602 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Dec. 



is by calling the editor and everybody else 

 concerned in it bard names. Is it not a 

 Christian duty of yours to have the malign- 

 ers of your character prosecuted for the pro- 

 tection of others? You spring for your hat, 

 and declare, inwardly, that u this thing" 

 shall be sifted to its very bottom. All at 

 once occurs to you these little words from 

 the Gospel Hymns: — 



Have we trials and temptations? 

 is there trouble anywhere? 



We should never got discouraged- 

 Take it to the Lord iu prayer. 



You wheel around, get off by yourself 

 somewhere where there is absolutely no pos- 

 sibility of any one hearing you, and tell 

 your kiud Savior all your troubles. Before 

 you rise up, you doubtless think of one thing, 

 amid all your troubles, to be thankful for, 

 and this one thing is, that you did not go and 

 see the editor and give him a Apiece of your 

 mind!" For some reason or other, you nat- 

 urally turn to your Bible; and, as you open 

 it accidentally, probably about the middle, 

 as a Bible naturally opens of itself about the 

 middle, your eye falls on these words : — 



Commit thy ways unto the Lord; trust also in 

 him, and he shall bring it to pass And he shall 

 bring forth thy righteousness a« the light, and thy 

 judgment as the noonday.— Ps. 37:5, 6. 



" Wonder of wonders ! how did I ever 

 happen to strike on this? 1 ' you think. Is 

 not that a most glorious promise, my 

 friends? I have been reading it over and 

 over, for the past week. With these words 

 of hope and courage ringing in your ears, 

 you open at another place, and read — 



For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to 

 keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up 

 in their hands, lest thou dash thy toot against a 

 stone.— Ps. 91:11, 12. 



Here we have a promise that God will 

 even guard his children from making mis- 

 takes and blunders. Why, had you started 

 off as you were going to do, in anger, you 

 would most surely have '"cast your foot 

 against a stone." Blessed be the name of 

 the Lord ! Here is one more verse : — 



Because he hath set his love upon me. therefore 

 will I deliver him; I will set hiiu on high, because 

 he hath known my name.— Ibid. v. lti. 



You see, my friends, that all these great 

 promises are just because we have known 

 the name of the Lord, and chosen him for 

 our refuge in times of trouble. 



The question comes up sometimes, "How 

 long shall we wait to have these things 

 right themselves, or to have God right 

 them?" Joseph waited in prison two years. 

 Very likely they were as profitable years as 

 any he ever spent; but I am pretty sure 

 they were slow, wearisome years to him. I 

 wonder if he ever felt like complaining that 

 his lot should be so bard, for simply trying 

 to do right. Shall we never take any pains 

 to correct false reports that are started 

 against us? There may be circumstances 

 where it would be well for us to take some 

 pains in such a matter ; but as the tendency 

 is almost always to try to set the matter 

 right ourselves, instead* of letting God do it, 

 I would urge going along in the path of 

 duty, and paying no attention to it. Sup- 

 pose, for insiance, you do go all over town, 

 and follow it from one person to another. 



In a little time it will be noised about what 

 you are doing, and the very fact of one's 

 running about to bolster up his character or 

 reputation is in itself damaging. If yon 

 stick to your legitimate occupation, and half 

 do your duty, your reputation will take Care 

 of itself. Let "it alone; see that you are at 

 all times behaving yourself in a proper man- 

 ner, and are never seen in the company of 

 only good, respectable people, and you will 

 have all tbe credit you deserve, in a '•twin- 

 kling, " I might almost say. 



Now, a^word or two about trying to de- 

 fend yourself before the public — on the 

 streets, for instance; or, if you choose, try- 

 ing to defend the cause of religion on the 

 street-corners. If anybody should ask you 

 if the reports are true, by all means tell 

 them they are not; but if they should seem 

 inclined to argue the case, or to doubt your 

 simple statements, let them have it their 

 own way. One who is honest does not need 

 to affirm he is so, by adjectives or loud talk- 

 ing; not but that an honest person may be 

 entrapped into argument and loud talking, 

 but that if he does get so entrapped, he weak- 

 ens his cause. I certainly should know how 

 strong the temptation is to say just one more 

 word, or to explain just a little, for I have 

 sometimes thought it would be almost more 

 than I could endure, to leave a thing right 

 there ; but after an hour has passed, I have 

 been astonished to discover there was real- 

 ly no more that needed saying, and felt very 

 glad I had conquered the temptation to go 

 on. I once listened to a most excellent ser- 

 mon, and one that I could not help but feel 

 was urgently needed, although it cut ex- 

 tremely close in many directions. As the 

 minister passed out, one of the congrega- 

 tion began censuring him in regard to the 

 discourse. A mild reply was given; but 

 the displeased party was in no mood to ac- 

 cept mildness ; and, as he was not a Chris- 

 tian, every reply of any kind seemed only to 

 make him the more unreasonable, until we 

 had the spectacle of the minister and an infi- 

 del discussing in what might almost be called 

 a loud manner on the streets as they passed 

 home from church. I could not but feel 

 that it was unwise, and I prayed hard that 

 our pastor might have grace given him to 

 stop. He did ; but, if I am correct, he told 

 me afterward that it seemed every time as if 

 just one word more must make it all plain, 

 in a way that would end the matter. But I 

 have sometimes wondered if that were not 

 one of the subterfuges of Satan, to lead us 

 on into his toils. 



It occurs to me just now, that the letter at 

 the head of our talk to-day was written for 

 my own private benefit, and not for publica- 

 tion ; but, knowing how gladly this friend 

 would do anything to help you all, I have 

 taken the liberty to use it, and have put on 

 the signature, "A.," myself, that Iruight be 

 able to refer to it afterward. Now, please 

 notice the thought she gives us, of accept- 

 ing persecution as a blessing, instead of 

 trying to defend one's self. Preposterous! 

 the natural human heart w ? ould say ; who 

 ever heard of such a doctrine? Come to 

 think of it, it seems to me I have seen some- 

 thing in some old book, a little like this : — 



