The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1913-08-24

those who know nothing OF the writer's in years
long after To the conception and perception
OF the child the home is something everlasting
and the household gods are eternal and never to
be disturbed. There is no understanding that
presently death and many changes and disturb
ance and distribution may come, that the
forgotten books shall be tumbled somehow into
the secondhand stores or the auction places
There are the old Bibles and hymn-books and
prayer books scrubbed in them names forgotten
in the community and vanished from its activi-
ties; dates OF old Sundays, These are evidences
Of the irreverent inattention in dangerous min
utes of those who have been forced by circum-
stance to attend These have recalled since. with
solemn and bitter sorrow, all the surroundings
and circumstances wherein they were happy and
peaceful and free of care and did not know it
with the heartappealing hymns, the music and
the admonishing words inside and the trees
waving outside and no dense shadow or crushing
blow threatened by tomorrow. On the fly leaf
OF Bible we may find fippant comment on
the sermon or manners OF a pastor, now dead
written by hand. now dead We may find
|NP SurTepJltiOus anu lHuSChIouS CUITeSpouusHtc
In church. between the girl and the boy who
have passed away. after being grandmothers and
grandfathers
There are in the old books the notes and
pencil marks Of the anxious scholars, with far
reaching ambitions who dead and never
were heard about: on the novels the annotations
of girls and boys who believed themselves to be
desperately and forornly in love and who lived
to become obese and comfortable with somebody
else; or who gained their hearts desires and
found disappointment and misery. We could
find more heart and human interest stories and
more of the real happiness pathos and meaning
and more OF the dramatic In life than any Of
the magazines or plays give us II we could
follow back the histories OF some of the old
books and the scribblings In them.
Considering these. considering end musing
upon the endurance through long time of the
scrbblings OF idle moments in the fronts and
backs OF books and Of the going of these scrib
blings from the apparent security and privacy
and permanency of family and home life, VIC
NAV come to some thought of the scribbing we
do otherwise. The child or girl or boy scrib
bling idly a name momentary impulse on
a fly leaf has no thought for any possible future
or change So do we scribble with our words
and acts OF idlness or impulse. Many years
after. when we are gone or when those on whose
memories we have scrubbed arc far from us
a word a sentence look gesture may return
and it's effect may be passed ON to widening
circles life is real: life Is earnest. and tn
grave In not its goal"; but It's purpose Is that l
shall make the world and humanity little, littl
better and happier and leave behind 1T inscrip
tions and inspirations to lift those coming afte
a little higher. to incite and help them to b.
purer and better and to look and think and seel
to penetrate beyond the horizon that bounds ou
vision now The old books give us glimpses o
the inner lives of those gone by, of the interior
of old homes now torn down or in use for pur
poses which seem proclamation or in the occu
pancy OF new and unthinking people, For our
selves, the preaching cant may rorbear an,
, cen the rigid feature. We need not be perambu
, lating moral precepts for our neighbors w
may be careful that even In our lightest an
idlest moments and conversation we do not scrit
BILE on their hearts ugly or base or bad meme
rials Of us, We are sojourners here on this grea
globe We can take nothing away with us. TIL
, important purpose and work of our whole live
Is what leave in memories in example, 1
work done 1t may happen often that In tn
. world OF the unseen and in the view Of the Al
Seeing the random scribbling for good purpos
OF the humblest of us may be vaster in rea
results than the greatest achievements of states
men and warriors; and that the evil purpose
or careless scribbling we do may NOR
harm than Is done by the worst of tyrants, tn
most cruel OF oppressors. the vilest and mos
powerful of malicious sinners. There Is pur
ishment here. with all the machinery OF tn
law for those who kill the body For those VIII
Kill soul by careless Wiley intended scrit
bling on II, there Is no punishment here In tn
hereafter the punishment must be fearful or tn
-, forgiveness hardly sought and most intensel
besought
HATS Off TO KAISER BILL!