The very great changes that have been wrought in machine-shop equipment during the past few years have hit many of the older mechanics pretty hard. A good deal of significance is contained in the remark of one such man: “I have had to learn over my trade three times and I’m too old to learn it again.” He had been given a difficult job to do on a modern engine-lathe containing the latest useful mechanisms for saving labor and procuring accurate work, and because he did not understand the tool he failed in his efforts until a younger machinist came to his assistance. (Text.)
The very great changes that have been wrought in machine-shop equipment during the past few years have hit many of the older mechanics pretty hard. A good deal of significance is contained in the remark of one such man: “I have had to learn over my trade three times and I’m too old to learn it again.” He had been given a difficult job to do on a modern engine-lathe containing the latest useful mechanisms for saving labor and procuring accurate work, and because he did not understand the tool he failed in his efforts until a younger machinist came to his assistance. (Text.)
(2077)
MODESTY
Colonel Nicholas Smith, in “Grant, the Man of Mystery,” gives us the following side-light upon Grant’s character:
During a strenuous campaign, the opposition resorted to every means to discredit him and made the most virulent attacks upon his personal character. Grant remained silent and took no part in the campaign. He retired to his little home in Galena, received his friends, drove and walked about the streets, took tea and chatted in the most familiar way with his neighbors, and seemed totally unconscious of the fact that he was the central figure in one of the great political struggles of the century.
During a strenuous campaign, the opposition resorted to every means to discredit him and made the most virulent attacks upon his personal character. Grant remained silent and took no part in the campaign. He retired to his little home in Galena, received his friends, drove and walked about the streets, took tea and chatted in the most familiar way with his neighbors, and seemed totally unconscious of the fact that he was the central figure in one of the great political struggles of the century.
(2078)
Of Grant’s demeanor after the surrender of Lee at Appomattox, Colonel Smith says:
The little man, in the dress of a private soldier, who commanded the armies which brought about this glorious consummation, was not among those who joined in the demonstration of joy. When he reached his camp that night he was none other than the real Grant—modest, quiet, regardless of the greatness of the occasion. General Horace Porter, who was with him at the time, says Grant had little to say about the surrender.
The little man, in the dress of a private soldier, who commanded the armies which brought about this glorious consummation, was not among those who joined in the demonstration of joy. When he reached his camp that night he was none other than the real Grant—modest, quiet, regardless of the greatness of the occasion. General Horace Porter, who was with him at the time, says Grant had little to say about the surrender.
(2079)
A group of church-members, on a tour, were delayed at a railway station. One of them, after looking at a locomotive engine, asked his friends what part of the engine they would choose to be if it represented the Church. One replied, “I would be the brake, for that is often needed for safety.” Another said, “I would prefer to be the whistle, calling people’s attention to the fact that ‘the King’s business requireth haste.’” “And I would like to be the boiler, for that is an essential part of the engine.” “What would you like to be, brother?” said one to a quiet man who had not replied. “Oh,” said he, “I think I am only fit to be the coal, ready to be consumed so long as the engine moves.”
A group of church-members, on a tour, were delayed at a railway station. One of them, after looking at a locomotive engine, asked his friends what part of the engine they would choose to be if it represented the Church. One replied, “I would be the brake, for that is often needed for safety.” Another said, “I would prefer to be the whistle, calling people’s attention to the fact that ‘the King’s business requireth haste.’” “And I would like to be the boiler, for that is an essential part of the engine.” “What would you like to be, brother?” said one to a quiet man who had not replied. “Oh,” said he, “I think I am only fit to be the coal, ready to be consumed so long as the engine moves.”
(2080)
A story is told among the friends of Gen. Samuel S. Sumner, U.S.A., retired, who was until recently the commanding officer of the Pacific Division.
General Sumner, after the San Francisco earthquake, went to San Rafael. There he was informed by one of the guiding spirits of the village that he must aid in patrolling and guarding against fire and unruly refugees. Something in General Sumner’s bearing evidently imprest the man, for after a moment’s thought he said: “I think I’ll make you a second lieutenant.” “Thank you,” answered General Sumner. “I don’t think any rank ever conferred upon me ever pleased me more unless it was when I was made a major-general in the regular army.” (Text.)
General Sumner, after the San Francisco earthquake, went to San Rafael. There he was informed by one of the guiding spirits of the village that he must aid in patrolling and guarding against fire and unruly refugees. Something in General Sumner’s bearing evidently imprest the man, for after a moment’s thought he said: “I think I’ll make you a second lieutenant.” “Thank you,” answered General Sumner. “I don’t think any rank ever conferred upon me ever pleased me more unless it was when I was made a major-general in the regular army.” (Text.)
(2081)
The grace of modesty seems sometimes rare and its exhibition is always pleasing. An instance of modest reticence is given in this concerning a well-known author:
They had met in Brooklyn at a little evening party—the young man and an older one—and were coming back to Manhattan together. The young man inquired the elder’s vocation in life, and the elder replied that he had practised law for eighteen years.“And, later,” he added, “I have done a little writing.”“Ever get anything published?” asked the young man.“Yes, a few things,” replied the elder.“Write under your own name?”“Yes.”“By the way, I don’t believe I quite caught your name.”“Thomas Nelson Page,” replied the other quietly.
They had met in Brooklyn at a little evening party—the young man and an older one—and were coming back to Manhattan together. The young man inquired the elder’s vocation in life, and the elder replied that he had practised law for eighteen years.
“And, later,” he added, “I have done a little writing.”
“Ever get anything published?” asked the young man.
“Yes, a few things,” replied the elder.
“Write under your own name?”
“Yes.”
“By the way, I don’t believe I quite caught your name.”
“Thomas Nelson Page,” replied the other quietly.
(2082)
SeeHumility of a Scientist.
Mohammedans and the Bible—SeeBible, Grip of the.
Molding Children—SeeReligious Training;Training Children.
Molding Men—SeeTenderness of God.
MOMENTUM
The obstacles in a man’s way are determined by the gait he is going. An old negro driving a mule down the street three miles an hour has to get out of the way for everything, but when the chief of the fire department comes down the street a mile a minute everything roosts on the sidewalk and gives him the right of way.—Famous Stories of Sam P. Jones.
The obstacles in a man’s way are determined by the gait he is going. An old negro driving a mule down the street three miles an hour has to get out of the way for everything, but when the chief of the fire department comes down the street a mile a minute everything roosts on the sidewalk and gives him the right of way.—Famous Stories of Sam P. Jones.
(2083)
Many men fail to overcome sharp temptation because they have not by long previous habits acquired the momentum of right thought and right action. We can not fly unless we have learned to walk and to run.
“Any one who has ever watched a heavy bird rise from the ground,” says theAmerican Inventor, “has doubtless noticed that it runs along the ground for a few feet before it rises; the bird must acquire some momentum before its wings can lift its heavy body into the air. The natives in certain parts of the Andes understand this fact very well and by means of it catch the great Andean vultures, the condors. A small space is shut in with a high fence and left open at the top. Then a lamb or a piece of carrion is placed on the ground inside. Presently a vulture sees the bait and swoops down upon it; but when once he finds he has alighted on the ground inside he can not get out, for he has no running space in which to acquire the momentum that is necessary before his wings can lift him.”
“Any one who has ever watched a heavy bird rise from the ground,” says theAmerican Inventor, “has doubtless noticed that it runs along the ground for a few feet before it rises; the bird must acquire some momentum before its wings can lift its heavy body into the air. The natives in certain parts of the Andes understand this fact very well and by means of it catch the great Andean vultures, the condors. A small space is shut in with a high fence and left open at the top. Then a lamb or a piece of carrion is placed on the ground inside. Presently a vulture sees the bait and swoops down upon it; but when once he finds he has alighted on the ground inside he can not get out, for he has no running space in which to acquire the momentum that is necessary before his wings can lift him.”
(2084)
Money and Precedence—SeeMedical Missions.
Money, Discreditable Use of—SeeVulgarity in the Rich.
MONEY, EARNING
Mr. Lincoln earned his first dollar by taking two men and their trunks to a Mississippi steamer which waited for them in midstream.“I was about eighteen years of age,” he said, “and belonged, as you know, to what they call down South the ‘scrubs.’ I was very glad to have the chance of earning something, and supposed each of the men would give me a couple of bits. I sculled them out to the steamer. They got on board, and I lifted the trunks and put them on the deck. The steamer was about to put on steam again, when I called out, ‘You have forgotten to pay me.’ Each of them took from his pocket a silver half-dollar and threw it on the bottom of my boat.“You may think it was a very little thing, and in these days it seems to me like a trifle, but it was a most important incident in my life. I could scarcely credit that I, the poor boy, had earned a dollar in less than a day; that by honest work I had earned a dollar. I was a more hopeful and thoughtful boy from that time.”—James Morgan, “Abraham Lincoln, The Boy and the Man.”
Mr. Lincoln earned his first dollar by taking two men and their trunks to a Mississippi steamer which waited for them in midstream.
“I was about eighteen years of age,” he said, “and belonged, as you know, to what they call down South the ‘scrubs.’ I was very glad to have the chance of earning something, and supposed each of the men would give me a couple of bits. I sculled them out to the steamer. They got on board, and I lifted the trunks and put them on the deck. The steamer was about to put on steam again, when I called out, ‘You have forgotten to pay me.’ Each of them took from his pocket a silver half-dollar and threw it on the bottom of my boat.
“You may think it was a very little thing, and in these days it seems to me like a trifle, but it was a most important incident in my life. I could scarcely credit that I, the poor boy, had earned a dollar in less than a day; that by honest work I had earned a dollar. I was a more hopeful and thoughtful boy from that time.”—James Morgan, “Abraham Lincoln, The Boy and the Man.”
(2085)
Money-getting, a Game—SeeGame of Greed.
MONEY, GREED FOR
The individual man thinks in the beginning, “If I could only make myself worth a hundred thousand dollars, I should be willing to retire from business.” Not a bit of it. A hundred thousand dollars is only an index of five hundred thousand; and when he has come to five hundred thousand he is like Moses—and very unlike him—standing on the top of the mountain and looking over the promised land, and he says to himself, “A million! a million!” and a million draws another million, until at last he has more than he can use, more than is useful to him, and he won’t give it away—not till after his death.—Henry Ward Beecher.
The individual man thinks in the beginning, “If I could only make myself worth a hundred thousand dollars, I should be willing to retire from business.” Not a bit of it. A hundred thousand dollars is only an index of five hundred thousand; and when he has come to five hundred thousand he is like Moses—and very unlike him—standing on the top of the mountain and looking over the promised land, and he says to himself, “A million! a million!” and a million draws another million, until at last he has more than he can use, more than is useful to him, and he won’t give it away—not till after his death.—Henry Ward Beecher.
(2086)
MONEY, IGNORANCE OF.
A sick-nurse in a Vienna hospital administered by nuns was observed burning up a bunch of paper money which she had found in the bed of a deceased patient.She thought the bank-notes were rubbish, and it took the authority of the mother superior to convince her that the rubbish represented a small fortune.Subsequently it turned out that the sister, who had lived in the nunnery since her third year, never went outside, and had nothing to do with the administration or with worldly things whatsoever, had never heard of the existence or use of money in any shape or form.—BostonPost.
A sick-nurse in a Vienna hospital administered by nuns was observed burning up a bunch of paper money which she had found in the bed of a deceased patient.
She thought the bank-notes were rubbish, and it took the authority of the mother superior to convince her that the rubbish represented a small fortune.
Subsequently it turned out that the sister, who had lived in the nunnery since her third year, never went outside, and had nothing to do with the administration or with worldly things whatsoever, had never heard of the existence or use of money in any shape or form.—BostonPost.
(2088)
MONEY, HOW WE SPEND OUR
The diagram below is designed to show how much the people of the United States spend every year for the drink traffic as contrasted with church work, education and the leading standard articles of food, clothing and shelter.
The cost of liquors and tobacco is based upon the Internal Revenue reports for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1908. The other expenses are estimated for the year 1909 from the reports of the Secretary of Agriculture, the census of manufacturers for 1905, the report of the Commissioner of Education and other Government and census figures.—“American Prohibition Yearbook.”
The cost of liquors and tobacco is based upon the Internal Revenue reports for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1908. The other expenses are estimated for the year 1909 from the reports of the Secretary of Agriculture, the census of manufacturers for 1905, the report of the Commissioner of Education and other Government and census figures.—“American Prohibition Yearbook.”
(2087)
MONEY NO TEMPTATION
A certain Parson Scott was sent to Goldsmith to induce him to write in favor of the administration. “I found him,” says Scott, “in a miserable set of chambers in the temple. I told him of my authority; I told him that I was empowered to pay most liberally for his exertions, and, would you believe it, he was so absurd as to say, ‘I can earn as much as will supply my wants without writing for any party; the assistance you offer is therefore unnecessary to me.’ And so,” said the reverend plenipotentiary, with unstinted contempt, “I left him in his garret.” What Goldsmith’s exact earnings were at this time, it would be interesting to know: what sum it was that he found sufficient for his wants; but we know that this offer came at the close of twelve years’ desperate struggle for bread, during which his first work had brought him little profit, and “The Vicar of Wakefield” had been sold for £60 to pay his landlady.—W. J. Dawson, “The Makers of English Prose.”
A certain Parson Scott was sent to Goldsmith to induce him to write in favor of the administration. “I found him,” says Scott, “in a miserable set of chambers in the temple. I told him of my authority; I told him that I was empowered to pay most liberally for his exertions, and, would you believe it, he was so absurd as to say, ‘I can earn as much as will supply my wants without writing for any party; the assistance you offer is therefore unnecessary to me.’ And so,” said the reverend plenipotentiary, with unstinted contempt, “I left him in his garret.” What Goldsmith’s exact earnings were at this time, it would be interesting to know: what sum it was that he found sufficient for his wants; but we know that this offer came at the close of twelve years’ desperate struggle for bread, during which his first work had brought him little profit, and “The Vicar of Wakefield” had been sold for £60 to pay his landlady.—W. J. Dawson, “The Makers of English Prose.”
(2089)
MONEY POWER IN CANADA
I wrote to a friend of mine in Toronto for some figures. I shall leave out the hundred thousands.In 1881 the population of Canada was between 4,000,000 and 5,000,000; in 1901 it was 5,372,000; in 1908 it was 6,940,000; and in 1909, between 7,000,000 and 7,500,000. Now, then, what are their bank deposits? In 1880, thirty years ago, they were $96,000,000; in 1884, $131,000,000; in 1890, 176,000,000; in 1900, $358,000,000; in 1908, $593,000,000; in 1909, $917,000,000; showing an increase of almost 63 per cent. in one year.What was the value of the farm products of the Dominion last year? $532,000,000, an increase of one hundred million in one year. They have the largest continuous wheat-field in the world. One field nine hundred miles by three hundred miles. I am talking about money, and this is Canadian money, with a population of between seven and seven and a half millions; and they have deposits of $917,000,000 in the bank.We all know the phenomenal growth that Canada has had and is destined to have. When I asked, “What are the resources of Canada?” my friend replied, “I don’t know, Marling, but they are beyond the dreams of avarice.” Then I got this telegram from him to back it up:“According to the census of 1901, the capital invested in Canada was $2,356,000,000 and the value of the products $992,200,000.”—Alfred E. Marling, “Student Volunteer Movement for Foreign Missions,” 1910.
I wrote to a friend of mine in Toronto for some figures. I shall leave out the hundred thousands.
In 1881 the population of Canada was between 4,000,000 and 5,000,000; in 1901 it was 5,372,000; in 1908 it was 6,940,000; and in 1909, between 7,000,000 and 7,500,000. Now, then, what are their bank deposits? In 1880, thirty years ago, they were $96,000,000; in 1884, $131,000,000; in 1890, 176,000,000; in 1900, $358,000,000; in 1908, $593,000,000; in 1909, $917,000,000; showing an increase of almost 63 per cent. in one year.
What was the value of the farm products of the Dominion last year? $532,000,000, an increase of one hundred million in one year. They have the largest continuous wheat-field in the world. One field nine hundred miles by three hundred miles. I am talking about money, and this is Canadian money, with a population of between seven and seven and a half millions; and they have deposits of $917,000,000 in the bank.
We all know the phenomenal growth that Canada has had and is destined to have. When I asked, “What are the resources of Canada?” my friend replied, “I don’t know, Marling, but they are beyond the dreams of avarice.” Then I got this telegram from him to back it up:
“According to the census of 1901, the capital invested in Canada was $2,356,000,000 and the value of the products $992,200,000.”—Alfred E. Marling, “Student Volunteer Movement for Foreign Missions,” 1910.
(2090)
MONEY POWER IN THE UNITED STATES
Do you know how many people there were in the country in 1880, thirty years ago? There were fifty millions. Do you know what the wealth was then estimated to be? $43,000,000,000. Ten years afterward, in 1890, there were 62,000,000 persons living in this country; that is a growth of 24 per cent. in ten years. But the growth of the wealth in those ten years was from $43,000,000,000 to $65,000,000,000, which is a growth of 51 per cent. in that decade. Population grows 21 per cent.; wealth grows 51 per cent. In 1900 there were 76,000,000 people; a growth of 22 per cent. in ten years. The growth in wealth was $88,000,000,000, or 35 per cent. in those same ten years. In 1904, the year of our last census, the population was 82,000,000, showing an increase of 8 per cent.; and the growth in wealth was $107,000,000,000. That is 21 per cent. in wealth in four years, while the population was growing only 8 per cent.The estimated average daily savings in the United States between 1900 and 1904 over and above all consumption, was thirteen millions of dollars.In 1900, the savings-bank deposits in the United States were $2,300,000,000; and in 1908, eight years later, they were $3,400,000,000, an increase of 47 per cent.I have it on the authority of the secretary of the Chamber of Commerce of New York that the banking power of the United States is practically 40 per cent. of the banking power of the world. And this I read in a commercial review a few days ago: “The bank deposits of the United States amount to more than double the whole world’s known supply of gold. They are about equal to the whole volume of money in the world, counting gold, legal tender, currency, etc. They are greater in value than the world’s total amount of gold and silver since the discovery of America, and they would be sufficient to pay more than one-third of the entire debt of fifty leading nations of the world.”—Alfred E. Marling.—“Student Volunteer Movement,” 1910.
Do you know how many people there were in the country in 1880, thirty years ago? There were fifty millions. Do you know what the wealth was then estimated to be? $43,000,000,000. Ten years afterward, in 1890, there were 62,000,000 persons living in this country; that is a growth of 24 per cent. in ten years. But the growth of the wealth in those ten years was from $43,000,000,000 to $65,000,000,000, which is a growth of 51 per cent. in that decade. Population grows 21 per cent.; wealth grows 51 per cent. In 1900 there were 76,000,000 people; a growth of 22 per cent. in ten years. The growth in wealth was $88,000,000,000, or 35 per cent. in those same ten years. In 1904, the year of our last census, the population was 82,000,000, showing an increase of 8 per cent.; and the growth in wealth was $107,000,000,000. That is 21 per cent. in wealth in four years, while the population was growing only 8 per cent.
The estimated average daily savings in the United States between 1900 and 1904 over and above all consumption, was thirteen millions of dollars.
In 1900, the savings-bank deposits in the United States were $2,300,000,000; and in 1908, eight years later, they were $3,400,000,000, an increase of 47 per cent.
I have it on the authority of the secretary of the Chamber of Commerce of New York that the banking power of the United States is practically 40 per cent. of the banking power of the world. And this I read in a commercial review a few days ago: “The bank deposits of the United States amount to more than double the whole world’s known supply of gold. They are about equal to the whole volume of money in the world, counting gold, legal tender, currency, etc. They are greater in value than the world’s total amount of gold and silver since the discovery of America, and they would be sufficient to pay more than one-third of the entire debt of fifty leading nations of the world.”—Alfred E. Marling.—“Student Volunteer Movement,” 1910.
(2091)
Money Safe With Men of Principle—SeePrinciple.
MONEY, TAINTED
Dr. Watkinson tells us that some years ago two scientists of Vienna made a series of bacteriological experiments on a number of bank-notes which had been in circulation for some time. The result of their researches was sufficiently startling. On each bank-note they discovered the presence of 19,000 microbes of disease—some of tuberculosis, some of diphtheria, and some of erysipelas. More than that, they found one bacillus peculiar to the bank-note—the bank-note microbe, so to speak, because it is found nowhere else. It thrives and fattens and multiplies on the peculiar paper of which a bank-note is made. Is there not a parable here?
Dr. Watkinson tells us that some years ago two scientists of Vienna made a series of bacteriological experiments on a number of bank-notes which had been in circulation for some time. The result of their researches was sufficiently startling. On each bank-note they discovered the presence of 19,000 microbes of disease—some of tuberculosis, some of diphtheria, and some of erysipelas. More than that, they found one bacillus peculiar to the bank-note—the bank-note microbe, so to speak, because it is found nowhere else. It thrives and fattens and multiplies on the peculiar paper of which a bank-note is made. Is there not a parable here?
If every evil use that is made of money were to leave its mark on the coin or bill, how great would be the moral infection thus recorded.
(2092)
Money Transmitting Disease—SeeContamination.
MONOTONY
Before each of a row of machines in a certain Pittsburg shop, as described inCharities, sits a girl. Each girl picks up a bolt with her left hand, takes it from the left with her right hand, feeds it point downward into the machine. When she has done this 16,000 times, she will have earned ninety-six cents. Unless she or the machine breaks down, such is her ten-hour day.In these machine-made days, it is not the monotony of such a task which is most impressive. The girl of the 16,000 motions attracts and holds the attention.With motions fewer in number but infinitely greater in variety, the day’s work of a family is done. The house-worker is not tied to a machine. She stands up to her tasks one moment and sits down the next. She may think of other things, and to-morrow will be in its duties and performances a little different from to-day.The house-worker gets tired. Is it really the same grinding, breaking weariness as that of the girl who sits before the machine and makes 16,000 identical motions in a ten-hour day?
Before each of a row of machines in a certain Pittsburg shop, as described inCharities, sits a girl. Each girl picks up a bolt with her left hand, takes it from the left with her right hand, feeds it point downward into the machine. When she has done this 16,000 times, she will have earned ninety-six cents. Unless she or the machine breaks down, such is her ten-hour day.
In these machine-made days, it is not the monotony of such a task which is most impressive. The girl of the 16,000 motions attracts and holds the attention.
With motions fewer in number but infinitely greater in variety, the day’s work of a family is done. The house-worker is not tied to a machine. She stands up to her tasks one moment and sits down the next. She may think of other things, and to-morrow will be in its duties and performances a little different from to-day.
The house-worker gets tired. Is it really the same grinding, breaking weariness as that of the girl who sits before the machine and makes 16,000 identical motions in a ten-hour day?
(2093)
Monstrous Treatment—SeeCruel Greed.
Monument—SeeLove, Filial.
Monument of Christ—SeePeace.
MONUMENTS, MEANING OF
A great monument is erected not because the man to whom it is dedicated needs it, nor because it will alleviate the bodily ailmentsof other human beings. It is erected in honor of the great ideas which the man represented. It is built for the future as much as for the past; even more for the future. It is raised above the earth as a lofty sign which will teach coming generations a great lesson in a way that books never can. The American sculptor, Greenough, who designed the Bunker Hill monument, wrote: “The obelisk has a singular aptitude in its form and character to call attention to a spot memorable in history. It says but one word, but it speaks loud. It says, ‘Here!’ That is enough. It claims the notice of every one. No matter how careless, how skeptical or illiterate the passer-by may be, he can not escape the appeal of a monument.”—New YorkStar.
A great monument is erected not because the man to whom it is dedicated needs it, nor because it will alleviate the bodily ailmentsof other human beings. It is erected in honor of the great ideas which the man represented. It is built for the future as much as for the past; even more for the future. It is raised above the earth as a lofty sign which will teach coming generations a great lesson in a way that books never can. The American sculptor, Greenough, who designed the Bunker Hill monument, wrote: “The obelisk has a singular aptitude in its form and character to call attention to a spot memorable in history. It says but one word, but it speaks loud. It says, ‘Here!’ That is enough. It claims the notice of every one. No matter how careless, how skeptical or illiterate the passer-by may be, he can not escape the appeal of a monument.”—New YorkStar.
(2094)
Moods and Apparel—SeeDress Affecting Moods.
MOODS DETERMINING DESIRES
An unidentified writer points out how different moods affect our minds:
When I am tired and weary,And nothing goes my way.I thank the heavenly FatherFor two nights to every day.But when, once more, I’m rested,And all the world looks bright,I thank Him that He sends meTwo days to every night!There’s the pause before the battle,There’s the respite from the fray;And that is how I reckonTwo nights to every day.When the sunset glow has faded,In a little while ’tis light!And that is how I reckonTwo days to every night.And so ’tis due, believe me,To the way we look at things,Whether we sigh and falterOr whether we soar on wings!
When I am tired and weary,And nothing goes my way.I thank the heavenly FatherFor two nights to every day.But when, once more, I’m rested,And all the world looks bright,I thank Him that He sends meTwo days to every night!There’s the pause before the battle,There’s the respite from the fray;And that is how I reckonTwo nights to every day.When the sunset glow has faded,In a little while ’tis light!And that is how I reckonTwo days to every night.And so ’tis due, believe me,To the way we look at things,Whether we sigh and falterOr whether we soar on wings!
When I am tired and weary,And nothing goes my way.I thank the heavenly FatherFor two nights to every day.
When I am tired and weary,
And nothing goes my way.
I thank the heavenly Father
For two nights to every day.
But when, once more, I’m rested,And all the world looks bright,I thank Him that He sends meTwo days to every night!
But when, once more, I’m rested,
And all the world looks bright,
I thank Him that He sends me
Two days to every night!
There’s the pause before the battle,There’s the respite from the fray;And that is how I reckonTwo nights to every day.
There’s the pause before the battle,
There’s the respite from the fray;
And that is how I reckon
Two nights to every day.
When the sunset glow has faded,In a little while ’tis light!And that is how I reckonTwo days to every night.
When the sunset glow has faded,
In a little while ’tis light!
And that is how I reckon
Two days to every night.
And so ’tis due, believe me,To the way we look at things,Whether we sigh and falterOr whether we soar on wings!
And so ’tis due, believe me,
To the way we look at things,
Whether we sigh and falter
Or whether we soar on wings!
(2095)
MOODS OF THE SPIRIT
Pantheism, atheism, agnosticism, materialism, pessimism—how many ugly, dangerous words there are in the dictionary, and how many young men imagine that they have all these spiritual diseases when, as a matter of fact, they are only in the way of normal spiritual development. A man comes to say of certain things that are mysterious, of which he thought he knew, “I don’t know.” Then he labels himself or allows himself to be labeled an “Agnostic.” No religious life for him. Another man sees that the great God can not stand apart from His universe, but must be working in it and through it all. He labels himself “Pantheist,” or is so labeled. Another man suddenly discovers the abyss of actual wo in the world, the evil that, for the present at least, is without remedy. He is called a “Pessimist.” Another man looks to the right hand and to the left hand, and for the time he sees not God. The final word for him is “Atheist.” Now, we can not have a free expression of what people from time to time are actually believing until we get over our fear of all such names. We must have a faith that is wholesome enough and large enough to keep us from being afraid of our own thought. The fact is, that we are continually mistaking the passing moods of the spirit for the finalities of thought. These moods through which we pass have been familiar to the most profoundly religious minds.—Samuel M. Crothers.
Pantheism, atheism, agnosticism, materialism, pessimism—how many ugly, dangerous words there are in the dictionary, and how many young men imagine that they have all these spiritual diseases when, as a matter of fact, they are only in the way of normal spiritual development. A man comes to say of certain things that are mysterious, of which he thought he knew, “I don’t know.” Then he labels himself or allows himself to be labeled an “Agnostic.” No religious life for him. Another man sees that the great God can not stand apart from His universe, but must be working in it and through it all. He labels himself “Pantheist,” or is so labeled. Another man suddenly discovers the abyss of actual wo in the world, the evil that, for the present at least, is without remedy. He is called a “Pessimist.” Another man looks to the right hand and to the left hand, and for the time he sees not God. The final word for him is “Atheist.” Now, we can not have a free expression of what people from time to time are actually believing until we get over our fear of all such names. We must have a faith that is wholesome enough and large enough to keep us from being afraid of our own thought. The fact is, that we are continually mistaking the passing moods of the spirit for the finalities of thought. These moods through which we pass have been familiar to the most profoundly religious minds.—Samuel M. Crothers.
(2096)
MOORINGS, SAFE
Before the era of steam, men used to tow their boats wearily up the lower Ohio, or the Mississippi, with a long line. At night it was not always safe for them to fasten their boats on the bank while they slept, because there was danger from the wash of the underflowing current that they would find themselves drifting and pulling a tree after them. Therefore, they sought out well-planted, solid, enduring trees, and tied to them, and the phrase became popular, “That man will do to tie to.”
Before the era of steam, men used to tow their boats wearily up the lower Ohio, or the Mississippi, with a long line. At night it was not always safe for them to fasten their boats on the bank while they slept, because there was danger from the wash of the underflowing current that they would find themselves drifting and pulling a tree after them. Therefore, they sought out well-planted, solid, enduring trees, and tied to them, and the phrase became popular, “That man will do to tie to.”
(2097)
Moral Contagion—SeeRetort, Personal.
Moral Decay—SeeCorruption, Inner.
Moral Meaning of the World—SeeFaith in a Moral Universe.
Moral Pervasiveness—SeeCharacter Imparted.
MORAL SATISFACTION
Mr. Robert E. Speer says:
When I was in the city of Tokyo, I went to the house of a missionary to meet half a dozen of the leading native Christian men of Japan. They were thoughtful, well-read, thoroughly educated, keen students. Therewas scarcely a school of Christian thought with which they were not familiar. I asked them what it was in Christianity that had most appealed to them. I supposed, of course, they would answer that they were glad of their faith because it had thrown light on the dark, perplexing problems of life which Buddhism and Shintoism were unable to solve. Instead, every one said that what they valued most in Christianity was the moral rest that they had found there. The intellectual satisfaction was little compared with the sweet voice that was now sounding in their hearts, “Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
When I was in the city of Tokyo, I went to the house of a missionary to meet half a dozen of the leading native Christian men of Japan. They were thoughtful, well-read, thoroughly educated, keen students. Therewas scarcely a school of Christian thought with which they were not familiar. I asked them what it was in Christianity that had most appealed to them. I supposed, of course, they would answer that they were glad of their faith because it had thrown light on the dark, perplexing problems of life which Buddhism and Shintoism were unable to solve. Instead, every one said that what they valued most in Christianity was the moral rest that they had found there. The intellectual satisfaction was little compared with the sweet voice that was now sounding in their hearts, “Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
(2098)
Morality, Sum Total of—SeeLove and Law.
Morally Weak, Financially Strong—SeeDrink, Peril of.
Morning—SeeDawn of Christian Light.
Mortal Pomp—SeeGlory Faded.
MORTALITY RESISTED
The Christian would naturally call the attention of persons like those mentioned in the extract to Jesus’ words, “Whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die”:
A fantastic organization is described inThe British Medical Journal. It is a league against illness and death, which has been formed, so we are assured, in the State of Iowa. Says the paper named above:“Already several hundreds of persons have joined. A condition of membership is that every one on admission must sign a pledge that he or she will continually assert that it is nothing but custom and habit of thought that causes people to be sick, grow old, or die. Any member who is reported sick from any disease and is confined to his bed for a continuous period of three days is to be fined for the first offense; for a second offense he is to be suspended from membership; a third offense entails expulsion from the society.” (Text.)
A fantastic organization is described inThe British Medical Journal. It is a league against illness and death, which has been formed, so we are assured, in the State of Iowa. Says the paper named above:
“Already several hundreds of persons have joined. A condition of membership is that every one on admission must sign a pledge that he or she will continually assert that it is nothing but custom and habit of thought that causes people to be sick, grow old, or die. Any member who is reported sick from any disease and is confined to his bed for a continuous period of three days is to be fined for the first offense; for a second offense he is to be suspended from membership; a third offense entails expulsion from the society.” (Text.)
(2099)
MOSAIC OF THE KINGDOM
Bishop Simpson gives this illustration of the composition of Christ’s completed kingdom:
In some of the great halls of Europe may be seen pictures not painted with the brush, but mosaics, which are made up of small pieces of stone, glass, or other material. The artist takes these little pieces, and, polishing and arranging them, he forms them into the grand and beautiful picture. Each individual part of the picture may be a little worthless piece of glass or marble or shell; but with each in its place, the whole constitutes the masterpiece of art. So I think it will be with humanity in the hands of the great artist. God is picking up the little worthless pieces of stone and brass, that might be trodden under foot unnoticed, and is making of them His great masterpiece.
In some of the great halls of Europe may be seen pictures not painted with the brush, but mosaics, which are made up of small pieces of stone, glass, or other material. The artist takes these little pieces, and, polishing and arranging them, he forms them into the grand and beautiful picture. Each individual part of the picture may be a little worthless piece of glass or marble or shell; but with each in its place, the whole constitutes the masterpiece of art. So I think it will be with humanity in the hands of the great artist. God is picking up the little worthless pieces of stone and brass, that might be trodden under foot unnoticed, and is making of them His great masterpiece.
(2100)
Moslem Life—SeePersia, The Moslem Situation in.
MOTHER
So long as young men and maidens honor and love their parents there is hope and success awaiting them. We do not know the author of these lines:
Of all the names to memory dear,One name to me alone is dearest;Tho many names to me are nearYet this shall ever be the nearest.For on my heart’s most sacred place’Tis deeper graved than any other;Nor naught from thence shall e’er eraseThe lovely, honored name of mother.
Of all the names to memory dear,One name to me alone is dearest;Tho many names to me are nearYet this shall ever be the nearest.For on my heart’s most sacred place’Tis deeper graved than any other;Nor naught from thence shall e’er eraseThe lovely, honored name of mother.
Of all the names to memory dear,One name to me alone is dearest;Tho many names to me are nearYet this shall ever be the nearest.For on my heart’s most sacred place’Tis deeper graved than any other;Nor naught from thence shall e’er eraseThe lovely, honored name of mother.
Of all the names to memory dear,
One name to me alone is dearest;
Tho many names to me are near
Yet this shall ever be the nearest.
For on my heart’s most sacred place
’Tis deeper graved than any other;
Nor naught from thence shall e’er erase
The lovely, honored name of mother.
(2101)
Hester I. Radford, inThe Atlantic Monthly, writes the following:
You struggled blindly for my soulAnd wept for me such bitter tearsThat through your faith my faith grew wholeAnd fearless of the coming years.For in the path of doubt and dreadYou would not let me walk alone,But prayed the prayers I left unsaidAnd sought the God I did disown.You gave to me no word of blameBut wrapt me in your love’s belief,Dear love, that burnt my sin like flame,And left me worthy of your grief.
You struggled blindly for my soulAnd wept for me such bitter tearsThat through your faith my faith grew wholeAnd fearless of the coming years.For in the path of doubt and dreadYou would not let me walk alone,But prayed the prayers I left unsaidAnd sought the God I did disown.You gave to me no word of blameBut wrapt me in your love’s belief,Dear love, that burnt my sin like flame,And left me worthy of your grief.
You struggled blindly for my soulAnd wept for me such bitter tearsThat through your faith my faith grew wholeAnd fearless of the coming years.
You struggled blindly for my soul
And wept for me such bitter tears
That through your faith my faith grew whole
And fearless of the coming years.
For in the path of doubt and dreadYou would not let me walk alone,But prayed the prayers I left unsaidAnd sought the God I did disown.
For in the path of doubt and dread
You would not let me walk alone,
But prayed the prayers I left unsaid
And sought the God I did disown.
You gave to me no word of blameBut wrapt me in your love’s belief,Dear love, that burnt my sin like flame,And left me worthy of your grief.
You gave to me no word of blame
But wrapt me in your love’s belief,
Dear love, that burnt my sin like flame,
And left me worthy of your grief.
(2102)
MOTHER, A BRAVE
From his mother Ben Jonson received certain strong characteristics, and by a single short reference in Jonson’s works we are led to see the kind of woman she was. It is while Jonson is telling Drummond (who wrote the records of his life) of the occasionwhen he was thrown into prison, because some passages in the comedy of “Eastward Ho!” gave offense to King James, and he was in danger of a horrible death, after having his ears and nose cut off. He tells us how, after his pardon, he was banqueting with his friends, when his “old mother” came in and showed a paper full of “lusty strong poison,” which she intended to mix with his drink just before the execution. And to show that she “was no churl,” she intended first to drink of the poison herself. The incident is all the more suggestive from the fact that Chapman and Marston, one his friend and the other his enemy, were first cast into prison as the authors of “Eastward Ho!” and rough Ben Jonson at once declared that he too had had a small hand in the writing and went to join them in prison.—William J. Long,English Literature.
From his mother Ben Jonson received certain strong characteristics, and by a single short reference in Jonson’s works we are led to see the kind of woman she was. It is while Jonson is telling Drummond (who wrote the records of his life) of the occasionwhen he was thrown into prison, because some passages in the comedy of “Eastward Ho!” gave offense to King James, and he was in danger of a horrible death, after having his ears and nose cut off. He tells us how, after his pardon, he was banqueting with his friends, when his “old mother” came in and showed a paper full of “lusty strong poison,” which she intended to mix with his drink just before the execution. And to show that she “was no churl,” she intended first to drink of the poison herself. The incident is all the more suggestive from the fact that Chapman and Marston, one his friend and the other his enemy, were first cast into prison as the authors of “Eastward Ho!” and rough Ben Jonson at once declared that he too had had a small hand in the writing and went to join them in prison.—William J. Long,English Literature.
(2103)
Mother, A Heart Broken—SeeJuvenile Court Experience.
Mother, A Reminder of—SeeReminders.
Mother Caution—SeeReasoning Power in Animals.
MOTHER INSTINCT
A cow’s melancholy over the loss of her calf led to a strange incident at the home of Josiah Brown, near Mount Carmel.Brown owned a cow with a spotted calf which was so peculiarly marked that some time ago, when it was killed for veal, the skin was made into a rug. The mother cow was downcast and bellowed continually.Mrs. Brown went into her front parlor, and there on the floor lay the cow, placidly licking the calfskin rug. It is supposed the cow approached the house and by chance saw the calfskin through the window, then quietly pushed the doors open and walked in. One barred door had been forced open by the cow’s horns.—BostonJournal.
A cow’s melancholy over the loss of her calf led to a strange incident at the home of Josiah Brown, near Mount Carmel.
Brown owned a cow with a spotted calf which was so peculiarly marked that some time ago, when it was killed for veal, the skin was made into a rug. The mother cow was downcast and bellowed continually.
Mrs. Brown went into her front parlor, and there on the floor lay the cow, placidly licking the calfskin rug. It is supposed the cow approached the house and by chance saw the calfskin through the window, then quietly pushed the doors open and walked in. One barred door had been forced open by the cow’s horns.—BostonJournal.
(2104)
MOTHER LOVE
Not long ago a woman fifty years old went to a teacher in School No. 2, and with tears in her eyes, begged permission to sit down with the little ones five to six years old, that she might learn to read and write. She explained that she had two boys in the West, and desired to learn her letters that she might be able to communicate with them. Her daughter had done this for her, but three years ago the daughter died, and now the hungry-hearted mother was willing to make any sacrifice to keep in touch with her sons. So she entered school without telling any one, even her husband. Four weeks from the day she entered she was able to read through the primer, first reader, and almost through the second. Now she can write so any one can easily read every word. She learns ten new words at home every day, and always knows her lesson perfectly. She has learned to begin and end a letter, and it will not be long before she can write a love-letter—a genuine mother love-letter—to her boys. Through the goodness of my friend, I have in my possession a yellow sheet of paper containing one of her writing exercises. Reading between the lines, there is something inexpressibly touching about it. The words are such as may be found in the copy-book of any schoolboy, but the mother, with her hard hands and tender heart, as she copied the words imagined herself writing a letter to one of her sons. After writing her address and the date, this imaginary epistle, brimming with a real love, reads: “My dear son Hugh:
Not long ago a woman fifty years old went to a teacher in School No. 2, and with tears in her eyes, begged permission to sit down with the little ones five to six years old, that she might learn to read and write. She explained that she had two boys in the West, and desired to learn her letters that she might be able to communicate with them. Her daughter had done this for her, but three years ago the daughter died, and now the hungry-hearted mother was willing to make any sacrifice to keep in touch with her sons. So she entered school without telling any one, even her husband. Four weeks from the day she entered she was able to read through the primer, first reader, and almost through the second. Now she can write so any one can easily read every word. She learns ten new words at home every day, and always knows her lesson perfectly. She has learned to begin and end a letter, and it will not be long before she can write a love-letter—a genuine mother love-letter—to her boys. Through the goodness of my friend, I have in my possession a yellow sheet of paper containing one of her writing exercises. Reading between the lines, there is something inexpressibly touching about it. The words are such as may be found in the copy-book of any schoolboy, but the mother, with her hard hands and tender heart, as she copied the words imagined herself writing a letter to one of her sons. After writing her address and the date, this imaginary epistle, brimming with a real love, reads: “My dear son Hugh:
Be the matter what it may,Always speak the truth.If at work or if at play,Always speak the truth.”
Be the matter what it may,Always speak the truth.If at work or if at play,Always speak the truth.”
Be the matter what it may,Always speak the truth.If at work or if at play,Always speak the truth.”
Be the matter what it may,
Always speak the truth.
If at work or if at play,
Always speak the truth.”
Surely there is no ordinary clay in this vessel! She may not be able to understand the plan of her soul’s divine Potter, but a brave trust and a high hope reside at the center of her being.—F. F. Shannon.
Surely there is no ordinary clay in this vessel! She may not be able to understand the plan of her soul’s divine Potter, but a brave trust and a high hope reside at the center of her being.—F. F. Shannon.
(2105)
One calm, bright, sweet, sunshiny day an angel stole out of heaven and came down to this old world, and roamed field and forest, city and hamlet; and just as the sun went down he plumed his wings and said: “Now my visit is out, and I must go back to the world of light, but before I go I must gather some mementos of my visit here”; and he looked over into a beautiful flower-garden and said, “How lovely and fragrant these flowers are,” and he plucked the rarest roses, and made a bouquet, and said, “I see nothing more beautiful and fragrant than these; I will take them with me.” But he looked a little farther and there saw a little bright-eyed, rosy-cheeked babe, smiling into its mother’s face, and he said, “Oh, that baby’s smile is prettier than this bouquet; I will take that, too.” Then he looked just beyond the cradle, and there was a mother’s love pouring out like the gush of a river,toward the cradle and the baby, and he said, “Oh, that mother’s love is the prettiest thing I have seen on earth; I will carry that, too!” With the three treasures he winged his way to the pearly gates, and lit just on the outside, and said, “Before I go in I will examine my mementos,” and he looked at the flowers and they had withered; he looked at the baby’s smile and it had faded away; he looked at the mother’s love and there it was in all its pristine beauty and fragrance. He threw aside the withered flowers and the faded smile and winged his way through the gates and led all the hosts of heaven together and said, “Here is the only thing I found on earth that would keep its fragrance all the way to heaven—a mother’s love.”—“Popular Lectures of Sam P. Jones.”
One calm, bright, sweet, sunshiny day an angel stole out of heaven and came down to this old world, and roamed field and forest, city and hamlet; and just as the sun went down he plumed his wings and said: “Now my visit is out, and I must go back to the world of light, but before I go I must gather some mementos of my visit here”; and he looked over into a beautiful flower-garden and said, “How lovely and fragrant these flowers are,” and he plucked the rarest roses, and made a bouquet, and said, “I see nothing more beautiful and fragrant than these; I will take them with me.” But he looked a little farther and there saw a little bright-eyed, rosy-cheeked babe, smiling into its mother’s face, and he said, “Oh, that baby’s smile is prettier than this bouquet; I will take that, too.” Then he looked just beyond the cradle, and there was a mother’s love pouring out like the gush of a river,toward the cradle and the baby, and he said, “Oh, that mother’s love is the prettiest thing I have seen on earth; I will carry that, too!” With the three treasures he winged his way to the pearly gates, and lit just on the outside, and said, “Before I go in I will examine my mementos,” and he looked at the flowers and they had withered; he looked at the baby’s smile and it had faded away; he looked at the mother’s love and there it was in all its pristine beauty and fragrance. He threw aside the withered flowers and the faded smile and winged his way through the gates and led all the hosts of heaven together and said, “Here is the only thing I found on earth that would keep its fragrance all the way to heaven—a mother’s love.”—“Popular Lectures of Sam P. Jones.”
(2106)
SeeArtifice;Prodigal, The;Wayward, Seeking the.
MOTHER LOVE IN BIRDS
The loon, or great northern diver, is reported to have displayed her mother love and anxiety to a sportsman fishing in Sebago Lake in Maine: He surprized the mother with one young one near his canoe. She was employing every artifice to call the little one away, but the infant swam so near the boat that the fisherman took him aboard in his landing-net, and, holding him on his knee, gently stroked his downy coat, to the evident satisfaction of the youngster. Meanwhile the mother was in an agony of distress. At first, forgetting her native wildness and timidity in her mother love, she boldly approached the canoe, and, rising in the water till she appeared to stand upon it, furiously flapped her wings, uttering menacing cries. Finding this of no avail, she pretended that she was wounded, rolling over in the water and finally lying still as if dead, evidently to attract attention to herself and away from the young one. The fisherman, touched by these displays of motherly affection, put the young loon into the water, upon which the mother instantly came to life and again tried to entice her little one to go with her. (Text.)—Olive Thorne Miller, “The Bird Our Brother.”
The loon, or great northern diver, is reported to have displayed her mother love and anxiety to a sportsman fishing in Sebago Lake in Maine: He surprized the mother with one young one near his canoe. She was employing every artifice to call the little one away, but the infant swam so near the boat that the fisherman took him aboard in his landing-net, and, holding him on his knee, gently stroked his downy coat, to the evident satisfaction of the youngster. Meanwhile the mother was in an agony of distress. At first, forgetting her native wildness and timidity in her mother love, she boldly approached the canoe, and, rising in the water till she appeared to stand upon it, furiously flapped her wings, uttering menacing cries. Finding this of no avail, she pretended that she was wounded, rolling over in the water and finally lying still as if dead, evidently to attract attention to herself and away from the young one. The fisherman, touched by these displays of motherly affection, put the young loon into the water, upon which the mother instantly came to life and again tried to entice her little one to go with her. (Text.)—Olive Thorne Miller, “The Bird Our Brother.”
(2107)
MOTHER, MEMORY OF
Lamar Fontaine, looking back after a long life of adventure, writes thus of a parting with his mother:
Those long-ago days now rise before me in all their vividness. As I pen these lines, nearing the seventy-seventh milestone in life’s rugged pathway, I feel the loving kiss yet burning on my lips where she prest it as she bade me “good-by.” There are some things in our life that time does not efface, and this is one of them. They are like the brand of red-hot iron that sears the tender hide of the bleating calf; once burned in, it lasts as long as life. I can see the last wave of her hand as she watched us move off across the prairie, and the picture is branded in my brain.—“My Life and My Lectures.”
Those long-ago days now rise before me in all their vividness. As I pen these lines, nearing the seventy-seventh milestone in life’s rugged pathway, I feel the loving kiss yet burning on my lips where she prest it as she bade me “good-by.” There are some things in our life that time does not efface, and this is one of them. They are like the brand of red-hot iron that sears the tender hide of the bleating calf; once burned in, it lasts as long as life. I can see the last wave of her hand as she watched us move off across the prairie, and the picture is branded in my brain.—“My Life and My Lectures.”
(2108)
MOTHER, PRAYER OF A
John Wesley might well be expected to become, as he did, the great religious leader of his day with such a mother behind him.
“His mother, with the finer prescience that love gives to a mother, saw in her second son the hint of some great, unguessed future, and she writes in her diary under the head of ‘Evening, May 17, 1717, Son John:“‘What shall I render to the Lord for all His mercies? I would offer myself and all that Thou hast given me; and I would resolve—oh, give me grace to do it!—that the residue of my life shall be all devoted to Thy service. And I do intend to be more particularly careful with the soul of this child, that Thou hast so mercifully provided for, than ever I have been; that I may instil into his mind the principles of true religion and virtue. Lord give me grace to do it sincerely and prudently.’”—W. H. Fitchett, “Wesley and His Century.”
“His mother, with the finer prescience that love gives to a mother, saw in her second son the hint of some great, unguessed future, and she writes in her diary under the head of ‘Evening, May 17, 1717, Son John:
“‘What shall I render to the Lord for all His mercies? I would offer myself and all that Thou hast given me; and I would resolve—oh, give me grace to do it!—that the residue of my life shall be all devoted to Thy service. And I do intend to be more particularly careful with the soul of this child, that Thou hast so mercifully provided for, than ever I have been; that I may instil into his mind the principles of true religion and virtue. Lord give me grace to do it sincerely and prudently.’”—W. H. Fitchett, “Wesley and His Century.”
(2109)
Mothers as Protectors—SeeFather Animals Unparental.
MOTHER’S INFLUENCE, A
Grant’s love for his family was one of the strongest and most attractive traits of his character. He never failed to appreciate the worth of his mother’s love, patience and wisdom during his early years at Georgetown. When she died in 1883, at Jersey City Heights, New Jersey, the General, when at the funeral, said to Dr. Howard Henderson, her pastor: “In the remarks which you make, speak of her only as a pure-minded, simple-hearted, earnest, Methodist Christian. Make no reference to me; she gained nothing by any position I have filled or honors that may have been paid me. I owe all this andall I am to her earnest, modest and sincere piety.”—Nicholas Smith, “Grant, the Man of Mystery.”
Grant’s love for his family was one of the strongest and most attractive traits of his character. He never failed to appreciate the worth of his mother’s love, patience and wisdom during his early years at Georgetown. When she died in 1883, at Jersey City Heights, New Jersey, the General, when at the funeral, said to Dr. Howard Henderson, her pastor: “In the remarks which you make, speak of her only as a pure-minded, simple-hearted, earnest, Methodist Christian. Make no reference to me; she gained nothing by any position I have filled or honors that may have been paid me. I owe all this andall I am to her earnest, modest and sincere piety.”—Nicholas Smith, “Grant, the Man of Mystery.”
(2110)
In a letter written by Grover Cleveland on the eve of his election to the governorship of New York State, he stated to his brother:
“I have just voted, and I sit here in the office alone. If mother were alive I should be writing to her, and I feel as if it were time for me to write to some one who will believe what I write.... I shall have no idea of reelection or of any high political preferment in my head, but be very thankful and happy if I serve one term as the people’s governor. Do you know that if mother were alive I should feel so much safer. I have always thought her prayers had much to do with my successes. I shall expect you to help me in that way.”
“I have just voted, and I sit here in the office alone. If mother were alive I should be writing to her, and I feel as if it were time for me to write to some one who will believe what I write.... I shall have no idea of reelection or of any high political preferment in my head, but be very thankful and happy if I serve one term as the people’s governor. Do you know that if mother were alive I should feel so much safer. I have always thought her prayers had much to do with my successes. I shall expect you to help me in that way.”
(2111)
SeeTruthfulness Rewarded.
MOTHERS NOT IN FICTION
A sick youth was lying in bed, watching with quiet eyes his mother’s form moving gently about the room where for weeks she had been ministering to him with tenderest heart and hands. There had been stillness there for a little while, when the boy spoke: “I wonder why there are no mothers in fiction.” “Why, there are, dear; there must be,” the mother answered quickly, but when she tried to name one, she found that none came at the call. When she related me the little incident, I too immediately said that our memory must be strangely at fault that it did not furnish us with examples in plenty. Maternal love! Why, art was filled with illustrations of it, and so was literature. And yet, on making search, I too have failed to find the typical mother where it seems she would so easily be found.—Atlantic Monthly.
A sick youth was lying in bed, watching with quiet eyes his mother’s form moving gently about the room where for weeks she had been ministering to him with tenderest heart and hands. There had been stillness there for a little while, when the boy spoke: “I wonder why there are no mothers in fiction.” “Why, there are, dear; there must be,” the mother answered quickly, but when she tried to name one, she found that none came at the call. When she related me the little incident, I too immediately said that our memory must be strangely at fault that it did not furnish us with examples in plenty. Maternal love! Why, art was filled with illustrations of it, and so was literature. And yet, on making search, I too have failed to find the typical mother where it seems she would so easily be found.—Atlantic Monthly.
(2112)
Mother, The, and the Lambs—SeeFather’s Voice.
Mother Wisdom—SeeWealth and Work.
MOTHERHOOD