The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1903-05-29
q GREET SERMON.


the finest sermons ever delivered in
this city.
Every seat in the church as well as
in the annex was occupied, showing
the popular interest in the cause of
education and the admiration for the
distinguished divine.
Mr.. Little took for his text / Thes.
) :2i, Prove all things; hold fast that
which is good"
Mr.. Little said that although utter
ed over two thousand years ago, the
above il a twentieth century sentence,
That st. Paul was a scholar That
he was a pupil under CANA
lel, the most celebrated Rabbi
of that era and that the
training he received taught him
what education always teaches-'tO
prove all things" That with the
application of this text the great
world movements have been accom-
plished.
That a school boy sitting in the
kitchen of an humble cottage home,
observing the steam issue from an
ordinary kettle, applied the test of
st. Paul to il and the steam engine,
with all its vast accomplishments, was
given to the world. That Columbus,
applying this test to the theory that
| the earth was round, added to our
geography America, with its great
activities and achievements.
The speaker said that we are
only upon the threshold of our
achievements and much remains yet
in the realm of science, invention and
morality for the scholar to discover.
That our crowded cities heed better
7 sanitation, purer air and water and
better food and along these lines there
are vast opportunities for the scholar
and il il not uncertain that the public
school of Ocala would give To the
world i'm some of these lines Of thought
Watt or a Columbus.
Mr.. Little said that he had been a
student in the free schools of England
and had personal cOynizance of the
school system OF Germany and other
| European countries, yet in her COM
mon school movement, the United
States excels all other countries of the
world.
He paid high tribute to the Ocala
teachers and said that the citizenship
of Ocala should hold up their hands
with sympathy and encouragement.
for the future Of America would he
just what the pupils of today in the
| public schools would make it.
Along moral and religions lines,
Mr. Little grew profound and elo-
quent.
He said thot no one has the right TO
say that this is a wicked old world.
That it il GODS creation and He pro-
nounced it not only good but very
! good, and, said the preacher, cit is
| good tOdavm That the ideals Of men
are as high and the standard Of NOR
atty as great as at any epoch in its
| history. That man does not have
to die to obtain heaven. That heaven
is here on earth and it is possible for
every man to make heaven in bis
home and in his community by the
example of his life.
Mr. Little's sermon was embelli-hed
with many incidents beautifully il
Illustrating the moral lessons he in
tended to impress upon his cOngrega-
ton. One was the story of Ethan
Allen, that rugged figure of the revo-
lutionary war, who though a patriot
and soldier, was a dOubter but
whose wife was a sanity follower of
the Man Of Galilee. When he was
dying his daughter placed her arms
around his neck and asked him il
in religion she should be follower OF
him or her mother he told her to fol.
low her mother. That in that reply
the gates of heaven were opened to
; / IAAl anu lllC Oiu Solttlcl was ClOlLlcO
in a white robe.
A short sketch like this hardly
family pOrtrays the line CT thought
pursued by this eloquent preacher
who for nearly an hour held the
closest attention of his large cOngrega.
ton and the verdict was unanimou:
that it was a great, mastery and mag
nificent effort.
We have heard a great many
: preachers in our time-Pierce, Weight
I man, Kavanaugh, Fitzgerald, Gallo
[ way, Gambler, Young, Weed, Nerot
Moore, Gray and Others, but We have
never heard any superior to the Rev
| Henry w. Little or one whose efiec
was more pleasing or profound.
He coined great thoughts into TIN
: most simple yet the most beautiful
language.
a Startling Test.