The Kinsley graphic. [volume] (Kinsley, Kan.) 1890-1940, 1891-07-24

Chair His text was from I Samuel,
Xxx IS: Thou shalt be missed, because
thy seat shall be empty" He said:
Set on the table the cutlery and the
chased silverware of the palace, for
King Saul will give a state dinner to-
day A distinguished place is kept at
the table for his son-in-lavv, a celebrated
warrior, David by name. The guests,
jeWeled and plumed, come in and take
their places When people are invited
TO a kings banquet they are very apt
70 go. But before the covers are lifted
from the feast Saul looks around and
dnds a vacant seat at the table He
says within himself, perhaps audi
bly,: ''What does this mean? Where
Is Ez1y son-in-Iaw? Where is David,
the great warrior? I invited him
expected him What! A vacant chair
at the kings banquetp' The fact was
that David, the warrior, had been seated
fog the last time at his father-in-iaw's
table. The day before Jonathan had
>coaxed David to go and occupy that
place at the table, saying to David in
the words of my text: Thou shalt be
missed, because thy seat will be emp
Gy-" The prediction was fulfilled.
David was missed. His seat was empty.
That one vacant chair spoke louder
than all the occupied chairs at the
banquet In almost every house the
articles of furniture take living per
-sonalty- That picture-s stranger
would not see anything remarkable
either in its design or execution, but it
Is more to you than all the pictures of
the Louvre and the Luxe m bourg. You
remember who bought it and who ad-
Ezlired it.
And that hymn book-you remem Der
who sang out of it. And that cradle
You remember who rocked it. And
that Bible-you remember who read
- nd
Der who slept in it. And that room
You remember who died in it. But
there is nothing in all your house so
clog uent and so mighty-voiced as the
vac mt chair. I suppose that before
Saul and his guests got up from this
banquet there was great clatter of
wine pitchers, but all that racket was
drowned out by the voices that came
up from the vacant chair at the table,
Millions have gazed and wept at John
Quincy Adams vacant chair in the
house of representatives and at Henry
Wilson's vacant chair in the vice-presi-
zdency, and at Henry Clay's vacant chair
an the American senate, and at Prince
Albert's vacant chair in Windsor castle,
and at Theirs vacant chair in the coun-
ellis OF the French nation; but all these
chairs are unimpOrtant to you as COM
pared with the vacant chairs in your
own household. Have these chairs any
lesson for US to learn? Are we any
better men and women than when they
first addressed us?
First point out to you the fathers
vacant chair. Old men always like to
sit in the same place and in the same
chair They somehow feel more at
hone, and sometimes when you are in
-&heir place and they come into the
resosr2, you jump up suddenly and say:
- Here, father, here's your chair" The
iD.lfl Lifv is he
Il not SO strong as he once was, and he
needs a little uphOlding. His hair is a
Eittle frosty, his gums a little depressed,
for in his early days there was not
much dentistry. Perhaps a cain chair
and Old-fashioned apparel, for though
you may have suggested some improve
Enent. father does not want any OfyOur
nonsense. Grandfather never had much
admiration for new-fangled notions.
/ sat at the table of one of my parish
toners in a former congregation; an
aged man sat at the table, and the son
was presiding, and the father some at
abruptly addressed the son and said:
'-My son, don't now try to show on be-
cause the minister is here!'' Your
father never liked any new customs or
manners; he preferred the old way OF
doing things, and he never looked sc
happy as when, with his eyes closed, he
sat in the armchair in the corner.
rom the NEAuklGQ DEOSF 10 the Tip OF
his slippers. what placidity! The wave
of the past years of his life broke al
rGhe foot of that chair. Perhaps, some
times he was little impatient, and
.soul etimes told the same story twice,
bat over that old chair how many
blessed memories hover! I hope you
did not crowd that old chair and that it
did not get very much in the way,
Sometimes the old mans chair gets very
much in the way, especially if he
has been so unyvise as to make over all
his property to his children. with the
understanding that they are to take
care OF him. 1 have seen in such cases
the children crowd the old mans chair
,4e the door, and then crowd it clear into
vkhe street. and then crowd into the
-EOorhOUse, and keep on crowding II
slntiI the old man fell out of IL into his
grave
u3llt your fathers chair was a sacred
place The children used to climb uI
On the rungs OF it for goodnight lsis.
md rI1es loaereE he stavRf4 the better va,