Daily tobacco leaf-chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1890-1895, 1892-01-11

we find the shadow retreating we oIght TO
learn that God controls the shadows. We
are ell ready 10 acknowledge his manage
ment of the sunshine We stand in the
glow of a bright morning and we say in
oM feelings if not with SO many words,
This life is from God, this warmth is from
God. Or, we have a rush of prosperity
and we say, These successes are from God.
What proyidential thing il was ! bought
that lot inst before the rise of real estatel
How grateful to God am that made
that investment! Why, they have declared
10 per cent dividend What Il mercy it was
that sold out my shares before that col
lapSep' Oh, yes; we acknowledge God in
the sunshine of a bright day or the sun
shine Of great prosperity. But suppose
the day is dark2 You have to light the
gas at noon. The sun does not show him.
self all day long There is nothing but
shadow. How slow we are to realize that
the storm is from God and the darkness
from God and the chill from God Or we
buy the day before the markets. retreat, or
we make an investment that never pays, or
we purchase goods that we cannot dispose
of, or a crop of grain we sowed is ruined
by drought or freshet, or when we took ac
count of stock on the LIST of January we
found ourselves thousands of dollars worse
Off than we expected. Who under such
circumstances says, This loss is from God
must have been allowed to go into that
unfortunate enterprise for some good rea
sou, God controls the east wind It's well as
the west wind2"
GOD CONTROLS THE SHADOWS
My friends, cannot look for one moment
on that retrograde shadow on Ahaz'S dial
without learning that God controls the
shadows and that lesson we need all to
learn That he controls the sunshine is not
so necessary lesson, for anybody can be
happy when things go right. When you
sleep eight hours night and rise with an
appetite that cannot easily wait for break
fast and you 20 over to the store and open
your mail to read more orders than you can
fill, and in the next letter you find divi
dend far larger than you have been prom
Used, and your neighbor comes in to tell
you some fatterng thing he has just heard
said about YOU and you find that all the
styles Of goods in which you deal have ad
yanced u per cent in value and on your
way home you meet your children in full
romp and there are roses on the center of
the tea table and roses of health in cheeks
allarOund the table, what more do you want
of consolation9 | don't pity you bit. You
feel as if you could boss the world But
for those in just opposite circumstances my
text comes in with an omnipotence of mean
ing The shadow Oh, the shadow! Shad
ow of bereavement! Shadow of sicknessl
Shadow of bankruptcy Shadow of mental
depressionl Shadow of persecution Shad
ow Of deathl Speak out, oh, sun dial of
Ahaz, and tell all the people that God
manages the shadowl As Hezekiah sat in
his palace window wrapped in inyaisiism
and surrounded by anodynes and cata.
plasms and looked out upon the black hand
Of the only clock known at that time and
saw it move back ten degrees, he learned
lesson that "A majority of the human race
need this hour to learn-that the best friend
man ever had controls the shadow. The
setbacks are sometimes the best things
that can happen. The great German au.
thor, Schiller, could not work unless he had
in his room the scent of rotten apples, and
the decay of the fruits of earthly prosperity
may become an inspiration instead of de
preston Robert Chambers lame feet
shut him up from other work, and he be
came the world renowned publisher, and
helped fashion the best literature of the
ages. The painful disorder like that of
Hezekiah called u carbuucle is spelled eX
actly the same us the precious stone called
the carbuncle, and the pang of suffering
may become the jewel of immortal value
Your setback like that of Ahaz's sundial,
may be recovery and triumph. inever had
Il setback but it turned out to be Il set for
ward You never would have become Il
Christian if you had not had q setback
The highest thrones in heaven are for the
sethacks. In 1861 the shadow Of the sun
dial of this nation was set back, and all
things seemed going to ruin, and it was set
back further in 1862 and further in 1868,
and still further in 1863 but there is not
IN intelligent and we'll balanced man
north or SOUTH east or west-but feels it
was set back toward the sunrise.
now THEY MAY BE TURNED BACK.
But promise to show you how the shad
ows might be turned back First, by going
much among the young people, In most
family circles there are grandchildren BY
this divine arrangement most of the people
who have passed the meridian of life can
compass themselves by juvenility 1t is a
bad thing for an old man or old woman to
sit looking at the vivacity Of their grand
children shouting, stop that racket"
Better join in the fun. Let the eighty
year-old grandfather join the eight-year
young grandson or granddaughter My
father and mother lived to see over eighty
children and grandchildren and great
grandchildren, and more bOisterOus crew
Wcce never turned out on this sublunary
sphere, and they all seemed to cry to the
old folks, keep young" and they did keep
young Don't walk with cane unless you
have to or only asa defense in Il city afflicted
with too many CANNES Dou't wear glasses
stronger chan necessary putting on mum
Der tens when cghtecus will do rs well !
Don't 80 into the company of those who
are always talking about rheumatism and
mnbago and shortneSs of breath and the
breyity of human life. 1t is too much for
my gravity to hear an oCtOgeuaran talking
about the shortness of human life, From
all can find out he has always been here
and from present prospects he is always
going to stay Remain young. Hang up
your stockings in Christmas time Help
the boys fly the Kite Teach the girls how
TO dress their dolls Better than arnica
for your stiff joints and catnip tea for your
scepless nights will be a large dose of
youthful companiouship,
SET BACK THE CLOCK.
Set back the clock Of human life Make
the SHALLOW OF lne SuIltlldI Oh AIdh IeLTtdI
ten degrees. People make themselves old
by always talking about being old and
wishing for the good old days, which were
never rs good 10 these days. From all
can hear tie grandchildren are not
half as bad us the grandparents We're
Matters have been hushed up, But if you
have ever been in room adjoining room
where some very old people, little dear,
were talking over old times you will find