Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1897-11-28

Methodist, Chicago.
 The Old Congratulated.
 congratulate you who arc old. All tho sorrows of your life lie back of you; all the sins, weaknesses and pains are back of you. and each step is ono step nearer to your crown of happiness. < Rev. J. B. Graf. Methodist, Philadel- phia.
 Both Have Rights,
 Worknen have rights thnt should be respected and 50 have capitalists There should bo no quarreling between them. They arc necessarily joined together, and no man or organization should try to put them asunder. Rev E. liar court. Methodist, Philadelphia.
 Political Duties os Minigters.
 For years my conviction has been daily deepened that Christian ministers have failed to suitably qualify the men h our churches to help on the kingdom of God by tho proper performance of their political duties. s.-Rev. Charles Pelton. Presbyterian Cincinnati
 netI's Out of the Way.
 The mythologieal hells being out of the way, we will now labor with the other bodies to save our brethren from the real hells-the hells of ignorance, poverty, selfishness and sin. Let us pull together. Rev. Thomas B. Gregory, Church of the Redeemer, Chicago
 The Influence of the Street.
 Street and out of school influences arc social poison. They come into the home unawares. The first that many parents know of them is the uso of slang words and bad words. which until then had never entered their homes Rev. Eugene M. Smith, Christian. St Louis.
 Church Decorations
 Any display of wealth in the church proper, such as decorations, etc, is for the benefit of the poor even moro than tho rich, for the reason that tho poorer class have little other opportunities for eultivating the artistic side of their na- lures. -Rev. Father ]. J Prendergast. Catholic, San Francisco.
 The Spirit of Lawicssness.
 The atmosphere today Is saturated by the spirit of lawlessness. We speak and act as if 1t mattered little what q man did so long as he Is sharp enough to es- cape, and underlying all excuses is tho ever present one, "The other fellows do 1t and might as we'll go in aud get my share. 'i-Rev. J. K. Loba. Congrega- tionalist. Chicago.
 Tho First Step.
 We may make mistakes we may Do imperfect, we may blunder, stumble, tumble, like the child learning to walk, liko the person taking the first lesson on tho bicycle, but the earnest question asked of the Lord, What good thing shall I do?'' is the first step toward heaven. n.-Rev. John Goddard. Church of the New Jerusalem. Cincinnati
 Gold and Conquest,
 In l84S a little girl found in Califor- nia and brought to her father that mug get which she thought Do be only 0 beautiful yellow stone, In 1849 tho country was swarming with mon pour ing to the Pacific coast Thus wo not only gained the gold. but all of Califor mia and the coast. Charles H. Richards, Congregationalist. Philadel- phia.
 Mans Life a River.
 Follow the river to the floor of tho valley and find it there blue This sig nifies tho period of manhood What boy has grown to manhood without feeling the soifing touch of the world? Tho longer rtvor flows tho darker it bo- comes, Man left to himself becomes worse the longer ho lives. Rev James B. Orr. Congregationalist, San Fran cisco.
 The Centes Of All That Is Fest.
 Looked at in the right way, the church is tho center and school of all that is best It should not be thought of as something impractical. something that fosters fanatieism. something that deadens culture. makes men narrow, but rather something that adds to man. hood and womanhood. something that helps to sweeten and sanctify all life Rev. J. H. Barrows, Presbyterian, Chicago.
 The Man Who Will Lead.
 1 am satisfied of certain things which shall characterize the man whom God shall send into tho great hour of the worlds life when it shall next move onward. He must be man, not fanci- ful, finicky, dudish piece ef mankind, afraid of little dust or rainwater, but a man of sound sense and strong hands and courageous heart Rev. s. H. Rob lin. Universalist. Boston
 Prosperity and Religion,
 There arc those who arc ready to say that material prosperity means. if may say so, religious adversity, because they hold that the people are religious only when in distress or need and that they easily dispense with religion when things go we'll with them If this were true, it would make for and not against religion, because q power that stands in good stead when the ordinary supports disappear has thereby proved it's es- sential reality and unquestionable use fitness. Rabbi Gustav Gottheil, New