March 18--GOLDEN WEDDING or
MR. AND MRS. LABAN SMITH, BLOOMING VALLEY.--Let us always look on
the bright side. The record of the year 1891, as far as it has gone, is
heightened in interest, in this community, by two "golden
wedding" celebrations [It is worthy of remark that within less than
a year three golden weddings--the two here spoken of and that of Mr.
and Mrs. John Braymer, near Blooming Valley, last fall while I
was absent in the West--have been celebrated. Healthy, indeed, must be
Blooming Valley and vicinity, for quite a number of couples can now be
counted here who have passed their fiftieth wedding anniversary]--the
first one, on February 9, being that of Mr. and
Mrs. John Roudebush, and the second, to-day, that of Mr.
and Mrs. Laban Smith [Laban Smith had many friends when he was
married, a large number of whom were present at the banquet, and even
more at the golden wedding; notwithstanding many had died, the number of
his friends had increased: A generous man retains his friends], the
former of whom is a son of the late Joseph Smith, whose home was within
a stone's throw of my father's door--my home both then and now. Laban's
mother is yet living, and is still our nearest neighbor. About 150
people--friends and relatives--were assembled in Blooming Valley, to do
honor to the worthy couple and the interesting occasion, and among the
guests from a distance I might mention Mrs. Smith's brother, Mr.
James Shouts, of Faribault, Minn., and her daughter, Armitta
(Mrs. John Proud) and her two sons, of
Aberdeen, Dak.
Fifty years ago, to-day, Mr. and Mrs. Smith were happy on the
threshold of joint life, simply the commencement of what they now
experience. Then they had the beginning, representing the sunshine of
life farther on, the reality of which they have now reached; in 1841
they formed the bud; later on, the blossom; to-day, the fruit--fifty
years of married life to thank the Lord for, and the presence in their
old home, this day, of four sons and four daughters [Mr. and Mrs. Laban
Smith have nine children living--five sons and four daughters--all of
whom were present at the wedding, except one son, who was unable to
attend on account of sickness], and many other relatives, in all
representing four generations, besides hosts of friends, all of whom
were met to pour out their greetings and congratulations. On my way to
this golden wedding I called on Laban's aged mother (who was unable to
attend), and afterward I held in my arms her great-great-grandchild, the
two representing the alpha and the omega of five generations! Many of
the ancestors lived to very advanced ages, some of them to nearly a
hundred years. Mr. and Mrs. Smith have twenty-four grandchildren (though
not all present at the celebration) and two great-grandchildren.
"When the bride and bridegroom were married I was only about
eight years of age, yet I remember them very well as they then were half
a century ago, and I may safely say we have been pretty close friends
ever since. I do not think all the blessings of life are past. True
friendship should at all times be cultivated, for it will bring lasting
happiness to us, more durable than monuments of stone or iron. Laban
Smith I look upon and respect as a man of generous heart and
hospitable, in which virtues he is worthy of any and every one's
consideration and imitation. But he has had help, and the quality of
that help will be found described in brief yet potent language in
Proverbs xviii: 22: [Whosoever findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and
obtaineth favor of the Lord] and I think that whilst giving due credit
to our esteemed friend, Mr. Smith, we should not forget that noble,
Christian woman, his faithful, honored wife, who has been so well
helping him for the past fifty years! O, how much in this life have we
to be thankful for! We are prone to forget the inestimable blessings the
Lord pours out to us, and neglect to give Him due credit. Do you know
what makes us rich? The blessing of the Lord maketh rich; and He addeth
no sorrow with it. If we were to remove or set aside the blessings given
us, what have we left? What have we that we did not receive from above?
It is right that we should rejoice and be glad on such occasions as
this, when we ought to remember the goodness of the Lord toward us, and
ever be thankful to do His will, and so finally meet Him in peace"
[That portion of my account of the Golden Wedding, contained within the
quotation marks, is in substance part of my address to the host and
hostess and the assembled guests on the occasion referred to].
The lovely day, the happy guests, the pleasant surroundings, the
music by the Blooming Valley Band, the excellent repast provided by the
ladies for the occasion, the addresses--in short, every detail connected
with this social entertainment, bringing unqualified enjoyment to all
present, made the event of this golden wedding anniversary one of
lasting remembrance in the community. Numerous gifts were presented to
the bride and bridegroom as souvenirs of the happy event. Long life to
this good Christian wife and her husband, and may blessings be
multiplied to them!
March 19.--I received to-day ten letters from parties asking
for copies of my SOUVENIR. Requests come now from abroad, the outcome,
perhaps, of items, criticisms or other remarks which have appeared in
newspapers. We sometimes hear of ourselves as others see us, and it
ought to do us good. You and I, kind reader, love the man who loves his
enemies as well as his friends. It is Christlike, and he who can not do
good to all men, be they friends or be they foes, is lacking in
Christianity. I know I have learned from those who have not always
spoken well of me, or complimented me; and I am specially indebted to
those who have pointed out my faults, my wrong-doings, my
mistakes--errors of the head, not of the heart. Whether such adverse
criticisms come from some friend, or from the other man who may not like
me, I know not; but of this I am conscious--come they from friend or
come they from foe, there is no reason why I should not love the
individual and thank him for his advice and his teaching. I will always
be found willing to learn whenever and wherever comes the opportunity,
for I am confirmed in the belief that there are people in this world,
with whom we come in contact in every day life, who can and do influence
us in the pathway of virtue or its opposite; their appearance, their
words, or looks or character (over which we ourselves have no control)
are educating us. He who can gather the good and leave the bad is a wise
man. Nevertheless we should thank our teacher for the lesson thus
learned, and, mayhap, by our love toward him, and by doing him some
favor when we can, we may win him to the cross for God and humanity.
Yes, I respect the Press for all truth printed, knowing well, as
remarked in the Preface to my FIRST SOUVENIR, that it is much easier to
be critical than to be correct. In my boyhood, whenever I went into the
woods to gather chestnuts, I invariably left the chestnut burrs behind,
as I had no use for them.
I would here say to those persons who have written to me from a
distance, asking for copies of my SECOND SOUVENIR, that; I wish to
supply them, and, as far as the remaining copies of 700 published will
go, I will do so. I have the names and addresses of the several parties,
and hope before very long to be enabled to grant their requests; for
where an earnest wish (one not suggested by any idle curiosity) to
possess a copy is made known, I take great pleasure in gratifying it. I
would that all mankind could know how desirous I am to do good and
benefit my fellowmen, in fact; all humanity within my reach. I realize
that the single leaf of a tree is as nothing when compared to the
vastness of a forest, and that a grain of sand is a mere microbe on the
shores of the Atlantic or on the Arabian Desert; yet each exists, the
leaf and the grain of sand, and each has its place in the economy of
nature and its use in creation as much as either you or I, dear reader;
and we should remember that, as reasoning creatures, we are either for
or against truth and righteousness, for or against God and humanity!
Sunday, March 22.--Never will tongue
or pen be able to express all the real pleasure and happiness that came
to me this day, all confirmatory evidence of God's goodness to me, even
beyond what I can think or ask. It is true His goodness and mercy are
immeasurable and past comprehension to us in this world, even in His
sanctuary here below and in His word with His people. In the forenoon,
in company with my friend, J. W. Thompson,
who had come to me on a visit last Friday, and of whom mention has
already been made in this SOUVENIR, I went to Park Avenue Congregational
Church, in Meadville, where Rev. Sutherland delivered all interesting
and helpful discourse from Luke xix: 13: Occupy till I come. In the
afternoon Mr. Thompson and I proceeded to Greendale Cemetery to look on
the graves of dear ones departed, among them being the last resting
place of Mr. Thompson's father and mother, marked by a monument on which
is inscribed the following:
ELIZABETH, WIFE OF JAMES
THOMPSON,
DIED JANY. 1, 1877, AGED 69
YEARS
JAMES THOMPSON,
DIED OCT. 5, 1878, AGED 80
YEARS.
As we spent some time in walking about the streets of this City of
the Dead, I seized the opportunity to copy in my diary some of the
inscriptions that met my eye:
Dr. L.
A. Garver,
Born Jany. 14, 1845, Died
Oct. 12, 1887
Arthur
Cullum
Born 1816, Died 1874
Adelaide
Cullum
Born 1821, Died 1887
To My Husband
Robert
McMullen.
Born 1811, Died 1883
John
McMullen
Born 1841, Died 1885
His Wife, Lois,
Born 1846, Died 1875
In the evening we attended the First M. E. Church, where we heard Dr.
T. C. Beach preach in his usual eloquent manner from the text,
Psalm li: 10: Create in me a clean heart, 0 God, and renew a right
spirit within me. The hearing of this grand sermon was to me sweeter
than the honey in the honeycomb, truly a blessed ending to this day's
march toward the Celestial City, with our thoughts dwelling on Home and
Heaven, and of the getting ready for the great change, by having our
hearts cleansed and a right spirit renewed within us.
March 25.--Not only a beautiful day, but the anniversary of a
memorable one in my life: for on this day, thirty-eight years ago, was
decided an important question, one influencing my future destiny. It is
not for me here to ask whether the young men of to-day have such
thoughts as I had in those days of long ago, and ask questions similar
to the one I propounded about that time; it suffices me to know that I
did, when a young man, and have never regretted it. We sometimes count
the milestones on life's highway, halting, as it were, for an instant,
to enquire how far we have traveled, where we may be, and how we are
getting along. This day is another milestone for me, and in retrospect I
find that just thirty-eight years ago, when I was not yet twenty years
of age, I asked Eliza C. Masiker if she
loved me well enough to marry me, and her answer is told when I state
that we were married about thirteen months afterward. In the Christian
life I have been wonderfully blessed, and I thank the Lord for it, and
for sparing me to see this day.
March 27.--Wintry weather again, snow
lying three inches deep on the ground. I was present, to-day, at the
funeral of Leroy Smith, a child of one year
and fourteen days, only son of Mr. and Mrs. L. Smith, who live on the
Pitcher Farm in our neighborhood. The now happy spirit of the little
fellow was wanted to fill a place in the Heavenly choir, and, being
called, on angel wings peacefully took its flight. The interment took
place in the Smith Cemetery. Robert Teasdale
conducted the services, and being asked by him to say a few words on the
occasion, I did so.
"Tender
Shepherd, Thou hast stilled
Now Thy
little lamb's brief weeping;
Ah, how
peaceful, pale and mild
In its
narrow bed 'tis sleeping!
And no
sigh of anguish sore
Heaves
that little bosom more.
"All,
Lord Jesus, grant that we
Where it
lives may soon be living,
And the
lovely pastures see
That its
Heavenly food are giving;
Then the
gain of death we prove,
Tho' Thou
take what most we love."
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