1887 



(iLEAJ^IINGS LN BEE CULTURE. 



187 



JljYgEIiF HND MY ^EI6pB0^g. 



Be kindly affectioned one to another with broth- 

 erly love; in honor preferring' one another. — Ro- 

 mans 12: 10. 



§OME of our neifj^Uhors are next door, 

 others across the street, and still oth- 

 ers are a mile away — may he eight or 

 ten miles. It is" the latter class of 

 which I am going to speak this morn- 

 ing. The papers announced that there was 

 to be a farmers" institnte in a neighboring 

 town. Across the country it is only ten or 

 twelve miles; l)ut as this" is the season of 

 Medina mud. we consider it easier to go 

 perhaps 25 miles by means of three different 

 railroads than to undertake to go " "cross 

 lots." If the three roads made connection 

 as usual, I should get thiough in a couple of 

 hours; but they did not connect, and there 

 was a prospect before me of missing the pro- 

 ceedings of the first day. I could make the 

 next station, however, by going two miles 

 and a half on foot, and I very quickly decid- 

 ed to do this, for I have learned by experi- 

 ence that, when you are apparently brought 

 up short, it does not do any harm to push 

 ahead against obstacles, even if it must be 

 done on foot. I had started out on this trip 

 because it seemed as if God called me that 

 way ; and if it were in answer to this call, 

 what anxiety need I have as to the result V 

 My part was simply to say, " Here, Lord, 

 am I, several miles from home, and my 

 plans jfrustrated. What hast thou for me to 

 ao V" I looked back when I had hurriedly 

 walked perhaps half the distance, and saw 

 a fellow - traveler carrying two bundles. 

 When you are wanting some opportunity to 

 serve the Master, aiid you see somebody 

 walking with two bujidles, I think it is very 

 safe to ask permission to carry one of them. 

 Just a little while before, I had passed two 

 other fellow-travelers. I slackened my pace 

 for awhile, wondering if God had given me 

 any message to them. Their principal com- 

 fort, however, seemed to come from the to- 

 bacco they passed back and forth, and evi- 

 dently their tastes and mine were in different 

 lines, so I courteously bade them good- day 

 and pushed ahead. I almost always go ahead 

 of other people when I walk, even if I am a 

 small man. Well, now, this man with the 

 two bundles walked even faster than 1 did. 

 I found that he lived at our destination, 

 where the farmers' institute was held. Fur- 

 thermore, he is a devoted and earnest Chris- 

 tian ; yes, and be is a banker besides. He 

 gave me an account of the town of L., which 

 was very interesting indeed ; and as he is a 

 Sabbatti-school worker, and has the welfare 

 of all the people at heart, we found many 

 topics of mutual interest. Before returning 

 home I formed an acquaintance with this 

 man, which I shall remember as long as I 

 live, and I shall always be the haijpier for it, 

 because I know of one more who is lumger- 

 ing and thirsting after righteousness, and 

 who is working and praying f<u' the Master. 

 WTien we readied the station we were told 

 theie was no train for two hours and a half 

 — no train of any sort. This cut off abso- 

 lutely all chance of hearing friend Terry for 



the afternoon. Now, although the station- 

 agent told us there was no sort of a train, in 

 about an hour a coal-train came along. A 

 hot box obliged them to stop. The engineer 

 said very flatly, however, they did not carry 

 passengers '' nohow."" With some people 

 this would have settled the matter; but it 

 didn"t with me, even when the conductor 

 said the same thing. Did you ever know, 

 my friend, how much difference it makes, 

 in the way you approach a neighbor ? I did 

 j not say any thing until I caught his eye, 

 and then 1 good-naturedly replied, "My 

 friend, I am very anxious indeed to reach 

 j L.; and if you will tell me what I shall do to 

 get permission for you to carry us, I shall be 

 very much obliged."" His face softened a 

 little, and he said I might telegraph to the 

 1 superintendent, if I cared to. The tele- 

 graph operator did not seem to be very will- 

 j ing until we showed him some money, and 

 j told him we were ready to pay for all the 

 I trouble we made, whether he got us through 

 I or not. Now, please bear in mind ihat 

 ! these neighbors of ours, especially at tele- 

 j graph-oltices and railway stations, are often 

 t thoughtlessly hindered and annoyed, and 

 very often by people who are not willing to 

 pay for the trouble they make. A telegram 

 came back immediately, saying, "Carry the 

 passengers, providing they do not hinder in 

 any way or manner."" The conductor then 

 told us if we were willing to jump off a little 

 out of town, and foot it to the depot, we 

 could go. Of course, we gladly consented. 

 Now, 1 know from experience, dear friends, 

 there are people who ask favors of this kind, 

 and then demand to be set down at the de- 

 pot, and other things of a like nature, in a 

 way to hinder, more than they perhaps 

 realize. The telegraph operator did not take 

 any of our money for his trouble, after all. 

 You see, we began to get acquainted a little, 

 and he recognized us as business men who 

 were accustomed to business, and knew bet- 

 ter than to hinder, or even try to hinder, a 

 railway train that must make its appoint- 

 ments. 



A man that hath friends must show himself 

 friendly; and there is a friend that sticketh closer 

 than a brother.— Prov. 18: 34. 



I can not tell you what a pleasant after- 

 noon we had at the convention. Two or 

 three hundred live young farmers sat at the 

 feet, as it w^ere, of friend Terry and of those 

 who were capable of teaching" improved ag- 

 riculture, and drank in their words in a way 

 that was very encouraging — at least to my- 

 self. When opportunity was given they 

 took part, and I confess it greatly surprised 

 me to find there were, within ten miles of 

 my home, such a large number of really go- 

 ahead, progressive young men — yes, young 

 men and boys who had l)een putting in 

 practice Terry's teachings in regard to po- 

 tatoes, live stock, and even the adornment 

 of their homes and farms. 



Now, in this paper to-day, I wish spe- 

 cially to illustrate how much we lose by not 

 interchanging ideas, or getting acquainted ; 

 and. l)y the way, one young friend at the in- 

 stitute" gave us a most excellent talk on this 

 very subject of getting acquainted with 

 each other. He said oue of his neighbors, 



