238 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTUEE. 



May 



The Bible tells us it is impossible for hu- 

 man thought to conceive the blessings that 

 are in store for those who obey. Is it not 

 likely it is also beyond human thought to 

 measure the amount of misery that can be 

 heaped up into a single moment? "Would 

 you, my friend, take this poor boy's place 

 for all that earth, ay, heaven too, so far as 

 we know, could offer ? What do you think 

 now of turning the other cheek also, as 

 Christ enjoined ? or of giving the cloak also? 



What could a poor mortal do, under such 

 circumstances V Perhaps he bad never been 

 taught to turn to the God that made him ; 

 and, if he had, under circumstances like 

 these, even a Christian (if it is possible for a 

 Christian ever to get into such a place) might 

 almost be excused for fearing to look toward 

 God at all, and turning rather toward Satan 

 who had led him into such a situation. This 

 is Satan's work, all of it. and I have often- 

 times thought that this is exactly the 

 end he is constantly aiming at. Our 

 boy, I presume, stood still and thought 

 a minute or two. but there was very 

 little time for thinking. He must quick- 

 ly do one of two things,— confess his crime 

 and give himself up for punishment, or 

 flee for his life, and wander, with the brand 

 of Cain upon him, over the whole face of the 

 earth. He chose to follow the Devil still; 

 and when he had once made up his mind, 

 Satan seemed ready to prompt him to more 

 crime. He knew his father had some money, 

 and he first tried to unlock his trunk with 

 the proper keys ; but failing in this, he broke 

 the lock, took the money (a little over $100) 

 and his father's watch, and started off. He 

 first went to Boston, and roamed about aim- 

 lessly, having no heart or taste for anything. 

 Next he went to New York, if I remember 

 correctly; then back to Boston again, and 

 finally, when nothing else would heal the 

 awful, guilty conscience within, Satan led 

 him to try drink. While under its influence 

 his money was all taken by a comrade he 

 bad found, and, sick at heart unto death, re- 

 gardless of consequences, he wandered back 

 to his old home and gave himself up, saying 

 he was tired of trying to elude justice any 

 longer. May God help that poor unfortii- 

 nate even now, to-day ! As I go over it, how 

 my heart yearns to say a word of comfort to 

 him ! Not that I would soften his offense, 

 but that I would try to show him that a lov- 

 ing Savior weeps even for such as lie. 



My friends, humanity is now before us. 

 The very boys that may do these things in 

 the years to come are near you and inc. ( 'an 

 Ave do anything to prevent such crime and 

 misery V and have we been doing, and are 

 we doing, all that lies in our power? 



The question often conies up, How much 

 shall one bear, without resenting? In other 

 words, when does it become necessary to 

 tight in self-defense? If I am correct, cir- 

 cumstances and conditions have much to do 

 with it. Had the ease I have mentioned not 

 terminated fatally, some might have said 

 t he boy was acting in self-defense. Was he 

 acting in self-defense at all ? His father's 

 purpose was only to teach him obedience, 

 and to subdue him, if I understand the mat- 

 ter correctly. Had he not talked back, he 



would not have been attacked at all, in all 

 probability; but if he had, 1 think all will 

 agree with me in saying, it were far better 

 for a boy to take a whipping, nay, a flogging, 

 from his father, than to strike back. I am 

 not taking a father's part because I am now 

 a father of a grown-up boy, but because I 

 distinctly remember being whipped by my 

 father, with a horse-whip too, after I was a 

 pretty large boy. I thought it was unjust, 

 and I thought of resisting ; but, O boys, you 

 can not tell how I thank God now, that I de- 

 cided then to take it, without saying even a 

 word in remonstrance. Shall a boy take all 

 these things from a parent who is passionate 

 and unreasonable ? By no means; but there 

 is a most powerful weapon that is in the 

 hands of every boy in our land, rich or poor, 

 high or low. To illustrate : Suppose that in 

 either of the cases 1 have mentioned, the 

 boy had appealed to his father something 

 like this : 



"Please, father, listen to me a moment. I 

 am very sorry for my carelessness, and I will 

 do my best to obey you in everything you 

 ask. I do not think I should be punished, 

 inasmuch as I am almost a man, in size at 

 least. It will hurt you, and myself too, far 

 more than the pain you inflict. At least, 

 father, stay your hand for just one hour, and 

 if, at the end of that time, you still think I 

 should be punished, I will submit as best I 

 can, and without a word. In any case, let 

 us be friends afterward, as we have been 

 heretofore." 



How many fathers have we that could 

 whip a boy after such a plea as that ? Per- 

 haps few boys would frame it in the exact 

 words I have chosen, but almost any one 

 could, in his own words, broken with' sobs 

 perhaps, give his father to understand how 

 he felt about it. Hundreds of parents could 

 stand blows, where one could stand an ap- 

 peal like that. Would it be cowardly or un- 

 manly for a child to speak thus ? I should 

 feel like calling such a boy a hero, even 

 though he had. at the time, grievous faults 

 and failings. This is what I understand by 

 turning the other cheek also, and I do under- 

 stand also that Christ meant us to find in 

 that little, simple act, a power that would 

 subdue not only nations, but even savages, 

 and, for aught 1 know, wild beasts also. It 

 is only putting in practice the little text, " A 

 soft answer turneth away wrath." If I was 

 sure I could so rule my own spirit as not to 

 get off the track at anything that might turn 

 up, I would ask to have the ugliest man that 

 could be found, to come and live near me as 

 my neighbor, that 1 might demonstrate to 

 the world the power of Christ's words. If I 

 failed, it would he on account of my own 

 "ugliness" (would it not be funny if he 

 should burn out to he the better man of the 

 two?) not because the man was too bad, or 

 the text would not work. 



In our own county, two neighbors got to 

 quarreling about the pasture of a horse. ( )ne 

 railed the other a liar, and because of some 

 foolish notion, the remnant of a sort, of bar- 

 barism that is still current- with a certain 

 class of people, he thought he must in honor 

 knock him down, to redeem the insult. He 

 did knock him down, with the but of his 



