Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1893-03-23

| of God will put 1T plainly and say she
prays better Oh, these mothers decide al
| most everything Nero's mother was
murderess Lord Byron's mother was
| naughty and impious. You might have
guessed that from their children. Walter
| Scotts mother was fond Of poetry.
| Washington's mother was patriotic.
| Samuel Budgets mother was n thorough
| Christian. St. Demands mother was noble
minded So you might have guessed from
their children. Good men always have
good mothers. There may once in 10 or
| 90 years be an exception to the rule, but it
| is only an exception. Benjamin Vests
mother kissed him after she had seen his
first wonderful sketch with the pencil
BENJAMIN West afterward said, THAT kiss
made me n painter
A Young man received furlough to re-
turn from the army to his fathers house
Afterward he took the furough back to
the officer. saving, II would like to post
| none nv visit for two weeks" At the end
of the two weeks he came and got the fur
lough. He was asked why he waited.
well" he replied, when | left home |
told my mother ] would he a Christian in
the army, and | was resolved not to go
home until could answer her first ques-
ton" Oh, the almost omnipotent power
of the mother! But if both the father and
the mother be right, then the children are
almost sure TO be right
The Young people may make a wide curve
from the straight path, but they are almost
sure to come back to the right road. 1t may
not be until the death Of one of the parents.
How often it is that we hear some one say,
"Oh, he was a wild young man, but since
his fathers death he has been differentp
81, & 10, fut lin ho
mothers coffin, is often the altar Of repent
ance for the child Oh, that was a stupen-
dous day, the day of fathers burial. twas
not the officiating clergyman who made the
chief impression, nor the sympathizng
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 90 or 40 years of anxiety about how to
put that family in right position. The lipa
closed after so 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 kind of
awe. 1t is Mt that marble pillar many
young man has been revolutonized.
MEDITATION AT THE GRAVE.
Oh. Young man with check flushed with
dissfpation how long is it since you have
been out to your fathers grave2 VIII you
not 20 this week. Perhaps the storms of
the last few days may have bent the head
stone until it leans far over. You had bet
ter 20 out and see whether the lettering has
been defaced. You had better 90 out and
see whether the gate of the lot is closed.
You had better go and see if you cannot
find sermon in the spriu ging grass oh,
Young man, go out this week and see your
fathers grave!
religion did so much for our Christian
ancestry. Are we not ready this morning
to be willing to receive it into our own
households? If we do receive it, let it
come through the front door-not through
the back door In other words, do not let
us smuggle it in. There are great many
families who want to be religious, but they
do not want anybody outside to know it.
They would be mortified to death if you
caught them Mt 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 donot know much about the nobil-
ity Of the western trapper. A traveller 60
ING along was overtaken by night and n
storm, and he entered a cabin. There were
firearms hung up around the cabin. He
was alarmed He had a large amount of
money with him, but he did not dare to
venture out into the night in the storm.
lie 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
aiTrighted.
After awhile the family were whispering
together in one corner of the room, and the
traveller thought to himself, "Ohl now my
time has Gomez | wish | was out in tho
storm and in the night rather than here"
But the swarthy man came up 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 to bed we always have habit of read
ing little out of the Bible and having
prayers, and think we will have our usual
custom tonight, and if you don't believe in
that kind of thing if you will just step out
side the door for a little while / 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 to have it near by SO as to call on it in
case of funeral, but as TO having it dom
inant in the household from the lst of Jan
uary 7 o'clock u. 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 ont in
the bold words Of the soldier in my text,
"As for me and my house, we will serve the
Lord"
INCIDENT IN THE TALMAGE FAMILY,
There was in my ancestral line an Incl
dent so 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 My
grandfather and grandmother living at
Somerville, n. j., went to 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
90 Off for an evening party, and my grand
mother said:
Now, when you are all ready for the
party, come to my room, for | have some
thing very important to tell you." An
ready for departure, they came to her room,
and she said to them, "Now, want you to