Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1911-12-04

en-
1 We are accustomed to believe tina,
when death strikes down ope Of ou1
! brothers, the Geld world pauses for mo-
ment and then hurriedly gathers UP
| its effects and rushes on as If nothing
has happened. This. however. is moi
! true Of the Elks. The memory of thu
| lives of our departed brothers will remain
| with us and be a guide and inspiration
for many years to come.
When the earth hides forever from
loving eyes the beloved form of life's
dearest treasure and hope, there is nc
one who can take away the weary pains
of loss, save. Him in whom we trust
who longs to soothe the souls of the
stricken and sorrowing ones.
One more year has rolled around and
again we have strewn sweet flowers up
on tear moistened graves, and again
gather in our lodge rooms to commemor-
ate the names Of our departed brothers
and extol their virtues and manly quail
tiles. mot dead, but gone before" y
When the sun goes down below the hori-
ION, he is not set, the heavens glow for
full hour after his departure. And
when a great and good man dies, the
sky Of this world is luminous long after
he is out Of sight. Such a man cannot
die out of this world. When he goes he
leaves much of himself; being dead, he
speaks. And again is said death is
but the dropping Of the flowers that the
fruit may SWELL"
Death Is rest A deliverance from the
exhausting cares and labors of this
world When, then, thou seest a friend
departing, yield not to dependency. give
thyself to reflection, examine thy con-
science, cherish the thought that after q
little while this end awaits thee, also. It
matters not at what hour the righteous
rail- asleep, death cannot come untimely to
him who is fit to die. The less Of this cold
world the more Of heaven. Death stamps
the character and conditions of man for
eternity; as death finds them in this
world so they will be In the next One
may live as conqueror, king or q
magistrate, but he must die like a man.
The bed Of death brings every human be-
ing to his pure individuality, to the in
tense contempla ton Of that deepest and
most solemn of all rela' lions, the relation
between the creature and his Creator.
The church yard 1s the market place
where all things are rated at their true
value. and those who are. approaching it
talk Of the world and its vanities with
wisdom unknown before.
1.-The ripe fruit falls when the bough
Is shaken; the young are left and the
old are taken. When the evening comes
and the day is done, our brothers rest
and their wage is won. They have gone
to their home beyond the sun. Be it
known to them that they left behind.
they hated wrong, but loved mankind"
Beneath the blue vaulted sky our
brothers are sleeping the long and un-
disturbed rest Of death, all nature smiles
in joyous contentment upon their last
resting place. The summer sun sends
its warm rays, and hillside and valley
are covered with natures own carpet
of living green. Above their graves towers
the waving grass, while at their feet
grows the sweet buttercup to add in
cense to their memory. The chilly blasts
Of autumn may wither and destroy the
grass and flowers growing above their
graves. The winter may gently and
softly spread its mantle of pureness
over their last resting place, but their
memories will ever remain fresh and
green in the hearts Of their brother
Elks. The names Of our departed BROTH
ers are inscribed on the memorial tablet
Of the lodge to which they were men,
bers. The brothers who meet in the
lodge rooms after we Of this generation
are gone. will read their names on the
memorial tablets and will meet annu-
ally as we do now to commemorate the
memory Of departed brothers,, but to
us who knew and lived with these de-
parted brothers in this life it needs no
memorial tablet to preserve their names
and memories. as their names and MEM
cries are inscribed in our hearts, there
them in the Great Beyond. All of Us
sooner or later must claim from the liv-
ing, that tender recognition which we
now bestow upon the dead There is an
other circle to whom this day is also Pc
culiarly impressive. The mighty harv-
est Of death has brought to many dark
ened home and blighted heart q burden
that will be laid down only with life.
I speak Of the wife, the mother, sister
and children, and to all such these cere-
monies bring tender memories of the
past; their loss is greatest. They were
accustomed to meet our departed BROTH
ers in the household, we, in the lodge
room, and we must not forget to smooth
as far as possible the pathway Of the
wives, mothers; sisters and children Of
our departed brothers. Monuments ct
marble or bronze, may lift their heads to-
ward heaven in memry Of their names.
but monument mora Precious to their
memory and more valuable to the world
has already been founded in the hearts
Of their brother Elks. with whom they
were associated so long, so faithfully
and with such signal honesty. In the
busy harvest time Of past years there
were gathered into eternity no nobler
spirits. no higher intelligence, no fairer
souls. In every Elk lodge IL sincere,
deep and overlooking sympathy and sor-
row at the bereavement Of their sister
Ia - -