Milford chronicle., 1902-11-28

not dlsU Dldce d pIlCclGSS NdAOG ulOu |
their spiritual welfare? How much ]
we value them few of us realize until
we are brought face to face with the
sore trial of parting from them. I used
to consider myself Il poor man financial
" until a few years ago. l never do so
now after the following experience: I
had been visiting my mother in the east
and was returning with my wife and
little daughter to my Pittsburg home.
Being very tired from overwork, lay
down in the cars to sleep. Meanwhile
nv little baby daughter began to smile
and nod her head at a stern faced man
reading across the aisle. She held out
her hands for him to take her. After
awhile his face lighted up with an an
swering smile. He took the baby on
his lap and played with her hour after
hour. AS we neared the Smoky City
this stern faced man came to me and |.
said: young man, l do not know who
YOU are but here is my card. am one
of the wealthiest men in Milwaukee. l
have everything that money can buy, |
but | have a home without any chill
dren. Young man, you can thank God /
that you have family. And if you |
are willing to give me this baby and /
let me adopt her l viii give you GER !
tilted check for $4,000, and she shall |
be my daughter and inherit all that
have" OF course l refused the offer.
| told that man there was not enough
money in all the treasury of the United
States to buy my flesh and blood, and,
though you may laugh when | talk
about my $4,000 baby, yet | am not
putting any higher valuation upon the
physical lives Of any one of my chill
dren than every father sitting before
me today would upon his. If we par
ents thus place so high our physical
/ valuation of our children, shall we not
also place just as high the spiritual val
| uation? Like the pilgrim fathers of old,
| shall we not rejoice this coming Thanks
! giving day because our children are
not only living in Christian homes, but
also in Christian neighborhoods and
| under the shadow of the spires Of
| Christian churches? Shall we not re
iOice because on account of being born
in Christian land they may the more
easily learn to love Christ? Shall we
not rejoice that on account Of their
spiritual advantages after their lifes
work is done they will associate with
us in the great harvest home, where an
eternal Thanksgiving day shall be spent
in the green pastures and by the still
waters of heaven?
The Hope of Meeting Loved Ones.
The pilgrim fathers rejoiced in the
hope that they should soon be reunited
with their loved ones who were left
, behind in Leyden. The whole COM
munity of pilgrims which in 1910 set
tied in Leyden did not cross the Allan
tic in 1920, as many people suppose.
No Only a small part-120 men, wOm-
en- and children-came first. The vast
D majority of that community remained
= behind. And so these American pill
L grims on Plymouth's first Thanksgiv
ing day were living in the hope tha
John Robinson and the absent mem
, bers of his spiritual flock would sOOI
u be by their side. They did not theI
know that death would first claim
i their beloved pastor and that his bone
u would be buried in the little church
= yard which his preaching has mad
e world famous and which is today tn
p Mecca of many a pilgrim. They di'
, not realize that most of their earthl.
friends would never meet beside tn
y waters Of the new world But the
ut did know, and they rejoiced in TIN
er knowledge, that, whether at the foo
I'd of Plymouth rock or at the foot of tn
d. great white tbrone of God, they wOul'
I'll meet again. and if they did not NEE
h. again until they were reunited in tina
'r. better land, then they would Their
OF meet to part no more.
m My friends, cannot we rejoice in tn
of hope that we are some day going
a meet our redeemed loved ones? Ca
:" we not rejoice that when we NEE
I'D them we shall part 10 more? Thanks
1ly giving day without this blessed beliC
ice would be to us a meaningless festiv;
In and would be robbed of its chiefs
ty- joy. The young people may look 70
be- ward gladly to the autumnal queen
Ter American festivals as a holiday fro
i'm school, day for a football match,
are day when they can eat big turk,
Ike dinner, but most of us will think
rly Thanksgiving dinner as a day for V
TX cant chairs-a day when we would
les willing to give all we owned if '
the could only bring back some who ha
lgs forever gone from our side
Ind But with the comfort of the bless
Ia gospel how our sorrows can be turn
ore TO joy! Mother, father, brother sist
Nd husband, wife and child, shall
ooI never, never meet you again? ~
tI1o yes" answer the pilgrim fathers. Z"
oos the sacred book which we read
var morning of the bright autumnal d
,,.o when we celebrated PlymOuth's fl
- Thanksgiving day we can prove
&c BY the hope with which we par
? &c from our dear ones as we set sail Fl
,,,- Hollands shores we would tell I'll
troubled hearts of 1902, we shall
yea ALL meet again."
,se Can we prove that we shall all n
rom our loved ones in heaven by a BET
,io,,, way than the source from which
oTd pilgrim fathers gathered their hope
n nta ! Il lllGl reunion Will luGlE uDSGnL
Iino bred? Upon the bold, bluff heig
for overlooking Plymouth harbor Al
as lean patriotism has erected a colo
lem statue commemorative of the he
ohm deeds of these first great ancest
beir At the base of the pedestal rest
nil. figures. These symbolic freedom
, for education and law and morality.
on these four figures though beautiful
q Of themselves. are all sitting at the
+ nj of a gigantic statue called Faith. T
sons Faith stands in midwinter. not
wav overlooking the surging, angry wa
bers Of the mighty deep, but also the
lifts lowed graves of the mighty men W
rried principles laid the foundation of
for nation. There the pilgrims
reion stands. with the opened Bible in
es to hard and with the other hand pOiI
order upward to where the spirits of
from mighty and the redeemed pilgrim
.cnm. theirs have passed to their reward
roll at the foot of that mighty statu
tbars Faith with open Bible may we a
I'd of joice in the confident assurance
their our Thanksgiving chairs at the ia
tbis gathering shall not always remain
nlxfl,l cant-that we shall all be togeth
land the heavenly reunion.
With Thanksgiving n Home Day
wa But while studying the histoT