Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1908-08-07
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PAID AT GODS EXPENSE.
By George Clark Peel

Bender therefore unto Caesar the
things which are Caesars and unto
God the things which be God's.-l-uke
XX, %.
Not to pay Paul by robbing Peter
nor vet to pay Peter by robhinG l'huI'
but to discharge with fidelity both Cd
ligations-Such is the eternal sanity Oh
Christ's gospel. Commercial prudence
advises us to nay whichever crcdl!or
presses most harsllly. whether Peter or
Paul. Jesus commands us to pay bo'h.
The last thing that religion does Tor
a man is to relieve him from an! JUST
| obligation Whatsoever. Rather, f"llSl"l
declares the S~anctity of all duty callS
each disciple to royal citizenship III
two worlds. | have heard OF Il l"d
who pilfercd Il few pennies IN order
that he might swell the missionary
total of his Sunday-SchOol class. Ana
there have been ages in which such was
the prevailing style Of religious 10y
atty. Men raI away from all manner
Of human duties in order tNat lheN
might fulfill the divine behest. Inc
world was full of children of the Al
mighty who believed that they could
discharge their full debt to heaven only
by pouring contempt upon the sacred
| things of earth. In a host OF some
| times naive fashions people used 10
pay Paul by robbing Peter.
1 scarcely need to affirm that modern
sentiment has swung to the opposite
custom. In this day men mmo
pay reter by robbing Paul. They are
still at the business of rObbing, but
with a change in the victim. II the
former generation shortened It's Dusl-
ness hours and sometimes It's COM
mercial honor in the interest of pray
ers, the present generation inclincS to
shorten it's prayers for the sake OF
devotion to business. In the words OF
the scripture, Caesar is paid at the
expense of God.
FaithfulneSs is not an arc or a CIR
Gle. 1t is rather a whole circle. NO
man is quit of his obligations to the
butcher by paying his g%rocer's Dill.
Nor can we meet Gods claim by being
merely generous in spirit, tolerant to-
ward sinners and good natured in the
domestic circle. Commercial upright
ness is no better substitute for neglect
of God than a one-sided cultivation OF
God is an excuse for rocked business
dealings. To be truly Christian is to
endeavor to meet all just claims, to pay
Paul without robbing Peter, to render
into Caesar all his due tribute, yet not
to fail of the part due God.
The financial secretary of a certain
society made a practice of carrying
the society's books down to his place
of business. And he earned his special
salary as secretary during those hours
in which he was supposed to be earning
the salary paid him by his business
employers. | doubt if he were guilty
of any intentional d%ishOnor, but l have
never understood how one man can
earn two salaries at he same time and
for the same time; how he can justly
rob Peter to pay Paul. But the world
is full of men and women who thus
earn double salaries. Some of them
steal a mans time to earn Gods wages
but a vaSter throng Of them are taking
Gods time to earn mems wages. Paul
must be paid. hence they rob Peter in
order to pay him. What a pity that Il
man should spend so much time max
ing his fortune that he should a w no
time left to make his soul!
THE WORTH WHILE WAY.
BY Henry F. Cope.
Il have fought the good fight, l have
finished the course, l have kept the
faith."-u Tim. iv, Z.
Its q splendid thing, at the end of
life, to be as certain of having done the
right thing all along as you were con-
fident of intention to do it at the be
ginning. Seldom is life's review as sat
~isfactory as its prospect was inspiring.
Long before its end we begin to see
ways in which we might have done bet,
ter. and to US all there must often come
the grave question: What are the
things most worth striving for in life:
IT is a needless life that never asks
Am I seeking the prizes really worth
the gaining?
Every purposeful life gains some
prize: the puzzli1g question is as tc
which are the most deSirable-the per
%manently valuable. Popular opinion
points to riches and honors; but ex
perience warns of the price to be paiC
for them. 1t would be folly to pretend
that they go always to the most worthy
You do not have to look far at any time
to find the microscopic man with The
magnificent fortune. Often the riches
man is the poorest kind of a man. A
any rate it is certain that You canno'
pursue that prize with singleness o.
purpose without the sacrifice of almos
every other desirable thing.
Then. cries conscience, choose char
acter; make that your end. But a mas
stops to count the cost. While it /:
not true that one cannot be rich bot!
in character and in cash. tie instance:
are sufficiently few to make them lOol
more like exceptions than rules. Piet!
is not established by poverty. neither
does it insure against it. They wh'
seek character regard adversely ant
prosperity. ignominy and honors but a
incidents on the way. the goal alone i
to them essential. One world 0
thought brands as a failure the life tina
leaves no legacy of things, while we
another IS equally sure that success j
to be measured by treasures of the sou
alone. Who will show us the srigh
way?
4. concrete answer cOlnes from one o