Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1904-09-01

What ia knowledge? How do we gam
There sits Thomas Carlyle,
the lonesomest man in England, and one
of the poorest, feeding his shaggy intellect
on French revolution, storm OF modern
ages. When he speaks we, call nun our ;r
message is: az have found God reignlng
among all peoples He writes down tor Tor
rs the laws of divine retribmtion, which
run through the nation. Like the old
scandinavian Titan that he is, he drinks
the LIQUID fire of divine wrath out OF the
skull of persisted empire. And he smacked
his Puritan lips as though it was savory
wine. knowledge is finding out divine
laws. There is Charles Dickens; ne 10
not satisfied to meet people on the streeg
as we do and shake hands with them anu
hearts and homes and haunts and sins
with sympathy, with pathos and with rar-
est humor, he writes his books: -, these
hooks become sort of Bible of the sub
merged tenth of society, and in them we
find written down the great divine laws
which govern action and conduct and char
acter. He is the poor mans prophet, be-
.ause he found on the heart OF the poor
man the handwriting of God. All knowi'
edge is revelation. ,
Seeking the way God made the stars go,
Kepler became an astronomer. seeking the
wav the world was made, Wallace became
A scientist. Seeking the mysteries and Sc
crets of the human soul and Gods dong
therein, Kant became a philosopher. seek
inp to find out how God wrought upon h,i'
man nature, Shakespeare penetrated INTO
the soul depths Of 1ago, Hamlet, Desde,
mona. Richard, Henry and Lear. ana
transcribing into words what ne found
written there, he has given. us his great
dramas. Lo! the dramas of Shakespeare
are almost another book OF, God IN when
we find written the divine law OF retripu-
ton and forgiveness and sacr'hce ana re-
word is law. but it is the law OF God.
browning comes and his one word is IN
spiration. but it is the inspiration OF Goa;
And Beecher and Phillips Brooks come and
their one word is love, but it is the love
of God Save he bring us word OF God,
the wisdom of the scholar L. toolishness'
Have YOU ever seen the shimmerIng OF
. lake when the sun was playing IN It's
surface? Have you seen the CLEANS OF sun,
light dancing like angels on the water:
You know the glory was in the sun. nos
in the water. The sun was the source; tne
waters were clothed in a borrowed glory.
r. Won have ever stood in a great valley
surrounded by mountains, and heard inc
achoes repeated from mount to mount
acme loud. some soft, some distant. some
near at hand, you know the voice was nov
in the mountains. The mountains only
carried the voice. So great scholars are
,nly waters and mountain peak. IT Is
God Almighty who speaks. Vt Is lis glory
that shines. There is a difference IN men men
The difference between great men ana III.
tle men always consist in thls-thc greas
man is always listening for the VOICE on
God. The little man Is taken up WIN .ne
sound OF his earthly on-going. The jews
heard a sound and said: 1T Numbered"
Jesus standing with them knew ut was an
angel that had spoken unto Him, WIS.
Iom is revelation. There is no other wa,
If YOU would be scholar, II YOU wonII
wear a scholars crown and have schol-
ar's mower. YOU must seek and know lace
to face and to find out His ways, wh!cn
are above our ways and His words. when
are above our words Here is the prescrip'
ton for all scholarship: seek hrst lne
Kingdom of God and His righteousness
and all these things shall be added unto
you"
Tn every age men believe that fame can
be bought for a price, and so tneS year
down their warehouses and bulId IaiE'i.
So they multiply their fleets nntil the'r
white sails cover every sea; so they get lor
themselves houses and lands and stocks
and bonds. When they die the market
1rops down for day or week and then
the world goes on You do not know the
names of any rich men in Athens or Rome
,r Thebes or Babylon. You may know the
name of some orator or some scnolar "no
had wealth. but YOU do do not know the
name of any man who had nothing but
wealth. There was man VINO laId thtt
foundation of his fortune IN the DAYS Vi
the Stuarts. He was a powder m'nuiaci,
turer. He drove his coach and lonr anu
lived in a palace. lie punt s''Nen nIn,t
for his children. lie had been an ardent
Royahst, but when the Revolution came,
he said "There is tide in the affairs OF
men. which. if taken in its Hood, leads on
w fortune" And he cut off his poWderGu
urls and left off his Jeweled sword I Iie
wen sang psalms. He turned Puritan. nc
.urncd his back on the cathedral ana WeHt
% worship in a Puritan conrcnl'cle. ne
,ad his reward. He got the contract LOT
making powder for Cromwell army anu
became multi-milionalre. Ana Wneh the
restoration came he grew again ms van
DYKE beard, lac again wore nus VelEet uoun,
ct. he again went to church WIN pi'nudi
,ool and crucifX He even stood by ana
,nnlauded when Cromwells bones were
nunv M to dry on TyDurn I'M. lie quick
" became a cavalier and he had ms re.
Eyard For 10, Charles made HIM hnleht
,f The Garter and he still had the CONTRACT
;or making powder Tor the English Army.
What was his name? You do not know.
Nohodv knows. You cannot find 1T VIII
len down in any book. But III that same
time there was poor man Whp was
Puritan under the first StuartS. VINO was
Puritan secretary OF commonwealth ul
Her Cromwell, and who was "t' .;.t
blind and poor, an exile threaten." VII" iIa
ais life under the returned N"arls. iie
mad the pen of ready writer and the SUI
arts offered him gold to make the worse
suuear the better side. He sand: =, Nay,
onv, | will live in hunger and wall near
nv children cry for bread, but l VIII not
.ail nv honor. | care not for parties: l
strive only for the truth of the Kingdom
Of God" And everything he ever said III, IN
prose or in poetry Is still remembered. iils
name was John Milton, and every sch1o'
how knows it by heart. Seek hrst lhe
Kingdom of God and fame VIII ma you
out. Always the pathway to greatness -
along the line of loyalty TO the Kingdom
of God. 49,, :. Al.
great thing Any man who seeks wealth
FOR wealth's sake will always ie poor,
though he be clad in purple; Any man
who seeks first and always the Kingdom
of God will be rich, whether he live in a
garrett or kings palace. 1t Is the law OF
The universe. They who love truth ana
serve her, receive true mans reward,
houses and lands in the present time, and
in the time to come, life eternal. Chang
ing an old poem little:
Then to side with truth is noble.
Though we share her wretcned crust
For her cause brings fame and proit,
And It's prosperous to be just.