Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1891-07-02

IA Graduation Essay Read at the Commencement
Exercises of the Il. NJ c. Semir ary, Bucksport,
June 10, is9l.I
When we first hear of the law Of action
and reaction 1t does not strike us as refer
ring to very many things; but careful
search will discover to us nothing in
nature, man or God to which this law does
not apply. No particle Of this great uni
verse is ever lost. That which goes out
must surely come back, and that which
comes In mast surely 90 out.
drop of wster taken from the ocean
! by the sun is carried away over the land it
falls in rain and with its mates seeks the
river and the sea again, but there is no
loss. A grain of sand upon the shore is
ground to infnltesimal parts, carried away
and deposited by the ocean 1t is consoldat-
Ell and broken up into sand aga n with no
atom of loss. And thus may we trace q
blade Of grass, an acorn, an animal and
man himself. The apparent loss is but
| gain sometime. The seeds of the daisy and
the ashes of Wyclihe are scattered over
miles extent but how sweetly do the
| daisies blossom in garden and by the road
| side, and how grandly do the doctrines of
| Wycliiie shine to encourage and strengthen
| posterity. As the shrub thriSes by con-
| tinual pruning, so does man receive added
| strength from all his trials from God
| Sorrow shall cease, but JOY never. Pain
endureth but night. but the reward Is
endless. For every action there is reaction
The act is comprehensive. but the reaction
Is incomprehensibe inestmable and never
ceasing The examples are innumerable.
Nature teaches it; revelation teaches it;
We can but see il.
BE not deceived God is not mocked.
Whatsoever man soweth that shall he
also reap We see the maimed. sick.
blind, idiots among those whose posi-
tion in life demands sorrow to punish
or humiliate. 1hx rich man whose path
way has been strewed with roses is
brought to the level OF harder roads when
the announcement comes To him, Your
child is blind" The poor drunkard reels
again to the saloon from the crushing
words Your child is an idiot" 1t is here
he i reaping the returns OF his first cup
OF wine. The choice comes very early in
life. We must choose the good, the hum
Die the happiness, or the great, the famed,
and, dare say II, the miserable Behind
every throne stands a power to which the
monarch however great must bow 1t
was never a law Of nature or God that one
plant animal or man, should receive more
pleasure, pain or care than another. The
peacock has beautiful plumage, but a
harsh voice. The thrush has sweet voice
bu, her coat is plain and brown. Milton
was wonderful poet, but ne was blind
Plato was the greatest man of antiquity.
bnt his life was so gloomy that it was
proscrbial among the Greeks and thus may
many examples be given. But you say
This does not apply TO ordinary mems |
lives" Remember
I'VE gaze on anothers path a the far-off noun |
tain scene.
Scanning the outlined hills but never the wales /
between"
Mems lives are like the mighty storm |
tossed ocean; the dashipg wave NAV roll /
nigh and o'ertop the others for a time, but .
every force in nature is tending to bring that
wave to its natural level and sooner or
later IL must subside. And as the tendency
of the ocean is tn a level, so is it the law
equal.
.Ah,if we knew il all we should surely under
stand
That the balance Of sorrow aud JOY is held with
an even hand.
That the scale OF success and loss shall never
overflow
And compensation is twined with the lot OF
high and low
Launch on the foamiug stream that bears YOU
along Ike dart,
There is danger Of rapid and rock, there is ten
sion Of muscle and heart;
Glide on the easy current. monOtonous, calm
and slow.
You are saved the quver and shock OF the
angry rivers flow."
Could we all believe this the unfortunate
might rejoice and the fortunate and care
less be fearful.
We have the law, the right, and the duty .
Of compensation. The law we cannot
change, but We can profit by ii; the right |
We can only enjoy, but the duty rests with |
Us. We can never repay kindness in just |
the measure it was meted to us, but we |
can in turn confer it upon another. We |
can never measure, repay, nay even esti- /
mate, the benefits we have derived from
our parents. 1t is useless to try to repay I
flut, Is 10 ha finn
tion, not the past. Let a man be grateful |
to his parents and show that gratitude by
exertng his powers for the advancement
of his children. As mans sensibilities
no pang of sorrow at the sight of drunken
men or hungry children, cannot expect the
thrill of joy at the fragrant flowers of
summer or the sweet voices of birds, as
the finer nature does who shrinks at
frown or is happy with a smile.
''Never the exquisite pain, then never the
exquisite bliss,
For a heart that is cold to that never be
strung TO this"
For every cross there is crown and for
every crown there is cross. Emerson
says that angels go out from our lives but
to leave room for archangels to enter.
The grain of sand that wounds the oyster
does not kill, but is coated over with
secretion until the pain perfects u pearl;
and so the loss in our lives of friend wife
or brother may prove a wound to be healed
with blessing. Our Master never steals;
he always gives infinite compensation for
all the treasures he takes from our lives.
BLANCHE MOODY,
Liberty Maine.
A Relic Of the War.