Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1892-02-08

Jesus Christ, praise the Lord for the
preservation of your reason.
THE DEGRADATION BY ANODYNES.
How many fine intellects arc being
destroyed by anodynes and anasthet-
les, which were given by providence
for occasional use in alienation OF
pain or insomnia but by being en-
ployed continuously after awhile cap
ture and destroy Choral, cocaine,
bromide of potassium, opium and
whole shelves of seductive etceteraS
that help turn ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS into
imbecility or madness. Do not trifie
with opiates that benumb the brain.
IF you cannot live without the per
petual and enslaving use of them,
you had better die. Better die sane
man than live a fool. What right
have you to kill your brain and put
in wild jangle your nervous system?
But rum is the cause of more insanity
than anything else. There is moth
ing like rum to put a man, like Nebu
chadnezzar, down on all tours
Again, learn how quickly turns the
wheel of fortune, from how high up
to how far down went Nebuchadnez-
Ear. Those now in places of position
and power, even though they should
live, will in a few years be disre-
garded, while some, who this day
are obscure and poverty stricken,
will ride up on the shoulders of the
people to take their turn at admira-
ton and the spoils of office. Oh,
how quickly the wheel turns Ballot
boxes are the steps on which men
come down as often as they go up.
Of those who were a few years ago
successful in the accumulation Of
property how few have not met with
reverses of fortune, while many of
those who then were straitened in
circumstances now hold the bonds
and the bank keys of the nation and
win the most bows on the exchange.
OF all tickle people in the world
Fortune is the most tickle. Every
day she changes her mind, and woe
to that man who puts any confidence
in what she promises or proposes.
She cheers when you go up and she
laughs when you come down. Oh,
trust not a moment your hearts af
fections to this changeable world.
Anchor your soul in God. From
Christ's love gather your joy. Then
come sorrow or gladness, success or
defeat, riches or poverty, honor or
disgrace, health or sickness, life or
death, time or eternity, all are yours
and we are Christ's and Christ is
Gods.
Learn also from my subject the
comforting truth that Affections are
arrested as soon as they have accom-
plished their mission. For seven
years did Nebuchadnezzar dwell
among the beasts of the field, but at
the expiration of that time his rea-
son returned, and as soon as with
proper humility he acknowledged the
God of heaven he was brought back
to his palace and reinstated in his
former affiuence and power. Now
it does seem that when heavy trials
come upon us it is as though they
had no limit We exclaim, "All thy
waves and thy pillows have gone
over me- but forget that the depth
of that sea and the power of that
billow are definitely determined.
God sees how much our pride is
and he sends just enough adversely
to humble it. He sees just how
worldly minded we are and pulls us
just hard enough to detach us from
our follies He sees how hard our
heart is and smites just hard enough
to break it. He sees how our eyes
have been blinded and he cuts only
just enough to remove the scales
from our spiritual vision. AS soon
as Abraham's faith is sufficiently
tried the lamb is provided AS soon
as Pharaoh consents to let the chill
dren of Israel depart the plague
pauses. AS soon as the Israelites
have been sufficiently disciplined by
their wanderings they find their way
into Canaan But to some the limit
is not set in this life. Their whole
pilgrimage is through the wilderness
and the world is to them a valley of
tears
But perhaps God has a special
throne in heaven that no ordinary
saint can occupy, and by eXtraOr-
binary trials he has prepared that
Christian soul for extraordinary
glory. God will not keep you in the
furnace one moment too long. Just
as soon as Paul had met with enough
imprisonment and scourgings he
reached up and plucked his eternal
crown. God will keep us no longer
under the hammer and on the stocks
than is necessary to fit us for en-
trance into the haven of eternal rest.
Glory be to the divine grace that, as
soon as our affections have accom-
plished their mission, they are ar
rested.