Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1900-07-20
cola vIctuals. or rlke thar cnarlry WINCH

81 IlluCll Tears us uOlldls3 llUI no mum my
wishes as loaves of bread; not so much
smiles as shoes; not so much God bless
you," as jackets and froeks. will put
one earnest Christian man, Woodworking,
against 5000 mere theorists on the subject
of charity. There are great many who
have fine ideas about church architecture
who never in their lives helped to build
church. There are men who can give you
the history of Buddhism and Mohamme'
danism who never sent farthlng foI
svangelization. There are women who talk
beautifully about the suffering of the world
who never had the courage, like Dorcas,
to take the needle and assault it.
] am glad that there is not a page OF the
worlds history which is not record OF
female benevolence. God says to all lands
and people, Come, now, and hear the
widows mite rattle down into the poor
box" The Princess of Cont sold all her
jewels that she might help the famine
stricken. Queen Blanche, the Wifi, Of
Louis VIII. of France, hearing that there
were some persons unjustly ,nearceraIIego
i'll the prisons, went out amid the raDDle
and took stick and struck the door as 2
signal that they might all strike it, and
down went the prison door. and out came
the prisoners. Queen Maud, the wife OF
Henry l., went down amid the poor anc
washed their sores and administered &C.
them cordials. Mrs. Retson, at Matagor
da, appeared on the battlefield while the
missiles of death were flying around and
cared for the wounded Is there a man
or woman who has ever heard of the clvi
war in America who has not heard OF the
women of the sanitary and Christian com
missions or the fact that before the smoke
had gone up from Gettysburg and South
Mountain the women of the. north met the
women Of the south on the battlefield, Tor
getting all their animositiess, while they
bound I'D the wounded and closed the eyes
of the slain? Dorcas the benefactress.
/ come now to speak of Dorcas the la
mented When death struck down that
good woman, oh, how much sorrow there
was in the town of Joppa! | suppose there
were women there with larger fortunes
women perhaps with handsomer faces, but
there was not grief at their departure like
this at the death of Dorcas. There were
not more turmoil and upturning in the
Mediterranean Sea dashing against the
wharves at that seaport than there were
surgings to and fro of grief because Dorcas
was dead There are great many who
90 out Of life and are unmissed. There
may be a very large funeral, there may be
a great many carriages and plumed
hearse, there may be high sounding eulo
gums, the bell may toll at the cemetery
gate, there may be very line marble
shaft reared over the resting place, but
the whole thing may De falsehood and a
sham
The church OF God has lost nothing;
the world has lost nothing. 1t, is only a
nuisance abated. 1t is only a grumbleI
ceasing to find fault. 1t is only an idlel
stopped yawning 1t is only a dissipated
fashionable parted from his wine cellar.
while on the other hand no useful Chris
tan leaves this world without being
missed
The church of God cries out, like the
prophet, Howl, fir tree, for the cedar has
fallen" Widowhood comes and show;
the garments which the departed had
made. Orphans are lifted up to look into
the calm face of the sleeping benetaetress
Reclaimed vagrancy comes and kisses the
cold brow of her who charmed it away
from sin, and all through the streets oil
Joppa there Is mourning be-
cause Dorcas is dead
Has that Christian woman who went
away fifteen years ago nothing to do with
these things? | see the Towering out OF
her noble heart. l hear the echo OF her
footsteps in all the songs over SINS Tor
given, in all the prosperity of the church
The good that seemed to he buried has
come up again. Dorcas is resurrected!
After awhile all these womanly friends
of Christ will put down their needle Tor
ever. After making garments for others
some one will make garment for them;
the last robe we ever wear-the robe foI
the grave. You will have heard the last
cry of pain. You will have witnessed the
last orphanage. Yol will have come in
worn out from your last round of mercy.
/ do not know where you will sleep MOI
what your epitaph will be, but there will
be lamp burning at that tomb and an IN
angel of Goo, guarding, it,, and through all
the long night no rude foot will disturb
the dust. Sleep on, sleep on! Soft bed,
pleasant shadows, undisturbed repose.
Sleep on!
Asleep in Jesus! Blessed sleep
From which none ever wake to weep!
Then one day there will be a sky rend.
ing and whirl of wheels and the flash OF
a pageant, armies marching, chains clank-
ing, banners waving, thunders booming,
and that Christian woman will arlse from
the dust, and she will be suddenly sur.
rounded surrounded by the wanderers OF
the street whom she reclaimed, surround.
ed by the wounded souls to whom she had
administered
Daughter of God, so strangely surround
ed. what means this? 1t means that re-
ward has come; that the victory is won !;
that the crown is ready; that the banquet
is spread Shout it through all the crumb-
ling earth! Sing it through all the flying
heavens! Dorcas is resurrected.
In 1855, when some of the soldiers came
back from the Crimean wal. to London,
the Queen of England distributed among
49,. Loo,+,ful p,adalc called (Timpa n
medals. Galleries were erected for the two
houses OF Parliament and the royal family
to sit in. There was a great audience to
witness the distribution of the medals. a
colonel who had lost both feet in the bat.
tie of Inkernann was pulled in on a wheel
chair: others came in limping on their
crutches. Then the Queen of England arose
before them in the name of her Govern
ment and uttered words OF commentator
to the officers and men and distributed
those medals, inscribed with the four great
attlefelds-Alma. Balaklava, Inkermann
and Sevastopol. As the Queen gave these
to the wounded men and the wounded OFF,
GERS the bands of music struck up the ma
tional air., and the people, with streaming
eyes, joined in the song:
God save our gracious queen!
Long live our noble queen!
God save the queen!
And then they shouted "Huzza! Huzza!'
Oh, it was proud day for those returned
warriors! But brighter, better and glad
der day will come when Christ shall. gath
er those who have. toiled in His service
GOOD soldiers of Jesus Christ. He sha.i rise
before them, and in the presence of all n,
glorified of heaven He will say. well
done, good and faithful servant! And
then He will distribute the medals OF eter,,
nal victory, not inscribed with works, OF
righteousness which we have done, but
with those four great battlefelds, dear to
earth and dear to heaven-Bethehem,
Nazareth, Gethsemane and Calvary!