Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1889-10-11


fountain of fretfulness and depravity,
her example mildew and a blasting, her
name disgrace to coming generations, her
memory signal for bitterest anathema, her
eternity a whirlwind and suffocation and a
darkness. One wrong headed, wrong hearted
mother may ruin one child, and that one
child, grown up, may destroy a hundred
people, and the hundred blast a thousand,
and the thousand a million. The wife's
sphere is a realm of honor and power almost
unlimited. What blessing was Sarah to
Abraham. was Deborah to Lapidoth, was
Z;pporah to Moses, was Huldah to Stadium.
There are multitudes of men in the
marts of trade whose fortunes have
! been the result of a wifes frugality.
| Four hands have been achieving that
estate, two at the store two at the
home. The burdens of life are compare
| lively light when there are other
! hands to help us lift them. The greatest
difficulties have often skunk away because
there were four ewes to look them out of
| counteuance. What care you for hard
| F~ocks in the world as long as you have
bright domestic circle for harbor
me cheerful word in the evening tide as
! you come in has silenced the clamor of
unpaid notes and the disappointment of poor
Investments Your table may be quite fru-
! gally spread, but it seems more beautiful to
you than many tables that smoke with veni-
son and blush with Burgundy. Peace meets
! You at the door, sits beside you at the table
lights up the evening stand, and sings in the
| nursery. You have seen an aged couple who
| for scores of years have helped each other on
in life's pilgrimage going down the steep of
! years. Long association has made them
much alike. They reioiced at the same event.
they bent over the same cradle, they wept at
the same grave. In the evening they sit
| quietly thinking of the past, mother knitting
at the stand father in his arm chair at the
! Gre.
Now and then a grandchild comes and
| they look at him with affection untold and
come well nigh spelling him with kudnesses.
The life currents beat fsebly in their pulses
and their work will soon be done and the
Master will call. A few short DAYS may sep
arate them, but, not far apart in time of de-
parture, they Join each other on the other
side the food. Side by side let Jacob and
| Rachel be buried. Let one willow Overarch
| their graves Let their tombstOpeS stand
alike marked with the same Scripture. Chill
dren and grandchildren will come in the
spring time to bring flowers. The patriarchs
departed worth. Side by side at the marriage
altar. Side by side in the long journey,
Side by side in their graves After life'S
6tful fever they slept well.
But there are, as my subject suggests, do
nestle scenes not so tranquil. What curse
to Job and Potiphar were their companions,
to Ahab was Jezebel, to Jehoram was btha.
iah, to John Wesley was Mrs. Wesley tc
Samson was Delilah. While the most excel.
lent and triumphant exhibitions of character
we find among the women of history, and the
world thrills with the names of Marie An
toirette and Josephine, and Joan of Arc and
Maria Theresa and hundreds of others, who
have ruled in the brightest home;
and sung the sweetest cantos, and en-
chanted the nations with their art anG
swayed the mightiest of scepters,
on the other hand the names of Mary the
First of England, Margaret of France. Julia
of Rome and Elizabeth Petrowna of Russia
have scorched the eve of history with their
denominations, and their names, like banished
spirits. have gone shrieking and cursine
through the world. In female biography We
find the two extremes of excellence and crime
Woman stands nearest the gate of heaven oil
nearest the door of hell When adorned by
grace she reaches a point of Christian eleva
ton which man cannot attain, and wher
blasted of crime she sinks deeper than mar
can plunge. Yet | am glad that the instances
In which woman makes utter shipwrecl Of
character are comparatively rare.
But, says some cynical spirit what do yoJ
do with those words in EcclesiaStes where
Solomon says: "Behold this have | found
saith the preacher, counting one by one tx
find out the account; which yet my sou
seeketh, but | find not; one man among s
thousand have found; but a woman among
all those have | not foundY Ny answer il
that If Solomon had behaved himself will
common decency and kept out of infamou!
circles he would not have had so mucl
difficulty in finding integrity of char
acter among women and never would
have uttered such TRADE. Ever since my
childhood / have heard speakers admirinl
Diogenes, the cynical philosopher who liveC
In tub, for going through the streets o.
Athens in broad daylight with a lantern
and when asked what he did that for, said
81 am looking for an honest man" Now
warrant that that philosopher who hat
such hard work to find an honest man wa
himself dishonest. | think he stole both tn
lantern and the tub. So, when / hear mai
expatiating on the weakness of women,
Immediately suspect him and say there
another Solomon with Solomon's wisdor
left out. Still, I would not have the illus
trations have given of trauscending exec
lency in female biography lead you to suppos
that there are no perils in woman's pathway
Gods grace alone can make an Isabel
Graham, or Christina Alsop or q Fideli
Fiske or Catherine of Siena. Temptation
turk about the brightest domestic circle.
was no unmeaning thing when God sat u
amidst the splendors of His word the charat
ter of infamous Delilah.
Again, this strange story of the tez
leads me to consider some Of thu WAYS
which strong men get their locks shoru. Goo
for some reason best known to himself, mad
the strength Of Samson to depend on tn
length of his hair when the shears clipped
his strength was gone. The strength c
men is varously distributed. Som
: times it lies in physical development
sometimes in intellectual attainment
t sometimes in heart force, sometime
| II, niol Oft in in
l cial accumulation; and there is Away
sharp shears ready to destroy it. Ever
4 day there are Samsons ungianted. saw
s young man start in life under the most chez
Q Ing advantages. His acute mind was ;
I, home in all scientific dominions. He reache
i not only all rugged attainments but by del
4 cate appreciation he could catch the tinge
9 the cloud and the sparkle of the wave al
a the diapason of the thunder. He Wake
Il forth in life head and shoulders above othe
4 in mental stature. He could wrest
q with giants in opposing systems of philosoph
{ and carry Off the gates of the opposr
4 schools and smite the enemies of truth hi
9 and thigh with great slaughter. But he b
q gan to tamper with brilliant free-thinkin
n Modern theories of the soul threw ov
y him their Establishments. Skepticism w
a the Delilah that shore his locks off, al
all the Philistines of doubt and darkness al
Q despair were upon him. He died in a vel
IS prison Of unbelief, his eyes out.
v Far back in the country districts-ju
i, where purposely omit to ,say-there W
# born one whose fame will last as long
Il American institutions. His name was Il
: terror Of all enemies of free government
He stood, the admired of millions; the matte
- uncovered in his presence and when he spo
= Senates sat breathless under the spell. T
y plotters against good government attempt
= to bind him with green withes and weave
I.
- euthrallment not knowing he had bur
!, a bond. But from the wine cup the
Il arose destroying spirit that came for
% TO capture his soul. He drank until his ey
20 20 grew dim and his knees knocked together al
- his strength failed. Exhausted with lifeol