The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-09-26


then, Nearer, my God. to thee"
Passes On to BE at Rest.
So. nesting nearer to his God. he
the dark shores of the sea of death for
time, and then passed on to be at rest.
His great heart had ceased to beat. Our
hearts are heavy with sorrow.
"A voice is heard on earth Of kinfolk
weeping
The loss of one they love;
But he has gone where the redeemed are
keeping
A festival above.
The rAourners throng the ways and from
the steeple
The funeral bells toll slow;
But on the golden streets the holy peo-
pie
Are passing to and fro.
"And saying as they meet Rejoice,
another
Long waited for is come
The Savior's heart is glad, a younger
brother
Has reached the Fathers home"
The cause Of this universal mourning
is to be found in the man himself The
inspired penman'S picture of Jonathan
likening him unto the Beauty of Is
rael," could not be more appropriately
employed than in chanting the lament Of
our fallen chieftain. 1t does no violence
to human speech, nor is it fulsome eulogy
ITO speak thus of him, for who that has
seen his stately bearing, his grace and
,manliness of demeanor, his kindness of
aspect but gives assent to this descrip-
ton of him?
Loved by All Who Knew Him.
"a
President that men met him only to love
him. They might, indeed, differ with him,
but in the presence Of such dignity of
character and grace of manner none could
fail to love the man. The people con-
fided in him, believed in him. 1t was said
of Lincoln that probably no man since
the days of Washington was ever so
deeply embedded and enshrined in the
hearts of the people, but it is true of
Mckinley in larger sense. Industrial
and social conditions are such that he
was, even more than his predecessors.
the friend of the whole people A touch
ing scene was enacted in this church last
Sunday night. The services had closed.
The worshipers were gone to their homes.
Only few fingered TO discuss Tie sad
event that brings US together today.
Three men of a foreign race and unfa-
milfar tongue, and clad in working garb.
entered the ROOM They approached the
altdr, Kneelng De1Ore IT and before the
dead mans picture. Their lips moved as
if in prayer, while tears furrowed their
cheeks. They may have been thinking
of their own King Humbert and of his
untimely death. Their emotion was elo-
quent. eloquent beyond speech, and it bore
testimony to their appreciation Of man
ly friendship and of honest worth.
Soul Clean and Hands Unsullied.
It is glorious thing to be able to say
in this presence, with our illustrious dead
before us, that he never betrayed the
confidence of his countrymen Not for
personal gain or pre-eminence would he
mar the beauty of his soul. He kept it
clean and white before God and man.
and his hands were unsullied by brides.
His eyes looked right on and his eye
lids looked straight before him." He was
sincere, plain and honest, just, benevo-
lent and kind. He never disappointed
those who believed in him, but meas
ured up to every duty and met every re-
sponsibility in life grandly and unf1inch-
lngly. Not only was our President brave,
heroic and honest; he was as gallant a
knight as ever rode the lists for his lady
love in the days when knighthood was in
flower. It is but a few weeks since the
nation looked on with tear-dimmed eyes