Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1904-04-01

dungeon. III a singing bird were com
PEELED to live In ground moie's tun-
mel. or 10 work like the moths with
their mouths wrapped up with wooden
garments, he would be as dumb as
they.
Thank God, then, for. your musical
throat and for your opportunities for
using ii. David Glasgow Farragut,
one of the most Respondent characters
in naval history. was born July 8. 1901.
With the exception OF an engagement
in which he participated as a mere boy
of thirteen, Farragut never smelled
gunpowder In actual battle until he
was sixty-one years OF age. For near
~ fifty long years he walked the ships
deck in times of peace. Had he been
retired ut sixty years OF age from the
service American history would have
had one of its brightest lights snufked
out before il had had any opportunity
TO shine. John Milton, in some re-
spects, is the greatest name In English
literature. Yet old, blind and neglect
ed by his people, he had to write for
posterity because the men OF his own
times and generation would not listen
10 his poetic song. Edmund Burke,
one of the greatest or the English
statesmen of his time. most of his life
was practically statesman without
an office, or, If in office. one who held
a very subordinate place. So little was
he honored by his parliamentary col
| leagues that ii was once said, mo man
could empty the house OF commons SO
| quickly as when Edmund Burke arose
to speak" Jonathan Edwards. the
greatest of New England theologians.
was driven out of his Northampton
pulpit in 1850 and for eight long years
the ablest OF American NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
lived in the little village OF Stock
bridge because no FIRST class church
wanted to hear him preach. Henry
David Thoreau, after publishing his
pastoral masterpiece, "a Week on the
Concord and the Merrimnc Rivers"
could find so few buyers that the pub
fishers threw back seven-tenths OF the
first edition upon his hands. It was at
this time that Thoreau bitterly wrote.
81 have now library Of zoe volumes.
| 700 OF which 1 wrote myself" oh,
| yesi We have seen many and many
| human birds with musical throats who
could sing IL any one wanted TO hear
them sing. But the trouble Is that
| thousands OF men can, sing who have
no opportunity to sing. Thank God,
my brother, IL you have not only tai
ents, but present opportunities for us.
ing those talents, In your Masters
service.
Our Opportunities.
In all probability there are few OF
US here who have not our opportuni-
ties. When the American feet was
about to enter Manila harbor some one
proposed to the American commodore
that the coal barges be sent ahead. II
there were any hidden mines in the
harbor ii was better to have pieces of
coal blown skyward than human
bodies. To that advice Commodore
Dewey said: mo; the Olympia shall
go in first. For two reasons do 1 make
this decision. First, we need the coal.
II defeated and the coal ships are de-
stroyed we are lost. Second reason.
have waited thirty years for this op-
away from me-" Commodore Dewey
may have had to wait thirty years for
his opportunity, but we do not have to
wait one month, one week or one day
or one hour to serve Christ. Today
our opportunity Is here. Like the song
birds, we have musical threats with
which TO sing. and we also have the
open heaven under which TO sing. We
have the talent and also the opportu-
nifty to use the talent
Like the song birds, we have n mag
hificent subject for our songs. Every
truly great sculptor is inspired by his
theme. Artists have their models.
Mere portrait painters strive to repro
duce n face. but an immortal artist
studies more than mere face. He
tries by the aid OF his model to DOR
tray love or hate. war or peace, fame
or disgrace, the creation or the natiy-
ity. The grander the theme the great
or the opportunities OF the picture.
Choose n Mighty Theme.
What Is true OF painting and sculp-
ture Is also true OF music. Beethoven
and Wagner and Mendelssohn and
Handel did not employ their genius An
street ditty. They trained their ears
to catch the voices Of the winds, which
can only be heard upon the heights of
Mount Olympus. They called their
oratorios by the mighty names OF 1.-THE
Messiah" The Deluge," "The Prodigal
Son, The Light of the World" SAM
son., SAUL Esther" Joshua" ELI
Jah" and Paul." "Jephthah," "Israel
In Egypt" THE Creation" "The wom-
an of Samaria." So our singing birds
IN their oratorios have glorious themes
to sing about. Their song is the res
direction. They sing OF the bursting
seeds and the incense OF swinging fiow-
ers. They sing OF the winter which IA
gone and the harvests which are TO
come. They sing OF the sheep which
are growing the wool that the little
children may have warm clothing To
defy the December blasts and of the
sap giving life to the trees that the
great logs may be rolled into the old
fashioned fireplaces around which the
families can gather about its glow ana
learn the lessons OF love. They sing
or the open harbors and the kings
ships going to Tarshish to come back
laden with gold and silver and worries
and the wealth OF foreign climes. They
sing or our earth's resurrection. which
Is emblematic OF heavenly glory. Oh.
my friends, like the song birds in the |
springtime, will you not choose a |
mighty theme TO inspire and upl,ft |
your LIES music? -
The theme! The themei What Is the |
inspiring theme OF your life's songf |
Are you ready TO surrender your life
10 the noble work OF the alienation of |
physical pain? AS Cyrus w. Field.
when young man, consecrated his
mental energies to compel the mer-
maids OF electric science with lightning
rapidity to carry mems messages under