Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1893-03-09

tlng, n o SAID, why thai ~
thunderl and sure enough the clouds
were being convoked for afuli diapison.
a whole park of artillery went rolling
down the heavens and the blinds OF the
windows in the sky were closed. Bat
the sounds above were not more certain
than the sounds beneath. The cattle
came to the bars and moaned for them
to be let down that they might come
no re for shelter, and the fowl. whether
d ark Brahna or Hamburg or L-ghorn
or Domlnlck, began to call TO its young
&C uck!' .'Clucxl' 'Ciuck!' and take
them under the wagon-house or shed
an had them all mid under the soft
feathers by the time that the first
splash Of rain struck the roof so there
are sudden tempests for u souls, an =,
Oh. how dark it gets, and threatening
/ clouds of bankruptcy or sickness or per-
secution or bereavement gather anu
thieken and blacken and some run for
shelter to a bank, but it is poor shelter;
and others ran to friendly advisers, AMI
they TAIL 10 help; and Others fly no where
sinp V bc.nusc they know not where
to 60, and tney perish in the blast; but
others hear a divine call, saying:
Come, for ali things are now ready
THE p.rit and the bride say, Come.
And while the heavens are numbering
terror, the Divine voice protfers mercy,
and the soul comes under the brooding
care of the Almighty las a hen
gathereth her chickens under her wing"
The wings of my text suggest
warmth, ana that is what most III
want. The fact is hat this is a cold
world, whether you take il literally or
hguratively. We have a big fireplace,
called the sun, and it has a very hot
fire, and the stokers keep the coal well
stirred up, but much of the year we can
not get near enough TO the fireplace to
get warmed. The worlds extremities
are cold all the time. Forget not that
it is colder at the south pole than at
the north pole, and that the Arctic IS
not so destructive as the Antarctic Once
in awhile the Arctic will let explorers
come back, but the Antarctic hardly ever.
When at the south pole a ship sails In,
the door of ice is almost sure to be shut
against its return. So life to many mil
lions of people at the south and many
millions Of people at the north is a pro-
longed SILVER. But when l say that
this is a cold world, | chiefly mean
figuratively. If you want to know
what is the meaning of the ordinary
term of receiving the cold shoulder"
get out of money and try to borrow.
The conversation nay have been al
most tropical for luxuriance OF thought
and speech, but suggest your neces-
sites and see the thermometer drop to
fifty degrees below zero, and in that
which, till a moment before, had been
a warm room. Take what is an un-
popular position on some public ques-
ton and see your friends fly as chaff
before a windmill As far as myself is
concerned, / have no word of complaint,
but / look off day by day and see com
munities freezing out men and women
of whom the world is not worthy. Now
it takes after one and nov after an
other. 1t becomes popular to depreciate
and defame and execrate and lie about
some people. This is the best world
ever got into, but it is the meanest
world that some people ever got into
The worst thing that ever happened to
them was their cradle and the best thing
that will ever happen To them will be
their grave. What the people wan is
Many years ago a young
man wa floating down on the ice of
the Merrimac and great efforts were
made to rescue him. Twice he got
hold of a plank thrown to him and
twice he slipped away from II, because
that end of the plank was covered with
zee, and he cried out: For Gods sake,
rive me the wooden end of the plank
his time" and this done, he was
to shore. The trouble is that
n our efforts to save the soul, there is
90 much GOODNESS and icy formality.
md so the imperiled one slips off and
ioats down. Give it the other end of
,he plank. Warmth of sympathy,
warmth OF kindly associa tion, warmth
# genial surroundings. The world de-
to give it and in many cases has
no power to give il, and here is where
rist comes in, and as on a cold day,
he rain beating and the atmosphere
ull of sleet, the hen clucks her chick
ms under her wings, and the warmth
# her own breast puts warmth into the
and the chilled feet of the in
group of the barnyard, so Christ
avs to those sick and frosted and dis
and frozen Of the world, come in
ut of the March winds of the worlds
come in out of the sleet Of the
assault, come in out of a world ,
hat does not understand you, and does
OF want to understand you; l will !
omfort you. and will soothe you and ,
viii be your warmth, ''as a hen gath !
reth her chickens under her wing" ,
!, the warm heart of God is ready for :
IL those to whom the world has given I.
he cold shoulder. .
But notice hat some one must take !
lie storm for the chickens All! the :,
takes the storm. ! have watched !.
err under the pelting rain. ! have seen /;
err in the pinching frosts- Almost !.
.o7ao ~ dooth o- almost efroprlad ~ -