The Limb Has Never Been Painful,
As Those Of My Companions On The Day Of The Rencounter With The Lion
Have been, but, there being a joint too many, I could not steady the rifle,
and was always obliged to
Shoot with the piece resting on the left shoulder.
I wanted steadiness of aim, and it generally happened that the more hungry
the party became, the more frequently I missed the animals.
We spent a Sunday on our way up to the confluence of the Leeba and Leeambye.
Rains had fallen here before we came, and the woods had put on
their gayest hue. Flowers of great beauty and curious forms grow every where;
they are unlike those in the south, and so are the trees.
Many of the forest-tree leaves are palmated and largely developed;
the trunks are covered with lichens, and the abundance of ferns
which appear in the woods shows we are now in a more humid climate
than any to the south of the Barotse valley. The ground begins to swarm
with insect life; and in the cool, pleasant mornings the welkin rings
with the singing of birds, which is not so delightful as the notes of birds
at home, because I have not been familiar with them from infancy.
The notes here, however, strike the mind by their loudness and variety,
as the wellings forth from joyous hearts of praise to Him
who fills them with overflowing gladness. All of us rise early
to enjoy the luscious balmy air of the morning. We then have worship;
but, amid all the beauty and loveliness with which we are surrounded,
there is still a feeling of want in the soul in viewing
one's poor companions, and hearing bitter, impure words
jarring on the ear in the perfection of the scenes of Nature,
and a longing that both their hearts and ours might be brought into harmony
with the Great Father of Spirits. I pointed out, in, as usual,
the simplest words I could employ, the remedy which God has presented to us,
in the inexpressibly precious gift of His own Son, on whom the Lord
"laid the iniquity of us all." The great difficulty in dealing
with these people is to make the subject plain. The minds of the auditors
can not be understood by one who has not mingled much with them.
They readily pray for the forgiveness of sins, and then sin again;
confess the evil of it, and there the matter ends.
I shall not often advert to their depravity. My practice has always been
to apply the remedy with all possible earnestness, but never allow my own mind
to dwell on the dark shades of men's characters. I have never been able
to draw pictures of guilt, as if that could awaken Christian sympathy.
The evil is there. But all around in this fair creation are scenes of beauty,
and to turn from these to ponder on deeds of sin can not promote a healthy
state of the faculties.
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