The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1905-02-04


ed time. no neg
lected duties, nc
lost opportunities, no conflicting, jar
ring elements warning one against the
other. In that Garden home before
sin had entered to disrupt it and
drive the guilty pair forth, it was
Gods will done on earth as it is in
| Heaven. It was SO then when time
had first begun to count off it's years
for man, and it shall be so again when
He comes to reign supreme. Then the
wolf also shall dwell with the lamb,
and the leopard shall lie down with
the kid; and the calf, and the young
lion, and the failing together; and a
little child shall lead them. And the
cow and the bear shall feed; their
young ones shall lie down together
and the lion shall eat straw like the
OK. And the sucking child shall play
on the hole of the asp, and the
| weaned child shall put his hand On
the cockatriee's den. They shall not
hurt nor destroy in all My holy noun
tain: For the earth shall be full OF
the knowledge of the Lord, as the wa
| ters cover the sea"
Do YOU know what it is to sit in sweet,
silent fellowship with Nature alone?
Away from every human sight and
sound, lost for the moment in rapt con-
temptation, an exquisite influence has
pervaded the soul You have felt COM
mingling of your spirit with the spirit
of Nature. A new bond of union and
sympathy has been born. Perfect har-
mony and fellowship prevail. Do you
know what it is to have the little song
ster in your home, which has been
tanned by your loving care, perch con-
tentedly and fearlessIy upon your shout
der or finger, or with ffuttering wings,
as it rested on the buoyant air, take
from your lips the dainty morsel you
have temptingly placed there2 Do you
know what It is to have the faithful dog
welcome your return with joyful bark
and playful antic, to have him thrust his
cold, wet nose within your palm in mute
but expressive appeal for the affection
ate earess, to have him lift his soulful
eyes to yours and speak through them
Of love and devotion to you, receiving
gratefully from you what you willed 70
give, and offering service and life itself
in return? Do you know what it is thus
to feel a bond of sympathy and fellow
ship between yourself and the dumb
creature; harmony which flows to the
blessing of every living creature? There
is such relationship, such experience,
and 1t is but a pleasant echo. blessed
heritage coming down to us from that
perfect harmony and unity and ae-
tiVity which marked the Garden life
For Gods Spirit ruled there. Man and
beast. and bird and every creature, and
Nature, too, yielded sweet obedience 10
the Divine will.
We may not draw comparisons be-
tween the simple. natural, free life of
the Garden and the complex life which
has developed with the centuries, and
which has come as man has advanced in
the scale OF civilization, but we may
emphasize the perfect harmony which
prevailed there under the ruling Spirit
of God. We would not go back tosthat
primitive state, and give up all the won
derful gifts which God has bestowed
upon humanity through the study and
achievement of man, .butwe would that
We might bring down to this present age
a consciousness Of the power and bless
ing to be found in perfect obedience to
the will and Spirit Of God.
Another fair morning has broken over
the teeming earth. All Nature is rejoie-
ing in the returning light. Myriad
sounds fill the air from the bird notes.
dropping gently like messengers from
Heaven, down to the CHEEKY chirpo the
cricket in the deWy grass. Off in the dis
lance can be heard the lowing Of the
kline and the deep-toned roars of the
beasts of the field, while the chatter of
the squirrels in the tree tops and the
rustic amidst the shrubs and bushes and
ferns upon the ground tell the story Of
the smaller animal life that is astir in
the early morning. Down at the foot
of the verdant, f1oWer-deeked slope the
broad, placid river flows, sending its
waters ripping over the stones near the
shore, and rejecting in its miFrored sur
face the overhanging trees and blue sky.
The music of the waters as they play
hide and seek among the rocks and
stones can be heard through the open
doorway of the bower home. The great
towering trees stand sentinel at the rear
and sides of the simple, humble abode.
No marbled palace was ever SO fair a
home or dear a spot to its inmates as
was that shelter which the friendly
hrorahnc and infertwiuir1o vines will 1
ingly provided. Did happiness and con-
tentment depend upon the elaborateness
of the things possessed, then would they !
have been strangers in that first home |
on earth. It is not upon the external
conditions but upon the internal con-
sciousness of the presence of God that /
true happiness and eontentment@Fest. t
About and IN this first home the gentle
touches of Nature were apparent. The |
- |1E3 - 8ArYrx. II