Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1915-07-09

o'emn gaze, and he replied in tones
which harmonized with his ~counten-
ance:
Father, L never thought along this
inc before, but I see your point of
5iew plainly; and l promise to give it
ny very best attention. You have
'rought to my mind something worth
while, and believe me, your effort
shall not fall to the ground. A man
Who is merely strong is exposed to
9erils unspeakable, because, as you
ave said, he very likely will have
plenty of chances to use it. l have
selt already that temptations to use
mes strength are plentiful on all
ides. They come every day in large
'umbers. Pm old enough to realize
this much"
The sweat of the fathers heart
welled up in his eyes as he embraced
his son, drawing him into his warm
bosom, and after a moment, he re-
piled:
"My son, I have always loved you
learly. You have been in my mind
oy day and by night. For twenty
wears you have been in the front rank
Of my thoughts. But I love you to-
lay with that love that comes from
above, the love that brought our Mast
er into the world to die for US. How
glorious it is on US, established as we
ire in the same path. the path of
goodness! Long may you live, my
son, to spend your strength in the
spirit IF the lowly Nazarene. In this
you will do no man any harm"
Can we measure the satisfaction of
this father as he held his son in his
arms. realizing that his effort to
show a fine distinction had not been
n vain-realizing that his son had
rrasped his idea of life so thoroughly?
What a grand scene! Both were well
rewarded.
This brings us to the point which
we have in mind. What is the founda-
ton of our character? What is the
basis of our civilization? What is the
ruling factor Of the nations? Is it
strength or goodness? Is it Cain or
Abel? Does the spirit of the times
value a strong man more than a good
man? Is it not true that we have
been building on strength rather than
on goodness? Do we need to hesitate
to respond to these inquiries? No:
the answer it too s~elf-evident to just
fly the slightest trace of hesitation.
We know it from afar, and it comes
to US in spite of our hardest efforts
to hinder it. Our civilization has been
erected on strength, on Cain; and this
sad conclusion has been reached upon
undeniable evidence. Strength is the
foundation of our life even in this
age of light and culture; this age of
schools and refinement. The demand
/, for the man of strength is enormous,
as we all know. Give US men of
strength is the cry. Brute force has
, taken the throne. Cain yields the
. sceptre with his mighty arm as of old,
: and the goodness of his brothers is of
no more value than the dust of the
earth. They are trampled under his
ruthless feet as cast-off filth. He
: slavs unsparingly.
: Those who profess to know, judges
= of no mean repute. maintain %stoutly
= that the personality of Cain has in
vaded every realm in our generation
! Even the arts, the finest arts, have
= been blighted by it. Brute force is
to be seen and felt everywhere, ant
! unless we have a taste for this sor
Of thing, it is difficult for US to fine
: a congenial plsee for our abode. Thu
animal has dethroned the man, tn
~ineness of human nature, and the ma
lions are even now crying f%uriousl,
COR him to have more of his way
Verify, verify, we have gone crazy TO
, strength. The beast is respected toda,
more than ever. Larger armies an,
stronger navies are the demands o
he hour. We have become accustom
= ed with murder, pillage and rapine
and in our mad eagerness, we crav
"a for more and mightier perpetrators
y This is the flower of the type of civi
m lization which we have encourage
u and developed, and where it will en-
I no one knows. The prophet has nc
"a yet appeared on the horizon of on
sorrowful plight. We are in the gri
ID of brute force. The beast reigns b
ID the strength of his paws and teeth.
But. in the midst of u sore pre-
l dicament, it does seem to us occas
n ionally that the voice of Abel is hear
~ louder and louder. Unless we al
u badly mistaken he speaks with nor
u emphasis than usual. At any rat
"a we are convinced that our condition
N far from what it ought to be. W
+ are sure that we have been misle'
~ that we have been building on til
NJ wrong foundation. The deception {
he brute force was never revealed to l
a before so Enthusiastically. and if tt
ID indications are not quilting. the tic
is turning. The error of our way he
r heen made known to us and we al
r beginning to see our folly. We al
beginning to see the exceeding sinfu
I