Milford chronicle., 1901-12-27

herds heard the first two bars of the mu-
sic, the first in the major key and the !
last in the subdued minor, "Glory to God /
in the highest and on earth peace, good |
will to men," All, yes, the fields were !
honored.
Following the Shepherds.
The old shepherds, with plaid and /
crook, have for the most part vanished, /
but we have grazing on our United States
pasture fields and prairie about 42,00O,- |
GOO sheep, and all their keepers ought to |
follow the shepherds of my text and all |
these who toll in fields-all vine dressers, |
all Orchardists, all husbandmen. Not only !
that Christmas night, bat all up and |
down the worlds history, God has been
hOnOring the fields. Nearly all the mes
siahs of reform and literature and elo-
quence and law and benevolence have
come from the fields Washington from
the fields. jefferson from the fields. The
presidential martyrs. Garfield and Lin
coin and Mckinley, from the fields. Hen
ry Clay from the fields. Daniel Webster
from the fields. Martin Luther from the
fields. Before this world is right the
overlooking populations of our crowded
cities will have to take to the fields In
stead of ten merchants in rivalry as to
who shall sell that one apple we want at
least eight Of them to go out and raise
apples. Instead of ten merchants desir-
ing to sell that one bushel of wheat we
want at least eight of them to so out and
raise wheat. The world wants now more
hard hands, more bronzcd cheeks, more
muscular arms. To the fields! God hon
ored them when he woke up the shcp-
herds by the midnight anthem, and he
will while the world lasts continue to
honor the fields. When the shepherds
crook was that famous night stood
against the wall of the Bethlehem khan.
It was a prophecy of the time when
thrasher's aail and farmers plow and
woodlands ak and Ox's yoke and shCaf
binders rake shall surrender to the God
who made the country as man made the
town.
Behold also that on that Christmas
night God hOnored motherhood. Two an
gels on their wings might have brought
an infant Saviour to Bethlehem without
Aary's being there at all. When the vii
| layers on the morning of Dec. &c awoke,
by divine arrangement and in some uneX-
planned way the child Jesus might have
| been found in some comfortable cradle of
the village. But no. no! Motherhood for
| all time was to be consecrated, and one of
| the tenderest relations was to be the ma
ternal relation and one of the sweetest
words mother" In all ages God has
honored good motherhood. John Wesley
| had a good mother. ST. Bernard had
| good mother Samuel Budget a good
mother, Doddridge a good mother, Wal
ter Scott a good mother. Benjamin West
a good mother. In great audience, most
| Of rrlf,f Z I
! those who had been blessed of Christian
mothers arise. and almost the entire as
sembly stood up. Do you not see how i'm
portant it is that all motherhood be CON
secrated? Why did Titan, the Italian
artist. when he sketched the Madonna
make it an Italian face? Why did Ru-
bens, the German artist, in his Madonna
make it a German face? Why did Joshua
Reynolds, the English artist, in his Ma
donna make it an English face? Why did
Murillo, the Spanish artist, in his Madon-
ma make it a Spanish face? | never
heard, but think they took their own
mothers as the type of Mary. the mother
of Christ. When you hear some one in
sermon or grafton speak in the abstract
Of a good, faithful, honest mother, your
eyes fill up with tears. while you say to
yourself, THAT was my mother"
The influence of Mother.
The first word child utters is apt &c
be "Mother!" and the old man in his dy.
ing dream calls, "Mother, motherr' L
matters not whether she was brought III
in the surroundings of a city and in af
fluent home and was dressed appropriate
~ with reference to the demands of mod
ern life or whether she wore the old tim
cap and great round spectacles and aprol
of her own make and knit your sock
with her own needles seated by tn
broad fireplace, with great backlo
ablaze, on a winters night; it matter
not how many wrinkles crossed and rC
crossed her face or how much her shou
ders stopped with the burdens of lon
life, if you painted a Madonna her
would be the face. What Il gentle han
she had when we were sick and what
voice to socthe pain, and was there an
one who could so fill up a room wit
peace and purity and light? And what
sad day that was when we came hon
and she could greet us not, for her liz
were forever still. Come back, mother,
these Christmas times and take your oil
place and as ten or twenty or fifty yeal
ago come and open the old Bible as yO
used to, read and kneel in the same plaC
where you used to pray and look upo
us as of old when you wished us merI
Christmas or a happy New Year. 81
mol That would not be fair to call yC
back. You had troubles enough and ach,
enough and bereavements enough viii
you were here. larry by the thron
mother, till we join you there, your pra
ers all answered, and in the eternal HON
stead Of our God we shall again ket
Christmas jubilee together. But spei
from your thrones, all you glorifed mot
ers, and say to all these, your sons al
daughters, words of love. words of war
ing, words of cheer. They need 20
voice, for they have Travelled far al
with many a heartbreak since you le
them, and you do well to call from t
heights of heaven to the valleys of cart
Hail, enthroned ancestry! We are col
ing. Keep a place right beside you at t
banquet.
Slow footed yearsl More swiftly run
Into the gold Of that unsetting sun.
Homesck we are for thee,
Calm land beyond the sea.