THE GOOD DEVILS 



the winds took from them, and thus keeping the 

 vital currents of the globe in ceaseless motion. The 

 same may be said of the weather system of the 

 globe ; it is not perfect everywhere — too much 

 rain here, too much sun there, too hot in some parts, 

 too cold in others, but on the whole favoring life and 

 development. 



We think we could improve the weather. So we 

 might for our special purposes at times — when it 

 rains and we have hay down, or a crop to put in, or 

 a picnic in view; but it is better on the whole that 

 we adapt ourselves to the weather than that the 

 weather be adapted to the special needs of each of 

 us. The Lord would be pretty sure to get mixed up 

 if He tried the latter plan. 



A general and not a special Providence is our sal- 

 vation. Good and evil mixed make life, as cloud and 

 sun in due proportions make the best climate. 



n 

 War is a scourge like fire, the whirlwind, the 

 earthquake, when viewed in the light of a particular 

 time and people, but good may come from it after 

 the lapse of ages. It strengthens and consolidates 

 and develops the heroic virtues. Yet what a legacy 

 of suffering and death go with it! But to invoke 

 war is like invoking the pestilence, the tornado, the 

 earthquake. The guilt of the German military staff 

 in bringing on the World War is of the blackest dye. 



83 



