Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1904-04-02

A company OF soldiers from the tower
of Antonio is detailed to stand guard.
At the door of the mausoleum fight
takes places which decides the question
for all graveyards and cemeteries. Sword
of lightning against sword of steel. An
gel against military. No seal of letter
was ever more easily broken than that
seal Of the sanhedrin on the door of the
tomb. The dead body in the niche in
the rock begins to move in its shroud of
fine linen. slides down upon the pave
ment. moves ont of the portico. appears
in the doorway. advances into the open
air. comes up the marble steps. Hav-
ing left the mortuary attire behind Him.
He comes forth in workman's garb. as
take it. from the fact that the woman
mistook Him for the & ,rdencr.
That day the grave received such
shattering it can never he rebuilt. All
the trowels of earthly masonry can new
er mend it. Forever and forever il is IA
broken tomb. Death. taking side with
the military in that light. received a
terrible cut from the angels spear of
flame. so that he himself shall go down
after awhile under it, The king of ter
rors retiring before the King of grace.
The Lord is risen. Let Earth and heav-
en- keep Easter to day. Hosanna
Some things strike my observation
while standing in this garden with
new sepulcher. And, first, post mortcm
honors in contrast with ante mortcm
ignominies. If they could have afford
ed Christ such costly sepulchcr. why
could not they have given Him an earth
ly residence? Will they give this piece
of marble to dead Christ instead of IA
soft pillow for the living Jesus: II they
had expended half the value of that
tomb to make Christ comfortable, it
would not have been so sad story. He
asked bread; they gave Him stone.
Christ. like most of the worlds bene-
factors. was appreciated better after He
was dead. Westminster Abbey and
monumental Greenwood are the worlds
attempt to atone by honors to the dead
for wrongs to the living. Poets corner
in Westminster Abbey attempts to pay
for the sufferings of Grub street.
Go through that Poets corner in West
minister Abbey. There is Handel. the
great musician, from whose music You
hear to-day: but while look at this
statue cannot help but think of the
discords with which his fellow must
clans tried to destroy him. There is the
tomb of John Dryden, IA beautiful mon
umcnt; but cannot help but think at
seventy years of age he wrote of his be-
ing oppressed in fortune and of the con
sand verses at sixpcncc IA line. And
there, too, you find the monument Of
Samuel Butler. the author of "Hud.-
bras" but while look at this monu-
ment in Poets corner cannot but ask
myself where he died. In garnet.
There see the costly tablet in the Poets
corner the costly tablet to one of whom
the celebrated Waller wrote: 1.-The old
blind schoolmaster. John Milton, has
Just issued tedious poem on the fall of
man. II the length of il be- no virtue.
il has none" There is Il beautiful mon
ument TO Sheridan. Poor Sheridan. Ii
he could have only discounted that mon
ument for "A mutton chop,
Oh. you unfilial childr N. do not give
your parents so much tombstone. but Il
few more blankets-less funeral aud
more bedroom, II five per cent. of the
money we now spend on Burns's ban
quets ,uld have been expended i'll max
ing the living Scotch poet comfortable,
he would not have been harried with
the drudgery Of AN exciseman. Horace
Greeley. outrageously abused while liv
ing, when dead is followed toward
Greenwood by the President of the Uni
ted States and the leading men of the
army and navy. Massachusetts tries to
atone at the grave of Charles Sum ncr
for the ignominious resolutions with
which her Legislature denounced the
living Senator. Do you think that the
tomb at Springfield can pay for Booths
bullet:
Oh. do justice to the living! All the
justice you do them you must do this
side the gates of the Metropolis. They
cannot wake up to count the number of
carriages at the obsequies. or to notice
the polish of the Aberdeen granitc.or to
read cpitaphal commemoration. Gen
tleman $ mausolcum in the suburbs If
Jerusalem cannot pay for Bethlehem
manger and Calvarcan cross aud Pilates
ruffian judiciary. Post mortem honors
cannot atone for ante mortem igno
minies.
Again. standing in this garden of the
sepulcher, am impressed with the fact
that floral and arborescent decorations