The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1895-10-03
New York Herald.1

New York Heraldl
And they shall never perish, neither
shall any man pluck them out of my hand
John K. 2s
The effect produced on a mans cur
rency life by firm belief in the future
is something TO be wondered at and
admired.
If man had a kohinoor in his
pocket, and was not afraid of being
| robbed, it would add ga cubit to his
stature" and fill his heart brimful OF
good nature.
And, on the other hand, when a
man has no faith in the future, no,
positively denying it, but looking to
the sky with very faint hope, he may
be successful in business and envied ol
his neighbors; he may be right hon
est creature, living in the sunshine
| wherever he can find it; but in his
| heart there dwells a tenant, grim and
unwelcome, who holds lif. lease on
best of himself which circumstances
allows, but down in the depth of that
mans nature, covered by careless
laugh or otherwise concealed, is an in
termittent desperation which over
shadows his whole outlook. How
ever rich he may be, he is "poor in
deed" There is kind of satisfaction
which he can never enjoy, a domain
of peace and happiness whose green
grass his feet never press, whose flow
ers he never looks upon, whose crops
are never gathe,ed into his barns.
The religion which circles faith in
the future life as the planets circle
about the sun is the most practical
thing in the world. 1t is heat Civ
ing idea as necessary for the fructlfy-
ing processes as sunshine is to wheat
field. AS we'll hope for orange bios
SONS in damp cave, where ice water
| oozes through the rock and eternal
night prevails as to make soul happy
or contented, or, in its highest sense,
productive, without the radiance which
comes fro =. belief in Immortality.
Give man one glimpse of the Ce-
lestial City, let him hear The voice. of
angels, and know that they are angels,
and you work miracle in that mans
whole being. As the clouds at sunset
are fairly drenched in beautiful colors
-colors SO enhancing that the human
| race ceases frol. its labor to gaze upon
the spectacle so the clouds of SORROW
| which overharg our spiritual land
] scape are rainbow hued to him who
! can see the face of the Father and feel
| the touch of His hand. After such al
| experience, literally new birth, the
! dreaded, and we gladly contemplate
| the slowly lcosening bonds of mortality
because death is freedom, the Lord:
| messenger summons us to higher, :
broader, nobler stage of existence.
1t is the greatest of all pities that
! this kind of faith SO ma rowly prevails
We pretend to be Christians,'' but the
grandest doctrine Of our Christianit,
is either reflective or imperative. W.
hope, but we also fear. There art
moments when we feel sure, and a
times we are inexpressibly happy
there are other moments when WI
doubt, and we are unspeakably mis-
erable.
How can a man fail to see that
belief in immortality is a prime spirit
ual necessity? A denial of it thwart
every heroic endeavor and corrupt
the motives which urge us toward
higher life. If we are to do like tn
beasts of the field then why should NO
live like them? If we are SO mad
that we can't help longing for con
tinued existence, but are not to enJ
it, we are like some poor traveller VIII
[ sees the green fields beyond the chasI
and, approaching them with hurryln
steps and fond anticipations, suddenl
falls over the precipice and IS broke
| by the jagged rocks. Unless there
another lite this life is not a boon, bu
a curse, and man is SO curlously Coz
! structed that the only one thing whlc
W IL make him little lower than tn
1 angels is the one only thing which h
cannot have.
! But it is useless to linger on tn
| hot and waterless plain less we die {
thirst. We believe-sOme of US eve
| 90 so far as to say we know of our pei
sonal knowledge that death is slmpl
eviction from the body and remova
from poverty to riches. That bells
ought not to be vague, however,
should be vivid, thrilling, prominer
and permanent, wavering no more tha
the rocky headlands on the coas
amid the angry storms. Think Of tn
j: matter when you sit by the side {
| your own soul with no one else nea
by. That kind Of thinking will max
! your doubts slink away like thief il
the night. You have right to in
mortality, and God offers it for you
acceptance, but you are blinded, an
| your hand gropes in the air anti fai
to reach it. You have another llf
and ii is a serious misfortune if you d
mot realize that fact, for it is the onl
cornerstone upon which you can buile
Ii sorrows come and burdens are
|: be borne, there is rest in the future an
| a peace that passe.h understandn!
| Look up, for skies are still blue an
stars still shine. The sod covers notl
! ing but bodies, for souls are too mob