The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1916-05-29
PEOPLE, POOR BECAUSE
OF WASTE AND NEGLECT
Annual Sermon To Y M O. A. at William and Mary Colegs
Preached BY Rev. Fred B. Chenault Of Richmond.
1.-THE Law Of Multiple Is His Theme.

Williamsburg, Va. May 2s.-The
lnnual sermon before the Y. M. c. A.
OF william and Mary College was
preached tonight by Rev. Fred X.
Chenault, pastor of the Broad-street
Methodist Church. Richmond. MI.
Chenault's theme was. THE Law OF
Multiple" and his text-Matt. 1879
Unto every one that hath shall De
given and he shall have abundantiy'
but from him that hath not shall be
taken away even that which he nath.
In part, Mr.. Chenault said:
Genius Is released power. MOST
men have in them a great deal more
than Is ever expressed. and the rea-
son men do not more fully express
themselves 10 because they are really
afraid to discover what they really
are We are bridied by some kind OIL
physical limitation or sin; though we
may express ourselves to degree ten
thousand times greater than the pres
ent yet We cannot possibly express
anything moro than is already latent
within ourselves. Nothing that we
can become 10 greater than what we
already are. In ono case 1t is po-
tentiaI power, and in the other case
1t 10 kinetic force.
Manv Of rs do not do more with
what We have because we waste our
opportunities We are not poor be-
cause ve lack resources, but because
we fail 70 discover, conserve and con-
secrate what we have. One of our ma
ational alogAns has been tho conser~
walton Of national resources. AS
nation We have been profigate. ana
as individuals we are perhaps no bet
.1x OorfN4 In the
embryo. and genius Is nothing but
pent up power. There are great forces
that ouR1,t TO be released. but we have
to release them. Nothing in nature
IL really wasted and, therefore. moth
tns In human talent ought to be al
lowed to SO to waste. The candle rs
consumed. but transformed. Buds
fall. but the fruit follows Flowers
wtther but the perfume fingers. Songs
may be forgotten. but the melodies
live. The words OF our loved ones
cease but their spirits continue 10
speak.
A doctor suggested the other day
that perhaps a. nation were
wasting enough to feed the world, and
as individuals we are all wasting
enough to make us rich. not only IN
money but In character.
A man walked around one day ana
saw the slabs from a saw mill going
10 waste, and began to make paper
The trimmings from the saw mill
were being discarded and somebody
else began to make hoops and boxes.
Men used to be employed to roll back
saw dust from the wheels of the saw
mill. they now take this waste ma
terial and blow It back into the en-
CINE to furnish power to run the
whole mill How to dispose of the
cotton seed used to be a problem. As
a hy-product II IL now worth more
than the cotton itself. The osggar
throws OFF his old rags that nobody
will touch, and the genius OF man
transforms them into beautiful paper
on which the maiden writes her billet
doux One day a man saw yarn and
rubber going to waste around a fac
tory. and an idea came to him and
this was the beginning OF the first
great baseball factory.
A great many of us are finding
fault with this old world and saving
that il has never given US half a
chance, hut we are not poor because
we have 10 be. but because we want
TO he. We are counting somebody
else fortunate and ourselves unfortu-
rate, but fortune IL in the hands Of
every man II he will only see It,
Men don't have 70 he vagab0Tfs go
ing around begging for bread at the
Hdtk uVSf. SicI ucI nave ~ HSai
rags upon the street and beg for a
penny. Men don't have TO he the
under dog There are 80 many people
that are camp followers when they
might be great captains in Gods
army. There are 30 many young men
standing around the street corners
with a cigarette in the corner Of
their mouths putting their brains out
OF their noses when they ought 70
be doing something bigger and better
Many young men are unging their
minds with foul images or are indulg-
ing In vulgar stories, or are allowing
the best and highest purposes and
ideals Of their lives to be debased,
Men don't have TO he little they
choose to be little. We don't have
10 cherish little dreams and think
little thoughts and follow little plans.
The man who will build his plan on
Tho plan that GOO intended II TO be
will build It large. God never limits a
mans opportunities. II they are linn
tied he limits them himself God does
not build a fence around a man, he
usually builds the walls that hem him
self in.
Neglect.
We sometimes lose what we have by
neglect. A man doesn't have TO out
of his arm to lose II, but Just fall to
exercise II and It will wither man
does not have to pluck out his brain
to become worthless. all ne has to do
Is to fail to think and II will soon be
dormant. A man does not have TO
wait until some Judgment day to Damn
his spirit All he has to do IL to neglect
his greater opportunities that God
gives him. In Monmouth Gave there
are fish that have no eyes. and yet
they belong to the same species of
nsh that are found in other places
that have eyes, bit the Ash In Man,
mouth Cave have no eyes because ehcy
need no eyes, Years OF not using
their eyes have caused their eyes to
disappear.
There are many people who think
some other fellow has gotten ahead
OF them and they usually attribute II
to pull. Some men do not do any
more than they are paid to do; 40 not
60 any farther than they are COM
PEELED to go, but push" counts a.
good deal more in this world than
pull" You will And that you cannotl
pull fellow very far who does not do
little pushing himself Some wait
for the big opportunities and shirk
the little ones But life is a yrnas
III