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'THE INVISIBLE PLAYMATE'
Addres delivered by Richard I. Metcalfe lit Wyaka
, Cemetery, Lincoln, Nob., on occasion &t the obeorvjince of
"Printers' Memorial Day" by Typographic!! Unipn No. 209 1
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Fjiith, Hopo and Charity the least as well
m the greatest of these ring true within that
realm Where the -children live, and love, and
play. In this Kingdom-of-Make-Belleve thero
is no pretense in the -virtues that "exalt great
Nature's favorites." In that domain friendship
is the friendliest, truth is the truest, and love
la the loveliest.
The best demonstration of that fraternity
which ought to exist between all men living a
common life .and working to a common end is
found in the relations between the little ono
of our own flesh and blood and the invisible
child with whom we often find him prattling
and playing. Listen to the story of these two
comrades as told by the sweet singer of the
Baltimore Sun:
'AH day in the swing of his fancy, the lilt of his
laughter, he goes,
.Whose life is n gleam in the sunlight, a lily, a
pearl and a rose;
'And there to a phantom talking, with a phantom
by his side,
He moves with a shadow playmate, together they
romp and glide.
I hear through the hours of his revel his little
-tongue chatter away;
'Alone, but not lonesome, he follows the fairies
that flit through the day.
He shares with his dream and his phantom hi3
blocks and his drum and his' horn,'
'And-he5 talks to Tiis dear little playmate, invisible
there in the morn.
.;
tThey seem such 'good comrades and friendly,1 and
v get on together so well;
flLTiere's never a moment of quarreling and never
a sorrow to tellr
The phantom does just as he wants him, the
shadow plays everything' right
,0 beautiful playmates that revel light-hearted
-f 4a realms of light! '
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"rf'4l They plan and they ponder together, -the living
" V. lrinlrprt nrms -with tho flronm-? T
J They sail on invisible waters and fish in a make
believe stream; '
They tunnel for coal in dream mountains and fight
in invisible, wars,
And they hide in the walls of their fortress when
the enemy's battery roars. r
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"HB I
The Invisible Playmato knows other paths
than thoao leading to the nursery; nor is ho
always a child playing with a child; sometimes
ho hunts out those whoso hair is turning gray;
sometimes he seeks thoso whoso eyes are grow
ing dim.
How quickly the Invisible Playmate of
some of the grown folks responds to the sum
mons once fond memory brings the light of
other days around us:
A rusty sword a blade that never know
dishonor and we go arm in arm with the
father who, perhaps, gave to the world con
siderably more than the world ever gave to
him; living again, with him, the lifo so full of
.tender memories; learning again, from him, the
lessons of stern duty.
A picture spotted with the dust of time
and we stand within the very presence of the
gentle ono who gave us birth; feeling, almost,
the clasp of her dear hand; hoaring, almost, tho
sound of her sweet voice taking, in truth, tho
benediction of her holy love.
A little shoe, frayed at the heel and punc
tured at the toe and we feel around our neck
' the clasp of two little arms and hold against our
' wildly beating heart the "Little Breeches" of
our home.
"Oh, the little white arms that enclrclo
My neck in their tender 'embrace
Oh, the smiles that are halos of heaven,
Shedding sunshine of love on my face."
A scrap of paper and we are drawn to tho
side of some old friend long gone beyond; and
, there the days of old are lived again call It in
"Dreamland" if you please but lived again 1
"Playmates of the long ago! Invisible all,
but playmates every one!
look to Gethsemanc; from undor our own.
heavy cross wo turn to Calvary.
Wo may obtain somo idea of tho tears that
havo been shed within this world, when we re
member that within this silent city of ono hun
drod acres, hardly an inch of soli has escaped
tho tears of those who havo loved and for the
moment imagined thoy had lost. Men may think
they havo made progress whon they dismiss,
unworthy of tho consideration of practical peo
plo, tho lessons taught by tho mothers; but
standing within tho shadow that falls athwart
our own home, wo may roallzo that tho inspiring
story of the life and the mission of the Man
of Galilee is history's" solitary answor to tho
pathetic call that goes up from ovory vacant
chair:
with
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"All day in the childheart splendor, a lad "of the
legions of fun, ' -' "
With a little invisible playmate, -talks- on as they
' laugh in the sun;
'And, happy and heartfree together, I - lean and
s ' look down on them there
And dream1 of my own vanished playmates, dear
phantoms that float -everywhere!
"Ay, tender, invisible comrades, like children of-
old at our play,
We dance in the dews of the morning and dance
through the dreams of the day;
And arm upon arm in the sunlight, with laughter
and longing and. tears,
We move like an army of shadows far down in
the valley of years!
"And arm upon arm in the sunlight,
laughter and longing and tears,
We move like an army of shadows far down in
', the valley of years!"5
Who says we must see before we believe?
We forget that the unseen are the real forces.
One noto of music will bring a smile; another
will draw a tear; a burst -of song will set In
motion all the memories and emotions of a life
time. We know something of the marvelous
things wrought by electricity, but with 'nil of
oiirK progress wo can not tell the whence or tho '
whither of that great force. We know that love
has well 'been called "tho greatest thing in the
world" yet no man has seen it, while all men
have felt it.
Parting is the sweetest sorrow, because
meeting is of the force that was not born to die.
Love proves immortality, because we would not
part with the one great grief if by doing so
we must forfeit the one great joy. In all this
beautiful city of the dead, where "love is loveli
est because embalmed in tears," thero is not a
grave which those who hold it dear would blot
from out the realm of fact, if the memory for
which it stands must be obliterated.
As love proves immortality, so sorrow
proves the "Elder Brother." Our very ignorance
suggests the God, our very helplessness demands
the Christ. Out of our own night of grief we
"Oh, Into what bosom, I wonder, t
Is. poured tho whole sorrow of years?
For eternity only seems keeping "
Account of the great human weeping;
May God, then, tho Makor and Father
May He find a place for tho tears!"
"Beyond tho smiling and tho weoplng, ,bh- I
yuuu uiu wuKing ana tne sieepingf uoyonu ui9
rock waste and the river, beyond the over jjind
the never love, rest, and homo!" Love, rest,
and home and reunion with tho playmates
big and little of tho olden time playmates
now invisible to tho human ken but immortal
in tho Jaw of love as they are immortal in the
law. of lifo!
Civilization, has not vindicated ltelf in the,
presence of tho thing wo call death. These lit
tle birds singing their To Deums from the tree-,
tops and these sweet flowers bringing reassur
ance of another springtlmo and assorting,!
through their green leaves and flagrant lJos-I
soma, mo great eternal law or mo anu love are
better settings for this calm and peaceful sceali
than tho emblems of woe and hopelessness which
trlvA rlnnlnl in our fnU.h.
' When ono whom we love hotter thanrltl
tforjf nnaana 4 Vt Kiln o-V. T!1..,r' rv.nntr.rr .,Vi"J
our heart will ache. But when the march,, ol
civilization snan swoop away tne oaroanc qus-,
toms which at tho bier of our loved ones qnlyj
i;uutiiuuiu iu uui ivuca uicu uiuu uubictib muvu
phrase which calls the burial ground God's acro"i
will be in common use; thon the smiles will
mingio with the tears; tho band of crepe will
go, the wreath of flowers will- come; and, In
that day the men and women of this world will
know that what wo now call death is really
"God's great morning lighting up tho sky,",..
Night after night we go to sleep without tho
slightest fear, trusting to nature to bring4 us
again to life and to duty; night after uightw
bid our loved ones adieu and wish them pleas
ant dreams in their journey to an unknown, put
not, to urea men, a ureaaeu iana
0
"And why not then '
Lie down to our last sleep, still trusting Him.!
Who guided us so oft through shadows dim,
Believing somewhere on our sense again ! "
Some lark's sweet note, some golden beam si all
DreaK,
And with glad voices cry, 'Awake! Awake!'"
v'-r
HOW?
' ' Ina burst" of sarcasm and in an editorial
entitled,' "The Walt Street Anarchists," the
.Philadelphia North American says: "It was
anarchical to fill "this land with trusts, organized
in "Wall Street, for the subtle and perpetual rob
bery of consumers by means of inflated prices."
'.- Referring to this editorial a Sewell, N. J.,
raadqr of The Commoner says: "I think it
would be pertinent to ask the North American
. how itcan, logically combat tariff reform.",
-n , ,v OOOO
' ' y DIRECT LEGISLATION '
!r 5 Ex-Governor Garvin of Rhode Island urged
' the passage of a joint resolution by the legis-
-lahire ftf Rhode Island proposing the following
(.amendment to the institution: ,
. Resolved, A majority .of all the members
elected to each house of the general assembly
voting therefor, that the following amendment
to the constitution of the state be proposed to
the qualified electors of the state, in accord
ance with the provisions of Artiicle XIII of the
constitution, for their adoption, to be denomin
ated article of amendments:
Section 1. Electors of the state, aggregat
ing ten per centum of the number of those who
at the last preceding elections voted for gov
ernor, may propose specific and .particular
amendments to this constitution by filing with
the secretary of state, not loss than three
months, and not more than nine months, prior
to any general election, a petition that the elec
tors may, at such general election, cast their
ballots for or against such amendments, Such
propositions for amendment shall be published
in the newspapers, and printed copies of them
shall be sent by the secretary of state, with
statements of the number of electors .petitioning
therefor, to all the town and city clerks in the
state. ' ' The said proposition shall be, by said
clerks inserted in, the warrants or notices by
themissued for warning the next annual town,
district and ward meetings at aid general elec
tion; and the clerks shallread said propositions
to the electors when thus assembled, with the
statements of the number of electors petition
ing therefor, before the election shall be had.
Any proposition thus made shall be submitted
to the electors by the secretary of state at tfafc
annual meeting, and if then approved by a ma
jority of tho electors of the state present an
voting thereon in town, district and ward jneet-
mgs, it snau, ninety uays tnereaiter, dccoum
a part of the constitution of the state."
This Is In the line of direct leglslatibi
which is becoming more and more poptflai
throughout tne country. Certainly those wh.
believe in the right of the people to govern them
selves and to make their government represent
their wishes, can not oppose so simple and effec
tive a method of bringing the government und
the control of the voters. Governor Garvin woi
an enviable reputation by proving conclusively
that his sympathies were with the masses of thi
people, and it is gratifying to know that his in
terest In public affairs has not abated with hi
retirement from office. 7
-.. OOOO
The steel trust, seeing that it had a lertibi
in Mr. Schwab as president, traded him offoi
a huge chunk of citric acid in the shape of Mr
Corey. The steel trust Is in need of an exp
nomologist as" well as an expert chemist.
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