Ole Bull and Ericsson

They tell a story of Ole Bull and Ericsson his bosom friend — Ole Bull marvellous in his love and mastery of music, Ericsson marvellous in his inventive skill and power, yet Ericsson without any ear for music, as was supposed. Again and again Ole Bull tried to arouse his friend, inviting him to his entertainments, striving to get him to listen to music, but he always refused, until one day Ole Bull took down his violin to the office of his friend and said, “Ericsson, here is my violin, something is the matter with it.

Have you a workman in the shop that can put it right?” Ericsson gave it over, on account of his friendship, to one of his men, and in a little while the instrument was brought back. Then Ole Bull, not only with that marvellous skill of his, but with a marvellous intuition of the capacities of his friend, drew the bow across the violin, and began to send forth some of those marvellous notes of which he was capable, until the doors and the passage-ways were filled with workmen flocking from all parts of the factory to listen to the master.

And Ericsson then finally cried out, “Ole, Ole, I’ve an ear for music after all.” And so God tries to draw out, to find the hidden thing in you and me, the capacity for great things that is inherited, maybe, that we have not recognized, the capacity for holy living, the capacity for response to Himself, and He touches this spring and that spring and the other, until the man suddenly rises to this great fact, he reaches the place where he says, “I ought, I ought, and therefore I can.”