Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1903-11-19


that discourtesy toward others almost
invariably has a rcactonary effect. The
person weio complains most about
the rudeness Of others is generally the
one who himself is rudest of all Some
/ time ago I was riding in Pittsburg
street car. An aged colored man enter
/ cd His hair was as white as was that
of Frederick Douglass just before his
death. The car started ahead and near
ly flung the old man upon his face. |
rose and beckoned to him to come and
| takc my seat All the way down the
aisle he kept grumbling and grumbling.
Even after he was seated he kept on
complaining about the people mot be
/ ing willing TO give an old man n seat"
At last l lost my patience. | leaned
forward and said: Friend, these pas
sengers may have done wrong in not
arising to give you seat. They may
have been impolite and discourteous.
But did you ever stop to think that
You yourself were even more discour-
tcous than they? When l rose to give
you my seat you were not enough Of
a gentleman TO say THANK YOU for
it," So everywhere we can find that
the people who most complain about
the discourtesy of others are apt. like
the old black man, to be Just as dis
courteous themselves. If there is this
sin breeding mote of impoliteness in
the eyes of our brothers, let us be sure
that we have not the larger sinful
beam in our own.
Avoid Appearance of Evil.
Small essential the next: The absti-
hence from all appearance of evil. The
taking care of your lifc's actions so
that they may never be false lights
Turing your neighbors and friends upon
the fatal rocks of sin. The refusal TO
eat meat, if by the eating you may
cause your brother to offend. "All
things may be lawful. but all things
are not expedient," was the substance
of the Pauline injunction to the CO.
rinthian church. TO seem" may some
times he almost as great a sin as ito
be-" Mark you this: No man can af
ford in any way to have his influence
cast upon the wrong side of any moral
question. Nearly all our great religious
teachers have recognized this truth
We must abstain from all appearance
Of evil on account of our influence over
others. We must abstain from all APP
pearance Of evil on account also of
the reactionary evil influence upon our
selves. One of the greatest buwarks
against sin is the God impla nted desire
to be thought well of by your neigh
bors. A man, on account of principle.
ought to be ready, If necessary, to defy
the scorn and the sheer and the OPP
probrum and the persecution and the
Misrepresentation and the ridicule of
the human race. But every man may
desire that his neighbors and friends
think well of him; that they should re
gard his name as the synonym of hon.
esty and truth and probity and recti-
tude. And when any man comes to
the dangerous condition in which he
does not care what his neighbors think
about him; when he Intentionally and
recklessly stirs up hornets nest of
needless criticism when he tauntngly
boasts that it does not matter what 9th
ers may say, as long as he is not doing
wrong. then that mans feet are tread
ing the soft quicksands of temptation
and walking along the narrow edge of
the precipice of death.
Keep engagements.
Ny sister be careful about the char
acter of YOUR associates. My brother,
you who are an officer or a member of
the Christian church, l would not at
tend the thcater again You may say
you saw nothing wrong. You may say
You need the relaxation But you can
find that relaxation in some other way.
You cannot afford the risk Young
man. | would take down that seminude
picture from your wall. You may say
It causes no evil thought in your mind.
You may argue that the nude in art
IS Just as essential for true beauty as
the nude in the dissccting room is es-
scntia for the development of sur
gerry. But you cannot afford the risk.
Abstain from all appearances of evil.
Perhaps you think this my own per-
sonal thought 1t is not. Read l
Thessalonians V, %, Abstain from all
Nnarance of evil" It is the apostolic
command.
Small essential the last The inexo-
rable duty OF keeping an engagement.
The necessity Of doing what you prom
Use TO do If you say TO a friend. Il
will meet you at such and such a place,
nj such and such time you should
be there. You should be there Just rs
certainly as you would be down Mt the
ships dock on time when it is about to
sail for Europe, and when you have
purchased a 500 berth for the pas
sage. II you cannot he on time, ac-
cording TO promise, for your engage
mcnt. then you should notify the per-
son with whom you have the appoint
ment. But the great trouble with
many people is that they have no NOR
al sense Of the duty of keeping an en-
gagement unless they wish TO do so.
They will promise anything, like n dis
honest politician just before an cleo
ton, and like the same dishonest poll
ticlan after election they will forget
all their promises if it suits their con
vcniencc TO forget. The result is that
the mans character and religious life
will be eaten out by these little fail
ures and sins, just as one little worm
% n nj to-. h., .