ILLINOIS DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION. 



177 



serious. When you render an account to your children, when you 

 are ready to turn this country over to the next generation, when 

 you shall render your final account as stewards, as trustees, as 

 to the use you have made of your talents, and the whole country 

 waits in breathless suspense to hear the verdict, let it be heard 

 from ocean to ocean, "Well done." ''Come up higher." I 

 learned from listening to your very interesting exercises this 

 afternoon that you have troubles sometimes, and possibly feel 

 like letting everything go by the board. You are not the only 

 case, you are not the first instance. 



In the old country when two persons are engaged to be 

 married, it is the custom to publish the names three times pub- 

 licly in the church. In a certain parish there was a minister who 

 took special interest in the general welfare of his congregation 

 and a personal interest in each one individually, not only their 

 spiritual welfare but their temporal as well. In this congrega- 

 tion was an estimable gentleman who was an old bachelor. One 

 day he said to this man, *'John, why don't you get married?" 

 He told him he would be much happier and more useful as well 

 and contribute to the happiness of some nice young lady. John 

 says, ''I guess that's right, and I would be perfectly willing to 

 marry if I knew whom to marry." The minister said, "I'll tell 

 you John who is just the person; there is Miss Mary (who, by 

 the way was on the list of old maids and a member of the same 

 church). She is an estimable young lady and a splendid house- 

 keeper, with a splendid disposition and a sunny nature. Of all 

 persons in the world she is the one." John says, "I guess that's 

 right. She will suit me first rate and I guess you might as well 

 publish the banns next Sunday." So according to instructions, 

 on the following Sunday notice was given of the approaching 

 marriage. You can imagine the consternation and surprise of 

 Miss Mary, who was present, as this was the first intimation she 

 had. She resolved that she would demand an explanation, but 

 during the next week she did not see John, and on the following 

 Sunday the notice was repeated. The banns were published a 

 second time and Miss Mary listened with interest and apparent 



