Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1896-06-15

the church, or Attilas of the state, and
une-third Of the waters of all the world,
If not two-thirds the waters, are poi
soned by the falling of the star Worm
wood It is not complimentary to hu
man nature that most men, as soon as
they get great power, become overbear-
ing. The more power men have the bet
ter if their power be used for good The
less power men have the better If they
use it for evil.
Birds circle round and round and
round before they swoop upon that
which they are aiming for. And if my
discourse so far has been swinging round
and round this moment it drops straight
on your heart and asks the question, Is
your life benediction to others or an
imbitternaent, blessing or curse,
/ balsain or wOrlnwOOd?
Some of you I know are morning stars,
and you are making the dawning life Of
your children bright with gracious in
| fuences, and you are beaming upon all
the opening enterprises of philanthropic
and Christian endeavor, and you are
heralds of that day Of gospelization
which will yet flood all the mountains
and valleys of our sin cursed earth
Hail, morning start Keep on shining
with encouragement and Christian hopel
Growers and scolds.
Some Of you are evening stars, and
you are cheering the last days Of old peo-
pie, and though cloud sometimes comes
over you through the querulousness
or unreasonableness Of your old father
and mother it is only for moment,
and the star soon comes out clear again
and is seen from all the balconies of the
neighborhood. The old people will for
give your occasional shortcomings, for
they themselves several times lost their
patience when you were young and
slapped you when you did nQa deserve
it. Hail, evening star! Hang on the
darkening sky your diamond coronet!
But are any of you the star Worm
wood? Do you scold and growl from the
thrones paternal or maternal? Are your
children everlastingly pecked at? Are
you always crying sHushr' to the merry
voices and swift feet, and their laugh
ter, which occasionally trickles through
at wrong times and is suppressed by
them until they can hold it no longer,
and all the barriers burst into unlimited
guffaw and cachinnation, as in high
weather the water has trickled through
slight opening in the milldam, but
afterward makes wider and wider
breach until it carries all before it with
irresistible freshet? Do not be too much
offended at the noise your children now
make. 1t will be still enough when one
of them is dead Then you would give
your right hand to hear one shout from
their silent voices or one step from the
still foot You will not any of you have
to wait very long before your house is
stiller than you want it. Alas, that there
are so many homes not known to the So
ciety For the Prevention of Cruelty to
Children, where children are put on tho
limits and whaclzed and cuffed and ear
pulled and senselessly called to order
and answered sharp and suppressed I'M
til it is wonder that under such proc
esses they do not all turn out Modocs
and Mana Sahibs.
What is your influence upon the
neighborhood, the town or the city of
your residence? L will suppose that you
are star of wit. What kind of rays do
you shoot forth? Do you use that splen
did faculty to irradiate the world or to
rankle it? bless all the apostolic col
lege of humorists. The man that makes
me laugh is my benefactor. I do not
thank anybody to make me cry? can
do that without any assistance. We all
cry enough, and have enough to cry
about. God bless all skillful punsters,
all reparteeists, all propOunders of in
genious conumdrums all those who
mirthfully surprise us with unusual
iuxtaposition of words. Thomas Hood
and Charles Lamb and Sidney Smith
had divine mission, and SO have their
successors in these times They stir into
the acid beverage of life the saccharine.
They make the cup of earthly existence,
which is sometimes stale, efervesce and
bubble. They placate animosities. They
foster longevity. They Stay follies and
absurdities which all the sermons of all
the pulpits cannot reach.
Need of Physician.
They have for examples Elijah, who
made fun of the Baalites when they
called down fire, and it did not come,
suggesting that their heather god had
gone hunting or was off on a journey,
or was asleep, and nothing but vocifer-
alton could wake him, saying, "Cry
aloud for he is a god. Either he is talk
ing or pursuing or peradventure he
sleepeth and must be awaked. - They
have an example in Christ, who with
healthful sarcasm showed up the lying,
hypocritical Pharisees by suggesting
that such perfect people like themselves
needed no improvements. saying, ssThe
whole need not a physician but they
that are SICK
But what use are you making of your
wit? Is it besmirched with profanity
and uncleanness? Do you employ it in
amusement at physical defects for which
the victims are not responsible? Are
your powers of mimicry used to put re-