The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1898-04-09

glad he's found out at last" hundreds
of other men say: "We couldn't possi-
bly, have been tempted to do that-no
conjunction of circumstances could
ever have overthrown me;" and there
is a superabundance of indignation,
but no pity. The heavens full Of
lightning, but not one drop of dew. II
God treated us as society treats that
man we would all have been in hell
long ago.
Wait for the alleviating circum.
stances. Perhaps he may have been
the dupe of others. Before you let all
the hounds out from their kennel to
maui and tear that man, find out If he
has not been brought up in CONNER.
cial establishment where there was q
wrong system of ethics taught; find out
whether that man has not an extrava-
| giant wife who is not satisfied with his
honest earnings, and in the temptation
to please her he has gone into that ruin
into which enough men have fallen,
and by the same temptation, to make
a procession of many miles. Perhaps
some sudden sickness may have touched
his brain, and his Judgment may be un-
balanced. He is wrong, he is awfully
wrong, and he must be condemned, but
there may be mitigating circumstances.
Perhaps under the same temptation
you might have fallen. The reason
some men do not steal $500, 900 is be-
cause they do not get a chance! Have
righteous indignation you must about
that mans conduct, but temper it with
mercy.
But, you say: II am sorry that the
innocent should suffer" Yes, am, too
sorry for the widows and orphans
who lest their all by that defalcation,
l am sorry also for the business men,
the honest business men, who have had
their affairs all crippled by that detail
cation. | am sorry for the venerable
bank president to whom the credit of
the bank was matter of pride. Yes,
! L am sorry also for that man who
brought all the distress; sorry that he
sacrificed body, mind, soul, reputation,
Heaven, and went into the blachness Of
darkness forever. ~ IS
You defiantly say: 81 could not be
tempted in that way" Perhaps you
may be tested after awhile. God has a
very good memory, and He sometimes
seems to say: This man feels so
strong in his innate power and good
ness he shall be tested; he is so full of
bitter invective against that unfortu-
nate, it shall be shown now whether
he has the power to stand" Fifteen
years go by. The wheel of fortune
turns several times, and you are in a
crisis that you never could have antici-
pated. Now, all the powers of dark
ness come around, and they chuckle
and they chatter and they say: aha!
here is the old fellow who was so proud
of his integrity, and who Dragged he
couldn't be overthrown by temptation,
and was SO uproarious in his demon.
STATIONS of indignation at the defalca-
lion Is years ago. Let us see.'
God let's the man go. God, who had
kept that man under His protecting
care, let's the man go, and try for him
self the majesty of his integrity. Coo
letting the man go, the powers of darN.,
ness pounce upon him. see you some
day in your office in grea' excitement.
One of two things you can do. Be hon
est, and be pauperized, and have your
children brought home from school,
your family dethroned in social
influence. The other thing is, you
can step a little aside from that
which is right, you can only just go
half an inch out of the proper path, you
can only take little risk and then
you have all your finances fair and
right. You will have large property.
You can leave fortune for your chill
dren, and endow college, build a
public library in your native town.
You halt and wait, and halt and wait
until your lips get white. You decide
| to risk it. Only a few strokes of the
| pen now. But, oh, how your hand
trembles The die is cast. BY the strang-
est and most awful conjunction of cir
cumstances anyone could have mag
ined, you are Frustrated. Bankruptcy,
commercial humiliation, exposure,
crime. Good men mourn and devils
hold carnival, and you see your own
name at the head of the newspaper
| column in whole congress of eX-
clamation points; and while you are
reading the anathema in the reportorial
and editorial paragraph, it occurs to
/ you how much this story is like that of
| the defalcation fifteen years ago, and
n clap of thunder shakes the window
sill, saying: with what measure va
mcte, it shall be measured to you
again"
! You look in another direction. There
is nothing like ebulitions of temper to
put a man to disadvantage. You, a
man with calm pulses and fine diges.
tion and perfect health, can not under.
stand how anybody should be capsizcd
in temper by an infinitesimal annoy.
ance. You say: 81 couldn't be unbal.
anced in that way" Perhaps 20 smile
at a provocation that makes another
man swear. You pride yourself on your
imperturbability. You say with your
manner, though you have too much
good taste to say it with your words:
Il have great deal more sense than
that man has; | have a great deal more
equi poise of temper than that man has;
l never could make such puerile ex.
hibition of myself as that man has
made
see the scribes of Heaven looking