Norwich bulletin., 1918-08-03
THE MAN WHO TALKS

Do you talk about common people in a way to have it inferred there is something uncommon about you and yours? I wouldn't because it makes you seem to lack common sense The Savior belonged to the common people and so did Abraham Lincoln, who said there was no doubt God loved the common people because he made so many of them. The common people are the support and the defence of every nation; and when we look for the soul of nation it is found in the spirit of the common people It is said that as result of the war France has found her soul; and that Eng land has found her soul; and that America is in way to find her soul; and where do you suppose they find the soul of a nation? In the spirit of self ?sacrifice and defence of the peo- pie, the spirit which wipes out pre- tence and reestablishes the spirit of brotherhood. When these great na- tions have found their soul they will have revealed to them their past er- TOTS because the Christ spirit will supply them with purer hearts and a deeper vision. The conceit which makes people feel they are uncommon takes them far from home.
 There are a lot of mental exercises which would be just as good for us as the approved physical exercises. For instance, when you get to thinking some one is bad, and this is really a bad habit of thought just ask your self how bad he is, and then how much verse is he than yourself? It may be embarrassing to you, but it is good mental exercise. Thofeau in his day used to meet drunk upon the highway and one spring day he saw the remains shovelled up from beside the road. His only comment was: q do not know but he was more of a philosopher than T." To come right down to cold facts no one can possibly know how good or bad the other fellow is; and I question the ability of any man to correctly an alyze his own character along these lines. Introspection is good mental exercise and no medicine is better for bumptioIsness. An old authority says, If thou seest anything in thy self which may make thee proud, look q little further and thou shalt find enough 10 humble thee" The fellow who doubts his own goodness is better than he who doubts the other fellows.
 
 who knows the sky as marines know the sea, and who can tell what is | doing there. There's wind and l hail-storm getting together over 1 there" said my mentor directing my attention to a dense cloud mass in the l sky with a funnel-shaped appendage l beneath it, there's wind and ice in 1 that, but it is going to pass us, and 1 expend elsewhere it's force.'I noticed 1 then it was taking it's funnel sna ped part, and it soon had it all absor bed f; and it want drifting toward the Con- necticut valley; and the next day we read that trees had been uprooted and the tobacco fields of Connecticut had been damaged by hail I do not know how he could tell that ice-cloud from | the regular, dense thunder cloud. or why the one cloud should roar with wind and the other with thunder remember once when 1 was planning for a day of pleasure on the water 2 seaman told me: You will not gC | tomorrow. for there will be a fierce northtwesterly gale" There was. H.
 saw the signs of it's approach in the western sky where 1 could see noth ing but a gleaming red sunset. Tht signs in the sky are usually visible
 but very few of us learn to recogniz,
 them.
 1t beats all how much can be sait
 that is of little importance about thi glorious banner of ours. haRt
 learned the principles it represents.
 have followed it when men wer
 needed to defend it. I have seen i
 shattered to shreds by it's enemies. seel
 man die. for it, seen colored peopI
 freed by it shake with emotion whil
 the tears ran down their cheeks a
 well as my own. I have seen aiiel children glow with joy in it's pres ence and heard them say America il
 a tone akin to love and worship whic'
 revealed to me that with all m
 training I do not know how to sa
 America straight from the heart; an
 that few native Americans do; an
 yet I feel disgusted when i read tn
 rules handed out to US for the treat ment Of the flag. We love it for what : IS, and has been and will be to u!
 and to the oppressed of all nations
 What we should do when it passes u! , or we pass it. is to be become con F scious of it's worth to us and be a
 willing to follow it and fight for
 in it's hour of need as to raise our hat
 to it in salute when it passes by.
 we do not have the love that makes U [ it's defenders the raised hat or an = other kind of salute is mockery.
 John Rockefeller, Jr., stands as 9 free thinker and sane critic within tt . Baptist fold and his utterances al r commanding international attention
 He said recently: What the churc
 craves to-day is more spiritual an , less formal religion The world To- I,a- AI.s < long time, and it is to be hoped ths the teeth of religious formality wi
 soon be extracted as unnecessary fc | the well-being of the church. Thel r is a great gulf under present COT ,. GEtions between membership ar r brotherhood, which never can be Il
 same. for membership is a finite re
 lationship and brotherhood is
 spiritual relationship. It is good |, have a unity of ambition, but it Il also necessary to have unity e divine love and compassion and powe
 Preaching and praying are necessar
 but there is no substitute for Christia . activity and that soul power whic a is attractive and heavenly. Christis l, exclusiveness and scowling are pleai
 ing only to his Satanic majesty
 e Here is bit of up-to- date advi = which it is safe to commend: If Il man is inclined to lead fast life l e should lead it to the first hitehi1
 post and tie it." In such a life stl
 longest way round should not k thought to be the nearest way honi ot The minimum is the darling and t It maximum the foe. If experience
 necessary. and there is no denying tn
 experience has it's merits, one shou
 Io %TTJl IS In fast life there are thrills al g shocks. The thrill is nntk1ino tn 1