St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1900-06-20

probably depends the measure of his
! manhood.
There too is the young man or woman
p called to make the subtle but real dis.
/ tinction between the public and the
t people. You may not think yourself to
be in the public eye at all. But you are
even though that public be some little
village society. And even in the village
there is distinction between the public
and the people. The public is noisy the
plain people generally quiet. The public
loves its excitement; the plain people are
usually calm. The public shouts; the
people think. Now one of the significant
things of our time is a certain greediness
of publicity; hunger and thirst for
cheap popularity; a teverish anxiety to
see whether our names are in the news
paper or not; and a dreadful temptation
to do something to get them there if they
he not. think that even boys and girls
in school and young men and women in
college will know what | mean. For
there as everywhere else there is the same
race tor leadership among those who
never stop to consider whittier they pro-
pose to lead their followers; there is the
same anxiety for publicity even when
publicity may only serve to show how
empty of all that makes for character we
really are. And all this time while we
are so busy toadying to our little or big
| public as the case may be, the people are
waiting for our service. But if we would
be servlceable to the people we must
have character. And character is won
through some vision of an opportunity
and some daring for the sake oft.
Nowhere is this truer than in the |
realm of religion. There are men and |
women all about us who see with a fair !
measure of clearness that Christ has a |
claim upon their lives. But the world
has not given in it's allegiance to Him
yet. He is recognized to be sure as very
worthy of respect, and as possible heir
apparent to the worlds wealth and
power But, the crown that belongs to
Him is still an idea. Men of clear vision
can see it over his head, but not yet rest
ing on his brows. And between him and
them there lies some Jordan valley of
difficulty, like challenge to their man.
hood. They may feel an allegiance,
which they do not quite dare to confess.
They may see the worth of the service
but shrink from any real clear decision
as to where they will stand. They may ,
realize that Christ is the true Master of
their lives, the true architect OF charac,
ter, and yet because they are afraid He c
will make demands upon them which S
they cannot exactly discount and foresee, +
they hold themselves back.
1t is as though these fighting men of
Cad had looked across the valley of t
Jordan toward the Judaean hills where |
their King waited, and wished them
selves there; as though they had wan
dered up and down along the Jordan
banks seeking tor some easy place to o
cross, until their bow-strings had slack. t
ened, and their swords rusted, and their u
great strength been undermined; while
all the time their king stood at close
grips with Amalek and Phiistia, -with- &
out them. a
Now one thing further and l am u
done. These men, clear sighted enough d
to know king without his crown;
brave enough to breast the swellings of in
Jordan to get at Him, found one thing pi
urther needful to complete the greatness q
If their worth--one thing further needlul 81
o round out the splendid tradition of O.
heir adventure. And that was steadfast 70
oyalty to the choice that they had be
made. Lite was not altogether an easy
md luxurious thing for them when they at
lad made their choice and conquered of
ordan. There were still enemies to iace ia
nd once when the kingdom seemed won,
Ire rebellion broke out. 1t was a rebel +h
on that threatened everything but ~;
onor. And it was put down simply be. r.
ause the men who had shown them. -,
elves clear-eyed and brave in the morn -
lg of David's day showed themselves -
atient and steadfast in the heat and
urden of it's noon-tde.
The old story is still repeated.
he kind of men God wants and the
'orld needs are men who in the light
nd tor the sake Of some great cause can
1dure-men about whose loyalty there
and can be no question-men behind
hose consistency their less resolute I
lows can take refuge, and who stand ~
ke the shadow of a great rock in a bi
cary land. ma
That is one Of the things that make va
'ashington and Lincoln so Supremacy fe,
eat. 1t was not enough that they vo
ere clear-eyed and brave. Fame of the cal
'best sort is theirs because in days of Pr
N 'NAol'oh anu sOICSl trial alike ~
ey were faithful. Men misjudged them, -
lied at them, ascribed small motives to ~
they endured And if to-
ght my voice could reach to the great
attitude OF youth who are Just going "
It OF school or college l would plead
tn them to find place in their lives
this high grace of steadfast loyalty to
'ge and generous things-yes to some -
those large and generous things that
world thinks lightly of-things that z
scotted at and despised and belittled (
'ut that are bound to win their way :
cause God is in Heaven. Is it not
1tten in all our school books how once
ship, Three Bells" of Glasgow, Just
darkness and tempest were closing IN
,ether, found a wreck with a little &
npany of sore.imperiled men, prayinp \
succor? And how since it was he.
1d human power to rescue them at
MT, her captain signalled that he
uld stand by till morning. Unless
know the sea, you cannot know how
ch OF toll and peril that involved nor
you measure the real life.giying
yer to those men in deadly jeopardy "
he occasional glimpse through some onn
IN their threatening fate of that any
ing ship standing by, standing by, our
yer standing by in face of night and cl
rm. 81
Dung Men and Women of the Gradg- Case
e CLaSS:--I have tried to brine RI ooob