Norwich bulletin. [volume] (Norwich, Conn.) 1895-2011, 1910-10-10

/ week gatherings. We are ALWAYS glad
to have workers specialize by taking
single department of church service,
| but to have a worker take every one
with equal and sustained faithfulness
| is unusual as it Is edifying in the
highest degree. And in this high en-
! inence Major Learned stood quite
alone. When such mens are among
| US We get accustomed to this sort of
all-round efficiency and almost take it
| for granted; but, when they CO. what
! a vacancy they leave. The whole
! church life drops to a lower level I'M
| less others grasp and wear worthily
| the fallen mantle. But today we are
| especially to remind ourselves of his
| service to the Sunday school with
| which he was connected as scholar,
teacher, superintendent, for all but the
whole of his mortal existence. And
J this is inevitable: for others take these
| functions by piecemeal. become weary
/ or offended and lay them aside; but
/ he never broke his pace. And how We
ask what effects this efficiency. When
we attempt to account for an efficient
act or life we have to take account
! of the personality behind them.
! The Capital Qualification for Service.
| Personality is the capital quahfica-
/ ton for every form Of service. 1t is
the mans asset-the reserve on which
| he draws. 1t is the Whole Of ones
| self he brings to the discharge of duty.
John Burroughs said of Emerson that
| wherever he was. he was all there. 1t
! is the mass of character behind the
act or the office. 1t was because Ma
| jor Learned brought the whole of
! himself to every duty that he was
effective-and there was much to
! bring. He was a notable personality.
| And to that personality there were
J many contributary streams.
! OF course rich inheritance was
! one of those streams The blood of
/ generations of God serving men and
/ women was in his veins. Great church
workers DO. not come of irresponsible
t irreligonists or of late arrivals. A
man must be a good churchman if he
! expects his children to serve God. The
/ parents who stay out of church-iife
! doom their children to churchlessness.
| He had faithful churchmanship always
! before him from his childhood and the
| example of older generations and he
! followed in their footsteps: and when
| that sort of blood gets into our veins.
+. through heredity and household fdel-
/ ity. it is not likely to be strained out
! of it. But we cannot inherit every
! thing: we must be builders on the tenn
! pie of personality. We must make
! worthy use of the made material ready
| to our hands. He cultivated the fine
t integrities for their own sake. He
was not only erect and sof5ieriy. in his
walk and bearing as he moved about
| the streets of his city With no stoop
! in his shoulders, but he was morally
| upright He held himself vigorously
| to high standard of conduct and life.
! We cannot imagine him dipping from
| this high meridian of uniform upright
ness. He no doubt Veered in some
way from the high standard he set for
| himself-as we all do: but you and
! cannot conceive him doing what he
| knew to be wrong on its ethical side.
| We cannot conceive him. wronging an
l<+t, def. 11ic io11 j0n1-
| though the price be a kings ransom,
| and that is rare sort of mana
/ city's asset a churchs pride. We all
| believed in his straight and unbending
| integrity and we believed then in the
man. man must be not only bright
/ and clever to win our trust but he
| must be unsWerving. And this was
| one of the things that made him a
good superintendent and good
| church ns-n- He brought a rightly
| planned and strongly built personality
to the varied functions and duties.
What Worth Doing, Worth Doing Well
| Then he was thorough. This was
| a characteristic OF the man. He be-
! 1ieved in doing well what he deemed
worth doing. lie was an exact man
! in business, but not more so than in
/ every form of service. He had the ca
! pacity for taking pains, the least pos
| sble patience with slid-shoddery. If
! he was in the choir gallery the music
! had to be of the highest order. If it
was church work he wanted it done
| well. If a man was a Christian or a
| church member he believed in out
| rightness and not scamp work. IL it
! was the Sunday school. he wanted his
! teachers to be on hand and rendering
| full service and his appreciation for
such was enthusiastic. He was eX-
| acting of himself and he expected the
rest of us to be a our best. He could
/ not endure responsibility or the care
| lessness that left US to 90 imperfect
| work. Not a few of us owe much to
! his criticism. If he was exacting, it
was Of the kind that drew us into
/ erectness, for we knew he expected as
much of himself as of others. He was
| everywhere thorough expressing it I'M
| consciously perhaps in bearing and
instinctively that he was a gentleman
that finest product of cultivated
| community. Ruskin says if you were
| to cut a square inch out of any one
of Turner's skies you would find the
| infinite in it. And if you cut any
where into the life Of our late super
| intendent you would find the gentle
manly element which we admire so
much in man.
An Example to the Young.
| He was in this an object lesson to
! the young people with whom he had
| here to deal And young people going
| toward life could not do wiser thing
| than to copy his gentlemanly habit
| for the amenities are among the finest
assets. The young man is wise if he
sets himself to cultivate those graces
| of gentlemanhood which are the open
| sesame to many doors that are closed
| to those who neglect them. Whatever
young men get or fail to get they will
| find it to their adVanta ge to cultivate
| the maTness which is born of the
| inner purities and integrities which
all can cultivate. Then our superin-
| tendent was a religious man after the
| sane and healthy type. He was not
| obtrusive in thrusting it forward. He
| let religion penetrate his deepest ma
| ture and the divine spirit mould his
| inmost life. 1t was not Of the effer-
| vescent type, but it was deeper than
| the emotional springs ii put him in
touch with the external harmonies- He
| was at home with the Master and let
Jesus Christ control him in thought
| in an unwonted measure.
| 1t was all these and more that 1
| cannot stop to mention that made him
q good superintendent, and a good
| churchman and a good citizen. He was
Il strong. Virile, manly man, reverent
| toward God and eager TO serve his
i fellow men. And we do ourselves
fhonor to pause here today and look
| again for these few moments upon the
| character of one whose presence ele-
Yates and ennObles community and