Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1899-07-20

of Christ So it has been in all the ages.
and say TO all our young theological stu
dents, Sharpen your wits until they are as
keen as scimiters and then take them in
TO this holy war. II is n very short bridge
between a smile and n tear, suspension
bridge from eye to lip, and 1t is soon
crossed over, and smile is sometimes
Just as sacred as a tear. There is as
much religion, and, think, little more
in a spring morning than in staress
midnight. Religious work without any
humor or wit in it is n banquet with
side of beef, and that raw, and no condi-
ments and no dessert succeeding. People
will not sit down to such n banquet. BY
all means remove all fIivolity and all
pathos and all lightncss and vulgarity.
Strain them out through the sieve of holy
discrimination, but, on the other hand,
beware of that monster which overshad
ows the Christian church today-convcn
tionaity-coming up from the great Sa
hara desert Of ecclesiasticism, having on
its back hump of sanctimonous gloom,
and vehemently refuse to swallow that
camel.
Oh, how particular great many peo-
pie are about the infnitesimals while
they are quite reckless about the magni-
tudes. What did Christ sa>' Did he
not cxcoriate the people in his time who
were so careful TO wash their hands be-
fore meal, but did not wash their
hearts? 1t is a bad thing TO have un-
clean hands. 1t is worse thing to have
an unclean heart How many people
there are in our time who are very anx-
ious that after their death they shall be
oil ,x.;th fhair toxpar1 thp net
and not at all anxious that during their
whole life they should face in the right
direction, so that they shall come up III
the resurrection of the just. whichever
way they are buried, How many there
are chiefly anxious that a minister OF
the gospel shall come in the line of apos-
tolic succession, not caring so much
whether. he comes from Apostle Paul or
Apostle Judas! They have n way of
measuring gnat until it is larger than
camel.
Human Inconsistency.
Again, my subject photographs all
those who are abhorrant of small sins
while they are reckless in regard to mag
nihcent thefts. You will find many n
merchant who, while he is so careful that
he would not take yard of cloth or a
spool of cotton from the counter without
paying for it, and who. if bank cashier
should make a mistake and send in q
roll of bills 81 too much, would dispatch
a messenger in hot haste to return the
surplus, yet who will go into a stock com
pany, in which after awhile he gets con
troll of the stock, and then waters the
stock and makes 100000 appear like
S200,000 He only stole 100000 by the
operation. Many of the men Of fortune
made their wealth in that way.
One of those men engaged in such I'M
righteous acts that evening, the evening
of the very day when he watered the
stock, will find a wharf rat stealing q
daily paper from the basement doorway
and will go out and catch the urchin by
the collar and twist the collar so tightly
the poor fellow has no power to say that
it was thirst for knowledge that led hin
to the dishonest act, but grip the collar
tighter and tighter, saying: Il have beer
looking for you long while You stole
my paper four or five times, haven't you
you miserable wretch?" And then tn,
old stock gambler, with voice they car
hear three blocks, will cry out, police
police" That same man the evening OF
the day in which he watered the stocl
will kneel with his family in prayers ant
thank God for the prosperity of the day
then kiss his children good night with al
air which seems to say, Il hope you al
will grow up to be as good as your ia
Their" Prisons for sins insectile in size
| but palaces for crimes dromedarian. \,
| mercy for sins animalcule in proportion
but great leniency for mastodon iniquity
| 4 poor boy slyly takes from the baske
% a." ma e.. go a. 49, sd ,,n'
so't oe - ,n Ill "..,.lo,
81 n1 -. ~ ~. ",
- n, nJ hI.i ~: 80 ~.
.,'iie,5 ~n,. =. stoaI szo 600 fua, ~,
49,. ,,t;1to ,o ~ -
ny !ou '''"A' Ava ''o
| IAere Is soou oehi VI uheaslness aii'
nervousness no" Among soihe peolie II
our t''he WHO nave so' uirishteous ior
I tuheSa srgat ueai Vi uheacii,ss noou
u! il"'iite' 'eii 'neii ina. "ou VIII pu
| unuer the'r uiliehteous fortunes soii,e
'h''S iioie eNIipSiNe 1iaii Wy ma W
ear tnluahe Vi ms onin'i'o.cnt nus iia
non II Is 'i'iie 'h"l We ieaih III 1nn'ei4c
INA, SIN Is no' eNcuSao'e ~ Plop1' V'' a
ueciaie CO ia' &c vi, ,''hu' anu .'"' p"'
tiuers II! cqu'Pase: MANY man - nun
10 peraNiOh' pos,'iioh alcau anu laVNr,
pe'inu' 10 s'eai QUE copy u new sp'
per Is sh"t' 10 stc a., many tnous"hus =
uoilars - caniei, ineie IL many ~
nea,er VINO "ouiu hol consent 80 s'eal
pasNcI Vi Nr"oncs iioii "a n.'s n , > SUI a.
oul VINO "ou'u no' sei up'o " uIp ies9 VI
iruIt marhc'' anu a. ,o"s as enn ~