Year: 1878

There are persons who, like the knights
errant OF past days, seem TO feel that their
mission is to right existing wrongs. The
way in which they propose to do it is to
make them the theme of social inter-
course, the subject Of infinite talk. OF
course they never can lack material to
work upon. The newspapers abound in
it, political circles overflow with 1t, every
ne ghbor's family will afford it, in some
form and degree.


Our Saviour says: Judge not, that
ye be not judged!" Now, Of course, He
| did not mean that we should have no
opinion respecting men and their actions,
or that We should refuse, at the call OF
duty, to give voice to those opinions.
1t is an every day duty, which He Him
self recognized, TO decide questions Of
right and wrong, whose decision will
involve some about us in condemnation.
But this is a very different thing from
gl0ating over social crimes and evils, or
sitting down cynically to form adverse
judgments Of our fellows, taking refuge
in the shadow of principle.


A conscientious man feels that he
must defend the right, and therefore he
must condemn wrOng-dOers. A cynic
feels that he must condemn everybody,
and he rejoices that truth bears him out
in it. Now, it is the spirit in which we
contemplate what transpires around us
that reacts TO fit the seal of our judgment
on ourselves. II we are secretly gratified
with recitals of vice and crime which,
protesting TO loathe, we eagerly devour
with our rolls and coffee, the fact is,
though we seem to be condemning crime,
we are nourishing the incipient criminal
within us. Inproportion as these things
have q fascination for us, they have
drawn us down to their own corrupt
level.


It is in vain that we fatter ourselves
that we look upon these disclosures Of
crime and corruption with indignation
and loathing. We can not altogether
loathe that which we desire to contem>
plate we can not altogether hate that
whose details have pleasing fascination
for us. 1t is curious to see with what
assumed superiority some declaim against
popular vices when We perceive, from
their secret attitude, that the principle
result of the process is their own degrad-
alton. Evil communications corrupt
good manners"


But, if one who makes himself self.
constituted censor does not become un.
! charitable and evil>minded, he is almost
sure to become a confirmed gossip, and
few fates In the world, outside OF the
lunatic asylum, are more to be dreaded.
Can anything be more utterly diluting
to the thought, and weakening to the
entire moral nature than the empty and
feelingless clatter of carping tongues
Does anything more efiectually expel
from the soul all pure afinities for noble
things, all royal delight in truth, al
sweet and holy conceptions of virtue and
excellence, than this everlasting semi
scornful talk about a neighbor's dress,
household management, social aspira-
tions and religious sins ? One might as
well expect to obtain mental discipline
from wandering in boiler-shop, as to
hope for any good to himself or anybody
from the sort of animadversion that seems
to be the most pleasing occupation of
the average gossip. Ii we would benefit
our neighbOr, let us tell him OF his fault.
If we would curse ourselves, let us hold
up the image OF his imperfections before
our minds, to be photographed thereon.


Alas for the poor gossip; doomed, by
high degree, to fill his mind with the
"husks that the swine did eat !" In
tellectual starvation and neral disease
stare him in the lace If his talk does
not ruin innocent regulations, as it will
be more than likely to, it will belittle
and degrade his own intellect and heart
| II it does not destroy any other persons
power to do good, it efectually cripples
and dissipates his own. If it does not
make any one else to be hated and shun.
ned, it will make him unwelcome and
odious. He sacrifices all good and fair
things to a duty made of brown paper
ard saw dust. Or, like the deluded
children of Judah, who consumed cir
Offspring in the copper embrace of red.
hot Moloch, he burns his treasure to a
senseless and cruel god.


| Trifles, indeed, these themes of gossip
sometimes are, but trifing is serious
business. Trifes they may be, but the
business of one who deals in trifes makes
him trifler spendthrift of lite's sunny
days, a squanderer OF it's glorious oppor-
tunities, bankrupt in its nobler virtues,
and ignorant OF its truest joys. There is
a sense in which we are to be deeply and
actively interested in that which con,
Germs our brother man. He is neither a
| Christian nor a friend who will not
watch over his neighbor's interests, and
seek, from motives of charity, to promote
his happiness "Am / my brothers
keeper? ?" was the sneering retort of one
who had proved himself his brothers
murderer. There is generic relation
between the castingoff of the sacred
obligations of a common brotherhood,
and the staining OF our hands with a
brothers bleod. The man who cares
nothing for his brother is cousin-german
of the murderer. And "Whosoever
hateth his brother Is a murderer"


The difference is wide between one
who holds himself ready to reprove
wrong in a spirit of kindness, forgive
injury, sympathize with weakness, and
help infirmity who has noble purpose
steadily held, 10 interest himself for the
sake OF helping; and one who mouses in
the affairs OF others urged on by curiosity
a censurious spirit or corrupt heart.


Christ died because, knowing hu.
manity, His tender interest and sublime
sympathy could not but express and
pour themselves out in an infinite sac
rifice. But, for all We know to the con.
trary, the priest and the Levite, who, on
the road to Jericho, evaded the poor fel.
low in his distress, may have been the
most unsparing critics OF wrong doing in
Jerusalem, and ring.leaders oi the city