The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1891-03-31

ho phVu1ibcu OILY 30 utucn ~ ne 6x-
pecsed TO be able TO do. Society has
no right to ask you impossibiiftIes
You cannot always calculate correctly,
and you may fail because you cannot
get the help that you anticipate. But
now i am speaking of the wiliful max
ing of promises that you know you
cannot keep. Did you say that that
shoe would be mended, that coat re-
paired, those bricks laid, that harness
sewed. that door grained, that spout
Fixed. or that window glazed. by Satur-
day, knowing that o would neither
be able to do 1t yourself nor get any
one else to do it2 Then before God
and man you are a liar. You may say
that iG makes no particular difference.
and that IL you had told the truth you
would have lost the job, and that peo-
pie expect to be disappointed. But
that excuse will not answer. There is
Q voice of thunder rolling among the
drills, and planes, and shoe lasts. and
have their part in the lake that burneth
with fire aud birthstone"
next notice ecclesiastical lies; that is,
f~alsehoods told for tho purpose Of adyanc-
ing churches N sects, or. FOR the purpose
Of depicting them. There is no use in
asking many a Calyinist what an Arminjan
believes, for he will be apt to. tell you that
the Aminian believes that q man can con.
vert himself, or to ask the Arminian what
the Calvinist believes, for he will tell you
that the Calvinist believes that God made
some men Just to damn them. There is
no need o, asking q p@dO-Baptist wnat q
Baptist believes, for he will be app to saw
that the Baptist believes immersion to be
positively necessary to salvation. is al
most impossible for ore denomination of
Christians, without prejudice or mis- epre-
sentat1o1,. to state the sentiment of an oo-
posing sect. II a man hates Presbyterians,
and you ask him what Presbyterians be-
lieve, he tell you that they believe that there
are infants in hell a span longl
It is strange also how individual churches
will sometimes make misstatements about
other individual churches. 1t Is especially
so Is regard to falsehoods told with refer
ence to prosperous enterprises. AS long as
cordant, and the minister, through the
poverty of the church, must go with a
t~hreadbare coet, and here and there q wor-
shipper sits in tie end of q pew. having all
the seat to himself, religious sympathizers
Of other churches will say, What a pity!e
even ministers of the Gospel, who ought to
+ rejoic d at the largeness and extent of
tho work, edenounce, end misrepresent, and
falsify,. starting the suspicion in regard to
Themselves. that the reason they do not like
tie corn is because 1t is not ground in their
own mill. How long before we shall learn
to be fair In our religious criticisms! The
Eeenest jealOusies on earth are church
jealousies. The field Of Christian work is
so large that there is no need that our hoe
handles hit.
Next, 1 speak Of social lies. This evil
know not what to believe. When people
ask you to come, you do not know whether
or not they want you to come. When they
Q their regards, you do not know wheth.
or 1t Is an expression of their heart, or an
external ciyility. We have learned to take
almost everything at q discount. Word is
sent, "Not at home,"' when they are only
too lazy to dress themselves. They say,
The furnace has just gone out" when in
truth they have had no fire in it all winter.
They apologize for the unusual barrenness
Of their table, whea they never live any
entertainments, to win a shower Of APP
prOval. They apologize for their appear
ance, as though 1t were unusual, when al.
ways at home they look Just so. They
would make you believe that some nice
sketch on the val was the work of q mas'
ter painter. cit was an heirloom and once
hung on the walls of a castle; and a duke
gave 1t to their grandfather" When tie
fact Is, that painting was made by a man
down east" and baked so as to make 1t
look old. and sold with others for $40 q
dozen. People who will lie about nothing
else will lie about n picture. On q small
income we must make the world believe
that we a,e afluent, and our life becomes q
cheat, a counterfeit, and a sham.
Few persons are really natural. When l
maniSsrs. 1t is right that we should have
more 40. ration for the sculptured marble
than for the 'dnknown block Of quarry.
From many circles in, life irsincerity has
driven out yivacity aud enthusiasm. A
frozen dignity instead floats about the room,
Il and ipahprn nrin1o QuainCS fpaharn Vn,,
must not laugh outright, it Is vulgar. You
must smile. You must nots dash rapidly
across the room; you must ABIDE. There is
a round Of bows, and grinsf2 and batteries,
end obs! and abs! AND simpering, and
worth one good, roundlio, est peal of laugh
ter. From such a bHSow round the tortured
guest retires TT tx iose Of the evening, and
assures his ,hostthat he has enjoyed him
What a round of insincerities many peo-
pie run, in order 20 win the favor of the
world. Their life is a sham and their death
an u~nspeakable sadness. Alas. for TIE
poor butterflies when the frost strikes
them!
Compare the life and death of such q one
with that of some Christian aunt who was
once q blessing to your household. L do
not know that she was ever offered the
hand in marriage. She lived single that
Nths oiNo ~ w ofOAJb WY -
blessing. Whenever the sick were to be
visited. or tho poor to be provided with
bread, she went with q blessing. She could
pay, or sing "Rock of Ages" for any sick
panper who asked her. As she got older,
but for the most part u tie was a sunbeam
Just the one for Christmas Eve. She knew
better than anyone else Row to fix things.
Her every prayer, as God heard it, was full
Of everybody who lad trouble. The bright
est thinssin all the house dropped from her
fingers. She lad peculiar notions, but the
grandest notion she ever had was to make
you happy. She dressed well; auntie al
ways dressed well; but her highest adorn-
ment was that of q meek and quiet spirit, |
which, in the sight of God, is of great price. |
When she died, you all gathered lovingly
about her; and as you carried her OFT to
rest, the Sunday-school class almost covered
the coffin with %japonicas, and the poor pco-
pie stood at the erd Of the alley, with their
aprons to their eyes, sObbing bitterly; and
the man Of the world said, with Solomon, |
Her price was above rubies;' and Jesus,
as unto the maiden in Judea commanded, |
II say unto thee. arisel'
But tomany, through insincerity; this life
Is a masquerade ball. AS, at such enter
tainments, gentlem en- n ladies appear In |
the dress OF kings n queens, mountain
bandits or clowns, and at the close of the |
dance throw Off their DISCUSSES, so, i'll this |
dissipated life, all unclean passions move
in mask. Across the floor they trip merri-
ly. The lights sparkle along the wall, or
drop from the ceiling-a cohort of firei
The music charms. The diamonds glitter.
The feet bound. Gemmed hands stretched !
ntf oIaonnI f,nrN,,,a4 I,nrla 20 a.So: eool