The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1906-03-09

| stanchness to her friends as had the
great and noble Emperor William l. of
Germany, who was never known to
turn his back upon a true friend. So
true was his heart that when the Ger
man army started forth on the Franco
Prrssian war it is said that he left the
battalions and went to POtsdam and
there knelt at the tomb of his mother
Queen Louise, who had been humbled
by Napoleon |. And when he returned
as conqueror while all the capital of
Berlin was ready to give him the well
come of triumphal entry, he again left
the ranks and went to that same tomb
and knelt to thank God that her dis
grace had been avenged. So with
Ruth. She never forgot those who had
been true to her. Naomi might be de-
spised by the world, but Naomi had
been her friend. And because Naomi
had been true to her Ruth would never
leave her side
A Crisis In Ruth's Life.
Can you picture this beautiful young
girl at this critical moment? The
mother-in-law comes to her and says:
"Ruth, my dear, l must go away. l
cannot make a living here. My hus-
band is dead. My two boys are dead.
And all these people are prejudiced
against me because l am a foreigner
and not of their blood. You stay, my
child. Your parents will take you
home and all will be well. Don't ruin
your life for my sake Then l be-
lieve I read the thoughts that rapidly
pass through Ruth's brain. At first
she soliloquizes, "Shall l stay?" But
the noble part of her soul says: NAY,
Naomi has been a mother to me. For
over a score of years she puthe whole
life into the developing of her two
boys. Then she gave to me one of her
sons. She said: Take him, Ruth. He
is thine Then she took me into her
great loving heart as her own daugh-
ter All that she had was mine. And
now, after she has given to me her all,
shall l desert her in the dark hours of
distress?" "Nay, Naomi" she says, 81
will not turn my back upon thee.
Whittier thou goest, | will go, and
where thou lodgest. l will lodge; thy
people shall be my people, and thy God
my God" Could Ruth the true, Ruth
the noble, speak otherwise? My
friends. have you these noble charac-
terstics of gratitude? After per-
son has been true and self sacrificing
for you, after that person has given to
you practically the whole of her life,
are you going TO turn that person adrift
as soon as the dark clouds of adversely
gather about her head? Are you 60
ing to use the word Friendship" as
synonym for "cOnvenienceY AS soon
as you think it is for your own best
interests, are you going to turn your
back upon your true friends, as the de-
ceitful Duke of Alva sent Admiral
HoOrn and Egmont to the block and as
Napoleon l. eXiled Josephine, the best
friend he ever had?
Oh, the contemplate actions of which
some of US are guilty toward those who
have blessed us in the past! The story
is told that many years ago in the is
land of Mauritius poor old black wO-
man, who was a slave, worked and
struggled at odd hours and saved until
after awhile she got together enough
money to purchase the freedom of her
daughter. All, that was a happy day
for the old black woman! She went to
her child's house with the good news
and said: MY child, you are free! You
are free" With that she seated her.
self by her daughter. But the story
goes that the daughter drew herself up
and said: woman, how dare you sit
in my presence? DO you not know that
| am now a free woman and you are
still a slave? Rise at once and leave the
roOmw The story at first seemed to
me to be q farfetched one, and yet,
after much consideration, / doubt if it
is. Almost every day we can see I'M
grateful children acting thus to their
parents and ungrateful men and wom-
en- turning their backs upon those who
have lifted them to their thrones or
started them on the road to success
and happiness. Not thus was Ruth.
In Naomi's adversely she remembered
Naomis past love. May God help us
to be true to those who have been true
to us in the troublesome years that are
gone!
True to Marriage Vows.
Ruth measures up to the full stand
ard of the test of human gratitude.
She does more. She measures up to
the full test of her marriage vows.
And when l speak thus l am placing
that standard very high. The marriage
law of the east is a far more difficult
one to which to do justice than the
marriage law of the west. Yet she
obeyed those eastern laws to the last
letter. Let me try to contrast those
two laws for you.
When young woman stands before
the marriage altar of our land and the
Episcopal rector says: "Wilt thou have
this man to be thy welded husband, to
live together after Gods ordinance in
the holy estate of matrimOny? Wilt
thou obey him and serve him, love,
honor and keep him in sickness and in
health and, forsaking all others. keep
thee only unto him so long as We
both shall live?" the woman answers,
81 will" But that promise does not
mean the woman shall lose her own
identity in that of her husband as it
does in the east That does not mean
that her mother-in-law and her hus-
bands family, in her affections, must
take first place as it does in the east.
By the law of the Scottish clan as
soon as the daughter of one clan mar
ried into the family of another clan at
once she ceased to have any utilization
with the clan Of her father In India