Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1892-05-06

TExr: "7he Stothful man rodsteth not
hdt Vhich he took in uHtin9."-Prov-
erbs xii. 27.
David and jeremiah and Ezekiel and Micah
and Solomon OF the text showed that some
time they had been out on hunting ex,
petition. Spears, lances, swords and nets
were employed in this service. A deep pit
fall would be digged. In the center OF IL
there was some raised ground with a pole on
which lamb would be fastened, and thu
wild beast not seeing the pitfall, but only
seeing the lamb would plunge for its prey
and dash down, itself captured. Birds wers
caught in gins or pierced with arrows. The
hunters in olden time had two Missions one
TO clear the land OF ferocious beasts, and the
other to obtain meat for themselves and
their families. The occupation and habit Of
hunters are favorite Bible simile. David
said he was hunted by his enemy like par
fridge upon tho mountain. My text is a
hunting scene.
A sportsman arrayed In garb appropri-
ate to the wild chase lets slip the bloc !.
thirty hounds from their kennels, and
mounting his feet horse, with a halloo and
the yell Of the greyhound pack they are
off and away through brake aud dell, over
marsh and moor, across chasms where a
nIisstep would hurl horse and rider to death,
plungng into mire up to the launches or in
10 swift streams up to the bit, till the gams
is tracked by dripping foam and blood, and
the antlers crack on the rocks, and the
hunter has just time TO be in at the death.
Yet after all the haste and peril OF the
chase, my text represents this sportsman as
being too indolent to dress the game and
prepare il for food. He lets il lie in the
dooryard OF his home and become a portion
for vermin and beaks Of prey. Thus by one
master stroke Solomon gives picture OF
lazlneSs, when he says THE slothful man
roasteth not that which he took in hunting"
The most Of hunters have the game they
shot or entrapped cooled the same evening
or the next day, but not so with this laggari
OF the text Too lazy to rip off the hide.
Too lazy to kindle the fire and put the grid
iron on the Goals.
The first picture ever bought was an en-
craving OF Thorwaldsen's Autumn" The
clusters OF grapes are ripe on the vine OF the
homestead, and the returned hounds. pant
ing from the chase, are lying on the doorsill
aud the hunter is unshouldering the game,
while the housewife is about to take a
portion OF it and prepare it for the evening
meal. Unlike the person Of the text, she
was enough industrious to roast that which
had been taken in hunting. But the world
has had many specimen since Solomon's
time cf those whose lassitude and improvi'
dence and absuriity were depicted in my
text The most of those who have
made dead failure OF life can look back
and see time when great opportunity
opened, but they did not know 1t.
They were not as wiso as George Stephen.
son. "the father OF railways" who when at
sixteen years OF age he received an appoint
ment TO work az punping engine for
twelve shilIings "A week. erie out: Now, |
am made man for life" God gives to most
mun at least one good opportunity. great
Grecian general was met by group OF beg
gars, and he satd TO them. "lf you want
beasts to plow your land 1 will lend you
some. IL you want land | will give you
some. II you want seed To sow your land.
| will see that you get it. But will encour-
age none In idleness." SO God gives to most
people an opportunity OF extrication from
depressed circumstances. As il 10 create
in Us a hatred for Incidence, God has
made those animals which are slug
gish to appear loathsome in our eyes
while those which are fleet and active he
has clothed with attractiyeness.
The tortoise, the sloth, the snail, the croco-
die repel us, while the deer and the gaZelie
are as pleasing as they are feet and from
the swift wings of innumerable birds Col
has spared no purple or gold or jet or cr.n-
son or snowy whiteness. Besides all this the
Bible is constantly assaulting the vics OF
laziness Solomon seems to order the idler
out Of his sight as beyo all human instruc-
ton when he says "Go to the ant, thou slug
gard; consider her ways and be wise" And
Paul seems TO drive him up from his dining
table before he gets through with the first
course Of food with the assertion, "lf any
will not work. neither shall he eat"
Now, what are the causes OF laziness and
what are its evil results? knew man who
was never up to time. 1t seemed impossible
-, tn am 0aU Upnant- w hen hA
was to be married he missed the train. His
watch seemed to take on the habits OF its
owner, and was always too slow. He had
constitutional lethargy for which he did not
seem responsible. So Incidence often arises
from the natural temperament. l do not
know but there is constitutional tendency
to this vice in every man. However active
you may generally be, have you not on some
warm spring day felt a touch OF this feeling
ON you, although you may have shaken 1t of
as YOU would a reptileg But some are so
powerfully tempted to this by their bodily
constitution that all the work Of their lie
has Teen accomplished with this lethargy
hanging on their back or treading on their
heels.
You sometimes behold it in childhood.
The child moping and longing within doors
while his brothers and sisters are at play, or
II he Join them he is behind in every race
and beaten in every game. His nerves, his
muscles. his bones are smitten with this
palsy, He vegetables rather than lives,
creeps rather than walks, yawns rather
than breathes. The animal in his nature Is
stronger than the intellectual. He Is gen.
erally a great eater and active only when
he cannot digest what he has eaten. lire
ouires as much effort for him to Walk as Tor
others to run. Languor and drowslness are
his natural inheritance. He is built for
slow sailing vessel, a heavy hulk AMI an in
sufficient cutwater. Place an active man
in such bodily structure and the latter
would be shacken TO pieces IN one DAY
Every law of physiology demands that he
| be supine. Such one Is not responsible Iof
this powerful tendency OF his nature. his
great duty is resistance.
When see man fighting an unfortunate
temperament all my sympathles are aroused,
and think OF Victor Hugo's account OF a
scene on warship, where, In the midst OF
storm Mt sea, great cannon got loose. anc
it was crashing this way and that and woulC
have destroyed the ship; and the chiet gun
per. at the almost certain destruction OF nj
own life, rushed at it with handspike Il
thrust between the spokes the wheel oil tn
rolling cannon, aud by Irtunate Leverage
arrested the gun till IL could be lashed last
But that struggle did not seem so dishearten
ing as that man enters upon who attempt
to fight his natural temperament, whether
be too fast of too slow, too nervous or to-
lymphatic God help him, for God only can
Furthermore, Incidence is often the resul
OF easy circumstances Rough experien.c
In earlier life seems to be necessary In orue
to make man active and enterprising
Mountaineers are nearly always swarthy
and those who have toilei among mountain,
of trouble get the most nerve and muscl
and brain. Those who have become the d
liverers OF nations, once had not where
lay their heads. Locusts and wild hon'
have been the fare OF many John the Ba
tist while those who had been fondled I
fortune and petted and praised have oftt
grown up lethargc.
They have none of that heroism whic
comes from fighting ones own battles. Th
warm SUNNI rr sun OF prosperity has wea
ened and relaxed them. Born among d
Injuries of life, exertion has been unnect