The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1891-09-01


dington.
IL Samuel, 2s; 15.-"And David long,
ed and said, O,that one would give me
drink OF tho winter of the well OF Beth
lehem, which lis by the gate"
pAvrp'sLoSoINa.
David longs for drink Of the well
from which he drank in his childhood.
The we'll was at bethlehem, the place
Of his birth and boyhood. It was here
that he. and the large family of his
brothers sons OF Jessie, grew up. His
own youth had been spent In the free
life OF the shepherd Such out door
life under those sunny skies was cal
culated to give him relish for food
and drink, and to make impressions to
be remembered In the after years. So
we find that after he had been annoint-
ed king, and assumed the responsible
ties of his position, that occasions
came when his mind reverted to child
hood days. At the time OF his longing
for a drink from the well OF bethlehem
he was entrenched with his army near
to that place; and his enemies, the
Philistines, were encamped with their
armies In that favored spot of his
childhood. II was day in the harvest
season when he gives expression TO "a
was by the gate from whence he drank
In his youth,
Three of his braves heard him ex-
press this wish, and it was sufficient
for them to take their lives in their
hands; go to Bethlehem; break through
the ranks OF the enemy; get the wnter
and return to their king. But when
presented to David by them it was
poured out on the ground, because he
would not drink OF the water that had
been procured at the risk of life. But
would the longings OF King David
have been satisfied II he had drank of
the water brought to him thus2 Me-
thinks TINT he would rather had to
have gone to that spring and dipped
from 1t himself to have il taste us IL
did in his youth. How natural was
the longing he gave expression to, and
who has not experienced IL in yearn-
Ing for some spot which has been the
scene OF childhood days. Said q gen
tleman, of whom heard few days
ago, as he alighted from his carriage
at farm house well by the road side,
II would like the privilege to drink
from this well to see II II tastes as
good as it did when was boy"
MEMORIES OF CHILDHOOD DAYS.
A recent visit to tho place OF my
childhood has led to tho revival OF
those memories. Those days of child
hood, how careless and thoughtless
they were. Those days OF the dreams
and visions OF what we were going to
be, and OF what we were going to do.
We were confident that all we propos-
ed could be accomplished.
They were the days of childish grlefs
and sorrows to be taken to mother for
sympathy. In that period OF sturdy
youth we ate and drank with relish
that we have often longed for since. The
part we played at the long farm house
table had in IL no halueination of the
indigestion or dyspepsia to follow.
Those days were the play days. We
played at housekeeping; played school,
played at business, played meeting,
played at life; now it is the reality.
How great the contrast, with its trials
and burdens, as we dreamed of IL, and
as we realized IL.
UNKNOWN EXPIRE VCEs OF AFTER YEARS.
As we look back en- the intervening
years, who of us could have forecast
its experience? The very place for the
future scene Of our activity was all
unknown. Whether there in the To-
cality Of our childhood days or far
hence. North, South. East or West,
none knew The position we should
hold, the calling that we should follow
we knew not Of We had our childish
| notions of tho trade, business or pro-
fesslon, we should take mp; some
fond admirer may have prophecied
what we should be; but that little Wis
ion entertained in youth has doubtless
vanished with the passing years. Little
did we know OF the dangers we were
to experience. Some were to body,
hair breadth escapes from dangers,
seen and unseen. Some ere to the
soul; 1t was when we walked, all un-
conscious, along some moral preci-
pice, until some unseen hand led us
unwllllngly away. AS We recall these
experiences, in all their variety and d.
yersity, how strange and startling, ii
some one in those childhood days had
foretold what they were to have been.
And what Il theme for reflection Is tho
possibilities of childhood. As we look
at the infant lying on the lap OF its
mother helpless and innocent now, but
what possibilities for good and evil
are latent there.
In that atom of mortality there is
the germ of power, the development
of which may startle world for good
or evil. AS we minglo with the boys
and girls in the Sunday school, we
should not forget that here are the
embryo men and women for the posi-
ton OF citizenship and womanhood in
n few years. Have we ever uneon-
seieuly come in contact with that of
which we do not know the power and
trembled afterwards mt the thought OF
our proximity So here in tho hand
that we touch, in the diminutiye being
that we speak to, we know not but
here is being whose power bye and
bye shall be felt. Not long since In
distant city l saw little black boy,
the most diminutive in size and
weight that 1t seemed to me that /
ever saw walk. He was wriggling his
way along among the crowds on the
sidewalk, the butt of comments and
| jokes. My first thought was to share
with the crowd the feeling of the in
i significance of such specimen, but
sudden reflection led to tho thought;
this II mortal being; and in that fact,
there is Il possibility OF power for
good OF evil to make the world trem-
/ bic.
CHANGE WROUGHT BY THE PASSING YEARS,
As we visit the scenes OF our child
hood how apparent are the change
wrought by the passing years. Enough
remains to be familiar but how MIN
gled with the changes. The familiar
faces of some have passed away and
others have changed. The faces OF tho
more elderly who surrounded us in
childhood are seen no more. They have
stepped from the stage of action; and
those who We're then in mature and
middle life have stepped into the place
of the elders; and those then in young
manhood and womanhood have in
Al L.,