The commonwealth. (Scotland Neck, N.C.) 1896-1929, 1897-09-30
UNFEAfHERED
OSTRICHES.
DEN1ALs NOT ALWAYS FACT.
Some Rambling Thoughts.
BY "NEMo." /"

!
!. BY "NEMO."
Copyrighted by Dave & Tabor.)
To ALL ABOUT OsTR1cHEs.-We ca,
: not know what this gawky bird, with
eflts hap-hazard feathers, actually has il
D its miud unless We be ostrlches our
!seszes -ek;s. may attempt to thins
ITS thoughts by reason Of watching it,
actions, and actions speak louder thar
words which is desperately true ol
J other two-legged creatures besides
| ostrlches. Now, according to the ac-
counts of travellers, this bird when
alarmed has way of hiding It's head
the idea seeming to be that if it cannot
see the pursuer. the pursuer cannot see
it. If closing the eyes really stopped
pursuit, what pleasantly easy time
this sufferer from woman's whlms
would have. But troubles do not vanish
thus easily, and we laugh at the poor
Ounce OF bird, who dreams that he
has blotted out the world and its mis-
cries just by refusing to see them yet,
there are other ounces with the same
number OF feet, and they do not all
wear feathers.
Once upon time, as the fairy tales
express it, some hunted ostrlches put
their heads together-they would better
have been scurrying over the sands
and when they were huddled like boys
In football scrimmage, one of them
suddenly exclaimed "L cannot see any
hunter there is none," and so said
they all but they lost their feathers
just the same.
On another occasion an ostrich thrust
his head into a narrow hole. He had
moment before been In the full glare
OF the sun, but in the darkness he saw
nothing, so he communed with him
self, II see no sun, see nothing
therefore, there is no sun, no nothing.
Up to this time have been dreaming"
But tho herbage kept on growing, and
the ardent sun looked after the neg
lected eggs and gave the final warming
influence to hatch out another genera
ton of ounces.
There are people in the world who
profess to be good, they bend the knee
in the sanctuary, they give freely of
their money, they shout loud "Amens"
until some fatefui day they come
tumbling down in local esteem; for
this Sunday-school superintendent or
that deacon has robbed bank or
wronged woman or any one Of long |
list of things that ruin life and bring
disgrace on fair careers. Then is the |
favorable time for the humdn ostrich |
to come along in the form of young
man, full of questionings in his mind,
and full of conceit when his mind, on
little evidence or much, is once made
up. He argues thus to himself: "Whet
did So and So profess? Chrlstliness.
What did he do? Stole even a poor
widows mite. On what did he base
his religion? The Bible. Who is sup
posed to give authority to the Bible?
God. Therefore, I will not believe in
God nor the Bible nor religion"
am not intending to argue here
what things are true and what are un-
true, but want you to see the charm
ing duncery of your logic. Let me
show you your own ostrich way, as in a
mirror. All the ancients were prepared
to swear that the earth was flat and
the sun its attendant satellite. They
were even prepared to kill those who
would testify differently. But while
they were protesting to run the universe
to suit their narrow minds, what was
the truth? The earth was globular,
and it's orbit around the sun had been
practically unchanged for ages. Now
it is evident that all these millions,
ignorant of the truth, believed in un-
truth, and yet all their myriad minds
did neither affect nor hinder the
planets in their appointed journeys.
Again, suppose we all with one ac-
cord should deny the existence OF the
sun, we should merely proclaim our
own blindness and the sun would not
be affected a particle. t would be
still there, hanging hotly above us, our
denlals of it's existence would be inde-
scrlbable nothings.
Now, supposing God to exist; the
Sacred Books of any number OF differ
emit religions with any number OF dill
ferent inaccuracies lived forth by any
number of frightful frands-takirs OF
H,ndustan or evil men and thieves in