OCR Text |
Show FOR BOARD AND CLOTHES. If the sentinel angels that keep watch over mankind ever meet as tney walk (or fly) their rounds, Ihey must have a good deal of fun at our old world's expense. Below them are 1,500,000,-000 1,500,000,-000 creatures calling themselves men and women. wo-men. They appear, struggle for a little while, and then disappear that another generation may All their places and this has been going on for thousands thou-sands of years. If now and then a new angel comes down to relieve one who has served his time and asks of the others what all this scramble scram-ble below means, what can they answer except that they are all at work from the savage in the forest to the multi-millionaire in the city for clothes and board; for really Is not that all that the best can get? Some may answer, "O, no, i have mines and lands, houses in town, fine equipages, equip-ages, money in bank, political power, and the plaudits of "the world which are sweeter to me than music." But what of his lands, houses and the rest; suppose vertigo seizes him and makes him dizzy, will his mines cure him? His lands feed rattle snakes as well as he. Suppose one strikes him in a vein that goes directly to tho heart, what Is his title to his lands worth to him? Suppose ten, minutes after examining his bank account, and finding it all right, he is seized by acute appendicitis, how much does his money come to then? Or suppose he escapes all these things and lives to a great old age before he falls asleep, what does he have? Anything except board and clothes? And. how much does he take with him? No wonder the angels laugh. Not that it isn't good to work; that is man's duty and ought to be his pleasure, but after a modest independence is gained, that is, when "board and clothes for life are assured, what Is the sense in struggling on until man's very nature na-ture is changed. And no music Is left him except the jingle of one dollar upon another. We asked above what man could get beyond board and clothes and what he could take with him? He can, if while working for himself, he keeps his eyes and ears open for those less fortunate than he, have the joy of seeing smiles come to the i H wan cheeks of want light kindle in the eyes of H despair and feel that mayb.e there are a few H less sorrows in the world than there would have H been had he never been admitted into U. That Is H something outside of board and clothes, and If his H path is lined with enough recollections of that Bb kind, they will, after awhile, set themselves to H music, and be the lullaby that will make him for- H get the pain and whatever of appreciation there H may be as the final drowsiness comes, which a B little later will deepen into the dreamless sleep. H |