The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1897-07-30
LIFE'S BRIGHT SIDE.
THREE PRESCRIPTIONS FOR THE CURE
OF BUSINESS DEPRESSION.

Spiritual AwakeninR-A Warning-Life't
shipwrecks-worth of the Soul.
WASHINGTON, July 25.-This dis
course of DR.. Talmage shows how all
may help in the restoration of good
times, and is most appropriate. Text,
Lamentations iii, 80, Wherefore doth
a living man complaint"
A cheerful interrogatory in the most
melancholy book of the Biblei Jere-
miah wrote so many sad things that we
have a word named after him, and
when anything is surcharged with grief
and complaint we call it a jeremiad.
But in my text jeremiah, as by sud-
den jolt, wakens us to thankful spirit
Our blessings are so much more nu-
merous than our deserts that he is sur
prised that anybody should ever find
fault. Having Life and with it a thou
sand blessings it ought to hush into
perpetual silence everything like criti
cism of the dealings of God. where
fore doth living man complaint.
While everything in Our national
finances is Frightening, for the last few
years the land has been set to the tune
of 'Naomi There has been here and
there a cheerful soloist, but the grand
chorus has been one of lamentation, &C
comAanied by dirges over Frustrated
commerce, silent manq9faqttories, unem-
: ployed mechanism, and all those disor-
ders described by the two short words,
."hard times. The fact is that we have
been paying for the bloody luxury of
war more than 80 years ago. There
were great national differences, and we
had not enough Christian character to
settle them by arbitration and treaty,
and so we went into battle, expanding
life and treasure and well nigh swamp
ing the national finances, and north and
south, east and west, have ever since
been paying for those four years in
diligence in barbarism.
But the time has come when this de-
preston ought to end-yea, when it
will end if the people are willing to
do two or three things by way of finan-
cial medicament, for the people as we'll
as congress must join in the work of
recuperatiOn. The best political econo-
mists tell us that there is no good reason
for continued prostration. Plenty of
money awaiting investment The ma
tional health with never so strong an
arm or so clear a brain. Yet we go on
groaning, groaning, grooming, as though
God had put this nation upon Cruel and
allowed us but one decent breakfast in
six months. The fact is the habit Of
complaining has become chronic in this
country, and after all these years Of
whimper and wailing and objurgation
we are under such momentum of sniv-
al that we cannot stop.
A Plea For CheerfuIness.
There are three prescriptions by which
I believe that our individual and ma
tional finances may be cured OF their
present depression. The first is cheerful
conversation and behavior. l have no.
ticed that the people who are most vo-
eiferous against the day in which we
live are those who are in comfortable
circumstances. have made inquiry OF
those persons who are violent i'll their
jeremiads against these times, and l
have asked them, Nov, after all, are
you not making living?" After some
hesitation and coughing and clearing
their throat three or four times they
say stammeringly, Yes" So that
with a great multitude of people it is
not a question of getting livelihood,
but they are dissatisfied because they
&c thew
would like to make. They have only
$4,000 in the bank, where they would
like to have 81, 600. They can clear in
year only So, 900, when they would like
to clear $4,000, or things come out
lust even. Or in their trade they get So
a day when they wish they could make
g. or So. "Oh," says some one, "are
YOU not aware of the fact that there is a
great population out of employment
and there are hundreds of the good fam
flies of this country who are at their
wits end, not knowing which way to
turn?" Yes, | know it better than any
man in private life can know that sad
fact, for it comes constantly to my eye
and ear, but who is responsible for this
state of things?
Much of that responsibility l put
upon men in comfortable circumstances
who by an everlasting growing keep
public confidence depressed and new en-
terprises from starting out and new
houses from being built. You know
very we'll that one respondent man can
talk 80 men into dependency, while one
cheerful physician can wake up into ex-
hilaration a whole asylum of hypochon-
driacs. 1t is no kindness to the poor OF
the unemployed for you to join in this
deportation. If you have not the wit
and the common sense to think of some
thing cheerful to say, then keep silent
There is no man that can be independ-
ent of depressed conversation The
medical journals are ever illustrating
it. was reading of five men who re-
solved that they would make an ex-
pertinent and see what they could dc
In the way of depressing a stout,
healthy man, and they resolved to meet
him at different points in his journey,
and as he stepped out from his house il
the morning in robust health one Of
tho five mon met him and said. "Why