Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1889-07-10


DR.. Talmags's subject was Chow to Make
Friends" and his text, Proverbs xviii, "A:
"A man that hath friends must show HIM
self friendly" He said:
About the sacred and divine art of max
ing and keeping friends speak, subject
on which 1 never heard Of any one preach
ing-and yet God thought it of enough i'm
portance to put it in the middle of che BIZ
ble-these writings of Solomon, bounded on
one side by the popular Psalms of David
and on the other by the writings of Isaiah,
the greatest of the prophets. 1t seems all
matter of haphazard how many friends we
have, or whether we have any friends at all,
but there is nothing accidental about it.
There is law which governs the accretion
and dispersion of friendships. They did not
| "just happen so" any more than the tides
| Just happen to rise or fall, Or the sun just
happens to rise or set. 1t is a science, an
art, God given regulation. Tell me how
friendly you are to others and I will tell
you how friendly Others are to you. do
not say you will not have enemies. indeed
the best way to get ardent friends is to have
ardent enemies, if you got their enmity in
doing the right thing. Good men and wo-
men will always have enemies, because their
goodness is a perpetual rebnke to evil, but
this antagonism of foes will make more
intense the love of your adherents. Your
friends will gather closer around you be-
cause of the attacks of your sssailants. The
more your enemies abuse you the bet
ter your coadjutors will think of you. The
best friends we ever had appeared at some
juncture when we were especially lombard
ed There have been times in my life when
unjust assault multiplied my friends, as
r ,loka o1,o11 ,rafr,
ute. You are bound to some people by
many cords that neithor time nor eternity
can break, and will warrant that many of
those cords were twisted by hands malevo-
lent. Human nature was shipwrecked
about fifty-nine centuries ago, the captain
of that craft, one Adam and his first mate,
running the famous cargo aground on a
snag in the River Hiddekel; but there was
at least one good tfait of human nature that
waded safely ashore from that shipwreck,
and that is the disposition to take the part
of those unfairly dealt with. When it is
thoroughly demonstrated that some one is
being prosecuted, although at the start
slanderous tongues were busy enough, de-
tenders finally gather around as thick as
honey bees on a trelis of bruised honey
suckle. Ii, when set upon by the furies,
you can have grace enough to keep your
mouth shut, and preserve your equipoise,
and let others fight your battles, you will
find yourself after awhile with a whole cor
don of allies. Had not the world given to
Christ on his arrival at Palestine q very
cold shoulder, there would not have been
one-half as many angels chanting glory out
of the hymn books of the sky bound i'll
black lids of midnight. Had it not been for
the heavy and jagged and tortuous cross,
Christ would not have been the admired
| and loved of more people than any being
who ever touched foot on either the eastern
or western hemisphere. Instead, therefore,
of giving up in despair because you have
enemies, rejoice in the fact that they rally
for you the most helpful and enthusiastic
admirers. In other words, there is no
virulence, human or diabolic, that can hin,
der my text from coming true: 'A man that
hath friends must show himself friendly"
| It is my ambition to project especially
upon the young thought which may be-
nignly shape their destiny for the here snd
the hereafter Before you show yourself
friendly, you must be friendly. 1 do not
recommend dramatised geniality. There
is such thing as pretending TO be en- rap
port with others when we are their dire de-
structants, and talk against them and wish
them calamity. Judas covered up his
treachery by resounding kiss, and earesst 8
may be demoniacal Better the mytholog;-
cal Cerberus, the three headed dog of hell,
barking at us than the wolf in sheep 8
clothing, it's brindle hide covered up by