Milford chronicle. [volume] (Milford, Del.) 1878-1974, 1889-06-07
. BIS and uncoII vith the adders Of an SCI

to hiss and uncoil with the adders of an eter-
nal poison.
Cast out these men from your company.
Do not be intimate with them Always be
polite. There is no demand that you ever
sacrifice politeness A young man accosted
a Christian Quaker with: "Old chap; how
did you make all your money! The Quaker
replied: by dealing in an article that thou
mayest deal in if thou wilt-civiity." Al
ways be courteous, but at the same time
firm. Say no as if you meant it. Have it
understood in store, and shop, and street,
that you viii not stand in the companionship
of the skeptic, the idle, the pleasure seeker.
Rather than enter the companionship of
such, accept the invitation 10 a better feast.
The promises of God are the fruits, The
harps Of heaven are the music Clusters
from the vineyards Of God have been pressed
into the tankards. The sons and daughters
Of the Lord Almighty are the guests. While,
standing at the banquet, to fill the cups and
divide the clusters, and command the harps,
and welcome the guests, is a daughter Of God
on whose brow are the blossoms Of Paradise
and in whose cheek is the flush Of celestial
summer Her name is Religion.
Her ways are ways Of nleasantness,
And all her paths are peace
WHERE THE RIGHT ROAD LEADS TO.
Decide this soon, oh young man, what di-
rection you will take. There comes such a
moment of final decision-why not thisi One
night saw a young man Mt the street corner
evidently doubling as to which direction he
had better take, his hat lifted high enough so
you could see he had an intelligent forehead.
and he had a stout chest and a robust devel-
opment Splendid young man Cultured
young man. Honored young man. Why
did he stop there while so many were going
up and dowui The fact is that every man
has good angel and bad angel
contending for the mastery Of his spirit,
and there was a good angel and a bad
angel struggling with that young mans
soul at the corner Of the street. "Come with
me-" said the good angel; Il will take you
home; will spread my wing over your pill
low; l viii lovingly escort you all through
life under supernatural protection; will
bless every cup you drink out Of, every couch
you rest on, every doorway you enter; / viii
consecrate your tears when you weep, yotif
sweat when you toll, and at the last ! will
hand over your grave to the bright angel Of
Christian resurrection. In answer to your
fathers petition and your mothers prayer, l
have been sent Of the Lord out Of heaven to
be your guardian spirit. Come with me-"
said the good angel, in a voice Of unearthly
symphony. It was music like that which
drops from a lutte Of heaven when a seraph
breathes ON it. mo, no, said the bad angel,
''come with me; have something better to
offer; the wines pour are from chalices Of be-
witching carousal; the dance lead isover floor
tessellated with unrestrained indulgences;
there is no God to frown on the temples Of
sin where | worship. The skies are Italian.
The paths l uvad are through meadows
daisied and primrosed. Come with me" The
young man hesitated at time when hesita-
ton was ruin, and the bad angel smote the
good angel until it departed, spreading wings
through the starlight upward andaway, until
a door flashed open in the sky and forever
the wings vanished. That was the turning
point in that young mans history; for, the
good angel TOWN, he hesitated no longer, but
started on a pathway which IS beautiful at
the opening, but blasted at last. The bad
angel leading the way opened gate after gate,
and at each gate tho road became rougher
and the sky more lurid, and what was pc
culiar, as the gate slammed shut it came to
with jar that indicated that it would never
open. Passed each portal, there was grind
ing of locks and a showing Of bolts; and the
gardens TO deserts, and the June air became a
cutting December blast, and the bright
wings of the bad angel turned to sackcloth,
and the eyes of light became hollow with
hopeless grief, and the fountains, that at the
start had tossed with wine, poured forth
bubbling tears and foaming blood, and on
the right side of the road there was a SER
pent and the man said to the bad an
gel: 'What is that serpentW and the
answer was: THAT is the serpent Of singing
remorsen On the left side of the road there
was a lion, and the man asked the bad angel
''What is that lion and the answer was
'"That is the lion of all devouring despair"
A vulture flow through the sky, and the man
asked the bad angel: "What is that vultureW
and the answer was: THAT is the vulture
waiting for the carcasses Of the SLAM And
then the man began to try to pull off Of Ism
the folds Of something that had wound him
round and round, and he said to the bad an
gel: "What is it that twists me in this awful
convolutionP and the answer was; THAT is
the worm that never dies. y" And then the
man said to the bad angel; "What does all
this meant / trusted in what you said at the
corner of the street that night; trusted it
all. and why have you thus deceived meF
Then the last deception fell off the charmer,
and it said: Il was sent forth from the pit
to destroy your soul; watched my chance
for many long year; when you hesitated
that night on the street gained my triumph;
now you are here. Hal hal You are here.
Come, now, let us I'LL these two chalices Of
fire, and drink together to darkness and woe
andl death. Hail! hall" Oil young man,
will the good angel sent forth by Christ or
the bad angel sent forth by sin get the vic
tory over your soull Their wings are inter-
locked this moment above you, contending
for your destiny, as above the Apprentices
eagle and condor fight mid-sky. This hour
may decide your destiny. God help you. To
hesitate is to diel