Grandmother's scrap-book, or, The way to do good. Designed to encourage the highest religious attainments within the power of man .. online

lous. We are mysterious ; but here is the his-
tory of it all — for sadness, for suffering, for
misgiving, there is no remedy but stirring and
doing.



I RESOLVE to neglect nothing to secure my
eternal peace, more than if I had been certified
that I should die within the day ; nor to mind
any thing which my secular duties demand of
me, less than if I had been insured I should
live fifty years more.



OB, THE WAY TO DO GOOD. 353



HOW TO BE A MAN.

When Carlyle was asked by a young person
to point out what course of reading he thought
best to make him a man, he replied, in his char-
acteristic manner, " It is not by books alone, or
by books chiefly, that a man becomes in all
points a man. Study to do faithfully whatso-
ever thing in your actual situation, then and
now, you find either expressly or tacitly laid
down to your charge — that is, stand to your
post ; stand in it like a true soldier. Silently
devour the many chagrins of it, — all situations
have many, — and see you aim not to quit it,
without doing all that is your duty."



A CONTENTED Heart. — "I never complained
of my condition," says the Persian poet Sadi,
" but once, when my feet were bare, and I had
no money to buy shoes ; but I met a man with-
out feet, and I became contented with my lot."
23



354 grandmother's scrap-book ;



CAUSES OF FAILURES IN BUSINESS.

The leading c'ause is an ambition to be rich ;
— by grasping too much, it defeats itself. An-
other cause is aversion to labor. The third
cause is an impatient desire to enjoy the luxu-
ries of life before the right to them has been at
all acquired. Another cause arises from the
want of some deeper principles for distinguish-
ing between right and wrong than a reference
merely to what is established as honorable in
the society in which one happens to live.



Godly sorrow, like weeping Mary, seeks
Christ ; saving faith, like wrestling Jacob, finds
and holds Christ ; heavenly love, like the affec-
tionate spouse, dwells with Christ, — it is an
eternal grace, always lodging in the bosom of
Christ. Lord, thou art the desire of my soul ;
0, that I could see thee, find and love thee,
that I may forever enjoy thee !



OR, THE WAY TO DO GOOD. 355



SELECTIONS FKOM SCRIPTURE.

" All things work together for good to them
that love God."

" Let him know, that he which converteth
the sinner from the error of his way, shall save
a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude
of sins." — James v. 20.

" The Lord encampeth about them that love
him."

" Be careful what you say, do, or think ; God
knows it all."

" If the righteous are scarcely saved, where
shall the sinner and the ungodly appear ? "

" Be not troubled about much serving ; re-
member Christ's words to Martha."

" Exhort one another daily, while it is called
to-day." — iJ6?6. iii. 13.

" All things are naked and open unto the
eyes of Him with whom we have to do." —
Heb. iv. 13.

" Seeing then we have a great High Priest,



356* grandmother's scrap-book;

that is passed into the heavens, Jesus, the Son
of God, let us hold fast our profession."

" Let us therefore come boldly unto the
throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy,
and find grace to help in time of need."

" Therefore to him that knoweth to do good,
and doeth it not, to him it is sin." — James
iv. 17.

" Humble yourselves in the sight of the
Lord, and he shall lift you up."

" Think it not strange concerning the fiery
trial which is to try you as though some
strange thing happened unto you."

" For what shall it profit a man, if he shall
gain the whole world and lose his own soul ?
or, what shall a man give in exchange for his
soul ? "

Reader, you will find it profitable to take the
Bible and read the following : —

Mark xi. 24, 26.

Luke xviii. 17, 42 ; xix. 6, 9.

John V. 28, 29 ; X. 1, 9 ; xi. 25, 26 ; xii.
1, 3, 26 ; xiv. 3, 6, 12, 23 ; xv. 1, 18 ; xvi. 23,
33; xvii.



OR, THE WAY TO DO GOOD. 357

Acts X.

2 Cor. V. 10 ; vii. 10.

Ephesians iv. 30, 32.

Heb. iv. 12, 13 ; xiii. 16.

Matt. vii. 21, 23, 24.

Psalm xci.

Matt, xviii. 35 ; xix. 27, 30.

James i. 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 12, 17 ; ii. 22, 24 ;
iv. 8, 10.

1 Peter ii. 23, 24, 25 ; iii. 8, 13 ; iv. 8, 12,
13, 18.

1 John ii. ; iii ; iv. ; v.

St. Mark i. 24, 25, 26.

Ephes. vi. 8, 18.

1 Cor. X. 1, 12.

Heb. xiii. 16.

James i. 27 ; iv. 8, 10, 17 ; v. 10, 11, 13,
16, 17.

1 Peter iii. 12, 15.

1 John ii.

1 John V.

Luke V. and vi.



358 grandmother's scrap-book ;



A SHORT SERMON ON MANLINESS.

Learn from the earliest days to insure your
principles against the peril of ridicule. You
can no more exercise your reason if you live in
the constant dread of laughter, than you can
enjoy your life if you are in the constant terror
of death. If you think it right to differ from
the times, and to make a point of morals, do it,
however rustic, however antiquated, however
pedantic it may appear ; do it, not for insolence,
but seriously and grandly, as a man who
wore a soul of his own in his bosom, and did
not wait till it was breathed into him by the
breath of fashion.



Early Rising on the Sabbath. — Rise up
early in the morning^on the Sabbath day. Be
careful to rise sooner on this day than on other
days, by how much the service of God is to be
preferred before all earthly business.



359



TREES AND FLOWERS.

Not a tree,
A plant, a leaf, a blossom, but contains
A folio volume. We may read, and read,
And read again, and still find something new ;
Something to please and something to instruct,
Even in the humble weed.



Pointed Reply. — The Duke of Wellington,
who had resided in the East, was gravely asked
by a young clergyman, " Does not your grace
think it almost useless and extravagant to
preach the gospel to. the Hindoos ? " The Duke
immediately rejoined, " Look, sir, to your
marching orders, ' Preach the gospel to every
creature. ' " — Mark xvi. 15.

What a marvellous gospel is that which
opens a free portal to friendship with God for
every sinner who will ! and into which, if any
sinner enter, he will find purification as well as
peace f



360 grandmother's scrap-book ;



THINK.

Thought engenders thought. Place one
idea upon paper, another will follow it, and
still another, until you have written a page.
You cannot fathom your mind. There is a
well of thought there which has no bottom.
The more you draw from it, the more clear
and fruitful it will be. If you neglect to think
yourself, and use other people's thoughts, giv-
ing them utterance only, you will never know
what you are capable of. At first your ideas
may come out in lumps, homely and shapeless ;
but no matter; time and perseverance will ar-
range and polish them. Learn to think, and
you will learn to write ; the more you think,
the better you will express your ideas.



The best means of keeping near to God, is
the closet. Here the battle is won or lost.



361



WEAR A SMILE.

Which will you do, smile and make others
happy, or be crabbed, and make every body
round you miserable ? You can live among
beautiful flowers and singing birds, or in the
mire surrounded by fogs and frogs. The
amount of happiness which you can produce
is incalculable, if you will show a smiling face,
a kind heart, and speak pleasant words. On
the other hand, by sour looks, cross words, and
a fretful disposition, you can make hundreds
unhappy almost beyond endurance. Which
will you do ? Wear a pleasant countenance,
let joy beam in your eye, and love glow on
your forehead. There is no joy so great as that
which springs from a kind act or a pleasant
deed, and you may feel it at night when you
rest, and at morning when you rise, and
through the day when about your daily busi-
ness.



362 grandmother's scrap-book;



DO GOOD.

Thousands of men breathe, move, and live,
pass off the stage of life, and are heard of no
more. Why ? They did not a particle of good
in the world ; and none were blessed by them,
none could point to them as the instruments
of their redemption ; not a word they spoke
could be recalled, and so they perished ; their
light went out in darkness, and they were not
remembered more than the insects of yester-
day. Will you thus live and die, man
immortal ? Live for something. . Do good,
and leave behind you a monument of virtue
that the storm of time can never destroy.
Write your name in kindness, love, and mercy,-
on the hearts of thousands you come in con-
tact with year by year, and you will never be
forgotten. No, your name, your deeds, will be
as legible on the hearts you leave behind as
the stars on the brow of evening. Good deeds
will shine as the stars of heaven. — Dr. Chal-
mers.



363



THE PREVENTION OF CRIME.

While our legislature are about to pass
statutes which affix penalties to certain crimes
therein designated, will it not be well for our
philanthropists to endeavor to stay the tide of
vice which in so many cases leads to crime ? In
these matters we believe that " an ounce of
prevention is worth a pound of cure," and
while we would ask no relaxation of the reme-
dial measures which society is forced to adopt
for the preservation of order, we would, on the
other hand, bespeak for the ignorant that care
and watchfulness from society which will pre-
vent their becoming criminals.

Society has done much for the young ; but
she has not performed her whole duty. There
are thousands of children about our streets ill
fed, poorly clad, and still more poorly educated.
Their earliest breath is drawn in an atmos-
phere of penury, and their first companions are
the idle and the unprincipled. When old



S64 grandmother's scrap-book;

enough to attend school, their parents have
no means of making them appear decent,
and the consequence is, they prowl about our
streets and wharves, imbibing principles which
are sure to lead to the commission of crime.
When some of these children are temporarily
induced to attend school, their low grade
makes them objects of derision, and they fall
back into their old practices for want of sym-
pathy, encouragement, and support.

Now, we hold that before society inflicts
penalties for the violation of law, upon the
ground of a moral right to do so, she is in duty
bound to wash her hands of being particeps
criminis to the offence, by so educating her
members as to negative this tendency to crime.

When we observe a parent neglecting the
education of his children, we complain of the
injury which he is likely to inflict upon society.
But society stands, and must stand in loco
parentis^ to the children of the poor. Shall
our city, then, suffer these poor children to
grow up in ignorance and vice, and then pun-



365

isli them in their adult years foi' the crimes
which have been induced by h:)ng and tedious
years of poverty, suffering, and bad example ?

It may be urged, and with truth, that many
of these poor children are dependent upon
their own exertions for support for tliemselves
and their parents, and that therefore they can-
not attend scliool. . Granted. But we have
schools on the Sabbath which they could at-
tend. Is is urged that they have not proper
clothing ? Then let the benevolent look over
their wardrobes, and let the ladies, ever sym-
pathizing with human need, provide a depos-
itory where this clothing may be sent and
recut, and make for these destitute children
suitable garments for the purpose. It is hu-
miliating to say it, but such is the fact, that the
moths every summer devour twice as much
cloth in the wardrobes of our citizens as would
suffice to clothe all our poor population, and it
only requires a little energy to divert this cloth-
ing into a chamiel where it would be useful.

But again it is urged that the poorer children



366 grandmother's scrap-book ;

cannot be made to assemble on Sundays at tiia
Sabbath school. This is not true. If the o
children were properly clothed and treated
with kindness by the teachers and pupils,
thousands would be rescued every year from a
life of vice and immorality. The experiment
is worth trying, and we are confident that the
cost thereof would save our city thousands of
dollars in remedial measures for crime, and the
result would be to secure to the movers the
blessings of the poor for generations to come.
Shall not the experiment be tried ?



Intoxicating Dpjnks. — President Jefferson
once said, " The habit of using ardent spirits
by men in office has occasioned more injury to
the public, and more trouble to me, than all
other causes. And were I to commence my
administration again, with the experience I
now have, the first question I would ask re-
specting a candidate would be, ' Does he use
ardent spirits ? ' "



OR, THE WAY TO DO GOOD. 367



GOD KNOWS IT ALL.

In the dim recess of thy spirit's chamber,

Is there some hidden grief thou mayst not tell ?

Let not thy heart forsake thee ; but remember,
His pitying eye, who sees and knows it well,
God knows it all !

And art thou tossed on billows of temptation.
And wouldst do good, but evil oft prevails ?

O think, amid the waves of tribulation,

When earthly hopes and earthly refuge fails,
God knows it all !

And dost thou sin, thy deed of shame concealing
In some dark spot no human eye can see,

Then walk in pride, without one sigh revealing
The deep remorse that should disquiet thee ?
God knows it all !

Art thou oppressed, and poor, and heavy-hearted.
The heavens above thee in thick clouds arrayed.

And well-nigh crushed, no earthly thought imparted,
No friendly voice to say, " Be not afraid ? "
God knows it all !



368 grandmother's scrap-book ;

Art thou a mourner ? Are thy tear-drops flowing
For one too early lost to earth and thee ?

The depths of grief no human spirit knowing,
"Which moan in secret, like the moaning sea ?
God knows it all !

Dost thou look back upon a life of sinning ?

Forward, and tremble for thy future lot ?
There's One who sees the end from the beginning, —

Thy tear of penitence is unforgot, —

God knows it all !

Then go to God. Pour out your hearts before him ;

There is no grief your Father cannot feel ;
And let your grateful songs of praise adore him, —

To save, forgive, and every wound to heal.

God knows it all — God knows it all !



Character. — As they who, for every slight
infirmity, take physic to repair their health, do
rather impair it, so they who, for every trifle,
are eager to vindicate their 'character, do
rather weaken it.



369



HOW TO LIVE.

He liveth long who liveth well !

All other life is short and vain :
He liveth longest who can tell

Of living most for heavenly gain.

He liveth long who liveth well !

AH else is being flung away ;
He liveth longest who can tell

Of true things truly done each day.

Waste not thy being ; back to liim
Who freely gave it, freely give ;

Else is that being but a dream ;
'Tis but to be, and not to live.

Be what thou seemest ! live thy creed !

Hold up to earth the torch divine ;
Be what thou prayest to be made ;

Let the great Master's steps be thine.

Fill up each hour with what will last ;

Buy up the moments as they go :
The life above, when this is past,

Is the ripe fruit of life below.

24



370 grandmother's scrap-book ;

Sow truth, if thou the true wouldst reap ;

Who sows the false shall reap the vain ;
Erect and sound thy conscience keep ;

From hollow words and deeds refrain.

Sow love, and taste its fruitage pure ;

Sow peace, and reap its harvests bright ;
Sow sunbeams on the rock and moor,

And find a harvest-home of light.



A LADY who had refused to give, after hear-
ing a charity sermon, had her pocket picked as
she was leaving the church. On making the
discovery, she said, " God could not find the
way into my pocket, but it seems the devil
did."

The venerable church of Saint Mark,* at
Venice, is to be thoroughly repaired, and it is
proposed to modernize the ancient clock, which,
like all old Italian timepieces, has a dial plate
which shows the hours from 1 to 24, instead of
from 1 to 12.



OE, THE WAY TO DO GOOD. oTl

THE GOLDEN CITY.

BY REV. EDWIN H. NETIN.

I SEE the Golden City

With towers standing high ;
Its walls of sparkling beauty

Are shining in the sky.

Its pearly gates are open —
. Are open night and day ;
And through them all are shining
A light that cheers my way.

I hear its rich-toned music

Come pealing through the air ;
It flows o'er hill and valley,

It soundeth every where.

In it my friends are gathered,

The loved ones gone before ;
They're robed in angel beauty.

On angel wings they soar.

Within the Golden City

I hope to fly and sing,
And sound the praise forever

Of Christ, my Lord and King.



372 gbandmother's scrap-book;

Forever and forever
That city shall be mine^

The lovely, Golden City,

Which does the sun outshine.



Hints to Christians. — The way to secure
the future, is to improve the present.

Opportunities to do good create obligations
to do it ; he that hath the means must answer
for the end.

Prefer the duty you owe to the danger you
fear.

A CLERGYMAN who recently visited Malaga,
Madrid, Seville, and Cadiz, to ascertain
whether copies of the Bible may be freely in-
troduced there, reports that he found a gen-
eral desire to possess the Scriptures, and great
facilities for distributing them.



373



PRAYER.
" Pray without ceasing." — 1 Thess. v. 17.

"Prayer was appointed to convey
The blessings God designs to give ;
Long as they live should Christians pray,
For only while they pray they live."

Hart.

*' Prayer is a retirement from earth to attend
on God, and hold correspondence with him
that dwells in heaven. The things of the
world, therefore, must be commanded to stand
by for a season, and to abide at the foot of the
mount, while we walk up higher to offer up
our sacrifices, as Abraham did, and to meet our
Go^:^ — Watts.

** In every storm, that either frowns or falls.
What an asylum has the soul in prayer ! "

Young.

" In the absence of the sun, the mild and
peaceful radiance of the moon enlivens our



874 gra^ndmother's scrap-book;

path. Let devotion spread a cheering light
over your darkest hours. ' The Queen of
Night,' says Bowdler, ' unveils its full beauty
when the hours of joy and lustre have passed
away, pouring, as it were, a holy light through
the damps and darkness of adversity.' Thus
will censtant prayer cheer the darkest season
of affliction." — Bicker steth.

'< In this valley of sorrow and strife,

Prayer shall rise with my earliest breath ;
It shall mix in the business of life,
And soften the struggles of death."

Cumiinffham.

" As the hart panteth after the water brooks,
so panteth my soul after thee, God. When
shall I come and appear before God." — David.

" Prayer is the most secret intercourse of the
soul with God ; and, as it were, the conversa-
tion of one heart with another." — Dr. A. Clark,

" A little girl, about four years of age, being
asked, ' Why do you pray to God ? ' replied,



375

' Because I know he hears me, and I love to
pray to him.' ' But how do you know he hears
you ? ' Putting the little hand to her heart,
she said, ' I know he does, because there is
something here that tells me so.' " — Arvine^s
Cyclopcedia.

" Angels are round the good man, to catch
the incense of his prayers ; and they fly to
minister kindness to those for whom he
pleadeth." — Tupper.

" Prayer is not eloquence, but earnestness ;
not the definition of helplessness, but the feel-
ing of it ; not figures of speech, but compunc-
tion of soul." — Hannah More.

'< O thou, by whom we come to God,
The Life, the Truth, the Way,
The path of prayer thyself hast trod ;
Lord, teach us how to pray."

Montgomery.

" Is any among you afflicted ? let him pray."
— James v. 13.



376 grandmother's scrap-book;



WHITEFIELD'S EXPERIENCE.

" My mind being now more enlarged, I be-
gan to read the Holy Scriptures upon mj knees,
laying aside all other books, and praying over,
if possible, every line and word. This proved
meat indeed, and drink indeed, to my soul. I
daily received fresh life, light, and power from
above. I got more true knowledge from read-
ing the Book of God in one month, than I
could ever liave acquired from all the writings
of men. In one word, I found it profitable for
reproof, for correction, for instruction ; every
way sufficient to make the man of God perfect,
thoroughly furnished for every good work and
word. About this time God was pleased to en-
lighten my soul, and bring me into the knowl-
edge of his free grace, and the necessity of
being justified in his sight by faith only. Bur-
kitt's and Henry's Expositions were of admi-
rable use to lead me into this and all other
gospel truths."



OR, THE WAY TO DO GOOD. 377

To these habits of readmg, Whitefield added
much secret prayer. " 0, what sweet com-
munion had I daily vouchsafed with God in
prayer ! How often have I been carried out
beyond myself when meditating in the fields !
How assuredly I felt that Christ dwelt in me
and I in him, and how, daily, did I walk in the
comforts of the Holy Ghost, and was edified
and refreshed in the multitude of peace ! "



Duration of Life. — The duration of man's
life should not be estimated by his years, but by
what he has accomplished — by the uses which
he has made of time and opportunity. Tlie
industrious man lives longer than the drone ;
and by inuring our body and mind to exercise
and activity, we shall more than double the
years of our existence.



378 grandmother's scrap-book ;



A WORD FUOM OLD SOUTH CHAPEL.

A history of the jailer's conversion at Pliil-
ippi was read as the lesson of the morning.
The prayers of Paul and Silas induced God to
send an earthquake to convince the jailer of
sin.

A young brother, who was converted last Sat-
urday, stood up and testified to the grace of
God that had been revealed to his soul.

Dr. Pease stated that he had been several
weeks laboring in a town near the head of the
Connecticut River, where there has been no
conversion for fifty years. God has now begun
the work of conversion. Several heads of fam-
ilies have pledged themselves to serve the Lord
Jesus Christ. One man, a rumseller, who has
done much to pollute the morals of the town,
has abandoned the traffic and come over on the
Lord's side. This place has especially been re-
membered in the prayers at the Old South
Chapel.



379

The tidings from the neighborhood meetings
in the city were very encouraging. The gospel
is being preached to the poor with glorious
success.

It was stated that two sailors were converted
last evening. One sailor has just returned
from a voyage who was converted a few months
ago. He has returned in health and soul
prosperity.

One young man arose and said that he had
lately found peace in believing. Another
brother stated that about one year since he
was in this room, and received such impressions
as issued in his conversion.

A brother from Western New York stated
that this meeting was exerting a great influ-
ence upon the world. He has seen a sailor
who was converted, that received liis first im-
pressions in this meeting. He said, also, tliat
he had met persons through all the West who
had received their first impressions in this
ghapel.

The aisles and gallery were all filled, and the
meeting is highly encouraging.



380 grandmother's scrap-book ;

EVERY MAN'S LIFE A PLAN OF GOD.

Every human soul has a complete and per-
fect plan, cherished for it in the heart of God ;
a divine hiography marked out, which it en-
ters into life, to live. This life, rightfully un-
folded, will be a complete and beautiful whole ;
an experience led on by God and unfolded by
the secret nurture of the world ; a drama cast
in the mould of a perfect art, with no part
wanting, a divine study for the man himself,
and for others ; a study that shall forever un-
fold, in wondrous beauty, the love and faithful-
ness of God ; great in its conception, great in
the divine skill by which it is shaped ; above
all, great in the momentous and glorious issues
it prepares. What a thought is this for every
human soul to cherish ! What dignity does it
add to life ! What support does it bring to the
trials of life ! What instigation does it add to
send us on in every thing that constitutes our.
excellence ! We live in the divine thought.



We fill a place in the great, everlasting plan of
God's intelligence. We never sink below his
care — never drop out of his counsel. — Dr.