Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1890-08-02

Ia. ..lul >..1u.. auI tue BOAT came across
and / got n and was transported. And 50
suppose il will be IN. the evening or our NE.
We wlll come down t. the river of death ami
give a signal to our friends on the other shore
aud they wiil give q signal back to Us. and
the boat comes ana our departed kindred
arr the oarsmen. the fires Of the setting day
tingeing the tops Of the paddles.
Oh, have you never sat by such q death
be,I> In that hour YOU hear the departing
soul CRY. .Hark Look" You hearkened
an! you locked. / little child pining away
because OF the death Of its mother, getting
weaker and weaker every day. was taken
into the room where hung the picture or her
mother she seemed 70 enjoy looking at II,
and then she was taken away ana after
awhile died In the last moment that wan
and wasted little one lifted her hands. while
her face lighted up with the glory Of the mex
world. and cried out Mother" You tell
me she did not see her mother She did >"
in nv first settlement at Belleville a plan:
man said to me What DO you think |
heard last night 7 was in the room where
one Of nv ~neignOors was dying. He was L
good man. ana he sad he heard the angels
Of God singing before the throne. haven't
much poetry about me. but | listened and L
heard them. too Said |, I have no doubt
of it," Why. we are To be taken up to
heaven at last By minlstering spirits. Who
are they to be- Souls that went up from
Madras, or Antioch, or Jerusalem2 Oh, no;
our glorified kindred are going to troop
around them.
Heaven isnot ~aastatelv. formal place. as |
sometimes hear it described. a very frlgldlty
Of splend0r. where people stand on cold for.
nalities and 20 around about with heavy
crowns Of gold on their heads. No, that Is
not nv idea of heaven. Ny idea of heaven
is more like this: You are seated in the
eveningtide by the fireplace, your whole
family there, or nearly all of them there.
While YOU are seated talking and enjoying
the evening hour there is a knock at the door
and the door opens. and there comes IN a
brother that has been long absent. He has
been absent. for years you have not seen
him, and no sooner do you make up your
mind that it is certainly he than you leap up.
and the question is who shall give him the
first embrace. That is my idea OF heaven-a
great home circle whore the- are waiting for
US.
Oh. viii you not Know Your mothers voice
there She vino always called you by your
first name long after others had given you
the formal Mister You were never any
thing but james. OF John, or George. or
Thomas. or MARY, or Florence to her. Will
YOU not know your hild's voice; She of the.
bright eye and the ru Idly cheek and the quiet
step, who came in Fl IN play and flung her
self into Your lap, II very shower OF mirth
and beauty Why. the picture is craven in
your soul. 1t cannot wear out. If that little
one should stand on the other side of some
heavenly hill and call to you, you would hear
her voice above III" burst Of heavens great
orchestra. Know It Tou could not help
but know it
Now | bring You this glorious consolation
of future recognition. Ii YOU could get this
theory into your heart it would lift a great
many shadows that are stretching across it.
When | was a lad | used to go out to the
railroad track aud put my ear down on the
track, and | could hear the express train
runbling miles away and coming on; and to-
day, my friends. if we only had faith enough
we could put our ear down to the grave of
our dead and listen and hear in the distance
the ruinhling on OF the charlots of resurrec-
ton victory. . heaven, sweet heaven You
do not spell heaven as YOU used to spell it.
You used to spell it Observation-Disclosures. But
now when Won want to spell that word you
place side by side the faces Of the loved ones
who are gone, and III that irradiatiOn of
light and love and beauty and joy you spell
it as never before in songs and hallelujahs.
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 them!
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 weep
ing until you had no more power to weep,
because the heart was witnerede and dried
up. Story OF vacant chair and empty era
| die, and little shoe only half worn out, never
70 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 te
greet them, and in the effort the dream
broke and you found yourself standing amiC
room in the NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. Talking it all
over. and then hand in hand walking up and
| 1Own in the light. No sorrow, no tears. nc
1eath& 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 anC
the birds, flying out, sing. And would to
the grave of your loved ones, and | would
open the door and let them fill all the all
with the music of their voices.
Oh, how they bound in, these spirits before
the throne Some shout with gladness, some
break forth into uncomfortable weeping for
JOY, some stand speeches. in their shock OF
delight. They sing, they culver with exces
>lve gladness, they gaze on the temples, or
the palaces, on the waters, on each other
They weave their JOY into garlands, they
spring it into triumphal arches, they strike
It on tlmbrelS, and then all the loved ones
gather in a great circle around the throne OF
God-fathers, mothers, brothers. sisters
sons and daughters, lovers and friends. hanC
10 hand around about the throne of God
the circle ever w~idening-hand to hand, joy
to joy, jubilee to jubilee, victory to victory.
until the day break and the shadows hee
away. Turn thou. nv beloved, and be like
a roe or a young hart upon the mountains O.
Bether."
Oh. how different it is on earth from the
way it is in heaven when a Christian dies
We say, Close his eyes" In heaven they
say, Give him a palm" On earth We say
Let HIM down in the ground" In hea ver
they say, Raise him on a throne o.
earth 1t is, Farewell. farewell In HEAVIER
i is, w elcolne, welcome" And | see {
Christian soul coming down to the river O
death, and he steps into the river and tn,
water comes TO the ankle. He SAYS, Lore
Jesus, is this Death No saws Christ
this is not death And he wades still
deeper down into the waters until the foot
comes 10 the knee. and he says. .,Ior,
Jesus. tell me, tell me, is thi
DEATH And Christ says, No. no: this i
not death And he wades still farthe
down until the wave come to the girdle
and the soul SAYS, Lord Jesus, IS thi
deathE No. SAYS Christ, this is not