Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1908-07-02
Sunday SchooLLesson and
Young Peoples Meetings
Topic A Nation in the Fashion, The
International Sunday School Lesson
For July S is, Israel Asks For King"
ISam., 8

The most notorious murderer of
this generation is the son Of man
who was an honored and upright
Presbyterian elder The decadence
l of the second generation is SO COM
mon as to seem one Of the signs Of
the times; the foolish or wicked es-
capades of the sons Of fine fathers
may be read in almost any days news
paper. Yet this sort of thing is not
| new; here we find 1t in a Sunday
school lesson dealing with period
more than a thousand years before
Christ. Samuel, the spotless judge
and prophet, had sons who were
grafters; they turned aside after
lucre, and took brides, and perverted
Justice" Even so had the sons Of
good old Eli, whom Samuel had sue
ceeded in office.
Goodness is not hereditary, al
| though capacity for goodness is. The
tons, is to count too much upon the
past. forgetting that virtue cannot be
transmitted, but must be won by each
sen, a nation, left to itself, has a
|
| trend Of life is to be maintained only
from without. No order will run it.
self. The need for reform-which
recurs with such sad frequency in our
political life-forced itself upon the
attention of the Jewish tribes, as they
saw that Samuel was growing old and
that his sons were unfit.
Like the Nations
A deputation of leading citizens call
ed upon the venerable Judge and stab
bed him to the soul with a two.edged
sword-the reminder that he had
grown old and that his sons were not
worthy of him. Such are the sorrows
that come to the aged; and such is
the thoughtless cruelty of the world
All this, on the part Of the elders
was but a preface to their real de
sire; they wanted a king, like the
nations That was the nub Of the
matter. Israel had been prospecting
and achieving something like national
solidarity. So, now that it had got
4 up in the world. it wanted to be In
fashion. 1t was FESTIVE under the dis
tinction of being "a peculiar people,
Like many an individual FOUNDER
in New York, who has endured all
manner of humiliations in an effort tc
break into what he believes to be the
/ charmed social circle, only to find II
not worth while, so Israel was going
to follow the king-fashion, and Learn
that kings mean new variety o.
troubles. Perhaps 1t is too much t
expect that Israel should have perceiv
ed the pre-eminence of personality
and to have known that greatness
consists not in imitation, but in orig
inality. With it's own distinctive life
as theocracy, Israel was better Of
than with king, after the world
fashion.
Japan has of late years been taking
on western ways, sometimes indiscrim
inately. A curious consequence is
that it's modern manufactures are taw
dry and ugly; the nation seems te
have lost its historic sense of har
mony, symmetry and perspective wheI
/ it comes to the new arts. A Japan
csc house made foreign STYLE is like
/ ly to develop unexpected hideous
nesses, while the European clothes Of
the natives are rarely attractive. Yer
in its own individual and ancient arts
Japan is unequaled with good reason
has civilization gone into ecstacies
over japanese cloissoine, porcelain
paintings and embroideries. In some
what similar fashion American socl
ETY. has become stale and fiat by be
formity. Madame Grundy places s
premium upon conyentionality ane
frowns upon Individuality. Yet the
III pJN je - I,
in variety. So in the world of archi
lecture; rows of brick houses, al
alike, rob neighborhood Of al
beauty; whereas community of in
dividual dwellings, each expressive O
its owners taste, Is delight to tn.
|eye. No greater mistake can be made
by a country or a person than to tr,
to do as everybody does; Israe
made fundamental misstep when /
undertook to be '1ike the nations"
/ A Patriots 2erpIexfty.
4 There are many politicians, but few
statesmen. Samuel was statesman
He thought in national terms and tool
long views. His one concern was fol
the welfare Of the whole people, No
body would ever hear him talk abou
my district" but rather about I'm,
country" The stupidness and the
short-sightedness AID sins of thu
whole people burdened his heart; h.
i had looked backward and forward, ane
he perceived that this new folly O
choosing a king was bound to result
in evil. So, as many another grea
statesman has been forced to do il
hour of national extremity, he laid the
whole matter before the God of ma
| tions
Probably Samuel was disappointed
| in the Lord; he wanted Jehovah tt
confirm his own opinion and to den,
the people the privilege they craved
But the Almighty regards as very sa
cred the right of self-governmen
which he has bestowed upon mankind
He believes in democracy. Even the
Omniscent one will not deprive mel
of their sovereign free will; he let.
them have their own way, even t.
their own hurt SO he bade Samue
let the people carry out their desire.
1 One more protest he should make
The statesman's place is to utter ;
solemn warning against any popula
error of Judgment. HIT ha NAV not hn