Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1900-08-25
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heart Of the world is one great living
coal; that it is just like a ship on fire at
sea, the flames not bursting ogt because
the matches are kept down. And yet
you propose to palm OF on me, in return
for my soul, a world fer which, in the
first place. you give no title, and, in the
second place, for which you can give no
insurance. oh" you say, "the water
of the oceans will wash over all the land
and put out the fire" Oh, no. There are
infammable elements in the water, by
drogen and oxygen. Call off the hydro
gen, and then the Atlantic and Pacific
oceans would blaze like heaps of shay
ings. You want me to take this world,
| for which You can give no possible in
| Surance.
! Astronomers have swept their tele-
/ scopes through the sky and have found
! out that there have been fifteen worlds in
/ the last two centuries that have diSap-
| peared. At first they looked just like
! other worlds. Then they got deeply red
/ they We're on fire. Then they got ashen,
| showing they were burned down. Then
| they disappeared, showing that even the
| ashes were scattered. And if the geolo-
sist be right in his prophecy, then our
| world is to 30 in the same way. And
| yet YOU want me to exchange my soul
for it. All, no, it is world that is burn
ing now. suppose you brought an iHsur-
ance agent to look at your property for
the purpose of giving you policy upon
| it and while he stood in front of the
house he should say, THAT house is on
fire now in the basement" Won could
not get any insurance upon it. Yet you
talk about this world as though it were
safe investment, as though you could get
some insurance upon il, when down in
! the basement it is on fire.
| remark, also that this world is n
property with which everybody who has
taken it as a possession has had trouble
| Now, between my house and my church
in Brooklyn there was a reach of land
which was not built on. | asked what
was the matter, and they replied that
| everybody who had anything to do with
that property got into trouble about it,
Ii is just so with this world-evcrybo
that has had anything to do with il as a
possession has been in pcrplexity. How
was it with Lord Byron? Did he not sell
his immortal soul for the purpose of get
ting the world? Was he satisfied with
the possession? Alas, alas, the poem
graphically describes his case when it
says
Drank every cup of JOY,
Heard every trump of fame;
Drank early, deeply drank
Drank drafts which common millions
might have quenched,
Then died of thirst. because there was
no more to drink
Gaining the World.
Oh, yes, he had trouble with it, and
so did Napoleon. After conquering ma
tioas by force of the sword the victor
lies down to die, his entire possession the
military boots that he insisted on having
upon his feet while he was dying. So II
has been with men who had better ambi
ton. Thlckeray, one of the most genial
and lovable souls, after he had won the
applause OF all intelligent lands through
his wonderful genius sits down in a
restaurant in Paris. looks to the other
end of the room and wonders whose is
that forlorn and wretchpd face. Rising
up after awhile, he finds that IL is Thack-
cray in the mirror. Oh yes. this world is
| a cheat Talk about a man gaining the
| world! Who ever gained half OF the
| world? Who ever owned hemisphere -?
Who ever gained continent? Who ever
owned Asia? Who ever gained a city ?
Talk about gaining the world, No man
ever gained il, or the thousandth part
Of II. You are demanding that | sell my
soul. not for the world but for a frag-
ment of it.
Here is man who has had large es-
tate for forty or fifty years. lie lies down
to die You say, THAT man is worth
millions and millions of dollars" Is he?
You call up a surveyor, with his compass
and chains. and you say. There is
property extending three miles in one di-
! rection and three miles in another direc-
ton" Is that the way TO measure thar
/ mans property? No! You do not want
any surveyor with compass and chains.
| That is not the way 10 measure that
| mans property now. 1t is an undertaken
! YOU need, who will come and out his fin
! ger in his vest nc"'ct and take out n
| tapeline, and he will measure ; feet o
| inches one way and 2K feet the other
! way. That is the mans property oh.
| no: | forgot; not so much as that, for he
| does not own even the place in which he
! lies in the cemetery. The deed TO that
| belongs to the executors and heirs. Oh.
| what a property you propose to give me
| for my soul! If you sell a bill Of goods.
! you 90 into the counting room and say TO
| your partner: "Do you think that man is
| good for this bill? Can he give proper
security? VIII he meet this paymentY'
| Now, when you are offered this world as
| a possession ] want you to test the mat
! ter. do not want you to 20 into this
| bargain blindy. | want you TO ask about
the title, about the insurance, about
! whether men have ever had any trouble
with it, about whether you can keep it,
! about whether you can get all or the ten
! thousandth or one hundred thousandth
! part OF it.
| There Is the world new. shall say no
more about it. Make up your mind for
| yourself as / shall before God have to
make up my mind for myself about the
value Of this world. ] cannot afford to
make a mistake for my soul, and you
cannot afford to make a mistake for your
soul.
The Soul Beyond Value.