Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1904-08-04

John then only had q small store He
would get home for supper on time.
Then all the evenings were ours. We
read together. We visited our friends
together Some weeks John would
get off u whole day, and together we
would take trip to the country and
roam among the wild flowers. Our
Sundays were always spent together at
church and In the home. But now
John has sold himself to his work. l
rarely see him. He works all day. lie
works part of the night. lie always
has some business engagement on Sun
day. He makes lots of money. but
then he only puts that money back into
the business, and therefore 1t Is not his
TO use. He has to keep on working the
harder, TO look after the bigger bust
ness. l certainly think that John Ia
making d failure out of life. He IL
perfect slave to work, and we rarely
see each other for any Of our old good
times"
But this text has still another appli-
cation. 1t Is n word of reproof to poo
pie who waste their time and strength
in useless remOrse over their undutiful
conduct to parents who are now dead.
Many men and women have sidetrack-
ed their direct duties to God by switch
ing them off to family plot. re
member some years ago, after | had
spent four years in the west. | went
to Brooklyn to find my mothers grave.
Though | had lived over quarter OF
century in brooklyn, yet by the new
system Of car lines established there
since I went 10 Chicago | could not
find Greenwood cemetery until | Ind
been put off three different cars. But.
though here and there one person, by
long absence, may be unable 10 find
his mothers grave, there are thou
sands and tens of thousands Of people
who have become blinded to the living
duties Of life because they viii persist
In tarryinc by the family plots where
sleep their dead. Useless regrets for
the dead may have great part in the
sidetracking of our duties to Cod Who
was this young disciple to whom Christ
spoke? | do not know. The Bible does
not mention his name. But perhaps he
belonged to that great multitude who
spend one half OF their lives in abusing
and neglecting the living and the 9th
or half in mourning and sobbing over
the dond. Their love and grief are
purely Carlylean. They say that
Thomas Carlyle. the disGruntled. fault
finding. iconoclastic philosopher. was
the founder of big school Of copyists.
However that may be, | know there
are many people who emulate the writ
er of "Sartor Resartus" in one fact.
After the death of his wife his ha-
bitual lament was. Alas, alas, she can
never know now how | loved herW
During her lifetime he had for her only
sharp words and none of the little deli
cate attentions which would have made
her happy. After she was dead he
was imbittcred by his consciousness
Of his negligence and added to his
fault vituperation of the people around
him. Better for him and them had the
sorrow for past failure toward his wife
led him to kindness toward his living
friends. Perhaps this young man OF
my text was one who had III used
his father while he was alive, and
now that he was dead lie wanted
10 give him big funeral. DO you
wonder, if this was so, that Christ said,
Let the dead bury tho dead" Post.
mortem eulogies can never atone for
antemortem injustices,
Told Her Too Lntc.
In Virginia young woman was left
widow with four small children. She
taught school and painted and stitched
and took in washing and worked all
day and far into the night in order to
send her boys to college and to give her
two girls II fine education. After awhile
these children grew up ana went out
into the world and left their old mother
alone in the cottage where they We're
reared. Being finely educated, they
grow ashamed of the mother who had
done SO much for them. Her speech
WAS not rs classical as theirs Her
hands were callOus with toll. and In
her looks she was very commonplace.
Finally, worn out with work. she WAS
dying, and all her four children gath
cred about hcr bedside conscience
smitten with their insratitude They
now realized how they had neglected
the best friend they ever had. Then
one Of her boys. now n prominent law
yer, took her In his arms and said:
Mother You have been good mother
to us. You have made Il possible for
rs TO be what we are Then the WON
ans tired face Lighted up with a smile
as she answered, "Oh, Willie why dl
you not tell me that hcforc?" such
praises come too late. tell YOU thry
Are too late. II we are to praise our
loved ones. we must praise them while
they are living and not when they are
dead
Some people are never happy unless
they are miserable. Their smile is
tear, Their laugh is sob. They never
enjoy themselves unless they are moan
ing over corpse twenty years old. To
Evergreen cemetery Of Brooklyn, for
many months, there used to 90 II wild
over who everybody said was crazy.
tie did not bury his wife in n grave.
but placed her body in Il vault. There.
IN this tomb. he had all his wifc's furni-
ture and kniCkknacks. He had her pic
ture hung upon the wall, and her chairs
by her caslat and her books upon her
bookshelf, and her work basket and
table by her side. Then every day this