Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1901-01-09

neat uuHdlkhs sNEafSszAABli ANAiSNe aAN
declares. that tie oiitiapS is. most inspir-
ing text, II Samuel xiii, 4, "A morn
ing without clouds III 1
What do Seue Xret II dfthis new cen
tury?" is thesIuesti6n gften asked Of me,
and many Others have heen Piled with
the same inqaitys 81 the realm of inven-
ton | expect sslisef ling as startling as
the telegraphsa and the telephone and the
X ray. In thR real ii nfe fseetFy / expect
as great poetssa IN 4(seg fellsE and .Tenny
son. In the featni 81 sae9 s.fns lseypect
the cure of cerSan&icens iiinidion. In
the realm Of religion Isexpect more than
one ] entecost like that of 1851. when
100000 souls pHofessed 10 have been con
verfed. | expect that universal peace
viii reign aud that before the arrival of
Il two thousandth year gnnpowder will
be out Of use EXCEPT for blasting rocks or
pyr2technic entertainment. l expect that
before this new century has expired the
millennium viii be fully inaugurated.
The twentieth century will be as much an
improvement on the nineteenth century
as the nineteenth century was an i'm
provement on the eighteenth. But the
conventional length of sernonic discourse
will allow US only time for one hopeful
consideration, and that Will be the re-
demption of the cities.
Pulpit and printing press for the most
part in our day are busy in discussing the
condition Of the cities at this. time, but
would it not be BEAUTIFULLY encouraging
TO all Christian workers and TO all who
are telling to make the world better if
we should this morning for little while
look forward to the time when orr cities
shall be revolutionized by the gospel of
the Son of God and all the darkness of
sin and trouble and crime and suffering
shall be gone from the sky and it shall
be "a morning without cloudsY'
Every man has pride in the city of his
nativity or residence, if it be city dis
tinguished for any dignity or proves.
Caesar boosted of his native Rome, Virgil
of Mantua, Lycurgus of Sparta, Demos
themes of Athens, Archimedes of SYRIA
cuse and Paul of Tarsus. l should have
suspicion of base heartedness in man
who had no especial interest in the city
of his birth or cesidence-no exhilaraion
at the evidence of its prosperity or its
artistic embellishments or its scientific
advancement.
Civic Pride CommendabIe.
l have noticed that a man never likes
city where he has not behaved we'll
People who have free ride in the prison
van never like the city that furnishes the
vehicle When find Argos and Rhodes
and Smyrna trying TO prove themselves
the birthplace of Homer, conclude right
away that Homer behaved well. He liked
them, and they liked him. We must not
war on laudable city pride or with the
idea of building ourselves up at any time
to try to pull others down. Boston must
continue to point to its Faneuil hall and
to its superior educational advantages.
Philadelphia must continue to point to
its Independence halt and its mint and
its Girard college. New York must CON
tinue to exult in its matchless harbor and
its vast population and its institutions of
mercy and its ever widening commerce.
Washington must continue to rejoice in
the fact that it is the most beautiful city
under the sun.
If should find a man coming from any
city having no pride in that city, that
city having been the place of his nativity
or now being the place of his residence,
would feel like asking him right away:
What mean thing have you been doing
been guilty of that you do not like the
placer
Every city is Influenced by the charac-
ter of the men who founded it. Romulus
impressed his life upon Rome The pill
grim fathers will never relax their grasp
from New England. William Penn left
legacy of fair dealing and integrity to
Philadelphia, and you can nov any dav,
on the streets OF that city, see his Gus
toms, his manners, his morals, his hat,
his wife's bonnet and his meeting house.
So the Hollanders, founding New York,
left their impression on all the following
generations. SO this capital of the nation
is a perpetual eulogy upon the Washing
ton who founded it.
| thank God for the place of our resi-
dence, and while there are thousand
things that ought to be corrected and
many wrongs that ought to be over
thrown, while thank God for the past
| look forward this morning to a glorious
future. / think we>oughtLaud / take II
for granted you are all Interested in this
great work of eyangelizing the cities and
saving the world-we ought 10 toll with
the sunlight in our faces. We are not
fighting in a miserable Bull Run of de-
feat. We are on the way to final victory
We are not following the rider on the
black horse, leading US down to death
and darkness and doom, but the rider on
the white horse, with the moon under his
feet and the stars of heaven for his tiara.
Hail, conqreror. hail.
Good overbaiances EviI.
| know there are sorrows and there are
sins and there are sufferings all around
about us, but as in some bitter cold win
ter day when we are thrashing our arms
around us to keep our thumbs from freez
ing we thiuk of the warm spring day
that win after awhile come. or in the
dark winter night we look up and we see
the northern lights, the windows Of heay-
en- illumined by some great victory. Just
so we look up from the night OF suffering
and sorrow and wretchedness in our
cities. aud we see light streaming
through from the other side. and we
know we are on the way TO morning
more than that, on the way to "a morn
ing without. clouds"
| want you TO understand. all you who
arc toiIing for Christ. that the castles Of
sin are all going 10 be captured. The
victory for Christ in these grea, towns Is
going 10 be 50 complete that not man
on earth or an angel IN heaven or dew!
in he'll viii dispute il. How do I know?
| know il just as certainly As God lives
and that this is holy truth The old Bible
is full of ii. The nation is 20 be saved Il
makes a great difference with you and