Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1889-03-07

lduRuhkt continues 10 DE written and SDOEanl
An early heartbreak that he never once
mentioned; and WIN, thirty years after
the death Of Matilda Hoffman. who was
to have been his bride. her father
picked up a piece of embroidery and
said; THAT is 2 piece OF poor Matilda's
workmanship" Washington Irving sank
from hilarity into silence and walked away
Out of that lifetime grief the great author
dipped his pens mightiest reinforcement.
"Calvin's Institutes of Religion" than
which a more wonderful book was never
written by human hand. was begun by tn Q
author at twenty-five years Of age. because
Of the persecution by Francis, King of
France. Faradav toiled for all time on a
salary of so pounds a year and candles. As
every brick OF the wall OF Babylon was
stamped with the letter N, standing for Ne
buchadnezzar, so every part of the temple
OF Christian achievement is stamped with
the letter 7. standing for trouble.
When in olden time a man was to he hon
ored with knighthood, he was struck with
the fiat OF the sword. But those who have
come to the honor of knightnood in the
kingdom OF God were first struck not with
the fat OF the sword hut with the keen
edge OF the crimeter. To build his magni-
ficence Of character, Paul could not
have spared one lash, one prison, one stoning,
one anathema, one poisonous viper from
the hand. one shipwreck. What is true of
individuals is true of nations. The horrors OF
the American revolution gave this country
this side OF the Mississippi River to indie
pendence. and the conflict between Eng
land and France gave the most of this
country west OF the Mississippi to the United
States. France owned it. but Napoleon,
Tearing that England would take it. prac-
tically made a present TO the United States
for he received only SIS, 900, 000-of Louis
lana. Missouri, Arkansas. Kansas, Ne
braska, Iowa. Minnesota. Colorado. Dakota.
Montana, Wyoming and the Indian Terri
1 kA.v D.N - H. e. a H.
ton came this country east OF the MississpH.
out OF the European war came that west
Of the Mississippi River. The British En-
! pire rose to its present overtowering gran.
deur through gunpowder plot. and Guy
Fawkes's conspiracy, and NORTHAMPTON in
surrection, ard Walter Raliegh's beheading,
and Bacon's bribery, and Cromwell's disso-
luton of parliament, and the battles of Edge
Hill. and Grantham. and Newberry, and
Marston Moor, and Naseby, and Dunbar.
and Sedgemoor, and execution of Charles
the First, and London plague, and
London fire, and London insur-
~rection, and Ryehouse plot, and the vicissi-
tudes Of centuries So the earth itself, be-
fore it could become appropriate and beauti-
full residence for the human family had.
according to geology, to be washed by uni
versal deluge. and scorched and made in
candescent by universal fires. and pounded
by sledge- hammer of icebergs, and wrenched
by earthquakes that split continents. and
shaken bv volcanoes that tossed mountains.
and passed through the catastrophes Of
thousands Of years before Paradise became
possible and the groves could shake out their
green banners and the first garden pour
its carnage OF color between the Gihon
and the Hiddeke!. Trouble n good
thing for the rocks, a good thing for
nations, as well as a good thing for in
dividuals. So when you push against me
with a sharp Interrogation point, Why do
the good suffers open the dark saying on
a harp and, though | can neither play an
organ, or cornet, or hautboy, or bugle. or
c~larionet. | have taken some lessons on the
gospel harp, and if you would like TO hear
me | will play you these: A things work
together for good to those who love God"
Now no Christening for the present seemeth to
he joyous, but %grlevons; nevertheless after
ward it yieldcth all possible fruits OF
Righteousness unto them which are exer-
cised thereby weeping may en-
the morning. What a sweet thing is a
harp, and | wonder not that in Wales, the
country of my ancestors, the harp has be-
come the national instrument, and that they
have festivals where great prizes are offered
in the competition between harp AMI harp;
or that weird Sebastian Erard was
most of his time bent over this chorded
and vibrating triangle, and was not
satisfied until he had given it a com
pass of six octaves from L to + with all the
Eeml-t0neS. OF InAL Wnen Ming Ddul was Ut-
mented the son OF Jesse came before him
and putting his fingers among the charmed
strings of the harp played the devil out OF
the craz-d monarch, or that in heaven there
shall be harpers harping with their harps.
So you will not blame me 70; opening the
dark saying on the gospel harp.
Your herps. We trembling saints,
Down from the willows take;
Loud TO the praise OF love divine
Bid every string awakel
Interrogation third; Why did a good God
let sin and trouble come into the world when
He might have kept them outl My reply Is,
He had a good reason. He had reasons that
He has never given us. He had reasons which
He could no more make US understand
in our finite state than the father
starting out on some great and
elaborate enterprise could make the Two
y%ear-old child in its armed chair compre-
bend it. One was to demonstrate what
grandeur of character may be achieved on
earth by conquering evil. Had there been
no evil to conquer and no trouble 10 console,
then this universe would never nave
known an Abraham or a Moses or a Joshua
or an Ezekiel or a Paul or n Christ or a
Washington or n John Milton or a John
Howard. and a million victories which have
been gained by the consecrated spirits OF All
ages would never have been gained; had
there been no battle there would have
been no victory. Nine-tenths OF the anthems
of heaven would never have been sung.
Heaven could never have been a thousandth
part of the heaven that 1t is. j will not say
that / am glad that sin and sorrow aug
enter. but | do say that ! am glad that
after God has given all His reasons TO an
assembled universe He will be more
honorcd than if sin and sorrow had never
entered. and that the ~unfalien celestlals VIII
be outdone and will put down their trumpets
to listen and it will be in heaven when tnoSe
who nave conquered sin and sorrow shall
enter. as it would be in q small sing,
ing school on earth if Thaloerg and
Gottschalk and Wagner and Beethoven ana
Rheinherger and Scbumann should all at
once enter. The immortals that have peen
chanting ten thousand years before tne
throne will say, as they close their horettos;
ooh. il we could only sing like that
But God will say to those who have never
fallen and consequently have not been re-
deemed: "You must lie silent now you
have not the qualification for this anthems,
50 thew sit with closed lips and folded hands
and sinners saved by grace take up ~
harmony. for the Bible says mo man couI9
Iaarn that SONG but the hundred and forty ana