188G 



(rLEANINGS IX BEE CULTURE. 



9i;{ 



motives; then be generous enough to tliink 

 at once that others are like yourself. 



It cramps and warps and deforms a man 

 to get into the habit of thinking everybody 

 Unscrupulous and unprincipled and greedy. 

 Try to be liberal-minded; try to be whole- 

 hearted; try to be generous; don't stop and 

 pick and quibble about little things. Let it 

 pass— let it pass, thinking that what is your 

 loss is anotlier's gain, and that, may be, it 

 will do him more good than it wouldyou. 



And now a word in regard to that part of 

 the letter which suggests letting the indi- 

 vidual severely alone. My friend, this " let- 

 ting alone " very often amounts to striking 

 him a blow. I do not see how a Christian 

 can possibly be excused for so doing, 

 for the ]\iaster says, '• Love ve your 

 enemies; do good to those that hate you." 

 Xow, you can not do good to a man by let- 

 ting him '' severely alone.'' It may not al- 

 ways 1)6 best to speak to him, or to have 

 very much to do with him under certain cir- 

 cumstances; but it is the duty of a Chris- 

 tian to be always striving to do good wher- 

 ever an opportunity offers; and the letting- 

 alone principle generally includes refusing 

 to do him a kindness when opportunity of- 

 fers. Xow, if we are going to do good to 

 our enemies as well as to our friends, we 

 come pretty near promising to do good to 

 everybody, irrespective of what has hereto- 

 fore "happened. If you have never tried it, 

 suppose you suri)rise some one by doing 

 some little friendly act for him, even after 

 you two have had difficulties. Surprise him 

 by letting him see that you have concluded 

 not to treasure up or remember it against 

 him. ^ly friends, we have not time to in- 

 dulge in' liard feelings toward avt/body. 

 8ome of the best lessons in this line i ever 

 got in my life were from our good friend 

 Prof. Cook. The good lessons were not in 

 the way of advice, but they were in the way 

 of actual experience and transactions. 

 Sometimes I wonder how it is, and what is 

 the secret of the great hold he has on the 

 hearts of the people — not only the people of 

 Michigan, but people everywhere he is 

 known, either through personal acquaint- 

 ance or through his writings. I think I 

 have found the secret. What do you sup- 

 pose it is? Why, it is embodied in the little 

 text at the head of this talk, better than any 

 words I can frame to tell it. The way is 

 open for you to go and do likewise. There is 

 no patent right on loving your enemies, and 

 doing good to those who hate you. There 

 is no patent right against putting away 

 strife and selfishness. Christ's teachings 

 are free to all. The saddest part of it is. 

 that so few are found to take advantage of 

 them, thus making not only this world 

 pleasant, but laying up treasures in heaven 

 by means of these same teachings. 



It seems to me that Satan sometimes 

 warps our better judgment in these matters 

 by persuading us that it is our duty to bring 

 the guilty to justice; and the evil one may 

 even persuade some usually well-meaning 

 man that he is doing CJod service in prolong- 

 ing a useless quarrel and controversy. 

 There are many texts in the Bible, command- 

 ing us to give way and to suffer wrong, and 



to judge not; but there are very, very few 

 enjoining us to expose a brother, and bring 

 his iniquity to light, even when he is doing 

 wrong. Would it not seem, in view of this, 

 that the tendency of humanity is much oft- 

 ener toward the one extreme than to the 

 other? — that is, difficulties among friends 

 and neighbors are very rarely of such a char- 

 acter as to demand lawsuits or pulilic expos- 

 ure. Even in this great trouble that is be- 

 fore our people now about the intemperance 

 of our land, I believe we often err in being 

 in too great haste to condemn too severely. 

 Xo doubt, something ought to be done in 

 all these cases ; but the question seems to 

 be. What is the wisest thing to doV If we 

 stop and ask ourselves what course will do 

 the friend in question most good, we shall 

 seldom be led astray. 



A few days ago, one of the book-keepers 

 submitted a letter to me that slie had writ- 

 ten to a man who had beliaved very badly. 

 I told her it was too severe. 



"But, Mr. Boot, it is the exact truth," 

 said she. 



'' I know it is, but I would not tell the ex- 

 act truth.'' She looked at me a little inquir- 

 ingly. 



Xow, friends if the erring one were one of 

 your own family, and you were telling what 

 he had done that was wrong, would you tell 

 the whole truth? I think not. You would 

 soften it and omit unnecessary details, and 

 I think you would be doing right. Evil is 

 bad enough without exaggerating it and 

 giving the full details as the sensational 

 newspapers do. Well, now, if you will soft- 

 en it and put it mildly because the offender 

 is a relation, why not consider all mankind 

 related to you through God the Fattier, and 

 appeal to his better feelings, if possible, by 

 stating his olTense so mildly that he will re- 

 cognize you do not put it as bad as it is. It 

 is a very hard thing to do this when you are 

 excited and stirred up ; but I tell you. my 

 friends, it is a wonderful thing to be able to 

 control your feelings so as to hold back even 

 truths which it would be better not to utter, 

 or that are not necessary to be told. A good 

 friend of mine once suggested to me that I 

 should remonstrate willi" one who was act- 

 ing very provokingly. I replied that I had 

 decided to do so a dozen times, but that, 

 when I began to consider the matter, I felt 

 that I should say too mucli, and so I said 

 nothing. The reply was, " I think, Mr. 

 Root, if you only had grace to do it, it would 

 come better from you than from anybody 

 else.'' 



I have often thought of that word "grace" 

 — the grace to reprove, and yet do it mildly, 

 kindly, and lovingly. How beautiful and 

 lovable is this trait when we see it in othersi 

 May God give us that coveted grace, even 

 though it seems as if we have not inherited 

 it by nature ; and may he help us, that noth- 

 ing be done through strife or vain-glory. 

 May his Spirit sustain us and help us, in 

 lowliness of mind to esteem others better 

 than ourselves. 



Xow, a word more, in regard to this mat- 

 ter of not telling the whole truth when you 

 are discussing some trouble with an oppo- 

 nent. Both of you are excited, and greatly 



