d
desires will never change it. God only can make you ready for that hour.
Unless you seek him, you too will take a "leap into the dark"; for you
there will be only the "blackness of darkness forever." "If ye will hear
his voice, harden not your heart."

TALK FIFTY. THE SCULPTOR'S WORK

One day years ago, as I was walking along in the suburbs of a city, I came
to a large shed with wide-open doors. My attention was attracted by the
sound of blows; and as I came opposite the door, I saw some workmen at the
back end of the shed busily at work. Near the door on a small platform
stood a large irregular piece of stone. Standing by it was a man with a
large chisel in one hand and a heavy mallet in the other. As I looked he
walked up to the stone and began to knock great pieces off it with chisel
and mallet. I paused to watch him, my curiosity aroused to know what he
was doing in his apparently aimless work.

As I watched, he continued breaking large flakes and pieces from the
stone; and so far as I could see, he was just simply breaking it to
pieces. I wondered what he wanted such pieces of stone for. But presently
he began to kick them out of the way as if he had no use for them, and so
I wondered still more what he was doing. After a time he stepped over to
his work-box, took another chisel and a lighter mallet, and began to knock
off more pieces of the stone. For a long time this continued. I could not
tell what the outcome would be. So far I had seen nothing but destruction.
From time to time he changed tools; but still he cut away pieces of stone
in the same seemingly aimless fashion. At length he began to cut
depressions into the stone here and there.

A long time I watched him, still wondering. At last he made a few quick
strokes on one end of the stone, and I saw the outline of a head appear. A
few more strokes, and I exclaimed within myself, "A lion!" I watched until
the head became more distinct and life-like. Then under the quick strokes
of the biting chisel, one paw appeared, then another; and as I watched,
the whole figure took outline, and I knew that what seemed to be only an
aimless work of destruction was instead the skilled work of a sculptor.

I had seen only the block of stone; but within that block of stone he had
seen the beautiful figure of the king of beasts. The work that seemed to
me to be without purpose, now proved to have been full of purpose. The
pieces of stone cut off were merely s