The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1896-07-08
Make Friends With Everybody at the
Expense of Everything Except Prln-
clple-The True Object Of Life.
Atlanta Journal.

clan without his friends will hit the
grit" sooner or later.
I fear sometimes amid the discord
of politics and the greed for gain we
have lost sight of the fact that a mans
wealth consists in noble friends and
good neighbors. Money has very lit:
tie in it to bring happiness. Political
power brings only cares, temptations
and trials. Greed in itself is disinte.
| grating and visits upon men a thous.
/ and sings and arrows. No man is SO
poor as he who has lived to make all
men his enemies and rob himself Of
true friends. No man is so rich as the
man who is embalmed in the hearts of
a grateful community.
We get political power, social pre-
ferment and dollars and cents as the
result of selfish aims and selfish ends
by doing for ourselves. We make the
happiness by doing for others. Peter
the Great, Charlemagne and Napoleon
tried to conquer the world with swords,
but each Of them died a conquered
wretch at last. Jesus Christ lived for
others, served others, died for others
and there are millions Of men to-day
who would die for Christ. He con-
quered by service, by sacrifice, by be-
nevolence.
Not long ago I attended Will With
ans large Sunday School class in At:
lauta. He gave to each Of us a card
at the conclusion of the lesson with
the following inscription thereon:
II expect to pass through this world
but once, any good thing therefore
that I can do, or any kindness that [
can show anybody, or a word that I
can speak for Jesus, let me do it now;
let me not neglect OF defer it, for I
shall not pass this way again"
If every human life were conducted
after the lesson given here what a
world of friends this would be! Some
one has said if we would have friends
we must show ourselves friendly. The
common courtesies of life, a kind word
spoken, a helpful word given, a kind
deed that costs little in sacrifice or eff
fort, has made undyiDg friends for
many a man. Some one has said [
would rather have a dog for my friend
than to have him as an enemy. Who
would not make all men his friends ?
Who, as a matter of choice, would
rather have an enemy than a friend =?
There is another old adage which
says "a friend in need is a friend
indeed" We may reach the point
where we do not need a friend in dol
lars and cents; we may reach the point
where we do not need a friend to pro-
tect us because danger is nigh; but
who can say: II will never need the
sympathy and kindness which man
can show. to MANI" When the hours
of grief and bereavement, when the
hours of sickness and death shall
come, then the priceless value Of
friends is shown to us; then dollars
and cents and houses and lands but
mock US in our grief and torment US
in our sorrow.
We should make friends of every
body at the expense of everything ex-
cept principle. The friends we lose
by standing up for the right were not
our friends, and would be hurtful to
us if we considered them so. Afriend
is not only one who wishes us well
but " o lid go out of his way to do us
a kindness; or who would, if he stood
alone, defend our name and reputa-
ton from the assaults OF others. Many
men who would have fallen under the
blows given but for the hand of a
friend uplifted to help them. Many a
heart would have burst with grief but
for the sympathy poured out to it by a
true friend.
And while we rush for riches and
pull for power and gallop in our greed
let us stop a moment and get our bear.
ings and see how we stand related to
those about us. We have we'll nigh
thrown aside the social features which
foster friendship. We visit too little
at each Others houses. Many long
winter nights We could spend two
hours pleasantly with a ne!ghbor and
win him as a closer friend. Many
times we pass idly by without the
warm grip of the hand or a kindly
word the man who would be worth a
world to us in some coming emergen.
cy. We cannot afford to sacrifice ev-
erything to political prejudices and
selfish greed. We must have friends.
We cannot do without them. Ifevery
man whose eye scans these lines will
stop a moment and think how little he
has done to foster friendship and win
his neighbor in the last few years he
would right about and determine to
look in another direction for awhile.
In the political world we see it fire.
quently asserted in the press this
political aspirant has a knife in his
sleeves for some other aspirant," or
this one has stabbed that one in the
back. In the commercial world one
man has undermined another in bus.
mess. In the social world one per
son has slandered the other out of de,
cency in the community so far as their
ability to do such a thing would go.
The man who goes around with a knife
or a pistol in his pocket is a bad citi.
zen, and deserves the fate so many of
them receive. The. man who under
mines and takes advantage Of his fel.
bowman in a business transaction de.
serves to spend the remainder of his
days within the penitentiary walls
clad in the stripes of a felon. He
whose tongue would smirch and hurt
the good name of his neighbor deserves
to have his tongue taken out by the
root. We are not careful enough tc
mind the golden rule "Do unto others
as you would be done BY" No men
have really prospered long who did
it without principle and without due
regard to the feelings and fortunes Of
others. I am sorry for any maj who
adopts wrong methods and practices
rascality that he himself may rise as
he rots. Pat truly said: "If we had
little more Of the mailk of human
kindness in this world what a bright
world we would have" Let's do some
good thing for some n every day We
live.
If we are not able to do a good thing