The Press., 1893-06-22
w. c. T. U. DEPARTMENT.
Our Flower Mission.

Our Flower Mission.
 When about thirty years ago, young girl, by dreadful accident, was made g lifelong cripple and sufferer, it was but natural that her friends should look upoI it as cruel calamity, if they thought ot her life as blighted, all the bright promise of usefulness and happiness buried in g living grave. This, indeed, must have been the effect of such misfortune to ont who lived only for self; but the life tha is given to God, that knows no persona ambition, that seeks only to teach O. Christ and Him crucified, is beyond tht reach of any earthly ruin. What Jennie Casseday's life and work might have been had she had health and strength, we dt not know. Certain it is that in weakness and pain she wrought greater work fo Christ than many one who never know! a day of pain and sickness. From her in Valid's couch her heart went out to tn, poor and wretched, and though for year she scarcely left her room, yet she is on' of those of whom the Master says: :" was sick and ye visited me; I was il prison and ye came unto me-"
 Jennie Casseday's ministry to other, was not confined to one line of work, bu to the white-ribboners she is best knowl as the founder of our flower mission When the W. c. T. U. found her, the pa tient sufferer was sending punches of flow CTS with scripture verses attached, to tn, criminals and to the afflicted of her owl city, Louisville. What work could re ceive quicker sympathy from the whit ribbon army of the nation? In that grea army of women there wele broken-heartet mothers who had seen their sons go dow the drunkard's path to felon's grave there were wives whose love had neve faltered even when it's object was behint prison bars. They were just the ones t, sympathize with Jennie Casseday in he efforts to bind up the broken-hearted, t, proclaim liberty to the captives." Ant so the w. c. T. U. took up Jennie Gas seday and her work creating a flower mis sion department and making her it's na tional superintendent. This meant flow CT mission service in every local and stat' union in the nation, and for fifteen year. Jennie Casseday sent flowers and scrip ture messages, not to the criminal ant afflicted classes of Louisville alone, bu of all the nation. Nor has her worl ceased; the gentle, unselfish life has in deed been translated, but so long as ou great organization shall exist, so Ion, shall Jennie Casseday continue her min istry of flowers.
 Our flower mission is not the sentiment al gushing of maudlin sympathy whicl manifests itself toward the perpetrator o some fearful crime. tis the pity of Chris who eondones no sin but despai1s of n, sinner. It's flowers never hint of any pal liation, much less admiration of crime for they always carry with them the mes sage of God to the sinner, the messag, which tells of His unchanging hatred fo sin and of His undying love for the sinner and witnesses forever of the One wht is able to "save to the uttermost," wht came "not to call the righteous but sin ners to repentance" Many touching stories have come from the work of thi department, of hardened criminals wht wept like children when flowers, like thos, which grew by their mothers door in thu days of their innocent childhood, wert were placed in their hand, and who re ceived with penitent and believing hearts the message of salvation which accompa nied them.
 There is no department of our grea work through which the "organized moth er-love" speaks more clearly than through the flower mission department, none mor' surely inspired by Him who came to seel and to save that which was lost.