“Keeping the Harness On”

"KEEPING THE HARNESS ON." BY ELDER HENRY W. NAISBITT.

Human language calls to its aid for versatility of illustration, figure, metaphor, parable, etc., and these are often more apt, striking, and forcible than other methods of instruction in pressing home a pregnant thought.The Savior stands out upon the sacred pages of history as the most unique, the most impressive, and the grandest master of all time in the use of symbol, and the giving of parables, such as for beauty, appro- priateness, effectiveness and permanence upon the human soul,

have never been equalled, much less excelled. Many writers and speakers have, however, originated ex- pressions, pithy and sententious, which have become as current coin in the realm of literature, passing from brain to brain, from book to book, from age to age, as the very embodiment of sug- gestion, of advice, of truth, recognized universally as correct. "Live your religion" is one of those inexhaustible expressions which has done much service in "Mormon" ministerial life; not that any special discourse has been analyzed or amplified by its homely force; it rather seems to have been taken for granted that every user and hearer had an intuitive or acquired under- standing of the far-reaching word. Yet many an elaborate dis-

course is there enshrined, and it is doubtful if any human wisdom, experience or argument, could exhaust that which probably often falls from a flippant and unthinking tongue.

The caption used at the head of these few jottings is an- other very familiar phraze, often used with judgment and discrim- ination, sometimes with a patronizing air, and again with a

940 IMPRO VEMENT ERA.

doubtful tone of suggestion, in a casual, warning way. "Keep the harness on;" the old and the young may profit by this expres- sion, if made in the right spirit. In a cold, heartless, mechanical sort of way, many an ardent young man, fresh from the mission field, where his whole soul was enlisted, has been met: no warm effusive greeting, no soulful grip of a good right hand, no speaking eye, or ready lip, or throbbing heart or silent prayer, "more eloquent than words," have told the story of comprehended labor or of unhesitating love; "Keep the harness on" was all! What harness? the harness of the missionary field, which is in the great part unfitted for home life among the

saints; there it was love, sacrifice, self-abnegation; there was but one thought, one aspiration and one work; saints and sinners alike commanded willing attention; to "seek and save the lost" was the darling avocation and the darling pride, and nothing ever thrilled the devoted soul with such transcendent satisfaction as to meet the honest searcher, and afterwards lead him into "the waters of regeneration." Here, the broken walls of finance have to be repaired, bread and clothing for a depleted domestic treasury have to be replaced, temporal things have gone all awry in the two or three years' absence in an acknowledged grander field; but the well-kept "harness" is gone with the silk hat and the Prince Albert suit.

Sheep and cattle need looking to; the farm, in stranger hands, has of course gone down; a home new or enlarged is in the ambition; perhaps a wife, to sooth the cravings of companionship and round a single life, is on the tapis; or business frittered away under inadequate supervision needs to be resurrected, and a thousand other things in the unlimited category of legitimate human wants. "Keep the harness on;" yes, but in animal life when the time of recuperation comes, a run in the pasture, a stall in the barn, sug- gest that the harness be lifted for a while, or if kept on the shoulders, it is something nearer adapted to the load; men do not "work a willing horse to death," and when the old proverb sug- gests that "a change is lightsome," it in no way implies that one shall be idle or that interest shall vanish in work already done,

nor can it be assumed that regret tinges in any degree the mind or feeling of the returning worker. Ah no; he knows of "the

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good work of God;" he is not forgetful of uncounted testimony, nor yet of warm-hearted converts or devoted friends; his efforts are but diverted into other needed channels; in others words, "he keeps the harness on." Then again, are we all as vigilant as we might be in seeing work for the one who has the harness on? Are we that there is adapting the work to the capacity, and so making the new or added load pleasant? Is it possible for local influences, prejudice,

likes or dislikes, to affect our setting to work of the once employed? Are there any petty jealousies, family preferences, or other influences which discriminate against a ready soul? Surely not in Zion, for there is room within her boundaries for all who want to do good, and work for that kingdom ostensibly dear to us all. Yet there are unemployed, and say you, "He that waiteth to be commanded in all things is a slothful servant." Just so, but in the social and industrial world, how many are there who, in answer to the question, "Why stand ye here all the day idle?" have the ready answer, "Because no man hath hired us!" But few men have capacity to employ themselves, and if missionary life were to be left entirely to volunteers, the world would not be

evangelized just yet. Most men need the stimulus of appoint- ment, the call of authoritv, and when that comes they are willing for it is to them "the day of God's power." It is everywhere

realized that "an idle brain is the devil's workshop." President Young and President Snow have both seen this fundamental fact, and the dream and practice of those leaders was to "keep men employed," for unemployed humanity is a giant evil in every land. Apostle Lyman gave significant voice to this unerring principle, when he, in addressing the Elders in Bradford, England, used this sentiment, "Brethren, the powers of evil can hardly reach you here in the missionary field; you are too much united, too full of faith, too hard at work; you are invulnerable; and those specious and experienced ministers of evil, those forms of spiritual being and life say, 'We can do nothing with the Elders here;' we will wait until they return to Zion, then, where there is liberty, where men have more power to act out themselves, where discipline is less stringent, and duty less exacting; then we will try you; there recuperation, perhaps temporal necessity, disposition and no

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special call to work, will try and test you, and yon will become under the temptation cold and indifferent, and the warmth and fat- ness of devoted missionary life will be but as a pleasant dream. Next to this non-employment of the general element of mental and spiritual wealth, is probably the withdrawal of the special faith and prayers of the people; these, it is supposed, are needed when the father, the son, the husband or the brother is

away from home. Have we not all felt the influence of these continuous per- sonal petitions, when affection, absence, and, mayhap, ambition struggled in the soul for rich expression, when from the family alter, from the Sabbath school, the quorum meeting, the im- provement associations, the ward gatherings, were prayers every- where going up to heaven like the music in the temple at Jerusa- lem? There was continuous appeal for care, blessing, usefulness and success upon the dear ones far away. Now they have returned, and we transfer these individual interests to later workers, and the returned faithful sons of Zion are only men- tioned generally or casually, for they are here at home, we see them every day, their goings out and comings in are known to us, the tension is off, the anxiety weakened, the personal name unheard, the general interest in suspense, because their mission is at an end. But these returned missionaries need continuous encourage- ment, this special mention now, this abiding faith, these fervent prayers; and when they have these, you will hear less of lapses, less of neglect, less of indifference. "Keep the harness on," as an expression, will then become obso- lete, for every man will stand in his own place, with "his sword girt

upon his thigh," to do battle for the Lord God of Israel and for the glorious, heart-inspiring cause they learned to love so well when in the fruitful missionary field. Let unity insist on taking humanity as it is, and for what it is truly worth; there is work in this field for all, and there is room for allto work; "the signs of the times" are ominious yet propitious, and the promise is sealed in heaven as on earth, that this absorbing work shall never be overthrown, "neither given unto another !" people!" "Praise ye the Lord