The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1888-08-16

While, on the other hand, to show how
one may be happy amid the most dlsad-
vantageous circumstances, just alter the
Ocean Monarch had been wrecked in the
English channel, a steamer was cruising
along in the darkness, when the captain
heard song, a sweet song, coming over
the water, and he bore down towards that
voice, and found it was Christian woman
on plank of the wrecked steamer, sing
ing to the tune of ''St. Martins"
"Jesus lover of my soul,
Let me 10 Thy bosom fly.
While the pillows near me roll,
While the tempest still is high"
The heart right toward God and man, we
ore happy The heart wrong toward God
and man, we are unhappy.
Another reason why we should come to
this spirit inculcated in the text is the fact
that all the differences of earthly condition
are transitory. The houses you build, the
land you cultivate, the places in which you
barter, are soon to go into other hands.
However hard you may have it now, If you
are Christian the scene will soon end.
Pain, trial, persecution never knock at the
door of the grave. A coffin made out OF
pine boards is just as good resting place
as one made out of silver mounted ma
hogany or rosewood.
Go down among the resting places Of the
dead, and you will find that though people
there had a great difference of worldly cir
cumstances, now they are all alike uncon-
scious. The hand that greeted the Senator,
and the President, and the King is still as
the hand that hardened on the mechanics
hammer or the manufacturers wheel. 1t
does not make any difference now whether
there a from
which the traveller pulls aside the weeds
to read the name, or tall shaft sprirging
into the heavens as though to tell their
virtues to the skies.
In that silent land there are no titles for
great men, and there are no rumblings of
chariot wheels and there is never heard
the foot of the dance The Egyptian guano
which is thrown on the fields in the East
for the enrichment of the soil is the dust
raked out from the sepulchers of Kings
and Lords and mighty men. Oh, the cha
grin of those men if they had ever known
that in the after ages of the world they
would have been called Egyptian guano.
Of how much worth now is the crown of
Caesar? Who bids for it? Who cares now
any thing about the Amphictyonic coun-
Gil or the laws of Lycurgus! Who trembles
now because Xerxes crossed the Helles-
pont on a bridge of boats! Who fears be-
cause ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS thunders at the
gates OF Jerusalem! Who cares now
whether or not Cleopatra marries Antonyl
Who crouches before Ferdinand, or Boni-
face, or Alaric? Can Cromwell dissolve
the English Parliament nowa Is William,
Prince of Orange, King of the Netherlands 2
No, mol However much Elizabeth may
love the Russian crown, she must pass it
to Peter, and Peter to Catherine, and
Catherine to Paul, and Paul to Alexander,
and Alexander to Nicholas. Leopold puts
the German scepter into the hand of Jo-
seph, and Philip comes down off the Span
ish throne to let Ferdinand go on. House
of Aragon, house of Hapsburg, house of
Stuart, house of Bourbon, quarreling
about every thing else, but agreeing in
this: ''The fashion of this world passeth
away"
But have all these dignitarles gomez Can
they not be called back! / have been in
assemblages where l have heard the roll
called, and many distinguished men have
answered. If should call the roll today
OF some of those mighty ones who have
gone wonder if they would not answer?
l will call the roll. l will call the roll of
the Kings first: Alfred the Great! Will
hoAIi oAAC CohduOlci! flSOCIlSh H. LOUIS
XVLs No answer. l will call the roll of
the poets. Robert Southeyl Thomas
Campbell! John Keats George Crabbe
Robert Burns! No aIswer. call the roll
of artists: Michael Angelo! Paul Veron-
csc! William Turner! Christopher Wren
No answer. Eyes closed Ears deaf Lips
silent. Hands pasted. Scepter, pencil,
pen, sword, put down forever. Why
should we struggle for such baubless
Another reason why we should culture
this spirit Of cheerfulness is the fact that
God knows what is best for His creatures.
You know what is best for your child He
thinks you are not as liberal with him as
you ought to be. He criticises your dis
c:pline, but you look over the whole field.
and you, loving that child, do what in your
deliberate judgment is best for him. Now.
God is the best of fathers. Sometimes His
| children think that He is hard on them.
and that He is not as liberal with them as
He might be. But children do not know as
much as a father. l can tell you why you
are not largely affluent, and why you have
not been grandlv successful. 1t is because
you can not stand the temptation.
Ii your path had been smooth, you would
have depended upon your own surefooted-
ness; but God roughened that path, so you
have to take hold of His hand If the
weather had been mild, you would have
loltered along the water courses, but at
the first howl of TIE storm you quickened
your pace Heavenward and wrapped
around you the warm robe of a Sayiour's
righteousness. What have l donesn saws
the wheat-sheaf to the farmer, ''what have
done that you beat me so hard with your
f1aila' The farmer makes no answer. but
the rake takes off the straw, and the mill
blows the chaff to the wind, and the golden
grain falls down at the foot of the wind
mill After awhile, the straw, looking
down from the NOW upon the golden grain
banked up on either side the floor, under
stands why the farmer beat the wheat
sheaf with the fail
Who are those before the thrcnea The
answer came: "These are they who. ont
| OF great tribulation, had their robes
was h ID and made white in the blood of the
Lamb" Would to God that we could under
stand that our trials are the very best
thing for u.s. live had an appreciation of
that truth, then we should know whv II
was that John Noyra, the MARTYR. in the
very midst of the fame, reached down and
picked up one of the fagots that was con.
Stunning him, and kissed it, and said.
blessed be God for the time when | was
born Tor this perferment." They who
e. Al.