The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-11-11

1 ninety-nine people out of every hundred
whom he meets upon the road will greet
| MIN with smile and Will be willing to
| go out of their way to do him a favor
| II 1t is in their power SO to do. or course
large per cent of these people will not
| be members of the Christian churches,
| but they ALL with very few exceptions,
| will be kind to him, as the barbarians
were kind to Paul when shipwreeled
upon the Melita shoals
Kindness of Common People.
The universal kindness of the common
people was quantity illustrated some
years ago by the late Mayor McLaue of
Baltimore. who told this story of a well
| known railroad man. A humble employe
of the road called upon this man and
asked for pass to a certain distant
point. You have been working for us
for some time, have you not?' yes"
answered the employee. You have al
ways been paid regularity" Yes, sir"
well, now, supposing you were working
for farmer, would you have the nerve
to ask this farmer to harness up his
horses and drive you long distance into
the country" No" answered the man,
81 would not. But IL the farmer had his
horses already harnessed and was going
my way there Is not farmer living who
would refuse to give me a lift The
man knew the characteristics of the
class. They arc nearly always willing to
help their neighbors. To use the par
lance of the railroad employee, they are
ready to give each other a lift" Al
most every man who wears rough clothes
is at heart a kind man. Almost every
woman who tolls for her daily bread Is
generally a kind woman. The heart of
the poor is a generous heart. 1t is low
Ing, a gentle, helpful heart. When we
go forth into Christian work among the
common people we will be happily sur
prised to find that most people are kind
ly disposed, no matter where we may go,
even as the barbarians of Malta went out
of their way to care for the helpless pas
sengers and crew of the Alexandria corn
ship.
Not only is the heart of the common
people kind, but the heart of the So
called better social classes also is kindly.
Gen. w. T. Sherman told beautiful in
cldent of this fact. short time before
his death he revisited the famous battle
fields of his Georgia campaign. There
was one battlefield so changed that he
could not identify 1t. So he went to the
nearest house, and a beautiful white
haired old lady came to the door. She
said "Oh, yes, this Is the place where
the battle was fought" Then she invited
him in and described how the field looked
thirty years before. Every part about 1t
the beautiful southern mansion which
was once in the center of that field, about
which the two armies fought for so long
a time Then General Sherman said:
"Ah, now 1 remember it well. And [
remember how the soldiers got beyond
our control at that time and needlessy
burned that mansion and left it a smold-
ering heaps OF ruins" Then he said:
Madam, did you live near here at that
time? DO you remember the old house?'
The lady quietly replied, Yes, general;
it was my old home" Not one word of
rebuke did she utter. Not one word of
reproach came from her lips. During all
that conversation she uttered not one
word which might wound the feelings of
the northern military chieftain. In leav-
ing General Sherman lifted his hat as he
said MADAM, you are the best bred
woman | ever met" But. though Cen
eral Sreman may have thus spoken to the
southern lady, there are thousands and
tens of thousands of such men and wo-
men as she was. No matter among what
social classes the Christian worker may
go, he will find that everywhere the
human heart is beating with gentleness
and Kindness Everywhere people will
go out of their way to do him favor,
as the barbarians cared for Paul and the
shipwrecked crew struggling to land from
the Alexandria corn ship.