The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-04-29

I
they are here to stay for her soil, climate
and water supply are wonderfully adapted
! TO our growth and so long
as these Baptists keep up with
their history they must feel
and recognize their debt of obligation 10
\ this institution for bringing TO them a
/ man who became eminent in his callins
and highly useful to his denomination.
am not here to advertise my denomina-
ton my church nor myself; but to give
/ inns bit of history as a matter of grateful
/ pride in having our histories touch.
This work. fostered by this Union Socie-
| W, Is as noble work as ever engaged hui
man thought or taxed human energy.
/ When man, through disobedience in Eden
OF old, fell from his high and holy estate.
! he made himself a spiritual orphan, and
the heart of God was troubled. 1t was the
trouble of father over his fallen, prodigal
poy' 1t was the wall of an artist over the
breaking OF the masterpiece of his genius.
GODS love for us was so great that he set
| ABOUT getting US back into the family
Out of his boundless charity touched by
| the orphan state of man, he gave his only
! Degotten son to die to open up the way
Tor mans return and to establish churches.
| winch churches are only Gods asylums
for his spiritual orphans to sojourn in till
their Lord shall come and take them to
| their eternal home in the mansions which
| he has gone to prepare
One part of church's work is to look
after children without earthly parents
Pure religion and undefiled before God
ana the Father is this: To visit the father
| less and widows in their anliction and keep
himself unspotted from the world The
religion of our Bible consists of two
thhss; pure heart and a charitable life.
! solomon, before whom there was none like
| hlm neither has his like risen Since said
Keep thy heart with all diligence for out
of 1t are the issues of life" Again he says:
AS he man) thinketh in his heart, so is
! he"
Keep your heart pure, is my advise to
| all and especially to these boys. To do
this we must love God with all our heart
We mustnot lie. Few boys, judge, have
| been brought here who, like George Wash
ington, could not lie. Most boys can lie
most boys do lie, but boys ought not to lie
| Speak the truth in love if you would keep
your heart pure. To have a pure heart
we must not swear. Boys, do you use
/ profane language? Quit 1t. 1t is ugly,
1t is foolish, it is silly, it is a great sin
against God and no life is pure that does It,
pure life is one that does not gamble
| Never try to get something for nothing.
Meet the world fairly, and try to get
| your share honestly that it may be well
with you. The gambling leaven is one
that IS getting into almost everything
| business politics and even religion.
Gambling is stealing and no less a sin.
pure life is a sober life. Boys don't
drink. I know they will offer it to you
and say many things if you don't take
| 1t, but just let 1t alone. 1t ruins men in
more ways than l can tell you. Take
the couplet--
Mental suasion for the man who thinks,
! Moral suasion for the man who drinks,
! Legal suasion for the drunkard- maker,
Prison suasion for the statute-breaker.
Make your life one of charity. How
beautiful is such a life but how few so
live. Live for others, If you would live
most for yourselves. Never forget that
! you were once a helpless orphan and
! cared for by these good people here at
| Bethesda. These men will be dead when
! you become prosperous men and
! you cannot return their kindness to them.
| They do not expect that, neither do they
want you to do so. When you are men
be kind TO and help other helpless or
| phans. Do not forget the widow. The
! afflicted and destitute will ever need you.
| Soothe their sorrows, relieve their wants,
and give them protection, comfort
and counsel. Scatter smiles and
sunshine wherever you go, and heaven
! will smile upon you.
| thy. Your cup of sorrow and mine are
one. l have drunk it to the dregs. l
| drank it before l knew what it was and
1 have never known anything but to be
a fatherless boy, being left in that con-
dition before / was fourteen months old.
L have often wished to be rich so that 1
might help the fatherless and widows,
and be the means of developing many a
youth. You boys do not know your pos
sibilites. Boys are the stuff of which
men are made Some times you will not
find a way, then you must make one. God
will raise you Up friends if you will only
look around for them. If you would have
friends you must show yourself friendly.
Before you were born, God was raising
up these good men to be your friends and
benefactors. Somewhere, we know not
where He is raising up men and women to
be your future friends.
Let me, in parting, give you four words
to bear in mind as indispensable to sue
cess. They are these: Punctuality. perse-
verance, patience and purity. Punctual-
highways be on time, and If it is abso- \
lutely impossible 10 be there on time be
there as soon as possible. Successful is
the boy who is always on time. Perse-
verance-keep at it. Never hold up till the
thing is done; till the victory is won. Pc
member the tortoise and the hare. Pa
tence-wait. Things do not always come
as quick as we want them, but "all things
come to him that waits" and keeps hard
at it. You think now that you never will
be grown like your distinguished benefac-
tors who surround us to-day, but you will
Purity-'Keep thyself pure" In thought,
word and deed. When David, the sweet
singer of old, lay dying in Israel he called
his boy Solomon to him and said: "Show
thyself a man; and keep the charge of the
Lord thy Cod to walk in His ways, to
keep His statutes, and His command
ments, and His judgments and His tcsti-
monies as ft is written In the law OF
Moses, that thou mayest prosper in all
that thou docSt and whithersoever thou
turnest myself" Keep these words in
your heart to do them. To the members
and officers of Union Society ana the
workers in the "House of Mercy" / say,
God speed you with energies untirng IN
your work of noblest charity. To orphans
and their friends everywhere, 1 say. "The
Lord bless thee. and keep thee; the Lord
make his face shine upon thee. and be
gracious unto thee; the Lord lift up his
countenance upon thee, and give thee
peace"
The address was listened 10 with the