Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1905-04-29
l SATURDAY NIGHT TALKS |
{ Glorification of Drudgery.
BY F. f. DAWSON.
April 80. 'O5.-CJohn 1s:1-14)

BY F. f. DAWSON.

Ihere are muititudeS OF people IN
this world waiting to do some great
and surprising thing. They profess
to be willing to labor. but they want
clean, refined, remunerative employ
ment. Their fastidiousness revolta
at ordinary duties and commonplace
tasks. Drudgery is obnoxious to
them.
Such people should read the story
told by the apostle Of the feet-wash-
ing that occurred in Judea centuries
ago. Christ took basin of water and
a towel and performed the ablution
himself. Around the whole circle he
passed. to John and James and Peter,
even to Judas he came and took
servants place, that he might teach,
once and for all time the universal
lesson, that it is not the work, but the
motive in which we do it that gives
character to our toll That there Is
no employment mean and low except
as the worker is mean and low. That
every sort of occupation may be glor-
flied by the spirit in which 1t IS done.
No soul can be so sensitive and re-
fined as was His who bore the cleans
ing water and towel that day. He
shrank from impurity instinctively
To His infinite holiness the very skies
are impure. And yet, without the
slightest suggestion of squemishness
he battles the rough feet or Simon
Peter as tenderly as a woman, as
thoroughly as a domestic. And then
he APPLIES the great and needed truth,
$50 wash We one another's feet.
In other words, this is life OF SER
vice. and there is no occupation be-
meath us. if the work is necessary and
legitimate. There is an aristocracy
that is divine-not one built upon
the accidents of wealth or celebrated
ancestry. but an aristocracy of indus
try and of large-hearted deeds. Mean
while. let it be understood that scep-
ire and shovel are brothers.
The Hottest post of honor is the low
Hest post of service. The towel
wherewith Jesus wiped the feet OF
his disciples outshone the purple that
wrapped Caesars limbs. The leather
apron of the mechanic is as sacred as
a sacerdotal robe, if the man who
wears 1t is as true man as he who
ministers at the altar The pick of the
ditch-digger is as honorable as the
men of the statesman if the man be-
hind it does as faithful service. The
pots and pans of the kitchen are as
nrecious as the sacred vessels OF the
SANITARY IL used by consecrated
hands. "Who sweeps room as to
Gods cause, makes that, and the ac-
ton fine"
Many a poet. applauded by men for
his brilliancy, has cursed the world
with his verse. Witness Lord Byron.
MANY a historian has used his pen to
undermine the foundations OF piety
Witness Gibbon. Many Judge has
disgraced the judicial ermine. Wit
ness Jeffries Many a statesman has
sold out his principles for office. Wit
ness Webster. Many an ecclesiastlc
has dfsgraced the altar. Witness
Woolsey. Many an editor has pros
tituted his printing press to the adj
yocacy of that which is wrong, multi
plying the number of his papers by
bordering to the tastes of bad men
and worse women. poisoning the air
with an incurable plague. Witness
the yellow journalism of our day.
So that mahogany desks, and ele-
CANT offices. and gid pens. and crisp
parchment. and liveried servants, and
public station do not necessarily i'm
ply honor and dignity Many slave
has worn royal purple, the memory OF
many a public man will rot It Is
not the character of the work that
glorifies the worker, the true man or
woman dignifies everything he
touches. When the pure-hearted
Elizabeth Fry gave up life of ease
and went down into the prisons
among the most degraded they did not
contaminate her, she redeemed them.
When Mary Livermore and Clara Bar
ton went over the Southern battle
fields and into suffocating hospitals,
bathing fevered bodies, binding up
bleeding wounds, shaking up hot pill
lows. writing messages for the dying,
without sleep, without nourishment,
often fainting under the awful pres
sure but arousing themselves and con-
tinuing their ministrations of mercy.
they glorified the drudgery. No won
der that some of the suffering sol
diers would turn to kiss their shad-
ows as they passed down the long
wards at night And in that day when
men who sat in places OF power
shall go down to shame and
everlasting contempt. these humble
ones shall have their names written
on the very pillars of the universe.
These are the men and women who
glorify the common things of life.
They may never be heard of outside
the circle of their few acquaintance,
hut the doing of common, everyday
duties in an uncommon. self-sacrific-
ing. heroic way dignifies and exalts
them. Gods ways are not mans
WAYS. Man says. "climb," God saws.
aHumble yourselves. !" In heavens
vocabulary, to go up is to go down.
and to 90 down is to go up. Pride
lifts you up, to drop you. Humility
humbles you to the level OF seif-ao-
negation. where Gods angels ever