Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1903-05-26

hair is growing gray, our time is COM
ing soon. There are some OF us mere
today who will not be here another
year. There are some absent today
who were with you last year but who
will never meet with you again.
Our Battle Not Vet Ended.
But the battle for us is not ended
yet. Our day is not yet done. God is
keeping us here just little longer for
some good purpose of his own. The
thought of "A Good Soldier" which |
have taken as theme suggests many
things.
Must be Cause.
When the call went out in 81 there
was cause for which you were call
ed to battle. Is there not today a
cause, a great, grander cause which is
sending forth an impressive call for
us to come and take our places on the
firing line?
Must Believe in the Cause.
To be good soldier man must be-
lieve in his cause. A man who was
safe to be put on the outpost as pick
ct was the man who was a volunteer
in the cause for which he fought. In
Christ's army there never was and new
er will be conscript. All must be
volunteers.
l doubt if there is man living today
who had the cool courage and the brav-
cry to stand UP in the firing line and
face death with the calm decision of
the tried and experienced soldier who
will stand up today and deny the Lord.
The good soldier makes good recruit
for the Lord, for he makes an ardent
believer.
You Must Enlist.
When you have enlisted you must
put on your uniform. Have you for
gotten how when you had enlisted and
had put on your uniform you went to
tell your mother good-by? There was
then no longer any chance of retrac-
ing your steps. TheVdie had been cast.
You had left youreoh occupation, had
taken the decisiveestep and were then
"a soldier. You kissed her good-by.
Have you forgotten?5
Must Learn to Obey.
The soldiers business is to obey,
that is the first thing to be learned. 1t
was not ours to reason why. If the
orders came to walk into the face of
certain death to take battery we
did it. If we were soldiers at all we
obeyed orders. That was imperative.
1t is the same in Christ's army. II is
our business to come out OF the world
and enlist in some division. some one
of his churches and obey orders. which
he has laid down for us and follow the
instructions of his ministers and
teachers.
A Good Soldier.
Many a night have you walked youl
post, tired, sleepy, hungry, wet. long
ing to see your home, your wife and
loved ones. All this you must do il
YOU would be a good soldier and obey
orders.
You Expect to Fight.
When you enlist you expect to go tc
battle. When you go to the front you
expect to fight. 1t is one of the hard
est things on earth to stand under
fire and not return the fire. 1t is hare
too, to advance upon column which is
holding it's fire. You feel that you are
advancing into the very jaws of death
You know that they are going to oper
upon you soon and that there will be
something coming.
We Have Battle in Our Hearts.
In the days to come our boys and
our girls from the north and the soutr
will sit together and say our fathers
fought it out, let us take up the ole
flag and carry it on to the most hon
orable and important position in the
world. We each of us have our owl
battles in our own hearts and homes
| have my wife and family. 1t is YOU
task to guard your home for there is
no one else to do it, Let us close III
the gambling dens and the saloons, fol
that alone is safety. You need to drive
them out of your city. / know no Sc
of men to whom | would more gladl.
| trust this matter than to the old sol
diers who fought in your great bat
| ties.
Food for the Tired and Hungry.
shall never forget the day that the
| great heavily laden commissary wag
ons Of General Grant came bringing
| food and supplies to the conquered al
| my which for days, hungry and tirec
had been marching and fighting
against him. He was following no
only the customary law of nations, blu
the promptings and the teachings o
Jesus Christ and the Christion re
| ligion.
1t is noble to fight for ones country
but is it not equally as noble to figh
for ones home and for the influence!
that keep it pure and sweet and safe?
Four Brothers in Service. l
There were four of my brothers il
the confederate army. When left Al
pomattox with my parole in my poke
| l, was two days late. All of them al
rived home before me and they hal
1 given me up as lost. They believe
| / had been killed in the terrible bat
4 ties that had preceded the surrender
can never forget the joy there wa
when appeared. How they all cam
4 running to meet me. How they threw
their arms around me and kissed me