River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1902-10-30
Funeral of Arthur j. Gunnison.

The funeral was held from the Con-
gregational church in this city,
Wednesday afternoon, Oct. %, Rev.
d. B. Spencer officiating, assisted
by Rev. Mr.. Phelps of Monticello.
| Following is portion of the re-
marks of Mr.. Spencer on the occa-
sion:
1--WE stand at this hour in the
presence of an inscrutable provi-
dence of our God. The question
upon all our hearts is the same:
Why was this life, SO full of useful
ness removed, while others, which
we would hardly miss, are spared?'
Here was a life so much needed in
the place where he was. Are lives
like these so abundant that they
can be sacrificed? These questions
of our aching hearts we cannot an
swer. We will not try. They enter
into the mysteries of Gods wisdom
and love. These questions are be-
yond us now, because they concern
Gods plan and Gods way. AS
the heavens, are high above the earth
SO are Gods thoughts higher than
our thoughts and his ways higher
than our ways There must be
mysteries in Gods ways because
they are Gods ways, and we are
only children. We cannot grasp
his sweeping thought. SO it is
that his love must seem like cruelty
sometimes and his wise ways like
wanton waste, and we be bewilder-
ed as little children often are at the
course of their parents, when those
parents are acting only in their wis
est love.
And yet dear friends we would not
have it otherwise. We would not
have love of God so shallow that
we could fathom it. We would not
have our Father shrink his plan un-
til it was small enough that our
understanding could grasp it. We
do not want the universe reduced to
our comprehension. We want to
think that far beyond our reason
the infinite reaches of Divine wis
dom extend. And that there is a
love, which encompasses us now,
that will require eternity to explore.
And SO to-day we will not try to
think or understand, but pillow our
hearts in our faith, and say to our
questioning minds, He knows, He
knows"
If we cannot understand, we are
not bereft of comfort. There is
comfort in this assurance of love;
in the conviction that somehow this
Is progress and promotion for our
cherished ones. And may this COM
fort of God abound for these wound
ed hearts, is our earnest prayer.
There is comfort also in the pre-
cious memory, which remains in the
home, the school, the church and in
the hearts where this manly life has
come. | was attracted to Arthur
Gunnison from the first / loved
this man. l feel to-day personally
bereaved. | loved to look into those
handsome eyes of his, because such
a manly soul was lurking there. In
all that | saw of him he was the in
carnation of manliness, frankness
and cordial willingness to help. In
him were qualities which to me are
peculiarly attractive in a man.
There was no cant, no pretense, no
policy, no effeminacy.
The character of his religion APP
pealed to me. There was the same
manliness in his religion that there
was in his work. With the same
heartiness that was marked in his
athletics and sports he entered the
service of God. Religion, with him,
was nothing to be ashamed of;
nothing to be apologized for. To
serve God and do Christian work
was a matter of course with him.
He seemed to illustrate what most
profoundly believe-that the Chris
tian life is not only the right life,
but it is the manly, the wholesome,
and the normal life. Such was
Arthur Gunnison as | knew him.
He seemed to me the type of man
that is intensely needed, and need
ed in our schools and class rooms,
where boys and girls are having
their characters formed. We need
teachers to-day who not only have
education, but who have character.
/ feel like congratulating to-day
those agencies-the home, the
school, the church and all others
which contributed to the making of
this man. We bless God to-day for
the lives that he has touched and
inspired with the motives which
governed in his own life. We thank
him too for the privilege of this
memory which to US seems all
Oh