News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1890-07-17

Of light and love and beauty and joy
you spell it out as never before in
songs and hallefuiahs. Oh, We whose
hearts are down under the sod OF the
cemetery, cheer up at the thought of
this reunion! Oh, how much you will
have to tell them when once you meet
theInl
How much you have been through
since you saw them last. On the
shining shore you will talk it all over.
The heartaches, the loneliness, the
sleepless nights, the weeping until
you had no more power to weep, be-
cause the heart WIS withered and dried
up. Story of vacant chair, and empty
cradle, and little shoe only hsGk worn
out, never to be worn again, just the
shape of the foot that once pressed it.
And dreams when you thought that
the departed had come back again, and
the room seemed bright with their
faces, and you started up to greet
them, and in the effort the dream
broke and you found yGlrself standing
/
Talking it all over, and then, hand in
hand, walking up and down in the
! light. No sorrow, no tears, no death.
! o heaven, beautiful heaven! Heaven,
where our friends are. Heaven, where
we expect to be. In the east they take
a cage of birds and bring it to the
! tomb of the dead, and then they open
the door of the cage, and the birds,
| flying out, sing And [ would today
bring a cage of Christian consultations
to the grave of your loved ones, and
would open the door and let them fill
all the air with the music of their
voices
THE FINAL VICTORY.
Oh, how they bound in, these spirits
before the throne Some shout with
gladness, some break forth into I'M
comfortable weeping for joy, some
stand speeches. in their shock of de-
light. They sing, they culver with
excessive gladness, they gaze on the
temples, on the palaces, on the waters,
on each other. They weave their joy
into garlands, they spring it into tri-
umphal arches they strike it on tim
brels, and then all the loved ones
gather in a great circle around the
throne OF God-fathers, mothers, broth
ers, sisters sons and daughters, lovers
and friends, hand to hand around q bout
the throne of God-the circle ever wild
ening-hand to hand, joy to joy, jubi-
lee to jubilee, victory to victory, ''un-
til the daybreak and the shadows flee
away Turn thou, my beloved, and
be like roe or young hart upon the
mountains of Bether"
Oh, how different it is on earth from
the way it is in heaven when Chris
tan dies! We say, "Close his eyes"
In heaven they say, "Give him a palm"
On earth we say, LIT him down in the
ground" In heaven they say, ''Raise
him on a throne" On earth it is,
Farewell, farewell" In heaven it is,
''Welcome, welcome" And so I see a
Christian soul coming down the river
of death, and he Steps into the river
and the water comes to the ankle He
says, Lord Jesus, is this death?''
NO" says Christ, this is not death. "
And he wades still deeper down into
the waters until the flood comes to the
knee, and he says, Lord Jesus, tell
me, tell me, is this death?" And Christ
says, mo, no, this is not DEATH" And
he wades still further down until the
wave comes to the girdle, and the soul
says, Lord Jesus, is this deathF
NO" says Christ, this is not" And
deeper in wades the soul till the billow
strikes the lip, and the departing one
cries, Lord Jesus, is this death?'
mo-" says Christ, "this is not" But
when Christ had lifted that soul on
throne of glory, and the pomp and joy
of heaven came surging to its feet, then
Christ said, This, oh transported soul,
this is DEATH"