The Progress., 1896-11-07

anu ueeper tue HuSn, Till all the veins !
OF Its life now seem opened and bleed |
Ing away. After a while. leaf after
leaf, theJ tall. Now those on the
outer branches, then those most hid
den, until the last spark Of the gleam-
ing forge shall have been quenched.
So gradually We pass away. From
day to day we hardly see the change
But the frosts have touched us, The
work Of decay is going on. Now a
Slight cold. Now season of over
fatigue. Now fever. Now site: in
the side. Now a neuralgia thrust. Now
a rheumatic twinge. Now fall. Lit
tie by little. Pain by pain. Less steady
o. limb. Sight not clear. Ear not so
alert After q while we take staff.
Then after much resistance, we come
to spectacles. Instead Of bounding in
to the vehicle, we are willing to be
helped in. At last the octogenarian
falls. Forty years of decaying. No
sudden change. No fierce cannonad-
ing OF the batteries OF life; but fading
away-slowly-gr gradually. AS the leaf!
AS the leaf!
Again: Like the leaf we fade, to
make room for others; Next years
forests will be as grandly foliaged as
this. There are other generations Of
oak leaves to take the place Of those
which this autumn perish. Next May
the cradle Of the wind will rock the
young buds. The woods will be all
album with the chorus of leafy voices.
II the tree in front of your house, like
Elijah, takes chariot Of fire. ito man
tie will fall upon Elisha II, In the
blast Of these autumnal batteries, so
many ranks fall, there are reserve
forces to take their place to defend the
fortress Of the hills. The heaters OF
gold leaf will have more gold leaf to
beat. The crown that drops today
from the head o. the oak will be
picked up and handed down for other
kings to wear. Let the blasts come.
They only make room for other life.
So, when We go, Others take our
spheres. We do not grudge the future
generations their places. We will have
had our good time Let them come on
and have their good time. There Is no
signing among these leaves today, be-
cause other leaves are to follow them
After lifetime Of preaching, doctor
ing, selling, sewing, or digging, let us
cheerfuIly give way for those who
come in to do the preaching, doctoring
selling, sewing and digging. Goo
grant that their life may be brighter
than ours has been! AS we get older
do not let us be affronted If young mel
and women crowd us little. We viii
have had our day and we must let then
have theirs. When our voices &c
) cracked, let us not snarl at those VIII
i can MARBLE. When our knees are stiff
ened, let us have patience with thos
: who 20 fleet as the deer. Because on
: leaf Is fading, do not let us despise tn
Q unfrosted Autumn must not envy tn
Il spring. Old men must be patient wit
o boys. DR.. Guthrie stood up in Scot
l. land and said, "You need not think
s am old because my hair Is white;
i never was so young as | am now"
q look back to my childhood days, an
= remember when, in winter nights, !
the sitting-room the children playet
e the blithest and the gayest Of all tn
d company were father and mother. A
ID though reaching fourscore years Of ag
they never got old.
& Again: AS with the leaves, we fad
& and fall amid myriads of others. On
cannot count the number OF plume
a which these frosts are plucking frol
n, the hills. They will strew all tt
il streams; they will drift into the ca
n ems; they will soften the wild beast
L. lair and fill the eagles eyrie.
a. All the aisles of the forest will
ct covered with their carpet, and Il
es steps OF the hills glow with veal
as of color and shape that will defy Il
lg looms of Administer. What urn cou
he hold the ashes of all these dead leaves
he Who could count the hosts that bul
e. on this funeral pyre Of the mountain
,e, So we die in concert. The clock tn
r. strikes the hour OF our going W
ng sound the going Of many Thousand
nd Keeping step with the feet Of tho
,ir who carry us out will be the tramp
he hundreds doing the same Grand B
if tween fifty and seventy people eve
he dav lie down in Greenwood. TIL
n place has over two hundred thousa1
he Of the dead. | said to the man at t
ts gate, "Then if there are so many he1
ed YOU must have the largest cemetery
ID. He said there were two Roman Cath
rly lie cemeteries in the city, each
oh which had more than this. We are
rd dying. London and Pekin are not
i'd great cities of the world. The gra
nd Is the great city. 1t hath might
if. population, longer streets. bright
led lights, thicker harnesses. Caesar
Ike there, and all his subjects. Nero
ch there, and all his victims. CITY
re, kings and paupers! 1t has swallow
Ter up in its immigrations Thebes, a