
have no monuments at all, or some
crumbling stones that in a few years
will let the rain wash out name and cpl.
taph; while some men. whose death was
the abatement of nuisance, have pile
of polished Aberdeen high enough for
King, and eulogium enough to embar-
rass a seraph. On, men of large wealth,
instead of leaving to the within of others
your monumental commemoration and
epitaphiology to be looked at when people
are going to and fro at the burial Of 9TH
ers, build right down in the heart of our
great city, or the city where you live, an
immense free reading room, or free
musical conservatory, or free art gal.
lery, the inches for sculpture, and the
walls abloom with the rise and fall of
nations, and lessons of courage for the
disheartened d, and rest for the weary, and
life for the dead; and one hun bred and
fifty years from now you will be welding
influences in this world for good among
those whose great grandfather was your
great-grandchild.
Under the title Of fine arts there have
come here from France class of pict-
ures which elaborate argument has tried
to prove irreproachable. They would
disgrace barroom and they need to be
confscated. Your children will carry
the pictures Of their fathers house with
them clear on to the grave, and, passing
that marble pillar will take them
through eternity.
When We see how much has been &C.
complished in secular directions by pict-
ures-Shakspeare's tragedies picture,
Victor Hugo's writings all pictures, John
Ruskin's and Tennyson's and Longfel-
lows works all pictures-why not enlist,
as far as possible, for our churches and
schools and reformatorv wor K and evan
gelistic endeavor, the power of thought
that can be put into word pictures. IL not
pictures In color? Yea, why not all
young men draw for themselves on paper,
with pen or pencil, their coming career,
of virtue if they prefer that of vice if
they prefer that. After making the pict-
ure, put it on the wall, or paste it on the
hy-l leaf of some favorite book that you
may have before you. / read the other
day OF man who had been executed for
murder, and the jailer found afterward
picture made on the wall of the cell by
the assassin's own hand-a picture Of
flight of stairs. On the lowest step he
had written: "Disobedience of parents;"
ON the second, Sabbath breaking;o on
the third, drunkenness and gambling;"
on the fourth, "Murder,n and on the
fifth and tor step, "a gallows." If
that man had made that picture
before he took the first step he
never would have taken any of them.
Oh man, make another picture, a bright
picture, an evangelical picture, and will
help you make it. l suggest six steps for
this flight of stairs. On the first step
write the words: IA nature changed by
the Holy Ghost and washed in the blood
of the Lamb;" on the second step, I'm
dustry and good companionship;n on the
third step, "a Christian home with a
family altar;" on the fourth step tsEver-
widening usefulness;" on the fifth step,
"a glorious departure from this world"
on the sixth step, Heaven! Heavenl
Heayenp Write it three times, and let
the letters of the one word be made up of
banners, the second of coronets, and the
third of thrones. Promise me that you
will do that, and will promise to meet
you on the sixth step, If the Lord W i'll,
through His pardoning grace, bring me
there too.
And here am going to say a word of
cheer to people who have never had
word Of consolation on that subject.
There are men and women in this world
by hundreds of thousands, and some of
them are here to-day, who have a fine
natural taste. and yet all their lives that
taste has been suppressed, and although
they could appreciate the galleries of
Dresden, and Vienna, and Naples far
more than nine hundred and ninety nine
out of one thousand who visit them, they
never may go, for they must support
their households, and bread an cling
for their children are OF more Importance
than pictures. Though fond of music,
they are compelled to live amid discord,
and though fond of architecture, they
dwell in clumsy abodes, and though
appreciative of all that engravings
and paintings can do. they are in
perpetual deprivation. You are going,
after you get on the sixth step of that
stairs just spoken of, to find yourselves in
the royal gallery of the universe, the con-
conferred sp1endors of .all the worlds
before your transported vision. In some
way all the thrilling scenes through
which we and the Church of God have
passed in our earthly state will be pict-
ured or brought to mind. AT the cyclo-
rama of Gettysburg, which we had in
Brooklyn, one day blind man, who lost
his sight in that battle, was with his child
heard talking while standing aefore that
picture. The blind man said to the
daughter: s.Are there at The right of the
picture some regiments marching up
a hill?" YES" she said. "Well"
said the blind man, sis there
a General on horseback leading
them on?" EYES," she said. swell,
is there rushing on these men cavalry
charged" Eyes," was the reply. "And
do there seem to be many dying and
dead?" eyes," was the answer. .sWell
now, do you see shell from the woods
bursting near the wheel of cannon?n
EYES," she said. stop right theregi
said the blind man. THAT is the last