Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1906-06-15
Caln,ase
Sermon
By Rev.
Frank De Witt Tslmase. d. d.

Win IT'S NiNiu pictures or au-
imai life and their spiritual applica-
ton. The text is Psalms xii, ], "As the
bart panteth after the water brooks"
What Is the spring fever? What is
that tired feeling which creeps over
one as the months of May and June
draw near? What is that exhaust
ing sensation which makes the band
sluggish at its work aud the brain
dull as II tries TO originate thought
and the legs heavy as lead when we
get up in the mornings just pre-
ceding the summer? We vehement
ly deny the. accusation that we are
lazy We never have been lazy In our
lives. We daily go to our Office and
begin work even a little earlier than
usual. We stay there longer than at
any other time OF the year. Hut In
spite OF ourselves the results OF our
work are not only less in quantity, but
far poorer in quality than at any other
time of the year. We wopder what
ails us. and we go TO the doctor 10 get
tonic. The doctor tells Us /: Syos are
bilious Your liver Is torpid. Or he
says, You are overworked and must
let up" But deep down sin our hearts
we know what is the matter. We have
just the old longing for the woods. In
the springtime it comes to US as nat
uraily as the buds come to the flower
gardens. 1t is not medicine we want.
but the mountain air, with the tree
branch for covering and the soft
grass and the leaves for a bed. Thus
The on'y cure for a man know
Is t git right out o. tn town an go
Where tn viii ducks swim an tn geese
go by
An tn trout an bass are a-jumpin, high,
tn on'y thing that'll cure i'm then
Is git away from his Teller men
An loaf all day by some laffin' stream
An fish an whistle an sing an dream
An listen L birds an bugs an hear
tn voice o. tn woods in his eager ear.
But with most OF us the Ionginrs
must be repressed. We may, however.
give our thoughts n rest by dwelling
on such theme as have chosen for
This mornings treatment / said to
myself. Probably there are many with
The same longing. so will choose a text
that will carry our thoughts away to
the woods and the waters" and as /
thought this beautiful text of the
psalmist sprang TO my mind, CAS- the
hart panteth after the water brooks so
panteth my soul after thee, o God"
Like Painting Harris.
All. yes. said to myself, we ere all
like painting harts. We are like the
hunted and the thirsty deer seeking the
water brooks. And, strange to say. as
soon as l uttered the text in my study
n wonderful peace came to my soul.
seemed TO see the great, gentle eyed
stag and deer and fawn watching me
from the thickets. 1 seemed to hear
the birds singing their love ditties.
seemed TO see the trout leaping out OF
the brooks. / seemed to see the great
ciius rising above the valleys and the
baldheaded mountains, like grim and
grizzly patriarchs, standing sentinel
over all. Yes. 1 said to myself, for a
little while at least 1 can go
An forgit that there's cities an. house.
an men.
Forgit that rs got 4 go back ax.in.
forgit everythin' else In tn whole wide
world
But jes' God an tn birds an, IN. h,rs
an things
That live right thar where tn wild stream
sings.
Goodby, old cityl We are about TO
leave you now. We are going to climb
way up the mountains for a little
while, and as we lie down upon the bank
or creek or river by one OF the beau
tifui deer licks we learn. In the first !
place. that the hart is dependent upon
the water brook for his physical exist
ence. He is not like the camel that
can store up his drinking water and
carry It about with him for days: he
Is not like the lizard or the ia ttlesnake
or the horned toad or the ella mon
ster. that live in the desert week In and
week out, month in and month out.
seemingly without water or, IL they do
get water, they must absorb 1t from
the bristling cactus. which grows ev-
erywhere around. But q deer is<like a
human being. Take water away from
him. and be WIN de- NThats tySuss Ca n
never find the deer far away from the
water brooks. He has two reasons for
his dependence on-tn< sffreamDrFfrst,
he Is not n carnivorous animal He
does not live on flesh, but 'ou'heros. and
he must live where the.wstsr smakes
the grass spring up into HfeE In the
next place. he must himself be able at
least once or twice day to daintily
step out of the woods, lift high his head
to sniff for dangers and then gently
move down and put his delicate Iips
into the cool waters Of the babbIing
brooks. And SO certain Is the deer TO
go to the waters to drink I'm the evening
or the early morning that II man is a |
lazy hunter and knows where the ami. |
mails are accustomed to drink all be |
has to do is to go there and hide.
The Boa and the Deer.
1t Is by recognizing the daily depend
ence or the deer upon water that in |
equatorial America the huge and slow |
moving boa constructor is often able to |!
have his feast Of venison. Through the |
underbrush we can see the monster |
serpent, nearly fifty feet In length. |
wriggling and twisting He is on his |
way to the border OF some lake or
stream. 1t is tending toward the even
ing hour, and he must hurry. He comes
to huge tree whose branches overarch
the well beaten path which leads down
to the deer lick. and he grips the tree
and begins to climb up. Suddenly
through the leaves are seen the tall ant
lers of a magnificent stag. Hs n just
ahead of the herd. He moves quietly |
along until he comes under the cut |
stretched branch. The head Of the SER |
pent drops in fash and winds itself |
about the quivering flesh. The stag at |
tempts to make a leap forward, but the |
tail holds true. The spiral; coils OF the |
serpent begin to stiffen, the bones
crack and the deer drops dead In his |
tracks. Thus my friends vbon vnu