The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1893-03-22

made me painter"
A young man received furlough to re-
turn from the army to his fathers house.
Afterward he took the furlough back to
the officer, saying, Il would like to post
pone my visit for two weeks" At the end
Of the two weeks he came and got the fur
Tough. He was asked why he waited.
"Well," he replied, when / left home
told my mother i would be Christian in
the army, and l was resolved not to go
home until ! could answer her first cues
ton" Oh, the almost omnipotent power
Of the motheri But il both the father and
The mother be right, then the children are
almost sure to be right
The young people may make awide curve
from the straight path, but they are almost
sure to come back to the right road. II may
not be until the death of one Of the parents
How often 1t is that we hear some one say,
"Oh, he was wild young man, but since
his fathers death he has been different
The fact Is that the fathers coffin, or the
mothers coffin, is often the altar of repent
ance for the child Oh, that was stupen-
dous day, the day of fathers burial. twas
not the officiating clergyman who made the
chief impression, nor the sympathizing
mourners: it was the father asleep in the
casket.
The hands that had toiled for that house
hold so long, folded. The brain cooled off
after 20 or 40 years Of anxiety about how to
put that family in right position. The lips
closed after 50 many years OF good advice
There are more tears falling in mothers
grave than in fathers grave, but over the
fathers tomb think there is a kind of
awe It is at that marble pillar many
young man has been revOlutionized.
MEDITATION AT THE GRAVE.
Oh. Young man with cheek flushed with
dissipation! how long is it since you have
been out TO your fathers gravel Will you
not 90 this week. Perhaps the storms of
the last few days may have bent the head
stone until IL leans far over. You had bet
ter 20 out and see whether the lettering has
been defaced You had better go out and
see whether the gate of the lot is closed.
You had better go and see if you cannot
find a sermon in the springing grass. oh.
Young man, 20 out this week and see your
fathers gravel
Religion did so much for our Christian
ancestry. Are we not ready this morning
to be willing TO receive it into our own
households? II we do receive it, let it
come through the front dOor-not through
the back door In other words, do not let
Us snauggle II in. There are great many
families who want to be religious, but they
do not want anybody outside to know 1t.
They would be mortified TO death if you
caught them at family prayers. They would
not sing in the worship for fear their neigh
bors would hear them. They do not have
prayers when they have company
They do not know much about the nobil-
itv of the western trapper A traveller go
ing along was overtaken by night and
storm. and he entered cabin. There were
firearms hung up around the cabin. He
was alarmed. He had large amount of
money with him, but he did not dare to
venture out into the night in the storm.
He did not like the looks of the household
After awhile the father-the western trap
per-came in, gun on shoulder, and when
the traveller looked at him he was still more
afTrighted
After awhile the family were whispering
together in one corner of the room, and the
traveller thought to himself "Oh! now my
time has come: ] wish | was out in the
storm and in the night rather than here"
But the swarthy man came mp to him and
Said "Sir, we are rough people; we get
our living by hunting, and we are very
tired when the night comes, but before go
ing 10 bed we always have habit of read
ing little out Of the Bible and having
4
custom tonight, and if you don't believe in
that kind of thing if you will just step out
side tue door for a little while l will be
much obliged to you"
Oh. there are many Christian parents who
have not half the courage of that western
trapper. They do not want their religion
projecting too cOnSpicuously. They would
like 60 have il near by 50 to call on it in
case Of a funeral, but as to having it DOM
inant in the household from the list of Jan
uary, o'clock a m, TO the 3lst of Deem
Der, 10 o'clock p. m, they do not want it.
They would rather die and have their fam
lilies perish with them than to cry out in
the bold words of the soldier in my text,
'As for me and my house, we will serve the
Lord "
There was IN my ancestral line an Incl
dent 50 strangely impressive that it seems
more like romance than reality. 1t has
sometimes been so inaccurately put forth
that now give you the true incident. Ny
grandfather and grandmother, living ut
SOmervilie, y. j., went 10 Basking Ridge to
witness a revival under the ministry of the
Rev DR.. Finley. They came home so i'm
pressed with what they had seen that they
resolved on the salvation of their children.
The young people Of the house were to
go of for an evening party, and my grand
mother said:
Now, when you are all ready for the
party, come 10 my room, for | have some
thing very important to tell you" All
ready for departure, they came to her room,
and she said to them, Now, want you TO
remember, while you are away this even
ing, that am all the time in this room
praying for yC'Ir salvation, and shall not
cease praying until you get back" The
young people went to the party, but amid
the loudest hilarities of the night they
could not forget that their mother was
praying for them. The evening passed,
and the night passed
The next day my grandparents heard an
cutlery in an adjoining room, and they went
in and found their daughter imploring the
salvation of the gospel. The daughter told
them that her brothers were at the barn
and at the wagon house under powerful
conviction Of sin. They went to the barn.
They found my uncle Jehiah, who after
ward became n minister of the gospel, cry
ing to God for mercy They went to the
wagon house. They found their son David,
who afterward became my father, implor-
Ing Gods pPrdon and mercy. Before
great while the whole family were saved.
and David went ana tOIu tine story 10 a
young woman to whom he was affianced,
who, as result of the story, became a
Christian, and from her own lips-my
mother's-I have received the incident.
The story Of that converted household
ran through all the neighborhood, from
family to family, until the whole region
was whemed with religious awakening.
and at the next OrnmunfOD in the village