Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1907-01-15

We Need the Light, upon Our Indi-
! vidual Lives.
In a most remarkable passage in
1.-THE New Testament we read these
words of Jesus Christ: s.Ye have
heard that it was said by them of old
time Thou shalt not commit adnl-
fiery, but say unto you that whoso-
i ever looketh upon woman to lust
/ after her hath, committed adultery
with her already in his heart =
Jesus goes to the very heart OF the
difficulty. Here is the crux. Make
the fountain pure and the stream
will be pure. Nowhere is it so true
as in regard to this question that as
a man thinketh in his heart SO is ne.
/ In tropical countries there is an
insect called the termite that bur-
rows its way into the tissue Of fur
niture and feed upon it until some
| day it collapses with a touch. IN
| Cuba the natives show you tropical
tree Of great beauty, and evidently
perfect. Vines tenderly cling to and
caress it, But with single blow it.
falls to the ground and fine cloud
of dust arises showing that some in
sect had destroyed its inner life, and
converted the tree into a shell.
| What man is in his heart that he
really is. When ! go into a young
mans room / can tell from the pic
| lures on his wall what he is think
ing about. Those pictures CORE
spond to the scenes that float before
his imagination. 1t is in the realm
of thinking that a young man begins
his downward course.
Therefore the truest reformation is
that which takes account Of the
| heart and begins there. We may not
be able to prevent the approach of
evil thoughts but we can prevent
them from abiding with us. AS Mar
tin Luther put it, we may not prevent
the birds Of paradise from flying
over our heads but we need not let
] them make their nest in our hair.
1 Young man, have message for
you tonight. 1t may be that the inn
| pure life with you has gone no fur
| Their than impure thinking. That's
far enough. But if you have gone
farther, if you have been guilty of
enticing some young girl to her ruin,
4 God pity you. 1t were good for you
| if stone were hung about your neck
and you were drowned in the depth.
of the sea. It were better if you
had never been born.
And there is stone about you.
You wear it today and tomorrow
and the coming days. God in His
great mercy may forgive you, but:
| you can never forgive yourself. EY-
en- God may not be able to save that
| poor wreck of girl who began her
! downward career at your solicitation.
At Paris, in the river Seine there is
a morgue where on slabs of marble
over which water is always running
the bodies are placed Of those;
1 drowned in the river. Among them
lis many a sweet face of some young
girl, weary Of her shameful life who
has buried life and shame in the great.
river. Standing there one reflects
concerning her early years wnen she
was innocent of the great transgres-i
sion, the joy of a mothers heart
Today how changed! And her Sc.
Queer, what of him? You may lead
your child to neglected grave in a.
churehyard, and say, My child be-
hold the grave of the drunkard;;
men place no laurels here.
\ You may lead him to the bridge
land looking below at the darkly flow
ing water where one buried her life
the night before you may say, Be
hold my son the fruit of unchastity.
You may lead him to barely fur
nished garnet, the windows of which.
have been broken through and stuffed
/ with rags, where mother sits hold
ing to her breast her dead child,
/ dead for want of warmth. Behold,
my son the gamblers home But my
4 friend this is only part Of the story.
The neglected grave, the life thrown
into the river, the broken-hearted
mother, the dead child are bad
Il ! 49, 3 Z ~
lienough God knows, but what of the
wreck Of immortal souls?
4 have message for you, young
/ woman. III N
4 As a mans downward career be-
gins with evil thinking the beginning?
of a girls downfall is listening to the
suggestion Of evil. For a man to-
suggest evil to a girl is the greatest
insult that she can receive. He be-
4 1ieyes her impure or he would not
/ dare to say such things. With what
i disdain she should treat his remarks,
what punishment should be meeted
4 out to him will not say. RUt if he