Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1894-08-26
SIN AND PUNISHMENT.
They 20 Hand and Hand Through tho
WOrId-Ths Lesson OF hawth0rne's
scarlet Letter."

Ofheart Of mine, for purer air,
Since It would be but just prayer
Vain as the dead's unseeing stare.
I so not believe you: No.
When lips are smitten dumb with woa
Christ does not pass unheeding so.
He knows and pardons. Only h.
Who sees the souls dark misery
Lifts up the fallen pityingy.
Lifts up and. so forgiving all,
Binds ever-lest the pardoned fall
And helrkens 10 the tainteSt call.
And so | pray your pity, you
Who plead forgive the errlng who
In anguish knows not what they do"
-4HRd b. BcrscL
Plato said: "Sln and punishment walk
the earth with their heads tied to-
gether," aud no writer OF ancient or
modern time has so clearly pictured
with his wonderful Imaginative power
the punishment FOR sin as Nathaniel
Hawthorne 10 his masterpiece, Tho
Scarlet Letter" IL does nothing more
than mention the transgression Itself,
says nothing about the avenues OF APP
proach TO It's com mission, but confines
itself to the after effects OF the wrong
doing. and might DO called most i'm
presslve sermon.
The merchant who gives rs aaultor-
ated goods for pure, the preacher who
conceals his convictions, aud the person
who tries 10 raise his reputation higher
than his character. will darken tho
world, but there Is the far more terrible
crime Of malicious purpose. We believe
ia forgiveness OF sin but we also believe
in the punishment as IN THE Scarlet
Letter" we find the two walking hand
In hand. Hester Prynne was forglvn 10
that. while she was yet shut out from
all social intercourse, she bore her pun
ishuent with such resignation, and
such was her profound humility, too,
that, with her untiring belpfulnoss 10
those around her, genuine regard FOR
her grew In the public mind and heart
until they refused 20 interpret tho scar
let letter By It's original Specification,
and declared IL = symbol OF her womanly
strength. Her sunlight was gone, outshe
lived on the afterglow with conscience
alive 10 the mistake she had made.
Tho light OF truth vas In her wOmsns
heart, though IL shonc through this OBJ
structlon, aud she reached a higher level
of happiness than those around her who
had not slnned as she had done.
Arthur D.mmesdale's punishment
was different. Although he often in
his pulpit spoke the truth In regard TO
himself, IL was 10 such way as TO
change his confession into the blacklist
falsehood. His secret was safe, but ho
was not 80 fortunate as 70 escape retri-
button. by nature he was lover OF
reality aud truth, and so his present
hypocrisy only made him loathe above
all else his miserable, false self, bat hs
lacked the moral courage TO confess his
equal share OF the wrong doing and pub
Tic disgrace, end 90 70 was that the finest
threads, such az no one could see, ~ero
bound so carefully about him that ths
movement 10 break them was torture
and made for him worse bondage than
Hester ever knew. But, " false In this.
he stroye TO be perfectly true 10 all bis
other relations, but that non. confessed
sin discolored everything. AS Hau-
thorne SAYS: at IS the unspeAkable
misery OF life so false as his that steals
the iaIfu anu tADeAhuin wv VI "AeNNfN'
relations there are around US
To an untrue men there Is the retec-
ton OF himself 10 everything around
him. and II does not need the commlttal
and concealment OF some desperate
wickedness TO have false world sur
rounding YOU; Tor ono ialtehood not
rectlGed, one wrong for which no resii-
tution has been made will spoil llie. hs
George Eliot has truthfgllY SAID:
There are glances OF hatred that stab
and raise no CRY OF murder; there arc
robberles that leave man or woman for
ever beggared Of peace yet kept secret
M tho sufferer. committed % no sound
sava that OF low means To the Night
seen 10 no writing except that made OF
the face by slow months oil suppressed
anguish" And II Is trne there are all
around US sleepiess memories that are
hidden from the world oy q smiling lace.
After years Of silent suffering Arthur
Uimmesdale found strength 10 show 70
the public the red stigma concealed on
his own breast aud declared 10 20 DO
mt q poor type OF the scarlet gilt thar
bad scared into his Utmost beart-he
found a. last bis forgiveness, Tor II 10
Gods way 10 love man In bis sin FOR the
sake Of helping bin out With bis great
loving heart be Is sorry and be never
presses Us so close 10 himself! ~ when
we have done wrong JaDg earnestly ask
70 be lifted out Of our trouble.
No doubt the rsiribpiiOn which came
70 each WAS pecaIiar tohlmseif aud her
seIf out Roger ChlIlingUorth's pu nish-
rnents was the greatest Of all three. by
the eoldness OF his temperament be was
saved from falling into such sin as emo
tlonal natures are liable 70, but be de-
nonlzsd his entlfe nature oy choosing
haired lor MS constant panion. HIS
was no, the crime Of sense but OF cow
ardlee and the mistakes OF passion CON-
nared with the concealment Of coward
ice. / think are In Tennyson's words,
,sAs moonlight MATCHES With snougbt
ar "a water matches with wine" lie
dId M, suysr the severesi conscienfs
,,ia mar there Is worse punlshnens
fer sin than pain. at is only TIE par.
sIyzsd Gssh that does not feel ,be IRE.
THE wors, thing IN all this nniserse Is
nor ain alone: IL IL the buried eonscienes
vblch does not send out even tne echo
NJ voice OF repentance. And 80,
tblnk. blessed - any pain, however
.eyere: blessed even IL any sin isself. II
,scs.sarv. that will show Us what we
are and what life really means.