The Bossier banner., 1899-04-27
VOL. XXXV111.
M THE CITY STREETS
~. contrasts of Splendor and Woe
Seen Upon Them.
9
r.,maxe Says They Are Unlike
n.moeratic Gospel of Christ
rheir Shams, PretensiOns and
Temptations.

In this QlsCouiSe A~'' o.
lived the most of his life in cities.
draws m practical lessons from his own
.h.prvation; text, Proverbs. 1870:
syyisdom crieth without. She uttereth
her voice in the streets
y. are all ready to listen to the
,o;.es of nature-the voices OF the
mountain. the voices OF the sea, the
.o;e.s Of the storm. the voices of the
.t.r As in some of the cathedrals in
Europe there is an organ at either end
of the building, and the one instrument
,,soonds musically to the other, so in
ne great cathedral of nature day re-
,oonds TO day, and night to night. and
1ower to flower, and star to star in
the great harmonies of the universe.
The springtime is an evangelist in BIOS
SONS preaching of Gods love, and the
winter is Observation-Disclosures
denouncing woe against our sins. We
are oil ready to listen to the voices of
nature. But how few of us learn any
thing from the voices of the noisy and
dusty street. You go to your mech
anism, and to your work, and to your
merchandise. and you come back again
-and often with how different heart
YOU pass through the streets. Are
there no things for us to learn from
these payements over which we pass?
Are there no tufts of truth growing up
between these cobblestones, beaten
with the feet of toll and pain and pleas
ure, the slow tread of old age and the
quick step of childhood? Aye, there
are great harvests to be reaped, and
now thrust in the sickle because the
harvest is ripe. Wisdom crieth with
out. She uttereth her voice in the
street,"
In the first place. the street impresses
me With the fact that this life is a
Eene Of toll and struggle. By ten
o'clock every day the city is jarring
With wheels and shuffling with feet and
humming with voices and covered with
The breath of smokestacks and a-rush
with trafiickers. Once in awhile you
fnd man going along with folded
arms and with leisurely step. as though
he had nothing to do. but. for the most
part, as You find men going down these
streets on the way to business. there
y anxiety on their faces, as though
ihey had some errand which must be
executed at the first possible moment.
lou are jostled by those who have bar
gains to make and notes to sell. Up
tais ladder with hod of bricks, out
q this bank with roll of bills. on this
efaf with load of goods, digging a
eelIar, or Singing roof. or shoeing
4 horse. or building wall. or mending
= watch, or binding a book. Industry
WITH her thousand arms and thousand
syes and thousand feet, goes on singing
ser song of work, work. work. while
stne mills drum it and the steam
Nnisfles fife it. All this is not because
men love to toll. Some one remarked: /:
livery man is as lazy as he can afford
70 be-. But it is because necessity
With stern brow and with uplifted whip
stands over you, ready whenever you
felax your toll to make your shoulders
stlng with the lash.
Tan 1t be that passing up and down
ihese streets on your way to work and
soanness You do not learn anything OF
sne worlds toll and anxiety and strng.
e'e! Oh. how many dropping hearts
now many eyes on the watch. how
many miles travelled, how many bur.
uens carried, how many losses suf-
sieleo, how many battles fought, how
many victories gained, how many ex.
ssperations endured-what losses, what
aanger, what wretchedness, what pal.
'or, what disease, what agony, what de.
spsir' Sometimes 1 have stopped al
.ae corner of the street as the multi.
suoes went hither and yon, and i. has
ssssaed to be great pantomime, and as
Aiooked upon il my heart broke. This
FRAT tide of human life that goes
eoWn the street is rapid tossed anG
turned aside and dashed ahead and
u1sen back-beautif-s in its confusion
soa confused in it's beauty. In the car
teteo aisles of the forest, in the wood.
rom which the eternal shadow is neye,
h.1ed, on the shore of the sea owe,
nose iron coast tosses. the tangled
aosm sprinkling the cracked cliffs will
baptism of whirlwind and tempest
: 'he best place to study God. but il
Is rushing, swarming. raving stree,
= me best place TO study man.
uoing down to your place of bushes.
sao coming home again l charge yo,
g look about-'see these signs of power
IN Ct wretchedness, of hunger, of sin
!. bereavement - and as you q
through the streets and come bacl
trough the streets. gather up in tn.
8. s.ns of your prayer all the sorrow, al
Is iosses, all the sufferings, all the be
sssements of those whom you pas
saa present them in prayer before al
- mpa thefic God. In the great da,
Z. esefnity there will be thousands o
esIsons with whom you in this worl,
ssr exchanged one word who will
ap and call you blessed. and ther
l 3 9 thousand fingers pointed a
~ Y Heaven, saying: That is tn
tnaf Is the woman, who helpe,
Eesn ! was hungry aud sick an