1880 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURt:. 



233 



for dishonesty, threaten to, and even do. set 

 tire to buildings. Shall one who employs 

 many hands, therefore hesitate about re- 

 proving dishonest or improtitable handsV or, 

 when he discovers that the example of one, 

 is corrupting to a large number, shall he 

 keep liim. for fear of what he may do? God 

 forbid ! Where should we be— what would 

 become of the laws of our land— what would 

 become of our nation, in fact, should we 

 cowardly back down and let evil rule? Shall 

 Ave lie awake nights, and worry, because of 

 this kind of wickedness'? By no means. 

 What did tlie Master say in regard to this 

 mattery 



Blessed are j'e, whtMi men shall luite you, and 

 when they shall separate you from their company, 

 and shallVeproach .\ou, and cast out your name as 

 evil, for the Son of man's sake.— Luke 6: iJ. 



He said. " Blessed are ye ;" that is, when 

 the persecution comes for righteousness'' sake. 

 The Savior lost his life because he reproved 

 wicked men. John the Baptist was behead- 

 ed because he told a wicked king and the 

 woman he lived with that it was a sin and a 

 crime to do as they were doing, 'i'wo of our 

 presidents have lost their lives because they 

 iield fast to that which was right. If this 

 property has been burned because I have 

 been vehement in regard to temperance — 

 because 1 have been determined that no man 

 or woman whose example is bad should per- 

 sist in trying to lead these soitls away /com 

 Christ, these whom I have been faithfully 

 trying to lead to him, then should I re- 

 joice, rather than to be cast down and sad. 

 There is a strange verse in the sixth chapter 

 of Luke, just after the one I have quoted. 

 It reads this way: 



Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy; for, he- 

 hold, your reward Is fireat in heaven; for in the 

 like manner did their fathers unto the prophets. — 

 Luke 6 : ~'3. 



When, for the first time after the fire, no 

 one could find the friend whom I have spo- 

 ken about in Our Neighbors for this month, 

 suspicion was turned upon him, and we con- 

 cluded, when that part of the journal w^as 

 printed, that he did it while crazed with 

 drink. I am glad to say, however, that, 

 some days after, Ave had ample evidence that 

 lie left our town on foot, and started for 

 Cleveland Sunday morning. It was hard for 

 me to believe that humanity could furnish a 

 single specimen of such ingratitude, and I 

 believe now that he is my friend, and would 

 not harm me nor my property. As I men- 

 tally go over the list of those Avith Avhom I 

 have had trouble, and weigh each one Avith 

 the best judgment God has given me, I can 

 not think of one whom I can believe it pos- 

 sible could commit this aAvful crime because 

 of personal differences — because I had re- 

 fused to give such a one Avork, or because I 

 had inadvertently, directly or indirectly, in- 

 jured him or his business ; and yet the sad 

 fact still stands— somebody deliberately took 

 down the stout bar across the doorway, 

 swung the doors open, unbuckled the head- 

 straps to the halters, turned the horses loose, 

 and then set fire to the hay, straAV, and com- 

 bustible goods stored near it, even Avhile he 

 felt the stiff southern breeze bloAving strong- 

 ly toward the long rows of seasoned lumber 

 piles, on each side of the railway track, from 



the Avarehnuse to the factory. Sin is in the 

 Avoild. \Vc can not hide nor disguise the 

 fact, that, so long as Ave stay here, we have 

 got to cope Avith the powers of darkness ; we 

 have got to cope Avith human hearts Avhere 

 Satan has taken such full possession that not 

 a spark of mercy or solicitude for any is left. 

 It is a hard fact, dear friends ; but, be ye 

 not cast down nor discouraged. The Mas- 

 ter has said, "■ In the Avorld ye shall have 

 tribulation ; but be of good cheer ; I have 

 overcome the Avorld.'' If, by kindness and 

 good Avill, you can Avin men from their evil 

 Avays, rejoice and thank God ; but if it all re- 

 sults apparently to no purpose, and if you 

 succeed only in being hated because you are 

 upright, there is a promise yet — ^ Rejoice ye 

 in that day, and leap for" joy, because of 

 your reAvard in heaven." 



Now a Avord in closing, in regard to the 

 loss of property. If you are Avorking for 

 property because you expect to get happiness 

 from it, you Avill have trouble and disappoint- 

 ment all the days of your life ; and the more 

 property you have, the more disappointment 

 you will get. I speak from experience. If, 

 however, property is held only in trust, and 

 is recognized as belonging to the Master, and 

 is iised for the good of the people, and for 

 his sake, then shall it give joy and pleasure. 

 xVnd now believe me Avhen I tell you that it 

 makes very little difference AA'hether you 

 have much or little, if it is held in the right 

 way. If thousands are swept away in an 

 hour, through no fault of your own, go on 

 doing business carefully and economically, 

 as if nothing had happened ; save the pen- 

 nies where you can save them, but let thou- 

 sands slide without a murmur where you can 

 not save them. Get yourself fully possessed 

 of the idea that you are simply a faithful 

 steAvard, and nothing more, and then you 

 are all right. But be sure that the idea does 

 not get in, that, because you are a steward, 

 you are to be less earnest and zealous in car- 

 ing for wliat God has intrusted to your care. 

 Get selfishness out of the heart ; and 

 Avhile you use care and economy — even such 

 care and economy that people call you stingy, 

 let the care and economy be for the sake of 

 helping the people and helping the general 

 business of the world, and not tliat you may 

 make money and get rich. Labor to enrich 

 others, rather than to enrich yourself. The 

 incident I have given in the fore part of this 

 paper, where Uncle Hen let his self-binder, 

 that Avas not insured, burn up in order to 

 save my property that was insured, strikes 

 someAvhat on the same point. Unless the 

 fire company stopped the conflagration 

 speedily, not oidy Avould I lose far beyond 

 my insurance, but the whole community 

 would suffer a heavy loss. 



Now Avliile I am about it, I Avant to say 

 that this very trait of character, that ena- 

 bles one to forget self and selfish interests, is 

 the surest Avay in the world to make money. 

 It puts you Avhere God can use you, and 

 Avhere he can use you for great ends. Muel- 

 ler's life is something in this line. And you 

 Avill remember that Jesus said, " Whosoever 

 Avill save his life shall lose it ; but Avhosoever 

 shall lose his life for my sake and the gos- 

 pel's, shall save it." 



