And the strong man there was a kindly man and aided the one who was weak,
And for those who were simple and trusting men their wiser brother's would speak;
And creed, or color, or land, or birth, caused no man to hate another,
For the same red blood filled each man's veins, and every man was a brother.
And the old man there was a blessed man, for toilless he wanted nought,
And vice and toil on the little ones no longer their ruin wrought;
And the feeble in body and mind had there no longer a care for bread;
For out of the plenty that was for all, 'twas theirs the first to be fed.
And peace was forever in that fair land, for no man envied his mate,
And no man's treasures, where all were rich, woke his brother's sleeping hate,
And the kingdom that Christ had promised was now for all men to see,
And the name of that happy kingdom was, "The land of the soon be be."
(Text.)
(2546)
PROMISES
"Oh, grandpa," said Charlie, "see how
white the apple-trees are with blossoms."
"Yes," replied grandpa; "if the tree keeps its promises, there will be plenty of apples; but if it is like some boys I know there may not be any."
"What do you mean by keeping its promises?" Charley inquired.
"Why," returned grandpa, "blossoms are only the tree's promises, just as the promises little boys make sometimes are blossoms. Sometimes the frost nips these blossoms, both on the tree and in the boy."
"I see," Charlie remarked; "then you think when I promise to be a better boy, I am only in blossom. But I'll show you that the frost can't nip my blossoms."—The Young Evangelist.
(2547)
Dr. Alexander MacLaren writes as follows about following the promises:
In the crooked alleys of Venice there is a
thin thread of red stone inlaid in the pavement
or wall which guides through all the
devious turnings to the plaza, in the center
where the great church stands. As long as
we have the red line of promise on the path
faith may follow it, and it will lead to God.
(Text.)
(2548)
PROMISES, BROKEN
I remember when I lived in Brooklyn there
used to be a fence around the City Hall. A
man used to stand there, grasping the iron
railing in his hand, and looking up at the
clock, every day at noon; and when it struck
12, he would count each stroke and look
about him, his face full of joy and hope.
But after two or three minutes the light
would fade out of his eyes, and he would
be turned into an old man, and would drag
his feet slowly away. For nine years he
did this, until death took him. I was told
that at some great business crisis of his life
a man had promised to bring him some hundreds
of dollars at a particular time, to
rescue him from failure. The man did not
come, and he found out he never intended
to come; and the great disappointment shattered
his brain, and day after day he was at
the City Hall, looking for the man who
never came. The guilt of human hearts has
made men give promises to get rid of importunate
persons. Some of us have become
cynics because we have found men so ready
to promise falsely.—D. A. Goodsell.
(2549)
PROMISES, IMPLIED
A promise may sometimes be binding on the conscience even when not made in specific terms:
M. Fallieres was presiding at a banquet at
Agen, when a piece of money dropt from
his waistcoat pocket to the floor. His
neighbor said: "I think you have let fall a
2f. piece." But he replied, "Let it be; that
will be a lucky find for the waiter," and he
called the latter, whispering to him to look
out for a 2f. piece, which he would find somewhere
under his seat on the floor. Toward
the end of dinner M. Fallieres was seen by
his neighbor to be feeling with a preoccupied
air in his waistcoat pockets. As he rose he
looked round, fancied he was not observed,
and gently let a 2f. piece slide down to
the floor. His neighbor, who had noticed
the strange proceeding, asked M. Fallieres
afterward if he would tell him what it
meant. "The fact is," Mr. Fallieres answered,
"that I remembered that I keep only coppers
in my left-hand pocket, from which
the piece dropt that you supposed was 2f.,
