d in as an end in
themselves, and as sufficient satisfaction for the needs of the human
spirit. Unwise, indeed, is this mode of action, and bitter are the sorrows
of soul to which it inevitably leads! One man trusts in riches, another in
glory, another in the esteem of men; one leans upon his friends and
companions, another upon his relatives--all forgetful of the frail and
unsubstantial nature of every earthly prop. Frequently they never awaken
to the peril of their state until they find themselves face to face with
their doom and the awful disillusionment. The crash may be delayed, but
the day must come sooner or later for all of us, who have advanced but a
little beyond maturity, when all the natural lights of life go out, when
every human prop is removed, and we find ourselves out alone and in the
dark, so far as depends on the world and creatures. How miserable then
shall we be if we have put our trust in men! if we have tried to make
creatures play the part in our lives which only God can play! When we need
them most they fail us, when we fain would find beneath their protection a
shield against the fiery darts of life, behold they wither like the ivy of
Jonas and leave us alone in our want!(87) How vain, therefore, and
groundless is that confidence which is put in men, and how wretched that
poor man that hangs on princes' favors! "Thou trustest in money," says St.
Augustine, "thou holdest to vanity; thou trustest in honor, and in some
eminence of human power, thou holdest to vanity; thou trustest in some
principal friend, thou holdest to vanity. When thou trustest in all these
things, either thou diest and leavest them here, or in thy lifetime they
all perish, and thou failest in thy trust."(88)

It is no despisal, then, of the needs and helps of earthly friends and of
our fellow-creatures to say that we should not put entire trust in them
for all the wants and demands of our being. They are good, they were made
by God, they are oftentimes able to assist us--nay, we need them to a
certain extent; but they are utterly unable to satisfy us completely, they
cannot if they would, simply because of the extent of our wants. And even
if creatures could give us a partial contentment, as at times they seem to
do, we know that it cannot last, and in the midst of our joy and pleasure
we are haunted by the thought that some day, soon at latest, it all must
pass away. We are seeking for rest, for peace, for happiness, and that