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Show 158 Til t"l LTDt:ltTY DEI.L. human race is one. W c uro all members one of another, and if one membel' suffer, all suffer. 'Vbnt should tho word mankind me::tiJ, if not man-kind 1 Man-unkind makes a confusion in ideas as well as in language ; there should be no such thing. Tho original word I know is kin, meaning race or kindred; but it was evidently tbc simple idea of the framers of our language, tbat kindred and kindness were the same thing. I am sorry to say, however, that it docs not always appear so. With J csus it was so, nevertheless. He was not ashamed, it is written, to call us brethren; whicl1 we think a good deal to do, sometimes, to a man poorer, or more ignorant, or more vicious, or merely blacker, than we nrc. But more than this, he treated mankind as his brethren. He gave his life a ransom for many ; but we think it a great deal if we give our life a ransom for one ; even if that one be our feeble self. To judge from the way many preach in the churches and practice out AM I .\1¥ llR01'll.l-at1S KEEl'.ER? 159 of them, the best thing we can do in life is not to keep our brothers, in any way, but to keep our own petty souls clear of tho retribution due us for neglecting our brothers; a view of life, certainly, very unlike that which helped Jesus to live and die. I do not wish to do injustice to men. I know aud believe that there are multitudes of quiet souls in the world, unseen saints and obscure martyrs, who spread around them a gentle and purifying influence, too modest to be recorded by historian or geographer. And yet the report of any eminent virtue travels fast, and many an obscure person, having been faithful over a few things, is suddenly made ruler over many. For every good action has the universe on its side, and all the laws of nature stand ready to assist its operation, and all the impulses of man's soul are prompting us to increnso the sphere of every noble influence we hear reported. The Future at all event.s takes care of it. The |