But as there seemed to be some mystery about his
movements, we came to the conclusion that there must be a lady in the
case, and so, as far as we were concerned, the matter ended.
We attended morning service in accordance with our usual custom, and
listened to a sermon from a clergyman who took for his text the whole of
the last chapter in the Book of Ecclesiastes, with special emphasis on
the first word:
REMEMBER
Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil
days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have
no pleasure in them.
He began by informing us that we had nearly arrived at the end of the
religious year, and that the season of Advent, when the Church's new
year would begin, was close at hand. He then passed on to his text and
began to describe the days of our youth. We listened intently as he took
us by degrees from our youth up to old age and to the years when we
might have to say we had no pleasure in them. He was a powerful
preacher, and we almost felt ourselves growing older as we followed his
references to each verse in the short chapter he had taken for his text.
Then he described the failure of the different organs of the human mind
and body: the keepers of the house trembling; the strong men bowing
their heads towards the earth to which they were hastening; the
grinders, or teeth, ceasing because they were few; the eyes as if they
were looking out of darkened windows; the ears stopped, as if they were
listening to sounds outside doors that were shut; followed by the fears
of that which was high "because man goeth to his long home"; and finally
when the silver cord was loosed or the golden bowl broken, the dust
returning to the earth as it was, and the spirit unto God Who made it!
We waited for the peroration of his fine sermon, which came with
startling suddenness, like our accident yesterday, for he concluded
abruptly with the following words:
Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His
commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.
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