The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1901-12-30
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any village ambitions or amusements
or duties.
such subjects as have gone into
history which occupied us in the 10
years of ministry here were the Irish
famine, the most serious steps in the
great anti-slavery conflict, the com
plete change in the poor laws of this
state, dependent upon the new immi-
grafton from England, the fugitive
slave law and what was called Mr..
Clay's compromise measures, the emf
grafton to Kansas led by Eli Thayer
our toWnsman. Outside of these the
changes in modern civilization which
are recollected perhaps more often in
the daily life of men and women than
+ are the great epochs in history, many
new inventions are due to Worcester
workshops.
Il like to show my friends a sheet
Of typewriter paper from what l
, think was the first typewriter in Amer
lea, the invention of our townsman,
Mr. Thurber. There is not one Of such
steps forward but represents moral
principles Of central Importance and
Of infinite origin.
You cannot pretend to write the
| outside history of the world for an
hour of these 10 years without refer
ring to the infinite life Of the sons of
| God and of his daughters life receiv-
ed from him, fed by him, led by him.
Think for single instance of the In
| terview to which / referred just now
between our friend and leader Albert
Tolman and the quartermaster from
Washington who had come to the lit
tie village really to beg Tolman &
Russell to take the contract for the
wagons of our army just preparing to
start on its new career Of aggression.
advertisement. We are not going to
believe in your war and do not approve
of it" What preaching in a dozen
such words as these and how definitely
does such an anecdote show US that
whatever we are upon is Gods work
and that 1t is his inspiration and power
with which we are working and act
ing.
so true is it that the history of the
church, though it be for only 10 years.
is not the history of it's visible forms
is not the study Of the texts of its
sermons nor of any creed which it
may have written upon paper. No.
The history of such years is the his
tory of the lives of men and women
who sat here Sunday after Sunday who
reviewed the past week perhaps, GER
tainly looked forward upon the week
which was to come and asked, what is
the God-g1ven duty which comes next
my hand? The history of the church
Is written as we trace the life of God
in the soul of man.
Let me speak personally of such
memories of those 10 years in which
this church was a shrine SO sacred in
my life. The recollection of our dear
friend Mrs. Alice Rice comes up TO
me 1 think most often. A charming
little child of exquisite beauty in the
front pew on my left here. resting
perhaps on her mothers shoulder or
holding her sisters hand. II the little
list of children who met for the Sun
day school the day 1t was formed had
been preserved l suppose we should
find her name at the head of it. l mean
that l think she was the youngest
child on the roll when those parents
brought those young children to us
that the church might bless them. 1t
may well be that she herself remem-
bered this in her womanhood when
she determined that children's child
rem of those around her should owe
the beauty and dignity of this enlarged
church 70 her care. My memories are
Of this eager intelligent face as she
grew from early childhood to young
womanhood on that gradual change
which one does not notice from week
to week but which after TO- Is or 20
nobly planned, to warn, to counsel, or
command"
Let me say to young people that
here is one Of the charms of life as
you grow older that you can recall the
growth of such a friend almost from
the beginning. In that exquisite phrase
of the Hebrew psalm they grow up as
plants in their youth"
Il remember citing this very line to
her when we were speaking of young
girl here who died before she was 10
years old. One sometimes sees It in
the garden in a fresh shoot as IL grows
almost visibly from the root throwing
off on the right and left its sprays OF
living green without a break or scar
on either Of them until on the very
top the spike Of flowers buds and bios
SONS in the Joy and glory Of its young
beauty. We hear quite too much NOR
bid gable about the sphere of women
in our conventional life; about the
difficulties which women find in deter
mining their sphere. doubt If she
had the slightest difficulty in that way.
We can almost hear her laugh in her
cheerful way in making fun Of such
discussions. In one proverb or another
she found quite enough to do and that
the joy of doingAthe duty next her
hand carried her over many obstacles
and through many perplexities.
Taking a girls share in a girls
work at home or with her young COM
panions with excellent examples on
the right and on the left she found
herself " hen she was a woman all
ready trained and prepared for the
duties of a woman and ready to in
terpret those duties on no stingy scale.