The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-12-13

anothers positions. The brother living In the country hears that his city brother has a yearly income Of sso10, He wants to borrow few hundred dollars to help stock the farm. Th9 city brother may write back that he cannot afford to lend any money, The country brother cannot believe that a relative having s5,000 in- come could not lend him a few paltry hundred dollars. But the city brother who receives a salary of $5,000 may be having just as hard time to make ends meet as his country brother. Some time ago I asked a brother minister of large city church how he liked his present field. .Well,' he said, "of course l ought to be happy on account of its opportunities for usefulness but. to tell the truth. I liked my country field far better and I think had there a larger net income My pres ent church gives me 500O year. With it have to live in 8 fine house. dress we'll and have my family dress we'll When the year rolls ronnd I have practically nothing But in the country, though l had only a small salary, l also had very small expenses. Besides, l had my gar den, my horse and carriage, my COW and chickens l had fun with them all, and at the end of the year I was able to save s3O6 I tell you, the country minister thinks the city minister is rich, but the city minister knows the country minister is rich" The man in the sphere of life can rarely appreciate the financial condi- tlons of one in another sphere of life.
 Study the misunderstanding between the professional man and his sister, who is living a quiet domestic life. Such lady says My brother never answers my letters now as he used to do. He never shows me those little courtesies of love have a right to expect. The last time I wrote him he sent me back a very sharp reply" Yes, my sister. perhaps that Is all true But the reason you are angry with your brother is, you, as domestic woman, cannot understand the nervous exhaustion under which your professional brother is struggling. Perhaps the reason he does not answer his sisters letters as he used to do is because he is a clergy man, a lawyer or a newspaper man. Day after day he sits and writes and writes and writes. The pen Is always In his hand until the very sight of ink and paper has for him a repulsion. Perhaps the reason the brother does not visit the sister is because he has been unable to take a vacation for the last ten years Your difficulties with your brother are chiefly, my sister, because you cannot put yourself in his place.
 Fancied lnjustices.
 Oh. that this coming Christmas we
  to our brothers spectaclesi Then great many of the family troubles would for ever vanish from our darkened horizon The man who travels about this planet with such a Christian spirit and goes from house to house-from the palace or the rich to the hovel of the poor, from the sumptuous private office of the merchant prince to the counters of the small sal aried elerk-soon discovers that this world is not altogether mean world, a selfish world discouraged world a misunderstood world. If every member or family who has bitter troubles and trials could realize that his brothers and sisters along the great highways of life l are struggling under burdens quite as l heavy as his own--although their burdens l may be made up in different kinds Of 1 packs and have silken cords around them l instead of hempen rope-he would be more patient in his criticism of others, l as he may hope that others Will judge l him more charitably. Most of the seem- ing insults by relatives to relatives are 1 entirely unintentional As every man | hopes for mercy and pardon in the day l of Judgement so there should be forgive ness for one who offends another through inadvertence and not through in- | tention. The fancied injustices between | relatives exist for the most part in the l distorted imaginations of those who nave no right to indulge in un-Christian ana merciless judgments of relatives who real l ly want to be friends.
 Christmas Reconcliations.
 Family dissensions should cease and im-