The Progress., 1894-02-24
this audience and up through these

I galleries, anu Oil loohe-lS lOI SOluo
| one whom | can not find. | am look
| ing for one who will have no influence
| in tins world 100 ears from now. But
| have found the man who has the
| least influence, and inquire into his
| history and find that by yes or
! no he decided some ones eternity. In
| time ; TEN station he gave an atfirma-
| tive or Il negative to some temptation
| which another, hearing Of, was in
| duced to decide in the same way. Clear
| on the other side of the next million
wears may be the frs you hear of the
/ lonr-reaching influence a that yes or
no. but 'IeGr of it II you will Wiz
! thar father make Wpath 70 shine after
| him? viii that mother make path
to shine after her? You will be
walking along these streets, or along
that country road, 200 years from now
in the character of your descendants.
They will lie affected by You courage
or Vows cowardice, your purity or
your depravity, your holiness or gour
sin. You WI make the path to shine
atter yCu or blacken after you.
butt can not look upon tnat Iumin-
osity that follows ship3 without real
ling how fond the Lord is of life.
That fire of the deep is de, myriads of
creatures all a-swim, and a-play, and
a-romp in parks of marine beauty laid
out, and parterred, and roseated, and
blossomed l,Y ornnipotence. What is
the use of those creatures called
by the naturalistS ''crustaceanS'
and "copepods," not more than
one out of hundreds of billions of
which are ever seen by human eye?
God created therD for the same reason
that he creates flowers in places where
no human foot ever makes them trem-
Bile, and no human nostril ever inhales
their redOlence, and no human eye
ever sees their charm. In the botanical
world they prove that God loves flow
ers, as in the marine world the phOs-
phori prove that he loves life, and he
loves life in play, life in brilliancy of
gladness life in eXuberance.
| And so am led to believe that he
loves our life if we fulfill our mission as
fully as the phosphori fulfill theirs:
The Son of God came that we might
have life, and have it more Sbund-
antly." But ] am glad to tell you
that our God is not the God sometimes
described as harsh critic at the head
of the universe, or an infinite scOld'
or God that loves funerals better
than weddings; or GCd that prefers
, tears to laughter, an omnipotent Moro,
ferocious Mana Sahib; but the love
, Hest being in the universe, loving
flowers, and life, Gnd play, whether OF
phosphori in the wake of the Majestic,
or of the human race keeping a holi'
day.
But, mark you, that the phosphores
cence has a glow that the night mon
opolizes, and | ask you not only what
kind of influence you are going tc
y leave in the world as you pass through
q it, but what light are you going tc
=, throw across the worlds night of sir
, and sorrow? People who are sailing
o on smooth sea and at noon do not neeC
O much sympathy, but what are you go
n ing to do for people in the night O.
q misfortune? Will you drop on then
shadow, or will you kindle for then
phosphorescence? At this momen
q there are more people crying thai
:. laughing; more people on the ROUND
- world this moment hungry than well
q fed; more households bereft thar
e homes unbroken. What are 20,
gong to do about it? ''Well,
says Wonder soul, Il would like to dc
something toward illumining thu
great ocean of human wretchedness
~ but can not do much" Can you dc
as much as one of the phosphori IN tn
middle of the Atlantic ocean, crea
- lures smaller than the point of sharl
- pin? 80, yes" you say. Then d
~ that. Shine! Stand before the look
ing glass and experiment to see if yo'
"a can not get that scowl off your fore
:; head; that peevish look out of you
= lips. Have at least one bright ribbo
> in your bonnet Embroider at leas
= one white cord somewhere in tn
- midnight of your apparel. DO nc
- any longer impersonate funera
- Shine! Do say something cheer
~ full about society, and about tn
=, world. Put few drops of heaven int
u, your disposition. Once in awhile sui
~ stitute a sweet orange for a sou
w lemon. Remember that pessimism
-. ~ blasphemy, and that optimism is Chris
p tianity. Throw some light on tn
- * night ocean. Ifyou can not be lal
- tern swinging in the rigging, be one
~ the tiny phosphori back of the kee
a. Shine! LET your light so shine b
y u fore men that others seeing your goo
~ works may glorifv your Father whic
is in heaven
he Where Suicide Was Excusable.
er A beggar at Pesth, Hungary, WI
lie was arrested for throwing himse