The Sunday telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1914-1927, 1916-04-23

or glittering precious stones, or cost
ly apparel, or feasts. or any other at
tributes OF wealth? 1t was to get her
poor dog a bone! Not only was the
widow poor, but tho dog-the sole
prop OF her age-was poor, too. We
can imagine the scene. The poor dog
crouching In the corner. looking visit
fully at tho SOLITARY cupboard, and the
widow going to that cupboard-in
hope, in expectation maybe-to open
II. although we are not distinctly told
that 1t was not half open or ajar-to
open It for the dog.
But when she got there the cupboard
was bare,
And so the poor dog had none.
"When she got there!" you see, dear
brethren. what perseverance Is. You
sec tho beauty OF persisting in doing
right. She got there. There were no
turnings and twistings. no slipping
and slidings. no leaning to the right or
gatherings to the left With glorious
simplicity we are told she got there.
And. how was her noble effort re-
warded?
The cupboard was bare! 1t was bare.
There wero to DO found neither
oranges nor cheesecakes. nor penny
buns, nor gingerbread, nor crackers.
nor nuts. nor lucifer matches. The
cupboard was bare! There was but
one, only one solitary cupboard in the
whole OF that cottage. und that one,
the sole hope of the widow and the
glorious loadstar OF the poor dog. was
bare! Had there been leg OF nut
ton. loin of lamb, a fillet OF veal, even
an ice from Gunter's, the case would
have been different, the incident would
have been otherwise. But it was bare,
my bretheren. bare as bald head.
bare as an infant born without caul!
Many of you will probably say, with
all the pride OF worldly sophistry. 1.-THE
widow. no doubt, went out and bought
dog biscuit All, mol Far removed
from these earthly ideas, these mum
dane desires. poor Mother Hubbard.
the widow, whom many thoughtless
worldlings would despise. in that she
pnly owned one cupboard, perceived
or might say saw-at once the re-
lentless logic OF the situation. and
yielding to 1t with all the herolsm OF
that nature which had enabled her
without deviation to reach the barren
cupboard. She did not attempt. like
the stir necked scoffers of this genera
ton, to war against the inevitable;
she did not try, like the so-called men
OF science, to explain what she did
not understand. She did nothing. The
poor dog had none And then ut this
point our information ceases. But do
we not know sufficient? Are we not
cognizant OF enough?
Would we dare to pierce the veil
that shrouds tho Interior fate OF Old
Mother Hubbard. the poor dog, the
cupboard or the bone that was not
there? Must we imagine her still
standing at the open cupboard door,
or depict to ourselves the dog still
dropping his disappointed tail upon
the floor, the sought-for bone still re-
naming somewhere else? All, no! my
dear brethren, We are not permitted
to attempt to read the future. Sut-
flee 1t for us to CLEAN from this beau.
tiful story its many lessons; suffice II
for us TO apply them. to study them as
far as in us lies. and bearing In mind
the natural frailty of our nature-to
avoid being widow, to shun the pa
tronymic Of Hubbard; to have. II our
means afford it. more than one cup
board in the house. and to keep stores
in them all. And, oh! dear friends.
keeping in recollection what we have
learned this day, let us avoid keeping
dogs that are fond of bones. But.
brethren. II we do, If fate has or
dained that we should do any of these
things. let us then go as Mother Hub
bard did. straight. without curverting
or prancing, to our cupboard, empty
though it be; let us, like her. accept
the inevitable with calm steadfastness,
and should we. like her. ever be left
with hungry dog and an empty cup
board, may future chronicles be able
to write also OF us in the beautiful
words Of our text.
"And so the poor dog had none"
Seventy languages are said to be