Class Book Ddo cat Xi21 GopyrightT^?. Mi. COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. THE PAST AND PRESENT THE PAST AND PRESENT BY SICNARF NEW YORK AND WASHINGTON THE NEALE PUBLISHING CO. 1905 LIBRARY of CONGRESS Two Copies Received JAN 6 1906 Copyright Entry XLASS Ou XXc. No. COPY B. Copyright, J 905 The Neale Publishing Company THE PAST AND PRESENT THE PAST AND PRESENT I Who faults his age is not a traitor to it, Who lauds it most will sooner quite undo it; A middle course is safer to pursue : Fault what is wrong, but laud the good and true. No doubt our age is wiser cnan the last, In many ways superior to the past ; For men have lived and died to make it so, Surely their efforts should some fruitage show. The Past and Present II Look backward to the age of George the Third: Strong were the passions that mankind disturbed, Licentious kings had spread corruption round, And public vice prolific did abound; Faith, the foundation of a social state, Had fled, and left the people desolate ; Ripe were the subjects of such worthless kings For rank rebellion — what rebellion brings. A century ago grim pirates sailed The ocean o'er, and painful loss entailed ; Great risks they ran who ventured on the sea Without a man-of-war in company: Swift sailing craft with rakish masts there were With men on board with neither love nor fear, Save love of spoils — that they could turn to gold — The Past and Present 9 Their deeds of blood were better left un- told. Slave ships were owned by many North- ern men, Whose sons fought bravely to release them when The purchasers arose to keep, for what they'd paid — In after years 'twas this rebellion made. Those were the days when men were caught and sold, Both black and white alike, for rum or gold; For drinking rum was then no crime on earth — Yea, drinking hugely was a sign of worth. Press-gangs there were who seized men on their way, And made them bond-men whether yea or nay ; Poor debtors were imprisoned when they failed, With common criminals were they classed and jailed. (In this respect have we improvement made, That borrowers now can their just debts evade? 10 The Past and Present You sue a man for what he justly owes, He stalks abroad with finger on his nose.) Such was the justice our grandfathers gave — To be unfortunate was to be a knave ; A virtuous debtor, though a woman pure, They would with vagabonds immure ; Their loathsome prisons were unfit for beasts, Where vermin fattened on their putrid feasts : To-day, our prisons, save in country places, Are pleasanter than ancient palaces, Though here and there are prisons where they fetter, Compared with old time dungeons, little better. The Past and Present n III Our great progenitors, neither just nor gentle, Indulged but rarely in the sentimental — Witness the records of Colonial times And note what penalties were paid for crimes : To steal was just as sinful as to kill, Death was the cure for every human ill ; They talked of mercy dropping from the skies, Then gave to justice added sacrifice ; Note with astonishment how they would slay For crimes considered trifling in our day. Small wonder that their ways were unre- fined, It was an age of darkness, men were blind : The world about them had but little charm, Its dreadful secrets filled them with alarm . 12 The Past and Present It took a year to travel it around, Most men were by their small horizons bound ; Twelve miles an hour, that was the fast- est rate Their means of getting on were ade- quate — The great majority going anywhere Employed what's called in slang "Shanks' mare." They were not by their automobiles slain, Nor made they exit by a railway train ; Yet many perished in those early days When slowly traveling by uncertain ways. Men dwelt in hovels with an earthen floor, Whose roofs with straw were thinly cov- ered o'er, Though nobles dwelt in castles built of stone And made the best of everything their own. God's temples too were raised in splendid style, Had painted windows and a high arched aisle, A Gothic framework and a lofty spire, A marble altar, and mosaic choir; The Past and Present 13 Men sought in heaven what they lacked below, Sweet angels' robes and crowns, release from woe. 14 The Past and Present IV A century ago this nation, just begun, Had scarce equipment proper course to run: No railways, steamboats, nor machines to aid The toil of earth — these since wise men have made. "Knowledge is power," knowledge of means and ways Has since evolved through later yester- days. Yet much they wrought with implements they had, To improve their time and make the fu- ture glad. Compare their ships of war with those that sail Propelled by steam and clothed in iron mail; You have the record of their deeds ma- rine, Go envy then the heroes who have been — The Past and Present 15 Greater their victories on the raging sea Than those in times since we began to be. Compare the tools which wrought this mighty state With those in use, and call the Fathers great. 16 The Past and Present Ignorance existed 'mongst the mass of men, Who could not read, nor spell, nor hold the pen; The realm of Nature, that was held to be, Forbidden to the good, a realm of mys- tery, And those who sought its secrets to ex- plore Were still thought atheistic, as of yore. To those who into Nature's secrets pried, Wizards and witches were the terms ap- plied; The lightning was the sword, or lance, of God, With which when angry He destroyed the bad. A few there were who thought quite oth- erwise And sought the treasures of the earth and skies, The Past and Present 17 Nor sought in vain its secrets to explore, For they divulged them ever more and more. These were opposed, not only by the mass, But by the learned and the leisure class ; Who gained their profits by dispensing lore, Taught by the sages in the ages hoar. Doctors, who bled their patients till they died; Prophets, who called it Providence, be- sides ; Lawyers, who throve in drawing sick men's wills — All who throve best by ignorance of ills. Science was "false," and only that was true Which fools had taught when all the world was new. I call them "fools," because they sought to find Only in self the ways of life and mind, Neglecting Nature, that doth clearly show The laws conservative of life below ; Walking amid the plentitudes of space, A cringing, trembling, superstitious race — 18 The Past and Present Imagining spirits of another sphere Were playing mischief with the carnal here; That stars and planets, rolling in their path, Were influences of welfare and of wrath. But fault not all, for some there were who saw Behind the veil what kept the world in awe; There rose on earth a more enlightened race, Who greeted knowledge with a grateful face. We live to-day upon a world transformed, With bigotry at every point disarmed; No longer persecution with fanatic ire Destroys reformers with its rack and fire. The Past and Present 19 VI When that, the nineteenth century was born, The Christian Church by factious men was torn. Her pulpit was a place where preachers fought With weapons taken from the field of thought ; In bloodless combat were they wont to rage, Each as a champion for his sect engage. Stern men there were who thought it wrong to smile, For life too brief it seemed, and earth too vile; The epithets they used are now unknown, Our age refined doth now such terms dis- own; The heathen in their zeal cney quite for- got; In splitting hairs Christ's champions were hot. 20 The Past and Present They were remainders of the past left o'er, Who bathed their doctrine in each other's gore. Each saw the footprints of the Great Un- known, And claimed Him ruler for himself alone. Such spent their lives in arguing their creed, And left mankind without the living bread. So God gave lightning into Franklin's hand, And made it speak through Morse to ev'ry land; Through air, which Adam breathed when he was loyal, Revealed Himself, and showed its maker, royal. He turned attention from the transcen- dental And showed that life was something more than mental. There came a change, a transformation grand, Men's eyes were opened by a magic wand ; The Past and Present 21 The storehouse of Creation was unlocked And found with many useful things well stocked ; God showed through opening gates a bet- ter way To bless the race, and bring men 'neath His sway. Now through the earth men fly with fleetest speed, Without contention 'bout their various creed ; Spreading to every realm and pagan na- tion The gifts of this, our modern Civilization. But think not process is perfection gained, Though that is coming, 'tis not yet at- tained : This earth has yet some evils which de- stroy, And naught so precious but it hath alloy. 22 The Past and Present VII The earth hath yielded to the stroke of toil And grown rich harvests in its fertile soil ; Implements invented by the subtle mind Enable men rich treasure now to find. Genius allied with reckless energy Has yoked the elements to engin'ry ; Cities have risen with their buildings vast, And o'er the continents a network cast Of wires composed, and rails of steel, re- fined, For quick communication well designed. Great are the gifts of Nature to the race, That men are finding, putting into place ; A globe transformed, upon its axis turns, And every day some fresh advantage earns. Our age is full of hopeful men, who see A silver lining to the clouds that be ; The Past and Present 23 They know that much there is to be re- formed, And will be, until error's heights are stormed — Yea, conquered by the hosts of truth and light. Who march to conflict armed with Heav- en's might. 24 The Past and Present VIII The hosts of truth! Where are they? What is truth? Methink 'tis hard to answer that, for- sooth. The truth for heaven seems very plain to us, But what is truth for earth we still dis- cuss. Some say that truth consists in that or this, And all who fail to think so are amiss; Questions arise that none can answer best Until Experience applies its test; And many fail that others may find out 'Mongst many paths which is the safest route. A seething caldron is the earth we tread, Where evils many by vile minds are bred ; Hodge-podge is made by quacks and shrewd savants, To meet man's needs and satiate his wants ; The Past and Present 25 We wrestle still with agencies of wrong, As man has done through all the ages long; To help us battle, instruments we make, That Satan uses good designs to break. The printing press, invention of keen skill, Is oft employed as agency of ill; No unmixed good is by it produced, Vice oft exalted, virtue oft traduced; The little good done by the pure of aim Is poorly blazoned by the trumps of fame ; And yet we owe to freedom of the press The many laws that now exalt and bless ; And thousands are there in this country wide Who in its welfare take a noble pride, And editors there are whose lofty aim Is to achieve not simply wealth or fame, But all that makes a people good and great : Yet there are others which we deprecate, Who sap the principles of human kind Until to Faith and Virtue men are blind; Their only motive is a godless gain, Nor do they care how they their news obtain ; 26 The Past and Present Their columns teem with deeds of crime and sin, Attractive such to readers foul within ; They make their living by the panderer's art, And pimp to gratify the sensual heart. Already are there signs that public taste Is low as that which made old Rome a waste ; God is a name to help the weak express In terms irreverent what they should re- press ; They publish greedily, with a large dis- play, Whatever takes men's faith in Him away ; They print on Sundays to distract the mind From holy thoughts, and things of heav- enly kind, Pictures of women, infamous or pure, Yea, by methods evil human minds al- lure; Then dare to print some homily of grace Within their columns, sadly out of place. If times have changed not for the better, We owe it mostly to the printer's letter. The Past and Present 27 IX To-day this government the Fathers built Is too protective of the ways of guilt ; No fault of theirs who built this fabric up, But fault of age in morals more corrupt. I note a fact that fills me with alarm, The cause to hundreds of the people harm — I mean the centring of financial power Within the grip of few men at this hour. The laws of commerce toward great cen- tres tend, Until the millions to the hundreds bend; Unlike the laws of Nature's vast expanse, The laws of business do the few enhance. Great is the problem of the general good ; To solve it, many martyrs shed their blood : From those who fought for liberty at Rome To those who fight for freedom nearer home. 28 The Past and Present For this the Son of God came down to earth, Of Jewish maiden had His royal birth ; For this one day He suffered human loss, And sought for men solution on a cross; For this the thousands perished in their time; For this the patriots bled ; this made sub- lime The men of Seventy-six : Great Washing- ton And those he led till victory he won, Marshalled themselves in armies to resist And formed a nation which doth still exist, Where each man should be free to earn his bread And by his own right arm be clothed and fed. Vain was their hope, yea, all their efforts vain, If such are thwarted by a vile chicane, And methods subtle, practices of guile Relieve the honest of the fruits of toil. We need new saviors of a different kind From those in ages long since left behind ; The Past and Present 29 Not those elected by the aid of graft, For they already drive their subjects daft. Our public men who now the people rule Too long have to the Devil gone to school ; If we exchange these tyrants of finance For such 'twill not our weal advance — Take as example of a party's way, The G. O. P. or Tammany to-day. 30 The Past and Present X We see behind us in the centuries gone Ruins of nations other than our own. Can these United States resist what they V/ent down before? If you answer yes, I say: Give me some reason other than your feeling, To show a holy God has changed His dealing : With those who call that Puritanic That walks not in their path Satanic ; With those who reverence not days holy And call His worship melancholy. 'Tis righteousness alone a nation lifteth, Without it, it to ruin drifteth. Already dangerous symptoms prophets see Of coming perils to society : Evils imported from a foreign shore, Mingling with those already here before, The Past and Present 31 Are changing customs which the Fathers gave us To keep us strong and from destruction save us. He's called a pessimist who ruin fears, By optimist whom every prospect cheers, Who'll fiddle when the world is burning down, And like a Nero twiddle with his crown ; "Glory to God!" he shouts. "I'm going higher When all the world dissolves in liquid fire." Be not deceived by optimistic folly, Nor yet give way to spirits melancholy; Be like the reverend fathers apostolic, Equipped for battle, not for fun and frolic. 32 The Past and Present XI Forces of change are constantly evolving ; New combinations, old ones are dissolv- ing. Can this Republic, as the Fathers made her, Assimilate the elements that invade her? To-day we have a foreign population, Perhaps, of forty millions in the nation, In atmosphere monarchic born and bred; A Pope of Church, a King of State the head, No wonder why old customs are contrary From what they were in first centenary. These people who have come from o'er the seas, Bringing strange habits with their beer and cheese, Have little knowledge of our ways of ac- tion, In native customs find but small attrac- tion; The Past and Present 33 They by our party chiefs are richly prized, And all too quickly, by them, naturalized. Yet they some virtues have that we've forgotten, In some things they are pure, and we are rotten ; Go where they dwell and you will see them swarming, Who think in breeding there is naught alarming ; And they are right, for every new-made creature Gives to the earth an added charm of fea- ture — Unlike some home-made women of our epoch, Whose manners would an ancient matron shock. Noble exceptions are there, in great num- ber; We see them when awake and when we slumber. Our laws seem futile to resist transition From olden customs to the new condi- tion; The moral atmosphere of life, it is not As good as 'twas, or else we have forgot ; 34 The Past and Present But certain I, in matters matrimonial, The world was better in the days Colo- nial. The union of the sexes is divine, To bring to being they with God com- bine; Immortal creatures the resultant are, And future blessings issue from one pair. An awful thing it is for us to be The curse or blessing of futurity. Society is recreant to its trust, Its methods in this country are unjust : It has no lofty and exalted view Of that which joins for life the sexes two ; Industrial systems marriage does not aid, Seeking those only who may be under- paid, Employing women at less price than men, Depriving state of homes and citizen. No man is fit for husband of a wife Who does not reverence God and human life; And she who pledges man her solemn word Should do it as the handmaid of the Lord. How difficult to-day is marriage made : Wages are small and men are underpaid, The Past and Present 35 Women and children, unprovided for, Do take their place in factory or in store ; Blind law determines, where the state should say, Who work should do, and what should be their pay; 'Tis bearded men alone on whom should rest A happy state, and home with children blest ; Only the nation built on Nature's plan Shall long exist, the hope and strength of man. 36 The Past and Present XII. When I was boy, the father's rule was stern, And I and others were compelled to learn ; Schoolmaster's rod oft fell upon the hand, Causing our brains with knowledge to expand ; The devil in us was exorcised by switch- ing, To purge the soul they'd set the fingers itching, And sometimes other place, I need not mention, That softer is and fuller in dimension. In modern times we've grown more sen- timental Within the schools, and under roof pa- rental ; To be a dunce no more is deemed immoral, To quicken wits they give a dose of chloral. I often wish I were a boy again, So free is learning now from toil and pain; The Past and Present 37 A daily picnic do the youngsters have, From time they enter school until they "lave." When I attended it no sweet carbolic Was sprinkled round to keep away the colic ; Between the training of the voice and muscle, The intellectual and aesthetic, hustle. Schools are the places where the children play A little while in middle of the day ; No wonder that they haste to them with glee, Our boys and girls, to have their daily spree. When I was young the graduates of col- lege Came out informed in every kind of knowledge ; Their heads were big, their hair was long and wiry, Enthusiasts were they, both hot and fiery ; Each had an object, and a great ambi- tion — To improve the world and take a high position. 38 The Past and Present The realm of intellect was thought to be The highest one of our humanity ; We threw our bulging locks from off the brow, Had fronts like Jove, not as they have them now ; Our legs were normal, not this modern size, Big biceps won no academic prize ; We were not up in pugilistic poses, Nor did we doubt the history of Moses. In studying hard perhaps we grew dys- peptic, But certain I, none came out greater scep- tic. The graduate to-day of modern college Is stronger in philosophy than knowl- edge; May doubt the origin of man, yet traces His health and happiness to college races. Skulls won the prizes in times past away, Sculls win them yet in our modern day. Am I reproving? No, nor am I righting, I am but simply current facts inditing. The Past and Present 39 XIII In earlier days, when I was just expand- ing, Our parsons 'mongst the people were commanding ; If men did wrong from pulpit they'd re- buke it, Until God's vengeance fearing, they for- sook it. They soothed no itching ears with foolish twaddle As they went round in sulky or in saddle ; They stood like lights upon life's rocky shore, And showed us whither every current bore. How is't to-day, with these our modern preachers ? Are they of God the true inspired teach- ers? Do they proclaim to mortals still found sinning The law and gospel as at the beginning? 40 The Past and Present The fathers lived between the earth and sky, And lived so poorly they preferred to die ; But their successors of this modern day Do prosper so they much prefer to stay; They teach the heavenly kingdom it is here, That was foretold by early Jewish seer : Yet earth is full of violence and fraud, Though much there is the angels might applaud. Tolstoi the Russian, to my mind, is right : Earth's shadows are the denser for the light. America can't point to Russia with con- tempt, For she's not "Kingdom come," from sin exempt : I read time since, in Magazine Eclectic, An article on crime, by no dyspeptic, In which he stated figures most astound- ing, The hopeful views of people all confound- ing-— Crime costs six hundred millions every year. Can it be true that kingdom come is here? The Past and Present 41 Men idly prate, whose salaries are good, Whose stomachs feel contented with their food; The badness of the world they see it not, They judge it all by their own garden plot; If you could peel them, you would find within Some cherished evil that they think no sin; No consciousness of any stain have they, Nor ask forgiveness when they kneel to pray. They who are gratified with earth's con- dition Would certainly be happy in perdition. "The world is very evil, the times are waxing late, Be sober and keep vigil, the Judge is at the gate." Our very methods of destruction charm, And smiles conceal our purposes of harm ; We compliment a person to his face, And say the word that hurls him from his place; Few tell the truth in any walk of life, And practices of injury are rife, 4? The Past and Present While persons preach that everything is grand, Mammon is robbing men on every hand ; Lust is seducing from the narrow way, And pleasure turning piety to play. Full are the papers of reports of riot, And vultures fatten yet on human diet : Yet not an optimistic person squirms, Though sin is feeding hundreds to the worms. Britain, the sanctified, employs her money In ways that devils think are funny : She doth the heathen Japanese inspire To draw the chestnuts from the Russian fire. And are the other nations buccaneering In eastern waters, more than her, God fearing ? Go preach my Gospel unto every savage, And as you preach, the word that rhymes is — ravage. O that was not what the Saviour said, He came to earth to give the living bread : So should a dying world with it be fed. Until the modus of our operandi Shows Christian motive, call your propa- ganda The Past and Present 43 By its true name of "selfish and Satanic," "American, Germanic, or Brittanic." Are these the times of generous good feel- ing, When all are merciful in thought and dealing? One might expect while listening to the preaching, Men did not practice any over-reaching. If no reproof is needed, all are pure, Why do the doctors go about to cure? Why do I pass policemen on the street? Why can't I trust all people that I meet? I read of judges now and then who say To cringing culprits, "Hang on such a day." When we go out our front door, do we lock it, Or as we walk abroad keep hand in pocket? And when we bargain do we queer the jargon Of the good man with whom we drive the bargain? Do even preachers preaching these dis- courses, Trust fully those with whom they swap their horses? 44 The Past and Present Are these the halcyon days foretold of old, When wolf and lamb lie snugly in one fold? I know the bears in yon Yosemite Betray to-day no ancient enmity — Yea, willingly stand up to be undone By Roosevelt's or anybody's gun ; But will the wolf let little lamblet play Outside his stomach? No, truth anwers, nay. If people are so good it is a wonder In such clear sky we hear no clap of thunder. The Past and Present 45 XIV The tyranny of priests and kings exist no longer, That of the doctors has become the stronger. In olden time the future did alarm us, 'Tis now we fear that microbes they will harm us. These, though invisible to the human eye, Ride on the wind, in every cesspool lie ; Yea, every person walking 'long the road Has deathly germs, perhaps, about him stowed ; When lovers meet they hardly dare to hug, From fear of danger from each other's bug. The public's doctors now inspect our houses, To-morrow they may search our frocks and trouse's; 46 The Past and Present Soon all the people walking in the street They'll smell to ascertain if they are sweet ; To save our lives, the doctors are annoy- ing, To save our lives, are happiness destroy- ing: I'd rather be a savage in the forest shady Than be a twentieth century gentleman or lady. The Past and Present 47 XV Before I close I am inclined to mention A few ideas concerning intervention : Few nations are there big enough to do it, And those that do may soon have chance to rue it. Go not between two dogs when they are fighting Unless you are prepared to do some bit- ing; There's misconstruction of the best en- deavor, And few are thought more good than they are clever. Alas ! alas ! that warring perturbation Disturbs the peaceful in the Lord's crea- tion. Sometimes, however, powdery explosion Has acted like a purifying lotion : I know a people that was made a nation — Yea, a great, a rich, a mighty nation — 48 The Past and Present By lurid war — yet war shall some time cease And all the earth enjoy millennial peace. But long as rank injustice rules mankind, No holy peace shall here firm lodgment find; So long as greed shall dominate the thought Shall battles many on the earth be fought ; So long as patriotism, love of nation, Productive of inhuman isolation, Control the citizens of each separate state, For peace on earth shall all the v/orld await : "Tis not the love of flag but love of men Can open gates of Paradise again. The Past and Present 49 XVI In this, our age of progress, Science preaches, And contradicts the Bible as it teaches ; It can explain how everything got here, Better than Moses — Hebrew scribe and seer. 'Tis evolution versus revelation — Shows modus operandi of creation ( ?) Man never fell, he ever has been growing, When Moses said so he was only blow- ing: Man has existed in some form or other For many million aeons altogether ( ?) For what are aeons to a mind elastic When dealing with the protoplastic? And what are statute miles in spaces stellar To any scientific story-teller? I still believe that Adam was and tumbled, And that he was by his Creator humbled ; 50 The Past and Present I still believe the farther back you go The men that lived more than the mod- erns know, About the time when they began to be, Than's taught to-day in their philosophy. The earlier peoples, no greater fools than we, Knew what was fact and what was the- ory; Believed that Moses was a wise savant, Who gave them freedom and supplied their want. He did not simply sit in study chair And build a science out of gas and air ; No "fake" was he to lead the world astray, Such as we have in this our fool to-day. For fool-age this, if ever such there was, Which puts belief in idiotic cause — Is this not fool-age? Listen to its talk, Peruse its pamphlets, see its people stalk ; Stand by its railways, note its passing trains ; Visit their cities, enter hippodromes, And see before you products of their homes ; The Past and Present 51 Enter their courts, observe the judges sever, The parents of the same forever and for- ever: To them life is a revel, or a run, Their serious thought is given to their fun; And even death is treated with delight, With songs and flowers are they buried from the sight. Yet fool-age though it be, it is our own, So let us jocund be and cease to moan. 52 The Past and Present XVII The present is the product of the past In part, at least, this present was forecast. Where are the people that have helped to give The civilization in midst of which we live? If they are not enjoying any gain From all their earthly travail, toil, and pain, This earth, this universe, all space Is but the passing of a clown's grimace. No, no, the thought's abhorrent to the soul, There is for humankind a happy goal. Wherein of fruit of all the efforts here, They now partake with Christ, their Sa- viour, near. Not yet is present Paradise again, We have too many deluges of rain, The Past and Present 53 Earth's winds, that cool the heated brow to-day, To-morrow sweep man's dwelling place away; The sun that shed its rays of pleasing light To-morrow scorches, and destroys the sight; The calm blue waters of the noble sea, To-morrow rise, and whelm in misery. We cannot put our trust in earth or man, Here all things fail, and life is but a span ; Yet hope sits regnant in the human breast, And golden rims the darkest clouds in- vest. Let "action" then be motto as we go, Redeem the time, waste no important now, O'ercome life's obstacles with sturdy will, Plough well the field and all thy garden till. Improve thy age by conquering thyself, Quench avarice, nor slave for sordid pelf; Let not a false ambition lead thee on To climb on other's losses to a crown ; Think well of all men, nor thyself deride, For self-respect is distant far from pride. 54 The Past and Present If thou shouldst stumble, stay not fallen down, Rise quickly to thy feet, be man, not clown : For he achieves who triumphs o'er his faults, And he is lost who, when he stumbles, halts. We grow by struggling; that, you may depend. How noble 'tis to struggle, and contend ; A life of combat is a life that makes Our hearts heroic, and our strength awakes. Men call those evils which their paths oppose, And strikes at good misplaced, their angry blows. Past ages in their ignorance destroyed What wisely we have usefully employed ; They thought that Satan grew the poison plants To kill mankind, but knowledge has advanced ; They thought temptation was a form of error, And fled before it in a state of terror. The Past and Present 55 If men were tempted not, how good they'd be — As good as children in their infancy. 'Tis opposition brings us into being, And conscious we become by disagreeing. Contending forces in the realm of Nature Produce all things, yea, every sort of crea- ture. We should not value heaven, were there no hell; Unworthy he of that who cannot tell Of victories in combat with the Devil, With world and flesh and every kind of evil. If everything were right, and naught were wrong, Our life on earth would scarce be "worth a song." Notes from the realm of discord Genius takes, And with them noblest harmony awakes ; What men think evil is oftentimes the good: The overflowing Nile gave Egypt food ; 'Twas Chaos that supplied the architect, The elements these planets to erect; 56 The Past and Present 'Twas Waterloo gave Wellington his fame, Sebastopol gave Nightingale her name. 'Tis not the infants fed with silver spoon That best resist the influence of the moon— It was the babe who, cradled in the straw, Sits now in heaven and holds the world in awe. To stand on earth we need a self-control, The product of a true and noble soul. 'Tis not the men that win the wealth of earth That by our God are deemed the most of worth ; 'Tis not the men whom worldly souls applaud Whom He approves, whom all His angels laud! 'Tis they who 'mid the tempting lusts have fought Like Paul, for what their conscience said they ought. A place there is for manhood's equal sway: 'Tis earth, this age, this continent, this day; The Past and Present 57 Here in the midst of forces that oppose, Manhood may triumph o'er its mortal foes. Beneath the flag our fathers raised on high, We Christians faith may preach, exem- plify. If we do not, then greater fools are we Than all the perished states of history. Think not that we can violate the will Of great Jehovah, and yet prosper still ; For no respecter He of sinners vile Who His own image with their sins defile. Yet much I hear and read that seems to me To show that people think that we are free From obligation e'en to Him who sits And of the steeds of destiny holds the bits. When He gave law, behold a mountain quakes, Dare disobey, and all His vengeance wakes. Imperial Rome defied Him ; open hell And you shall see where Roman fragments fell. 58 The Past and Present We have within ourselves the element of woe; Offend our God, we back to chaos go. Perils within us, and above us, bide, Like avalanche to Swiss on mountain- side. Unless there come a Pentecostal fire We shall through Freedom's privileges expire ; She hath declared that all are equal born, And have an equal right to Plenty's horn. And lo, all men come sailing o'er the sea, To gain advantage out of liberty ; Each brings his Fetich and his prejudice- Can we assimilate them all with this? We cannot, unless Heaven will aid us To harmonize the people who invade us. Let's trust in God and keep His Sabbaths holy, Insist on worship of Jehovah solely ; Keep door ajar, nor open it too wide, We would not have all heathendom inside. We have this life, let each but use it right, And he shall conquer Satan with God's might; He will direct him as he battles on, And give him Victory's triumphant song.