1898.] ESSAYS. 109 



I have been impressed in going by some of those sod houses 

 to see the "Survival of the Fittest," to see that some of the 

 women have retained the home love for flowers. I remember 

 one hidy's house, in particular, which was called the "brown- 

 stone front," where the most charming flowers used to grow. 

 We used to drive out of our way to go past her house, and 

 take in the marvellous contrast between that sod house and that 

 beautiful bed of flowers. There is something taking in flowers. 



Several years ago a gentleman travelling through the Rockies 

 fell in with a rough sort of a fellow and was afraid of him. 

 But they climbed up to a summit and there was revealed one 

 of those beautiful perspectives, valley, mountain, and plain. 

 His companion stood absolutely entranced and looked upon it. 

 And the man said, "Then I dropped all , apprehension, my 

 friend, of that fellow. The man that appreciated beauty was, 

 I knew, a safe man." Beauty is the alphabet of the revelation 

 of the hereafter. The mission of the beautiful is to make us 

 better, and to teach us of the hereafter. 



I remember a beautiful little child in Minnesota. She came 

 to lie down and die with the dread diphtheria, and there came 

 to her a vision of beauty. She told her friends of the wonder- 

 ful farm through which she passed. It was so lovely and there 

 were such flowers there ! Then I thought of the sweet fields 

 beyond, the swelling fruit, the never-withering flowers. I 

 remember during the great exposition I was lying at the point 

 of death with the rheumatic fever, and thought I was going 

 over to the Border-land. It seemed as though the way was 

 very open and plain. I remember one night there came such a 

 vision of splendor as I never dreamt of. My friends were all 

 at the Chicago Exposition and they sent home a letter with 

 regard to the splendor and beauty of that wonderful exposition, 

 but it could not compare with the beauty of my dream. I 

 thought 1 saw a vast field of unspeakable splendor, with chrys- 

 anthemums towering up like trees, all one blaze of beauty. 

 There were roses in vast varieties, and flowers such as I never 

 saw before ! Well, he is able to do abundantly more than we 

 can ask for. 

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