The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1898-04-22

he t,i. largest anl best Tiled. lntatu-
atr,i! i poison miNed in the simple
carthvn cup No, the dru-geI bowl is
tha. which is adorned with mo.d and
gems. and sparkirs with lie delicious
wine OF Setia.'
The secular wis of all times have
inyci-Ard against be folly of thinking
too lightly of riches. or Of 'lecming that
worth in any way depends upon
wealth The same sentiment ahuundS
in Holy Writ. We are told il the
Book Of Proverbs. Labor not to he
rich. il. Better is the poor that walk
eth in his uprghtncss than he that is
pcrvcrSe in his ways, though he be
rich. David said: "lf riches increase
set not your heart upon them" Christ
spoke of "the deceitiulness Of riches,
and How hardly shall they that have
ricl e, enter into the kingdom Of God. =
He distinguished clearly between "the
nnrigltcous mammon." and '.the true
richcs,:' and said, Woe unto YOU that
are rich For Sc have received your
consolation.
We gather from all these that ma
tcrial riches alolc cannot confer any
worth through their possession. that
they are oittimrs Il hindrance CT n
snare; that they lead many to perdi-
ton. and in most cases exercise an in
furious and withering influence on
character. Vet it cannot hc denied
that they are powerful for good rs well
aS evil: anil hat in the hands Of The
comparatively few who know how to
use them Alright. they may tie made the
means Of unbonndel usefulness: OF
mitigating misery and promoting
knowledge AMI happiness, OF rescuing
the weak and honorng the worthy.
Lord Bacon called riches the bagga re
or impc,iim"nia OF virtue, and it is GER
tain that the stress ofeNtreme poverty
is calculated to lcstrov worth Some
one else said: 1t is easy 10 be virtn-
Gus on ten thousand a year. and most
people think 81, bat W. question
whether it is not easier to he virtuouS
with Il more moderate income. The
wise man pravel, Give mn neither
poverty nor riches. And it is certain
that in every condition Of life the md
die state i The hest
There is. however. 4 .lamor in wealth
which dazzlcS and dpcrivrS the hcho!d-
cIs. They see lis pleasures but know
nothing Of its pains To he able to
purchase whatever the eye desires. or
to command any luxury that money
will buy, appears the height of human
bliss But could they look behind the
scenes. they might see in many a
wealthy home, grim misery and cark-
ing care. vacuouS and Satcl lives.
hearts Sc, thing with discomfort or
Iradcncd 10y prntractcl qualification.
The author OF the "Wralth Of Ma
tions' says: with the greater part of
rich people. the c.ict enjoy mcnt of
4
which. in their eye. is never so com
plctr Il when they appear to possess
those decisive marks OF opulrnce which
nobody can posses hni themselves. If
this he true, t.!rn the richest mln is no
happier than the Lord Mayor in the
show. who notwithstanding the plau-
dts o Il gaping multitude, may be
mere truly wrctc.!el than the most
mis- ,rablc of them all.
What then is worth but that eNccll-
cncn Of go lncss which hrlon IS to one
apart from all the accidents of fortune:
that pcrS lnal nohlrnrSs or ability which
! is independent Of cXtraneous circum-
stances. and which can neither be given
nor taken away Or old Robert Of
/ Gloucester may answer for us: ''Nor
the more that n man con. the more
worth he V. Ability is the test OF
| worth rs utility j. the test ct virtue