as you want, and no more. The measure of your desire is the measure of your capacity, and the measure of your capacity is the measure of God's gift.—Alexander McLaren.
(310)
See Receptiveness.
CAPACITY, ORIGINAL
During the trial in court of a case involving
the originality of a picture, an eminent
counsel put this question to Gainsborough:
"I observe you lay great stress on the
phrase, 'the painter's eye'; what do you mean
by that?" "The painter's eye," replied the
artist in a smart repartee, "is to him what the
lawyer's tongue is to you."
(311)
Capacity, Restricting—See Routine.
Captain and Crew Stedfast—See Loyalty.
CAPTAIN, CHRIST OUR
Among the old war pictures I remember
one of a captain of artillery bringing his
battery into action. His whole soul was in
the effort to rally his men and guns on the
line. You could hear the thunderous roll
of the wheels, crushing over all unevenness
and hindrance, the frantic straining of the
horses, the fearless, intense resolution of the
men, and above all, the captain waving his
sword, shouting his commands—but shot
dead just as the guns wheel into line. Our
Captain died rallying us, but He rose again,
and He still has His dying enthusiasm of
love for each one of us.—Franklin Noble,
"Sermons in Illustration."
(312)
CAPTAIN, OUR
Every ship has a captain. Some captains
are good, some bad. Years ago, I went by
steamer from Quebec through the lower St.
Lawrence and around the Dominion coast.
Our captain was under the influence of
liquor the whole way, and you can easily
imagine that I was glad to get ashore safely.
One of the ocean steamship lines once dismissed
a captain who, tho thoroughly capable
when he was sober, was given to drink. Another
ocean line took him up, hoping that
he had reformed. Unfortunately, this was
not the case. Bringing his steamer across
the Atlantic, and being under the influence
of drink, he ran her too far north and on
a winter's night rushed his steamer on to the
rocks. That night 532 people found a watery
grave. Surely that is not the kind of captain
with whom we would ever care to sail.
On the other hand, there was in my earlier
days a captain of the Cunard Steamship
Company—Captain Cook by name—careful,
capable, endlessly vigilant. The passengers
felt safe while he was on the bridge.
Some one has charge of us in all our
life's voyage, and either we are under
the command of Jesus Christ as Captain
of our salvation, or under the command
of Satan, the captain of ruin and death
and despair.—A. F. Schauffler in
The Christian Herald.
(313)
CAPTAIN, THE DIVINE
A vessel lies at the wharf. Her timbers
are sound, her masts are stanch, her canvas
is bent. The tide coaxes her seaward; the
winds plead with her to move. The ship itself
strains at her moorings to be leaping
over the ocean. But the vessel must wait,
wait for the skipper's will. Not best timbers
or fullest tide can carry that ship to the
distant port until the master reveals his
mind to the vessel. The earnest expectation
of the vessel waiteth for the revealing of
the captain.
So, here is the world; the master-builder has fitted it with all things needful for its consummation; it is ready for its wonder purpose; but it must wait; something is needed for the accomplishment of that end. The earnest expectation of the creation waiteth for the revealing of the sons of God.—T. C. McClelland.
(314)
Card-playing—See Amusements.
CARE IN PERFORMING DUTIES
The postal-clerk must know the various
mail routes as familiarly as he does the faces
of his best friends. His car, with its tier
over tier of pigeon-holes, and its ranks of
yawning mail-bags, is to him no labyrinth of
mysteries. His eyes are in his fingers, and
the skilful musician's touch is not more accurate
than the aim of this wizard of the
mail-car. The department rules are exacting,
and if an occasional error results from
the hurried manner in which the mail is
thrown, in course of distribution, it is sure
to be detected by the next clerk into whose
hands the stray piece of mail falls, and a
report of it is at once sent to the division
superintendent to be charged against the
clerk making the error. During a given year
the number of letters and other pieces of
