The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1913-01-09
fLYSIAN FIELDS LONG LIFE TNDE D
Glimpse Into the Future by a
Former Sank Centreite 8
HIS VIEWS OF HEAVEN
Chatty letter Written The Herald
While the Poor Old Year
BreatheS Its last

Breathes Its last
MINNEAPOLIS, Jan. 1913 Dear Her
aid: When few days since ! sent a
brief holiday greeting to my old com
rades in S. c., I never dreamed there
was ga chiei among ye takin' notes.
or that he would ''print it," well nc
great harm, as did not knock any.
body; still, / might have exercised
triiie more care as to diction had !
known.
To tell the truth, / was somewhat
dif1ident about sending that letter,
owing to the fact that In certain
quarters there is still a lingering
doubt as to whether the old soldier
was intended to be included in the
general plan of salvation, or left to
work out his own i'm the good old
fashion, which represents the grizzled
and Scared old veterans approaching
st. Peters gate with a hang-dog ex-
preston, but without the password;
and just as matters begin to look
badly for him, some good woman APP
pears to vouch for him and SO he fin
ally gains admission; once inside the
gate, he straightens up, and walks
the golden street with the same noE-
chalance he exhibited in strolling
down Main street or Grove Lake ave-
nce, while the angelic w. r. c. fan
him with their wings, and proceed to
tickle his palate with the same af-
fectionate nd prOdigal tenderness
they displayed on earth, and without
Thought bestowed on the high cost
of living.
Now I have been accused of soldier
ing myself, and 1 must confess there
is something alluring in the idea of
having a really angel tuck napkin
under my chin, and feed me Heaven
ly mamma from gold spoon. ! trust
there is nothing unorthodox in this
vision, which looks mighty good to a
battered old soldier who has little
left in life but dreams. The old sol
der after all is ''sui generis." Idon't
known what that means, but it
sounds all right, SO I'll let it stand.
and ask the janitor about it later.
just now l am worrying somewhat
over the future of the ancient soldier,
as find nothing in the tenets of our
faith to indicate that it is retroac-
tive, and 80 many of us died before it
became customary to use the letters
A. ID. in writing love letters and max
ing wills, that one is apt to wonder
how they were provided for in the
pre-christian period. However, those
old antedeluyians had their own ideas
of life and death and rewards and
punishments; and so our ancient COM
rades may not have Jared SO badly af-
ter ALL
And besides all this. . pagan heaven
is better than no heaven at all, and
some of them sound mighty good to .
worn out mortal seeking rest. Con-
slider for moment, the Elysian fields
of dear old Virgil, with their grassy
giades, their ample shade, the MUIR
muir of zepbyrs. the tinkle Of rills,
the melody Of birds, and the eternal
and sweet communion of the great
and good men and women of all time.
How satisfying to wander therein
arm in arm with Saul of Tarsus and
st. Augustine or Savanarola; to greet
old Archimedes and Calico. and hear
them tell of their triumphs over the
ignorance and superstition Of their
times, and to hear from the Hips Of
Hector and Achilles, the story oil
their big light; or sitting on smossy|
hank With Aesoulaplus and Nacheon,
near OF the siege Of Troy; the deadly
epidemic that decimated the 0rsclan]
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