The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1890-12-17

to make him independent Of all struggle,
and what will become OF him? II he do
not die early OF inanition or dissipation,
he will lead useless lifc, and die an
unlamented death, and ~ into FOOLS
eternity.
But what has been the history Of most
of the great codars in merchandise, in
art, In law, In medicine. in statesman
ship, In Christian usefulness? John,
get up and milk the cows; it's late-its
half-past five in the morning. Split an
armful Of wood on your way out so that
we can build the fires for breakfast. Put
your bare feet on the cold oil-cloth, and
break the ice in your pitcher before you
wash. Yes; 1t mas been showing and
drifting again last night, and we will
have to break the roads" The boys
educational advantages, a long oak
plank without any back to 1t, to country
school-house, and stove throwing out
more smoke than heat. Pressing on from
one hardship to oanother. After while
position on salary or wages small enough
to keep life, but keep 1t at its lowest
ebb. Starting in occupation or bust
ness with prosperous men trying to fight
you back at every step. But after
good while fairly on your feet and your
opportunities widening, and then by
some sudden turn you are triumphant
You are master Of the situation, and de-
fiant OF all earth and hell. A Lebanon
cedar! John Milton on his way up to the
throne OF the worlds sacred poesy, must
sell his copyright Of Paradise Lost"
for seventy-two dollars In three pay
ments. And William Shakespeare on
his way up to be acknowledged the
greatest dramatist Of all ages, must hold
horses at the door Of the London Thea
ter for a sixpence, and Homer must
struggle through total blindness to i'm
mortality, and John Bunyan must
cheer himself on the way up by
making flute out Of his prison
stool, and Canova the sculptor
must toll on through orphanage, mod
cling lion in butter before he could
cut his statues in marble. And the
great Stevenson must watch cows in
the field for few pennies and then be-
come stoker,. and aiterward mend
clocks before he puts the locomotive on
its track and calls forth plaudits from
parliaments and medals from kings.
Abel Stevens is picked up neglected
child Of the street. and rises through
his consecrated genius to be one of the
most illustrious clergymen and histor-
ians OF the century. And Bishop James,
of the same church, in boyhood worked
his passage from Ireland to America,
and up to a usefulness, where, in the
bishropric, he was second TO no one who
ever adorned 1t
While in banishment Xenophon wrote
his Anabasis and Thucydides his "His-
tory OF the Peloponnesian War;" and
Victor Hugo must be exiled for many
years to the island OF Guernsey before
he can come to that height in tho affec-
tions OF his countrymen that crowds
Champs Elysees and the adjoining boule-
wards with one million mourners, as his
hearse rolls down to tho Church Of the
Madeleine. o, II is tough old world
and 1t will keep you back and keep you
down, and keep you under as long as 1t
can. Hail, sons and daughters Of the
firel
Stand, as the anvil when the stroke OF stalvart
men falls fierce and fast.
Storms but more deeply root the oak whose
hraWnv nrms embrace the blast
Stand like an anvil; noise and heat are born
OF earth and die with time;
The soul like God, its source and seat, Is sol
emn, STILL serene, sublime.
Thirty years from now tho foremost
men in all occupations and professions
will bo those who arc this hour in awful
struggle Of early life, many Of them
without five dollars to their name. Sc
in spiritual life II takes a course OF be-
reavements, prosecutions, sicknesses,
and losses TO develop stalwart Christian
character. got a letter few days age
saying: 81 have hardly seen a we'll day
since / was born and ! could not write
my own name until / was fifty years Of
age and | am very poor, but / am, by
the grace OF God, the happiest man
in Chicago" The Biblo speaks Of the
SHOWS OF Lebanon, and at this season
OF the year the SHOWS there must
be tremendous Tho deepest snow
ever seen in America would be
insignificant compared with the mildes,
winter OF SHOWS on those Lebanon
mountains. The cedars catch that
skyful OF crystals on their brow and on
their long arms. Piled up in groat hefts
arc those SHOWS, enough to crush other
trees TO the ground, splitting the
branches from the trunk and leaving
them rent and torn never to rise. But
what do the cedars care for these SHOWS
on Lebanon? They look up to the win
ter skies and say: "Snow on! Empty
the white heavens upon US, and when
this storm is passed, let other process
sions OF tempest try TO bury US in their
fury. We have for five hundred winters
been accustomed 10 this, and for the
next five hundred winters we will cheer.
fully take all you have to send, for that
is the way wo develop our strength, and
that Is the way we serve God and teach
all ages how to endure and conquer. "
So | say; Good cheer to all people who
are showed under. Put your faith in
God and you will come out gloriously.
Others may be stunted growths, or weak,
jumpers on the lower levels OF spiritu.
ality, but you are going to be Lebanon
cedars. At last 1t will be said Of such
as you: These are they who came out
OF greattribulation and had their robes
washed and made white in the blood Of
the Lamb"
But while crossing over these noun