The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-14

oOT r FCUOWS.
 But when this noble Hebrew herdsman runs forward to prostrate himself at the feet of the three strangers I see him sharply serutinize their faces. He not only sees that they wear the travel stained garments of poor men. but me thinks hear him mutter: Poor fellowsi Poor fellows! Perhaps they are exiles rom thelr own country. Perhaps on ac count of a kings hatred they are fleeing for their lives. Perhaps they once had sheep and oxen and horses and manser- wants, as l have but now, on account of bitter persecution, they have lost all I must be especially kind to these poor fel- lows who are fleeing for their lives.'' Cannot you imagine such thoughts pass ing through Abraham's mind as he runs forward to greet the three strangers? I can. And l firmly believe that when any man goes to the help of the persecutea and the unjustly treated he is welcom-
 ing to his home angelic visitors" who will always bring to him a spiritual bless ing from God.
 How many people there are who are who are being unjustly prosecuted. How many there are who are being lied about and misrepresentedl Like the devils that were torturing the poor maniac's body who was running naked among the tombs of the Gadara dead, their names seem to be legion. Many of these poor fellows who are being unjustly treated are dying of broken hearts. as did the late Daniel D. Tompkins, who was one of the most pathetic characters of American history In his prime no name was more powerful in the political world than his He rose from office to office. At last he became governor of New York state and then vlce-president of the United States The White House was almost his. But sud- denly his enemies were able to head him off. Though his whole life stood for honesty and purity and truth, his polit- ical foes charged him with misappropriat- ing some of the public funds when he was chief executive of New York state He indignantly denied the charge, but he could not produce evidence to vindicate himself. His enemies had stolen it. His forehead, like that of Cain, had a black mark of guilt placed upon 1t, and he was summed by his fellow men as an embez- zler of public funds Thus Daniel n. Tompkins was compelled to retire from public life and went down into a dishon- ored grave. Hardly had the grave closed ever his body when vouchers were dis covered which proved not only that Dan- iel D. Tomplxins had used the public funds alright, but that he had spent a large part of his own private fortune for the public good
 A Tragic Story.
 Alas alas" you say, what a tragic storyP' But the history of Daniel D. Tompl1ins Is that of hundreds and thou sands of men and women about us. Pure and true and noble are they. Not a dis honest hair Is to be found in their heads But people are whispering against their characters and phispering against their purposes of life and whispering against their homes. Though their enemies bring forth not one scintilla of proof of wrong. doing, yet we sit idle and utter not one protest in their behalf Who is there that has the courage to stand up in de- 0 nT rbn Ia dar the ban of society? How often does 1t happen that some interruptions enemy traduces a man or woman by hints and innuendo and the poison spreads stealth fly through the community because 1t is not arrested at the beginning? When will every Christian perceive 1t to be his duty to defend the reputation of other people from charges based on mere gossip?
 Furthermore if you and are only will ing to go to the aid of those who are being persecuted God will not only per sonally bless us, but we will save many men and women who are being unjustly treated from entering a life of sin and crime. l was never more impressed with this fact than some time ago. when I was visiting old Mssourian. He was telling me the history of his life. He was a young boy at the time of the breaking out of the civil war. Any one who has read the history of Missouri knows that every man who lived at that time with in the states border was encouraged to don a soldiers uniform, and there were some who volunteered who had no other motive than to commit depredations upon that suffering people. Clad in that uni form such men committed outrage and escaped punishment. Said this old Mis- sourian: "The people did not fear the reg ular soldiers. They were all right But 1t was the thieves and the libertines who pretended they were regular soldiers that they feared Wa sinD1V ba1nIass, i,, their hands"
 Then he described how one night a lot of thieves clothed as soldiers came to his fathers house and literally took every- thing away. They drove his mother out in the winters cold and she died as a. re- suit of the exposure. They put a rope about his fathers neck and dragged him about and threatened to lynch him. With the butt end of gun they mashed one of his feet so that he was a cripple for life. Then they drove away every horse and COW and pig and chicken and burned up all the grain and the fences and the outhouses and left only the bare fields. What did you do?" I asked. Well" he said, T was only boy of fourteen. But my brother and myself joined the bushwhacl0ers. We each took q gun and vowed that we would kill every northern man we met" What then happened?" asked. Then the old man looked at me and answered The most important part of my life. In St. Charles county there lived an old minister by the name of Rev. Mir Blackwell He was a northern man and a republican. He heard what we two boys had done, and he knew that If we continued as bushwhackers We would end up in a life of crime, as did the James boys who started out criminals be- cause their father and mother were treat ed as my parents had been treated. I used to know Jesse James parents we'll And l know that what 1 say Is true. So at the risk of his own life Rev MT. Black | well. republican and northerner. went into the mountains and hunted up camp and said; Boys I have come to save you. Come back and live with me 1 Because thieves and scoundrels have robbed your parents and killed your mother do not become criminals your- | selves and die at the end of a hangman's ] noose And, sir, as the result of his plea
 we went back to Blackwell's home and
 went back to honesty and truth and | right"
 Saved His Life.
 What became of Mir. Blackwell?" I i asked He lived to be 0 very old man." was the answer. "A few years ago I
 went back to Missouri and hunted him up and begged him to come and live with me, but he was too old to come." Then faraway look came into the old Mis- sourians eyes as he said "Oh, I can nev- CT forget that man. By his willingness to lay down his life for me he saved my life and my brothers" Friends, are you