The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1919-02-14

down street In some city tonight ID
someone who, for whiskeys sake, has
thrown away his sclf-respcct. his self
control. hts home, his place among
men,
Look at him! Dirty. unshaven. I'M
kerant, IT yyould tax ,yqyr faith. ip
fhankiifn I'd bsneve thurs s. airy -1fesa,i
ing toward the highest in him. 50
A block farther down the street q
glimmer oS light attracts him. He
stumbles toward the window to look
in-maybe for the purpose of theft.
AS he looks in he sees the fragment
OF heaven transplantcd on earth. On
one side OF an open fireplace up the
chimney OF which sparks. are dane
ing with the poetry OF disorder, there
sits a young man, the picture of
health. You can ten that honor Is
his guiding star, and purity is his law.
arms around his neck and fingers
tangled in his hair, is a little boy,
the worthy offspring OF n noble father.
On the other side of the fireplace
Is a young wife, holding b her arms
q beautiful girl, with tender intimacy
OF motherhood.
All the emotions and memories that
the word home recalls to mind sweep
through the mind OF the piece of HUI
man driftwood standing at the win
dow, as he brushes away q tear. while
his fingers clench and unclench con-
vulsively, and he cries: Would to
God that had home like that.'
Envfes Blush Of Purity.
do not believe that the painted
woman OF The street can pass q pure
woman with the divine blush Of mod
esty and purity on her cheeks without
envying the one who has not barter
ed away her honor. i think that
Fanny Crosby was more than a poet
when ehe wrote:--
Down in the human heart,
Crushed by the tempter.
Feeling lie buried that grace can
restore;
Touched by loving hand,
Weakened by kindness.
Chords that were broken win vibrate
once more"
One day I passed a cesspool The
sight of the filth was disgusting, the
stencil nauseating. could see moth
ing in the cesspooi but a protest
against the city authorities for oilow-
ing to exist
But the sun with more than human
insight ran itS slender finger of gold
into that corrupt mass, searching
among the fifth for the one lost touch
Of beauty. II warmed and wooed that
cesspooi until from, its foul bosom
sprang a pure white lily, kissed into
life and purity by power that knew
enough not to take surface appear
ances for truth.
What world OF bitter criticism
would vanish IL we made 1t a rule
never TO brand man as hopelessly
bad until we have hankrupted our
powers trying to win him back. to
decency, honor and Christ
Can we forget one friend
Can we forget one face,
Which cheered us toward our end.
Which nerved us for our race
why docs Cod love those who are
not worthy of His love- Why does
He love the uniovely? Why does
the sunshine--heeause II can't help
it. Why does God love! Because He
can't help II: II is His nature to love.
There Is not a man on the face OF
the earth whom God does not love
God hates sin. but makes a dist me
ton between sin and the sinner God
Is at war with sin, because n mars
happiness. Because He loves us He
wants us TO forsake sin.
One reason why we are SO blind to
the love OF God is that we are always
measuring God by our rule. We love
as long as anyone Is worthy Of our
love, ard when that ceases we cast
them off.
Not so with God Human love 10
very chang~anle. Some who thought
a good deal of you years ago don't
care fig for you now-their love
has died out.
her bosom? The strongest love that
the world knows anything about il a
mothers love for her child. Many
th'n~s come INTO nves which win
separate man and wife. wife and hus-
hand father ana SON. hut nothing in
the wide world WIN separate mother
from her child. They say that death
conuuers everything. but not moth
er's love.
Fight ASninst AppctiteA.
God is in love with the beautiful.
He paints the lily. He dixtiis the dew
drop. He moulds the pearl. He arches
the rainbow. He studs the starry
night He gems the ocean depths. He
necks the iowery fields, He robes the
in snow. God IL In love
with the beautiful
1t grips ones heart to see poor
Henry Jekyf's eyes wet with tears
from his bondage to Mr.. Hyde and
see hts heart beating itself out against
his breast. longing to be free.
The bravest fight q man ever made
is q fight against physical appetite.
One OF the greatest heroes in the world
is the man who Is struggling against
the demands OF an infamed and dis
ordered physical frame. when every
nerve cries out for drink.
o what a battle! O how he lights,
how he struggles. how he conjures
up fond faces Of the mother and child.
that for their sAkes he may win!
When tho body masters the soul. you
have a sinner; when the soul masters.
the body, yoA have a saint.
They found some time ago in Egypt
a massive tomb of a princely younE
man, buried alive 5000 years ago.
Within the dark chamber he had
fought for life. There was
evidence Of fearful struggle. His
body was doubled. his fingers ciench-
60 and the wallis were stained with
blood. He had frantica1ly battered
the granite doors until the flesh had
FALLEN from his bones.
have seen men In q deeper dun
geon. In darker prisons, In q tighter
yrtp-the cruel grip OF an evil habit.