The Newtown bee., 1901-10-25
not that any one should bear witness
concerning man.

concerning man.
AND YET HE TRUSTED MEN,
he believed in those generally reputed
to be the lowest and least hopeful.
Instances of this are so numerous that
we need not cite any one of them 1t
is sufficient that we know he was a
friend of publicans and sinners, and
he could not be friend without trust
ing; the chief element of friendship is
trust. And may it not be that he
made many dependable just by de-
pending upon them? The best way to
make our fellows trustworthy is to
trust them and the surest way to req
der them unreliable is to let them
know you suspect them. l do not
mean to affirm that to have confidence
in person always assures good faith
on the part of the person trusted.
Some of you business men can testify
to this with keen regret. Christ even
found many instances wherein it fail
ed. And yet he continued to put
faith in men. 1t was better for him
to believe in twelve men, though one
proved to be Judas the traitor, than to
distrust eleven worthy ones. And so
we had better be imposed upon occa-
sionally, and still believe in our fell
lows, than be suspicious of all, and
thus never be imposed upon. In the
latter case we have saved that which
we might otherwise have lost, but we
have lost something far more valuable
than that which we have saved, name
ly, sweet and genial spirit, chart
table mind.
1t is fact of deep import
to me that Christ trusted men,
and SO helped to make them
trustworthy, that he believed
in them, and so helped them to be-
lieve in themselves. I shall always
see the better side of human nature
and be ever responsive it, if I follow
the Masters example in dealing with
my fellows. For this gratefully hold
him in remembrance.
In the second place, something he
has taught me concerning life. What
labyrinth of mysteries is this life of
ours. The number of these mysteries
increases every day. The life of every
contemplative adult person fairly bris-
ties with Interrogation points. Take
an Illustration close at hand. The ex-
cessively hot weather of the past two
weeks has caused untold suffering
among men and beasts. We here in
this relatively cool and sequestered
spot cannot realize what thousands of
human beings have endured in the
New York, what physical agony be-
You'd all imagination. Hundreds have
died as a result, and many hundreds
mourn these SO suddenly and cruelty
removed.
ALL THIS PAIN AND SORROW
has been borne largely by the poor
and crowded tenements. by shop girls,
factory hands and others engaged in
manual labor midst circumstances
most unpropitious. The suffering
among horses, too, those most patient
animals that cannot voice their COM
plant as can human beings, but must
endure without remOnStrance until
they fall dead in their tracks, as have
SO many during recent days, their suf- |
fering was terrible in the extreme.
We have here a mystery, and it is on
ly one out Of innumerable numbers |
that we encounter in our earthly pill |
grimage. What shall be our attitude |
in view of them? They cannot be ex-
hence there is no use of our |
making the attempt. And yet we |
must. find some relief in some direc-
ton. | find it in what Christ teaches
me by his attitude. He was exceed
lngly sensitive to the suffering all |
about him, and his great heart beat |
in sympathy with.burdened humanity.
His miracles of healing reveal this
They were not performed to amaze
men, to prove to them He was divine.
Rather were they done through the
same compassionate motive that
mpelS us to minister to those who are
n any trouble. Moreover, the mys-
cry of suffering must have impressed