ized by those happy thoughts, and bright flashes that render the words of a speaker so agreeable and impressive. In a word, one does not make the acquaintance of Cardinal Gibbons, without a feeling of satisfaction, that one has learned to know a great and good man, who deserves the honors it has pleased Providence to bestow upon him. Looking back over the years of his episcopate, it must, indeed, be a great satisfaction to the Cardinal to contemplate the progress made by the Church, since the Third Plenary Council, and the share he has had in the work. DUTY. F all the watchwords of life, duty is the highest and best. He who sincerely adopts it lives a true life; he is really the successful one. It pertains to all parts and relations of life. There is no moment, place, or condition, where its claims are not imperative. The poet states it well, "I slept, and dreamed that life was Beauty; A thousand years after an eruption of Vesuvius had buried Pompeii beneath its burning lava, explorers laid bare the ruins of the ill-fated city. There the unfortunate inhabitants were found just where they were overtaken by the stream of fire. Some were discovered in lofty attics, and some in deep cellars, whither they had fled before the approaching desolation. Others were found in the streets, through which they were fleeing in wild despair when the tide of molten death overwhelmed them. But the Roman sentinel was found standing at his post, his skeleton hand still grasping the hilt of his sword, his attitude that of a faithful officer. He was placed there on duty, and death met him at his post,- the fearless sentinel that he was. Not even the bursting of a volcano, with its deluge of fire descending upon him, could drive him from his post, or disturb his self-control. It was a sense of duty that kept him true, an example of fidelity to a sacred trust; and to-day his helmet, lance, and breastplate are preserved in Naples as a tribute to his memory. Mary Lyon, founder of Mount Holyoke Female Seminary, used to say to her pupils: "Go where duty calls. Take hold, if necessary, where no one else will." Duty, as a watchword and inspiration, she kept before them constantly. Personal obligation, instead of personal emolument or fame, she besought them to remember. At length a contagious and fatal disease broke out in the seminary, and the first victim was lying at the door of death. Pupils were filled with alarm, many hastening to pack their trunks and leave for home. A scene of confusion and dismay followed. Miss Lyon, with surprising self-possession and serenity, called the pupils together to allay their fears, and impart lessons such as the occasion suggested to her mind. "Shall we fear what God is about to do?" she said. "There is nothing in the universe that I fear, but that I shall not know all my duty, or fail to do it." On the following day the dreaded malady prostrated her, and, in a single week, she passed to the spirit land. Her last lesson was on duty, and her last act was meeting its demand. Unlike Napoleon or Alexander, Nelson's watchword was duty. He never fought for fame. His ambition was subject to personal obligation. "England this day expects each man to do his duty," were the words emblazoned upon his colors in the battle of Trafalgar. If each man did his duty, the victory would be complete; if each fought for fame, the battle would be lost. Duty is so much higher than glory, and so much more inspiring, that victories hang upon it. At this last and crowning conflict at Trafalgar, he was mortally wounded, but lived to know that his triumph was complete, and expired, saying, "Thank God, I have done my duty." Of the same type was Wellington, who once said to a friend: "There is little or nothing in this life worth living for; but we can all of us go straight forward and do our duty." Whether serving at home in his family, or serving his country on the fleld, one high, noble purpose inspired him, -duty. He did not ask, Will this course win fame? Will this battle add to my earthly glory? But always, What is duty? He did what duty commanded, and followed where it led. It was his firm adherence to what he thought was right, that brought down upon him the violence of a mob in the streets of London, assaulting his person and attacking his house, when his wife lay dead therein. When Sidney, the immortal English patriot, was told that he could save his life by denying his own handwriting, and thus tell a falsehood, he replied, "When God has brought me into a dilemma, in which I must assert a lie or lose my life, he gives me a clear indication of my duty, which is to prefer death to falsehood." A higher sense of duty, or personal respect for it, is not found recorded. It hallows human life by making death a secondary consideration. While I am now writing, the news comes that a fearful conflagration has licked up five million dollars in the heart of Boston within a few hours. The heroic firemen found themselves engaged in an equal contest with the fiery demon, and yet they staked their lives on the issue, and four brave fellows went down beneath crumbling walls in their efforts to conquer. They perished in the discharge of duty. The foregoing facts, better than argument, show both the nature and place of duty in the work of life. We see it in practical operation, always timely, honorable, and attractive. It cannot be discounted or even smirched. It stands out in bold relief, supported by a clear conscience and strong will. It demands recognition, and gets it. Duty is something that must be done without regard to discomfort, sacrifice, or death; and it must be done in secret, as well as in public. The doer is not a "creature of circumstances"; he is master of circumstances. The power of a trained conscience and invincible will makes him superior to all surroundings, and the discharge of duty becomes at once inevitable and easy. 66 Luther was warned against appearing before one Duke George, because he was his bitter enemy, but he replied, “I will go if it rains Duke Georges all the while, for duty calls." "I am ready not only to be bound, but to die at Jerusalem," replied Paul to weeping companions who besought him not to risk his life in that wicked city. Duty was paramount to all things else; it was second to nothing on earth. In the daily affairs of life, whether the most important or the least, duty should command. Youth must come under its control as well as age. The earlier its demands are honored in the home, social circle, shop, school, or college, the easier will be its service, and the larger satisfaction will it yield. Obedience to the behests of duty, and the ruling desire to be |