The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1902-05-30
..OUR NATION.
Theme for the Annual Memorial
Sermon.
Impressive Sermon Preached Last
Evening by Rev. Geo. W. Davis
at Presbyterian Church.

The annual memorial services for
the dead soldiers of the nation were
held at the Presbyterian church Sunday
evening. The altar was appropriately
decorated with flags, bunting and
flowers.
Alexander Wilkin post, @. A. R.,
the veterans of the Spanish American
war, etc., were present, occupying a
part of the church that had been re-
served for them.
The exercises were particularly inn
pressive. The music was excellent. The
hymns sung were America, "Ware-
ham,, and "Battle Hymn of the Re-
public.
Rev. Geo. Davis, Phi. D., preached
the sermon, which was one of great
merit, and was listened to with deep
interest by the large congregation
present He took as his theme, "Our
Nation, and his text Psalm 80 IA,
10.
There is no more valuable habit OF
the human mind, said DR.. Davis,
than that of reflection, of psusing
amid the ceaseless rush of life, to
mediate upon the great movements of
history past or present; to determine
whether we are drifting idly at the
mercy of every wind or whether we
are using our knowledge of naviga-
ton to reach desired haven. And so
in the quietness of this evening hour
there comes to as from the great white
throne this Injunction: ''Be still and
know that / am God, consider your
ways, interpret all things in the light
of my sovereign activity for complete
social redemption. With the sole
desire therefore that our citizenship
may be more enthusiastic and more
Christian, let us, like Moses before the
burning bush, turn aside and see this
great sight" of our national history.
Have you ever considered the educa-
tional value of great crises2 When
two nations resort to the arbitrament
of the sword, when labor is in revolt
against capital, when revolution lifts
to arm against constituted authority !:
these are all essentially conflicts of
moral forces. They take us behind the
visible and tangible to those deep ever
operative laws which control historic
movements The Crusades took the
thousands who followed the banner of
the Holy Cross away from their little
horizons to the vast regions of the
Orient where they found treasures of
learning and civilization far superior
to their own. The Magma Charta and
Petition of rights and Bill of Rights
the three great corner stones of English
liberty-became educational docu-
ments for the nation at large.
The American revolution not only
gave birth to nation, but to the
"Federalist'' one of the finest COM
ponds of political wisdom and text
book for the generations following. 1t
was so in the anti-slavery discussions,
in the Bimetslism controversy and in
certain questions of International i'm
port.
Have you also considered the grand
eur of the idea of national lifef 1t is
Gods largest and most august insti-
tuition for the development of the race.
AS Aristotle said, "Man has social
instinct planted in him by nature. -
He cannot live alone, he must live
in social groups. AS social being
he has rights and owes duties Secur-
ing to him the first and compelling
him to perform the second constitute
the maintenance of justice. But since
men, if left to themselves, will not
do Justice, there must be some author
ity to enforce it. Hence the origin OF
government. All through the ages
men have been struggling to attain
an ideal form that shall come nearest
to terms of pure justice, and he has
been largely successful. We are gradu-
ally RELOCATING the gorgeous trappings
of despotic power to the lumber room
of dead past. The present age il
distinguished as the reign of the com.
mon people and the most dominant
political axiom is that all power re-
sides in them and all authority il
delegated by them.
1 believe that in these United States
we have reached the highest point o.
political development yet attained by
the mind of man. The fathers of oul
constitution had the immense advan
tage of starting with those three grea
pillar stones of Angle Saxon liberty
l have mentioned. Guided by the
star of wisdom and animated by the
love of justice they were allie to frame
a document which is not only an OBJ
iect of world wide admiration but {
mighty shield for those who seek {
home of liberty.
It cost seven years of war, however
but the spirit of those who had tough
similar battles across the seas swellet
in the breasts of the stout-hearte(
colonist and never did Washington ant
his compatriots doubt the issue. Afte
80 years the integrity of this nation
was threatened Secession raised it
head and Kissed Rebellion. Oh