1118 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Dec. 1 



how to explain the cause of my indignation. 

 Father Chapman straightened it out. Said 

 he in substance, "The United States pro- 

 poses to be fair, and to give every one a 

 chance to defend himself, white or black, 

 rich or poor, providing the criminal stands 

 before the bar or behind locked doors. 

 How, in God's name, can any right-thinking 

 man (to say nothing of the governor of one 

 of the grandest and most glorious States in 

 the Union), suggest that we should be /air 

 to the viidnight assassin, to the highway 

 robber, or to the house-breaker, while he is 

 at large violating the law?" 



Dear readers, it may seem a little hard 

 right here at this stage of proceedings to 

 quote our text and say, ' ' Father, forgive 

 them; for they know not what they do," 

 especially when we change the scene from a 

 poor ignorant untutored saloon-keeper, one 

 who knows nothing of Jesus and his love, 

 and apply it to the governor of Ohio, and 

 say, "Father, forgive him; for he knows 

 not what he does "? 



When the Anti-saloon League was started 

 it had the Gospel of Jesus Christ for its 

 foundation; and it expects to carry its work 

 through from beginning to end in the line of 

 "Jesus and his love." 



You who have read the papers know of the 

 resolutions passed by churches and church 

 conferences of all or nearly all the leading 

 denominations, to the effect that the liquor 

 business from beginning to end is a crime 

 against our State and the whole United 

 States, and that we can under no considera- 

 tion consent to the nomination or election of 

 a man who insists that criminals and outlaws 

 shall have "fair play" in their warfare 

 against temperance and religion, and socie- 

 ty in general. 



A speaker whose name I can not recall 

 told us the following little story which I shall 

 use to close with. 



On one of the great lines of railway lead- 

 ing into the city of New York there has been 

 for years employed a most skillful and reli- 

 able engineer. But notwithstanding his abil- 

 ity and many good qualities, this man was 

 all his Hfe a terribly profane man. When 

 things went wrong he would outrival any- 

 body else in his awful profanity, and nothing 

 could stop him. This man had just one vul- 

 nerable point. He had a wife and a humble 

 little home, and one little flaxen-haired 

 girl. His little Mary was his constant com- 

 panion when off duty; and when he went to 

 his work she followed him to the gate, 

 reached her little hand through the pickets, 

 and waved it in parting. A part of his run 

 passed so near his cottage she could reach 

 out through the pickets and wave her hand 

 at him as he ran by on his big locomotive; 

 and never once in his life did he pass that 

 cottage without looking for the idol of his 

 heart. She had learned the exact time of 

 day when he was expected to pass, and was 

 almost invariably on hand. One day, as she 

 was getting a little older, he noticed she 

 tried to climb up so as to look over the top 

 of the pickets; and then it flashed into his 



mind that she might get caught, as children 

 have in times before, and that very night he 

 knocked a picket off so she could put her 

 head through, and he could get a glimpse of 

 her golden hair as she shouted after him en- 

 dearing words and waved her little hand. 

 One day little Mary fell sick of a fever; but 

 the demands of his business were so great, 

 and from the fact, besides, that there was 

 almost no one else who could take his place 

 on that exact run, the company urged him to 

 stick to his post if it were a possible thing; 

 and there he stayed until her case was a 

 little dangerous. But he hoped to be back 

 before any thing serious could happen. Long 

 before he could get a glimpse of the cottage 

 his eye was in that direction. Finally as he 

 got nearer he saw something tied to the 

 door that looked like black crape. There 

 was the little gate with the picket off, but 

 no golden-haired Mary. Through the blind- 

 ing tears he saw there was no mistake. 

 The crape was tied to the door. He put 

 away his locomotive, and with fierce rebel- 

 lious thoughts in his mind he approached the 

 door. His poor wife, knowing what the 

 probable result would be, came out to him 

 in the yard; but even the sight of her and 

 her suffering had little effect in quelling the 

 rebellion in his soul. He cursed God. He 

 cursed the day that gave him birth, the uni- 

 verse that brought forth men and women to 

 live and suffer and die. He cursed the 

 people who called God good; and finally 

 when, from sheer exhaustion, he ceased for 

 a moment, his poor wife, with her head 

 bowed on his shoulder, between her sobs 

 tried to tell him that little Mary left a mes- 

 sage for him. At this he brightened up just 

 a little, and eagerly asked what that mes- 

 sage was. The poor wife as well as she 

 could said something as follows: "Mary 

 said, 'Tell dear papa not to feel bad. Tell 

 him I will be waiting for him. Tell him I 

 will ask Jesus to "knock a picket off," and 

 say I will be sure to be there, and look out 

 and wave my hand to tell him where to 

 come. I know he will come, mama, for he 

 will be sure to come where his little Mary 

 is. Tell him not to forget, for I will be 

 there sure.' " Little by little the man be- 

 gan to sober down. He asked to have the 

 message repeated over and over. Slowly 

 but surely he emerged from the darkness of 

 unbelief into the light of faith and trust in 

 Jesus Christ; and, in broken words, said. 

 "God, have mercy on rne, a sinner." 

 "Clothed, and in his right mind, " he sat 

 at the feet of the Savior, a new-born soul. 

 I can imagine the angels from heaven, look- 

 ing down. I can imagine little Mary among 

 that shining throng; and I can imagine their 

 voices saying, ' ' Father, forgive him ; for he 

 knew not what he did." 



And now, dear friends, while we work to 

 abolish the saloons and all the other attend- 

 ant evils that are linked to them, let us do 

 it in the spirit that was in Christ Jesus our 

 Savior when he said of those who cruelly 

 nailed him to the cross, "Father, forgive 

 them; for they know not what they do." 



