The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-02-24
Fnce to Face with Nature.


Ri. Rev. Boyd Vincent, p E. Bishop; so.
Ohio.
The dweller in the country is brought
more constantly face to face with God in
nature than the dweller in town can ever
be. "In the cities said Sydney Smith,
''all is mans work apparently-we see
only Caesar and his power. In the ooun-
try Gods hand is seen oftener, and closed
too" The townsman's business leads him
to deal chiefly with secondary causes.
His own human shrewdness and skill are
the things he constantly depends on for
success; so that he comes finally to feel
as If all his own comfort and happiness
depended on himself. In the markets and
in his Office, he handles by the wholesale
all the great natural food products, cloth
ing, and the materials of wood and stone
out of which houses are builded. They
all mean to him only so many thousands
of dollars. In his business mind and pro-
cesses God is left out on the account al
together. OF course, If he were to stop
and think back little, he would see that
he could not put even bite of bread into
his own mouth unless God had first
caused the seed to spring and the wheat
and corn 10 grow. He couldn't put a
coat on his back or that of his children If
God had not first created the sheep with
the wool on It's back. He couldn't put
shoes on his feet except for the hide of
the cattle nor build his house unless God
had first provided the forest and the stone
quarries. So with ali the PHILOSOPHERS and
science with which the city dweller is so
much occupied.
The dweller in the country, If he is
thoughtful and earnest man at all. is
devoutly re igious man. He lives face to
face with God in Gods di ect work in ma
ture. He sees God as TIE primary cause
of all those things which sus "a n human
and animal life and which make the
world beautiful. All these facts appeal
directly to his own primary instincts of
truth they GO to his heart as well as
his head; and he does not have to so
through a long, roundabout process of
| reasoning to get to the right conclusion.
The farmers Sunday, If he is a relig-
ious man at all, is better Sunday than
the city mans. 1t is more completely the
Lords day. In the city even on Sunday,
the business houses, If they are not open,
are still forever before your. eyes, sug-
costing mans business and not 1.-THE Fa-
theirs bus ness" Streets are crowded with
people; street cars and railroad trains
are RUNNING; saloons and theaters and
dance halls and billiard halls are VIDE
open; baseball or football glmes, horse
races and prize fights go on; men must
have their Sunday business letters. No
wonder the city man has to fight hard
to keep his religion, and, above all, the
Lords day, as he ought to. But the far
rner. even the m 81 worldly, se'd m thi ks
OF working on Sunday after the neces-
sary chores are done. Other things viii
let him alone If he viii let them alone
He can go to church il he wants to. And
when he gets there, he hears a simple
sermon which he can understand, takes
follow. meets only familiar friends and
ne'ghbors instead Of a lot of utter
strangers. get some good in this way out
or the service: and If he has to talk a
bit outside, after church, it is still about
weather ard crops and stock, with viii b
God has still something to do
Thank God. then, If you are a Chris
tan at all. that you are also a farmer.
and have about you all the time these
constant appeals TO your religious sensi-
bility. This makes it all the easier for
you to be Christian and to stay one.