The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1891-07-29

whole family. Il made a creaking nolse
as it moved; but there Was music IN the
sound. twas just high enough to low
Us children to put our heads into her
lap. That was the bank where we de-
posted all our hurts and worries. All!
what a chair that was. 1t was different
from the fathers chair; 1t was entirely
ditltreit. You ask me how? l cannot
tell: bu, we all felt it was different. Per-
haps there was about that chair more
sentleness, more tenderness, more grief
when we had done wrong. When we
were wayward, father scolded, but moth
er cried. II was very waketul chair.
In the sick days ofchildren, other chairs
could not keep awake; that chair always
kept awake-kept easily awake. That
chair knew all the old lullabies and all
those wordless songs which mothers
sing to their sick children-songs in
which all p ty, and compassion and SYM
pathetic influences are combined. That
old chair has stopped rocking for good
many years. 1t may be set up i'll the
loft or the garret, but it holds a Gueenly
power yet. When at midnight you went
into that grog-shop to get the intoxicat-
ng draught, did you not hear vol e
that said: My son, why 90 10 there?"
And louder than the bolsterous encore
of the place o! sinful amusement, a voice
saying, My son, What do you here?"
And when you went into the house OF
abandonment, voice saying, ''What
would your mother do if she knew you
were here::' And you were provoked
with yourself, and you charged yourself
with superstition and fanaticism and
your head got hot with your thoughts,
and you went home and you went to
bed, and no sooner had you touched the
bed than a voice said: what: pray
erless pillow? Man! what is the mat.
ter:" This: You are too near Your
mothers rocking chair.
s'Oh, pshaw!" YOU say, There's
nothing in that; Pm 500 miles off from
where l was born; Pm 5000 miles of
from the -hurch whose bell was the first
music 1 ever heard" I cannot help
that; you are two near your mothers
rocking chair. ''Oh," you say, there
can't be anything in that; that chair has
been vacant great while" L cannot
help that; it is al the mightier for that;
it is omnipotent, that vacant mothers
chair. 1t whispers; it speaks; it weeps;
it carols; it mourns; it prays; it warns;
it thunders. A young man wento of and
broke his mothers heart, and while he
was away from home lis mother died,
and the telegraph brought the son, and
he came INTO the room where she lay and
looked upon her face, and he cried out:
"Oh. mother! mother! what your lie
could not do your death shall effect.
This moment l give my heart to God"
And be kept his promise. Another VIC
tory for the vacant chair. With refer
ence to your mother, the words Of my
text were fulfilled. Thou shalt be
missed. because thy seat will be emp
ty."
20 on little further, and 1 come to
the lnvalid's chair. What! How long
have you been sick: 30! I have been
sick ten, twenty, thirty years" Is it
possible? What story Of endurance.
There are in many Of the families OF my
congregation these invaiid's chairs. The
occupants of them think they are doing
no good in the world. bit that iuyalid's
chair is the mighty pulpit from witch
they have been preaching all these years:
trust in God. The first time preached
here at Lakeside, Ohio, amid the throngs
present there was nothing that so much
impressed me as the spectacle Of just
one face-the face of an invalid who
was wheeled in on her chair. said 10
her afterwards: Madam, how long have
YOU been prostrated?" for she was lying
fat in the chair. 'sO!" she replied: Il
have been this way fifteen years." l
said: do you suffer very much::" 20,
yes" she said: Il suffer very much; l
suffer all the time; part OF the time | was
blind. l always suffer-" ''Well,' l
said: ''can you keep your courage up:"
20 yes" she said; Il am happy, very
happy indeed" Her face showed it.
She looked the happiest OF any one on
the ground.
.! what means OF grace to the world,
these invalid chairs. On that field OF
human suffering the grace Of God gets It's
victory. Edward Payson the invalid,
and Rlchard Baxter the invalid, and Rob
ert Hail tho invalid, and ten thousand OF
whom The world has never heard, but OF
whom all heaven is coenlzant. The
most conspicuous thing on earth for
Gods eve and the eye of angels to rest
on, is not a throne Of earthly power, but
it is the invalid's char. o! these men
and women who are always suffering
but never com plaiuing-these victims OF
spinal disease, and neuralgia torture,
aud r..eumatic eXcrucisti q will answer
TO tie roll-call OF the martyrs, aud rise
10 the martyrs throne, and will wave
the martyrs palm. But when one OF
these invalids' chairs becomes vacant,
how suggestive i is! No more bolster
ing up OF the weary head. No more
changing from side to side TO get au easy
position. No more use OF The bandage
ard the cataplasm, and the prescription.
That invalid's chair may be folded up,
or taken apart, q set away, but 1t Will
never lose It's Queenly power; 1t will al
ways preach OF trust in God, and cheer
tul submission. Suffering all ended now.
With respect to that invalid the words
OF ny text have been fulfilled: Thou
shalt he missed, because thy seat will be
empty"
pass on, and find one more vacant
chair. IL Is high chair. 1t is the
child's char. If that char be occupied,
l think it is the most potent chair in all
the household. All the chars wait on
it; all the chairs are turned toward 1t.
IL lneaus more than Davld's chair al
Saul's banquet. At any rate, it makes
more racket. That is strange house
that eau be dull with child in it. How
that child bl eaks up the hard worldllness
Of the place, .nu keeps you young to CO.
! 10, and 50 years Of age! If you have nc
child OF your On u adopt one; it will open