Empire Day.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLI, Issue 8193, 21 May 1906, Page 3

Empire Day.

Service at AH Saints' Church

i J the Sunday nearest Empire Day, divine scrviee lor men only -vvas coiiducted at All Saints' Church by "hi , i car » the Rev. C. C. Harper. 'There was a large attendance, the Church being comfortably filled throughout. The Borough Councillors, members of the various local bodies, school committees, volunteers, and members of the P.N. Band occupied the front pews of the Church. The volunteers were well represented, the Manawatu Mounted Rifles, under Capt. Peach, P.N. Rifles, under Leiufc. Blenkhorne, the Guards, under Capt. McMurray, and High School Cadets, under Capt. Foote, each taking part in the parade, which was in charge of Capt. Mounsey. During the course of his remarks the rev. gentleman said that day had been chosen for the service bccause it was the nearest Sunday to the birthday of a person whose life more than any other helped the Empire to a higher view of citizenship. Basing his following remarks upon the text " Whatsoever thou would have men do to you, do ye to them," or "Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself," the vicar expressed his views as to what constituted good citizenship, and also delivered an earnest disquisition as to what in his opinion formed the essentials of bad citizenship. A good citizen, he said, was a man who lived fo* the good of the nation, who did good to others first and himself second, a man who not only tried to get on himselr, but was anxious to help others to do the same, a rnau who curbed his own passions-—the lusts of selfish manhood, a man who would lift the down-trodden, help the weak, defend the friendless, rescue the fallen and tempted, a man who had a moral and social enthusiasm for humanity. And that enthusiasm ! Christ first gave to the world. A man was .a bad citizen who used a public position in local or general life for his own ends. One of the greatest dangers of modern times was the man who used his powers locally or generally for the purposes of furthering his his own ends. No one could say that such a man was a good citizen; it was such men who were doing more than harm to the nation, and yet it was a gospel that was preached. It was perfectly right, according to some, for a public man to take up a public position for his own ends. No really good citizen would do such a thing. The nobiest citizen of the world had done much' for his own nation and died himself a poor man. That man was not a good citizen who openly eared for, as they said, "No. 1." Continuing, the rev. gentleman referred in scathing terms to the employer who exacted all he could from an employee on a minimum of pay, and to the employee who did as little as he could for his pay. They were not good citizens. The same comparisons, applied appropriately, were dwelt upon with regard to a graspiDg landlord, to a tenant who had no consideration for other people's property, and to unscrupulous buyers and sellers. To be smart in business, to be able to "take anyone down," and not the moral aspect of business, was one of the curses of a nation, and no one thrived when the gospel preached was tbe gospel of " No. 1," the gospel of " take care of themselves." They were bad citizens, those who lived to satisfy lust at the cost of a weaker one. " There are men in this nation, hundreds and thousands of them, who live to get money by any means except direct theft, and consider themselves smart fellows," said the preacher. They were the people who ruined some of the best manhood of the colony. Gambling in all its forms was roundly condemned by the rev. gentleman, who stated that he had looked with pride at the magnificent manhood of the colony, but wondered what of the next generation? The gambling spirit was eating the heart out of our manhood. B-eferring to those upon whom had fallen the ban of intemperance he said one could only look with sorrow on those who had descended to the levels of animals, and he asked were the men of the colony lifting their brethren, or \vere they too careless to lift a saving hand bccause they were afraid of the sneer of a good example ? He had knou-n some people who held aloot from the possibility of 1 helping others to do good for fear of being drawn into something, for fear of sneer. It had been suggested that legislation should cope with the evils referred to, but legislation could not alter character. Referring to the objects of legislation he said directly it was used to benefit one sect at the expense of another then legislation failed. Socially legislation in this colony, as a whole, was in the right direction, and so they had a better chance of happiness than those of the older nations of the world. Where it failed was where legislation was used for selfish ends. In conclu ion he said that the high ideals he had mentioned would be described in the world as "utter rot;" so it was if "No. 1" was to be the standard. The only thing to copy was the true and high life of Jesus Christ, and if he had induced them to think a little more seriously of what it was to be a citizen of a nation and to feel that 'they would like some power to rise Jabove themselves, he would offer them the experience of himself and of millions of others, viz., that in the life and example of Jesus Christ they would find strength.