,,new ,,tabernacle ,,sermons  ,,by  ,t4 
,,de ,,witt ,,talmage1 ,d4,d4           
,,author ,,of  ,,crumbs ,,swept ,,up1   
,,the ,,abominations ,,of ,,modern      
,,society1 etc4    ,delivered in the    
,brooklyn ,tabernacle4    ,,vol4 ,i     
,,new ,,york3  ,,george ,,munro1        
,,publisher1  #ag ,,to #bg ,,vandewater 
,,street4  #ahhf4                       
,illustration3 ,t4 ,de ,witt ,talmage   
,entered according to ,act of ,congress1
 in the year #ahhe1 by      ,,george    
,,munro1 in the ,office of the          
,librarian of ,congress1                
,washington1 ,d4,c4          ,,contents4
                                        
,,page      ,,brawn ,,and ,,muscle      
#g      ,,the ,,pleiades ,,and ,,orion  
#ba      ,,the ,,queen',s ,,visit       
#cd      ,,vicarious ,,suffering        
#de      ,,posthumous ,,opportunity     
#ei      ,,the ,,lord',s ,,razor        
#gb      ,,windows ,,toward ,,jerusalem 
#hc      ,,stormed ,,and ,,taken        
#ie      ,,all ,,the ,,world ,,akin     

#ajh      ,a ,,momentous ,,quest        
#aai      ,,the ,,great ,,assize        
#acd      ,,the ,,road ,,to ,,the ,,city
                       #adg      ,,the  
,,ransomless                            
#aeh      ,,the ,,three ,,groups        
#aga      ,,the ,,insignificant         
#ahd      ,,the ,,three ,,rings         
#aig      ,,how ,,he ,,came ,,to ,,say  
,,it                      #bji          
,,castle ,,jesus                        
#bba      ,,stripping ,,the ,,slain     
#bcc      ,,sold ,,out                  
#bdf      ,,summer ,,temptations        
#bei      ,,the ,,banished ,,queen      
#bgd      ,,the ,,day ,,we ,,live ,,in  
#bhe      ,,capital ,,and ,,labor       
#big      ,,despotism ,,of ,,the        
,,needle                    #caa        
,,tobacco ,,and ,,opium                 
#cbe      ,,why ,,are ,,satan ,,and     
,,sin ,,permitted8           #cci       
,,brawn ,,and ,,muscle4        ,and     
,samson went down to ,timnath4--,,judges
 xiv3 #a4      ,there are two sides to  

the character of ,samson4 ,the one phase
 of his  life1 if followed into the     
particulars1 would administer to the    
grotesque and the mirthful2 but there is
 a phase of his character  fraught with 
lessons of solemn and eternal import4   
,to these graver  lessons we devote our 
morning sermon4    ,this giant no doubt 
in early life gave evidences of what he 
was to be4  ,it is almost always so4    
,there were two ,napoleons--the boy     
,napoleon and  the man ,napoleon--but   
both alike2 two ,howards--the boy       
,howard and the  man ,howard--but both  
alike2 two ,samsons--the boy ,samson and
 the man  ,samson--but both alike4 ,this
 giant was no doubt the hero of the     
playground1 and nothing could stand     
before his exhibitions of youthful      
prowess4 ,at eighteen years of age he   
was betrothed to the daughter of  a     
,philistine4 ,going down toward         
,timnath1 a lion came out upon him1     
and1 although this young giant was      
weaponless1 he seized the monster  by   

the long mane and shook him as a hungry 
hound shakes a ,march hare1  and made   
his bones crack1 and left him by the    
wayside bleeding under  the smiting of  
his fist and the grinding heft of his   
heel4    ,there he stands1 looming up   
above other men1 a mountain of flesh1   
his  arms bunched with muscle that can  
lift the gate of a city1 taking an      
attitude defiant of everything4 ,his    
hair had never been cut1 and it  rolled 
down in seven great plaits over his     
shoulders1 adding to his  bulk1         
fierceness1 and terror4 ,the            
,philistines want to conquer him1 and   
therefore they must find out where the  
secret of his strength lies4    ,there  
is a dissolute woman living in the      
valley of ,sorek by the name  of        
,delilah4 ,they appoint her the agent in
 the case4 ,the ,philistines  are       
secreted in the same building1 and then 
,delilah goes to work and  coaxes       
,samson to tell what is the secret of   
his strength4 ,well1 he  says1 if you   

should take seven green withes such as  
they fasten wild  beasts with and put   
them around me ,i should be perfectly   
powerless4  ,so she binds him with the  
seven green withes4 ,then she claps her 
hands  and says3 ,they come--the        
,philistines6 and he walks out as though
  they were no impediment4 ,she coaxes  
him again1 and says3 ,now tell me  the  
secret of this great strength8 and he   
replies3 ,if you should  take some ropes
 that have never been used and tie me   
with them ,i  should be just like other 
men4 ,she ties him with the ropes1 claps
 her  hands1 and shouts3 ,they come--the
 ,philistines6 ,he walks out as  easily 
as he did before--not a single          
obstruction4 ,she coaxes him  again1 and
 he says3 ,now1 if you should take these
 seven long plaits  of hair1 and by this
 house-loom weave them into a web1 ,i   
could not get  away4 ,so the house-loom 
is rolled up1 and the shuttle flies     
backward  and forward and the long      
plaits of hair are woven into a web4    

,then she  claps her hands1 and says3   
,they come--the ,philistines6 ,he walks 
out  as easily as he did before1        
dragging a part of the loom with him4   
,but after awhile she persuades him to  
tell the truth4 ,he says3 ,if you       
should take a razor or shears and cut   
off this long hair1 ,i should be        
powerless and in the hands of my        
enemies4 ,samson sleeps1 and that she   
may not wake him up during the process  
of shearing1 help is called in4  ,you   
know that the barbers of the ,east have 
such a skillful way of  manipulating the
 head to this very day that1 instead of 
waking up a  sleeping man1 they will put
 a man wide awake sound asleep4 ,i hear 
the  blades of the shears grinding      
against each other1 and ,i see the long 
locks falling off4 ,the shears or razor 
accomplishes what green withes  and new 
ropes and house-loom could not do4      
,suddenly she claps her  hands1 and     
says3 ,the ,philistines be upon thee1   
,samson6 ,he rouses up  with a struggle1

 but his strength is all gone4 ,he is in
 the hands of  his enemies4    ,i hear  
the groan of the giant as they take his 
eyes out1 and then ,i  see him          
staggering on in his blindness1 feeling 
his way as he goes on  toward ,gaza4    
,the prison door is open1 and the giant 
is thrust in4 ,he  sits down and puts   
his hands on the mill-crank1 which1 with
 exhausting  horizontal motion1 goes day
 after day1 week after week1 month after
  month--work1 work1 work6 ,the         
consternation of the world in captivity1
  his locks shorn1 his eyes punctured1  
grinding corn in ,gaza6    ,i4 ,first of
 all1 behold in this giant of the text  
that physical power  is not always an   
index of moral power4 ,he was a huge    
man--the lion  found it out1 and the    
three thousand men whom he slew found it
 out2  yet he was the subject of petty  
revenges and out-gianted by low         
passion4 ,i am far from throwing any    
discredit upon physical stamina4  ,there
 are those who seem to have great       

admiration for delicacy and  sickliness 
of constitution4 ,i never could see any 
glory in weak nerves  or sick headache4 
,whatever effort in our day is made to  
make the men  and women more robust     
should have the favor of every good     
citizen as  well as of every ,christian4
 ,gymnastics may be positively          
religious4    ,good people sometimes    
ascribe to a wicked heart what they     
ought to  ascribe to a slow liver4 ,the 
body and the soul are such near         
neighbors  that they often catch each   
other's diseases4 ,those who never saw a
  sick day1 and who1 like ,hercules1    
show the giant in the cradle1 have  more
 to answer for than those who are the   
subjects of life-long  infirmities4 ,he 
who can lift twice as much as you can1  
and walk twice  as far1 and work twice  
as long1 will have a double account to  
meet in  the judgment4    ,how often it 
is that you do not find physical energy 
indicative of  spiritual power6 ,if a   
clear head is worth more than one dizzy 

with  perpetual vertigo--if muscles with
 the play of health in them are  worth  
more than those drawn up in chronic     
rheumatics--if an eye  quick to catch   
passing objects is better than one with 
vision dim and  uncertain--then ,god    
will require of us efficiency just in   
proportion  to what he has given us4    
,physical energy ought to be a type of  
moral  power4 ,we ought to have as good 
digestion of truth as we have capacity  
to assimilate food4 ,our spiritual      
hearing ought to be as good as our      
physical hearing4 ,our spiritual taste  
ought to be as clear as our  tongue4    
,samsons in body1 we ought to be giants 
in moral power4    ,but while you find a
 great many men who realize that they   
ought to use  their money aright1 and   
use their intelligence aright1 how few  
men you  find aware of the fact that    
they ought to use their physical        
organism  aright6 ,with every thump of  
the heart there is something saying1    
,work6 work6 and1 lest we should        

complain that we have no tools to  work 
with1 ,god gives us our hands and feet1 
with every knuckle1 and  with every     
joint1 and with every muscle saying to  
us1 ,lay hold and do  something4    ,but
 how often it is that men with physical 
strength do not serve  ,christ6 ,they   
are like a ship full manned and full    
rigged1 capable of  vast tonnage1 able  
to endure all stress of weather1 yet    
swinging idly  at the docks1 when these 
men ought to be crossing and recrossing 
the  great ocean of human suffering and 
sin with ,god's supplies of mercy4  ,how
 often it is that physical strength is  
used in doing positive  damage1 or in   
luxurious ease1 when1 with sleeves      
rolled up and bronzed  bosom1 fearless  
of the shafts of opposition1 it ought to
 be laying  hold with all its might1 and
 tugging away to lift up this sunken    
wreck  of a world4    ,it is a most     
shameful fact that much of the business 
of the ,church and  of the world must be
 done by those comparatively invalid4   

,richard  ,baxter1 by reason of his     
diseases1 all his days sitting in the   
door of  the tomb1 yet writing more than
 a hundred volumes1 and sending out an  
influence for ,god that will endure as  
long as the ,saints' ,everlasting       
,rest4 ,edward ,payson1 never knowing a 
well day1 yet how he preached1  and how 
he wrote1 helping thousands of dying    
souls like himself to  swim in a sea of 
glory6 ,and ,robert ,m',cheyne1 a       
walking skeleton1 yet  you know what he 
did in ,dundee1 and how he shook        
,scotland with zeal  for ,god4 ,philip  
,doddridge1 advised by his friends1     
because of his  illness1 not to enter   
the ministry1 yet you know what he did  
for the  rise and progress of religion  
in the ,church and in the world4        
,wilberforce was told by his doctors    
that he could not live a  fortnight1 yet
 at that very time entering upon        
philanthropic  enterprises that demanded
 the greatest endurance and persistence4
  ,robert ,hall1 suffering              

excruciations1 so that often in his     
pulpit  while preaching he would stop   
and lie down on a sofa1 then getting up 
again to preach about heaven until the  
glories of the celestial city  dropped  
on the multitude1 doing more work1      
perhaps1 than almost any  well man in   
his day4    ,oh1 how often it is that   
men with great physical endurance are   
not as  great in moral and spiritual    
stature6 ,while there are achievements  
for  those who are bent all their days  
with sickness--achievements of          
patience1 achievements of ,christian    
endurance--,i call upon men of  health  
to-day1 men of muscle1 men of nerve1 men
 of physical power1 to  devote          
themselves to the ,lord4 ,giants in     
body1 you ought to be giants  in soul4  
,,ii4 ,behold also1 in the story of my  
text1 illustration of the fact of  the  
damage that strength can do if it be    
misguided4 ,it seems to me  that this   
man spent a great deal of his time in   
doing evil--this  ,samson of my text4   

,to pay a bet which he had lost by      
guessing of his  riddle he robs and     
kills thirty people4 ,he was not only   
gigantic in  strength1 but gigantic in  
mischief1 and a type of those men in all
  ages of the world who1 powerful in    
body or mind1 or any faculty of  social 
position or wealth1 have used their     
strength for iniquitous  purposes4      
,it is not the small1 weak men of the   
day who do the damage4 ,these  small men
 who go swearing and loafing about your 
stores and shops and  banking-houses1   
assailing ,christ and the ,bible and the
 ,church--they do  not do the damage4   
,they have no influence4 ,they are      
vermin that you  crush with your foot4  
,but it is the giants of the day1 the   
misguided  giants1 giants in physical   
power1 or giants in mental acumen1 or   
giants in social position1 or giants in 
wealth1 who do the damage4    ,the men  
with sharp pens that stab religion and  
throw their poison all  through our     
literature2 the men who use the power of

 wealth to  sanction iniquity1 and bribe
 justice1 and make truth and honor bow  
to  their golden scepter4    ,misguided 
giants--look out for them6 ,in the      
middle and the latter part  of the last 
century no doubt there were thousands of
 men in ,paris and  ,edinburgh and      
,london who hated ,god and blasphemed   
the name of the  ,almighty2 but they did
 but little mischief--they were small   
men1  insignificant men4 ,yet there were
 giants in those days4    ,who can      
calculate the soul-havoc of a ,rousseau1
 going on with a very  enthusiasm of    
iniquity1 with fiery imagination seizing
 upon all the  impulsive natures of his 
day8 or ,david ,hume1 who employed his  
life as  a spider employs its summer1 in
 spinning out silken webs to trap the   
unwary8 or ,voltaire1 the most learned  
man of his day1 marshaling a  great host
 of skeptics1 and leading them out in   
the dark land of  infidelity8 or        
,gibbon1 who showed an uncontrollable   
grudge against  religion in his history 

of one of the most fascinating periods  
of the  world's existence--the ,decline 
and ,fall of the ,roman ,empire--a book 
in  which1 with all the splendors of his
 genius1 he magnified the errors  of    
,christian disciples1 while1 with a     
sparseness of notice that never  can be 
forgiven1 he treated of the ,christian  
heroes of whom the world  was not       
worthy8    ,oh1 men of stout physical   
health1 men of great mental stature1 men
 of  high social position1 men of great 
power of any sort1 ,i want you to       
understand your power1 and ,i want you  
to know that that power devoted  to ,god
 will be a crown on earth1 to you       
typical of a crown in heaven2  but      
misguided1 bedraggled in sin1           
administrative of evil1 ,god will       
thunder against you with ,his           
condemnation in the day when millionaire
  and pauper1 master and slave1 king and
 subject1 shall stand side by  side in  
the judgment1 and money-bags1 and       
judicial ermine1 and royal  robe shall  

be riven with the lightnings4    ,behold
 also1 how a giant may be slain of a    
woman4 ,delilah started the  train of   
circumstances that pulled down the      
temple of ,dagon about  ,samson's ears4 
,and tens of thousands of giants have   
gone down to death  and hell through the
 same impure fascinations4 ,it seems to 
me that it  is high time that pulpit and
 platform and printing-press speak out  
against the impurities of modern        
society4 ,fastidiousness and ,prudery   
say3 ,better not speak--you will rouse  
up adverse criticism2 you will  make    
worse what you want to make better2     
better deal in glittering  generalities2
 the subject is too delicate for polite 
ears4 ,but there  comes a voice from    
heaven overpowering the mincing         
sentimentalities of  the day1 saying3   
,cry aloud1 spare not1 lift up thy voice
 like a  trumpet1 and show my people    
their transgressions and the house of   
,jacob their sins4    ,the trouble is   
that when people write or speak upon    

this theme they  are apt to cover it up 
with the graces of belles-lettres1 so   
that the  crime is made attractive      
instead of repulsive4 ,lord ,byron in   
,don  ,juan adorns this crime until it  
smiles like a ,may queen4 ,michelet1    
the great ,french writer1 covers it up  
with bewitching rhetoric until  it glows
 like the rising sun1 when it ought to  
be made loathsome as a  small-pox       
hospital4 ,there are to-day influences  
abroad which1 if  unresisted by the     
pulpit and the printing-press1 will turn
 ,new ,york  and ,brooklyn into ,sodom  
and ,gomorrah1 fit only for the storm of
 fire  and brimstone that whelmed the   
cities of the plain4    ,you who are    
seated in your ,christian homes1        
compassed by moral and  religious       
restraints1 do not realize the gulf of  
iniquity that bounds  you on the north  
and the south and the east and the west4
 ,while ,i  speak there are tens of     
thousands of men and women going over   
the  awful plunge of an impure life2 and

 while ,i cry to ,god for mercy upon    
their souls1 ,i call upon you to marshal
 in the defense of your homes1  your    
,church and your nation4 ,there is a    
banqueting hall that you have  never    
heard described4 ,you know all about the
 feast of ,ahasuerus1  where a thousand 
lords sat4 ,you know all about          
,belshazzar's carousal1  where the blood
 of the murdered king spurted into the  
faces of the  banqueters4 ,you may know 
of the scene of riot and wassail1 when  
there  was set before ,esopus one dish  
of food that cost #djj1jjj4 ,but ,i     
speak  now of a different banqueting    
hall4 ,its roof is fretted with fire4   
,its  floor is tesselated with fire4    
,its chalices are chased with fire4 ,its
  song is a song of fire4 ,its walls are
 buttresses of fire4 ,solomon  refers to
 it when he says3 ,her guests are in the
 depths of hell4    ,our ,american      
communities are suffering from the      
gospel of ,free  ,loveism1 which1       
fifteen or twenty years ago1 was        

preached on the  platform and in some of
 the churches of this country4 ,i charge
 upon  ,free ,loveism that it has       
blighted innumerable homes1 and that it 
has  sent innumerable souls to ruin4    
,free ,loveism is bestial2 it is        
worse--it is infernal6 ,it has furnished
 this land with about one  thousand     
divorces annually4 ,in one county in the
 ,state of ,indiana it  furnished eleven
 divorces in one day before dinner4 ,it 
has roused up  elopements1 ,north1      
,south1 ,east1 and ,west4 ,you can      
hardly take up a  paper but you read of 
an elopement4 ,as far as ,i can         
understand the  doctrine of ,free       
,loveism it is this3 ,that every man    
ought to have  somebody else's wife1 and
 every wife somebody else's husband4    
,they do  not like our ,christian       
organization of society1 and ,i wish    
they would  all elope1 the wretches of  
one sex taking the wretches of the      
other1  and start to-morrow morning for 
the great ,sahara ,desert1 until the    

simoom shall sweep seven feet of sand   
all over them1 and not one  passing     
caravan for the next five hundred years 
bring back one  miserable bone of their 
carcasses6 ,free ,loveism6 ,it is the   
double-distilled extract of nux vomica1 
ratsbane1 and adder's tongue4  ,never   
until society goes back to the old      
,bible1 and hears its eulogy  of purity 
and its anathema of uncleanness--never  
until then will this  evil be           
extirpated4    ,,iv4 ,behold also in    
this giant of the text and in the giant 
of our own  century that great physical 
power must crumble and expire4 ,the     
,samson  of the text long ago went away4
 ,he fought the lion4 ,he fought the    
,philistines4 ,he could fight anything1 
but death was too much for him4  ,he may
 have required a longer grave and a     
broader grave2 but the tomb             
nevertheless was his terminus4    ,if1  
then1 we are to be compelled to go out  
of this world1 where are we  to go to8  
,this body and soul must soon part4     

,what shall be the destiny  of the      
former ,i know--dust to dust4 ,but what 
shall be the destiny of  the latter8    
,shall it rise into the companionship of
 the white-robed1  whose sins ,christ   
has slain8 or will it go down among the 
unbelieving1  who tried to gain the     
world and save their souls1 but were    
swindled  out of both8 ,blessed be ,god1
 we have a ,champion6 ,he is so styled  
in  the ,bible3 ,a ,champion who has    
conquered death and hell1 and he is     
ready to fight all our battles from the 
first to the last4 ,who is  this that   
cometh from ,edom1 with dyed garments   
from ,bozrah1 mighty to  save8 ,if we   
follow in the wake of that ,champion    
death has no power  and the grave no    
victory4 ,the worst man trusting in ,him
 shall have his  dying pangs alleviated 
and his future illumined4    ,v4 ,in the
 light of this subject ,i want to call  
your attention to a  fact which may not 
have been rightly considered by five men
 in this  house1 and that is the fact   

that we must be brought into judgment   
for  the employment of our physical     
organism4 ,shoulder1 brain1 hand1       
foot--we must answer in judgment for the
 use we have made of them4  ,have they  
been used for the elevation of society  
or for its  depression8 ,in proportion  
as our arm is strong and our step       
elastic  will our account at last be    
intensified4 ,thousands of sermons are  
preached to invalids4 ,i preach this    
sermon this morning to stout men  and   
healthful women4 ,we must give to ,god  
an account for the right use  of this   
physical organism4    ,these invalids   
have comparatively little to account    
for1 perhaps4 ,they  could not lift     
twenty pounds4 ,they could not walk half
 a mile without  sitting down to rest4  
,in the preparation of this subject ,i  
have said  to myself1 how shall ,i      
account to ,god in judgment for the use 
of a  body which never knew one moment  
of real sickness8 ,rising up in         
judgment1 standing beside the men and   

women who had only little  physical     
energy1 and yet consumed that energy in 
a conflagration of  religious           
enthusiasm1 how will we feel abashed6   
,oh1 men of the strong arm and the stout
 heart1 what use are you making  of your
 physical forces8 ,will you be able to  
stand the test of that  day when we must
 answer for the use of every talent1    
whether it were a  physical energy1 or a
 mental acumen1 or a spiritual power8   
,the day approaches1 and ,i see one who 
in this world was an invalid1  and as   
she stands before the throne of ,god to 
answer she says1 ,i was  sick all my    
days4 ,i had but very little strength1  
but ,i did as well as  ,i could in being
 kind to those who were more sick and   
more  suffering4 ,and ,christ will say1 
,well done1 faithful servant4    ,and   
then a little child will stand before   
the throne1 and she will  say1 ,on earth
 ,i had a curvature of the spine1 and ,i
 was very weak1  and ,i was very sick2  
but ,i used to gather flowers out of the

 wild-wood  and bring them to my sick   
mother1 and she was comforted when she  
saw  the sweet flowers out of the       
wild-wood4 ,i didn't do much1 but ,i did
  something4 ,and ,christ shall say1 as 
,he takes her up in ,his arm and  kisses
 her1 ,well done1 well done1 faithful   
servant2 enter thou into  the joy of thy
 ,lord4    ,what1 then1 will be said to 
us--we to whom the ,lord gave physical  
strength and continuous health8 ,hark6  
it thunders again4 ,the judgment6  the  
judgment6    ,i said to an old ,scotch  
minister1 who was one of the best       
friends ,i  ever had1 ,doctor1 did you  
ever know ,robert ,pollock1 the ,scotch 
poet1  who wrote ',the ,course of       
,time'8 ,oh1 yes1 he replied1 ,i knew   
him  well2 ,i was his classmate4 ,and   
then the doctor went on to tell me how  
that the writing of ,the ,course of     
,time exhausted the health of  ,robert  
,pollock1 and he expired4 ,it seems as  
if no man could have such  a glimpse of 
the day for which all other days were   

made as ,robert  ,pollock had1 and long 
survive that glimpse4 ,in the           
description of that  day he says1 among 
other things3        ,begin the woe1 ye 
woods1 and tell it to the doleful winds 
,and doleful winds wail to the howling  
hills1      ,and howling hills mourn to 
the dismal vales1      ,and dismal vales
 sigh to the sorrowing brooks1      ,and
 sorrowing brooks weep to the weeping   
stream1      ,and weeping stream awake  
the groaning deep2      ,ye heavens1    
great archway of the universe1 put      
sack-cloth on2      ,and ocean1 robe    
thyself in garb of widowhood1      ,and 
gather all thy waves into a groan1 and  
utter it4      ,long1 loud1 deep1       
piercing1 dolorous1 immense4      ,the  
occasion asks it1 ,nature dies1 and     
angels come to lay          her in her  
grave4    ,what ,robert ,pollock saw in 
poetic dream1 you and ,i will see in    
positive reality--the judgment6 the     
judgment6          ,,the ,,pleiades     
,,and ,,orion4        ,seek ,him that   

maketh the ,seven ,stars and            
,orion4--,,amos4 v4 #h      ,a country  
farmer wrote this text--,amos of ,tekoa4
 ,he plowed the earth  and threshed the 
grain by a new threshing-machine just   
invented1 as  formerly the cattle trod  
out the grain4 ,he gathered the fruit of
 the  sycamore-tree1 and scarified it   
with an iron comb just before it was    
getting ripe1 as it was necessary and   
customary in that way to take  from it  
the bitterness4 ,he was the son of a    
poor shepherd1 and  stuttered2 but      
before the stammering rustic the        
,philistines1 and  ,syrians1 and        
,phoenicians1 and ,moabites1 and        
,ammonites1 and ,edomites1  and         
,israelites trembled4    ,moses was a   
law-giver1 ,daniel was a prince1 ,isaiah
 a courtier1 and  ,david a king2 but    
,amos1 the author of my text1 was a     
peasant1 and1 as  might be supposed1    
nearly all his parallelisms are         
pastoral1 his  prophecy full of the odor
 of new-mown hay1 and the rattle of     

locusts1  and the rumble of carts with  
sheaves1 and the roar of wild beasts    
devouring the flock while the shepherd  
came out in their defense4 ,he  watched 
the herds by day1 and by night inhabited
 a booth made out of  bushes1 so that   
through these branches he could see the 
stars all  night long1 and was more     
familiar with them than we who have     
tight  roofs to our houses1 and hardly  
ever see the stars except among the     
tall brick chimneys of the great towns4 
,but at seasons of the year  when the   
herds were in special danger1 he would  
stay out in the open  field all through 
the darkness1 his only shelter the      
curtain of the  night1 heaven1 with the 
stellar embroideries and silvered       
tassels of  lunar light4    ,what a life
 of solitude1 all alone with his herds6 
,poor ,amos6 ,and at  twelve o'clock at 
night1 hark to the wolf's bark1 and the 
lion's roar1  and the bear's growl1 and 
the owl's te-whit-te-whos1 and the      
serpent's  hiss1 as he unwittingly steps

 too near while moving through the      
thickets6 ,so ,amos1 like other         
herdsmen1 got the habit of studying the 
map of the heavens1 because it was so   
much of the time spread out  before him4
 ,he noticed some stars advancing and   
others receding4 ,he  associated their  
dawn and setting with certain seasons of
 the year4 ,he  had a poetic nature1 and
 he read night by night1 and month by   
month1  and year by year1 the poem of   
the constellations1 divinely rhythmic4  
,but two rosettes of stars especially   
attracted his attention while  seated on
 the ground1 or lying on his back under 
the open scroll of  the midnight        
heavens--the ,pleiades1 or ,seven       
,stars1 and ,orion4 ,the  former group  
this rustic prophet associated with the 
spring1 as it  rises about the first of 
,may4 ,the latter he associated with the
  winter1 as it comes to the meridian in
 ,january4 ,the ,pleiades1 or ,seven    
,stars1 connected with all sweetness and
 joy2 ,orion1 the herald of the         

tempest4 ,the ancients were the more apt
 to study the physiognomy and           
juxtaposition of the heavenly bodies1   
because they thought they had a  special
 influence upon the earth2 and perhaps  
they were right4 ,if the  moon every few
 hours lifts and lets down the tides of 
the ,atlantic  ,ocean1 and the electric 
storms of last year in the sun1 by all  
scientific admission1 affected the      
earth1 why not the stars have           
proportionate effect8    ,and there are 
some things which make me think that it 
may not have  been all superstition     
which connected the movements and       
appearance of  the heavenly bodies with 
great moral events on earth4 ,did not a 
meteor  run on evangelistic errand on   
the first ,christmas night1 and         
designate  the rough cradle of our      
,lord8 ,did not the stars in their      
courses fight  against ,sisera8 ,was it 
merely coincidental that before the     
destruction  of ,jerusalem the moon was 
eclipsed for twelve consecutive nights8 

,did  it merely happen so that a new    
star appeared in constellation          
,cassiopeia1 and then disappeared just  
before ,king ,charles ,,ix4 of  ,france1
 who was responsible for ,st4           
,bartholomew massacre1 died8 ,was it    
without significance that in the days of
 the ,roman ,emperor ,justinian  war and
 famine were preceded by the dimness of 
the sun1 which for  nearly a year gave  
no more light than the moon1 although   
there were no  clouds to obscure it8    
,astrology1 after all1 may have been    
something more than a brilliant         
heathenism4 ,no wonder that ,amos of the
 text1 having heard these two  anthems  
of the stars1 put down the stout rough  
staff of the herdsman  and took into his
 brown hand and cut and knotted fingers 
the pen of a  prophet1 and advised the  
recreant people of his time to return to
 ,god1  saying3 ,seek ,him that maketh  
the ,seven ,stars and ,orion4 ,this     
command1 which ,amos gave #ghe years    
,b4,c41 is just as appropriate for  us1 

#ahhe ,a4,d4    ,in the first place1    
,amos saw1 as we must see1 that the ,god
 who made  the ,pleiades and ,orion must
 be the ,god of order4 ,it was not so   
much a  star here and a star there that 
impressed the inspired herdsman1 but    
seven in one group1 and seven in the    
other group4 ,he saw that night  after  
night and season after season and decade
 after decade they had  kept step of    
light1 each one in its own place1 a     
sisterhood never  clashing and never    
contesting precedence4 ,from the time   
,hesiod called  the ,pleiades the seven 
daughters of ,atlas and ,virgil wrote in
 his  neid of ,stormy ,orion until now1 
they have observed the order            
established for their coming and going2 
order written not in  manuscript that   
may be pigeon-holed1 but with the hand  
of the ,almighty  on the dome of the    
sky1 so that all nations may read it4   
,order4  ,persistent order4 ,sublime    
order4 ,omnipotent order4    ,what a    
sedative to you and me1 to whom         

communities and nations  sometimes seem 
going pell-mell1 and world ruled by some
 fiend at  hap-hazard1 and in all       
directions maladministration6 ,the ,god 
who keeps  seven worlds in right circuit
 for six thousand years can certainly   
keep all the affairs of individuals and 
nations and continents in  adjustment4  
,we had not better fret much1 for the   
peasant's argument of  the text was     
right4 ,if ,god can take care of the    
seven worlds of the  ,pleiades and the  
four chief worlds of ,orion1 ,he can    
probably take care  of the one world we 
inhabit4    ,so ,i feel very much as my 
father felt one day when we were going  
to  the country mill to get a grist     
ground1 and ,i1 a boy of seven years1   
sat in the back part of the wagon1 and  
our yoke of oxen ran away with  us and  
along a labyrinthine road through the   
woods1 so that ,i thought  every moment 
we would be dashed to pieces1 and ,i    
made a terrible  outcry of fright1 and  
my father turned to me with a face      

perfectly  calm1 and said3 ,de ,witt1   
what are you crying about8 ,i guess we  
can  ride as fast as the oxen can run4  
,and1 my hearers1 why should we be      
affrighted and lose our equilibrium in  
the swift movement of worldly  events1  
especially when we are assured that it  
is not a yoke of  unbroken steers that  
are drawing us on1 but that order and   
wise  government are in the yoke8    ,in
 your occupation1 your mission1 your    
sphere1 do the best you can1  and then  
trust to ,god2 and if things are all    
mixed and disquieting1  and your brain  
is hot and your heart sick1 get some one
 to go out with  you into the starlight 
and point out to you the ,pleiades1 or1 
better  than that1 get into some        
observatory1 and through the telescope  
see  further than ,amos with the naked  
eye could--namely1 two hundred stars  in
 the ,pleiades1 and that in what is     
called the sword of ,orion there  is a  
nebula computed to be two trillion two  
hundred thousand billions  of times     

larger than the sun4 ,oh1 be at peace   
with the ,god who made  all that and    
controls all that--the wheel of the     
constellations  turning in the wheel of 
galaxies for thousands of years without 
the  breaking of a cog or the slipping  
of a band or the snap of an axle4  ,for 
your placidity and comfort through the  
,lord ,jesus ,christ ,i charge  you1    
,seek ,him that maketh the ,seven ,stars
 and ,orion4    ,again1 ,amos saw1 as we
 must see1 that the ,god who made these 
two  groups of the text was the ,god of 
light4 ,amos saw that ,god was not      
satisfied with making one star1 or two  
or three stars1 but ,he makes  seven2   
and having finished that group of       
worlds1 makes another  group--group     
after group4 ,to the ,pleiades ,he adds 
,orion4 ,it seems that  ,god likes light
 so well that ,he keeps making it4 ,only
 one being in the  universe knows the   
statistics of solar1 lunar1 stellar1    
meteoric  creations1 and that is        
the--,creator ,himself4 ,and they have  

all been  lovingly christened1 each one 
a name as distinct as the names of your 
children4 ,he telleth the number of the 
stars2 ,he calleth them all by  their   
names4 ,the seven ,pleiades had names   
given to them1 and they are  ,alcyone1  
,merope1 ,celno1 ,electra1 ,sterope1    
,taygete1 and ,maia4    ,but think of   
the billions and trillions of daughters 
of starry light  that ,god calls by name
 as they sweep by ,him with beaming brow
 and  lustrous robe6 ,so fond is ,god of
 light--natural light1 moral light1     
spiritual light4 ,again and again is    
light harnessed for                     
symbolization--,christ1 the bright and  
morning star2 evangelization1  the      
daybreak2 the redemption of nations1    
,sun of ,righteousness rising  with     
healing in ,his wings4 ,oh1 men and     
women1 with so many sorrows and  sins   
and perplexities1 if you want light of  
comfort1 light of pardon1  light of     
goodness1 in earnest1 pray through      
,christ1 ,seek ,him that  maketh the    

,seven ,stars and ,orion4    ,again1    
,amos saw1 as we must see1 that the ,god
 who made these two  archipelagoes of   
stars must be an unchanging ,god4 ,there
 had been no  change in the stellar     
appearance in this herdsman's life-time1
 and his  father1 a shepherd1 reported  
to him that there had been no change in 
his life-time4 ,and these two clusters  
hang over the celestial arbor  now just 
as they were the first night that they  
shone on the ,edenic  bowers1 the same  
as when the ,egyptians built the        
,pyramids from the top  of which to     
watch them1 the same as when the        
,chaldeans calculated the  eclipses1 the
 same as when ,elihu1 according to the  
,book of ,job1 went  out to study the   
aurora borealis1 the same under         
,ptolemaic system and  ,copernican      
system1 the same from ,calisthenes to   
,pythagoras1 and from  ,pythagoras to   
,herschel4 ,surely1 a changeless ,god   
must have fashioned  the ,pleiades and  
,orion6 ,oh1 what an anodyne amid the   

ups and downs of  life1 and the flux and
 reflux of the tides of prosperity1 to  
know that  we have a changeless ,god1   
the same yesterday1 to-day1 and forever4
    ,xerxes garlanded and knighted the  
steersman of his boat in the  morning1  
and hanged him in the evening of the    
same day4 ,fifty thousand  people stood 
around the columns of the national      
capitol1 shouting  themselves hoarse at 
the presidential inaugural1 and in four 
months so  great were the antipathies   
that a ruffian's pistol in ,washington  
depot  expressed the sentiment of a     
great multitude4 ,the world sits in its 
chariot and drives tandem1 and the horse
 ahead is ,huzza1 and the horse  behind 
is ,anathema4 ,lord ,cobham1 in ,king   
,james' time1 was applauded1  and had   
thirty-five thousand dollars a year1 but
 was afterward  execrated1 and lived on 
scraps stolen from the royal kitchen4   
,alexander the ,great after death       
remained unburied for thirty days1      
because no one would do the honor of    

shoveling him under4 ,the ,duke of      
,wellington refused to have his iron    
fence mended1 because it had been       
broken by an infuriated populace in some
 hour of political  excitement1 and he  
left it in ruins that men might learn   
what a fickle  thing is human favor4    
,but the mercy of the ,lord is from     
everlasting  to everlasting to them that
 fear ,him1 and ,his righteousness unto 
the  children's children of such as keep
 ,his covenant1 and to those who        
remember ,his commandments to do them4  
,this moment seek ,him that  maketh the 
,seven ,stars and ,orion4    ,again1    
,amos saw1 as we must see1 that the ,god
 who made these two  beacons of the     
,oriental night sky must be a ,god of   
love and kindly  warning4 ,the ,pleiades
 rising in mid-sky said to all the      
herdsmen and  shepherds and husbandmen3 
,come out and enjoy the mild weather1   
and  cultivate your gardens and fields4 
,orion1 coming in winter1 warned  them  
to prepare for tempest4 ,all navigation 

was regulated by these two              
constellations4 ,the one said to        
shipmaster and crew3 ,hoist sail for    
the sea1 and gather merchandise from    
other lands4 ,but ,orion was the        
storm-signal1 and said3 ,reef sail1 make
 things snug1 or put into  harbor1 for  
the hurricanes are getting their wings  
out4 ,as the  ,pleiades were the sweet  
evangels of the spring1 ,orion was the  
warning  prophet of the winter4    ,oh1 
now ,i get the best view of ,god ,i ever
 had6 ,there are two kinds of  sermons  
,i never want to preach--the one that   
presents ,god so kind1 so  indulgent1 so
 lenient1 so imbecile that men may do   
what they will  against ,him1 and       
fracture ,his every law1 and put the cry
 of their  impertinence and rebellion   
under ,his throne1 and while they are   
spitting in ,his face and stabbing at   
,his heart1 ,he takes them up in  ,his  
arms and kisses their infuriated brow   
and cheek1 saying1 ,of such  is the     
kingdom of heaven4 ,the other kind of   

sermon ,i never want to  preach is the  
one that represents ,god as all fire and
 torture and  thundercloud1 and with    
red-hot pitch-fork tossing the human    
race into  paroxysms of infinite agony4 
,the sermon that ,i am now preaching    
believes in a ,god of loving1 kindly    
warning1 the ,god of spring and  winter1
 the ,god of the ,pleiades and ,orion4  
,you must remember that the winter is   
just as important as the spring4  ,let  
one winter pass without frost to kill   
vegetation and ice to bind  the rivers  
and snow to enrich our fields1 and then 
you will have to  enlarge your hospitals
 and your cemeteries4 ,a green          
,christmas makes a  fat grave-yard1 was 
the old proverb4 ,storms to purify the  
air4  ,thermometer at ten degrees above 
zero to tone up the system4 ,december   
and ,january just as important as ,may  
and ,june4 ,i tell you we need the      
storms of life as much as we do the     
sunshine4 ,there are more men  ruined by
 prosperity than by adversity4 ,if we   

had our own way in life1  before this we
 would have been impersonations of      
selfishness and  worldliness and        
disgusting sin1 and puffed up until we  
would have been  like ,julius ,csar1 who
 was made by sycophants to believe that 
he was  divine1 and the freckles on his 
face were as the stars of the           
firmament4    ,one of the swiftest      
transatlantic voyages made last summer  
by the  ,etruria was because she had a  
stormy wind abaft1 chasing her from     
,new ,york to ,liverpool4 ,but to those 
going in the opposite direction  the    
storm was a buffeting and a hinderance4 
,it is a bad thing to have  a storm     
ahead1 pushing us back2 but if we be    
,god's children and  aiming toward      
heaven1 the storms of life will only    
chase us the sooner  into the harbor4 ,i
 am so glad to believe that the         
monsoons1 and  typhoons1 and mistrals1  
and siroccos of the land and sea are not
  unchained maniacs let loose upon the  
earth1 but are under divine             

supervision6 ,i am so glad that the ,god
 of the ,seven ,stars is also the  ,god 
of ,orion6 ,it was out of ,dante's      
suffering came the sublime ,divina      
,commedia1 and out of ,john ,milton's   
blindness came ,paradise ,lost1  and out
 of miserable infidel attack came the   
,bridgewater ,treatise in  favor of     
,christianity1 and out of ,david's exile
 came the songs of  consolation1 and out
 of the sufferings of ,christ came the  
possibility  of the world's redemption1 
and out of your bereavement1 your       
persecution1 your poverties1 your       
misfortunes1 may yet come an eternal    
heaven4    ,oh1 what a mercy it is that 
in the text and all up and down the     
,bible  ,god induces us to look out     
toward other worlds6 ,bible astronomy in
  ,genesis1 in ,joshua1 in ,job1 in the 
,psalms1 in the prophets1 major and     
minor1 in ,st4 ,john's ,apocalypse1     
practically saying1 ,worlds6 worlds6    
worlds6 ,get ready for them6 ,we have a 
nice little world here that we  stick   

to1 as though losing that we lose all4  
,we are afraid of falling  off this     
little raft of a world4 ,we are afraid  
that some meteoric  iconoclast will some
 night smash it1 and we want everything 
to revolve  around it1 and are          
disappointed when we find that it       
revolves around  the sun instead of the 
sun revolving around it4 ,what a fuss we
 make  about this little bit of a world1
 its existence only a short time        
between two spasms1 the paroxysm by     
which it was hurled from chaos  into    
order1 and the paroxysm of its          
demolition4    ,and ,i am glad that so  
many texts call us to look off to other 
worlds1  many of them larger and grander
 and more resplendent4 ,look there1     
says ,job1 at ,mazaroth and ,arcturus   
and his sons6 ,look there1 says  ,st4   
,john1 at the moon under ,christ's feet6
 ,look there1 says  ,joshua1 at the sun 
standing still above ,gibeon6 ,look     
there1 says  ,moses1 at the sparkling   
firmament6 ,look there1 says ,amos1 the 

herdsman1 at the ,seven ,stars and      
,orion6 ,don't let us be so sad about   
those who shove off from this world     
under ,christly pilotage4 ,don't let  us
 be so agitated about our own going off 
this little barge or sloop  or          
canal-boat of a world to get on some    
,great ,eastern of the  heavens4 ,don't 
let us persist in wanting to stay in    
this barn1 this  shed1 this outhouse of 
a world1 when all the ,king's palaces   
already  occupied by many of our best   
friends are swinging wide open their    
gates to let us in4    ,when ,i read1   
,in my ,father's house are many         
mansions1 ,i do not know  but that each 
world is a room1 and as many rooms as   
there are worlds1  stellar stairs1      
stellar galleries1 stellar hallways1    
stellar windows1  stellar domes4 ,how   
our departed friends must pity us shut  
up in these  cramped apartments1 tired  
if we walk fifteen miles1 when they some
  morning1 by one stroke of wing1 can   
make circuit of the whole stellar       

system and be back in time for matins6  
,perhaps yonder twinkling  constellation
 is the residence of the martyrs2 that  
group of twelve  luminaries is the      
celestial home of the ,apostles4        
,perhaps that steep  of light is the    
dwelling-place of angels cherubic1      
seraphic1  archangelic4 ,a mansion with 
as many rooms as worlds1 and all their  
windows illuminated for festivity4      
,oh1 how this widens and lifts and      
stimulates our expectation6 ,how  little
 it makes the present1 and how          
stupendous it makes the future6  ,how it
 consoles us about our pious dead1 that 
instead of being boxed  up and under the
 ground have the range of as many rooms 
as there are  worlds1 and welcome       
everywhere1 for it is the ,father's     
house1 in which  there are many         
mansions6 ,oh1 ,lord ,god of the ,seven 
,stars and ,orion1  how can ,i endure   
the transport1 the ecstasy1 of such a   
vision6 ,i must  obey my text and seek  
,him4 ,i will seek ,him4 ,i seek ,him   

now1 for ,i call  to mind that it is not
 the material universe that is most     
valuable1  but the spiritual1 and that  
each of us has a soul worth more than   
all  the worlds which the inspired      
herdsman saw from his booth on the hills
  of ,tekoa4    ,i had studied it       
before1 but the ,cathedral of ,cologne1 
,germany1 never  impressed me as it did 
this summer4 ,it is admittedly the      
grandest  ,gothic structure in the      
world1 its foundation laid in #abdh1    
only two  or three years ago completed4 
,more than six hundred years in         
building4  ,all ,europe taxed for its   
construction4 ,its chapel of the ,magi  
with  precious stones enough to purchase
 a kingdom4 ,its chapel of ,st4 ,agnes  
with masterpieces of painting4 ,its     
spire springing five hundred and  eleven
 feet into the heavens4 ,its stained    
glass the chorus of all rich  colors4   
,statues encircling the pillars and     
encircling all4 ,statues  above statues1
 until sculpture can do no more1 but    

faints and falls  back against carved   
stalls and down on pavements over which 
the kings  and queens of the earth have 
walked to confession4 ,nave and aisles  
and  transept and portals combining the 
splendors of sunrise4 ,interlaced1      
interfoliated1 intercolumned grandeur4  
,as ,i stood outside1 looking at  the   
double range of flying buttresses and   
the forest of pinnacles1  higher and    
higher and higher1 until ,i almost      
reeled from dizziness1 ,i  exclaimed2   
,great doxology in stone6 ,frozen prayer
 of many nations6    ,but while standing
 there ,i saw a poor man enter and put  
down his pack  and kneel beside his     
burden on the hard floor of that        
cathedral4 ,and  tears of deep emotion  
came into my eyes1 as ,i said to myself3
 ,there  is a soul worth more than all  
the material surroundings4 ,that man    
will  live after the last pinnacle has  
fallen1 and not one stone of all that   
cathedral glory shall remain uncrumbled4
 ,he is now a ,lazarus in rags  and     

poverty and weariness1 but immortal1 and
 a son of the ,lord ,god  ,almighty2 and
 the prayer he now offers1 though amid  
many  superstitions1 ,i believe ,god    
will hear2 and among the ,apostles whose
  sculptured forms stand in the         
surrounding niches he will at last be   
lifted1 and into the presence of that   
,christ whose sufferings are            
represented by the crucifix before which
 he bows2 and be raised in due  time out
 of all his poverties into the glorious 
home built for him and  built for us by 
',him who maketh the ,seven ,stars and  
,orion4'          ,,the ,,queen',s      
,,visit4        ,behold1 the half was   
not told me4--,i ,,kings x3 #g4         
,solomon had resolved that ,jerusalem   
should be the center of all  sacred1    
regal1 and commercial magnificence4 ,he 
set himself to work1  and monopolized   
the surrounding desert as a highway for 
his caravans4  ,he built the city of    
,palmyra around one of the principal    
wells of the  ,east1 so that all the    

long trains of merchandise from the     
,east were  obliged to stop there1 pay  
toll1 and leave part of their wealth in 
the  hands of ,solomon's merchants4 ,he 
manned the fortress ,thapsacus at the   
chief ford of the ,euphrates1 and put   
under guard everything that  passed     
there4 ,the three great products of     
,palestine--wine pressed from  the      
richest clusters and celebrated all the 
world over2 oil which in  that hot      
country is the entire substitute for    
butter and lard1 and was  pressed from  
the olive branches until every tree in  
the country became  an oil well2 and    
honey which was the entire substitute   
for  sugar--these three great products  
of the country ,solomon exported1 and   
received in return fruits and precious  
woods and the animals of every  clime4  
,he went down to ,ezion-geber and       
ordered a fleet of ships to be          
constructed1 oversaw the workmen1 and   
watched the launching of the  flotilla  
which was to go out on more than a      

year's voyage1 to bring  home the wealth
 of the then known world4 ,he heard that
 the ,egyptian  horses were large and   
swift1 and long-maned and round-limbed1 
and he  resolved to purchase them1      
giving eighty-five dollars apiece for   
them1  putting the best of these horses 
in his own stall1 and selling the       
surplus to foreign potentates at great  
profit4    ,he heard that there was the 
best of timber on ,mount ,lebanon1 and  
he  sent out one hundred and eighty     
thousand men to hew down the forest  and
 drag the timber through the mountain   
gorges1 to construct it into  rafts to  
be floated to ,joppa1 and from thence to
 be drawn by ox-teams  twenty-five miles
 across the land to ,jerusalem4 ,he     
heard that there  were beautiful flowers
 in other lands4 ,he sent for them1     
planted them  in his own gardens1 and to
 this very day there are flowers found  
in  the ruins of that city such as are  
to be found in no other part of         
,palestine1 the lineal descendants of   

the very flowers that ,solomon  planted4
 ,he heard that in foreign groves there 
were birds of richest  voice and most   
luxuriant wing4 ,he sent out people to  
catch them and  bring them there1 and he
 put them into his cages4    ,stand back
 now and see this long train of camels  
coming up to the  king's gate1 and the  
ox-trains from ,egypt1 gold and silver  
and  precious stones1 and beasts of     
every hoof1 and birds of every wing1    
and fish of every scale6 ,see the       
peacocks strut under the cedars1 and    
the horsemen run1 and the chariots      
wheel6 ,hark to the orchestra6 ,gaze    
upon the dance6 ,not stopping to look   
into the wonders of the temple1  step   
right on to the causeway1 and pass up to
 ,solomon's palace6    ,here we find    
ourselves amid a collection of buildings
 on which the  king had lavished the    
wealth of many empires4 ,the genius of  
,hiram1 the  architect1 and of the other
 artists is here seen in the long line  
of  corridors and the suspended gallery 

and the approach to the throne4         
,traceried window opposite traceried    
window4 ,bronzed ornaments bursting     
into lotus and lily and pomegranate4    
,chapiters surrounded by network  of    
leaves in which imitation fruit seemed  
suspended as in hanging  baskets4 ,three
 branches--so ,josephus tells us--three 
branches  sculptured on the marble1 so  
thin and subtle that even the leaves    
seemed to quiver4 ,a laver capable of   
holding five hundred barrels of  water  
on six hundred brazen ox-heads1 which   
gushed with water and  filled the whole 
place with coolness and crystalline     
brightness and  musical plash4 ,ten     
tables chased with chariot wheel and    
lion and  cherubim4 ,solomon sat on a   
throne of ivory4 ,at the seating place  
of  the throne1 on each end of the      
steps1 a brazen lion4 ,why1 my friends1 
in that place they trimmed their candles
 with snuffers of gold1 and  they cut   
their fruits with knives of gold1 and   
they washed their faces  in basins of   

gold1 and they scooped out the ashes    
with shovels of  gold1 and they stirred 
the altar fires with tongs of gold4     
,gold  reflected in the water6 ,gold    
flashing from the apparel6 ,gold blazing
  in the crown6 ,gold1 gold1 gold6      
,of course the news of the affluence of 
that place went out everywhere  by every
 caravan and by wing of every ship1     
until soon the streets of  ,jerusalem   
are crowded with curiosity seekers4     
,what is that long  procession          
approaching ,jerusalem8 ,i think from   
the pomp of it there  must be royalty in
 the train4 ,i smell the breath of the  
spices which  are brought as presents1  
and ,i hear the shout of the drivers1   
and ,i  see the dust-covered caravan    
showing that they come from far away4   
,cry  the news up to the palace4 ,the   
,queen of ,sheba advances4 ,let all the 
people come out to see4 ,let the mighty 
men of the land come out on the  palace 
corridors4 ,let ,solomon come down the  
stairs of the palace  before the queen  

has alighted4 ,shake out the cinnamon1  
and the  saffron1 and the calamus1 and  
the frankincense1 and pass it into the  
treasure house4 ,take up the diamonds   
until they glitter in the sun4    ,the  
,queen of ,sheba alights4 ,she enters   
the palace4 ,she washes at the  bath4   
,she sits down at the banquet4 ,the     
cup-bearers bow4 ,the meat  smokes4 ,the
 music trembles in the dash of the      
waters from the molten  sea4 ,then she  
rises from the banquet1 and walks       
through the  conservatories1 and gazes  
on the architecture1 and she asks       
,solomon  many strange questions1 and   
she learns about the religion of the    
,hebrews1 and she then and there becomes
 a servant of the ,lord ,god4    ,she is
 overwhelmed4 ,she begins to think that 
all the spices she  brought1 and all the
 precious woods which are intended to be
 turned  into harps and psalteries and  
into railings for the causeway between  
the temple and the palace1 and the one  
hundred and eighty thousand  dollars in 

money--she begins to think that all     
these presents amount  to nothing in    
such a place1 and she is almost ashamed 
that she has  brought them1 and she says
 within herself3 ,i heard a great deal  
about this place1 and about this        
wonderful religion of the ,hebrews1  but
 ,i find it far beyond my highest       
anticipations4 ,i must add more  than   
fifty per cent4 to what has been        
related4 ,it exceeds everything  that ,i
 could have expected4 ,the half--the    
half was not told me4    ,learn from    
this subject what a beautiful thing it  
is when social  position and wealth     
surrender themselves to ,god4 ,when     
religion comes  to a neighborhood1 the  
first to receive it are the women4 ,some
 men say  it is because they are        
weak-minded4 ,i say it is because they  
have  quicker perception of what is     
right1 more ardent affection and        
capacity for sublimer emotion4 ,after   
the women have received the  ,gospel    
then all the distressed and the poor of 

both sexes1 those who  have no friends1 
accept ,jesus4 ,last of all come the    
people of  affluence and high social    
position4 ,alas1 that it is so6    ,if  
there are those here to-day who have    
been favored of fortune1 or1  as ,i     
might better put it1 favored of ,god1   
surrender all you have and  all you     
expect to be to the ,lord who blessed   
this ,queen of ,sheba4  ,certainly you  
are not ashamed to be found in this     
queen's company4 ,i  am glad that       
,christ has had ,his imperial friends in
 all  ages--,elizabeth ,christina1      
,queen of ,prussia2 ,maria ,feodorovna1 
,queen  of ,russia2 ,marie1 ,empress of 
,france2 ,helena1 the imperial mother of
  ,constantine2 ,arcadia1 from her great
 fortunes building public baths in      
,constantinople and toiling for the     
alleviation of the masses2 ,queen       
,clotilda1 leading her husband and three
 thousand of his armed warriors  to     
,christian baptism2 ,elizabeth of       
,burgundy1 giving her jeweled glove  to 

a beggar1 and scattering great fortunes 
among the distressed2  ,prince ,albert1 
singing ,rock of ,ages in ,windsor      
,castle1 and ,queen  ,victoria1         
incognita1 reading the ,scriptures to a 
dying pauper4    ,i bless ,god that the 
day is coming when royalty will bring   
all its  thrones1 and music all its     
harmonies1 and painting all its         
pictures1  and sculpture all its        
statuary1 and architecture all its      
pillars1 and  conquest all its scepters2
 and the queens of the earth1 in long   
line  of advance1 frankincense filling  
the air and the camels laden with  gold1
 shall approach ,jerusalem1 and the     
gates shall be hoisted1 and  the great  
burden of splendor shall be lifted into 
the palace of this  greater than        
,solomon4    ,again1 my subject teaches 
me what is earnestness in the search of 
truth4 ,do you know where ,sheba was8   
,it was in ,abyssinia1 or some say  in  
the southern part of ,arabia ,felix4 ,in
 either case it was a great  way off    

from ,jerusalem4 ,to get from there to  
,jerusalem she had to  cross a country  
infested with bandits1 and go across    
blistering  deserts4 ,why did not the   
,queen of ,sheba stay at home and send a
  committee to inquire about this new   
religion1 and have the delegates  report
 in regard to that religion and wealth  
of ,king ,solomon8 ,she  wanted to see  
for herself1 and hear for herself4 ,she 
could not do this  by work of committee4
 ,she felt she had a soul worth ten     
thousand  kingdoms like ,sheba1 and she 
wanted a robe richer than any woven by  
,oriental shuttles1 and she wanted a    
crown set with the jewels of  eternity4 
,bring out the camels4 ,put on the      
spices4 ,gather up the  jewels of the   
throne and put them on the caravan4     
,start now2 no time  to be lost4 ,goad  
on the camels4 ,when ,i see that        
caravan1  dust-covered1 weary1 and      
exhausted1 trudging on across the desert
 and  among the bandits until it reaches
 ,jerusalem1 ,i say3 ,there is an       

earnest seeker after the truth4    ,but 
there are a great many of you1 my       
friends1 who do not act in that  way4   
,you all want to get the truth1 but you 
want the truth to come  to-you2 you do  
not want to go to it4 ,there are people 
who fold their  arms and say3 ,i am     
ready to become a ,christian at any     
time2 if ,i am  to be saved ,i shall be 
saved1 and if ,i am to be lost ,i shall 
be lost4  ,a man who says that and keeps
 on saying it1 will be lost4 ,jerusalem 
will never come to you2 you must go to  
,jerusalem4 ,the religion of the  ,lord 
,jesus ,christ will not come to you2 you
 must go and get religion4  ,bring out  
the camels2 put on all the sweet spices1
 all the treasures  of the heart's      
affection4 ,start for the throne4 ,go in
 and hear the  waters of salvation      
dashing in fountains all around about   
the throne4  ,sit down at the           
banquet--the wine pressed from the      
grapes of the  heavenly ,eschol1 the    
angels of ,god the cup-bearers4 ,goad on

 the  camels2 ,jerusalem will never come
 to you2 you must go to ,jerusalem4     
,the ,bible declares it3 ,the ,queen of 
the ,south--that is1 this very  woman ,i
 am speaking of--the ,queen of the      
,south shall rise up in  judgment       
against this generation and condemn it2 
for she came from the  uttermost parts  
of the earth to hear the wisdom of      
,solomon3 and1  behold6 a greater than  
,solomon is here4 ,god help me to break 
up the  infatuation of those people who 
are sitting down in idleness expecting  
to be saved4 ,strive to enter in at the 
strait gate4 ,ask1 and it  shall be     
given you2 seek1 and ye shall find2     
knock1 and it shall be  opened to you4  
,take the ,kingdom of ,heaven by        
violence4 ,urge on the  camels6         
,again1 my subject impresses me with the
 fact that religion is a  surprise to   
any one that gets it4 ,this story of the
 new religion in  ,jerusalem1 and of the
 glory of ,king ,solomon1 who was a type
 of  ,christ--that story rolls on and   

on1 and is told by every traveler       
coming back from ,jerusalem4 ,the news  
goes on the wing of every ship  and with
 every caravan1 and you know a story    
enlarges as it is retold1  and by the   
time that story gets down into the      
southern part of ,arabia  ,felix1 and   
the ,queen of ,sheba hears it1 it must  
be a tremendous story4  ,and yet this   
queen declares in regard to it1 although
 she had heard so  much and had her     
anticipations raised so high1 the       
half--the half was  not told her4    ,so
 religion is always a surprise to any   
one that gets it4 ,the story of         
grace--an old story4 ,apostles preached 
it with rattle of chain2  martyrs       
declared it with arm of fire2 death-beds
 have affirmed it with  visions of      
glory1 and ministers of religion have   
sounded it through  the lanes1 and the  
highways1 and the chapels1 and the      
cathedrals4 ,it  has been cut into stone
 with chisel1 and spread on the canvas  
with  pencil2 and it has been recited in

 the doxology of great  congregations4  
,and yet when a man first comes to look 
on the palace of  ,god's mercy1 and to  
see the royalty of ,christ1 and the     
wealth of this  banquet1 and the        
luxuriance of ,his attendants1 and the  
loveliness of  ,his face1 and the joy of
 ,his service1 he exclaims with prayers1
 with  tears1 with sighs1 with triumphs3
 ,the half--the half was not told  me6  
,i appeal to those in this house who are
 ,christians4 ,compare the idea  you had
 of the joy of the ,christian life      
before you became a ,christian  with the
 appreciation of that joy you have now  
since you have become a  ,christian1 and
 you are willing to attest before angels
 and men that  you never in the days of 
your spiritual bondage had any          
appreciation  of what was to come4 ,you 
are ready to-day to answer1 and if ,i   
gave you  an opportunity in the midst of
 this assemblage1 you would speak out   
and say in regard to the discoveries you
 have made of the mercy and  the grace  

and the goodness of ,god3 ,the half--the
 half was not told  me6    ,well1 we    
hear a great deal about the good time   
that is coming to this  world1 when it  
is to be girded with salvation4         
,holiness on the bells  of the horses4  
,the lion's mane patted by the hand of a
 babe4 ,ships of  ,tarshish bringing    
cargoes for ,jesus1 and the hard1 dry1  
barren1  winter-bleached1 storm-scarred1
 thunder-split rock breaking into       
floods of bright water4 ,deserts into   
which dromedaries thrust their          
nostrils1 because they were afraid of   
the simoom--deserts blooming  into      
carnation roses and silver-tipped       
lilies4    ,it is the old story4        
,everybody tells it4 ,isaiah told it1   
,john told it1  ,paul told it1 ,ezekiel 
told it1 ,luther told it1 ,calvin told  
it1 ,john  ,milton told it--everybody   
tells it2 and yet--and yet when the     
midnight  shall fly the hills1 and      
,christ shall marshal ,his great army1  
and  ,china1 dashing her idols into the 

dust1 shall hear the voice of ,god  and 
wheel into line2 and ,india1 destroying 
her ,juggernaut and  snatching up her   
little children from the ,ganges1 shall 
hear the  voice of ,god and wheel into  
line2 and vine-covered ,italy1 and      
wheat-crowned ,russia1 and all the      
nations of the earth shall hear the     
voice of ,god and fall into line2 then  
the ,church1 which has been  toiling and
 struggling through the centuries1 robed
 and garlanded like  a bride adorned for
 her husband1 shall put aside her veil  
and look up  into the face of her ,lord 
the ,king1 and say3 ,the half--the half 
was  not told me4    ,well1 there is    
coming a greater surprise to every      
,christian--a greater  surprise than    
anything ,i have depicted4 ,heaven is an
 old story4  ,everybody talks about it4 
,there is hardly a hymn in the hymn-book
 that  does not refer to it4 ,children  
read about it in their ,sabbath-school  
book4 ,aged men put on their spectacles 
to study it4 ,we say it is a  harbor    

from the storm4 ,we call it our home4   
,we say it is the house of  many        
mansions4 ,we weave together all sweet1 
beautiful1 delicate1  exhilarant words2 
we weave them into letters1 and then we 
spell it out  in rose and lily and      
amaranth4 ,and yet that place is going  
to be a  surprise to the most           
intelligent ,christian4 ,like the ,queen
 of ,sheba1  the report has come to us  
from the far country1 and many of us    
have  started4 ,it is a desert march1   
but we urge on the camels4 ,what though 
our feet be blistered with the way8 ,we 
are hastening to the palace4 ,we  take  
all our loves and hopes and ,christian  
ambitions1 as frankincense  and myrrh   
and cassia1 to the great ,king4 ,we must
 not rest4 ,we must not  halt4 ,the     
night is coming on1 and it is not safe  
out here in the  desert4 ,urge on the   
camels4 ,i see the domes against the    
sky1 and the  houses of ,lebanon1 and   
the temples and the gardens4 ,see the   
fountains  dance in the sun1 and the    

gates flash as they open to let in the  
poor  pilgrims4    ,send the word up to 
the palace that we are coming1 and that 
we are  weary of the march of the       
desert4 ,the ,king will come out and    
say3  ,welcome to the palace2 bathe in  
these waters1 recline on these banks4   
,take this cinnamon and frankincense and
 myrrh and put it upon a censer  and    
swing it before the altar4 ,and yet1 my 
friends1 when heaven  bursts upon us it 
will be a greater surprise than         
that--,jesus on the  throne1 and we made
 like ,him6 ,all our ,christian friends 
surrounding us  in glory6 ,all our      
sorrows and tears and sins gone by      
forever6 ,the  thousands of thousands1  
the one hundred and forty-and-four      
thousand1  the great multitudes that no 
man can number1 will cry1 world without 
end3 ,the half--the half was not told   
us6          ,,vicarious ,,suffering4   
,without shedding of blood is no        
remission4--,,heb4 ix3 #bb4      ,john  
,g4 ,whittier1 the last of the great    

school of ,american poets that  made the
 last quarter of a century brilliant1   
asked me in the ,white  ,mountains1 one 
morning after prayers1 in which ,i had  
given out  ,cowper's famous hymn about  
,the ,fountain ,filled with ,blood1 ,do 
you  really believe there is a literal  
application of the blood of ,christ  to 
the soul8 ,my negative reply then is my 
negative reply now4 ,the  ,bible        
statement agrees with all physicians1   
and all physiologists1 and  all         
scientists1 in saying that the blood is 
the life1 and in the  ,christian        
religion it means simply that ,christ's 
life was given for  our life4 ,hence all
 this talk of men who say the ,bible    
story of blood  is disgusting1 and that 
they don't want what they call a        
slaughter-house religion1 only shows    
their incapacity or  unwillingness to   
look through the figure of speech toward
 the thing  signified4 ,the blood that1 
on the darkest ,friday the world ever   
saw1  oozed1 or trickled1 or poured from

 the brow1 and the side1 and the  hands1
 and the feet of the illustrious        
sufferer1 back of ,jerusalem1 in  a few 
hours coagulated and dried up1 and      
forever disappeared2 and if  man had    
depended on the application of the      
literal blood of ,christ1  there would  
not have been a soul saved for the last 
eighteen  centuries4    ,in order to    
understand this red word of my text1 we 
only have to  exercise as much common   
sense in religion as we do in everything
 else4  ,pang for pang1 hunger for      
hunger1 fatigue for fatigue1 tear for   
tear1  blood for blood1 life for life1  
we see every day illustrated4 ,the act  
of substitution is no novelty1 although 
,i hear men talk as though the  idea of 
,christ's suffering substituted for our 
suffering were  something abnormal1     
something distressingly odd1 something  
wildly  eccentric1 a solitary episode in
 the world's history2 when ,i could     
take you out into this city1 and before 
sundown point you to five  hundred cases

 of substitution and voluntary suffering
 of one in behalf  of another4    ,at   
two o'clock to-morrow afternoon go among
 the places of business or  toil4 ,it   
will be no difficult thing for you to   
find men who1 by their  looks1 show you 
that they are overworked4 ,they are     
prematurely old4  ,they are hastening   
rapidly toward their decease4 ,they have
 gone  through crises in business that  
shattered their nervous system1 and     
pulled on the brain4 ,they have a       
shortness of breath1 and a pain in  the 
back of the head1 and at night an       
insomnia that alarms them4 ,why  are    
they drudging at business early and     
late8 ,for fun8 ,no2 it would be        
difficult to extract any amusement out  
of that exhaustion4 ,because  they are  
avaricious8 ,in many cases no4 ,because 
their own personal  expenses are lavish8
 ,no2 a few hundred dollars would meet  
all their  wants4 ,the simple fact is1  
the man is enduring all that fatigue and
  exasperation1 and wear and tear1 to   

keep his home prosperous4 ,there  is an 
invisible line reaching from that store1
 from that bank1 from  that shop1 from  
that scaffolding1 to a quiet scene a few
 blocks1 a few  miles away1 and there is
 the secret of that business endurance4 
,he is  simply the champion of a        
homestead1 for which he wins bread1 and 
wardrobe1 and education1 and prosperity1
 and in such battle ten  thousand men   
fall4 ,of ten business men whom ,i bury1
 nine die of  overwork for others4 ,some
 sudden disease finds them with no power
 of  resistance1 and they are gone4     
,life for life4 ,blood for blood4       
,substitution6    ,at one o'clock       
to-morrow morning1 the hour when slumber
 is most  uninterrupted and most        
profound1 walk amid the dwelling-houses 
of the  city4 ,here and there you will  
find a dim light1 because it is the     
household custom to keep a subdued light
 burning3 but most of the  houses from  
base to top are as dark as though       
uninhabited4 ,a merciful  ,god has sent 

forth the archangel of sleep1 and he    
puts his wings over  the city4 ,but     
yonder is a clear light burning1 and    
outside on the  window casement a glass 
or pitcher containing food for a sick   
child2  the food is set in the fresh    
air4 ,this is the sixth night that      
mother  has sat up with that sufferer4  
,she has to the last point obeyed the   
physician's prescription1 not giving a  
drop too much or too little1 or  a      
moment too soon or too late4 ,she is    
very anxious1 for she has buried  three 
children with the same disease1 and she 
prays and weeps1 each  prayer and sob   
ending with a kiss of the pale cheek4   
,by dint of  kindness she gets the      
little one through the ordeal4 ,after it
 is all  over1 the mother is taken down4
 ,brain or nervous fever sets in1 and   
one day she leaves the convalescent     
child with a mother's blessing1  and    
goes up to join the three in the kingdom
 of heaven4 ,life for life4             
,substitution6 ,the fact is that there  

are an uncounted number of  mothers who1
 after they have navigated a large      
family of children  through all the     
diseases of infancy1 and got them fairly
 started up  the flowering slope of     
boyhood and girlhood1 have only strength
 enough  left to die4 ,they fade away4  
,some call it consumption2 some call it 
nervous prostration2 some call it       
intermittent or malarial  disposition2  
but ,i call it martyrdom of the domestic
 circle4 ,life for  life4 ,blood for    
blood4 ,substitution6    ,or perhaps the
 mother lingers long enough to see a son
 get on the  wrong road1 and his former 
kindness becomes rough reply when she   
expresses anxiety about him4 ,but she   
goes right on1 looking carefully  after 
his apparel1 remembering his every      
birthday with some memento1  and when he
 is brought home worn out with          
dissipation1 nurses him till  he gets   
well and starts him again1 and hopes1   
and expects1 and prays1  and counsels1  
and suffers1 until her strength gives   

out and she fails4  ,she is going1 and  
attendants1 bending over her pillow1 ask
 her if she  has any message to leave1  
and she makes great effort to say       
something1  but out of three or four    
minutes of indistinct utterance they can
  catch but three words3 ,my poor boy6  
,the simple fact is she died for  him4  
,life for life4 ,substitution6    ,about
 twenty-four years ago there went forth 
from our homes hundreds  of thousands of
 men to do battle for their country4    
,all the poetry of  war soon vanished1  
and left them nothing but the terrible  
prose4 ,they  waded knee-deep in mud4   
,they slept in snow-banks4 ,they marched
 till  their cut feet tracked the earth4
 ,they were swindled out of their       
honest rations1 and lived on meat not   
fit for a dog4 ,they had jaws all       
fractured1 and eyes extinguished1 and   
limbs shot away4 ,thousands of  them    
cried for water as they lay dying on the
 field the night after  the battle1 and 
got it not4 ,they were homesick1 and    

received no  message from their loved   
ones4 ,they died in barns1 in bushes1 in
  ditches1 the buzzards of the summer   
heat the only attendants on their       
obsequies4 ,no one but the infinite ,god
 who knows everything1 knows the  ten   
thousandth part of the length1 and      
breadth1 and depth1 and height  of      
anguish of the ,northern and ,southern  
battlefields4 ,why did these  fathers   
leave their children and go to the      
front1 and why did these  young men1    
postponing the marriage-day1 start out  
into the  probabilities of never coming 
back8 ,for the country they died4 ,life 
for life4 ,blood for blood4             
,substitution6    ,but we need not go so
 far4 ,what is that monument in         
,greenwood8 ,it is  to the doctors who  
fell in the ,southern epidemics4 ,why   
go8 ,were there  not enough sick to be  
attended in these ,northern latitudes8  
,oh1 yes2  but the doctor puts a few    
medical books in his valise1 and some   
vials  of medicine1 and leaves his      

patients here in the hands of other     
physicians1 and takes the rail-train4   
,before he gets to the infected  regions
 he passes crowded rail-trains1 regular 
and extra1 taking the  flying and       
affrighted populations4 ,he arrives in a
 city over which a  great horror is     
brooding4 ,he goes from couch to couch1 
feeling of  pulse and studying symptoms1
 and prescribing day after day1 night   
after night1 until a fellow-physician   
says3 ,doctor1 you had better go  home  
and rest2 you look miserable4 ,but he   
can not rest while so many  are         
suffering4 ,on and on1 until some       
morning finds him in a delirium1  in    
which he talks of home1 and then rises  
and says he must go and look  after     
those patients4 ,he is told to lie down2
 but he fights his  attendants until he 
falls back1 and is weaker and weaker1   
and dies for  people with whom he had no
 kinship1 and far away from his own     
family1  and is hastily put away in a   
stranger's tomb1 and only the fifth part

  of a newspaper line tells us of his   
sacrifice--his name just mentioned      
among five4 ,yet he has touched the     
furthest height of sublimity in  that   
three weeks of humanitarian service4 ,he
 goes straight as an arrow  to the bosom
 of ,him who said3 ,i was sick and ye   
visited ,me4 ,life for  life4 ,blood for
 blood4 ,substitution6    ,in the legal 
profession ,i see the same principle of 
self-sacrifice4 ,in  #ahdf1 ,william    
,freeman1 a pauperized and idiotic      
negro1 was at ,auburn1  ,n4,y41 on trial
 for murder4 ,he had slain the entire   
,van ,nest family4  ,the foaming wrath  
of the community could be kept off him  
only by armed  constables4 ,who would   
volunteer to be his counsel8 ,no        
attorney wanted  to sacrifice his       
popularity by such an ungrateful task4  
,all were  silent save one1 a young     
lawyer with feeble voice1 that could    
hardly  be heard outside the bar1 pale  
and thin and awkward4 ,it was ,william  
,h4  ,seward1 who saw that the prisoner 

was idiotic and irresponsible1 and      
ought to be put in an asylum rather than
 put to death1 the heroic  counsel      
uttering these beautiful words3    ,i   
speak now in the hearing of a people who
 have prejudged prisoner  and condemned 
me for pleading in his behalf4 ,he is a 
convict1 a  pauper1 a negro1 without    
intellect1 sense1 or emotion4 ,my child 
with  an affectionate smile disarms my  
care-worn face of its frown whenever  ,i
 cross my threshold4 ,the beggar in the 
street obliges me to give  because he   
says1 ',god bless you6' as ,i pass4 ,my 
dog caresses me with  fondness if ,i    
will but smile on him4 ,my horse        
recognizes me when ,i  fill his manger4 
,what reward1 what gratitude1 what      
sympathy and  affection can ,i expect   
here8 ,there the prisoner sits4 ,look at
 him4  ,look at the assemblage around   
you4 ,listen to their ill-suppressed    
censures and their excited fears1 and   
tell me where among my neighbors  or my 
fellow-men1 where1 even in his heart1 ,i

 can expect to find a  sentiment1 a     
thought1 not to say of reward or of     
acknowledgment1 or  even of recognition8
 ,gentlemen1 you may think of this      
evidence what  you please1 bring in what
 verdict you can1 but ,i asseverate     
before  ,heaven and you1 that1 to the   
best of my knowledge and belief1 the    
prisoner at the bar does not at this    
moment know why it is that my  shadow   
falls on you instead of his own4    ,the
 gallows got its victim1 but the        
post-mortem examination of the  poor    
creature showed to all the surgeons and 
to all the world that the  public were  
wrong1 and ,william ,h4 ,seward was     
right1 and that hard1  stony step of    
obloquy in the ,auburn court-room was   
the first step of  the stairs of fame up
 which he went to the top1 or to within 
one step  of the top1 that last denied  
him through the treachery of ,american  
politics4 ,nothing sublimer was ever    
seen in an ,american court-room  than   
,william ,h4 ,seward1 without reward1   

standing between the fury of  the       
populace and the loathsome imbecile4    
,substitution6    ,in the realm of the  
fine arts there was as remarkable an    
instance4 ,a  brilliant but             
hypercriticised painter1 ,joseph        
,william ,turner1 was met  by a volley  
of abuse from all the art galleries of  
,europe4 ,his  paintings1 which have    
since won the applause of all civilized 
nations1  ,the ,fifth ,plague of ,egypt1
 ,fishermen on a ,lee ,shore in ,squally
  ,weather1 ,calais ,pier1 ,the ,sun    
,rising ,through ,mist1 and ,dido       
,building ,carthage1 were then targets  
for critics to shoot at4 ,in  defense of
 this outrageously abused man1 a young  
author of twenty-four  years1 just one  
year out of college1 came forth with his
 pen1 and  wrote the ablest and most    
famous essays on art that the world ever
  saw1 or ever will see--,john ,ruskin's
 ,modern ,painters4 ,for seventeen      
years this author fought the battles of 
the maltreated artist1 and  after1 in   

poverty and broken-heartedness1 the     
painter had died1 and  the public tried 
to undo their cruelties toward him by   
giving him a  big funeral and burial at 
,st4 ,paul's ,cathedral1 his old-time   
friend  took out of a tin box nineteen  
thousand pieces of paper containing     
drawings by the old painter1 and through
 many weary and uncompensated  months   
assorted and arranged them for public   
observation4 ,people say  ,john ,ruskin 
in his old days is cross1 misanthropic1 
and morbid4  ,whatever he may do that he
 ought not to do1 and whatever he may   
say  that he ought not to say between   
now and his death1 he will leave this   
world insolvent as far as it has any    
capacity to pay this author's pen  for  
its chivalric and ,christian defense of 
a poor painter's pencil4  ,john ,ruskin 
for ,william ,turner4 ,blood for blood4 
,substitution6    ,what an exalting     
principle this which leads one to suffer
 for another6  ,nothing so kindles      
enthusiasm or awakens eloquence1 or     

chimes poetic  canto1 or moves nations4 
,the principle is the dominant one in   
our  religion--,christ the ,martyr1     
,christ the celestial ,hero1 ,christ the
  ,defender1 ,christ the ,substitute4   
,no new principle1 for it was as old  as
 human nature2 but now on a grander1    
wider1 higher1 deeper1 and more         
world-resounding scale6 ,the shepherd   
boy as a champion for ,israel with  a   
sling toppled the giant of ,philistine  
braggadocio in the dust2 but  here is   
another ,david who1 for all the armies  
of churches militant and  triumphant1   
hurls the ,goliath of perdition into    
defeat1 the crash of  his brazen armor  
like an explosion at ,hell ,gate4       
,abraham had at ,god's  command agreed  
to sacrifice his son ,isaac1 and the    
same ,god just in  time had provided a  
ram of the thicket as a substitute2 but 
here is  another ,isaac bound to the    
altar1 and no hand arrests the sharp    
edges  of laceration and death1 and the 
universe shivers and quakes and  recoils

 and groans at the horror4    ,all good 
men have for centuries been trying to   
tell whom this  ,substitute was like1   
and every comparison1 inspired and      
uninspired1  evangelistic1 prophetic1   
apostolic1 and human1 falls short1 for  
,christ  was the ,great ,unlike4 ,adam a
 type of ,christ1 because he came       
directly  from ,god2 ,noah a type of    
,christ1 because he delivered his own   
family  from deluge2 ,melchisedec a type
 of ,christ1 because he had no          
predecessor or successor2 ,joseph a type
 of ,christ1 because he was cast  out by
 his brethren2 ,moses a type of ,christ1
 because he was a  deliverer from       
bondage2 ,joshua a type of ,christ1     
because he was a  conqueror2 ,samson a  
type of ,christ1 because of his strength
 to slay  the lions and carry off the   
iron gates of impossibility2 ,solomon a 
type of ,christ1 in the affluence of his
 dominion2 ,jonah a type of  ,christ1   
because of the stormy sea in which he   
threw himself for the  rescue of others2

 but put together ,adam and ,noah and   
,melchisedec and  ,joseph and ,moses and
 ,joshua and ,samson and ,solomon and   
,jonah1 and they  would not make a      
fragment of a ,christ1 a quarter of a   
,christ1 the half  of a ,christ1 or the 
millionth part of a ,christ4    ,he     
forsook a throne and sat down on ,his   
own footstool4 ,he came from  the top of
 glory to the bottom of humiliation1 and
 changed a  circumference seraphic for a
 circumference diabolic4 ,once waited on
 by  angels1 now hissed at by brigands4 
,from afar and high up ,he came down2   
past meteors swifter than they2 by      
starry thrones1 ,himself more  lustrous2
 past larger worlds to smaller worlds2  
down stairs of  firmaments1 and from    
cloud to cloud1 and through tree-tops   
and into  the earners stall1 to thrust  
,his shoulder under our burdens and take
  the lances of pain through ,his       
vitals1 and wrapped himself in all the  
agonies which we deserve for our        
misdoings1 and stood on the splitting   

decks of a foundering vessel1 amid the  
drenching surf of the sea1 and  passed  
midnights on the mountains amid wild    
beasts of prey1 and stood  at the point 
where all earthly and infernal          
hostilities charged on ,him  at once    
with their keen sabers--our ,substitute6
    ,when did attorney ever endure so   
much for a pauper client1 or  physician 
for the patient in the lazaretto1 or    
mother for the child in  membranous     
croup1 as ,christ for us1 and ,christ   
for you1 and ,christ for  me8 ,shall any
 man or woman or child in this audience 
who has ever  suffered for another find 
it hard to understand this ,christly    
suffering for us8 ,shall those whose    
sympathies have been wrung in  behalf of
 the unfortunate have no appreciation of
 that one moment  which was lifted out  
of all the ages of eternity as most     
conspicuous1  when ,christ gathered up  
all the sins of those to be redeemed    
under ,his  one arm1 and all their      
sorrows under ,his other arm1 and said3 

,i will  atone for these under my right 
arm1 and will heal all those under my   
left arm4 ,strike me with all thy       
glittering shafts1 ,o ,eternal ,justice6
  ,roll over me with all thy surges1 ye 
oceans of sorrow8 ,and the  thunderbolts
 struck ,him from above1 and the seas of
 trouble rolled up  from beneath1       
hurricane after hurricane1 and cyclone  
after cyclone1  and then and there in   
presence of heaven and earth and hell1  
yea1 all  worlds witnessing1 the price1 
the bitter price1 the transcendent      
price1 the awful price1 the glorious    
price1 the infinite price1 the  eternal 
price1 was paid that sets us free4      
,that is what ,paul means1 that is what 
,i mean1 that is what all those  who    
have ever had their heart changed mean  
by blood4 ,i glory in this  religion of 
blood6 ,i am thrilled as ,i see the     
suggestive color in  sacramental cup1   
whether it be of burnished silver set on
 cloth  immaculately white1 or          
rough-hewn from wood set on table in    

log-hut  meeting-house of the           
wilderness4 ,now ,i am thrilled as ,i   
see the altars  of ancient sacrifice    
crimson with the blood of the slain     
lamb1 and  ,leviticus is to me not so   
much the ,old ,testament as the ,new4   
,now ,i see  why the destroying angel   
passing over ,egypt in the night spared 
all  those houses that had blood        
sprinkled on their door-posts4 ,now ,i  
know  what ,isaiah means when he speaks 
of one in red apparel coming with  dyed 
garments from ,bozrah2 and whom the     
,apocalypse means when it  describes a  
heavenly chieftain whose vesture was    
dipped in blood2  and what ,peter1 the  
apostle1 means when he speaks of the    
precious  blood that cleanseth from all 
sin2 and what the old1 worn-out1        
decrepit missionary ,paul means when1 in
 my text1 he cries1 ,without  shedding  
of blood is no remission4 ,by that blood
 you and ,i will be  saved--or never    
saved at all4 ,in all the ages of the   
world ,god has not  once pardoned a     

single sin except through the ,saviour's
 expiation1 and  ,he never will4 ,glory 
be to ,god that the hill back of        
,jerusalem was the  battle-field on     
which ,christ achieved our liberty6     
,the most exciting and overpowering day 
of last summer was the day ,i  spent on 
the battle-field of ,waterloo4 ,starting
 out with the morning  train from       
,brussels1 ,belgium1 we arrived in about
 an hour on that  famous spot4 ,a son of
 one who was in the battle1 and who had 
heard  from his father a thousand times 
the whole scene recited1 accompanied  us
 over the field4 ,there stood the old   
,hougomont ,chteau1 the walls  dented1  
and scratched1 and broken1 and shattered
 by grape-shot and  cannon-ball4 ,there 
is the well in which three hundred dying
 and dead  were pitched4 ,there is the  
chapel with the head of the infant      
,christ  shot off4 ,there are the gates 
at which1 for many hours1 ,english and  
,french armies wrestled4 ,yonder were   
the one hundred and sixty guns of  the  

,english1 and the two hundred and fifty 
guns of the ,french4 ,yonder  the       
,hanoverian ,hussars fled for the woods4
 ,yonder was the ravine of  ,ohain1     
where the ,french cavalry1 not knowing  
there was a hollow in the  ground1      
rolled over and down1 troop after troop1
 tumbling into one  awful mass of       
suffering1 hoof of kicking horses       
against brow and  breast of captains and
 colonels and private soldiers1 the     
human and  the beastly groan kept up    
until1 the day after1 all was shoveled  
under  because of the malodor arising in
 that hot month of ,june4    ,there1    
said our guide1 the ,highland regiments 
lay down on their  faces waiting for the
 moment to spring upon the foe4 ,in that
 orchard  twenty-five hundred men were  
cut to pieces4 ,here stood ,wellington  
with  white lips1 and up that knoll rode
 ,marshal ,ney on his sixth horse1  five
 having been shot under him4 ,here the  
ranks of the ,french broke1  and        
,marshal ,ney1 with his boot slashed of 

a sword1 and his hat off1  and his face 
covered with powder and blood1 tried to 
rally his troops  as he cried3 ',come   
and see how a marshal of ,french dies on
 the  battle-field4' ,from yonder       
direction ,grouchy was expected for the 
,french re-enforcement1 but he came not4
 ,around those woods ,blucher was       
looked for to re-enforce the ,english1  
and just in time he came up4  ,yonder is
 the field where ,napoleon stood1 his   
arm through the reins of  the horse's   
bridle1 dazed and insane1 trying to go  
back4 ,scene of a  battle that went on  
from twenty-five minutes to twelve      
o'clock1 on the  eighteenth of ,june1   
until four o'clock1 when the ,english   
seemed  defeated1 and their commander   
cried out2 ,boys1 can you think of      
giving way8 ,remember old ,england6 and 
the tides turned1 and at eight  o'clock 
in the evening the man of destiny1 who  
was called by his  troops ,old ,two     
,hundred ,thousand1 turned away with    
broken heart1 and  the fate of centuries

 was decided4    ,no wonder a great     
mound has been reared there1 hundreds of
 feet  high--a mound at the expense of  
millions of dollars and many years in   
rising1 and on the top is the great     
,belgian lion of bronze1 and a  grand   
old lion it is4 ,but our great ,waterloo
 was in ,palestine4 ,there  came a day  
when all hell rode up1 led by ,apollyon1
 and the ,captain of  our salvation     
confronted them alone4 ,the ,rider on   
the white horse of  the ,apocalypse     
going out against the black horse       
cavalry of death1 and  the battalions of
 the demoniac1 and the myrmidons of     
darkness4 ,from  twelve o'clock at noon 
to three o'clock in the afternoon the   
greatest  battle of the universe went   
on4 ,eternal destinies were being       
decided4  ,all the arrows of hell       
pierced our ,chieftain1 and the         
battle-axes  struck ,him1 until brow and
 cheek and shoulder and hand and foot   
were  incarnadined with oozing life2 but
 ,he fought on until ,he gave a final   

stroke with sword from ,jehovah's       
buckler1 and the commander-in-chief  of 
hell and all his forces fell back in    
everlasting ruin1 and the  victory is   
ours4 ,and on the mound that celebrates 
the triumph we plant  this day two      
figures1 not in bronze or iron or       
sculptured marble1 but  two figures of  
living light1 the ,lion of ,judah's     
tribe and the ,lamb  that was slain4    
,,posthumous ,,opportunity4        ,if  
the tree fall toward the south or toward
 the north1 in the      place where the 
tree falleth there it shall             
be4--,,eccles4 xi3 #c4      ,there is a 
hovering hope in the minds of a vast    
multitude that there  will be an        
opportunity in the next world to correct
 the mistakes of  this2 that1 if we do  
make complete shipwreck of our earthly  
life1 it  will be on a shore up which we
 may walk to a palace2 that1 as a       
defendant may lose his case in the      
,circuit ,court1 and carry it up to  the
 ,supreme ,court or ,court of ,chancery 

and get a reversal of judgment  in his  
behalf1 all the costs being thrown over 
on the other party1 so1  if we fail in  
the earthly trial1 we may in the higher 
jurisdiction of  eternity have the      
judgment of the lower court set aside1  
all the costs  remitted1 and we may be  
victorious defendants forever4    ,my   
object in this sermon is to show that   
common sense1 as well as my  text1      
declares that such an expectation is    
chimerical4 ,you say that  the          
impenitent man1 having got into the next
 world and seeing the  disaster1 will1  
as a result of that disaster1 turn1 the 
pain the cause  of his reformation4 ,but
 you can find ten thousand instances in 
this  world of men who have done wrong  
and distress overtook them suddenly4    
,did the distress heal them8 ,no2 they  
went right on4    ,that man was flung of
 dissipations4 ,you must stop drinking1 
said  the doctor1 and quit the fast life
 you are leading1 or it will  destroy   
you44 ,the patient suffers paroxysm     

after paroxysm2 but1 under  skillful    
medical treatment1 he begins to sit up1 
begins to walk about  the room1 begins  
to go to business4 ,and1 lo6 he goes    
back to the same  grog-shops for his    
morning dram1 and his even dram1 and the
 drams  between4 ,flat down again6 ,same
 doctor4 ,same physical anguish4 ,same  
medical warning4    ,now1 the illness is
 more protracted2 the liver is more     
stubborn1 the  stomach more irritable1  
and the digestive organs are more       
rebellious4  ,but after awhile he is out
 again1 goes back to the same           
dram-shops1  and goes the same round of 
sacrilege against his physical health4  
,he sees that his downward course is    
ruining his household1 that his  life is
 a perpetual perjury against his        
marriage vow1 that that  broken-hearted 
woman is so unlike the roseate young    
wife that he  married1 that her old     
schoolmates do not recognize her2 that  
his sons  are to be taunted for a       
life-time by the father's drunkenness1  

that  the daughters are to pass into    
life under the scarification of a       
disreputable ancestor4 ,he is drinking  
up their happiness1 their  prospects for
 this life1 and1 perhaps1 for the life  
to come4 ,sometimes  an appreciation of 
what he is doing comes upon him4 ,his   
nervous system  is all a tangle4 ,from  
crown of head to sole of foot he is one 
aching1  rasping1 crucifying1 damning   
torture4 ,where is he8 ,in hell on      
earth4  ,does it reform him8    ,after  
awhile he has delirium tremens1 with a  
whole jungle of hissing  reptiles let   
out on his pillow1 and his screams      
horrify the neighbors  as he dashes out 
of his bed1 crying3 ,take these things  
off me6 ,as he  sits1 pale and          
convalescent1 the doctor says3 ,now ,i  
want to have a  plain talk with you1 my 
dear fellow4 ,the next attack of this   
kind you  will have you will be beyond  
all medical skill1 and you will die4 ,he
  gets better and goes forth into the   
same round again4 ,this time  medicine  

takes no effect4 ,consultation of       
physicians agree in saying  there is no 
hope4 ,death ends the scene4    ,that   
process of inebriation1 warning1 and    
dissolution is going on  within stone's 
throw of this church1 going on in all   
the neighborhoods  of ,christendom4     
,pain does not correct4 ,suffering does 
not reform4 ,what  is true in one sense 
is true in all senses1 and will forever 
be so1  and yet men are expecting in the
 next world purgatorial rejuvenation4   
,take up the printed reports of the     
prisons of the ,united ,states1 and  you
 will find that the vast majority of the
 incarcerated have been  there before1  
some of them four1 five1 six times4     
,with a million  illustrations all      
working the other way in this world1    
people are  expecting that distress in  
the next state will be salvatory4 ,you  
can  not imagine any worse torture in   
any other world than that which some    
men have suffered here1 and without any 
salutary consequence4    ,furthermore1  

the prospect of a reformation in the    
next world is more  improbable than a   
reformation here4 ,in this world the    
life started  with innocence of infancy4
 ,in the case supposed the other life   
will  open with all the accumulated bad 
habits of many years upon him4  ,surely1
 it is easier to build a strong ship out
 of new timber than out  of an old hulk 
that has been ground up in the breakers4
 ,if with  innocence to start with in   
this life a man does not become godly1  
what  prospect is there that in the next
 world1 starting with sin1 there  would 
be a seraph evoluted8 ,surely the       
sculptor has more prospect of  making a 
fine statue out of a block of pure white
 ,parian marble than  out of an old     
black rock seamed and cracked with the  
storms of a half  century4 ,surely upon 
a clean1 white sheet of paper it is     
easier to  write a deed or a will than  
upon a sheet of paper all scribbled and 
blotted and torn from top to bottom4    
,yet men seem to think that1  though the

 life that began here comparatively     
perfect turned out  badly1 the next life
 will succeed1 though it starts with a  
dead  failure4    ,but1 says some one1  
,i think we ought to have a chance in   
the next  life1 because this life is so 
short it allows only small opportunity4 
,we hardly have time to turn around     
between cradle and tomb1 the wood  of   
the one almost touching the marble of   
the other4 ,but do you know  what made  
the ancient deluge a necessity8 ,it was 
the longevity of the  antediluvians4    
,they were worse in the second century  
of their  life-time than in the first   
hundred years1 and still worse in the   
third century1 and still worse all the  
way on to seven1 eight1 and  nine       
hundred years1 and the earth had to be  
washed1 and scrubbed1 and  soaked1 and  
anchored1 clear out of sight for more   
than a month before  it could be made   
fit for decent people to live in4       
,longevity never  cures impenitency4    
,all the pictures of ,time represent him

 with a  scythe to cut1 but ,i never saw
 any picture of ,time with a case of    
medicines to heal4 ,seneca says that    
,nero for the first five years of  his  
public life was set up for an example of
 clemency and kindness1  but his path   
all the way descended until at          
sixty-eight he became a  suicide4 ,if   
eight hundred years did not make        
antediluvians any better1  but only made
 them worse1 the ages of eternity could 
have no effect  except prolongation of  
depravity4    ,but1 says some one1 in   
the future state evil surroundings will 
be  withdrawn and elevated influences   
substituted1 and hence expurgation1  and
 sublimation1 and glorification4 ,but   
the righteous1 all their sins  forgiven1
 have passed on into a beatific state1  
and consequently the  unsaved will be   
left alone4 ,it can not be expected that
 ,doctor ,duff1  who exhausted himself  
in teaching ,hindoos the way to heaven1 
and  ,doctor ,abeel1 who gave his life  
in the evangelization of ,china1 and    

,adoniram ,judson1 who toiled for the   
redemption of ,borneo1 should be  sent  
down by some celestial missionary       
society to educate those who  wasted all
 their earthly existence4 ,evangelistic 
and missionary  efforts are ended4 ,the 
entire kingdom of the morally bankrupt  
by  themselves1 where are the salvatory 
influences to come from8 ,can one       
speckled and bad apple in a barrel of   
diseased apples turn the other  apples  
good8 ,can those who are themselves down
 help others up8 ,can  those who have   
themselves failed in the business of the
 soul pay the  debts of their spiritual 
insolvents8 ,can a million wrongs make  
one  right8    ,poneropolis was a city  
where ,king ,philip of ,thracia put all 
the bad  people of his kingdom4 ,if any 
man had opened a primary school at      
,poneropolis ,i do not think the parents
 from other cities would have  sent     
their children there4 ,instead of       
amendment in the other world1  all the  
associations1 now that the good are     

evolved1 will be  degenerating and down4
 ,you would not want to send a man to a 
cholera  or yellow fever hospital for   
his health2 and the great lazaretto of  
the next world1 containing the diseased 
and plague-struck1 will be a  poor place
 for moral recovery4 ,if the            
surroundings in this world were  crowded
 of temptation1 the surroundings of the 
next world1 after the  righteous have   
passed up and on1 will be a thousand per
 cent4 more  crowded of temptation4     
,the ,count of ,chateaubriand made his  
little son sleep at night at the  top of
 a castle turret1 where the winds howled
 and where specters were  said to haunt 
the place2 and while the mother and     
sisters almost died  with fright1 the   
son tells us that the process gave him  
nerves that  could not tremble and a    
courage that never faltered4 ,but ,i    
don't think  that towers of darkness and
 the spectral world swept by ,sirocco   
and  ,euroclydon will ever fit one for  
the land of eternal sunshine4 ,i  wonder

 what is the curriculum of that college 
of ,inferno1 where1 after  proper       
preparation by the sins of this life1   
the candidate enters1  passing on from  
freshman class of depravity to sophomore
 of  abandonment1 and from sophomore to 
junior1 and from junior to senior1  and 
day of graduation comes1 and with       
diploma signed by ,satan1 the           
president1 and other professorial       
demoniacs1 attesting that the  candidate
 has been long enough under their drill1
 he passes up to  enter heaven6         
,pandemonium a preparative course for   
heavenly admission6  ,ah1 my friends1   
,satan and his cohorts have fitted      
uncounted  multitudes for ruin1 but     
never fitted one soul for happiness4    
,furthermore1 it would not be safe for  
this world if men had another  chance in
 the next4 ,if it had been announced    
that1 however wickedly a  man might act 
in this world1 he could fix it up all   
right in the next1  society would be    
terribly demoralized1 and the human race

 demolished  in a few years4 ,the fear  
that1 if we are bad and unforgiven here1
 it  will not be well for us in the next
 existence1 is the chief influence  that
 keeps civilization from rushing back to
 semi-barbarism1 and  semi-barbarism    
from rushing into midnight savagery1 and
 midnight  savagery from extinction2 for
 it is the astringent impression of all 
nations1 ,christian and heathen1 that   
there is no future chance for  those who
 have wasted this4    ,multitudes of men
 who are kept within bounds would say1  
,go to1 now6  ,let me get all out of    
this life there is in it4 ,come1        
gluttony1 and  inebriation1 and         
uncleanness1 and revenge1 and all       
sensualities1 and  wait upon me6 ,my    
life may be somewhat shortened in this  
world by  dissoluteness1 but that will  
only make heavenly indulgence on a      
larger  scale the sooner possible4 ,i   
will overtake the saints at last1 and   
will enter the ,heavenly ,temple only a 
little later than those who  behaved    

themselves here4 ,i will on my way to   
heaven take a little  wider excursion   
than those who were on earth pious1 and 
,i shall go to  heaven via ,gehenna and 
via ,sheol4 ,another chance in the next 
world means free license and wild       
abandonment in this4    ,suppose you    
were a party in an important case at    
law1 and you knew  from consultation    
with judges and attorneys that it would 
be tried  twice1 and the first trial    
would be of little importance1 but that 
the  second would decide everything2 for
 which trial would you make the  most   
preparation1 for which retain the ablest
 attorneys1 for which be  most anxious  
about the attendance of witnesses8 ,you 
would put all the  stress upon the      
second trial1 all the anxiety1 all the  
expenditure1  saying1 ,the first is     
nothing1 the last is everything4 ,give  
the race  assurance of a second and more
 important trial in the subsequent life1
  and all the preparation for eternity  
would be post-mortem1  post-funeral1    

post-sepulchral1 and the world with one 
jerk be pitched  off into impiety and   
godlessness4    ,furthermore1 let me ask
 why a chance should be given in the    
next world  if we have refused          
innumerable chances in this8 ,suppose   
you give a  banquet1 and you invite a   
vast number of friends1 but one man     
declines  to come1 or treats your       
invitation with indifference4 ,you in   
the  course of twenty years give twenty 
banquets1 and the same man is  invited  
to them all1 and treats them all in the 
same obnoxious way4  ,after awhile you  
remove to another house1 larger and     
better1 and you  again invite your      
friends1 but send no invitation to the  
man who  declined or neglected the other
 invitations4 ,are you to blame8 ,has he
  a right to expect to be invited after 
all the indignities he has done  you8   
,god in this world has invited us all to
 the banquet of ,his grace4  ,he invited
 us by ,his ,providence and ,his ,spirit
 three hundred and  sixty-five days of  

every year since we knew our right hand 
from our  left4 ,if we declined it every
 time1 or treated the invitation with   
indifference1 and gave twenty or forty  
or fifty years of indignity on  our part
 toward the ,banqueter1 and at last ,he 
spreads the banquet in a  more luxurious
 and kingly place1 amid the heavenly    
gardens1 have we a  right to expect ,him
 to invite us again1 and have we a right
 to blame  ,him if ,he does not invite  
us8    ,if twelve gates of salvation    
stood open twenty years or fifty years  
for our admission1 and at the end of    
that time they are closed1 can we       
complain of it and say1 ,these gates    
ought to be open again4 ,give us        
another chance8 ,if the steamer is to   
sail for ,hamburg1 and we want to  get  
to ,germany by that line1 and we read in
 every evening and every  morning       
newspaper that it will sail on a certain
 day1 for two weeks we  have that       
advertisement before our eyes1 and then 
we go down to the  docks fifteen minutes

 after it has shoved off into the stream
 and say3  ,come back4 ,give me another 
chance4 ,it is not fair to treat me in  
this  way4 ,swing up to the dock again1 
and throw out planks1 and let me come   
on board4 ,such behavior would invite   
arrest as a madman4    ,and if1 after   
the ,gospel ship has lain at anchor     
before our eyes for  years and years1   
and all the benign voices of earth and  
heaven have  urged us to get on board1  
as she might sail away at any moment1   
and  after awhile she sails without us1 
is it common sense to expect her to     
come back8 ,you might as well go out on 
the ,highlands at ,neversink and  call  
to the ,aurania after she has been three
 days out1 and expect  her to return1 as
 to call back an opportunity for heaven 
when it once  has sped away4 ,all heaven
 offered us as a gratuity1 and for a    
life-time we refuse to take it1 and then
 rush on the bosses of  ,jehovah's      
buckler demanding another chance4 ,there
 ought to be1 there  can be1 there will 

be no such thing as posthumous          
opportunity4 ,thus1  our common sense   
agrees with my text--,if the tree fall  
toward the  south1 or toward the north1 
in the place where the tree falleth1    
there  it shall be4    ,you see that    
this idea lifts this world up from an   
unimportant  way-station to a platform  
of stupendous issues1 and makes all     
eternity  whirl around this hour4 ,but  
one trial for which all the preparation 
must be made in this world1 or never    
made at all4 ,that piles up all  the    
emphases and all the climaxes and all   
the destinies into life  here4 ,no other
 chance6 ,oh1 how that augments the     
value and the  importance of this       
chance6    ,alexander with his army used
 to surround a city1 and then would lift
 a  great light in token to the people  
that1 if they surrendered before  that  
light went out1 all would be well2 but  
if once the light went  out1 then the   
battering-rams would swing against the  
wall1 and  demolition and disaster would

 follow4 ,well1 all we need do for our  
present and everlasting safety is to    
make surrender to ,christ1 the  ,king   
and ,conqueror--surrender of our hearts1
 surrender of our lives1  surrender of  
everything4 ,and ,he keeps a great light
 burning1 light of  ,gospel invitation1 
light kindled with the wood of the cross
 and  flaming up against the dark night 
of our sin and sorrow4 ,surrender  while
 that great light continues to burn1 for
 after it goes out there  will be no    
other opportunity of making peace with  
,god through our ,lord  ,jesus ,christ4 
,talk of another chance6 ,why1 this is a
 supernal chance6    ,in the time of    
,edward the ,sixth1 at the battle of    
,musselburgh1 a  private soldier1 seeing
 that the ,earl of ,huntley had lost his
 helmet1  took off his own helmet and   
put it upon the head of the earl2 and   
the  head of the private soldier        
uncovered1 he was soon slain1 while his 
commander rode safely out of the battle4
 ,but in our case1 instead of a  private

 soldier offering helmet to an earl1 it 
is a ,king putting ,his  crown upon an  
unworthy subject1 the ,king dying that  
we might live4  ,tell it to all points  
of the compass4 ,tell it to night and   
day4 ,tell  it to all earth and heaven4 
,tell it to all centuries1 all ages1 all
  millenniums1 that we have such a      
magnificent chance in this world that   
we need no other chance in the next4    
,i am in the burnished ,judgment ,hall  
of the ,last ,day4 ,a great white       
throne is lifted1 but the ,judge has not
 yet taken it4 ,while we are  waiting   
for ,his arrival ,i hear immortal       
spirits in conversation4 ,what  are you 
waiting here for8 says a soul that went 
up from ,madagascar to  a soul that     
ascended from ,america4 ,the latter     
says3 ,i came from  ,america1 where     
forty years ,i heard the ,gospel        
preached1 and ,bible  read1 and from the
 prayer that ,i learned in infancy at my
 mother's  knee until my last hour ,i   
had ,gospel advantage1 but1 for some    

reason1  ,i did not make the ,christian 
choice1 and ,i am here waiting for the  
,judge to give me a new trial and       
another chance4 ,strange6 says the      
other2 ,i had but one ,gospel call in   
,madagascar1 and ,i accepted it1  and ,i
 do not need another chance4    ,why are
 you here8 says one who on earth had    
feeblest intellect to  one who had great
 brain1 and silvery tongue1 and scepters
 of  influence4 ,the latter responds3   
,oh1 ,i knew more than my fellows4 ,i   
mastered libraries1 and had learned     
titles from colleges1 and my name  was a
 synonym for eloquence and power4 ,and  
yet ,i neglected my soul1  and ,i am    
here waiting for a new trial4 ,strange1 
says the one of the  feeble earthly     
capacity2 ,i knew but little of worldly 
knowledge1 but  ,i knew ,christ1 and    
made ,him my partner1 and ,i have no    
need of another  chance4    ,now the    
ground trembles with the approaching    
chariot4 ,the great  folding-doors of   
the ,hall swing open4 ,stand back6 cry  

the celestial  ushers4 ,stand back1 and 
let the ,judge of quick and dead pass   
through6 ,he takes the throne1 and1     
looking over the throng of  nations1 ,he
 says3 ,come to judgment1 the last      
judgment1 the only  judgment6 ,by one   
flash from the throne all the history of
 each one  flames forth to the vision of
 himself and all others4 ,divide6 says  
the ,judge to the assembly4 ,divide6    
echo the walls4 ,divide6 cry the  guards
 angelic4    ,and now the immortals     
separate1 rushing this way and that1 and
 after  awhile there is a great aisle   
between them1 and a great vacuum        
widening and widening1 and the ,judge1  
turning to the throng on one  side1     
says3 ,he that is righteous1 let him be 
righteous still1 and he  that is holy1  
let him be holy still2 and then1 turning
 toward the  throng on the opposite     
side1 ,he says3 ,he that is unjust1 let 
him be  unjust still1 and he that is    
filthy1 let him be filthy still2 and    
then1 lifting one hand toward each      

group1 ,he declares3 ,if the tree  fall 
toward the south or toward the north1 in
 the place where the  tree falleth1     
there it shall be4 ,and then ,i hear    
something jar with a  great sound4 ,it  
is the closing of the ,book of          
,judgment4 ,the ,judge  ascends the     
stairs behind the throne4 ,the hall of  
the last assize is  cleared and shut4   
,the high court of eternity is adjourned
 forever4          ,,the ,,lord',s      
,,razor4        ,in the same day shall  
the ,lord shave with a razor that is    
hired1 namely1 by them beyond the river1
 by the ,king of                        
,assyria4--,,isaiah vii3 #bj4      ,the 
,bible is the boldest book ever written4
 ,there are no similitudes  in ,ossian  
or the ,iliad or the ,odyssey so daring4
 ,its imagery sometimes  seems on the   
verge of the reckless1 but only seems   
so4 ,the fact is  that ,god would       
startle and arouse and propel men and   
nations4 ,a tame  and limping similitude
 would fail to accomplish the object4   

,while  there are times when ,he employs
 in the ,bible the gentle dew and the   
morning cloud and the dove and the      
daybreak in the presentation of  truth1 
we often find the iron chariot1 the     
lightning1 the earthquake1  the spray1  
the sword1 and1 in my text1 the razor4  
,this keen-bladed instrument has        
advanced in usefulness with the ages4   
,in ,bible times and lands the beard    
remained uncut save in the seasons  of  
mourning and humiliation1 but the razor 
was always a suggestive  symbol4 ,david 
says of ,doeg1 his antagonist3 ,thy     
tongue is a sharp  razor working        
deceitfully2 that is1 it pretends to    
clear the face1  but is really used for 
deadly incision4 ,in this morning's text
 the  weapon of the toilet appears under
 the following circumstances3 ,judea    
needed to have some of its prosperities 
cut off1 and ,god sends  against it     
three ,assyrian kings--first            
,sennacherib1 then ,esrahaddon1  and    
afterward ,nebuchadnezzar4 ,those three 

sharp invasions1 that cut  down the     
glory of ,judea1 are compared to so many
 sweeps of the razor  across the face of
 the land4 ,and these circumstances were
 called a  hired razor because ,god took
 the kings of ,assyria1 with whom ,he   
had no  sympathy1 to do the work1 and   
paid them in palaces and spoils and     
annexations4 ,these kings were hired to 
execute the divine behests4 ,and  now   
the text1 which on its first reading may
 have seemed trivial or  inapt1 is      
charged with momentous import3 ,in the  
same day shall the  ,lord shave with a  
razor that is hired--namely1 by them    
beyond the  river1 by the ,king of      
,assyria4    ,well1 if ,god's judgments 
are razors1 we had better be careful how
 we  use them on other people4 ,in      
careful sheath these domestic weapons   
are  put away1 where no one by accident 
may touch them1 and where the hands  of 
children may not reach them4 ,such      
instruments must be carefully  handled  
or not handled at all4 ,but how         

recklessly some people wield  the       
judgments of ,god6 ,if a man meet with  
business misfortune1 how many  there are
 ready to cry out3 ,that is a judgment  
of ,god upon him  because he was        
unscrupulous1 or arrogant1 or           
overreaching1 or miserly4  ,i thought he
 would get cut down6 ,what a clean sweep
 of everything6 ,his  city house and    
country house gone6 ,his stables emptied
 of all the fine  bays and sorrels and  
grays that used to prance by his door6  
,all his  resources overthrown1 and all 
that he prided himself on tumbled into  
demolition6 ,good for him6 ,stop1 my    
brother4 ,don't sling around too  freely
 the judgments of ,god1 for they are    
razors4    ,some of the most wicked     
business men succeed1 and they live and 
die in  prosperity1 and some of the most
 honest and conscientious are driven    
into bankruptcy4 ,perhaps his manner was
 unfortunate1 and he was not  really as 
proud as he looked to be4 ,some of those
 who carry their head  erect and look   

imperial are humble as a child1 while   
many a man in  seedy coat and slouch hat
 and unblacked shoes is as proud as     
,lucifer4  ,you can not tell by a man's 
look4 ,perhaps he was not unscrupulous  
in  business1 for there are two sides to
 every story1 and everybody that        
accomplishes anything for himself or    
others gets industriously lied  about4  
,perhaps his business misfortune was not
 a punishment1 but the  fatherly        
discipline to prepare him for heaven1   
and ,god may love him  far more than ,he
 loves you1 who can pay dollar for      
dollar1 and are put  down in the        
commercial catalogues as ,a#a4 ,whom the
 ,lord loveth ,he gives  four hundred   
thousand dollars and lets die on        
embroidered pillows8 ,no3  whom the     
,lord loveth ,he chasteneth4 ,better    
keep your hand off the  ,lord's razors1 
lest they cut and wound people that do  
not deserve it4  ,if you want to shave  
off some of the bristling pride of your 
own heart  do so2 but be very careful   

how you put the sharp edge on others4   
,how ,i do dislike the behavior of those
 persons who1 when people are           
unfortunate1 say3 ,i told you           
so--getting punished--served him right4 
,if those ,i-told-you-so's got their    
desert they would long ago have  been   
pitched over the battlements4 ,the mote 
in their neighbor's  eyes--so small that
 it takes a microscope to find it--gives
 them more  trouble than the beam which 
obscures their own optics4 ,with air    
sometimes supercilious and sometimes    
,pharisaical1 and always  blasphemous1  
they take the razor of the divine       
judgment and sharpen it  on the hone of 
their own hard hearts1 and then go to   
work on men  sprawled out at full length
 under disaster1 cutting mercilessly4   
,they  begin by soft expressions of     
sympathy and pity and half praise1 and1 
lather the victim all over before they  
put on the sharp edge4    ,let us be    
careful how we shoot at others lest we  
take down the wrong  one1 remembering   

the servant of ,king ,william ,rufus who
 shot at a deer1  but the arrow glanced 
against a tree and killed the king4     
,instead of  going out with shafts to   
pierce1 and razors to cut1 we had better
  imitate the friend of ,richard ,coeur 
de ,lion1 who1 in the war of the        
,crusades1 was captured and imprisoned1 
but none of his friends knew  where4 ,so
 his loyal friend went around the land  
from stronghold to  stronghold1 and sung
 at each window a snatch of song that   
,richard  ,coeur de ,lion had taught him
 in other days4 ,and one day1 coming    
before  a jail where he suspected his   
king might be incarcerated1 he sung two 
lines of song1 and immediately ,king    
,richard responded from his cell  with  
the other two lines1 and so his         
whereabouts were discovered1 and        
immediately a successful movement was   
made for his liberation4 ,so let  us go 
up and down the world with the music of 
kind words and  sympathetic hearts1     
serenading the unfortunate1 and trying  

to get out  of trouble men who had noble
 natures1 but1 by unforeseen            
circumstances1 have been incarcerated1  
thus liberating kings4 ,more  hymn-book 
and less razor4    ,especially ought we 
to be apologetic and merciful toward    
those who1  while they have great       
faults1 have also great virtues4 ,some  
people are  barren of virtues4 ,no weeds
 verily1 but no flowers4 ,i must not be 
too  much enraged at a nettle along the 
fence if it be in a field  containing   
forty acres of ripe ,michigan wheat4 ,at
 the present time1  naturalists tell us1
 there is on the sun a spot twenty      
thousand miles  long1 but from the      
brightness and warmth ,i conclude it is 
a good deal  of a sun yet4    ,again1   
when ,i read in my text that the ,lord  
shaves with the hired  razor of ,assyria
 the land of ,judea1 ,i bethink myself  
of the precision  of ,god's providence4 
,a razor swung the tenth part of an inch
 out of  the right line means either    
failure or laceration1 but ,god's       

dealings  never slip1 and they do not   
miss by the thousandth part of an inch  
the  right direction4 ,people talk as   
though things in this world were at     
loose ends4 ,cholera sweeps across      
,marseilles and ,madrid and ,palermo1   
and we watch anxiously4 ,will the       
epidemic sweep ,europe and ,america8    
,people say1 ,that will entirely depend 
on whether inoculation is a  successful 
experiment2 that will depend entirely on
 quarantine  regulations2 that will     
depend on the early or late appearance  
of  frost2 that epidemic is pitched into
 the world1 and it goes blundering      
across the continents1 and it is all    
guess-work and an appalling  perhaps4   
,my friends1 ,i think1 perhaps1 that    
,god had something to do with it1  and  
that ,his mercy may have in some way    
protected us--that ,he may have  done as
 much for us as the quarantine and the  
health officers4 ,it was  right and a   
necessity that all caution should be    
used1 but there has  come enough        

macaroni from ,italy1 and enough grapes 
from the south of  ,france1 and enough  
rags from tatterdemalions1 and hidden in
 these  articles of transportation      
enough choleraic germs to have left by  
this  time all ,brooklyn mourning at    
,greenwood1 and all ,philadelphia at    
,laurel ,hill1 and all ,boston at ,mount
 ,auburn4 ,i thank all the doctors  and 
quarantines2 but1 more than all1 and    
first of all1 and last of  all1 and all 
the time1 ,i thank ,god4 ,in all the six
 thousand years of  the world's         
existence there has not one thing merely
 happened so4  ,god is not an anarchist1
 but a ,king1 a ,father4    ,when little
 ,tod1 the son of ,president ,lincoln1  
died1 all the land  sympathized with the
 sorrow in the ,white ,house4 ,he used  
to rush into  the room where the cabinet
 was in session1 and while the most     
eminent  men of the land were discussing
 the questions of national existence4   
,but the child had no care about those  
questions4 ,now ,god the ,father1  and  

,god the ,son1 and ,god the ,holy ,ghost
 are in perpetual session in  regard to 
this world and kindred worlds4 ,shall   
you1 ,his child1 rush in  to criticise  
or arraign or condemn the divine        
government8 ,no2 the  ,cabinet of the   
,eternal ,three can govern and will     
govern in the wisest  and best way1 and 
there never will be a mistake1 and like 
razor  skillfully swung1 shall cut that 
which ought to be cut1 and avoid that   
which ought to be avoided4 ,precision to
 the very hair-breadth4 ,earthly        
time-pieces may get out of order and    
strike wrong1 saying that it is  one    
o'clock when it is two1 or two when it  
is three4 ,god's clock is  always right1
 and when it is one it strikes one1 and 
when it is twelve  it strikes twelve1   
and the second hand is as accurate as   
the minute  hand4    ,further1 my text  
tells us that ,god sometimes shaves     
nations3 ,in the  same day shall the    
,lord shave with the razor that is      
hired4 ,with one  sharp sweep ,he went  

across ,judea and down went its pride   
and its  power4 ,in #ahfa ,god shaved   
our nation4 ,we had allowed to grow     
,sabbath  desecration1 and oppression1  
and blasphemy1 and fraud1 and impurity1 
and all sorts of turpitude4 ,the ,south 
had its sins1 and the ,north its  sins1 
and the ,east its sins1 and the ,west   
its sins4 ,we had been warned  again and
 again1 and we did not heed4 ,at length 
the sword of war cut  from the ,st4     
,lawrence to the ,gulf1 and from        
,atlantic seaboard to  ,pacific         
seaboard4 ,the pride of the land1 not   
the cowards1 but the  heroes1 on both   
sides went down4 ,and that which we took
 for the sword  of war was the ,lord's  
razor4    ,in #ahfb1 again1 it went     
across the land4 ,in #ahfc again4 ,in   
#ahfd again4  ,then the sharp instrument
 was incased and put away4 ,never in the
  history of the ages was any land more 
thoroughly shaved than during  those    
four years of civil combat2 and1 my     
brethren1 if we do not quit  some of our

 individual sins1 national sins1 the    
,lord will again take  us in hand4 ,he  
has other razors within reach besides   
war3 epidemics1  droughts1 deluges1     
plagues--grasshopper and locust2 or our 
overtowering success may so far excite  
the jealousy of other lands  that1 under
 some pretext1 the great nations of     
,europe and ,asia may  combine to put us
 down4 ,this nation1 so easily          
approached on north  and south and from 
both oceans1 might have on hand at once 
more  hostilities than were ever arrayed
 against any power4    ,we have recently
 been told by skillful engineers that   
all our  fortresses around ,new ,york   
harbor could not keep the shells from   
being  hurled from the sea into the     
heart of these great cities4 ,insulated 
,china1 the wealthiest of all nations1  
as will be realized when her  resources 
are developed1 will have adopted all the
 modes of modern  warfare1 and at the   
,golden ,gate may be discussing whether 
,americans  must go4 ,if the combined   

jealousies of ,europe and ,asia should  
come  upon us1 we should have more work 
on hand than would be pleasant4 ,i  hope
 no such combination against us will    
ever be formed1 but ,i want to  show    
that1 as ,assyria was the hired razor   
against ,judea1 and ,cyrus the  hired   
razor against ,babylon1 and the ,huns   
the hired razor against the  ,goths1    
there are now many razors that the ,lord
 could hire if1 because  of our national
 sins1 ,he should undertake to shave us4
 ,in #ahgj1  ,germany was the razor with
 which the ,lord shaved ,france4        
,england is  the razor with which very  
shortly the ,lord will shave ,russia4   
,but  nations are to repent in a day4   
,may a speedy and world-wide coming to  
,god hinder1 on both sides the sea1 all 
national calamity4 ,but do not  let us1 
as a nation1 either by unrighteous law  
at ,washington1 or bad  lives among     
ourselves1 defy the ,almighty4    ,one  
would think that our national symbol of 
the eagle might sometimes  suggest      

another eagle1 that which ancient ,rome 
carried4 ,in the talons  of that eagle  
were clutched at one time ,britain1     
,france1 ,spain1 ,italy1  ,dalmatia1    
,rhactia1 ,noricum1 ,pannonia1 ,moesia1 
,dacia1 ,thrace1  ,macedonia1 ,greece1  
,asia ,minor1 ,syria1 ,phoenicia1       
,palestine1 ,egypt1 and  all ,northern  
,africa1 and all the islands of the     
,mediterranean1 indeed1  all the world  
that was worth having1 an hundred and   
twenty millions of  people under the    
wings of that one eagle4 ,where is she  
now8 ,ask  ,gibbon1 the historian1 in   
his prose poem1 the ,decline and ,fall  
of the  ,roman ,empire4 ,ask her        
gigantic ruins straggling their sadness 
through  the ages1 the screech owl at   
windows out of which world-wide         
conquerors looked4 ,ask the day of      
judgment when her crowned  debauchees1  
,commodus and ,pertinax1 and ,caligula  
and ,diocletian1 shall  answer for their
 infamy8 ,as men and as nations let us  
repent1 and have  our trust in a        

pardoning ,god1 rather than depend on   
former successes  for immunity6 ,out of 
thirteen greatest battles of the world1 
,napoleon  had lost but one before      
,waterloo4 ,pride and destruction often 
ride in  the same saddle4    ,but notice
 once more1 and more than all in my     
text1 that ,god is so  kind and loving1 
that when it is necessary for ,him to   
cut1 ,he has to  go to others for the   
sharp-edged weapon4 ,in the same day    
shall the  ,lord shave with a razor that
 is hired4 ,god is love4 ,god is pity4  
,god  is help4 ,god is shelter4 ,god is 
rescue4 ,there are no sharp edges about 
,him1 no thrusting points1 no           
instruments of laceration4 ,if you want 
balm for wounds1 ,he has that4 ,if you  
want salve for divine eyesight1  ,he has
 that4 ,but if there is sharp and       
cutting work to do which  requires a    
razor1 that ,he hires4 ,god has nothing 
about ,him that hurts1  save when dire  
necessity demands1 and then ,he has to  
go clear off to  some one else to get   

the instrument4    ,this divine         
geniality will be no novelty to those   
who have pondered  the ,calvarean       
massacre1 where ,god submerged ,himself 
in human tears1  and crimsoned ,himself 
from punctured arteries1 and let the    
terrestrial  and infernal worlds maul   
,him until the chandeliers of the sky   
had to  be turned out1 because the      
universe could not endure the indecency4
  ,illustrious for love ,he must have   
been to take all that as our            
substitute1 paying out of ,his own heart
 the price of our admission at  the     
gates of heaven4    ,king ,henry ,,ii41 
of ,england1 crowned his son as king1   
and on the day of  coronation put on a  
servant's garb and waited1 he1 the king1
 at the  son's table1 to the            
astonishment of all the princes4 ,but we
 know of a  more wondrous scene1 the    
,king of heaven and earth offering to   
put on  you1 ,his child1 the crown of   
life1 and in the form of a servant      
waiting on you with blessing4 ,extol    

that love1 all painting1 all  sculpture1
 all music1 all architecture1 all       
worship6 ,in ,dresdenian  gallery let   
,raphael hold ,him up as a child1 and in
 ,antwerp ,cathedral  let ,rubens hand  
,him down from the cross as a martyr1   
and ,handel make  all his oratorio      
vibrate around that one chord--,he was  
wounded for  our transgressions1 bruised
 for our iniquity4 ,but not until all   
the  redeemed get home1 and from the    
countenances of all the piled-up        
galleries of the ransomed shall be      
revealed the wonders of redemption1     
shall either man or seraph or archangel 
know the height1 and depth1  and length1
 and breadth of the love of ,god4    ,at
 our national capital1 a monument in    
honor of him who did more than  any one 
to achieve our ,american ,independence1 
was for scores of years  in building1   
and most of us were discouraged and said
 it never would  be completed4 ,and how 
glad we all were when in the presence of
 the  highest officials of the nation1  

the work was done6 ,but will the        
monument to ,him who died for the       
eternal liberation of the human race    
ever be completed8 ,for ages the work   
has been going up2 evangelists  and     
apostles and martyrs have been adding to
 the heavenly pile1 and  every one of   
the millions of the redeemed going up   
from earth1 has  made to it contribution
 of gladness1 and weight of glory is    
swung to  the top of other weight of    
glory1 higher and higher as the         
centuries  go by1 higher and higher as  
the whole millenniums roll1 sapphire on 
the top of jasper1 sardonyx on the top  
of chalcedony1 and chrysoprasus  above  
topaz1 until1 far beneath shall be the  
walls and towers and  domes of the great
 capitol1 a monument forever and forever
 rising1 and  yet never done4 ,unto ,him
 who hath loved us and washed us from   
our  sins in ,his own blood1 and made us
 kings and priests forever4             
,allelujah1 amen4          ,,windows    
,,toward ,,jerusalem4        ,his       

windows being open and his chamber      
toward      ,jerusalem4--,,dan4 vi3 #aj4
      ,the scoundrelly princes of       
,persia1 urged on by political jealousy 
against ,daniel1 have succeeded in      
getting a law passed that whosoever     
prays to ,god shall be put under the    
paws and teeth of the lions1 who  are   
lashing themselves in rage and hunger up
 and down the stone cage1  or putting   
their lower jaws on the ground1         
bellowing till the earth  trembles4 ,but
 the leonine threat did not hinder the  
devotion of  ,daniel1 the               
,coeur-de-,lion of the ages4 ,his       
enemies might as well have  a law that  
the sun should not draw water or that   
the south wind should  not sweep across 
a garden of magnolias or that ,god      
should be  abolished4 ,they could not   
scare him with the red-hot furnaces1 and
  they can not now scare him with the   
lions4 ,as soon as ,daniel hears of     
this enactment he leaves his office of  
,secretary of ,state1 with its          

upholstery of crimson and gold1 and     
comes down the white marble steps  and  
goes to his own house4 ,he opens his    
window and puts the shutters  back and  
pulls the curtain aside so that he can  
look toward the sacred  city of         
,jerusalem1 and then prays4    ,i       
suppose the people in the street        
gathered under and before his  window1  
and said3 ,just see that man defying the
 law2 he ought to be  arrested4 ,and the
 constabulary of the city rush to the   
police  head-quarters and report that   
,daniel is on his knees at the wide-open
  window4 ,you are my prisoner1 says the
 officer of the law1 dropping a  heavy  
hand on the shoulder of the kneeling    
,daniel4 ,as the constables  open the   
door of the cavern to thrust in their   
prisoner1 they see the  glaring eyes of 
the monsters4 ,but ,daniel becomes the  
first lion-tamer1  and they lick his    
hand and fawn at his feet1 and that     
night he sleeps  with the shaggy mane of
 a wild beast for his pillow1 while the 

king  that night1 sleepless in the      
palace1 has on him the paw and teeth of 
a  lion he can not tame--the lion of a  
remorseful conscience4    ,what a       
picture it would be for some artist2    
,darius1 in the early dusk  of morning1 
not waiting for footmen or chariot1     
hastening to the den1  all flushed and  
nervous and in dishabille1 and looking  
through the  crevices of the cage to see
 what had become of his prime-minister6 
,what1 no sound6 he says3 ,daniel is    
surely devoured1 and the lions  are     
sleeping after their horrid meal1 the   
bones of the poor man  scattered across 
the floor of the cavern4 ,with trembling
 voice ,darius  calls out1 ,daniel6 ,no 
answer1 for the prophet is yet in       
profound  slumber4 ,but a lion1 more    
easily awakened1 advances1 and1 with hot
  breath blown through the crevice1     
seems angrily to demand the cause of    
this interruption1 and then another wild
 beast lifts his mane from  under       
,daniel's head1 and the prophet1 waking 

up1 comes forth to report  himself all  
unhurt and well4    ,but our text stands
 us at ,daniel's window1 open toward    
,jerusalem4 ,why  in that direction     
open8 ,jerusalem was his native land1   
and all the  pomp of his ,babylonish    
successes could not make him forget it4 
,he  came there from ,jerusalem at      
eighteen years of age1 and he never     
visited it1 though he lived to be       
eighty-five years4 ,yet1 when he  wanted
 to arouse the deepest emotions and     
grandest aspirations of his  heart1 he  
had his window open toward his native   
,jerusalem4 ,there are  many of you     
to-day who understand that without any  
exposition4 ,this is  getting to be a   
nation of foreigners4 ,they have come   
into all  occupations and professions4  
,they sit in all churches4 ,it may be   
twenty years ago since you got your     
naturalization papers1 and you may  be  
thoroughly ,americanized1 but you can't 
forget the land of your  birth1 and your
 warmest sympathies go out toward it4   

,your windows are  open toward          
,jerusalem4 ,your father and mother are 
buried there4 ,it may  have been a very 
humble home in which you were born1 but 
your memory  often plays around it1 and 
you hope some day to go and see it--the 
hill1 the tree1 the brook1 the house1   
the place so sacred1 the door  from     
which you started off with parental     
blessing to make your own way  in the   
world2 and ,god only knows how sometimes
 you have longed to see  the familiar   
places of your childhood1 and how in    
awful crises of life  you would like to 
have caught a glimpse of the old1       
wrinkled face that  bent over you as you
 lay on the gentle lap twenty or forty  
or fifty  years ago4 ,you may have on   
this side of the sea risen in fortune1  
and1  like ,daniel1 have become great1  
and may have come into prosperities     
which you never could have reached if   
you had stayed there1 and you  may have 
many windows to your house--bay-windows1
 and  sky-light-windows1 and windows of 

conservatory1 and windows on all        
sides--but you have at least one window 
open toward ,jerusalem4    ,when the    
foreign steamer comes to the wharf1 you 
see the long line of  sailors1 with     
shouldered mail-bags1 coming down the   
planks1 carrying  as many letters as you
 might suppose would be enough for a    
year's  correspondence1 and this        
repeated again and again during the     
week4  ,multitudes of them are letters  
from home1 and at all the post-offices  
of the land people will go to the window
 and anxiously ask for them1  hundreds  
of thousands of persons finding that    
window of foreign mails  the open window
 toward ,jerusalem4 ,messages that say3 
,when are you  coming home to see us8   
,brother has gone into the army4 ,sister
 is dead4  ,father and mother are       
getting very feeble4 ,we are having a   
great  struggle to get on here4 ,would  
you advise us to come to you1 or will   
you come to us8 ,all join in love1 and  
hope to meet you1 if not in this  world1

 then in a better4 ,good-bye4    ,yes1  
yes2 in all these cities1 and amid the  
flowering western  prairies1 and on the 
slopes of the ,pacific1 and amid the    
,sierras1 and  on the banks of the      
lagoon1 and on the ranches of ,texas    
there is an  uncounted multitude who1   
this hour1 stand and sit and kneel with 
their  windows open toward ,jerusalem4  
,some of them played on the heather of  
the ,scottish hills4 ,some of them were 
driven out by ,irish famine4 ,some  of  
them1 in early life1 drilled in the     
,german army4 ,some of them were        
accustomed at ,lyons or ,marseilles or  
,paris to see on the street ,victor     
,hugo and ,gambetta4 ,some chased the   
chamois among the ,alpine  precipices4  
,some plucked the ripe clusters from    
,italian vineyard4  ,some lifted their  
faces under the midnight sun of ,norway4
 ,it is no  dishonor to our land that   
they remember the place of their        
nativity4  ,miscreants would they be if1
 while they have some of their windows  

open to take in the free air of ,america
 and the sunlight of an  atmosphere     
which no kingly despot has ever         
breathed1 they forgot  sometime to open 
the window toward ,jerusalem4    ,no    
wonder that the son of the ,swiss1 when 
far away from home1 hearing  the        
national air of his country sung1 the   
malady of home-sickness  comes on him so
 powerfully as to cause his death4 ,you 
have the example  of the heroic ,daniel 
of my text for keeping early memories   
fresh4  ,forget not the old folks at    
home4 ,write often2 and1 if you have    
surplus of means and they are poor1 make
 practical contribution1 and  rejoice   
that ,america is bound to all the world 
by ties of sanguinity  as is no other   
nation4 ,who can doubt but it is        
appointed for the  evangelization of    
other lands8 ,what a stirring1 melting1 
gospelizing  theory that all the doors  
of other nations are open toward us1    
while  our windows are open toward them6
    ,but ,daniel1 in the text1 kept this

 port-hole of his domestic fortress     
unclosed because ,jerusalem was the     
capital of sacred influences4 ,there    
had smoked the sacrifice4 ,there was the
 ,holy of ,holies4 ,there was the  ,ark 
of the ,covenant4 ,there stood the      
temple4 ,we are all tempted to  keep our
 windows open on the opposite side1     
toward the world1 that we  may see and  
hear and appropriate its advantages4    
,what does the world  say8 ,what does   
the world think8 ,what does the world   
do8 ,worshipers of  the world instead of
 worshipers of ,god4 ,windows open      
toward ,babylon4  ,windows open toward  
,corinth4 ,windows open toward ,athens4 
,windows open  toward ,sodom4 ,windows  
open toward the flats1 instead of       
windows open  toward the hills4 ,sad    
mistake1 for this world as a god is like
  something ,i saw the other day in the 
museum of ,strasburg1 ,germany--the     
figure of a virgin in wood and iron4    
,the victim in olden time was  brought  
there1 and this figure would open its   

arms to receive him1  and1 once         
infolded1 the figure closed with a      
hundred knives and lances  upon him1 and
 then let him drop one hundred and      
eighty feet sheer  down4 ,so the world  
first embraces its idolaters1 then      
closes upon them  with many tortures1   
and then lets them drop forever down4   
,the highest  honor the world could     
confer was to make a man ,roman emperor2
 but1 out  of sixty-three emperors1 it  
allowed only six to die peacefully in   
their beds4    ,the dominion of this    
world over multitudes is illustrated by 
the names  of coins of many countries4  
,they have their pieces of money which  
they  call sovereigns and half          
sovereigns1 crowns and half crowns1     
,napoleons  and half ,napoleons1        
,fredericks and double ,fredericks1 and 
ducats1 and  ,isabellinos1 all of which 
names mean not so much usefulness as    
dominion4 ,the most of our windows open 
toward the exchange1 toward the  salon  
of fashion1 toward the god of this      

world4 ,in olden times the  length of   
the ,english yard was fixed by the      
length of the arm of ,king  ,henry ,i41 
and we are apt to measure things by a   
variable standard and  by the human arm 
that in the great crises of life can    
give us no help4  ,we need1 like        
,daniel1 to open our windows toward ,god
 and religion4    ,but1 mark you1 that  
good lion-tamer is not standing at the  
window1 but  kneeling1 while he looks   
out4 ,most photographs are taken of     
those in  standing or sitting posture4  
,i now remember but one picture of a man
  kneeling1 and that was ,david         
,livingstone1 who in the cause of ,god  
and  civilization sacrificed himself2   
and in the heart of ,africa his         
servant1 ,majwara1 found him in the tent
 by the light of a candle1  stuck on the
 top of a box1 his head in his hands    
upon the pillow1 and  dead on his knees4
 ,but here is a great lion-tamer1 living
 under the  dash of the light1 and his  
hair disheveled of the breeze1 praying4 

,the  fact is1 that a man can see       
further on his knees than standing on   
tiptoe4 ,jerusalem was about five       
hundred and fifty statute miles from    
,babylon1 and the vast ,arabian ,desert 
shifted its sands between them4  ,yet   
through that open window ,daniel saw    
,jerusalem1 saw all between it1  saw    
beyond1 saw time1 saw eternity1 saw     
earth1 and saw heaven4 ,would  you like 
to see the way through your sins to     
pardon1 through your  troubles to       
comfort1 through temptation to rescue1  
through dire  sickness to immortal      
health1 through night to day1 through   
things  terrestrial to things celestial1
 you will not see them till you take    
,daniel's posture4 ,no cap of bone to   
the joints of the fingers1 no cap  of   
bone to the joints of the elbow1 but cap
 of bone to the knees1 made  so because 
the ,god of the body was the ,god of the
 soul1 and especial  provision for those
 who want to pray1 and physiological    
structure  joins with spiritual         

necessity in bidding us pray1 and pray1 
and pray4    ,in olden time the ,earl of
 ,westmoreland said he had no need to   
pray1  because he had enough pious      
tenants on his estate to pray for him2  
but all the prayers of the church       
universal amount to nothing unless1     
like ,daniel1 we pray for ourselves4    
,oh1 men and women1 bounded on one  side
 by ,shadrach's red-hot furnace1 and the
 other side by devouring  lions1 learn  
the secret of courage and deliverance by
 looking at that  ,babylonish window    
open toward the south-west6 ,oh1 you    
say1 that is  the direction of the      
,arabian ,desert6 ,yes2 but on the other
 side of  the desert is ,god1 is        
,christ1 is ,jerusalem1 is heaven4      
,the ,brussels lace is superior to all  
other lace1 so beautiful1 so  multiform1
 so expensive--four hundred francs a    
pound4 ,all the world  seeks it4 ,do you
 know how it is made8 ,the spinning is  
done in a dark  room1 the only light    
admitted through a small aperture1 and  

that light  falling directly on the     
pattern4 ,and the finest specimens of   
,christian  character ,i have ever seen 
or ever expect to see are those to be   
found  in lives all of whose windows    
have been darkened by bereavement and   
misfortune save one1 but under that one 
window of prayer the  interlacing of    
divine workmanship went on until it was 
fit to deck a  throne1 a celestial      
embroidery which angels admired and ,god
 approved4    ,but it is another        
,jerusalem toward which we now need to  
open our  windows4 ,the exiled          
evangelist of ,ephesus saw it one day as
 the surf  of the ,icarian sea foamed   
and splashed over the bowlders at his   
feet1  and his vision reminded me of a  
wedding-day when the bride by sister    
and maid was having garlands twisted for
 her hair and jewels strung  for her    
neck just before she puts her betrothed 
hand into the hand of  her affianced3   
,i1 ,john1 saw the ,holy ,city1 ,new    
,jerusalem1 coming  down from ,god out  

of heaven prepared as a bride adorned   
for her  husband4 ,toward that bridal   
,jerusalem are our windows opened8      
,we would do well to think more of      
heaven4 ,it is not a mere annex of      
earth4 ,it is not a desolate outpost4   
,as ,jerusalem was the capital of       
,judae1 and ,babylon the capital of the 
,babylonian monarchy1 and ,london  is   
the capital of ,great ,britain1 and     
,washington is the capital of our  own  
republic1 the ,new ,jerusalem is the    
capital of the universe4 ,the  king     
lives there1 and the royal family of the
 redeemed have their  palaces there1 and
 there is a congress of many nations and
 the  parliament of all the worlds4     
,yea1 as ,daniel had kindred in         
,jerusalem  of whom he often thought1   
though he had left home when a very     
young  man1 perhaps father and mother   
and brothers and sisters still living1  
and was homesick to see them1 and they  
belonged to the high circles of         
royalty1 ,daniel himself having royal   

blood in his veins1 so we have in  the  
,new ,jerusalem a great many kindred1   
and we are sometimes homesick  to see   
them1 and they are all princes and      
princesses1 in them the  blood imperial1
 and we do well to keep our windows open
 toward their  eternal residence4    ,it
 is a joy for us to believe that while  
we are interested in them  they are     
interested in us4 ,much thought of      
heaven makes one heavenly4  ,the airs   
that blow through that open window are  
charged with life1 and  sweep up to us  
aromas from gardens that never wither1  
under skies that  never cloud1 in a     
spring-tide that never terminates4      
,compared with it  all other heavens are
 dead failures4    ,homer's heaven was  
an elysium which he describes as a plain
 at the  end of the earth or beneath1   
with no snow nor rainfall1 and the sun  
never goes down1 and ,rhadamanthus1 the 
justest of men1 rules4 ,hesiod's  heaven
 is what he calls the islands of the    
blessed1 in the midst of  the ocean1    

three times a year blooming with most   
exquisite flowers1  and the air is      
tinted with purple1 while games and     
music and  horse-races occupy the time4 
,the ,scandinavian's heaven was the hall
 of  ,walhalla1 where the god ,odin gave
 unending wine-suppers to earthly       
heroes and heroines4 ,the ,mohammedan's 
heaven passes its disciples in  over the
 bridge ,al-,sirat1 which is finer than 
a hair and sharper than  a sword1 and   
then they are let loose into a riot of  
everlasting  sensuality4    ,the        
,american aborigines look forward to a  
heaven of illimitable  hunting-ground1  
partridge and deer and wild duck more   
than plentiful1  and the hounds never   
off the scent1 and the guns never       
missing fire4  ,but the geographer has  
followed the earth round1 and found no  
,homer's  elysium4 ,voyagers have       
traversed the deep in all directions1   
and found  no ,hesiod's islands of the  
blessed4 ,the ,mohammedan's celestial   
debauchery and the ,indian's eternal    

hunting-ground for vast multitudes  have
 no charm4 ,but here rolls in the ,bible
 heaven4 ,no more sea--that  is1 no wide
 separation4 ,no more night--that is1 no
 insomnia4 ,no more  tears--that is1 no 
heart-break4 ,no more pain--that is1    
dismissal of  lancet and bitter draught 
and miasma1 and banishment of neuralgias
 and  catalepsies and consumptions4 ,all
 colors in the wall except gloomy       
black2 all the music in the major-key1  
because celebrative and  jubilant4      
,river crystalline1 gate crystalline1   
and skies crystalline1  because         
everything is clear and without doubt4  
,white robes1 and that  means           
sinlessness4 ,vials full of odors1 and  
that means pure regalement  of the      
senses4 ,rainbow1 and that means the    
storm is over4 ,marriage  supper1 and   
that means gladdest festivity4 ,twelve  
manner of fruits1  and that means       
luscious and unending variety4 ,harp1   
trumpet1 grand  march1 anthem1 amen1 and
 hallelujah in the same orchestra4      

,choral  meeting solo1 and overture     
meeting antiphon1 and strophe joining   
dithyramb1 as they roll into the ocean  
of doxologies4 ,and you and ,i  may have
 all that1 and have it forever through  
,christ1 if we will let  ,him with the  
blood of one wounded hand rub out our   
sin1 and with the  other wounded hand   
swing open the shining portals4    ,day 
and night keep your window open toward  
that ,jerusalem4 ,sing about  it4 ,pray 
about it4 ,think about it4 ,talk about  
it4 ,dream about it4 ,do  not be        
inconsolable about your friends who have
 gone into it4 ,do not  worry if        
something in your heart indicates that  
you are not far off  from its ecstasies4
 ,do not think that when a ,christian   
dies he stops1  for he goes on4    ,an  
ingenious man has taken the heavenly    
furlongs as mentioned in  ,revelation1  
and has calculated that there will be in
 heaven one  hundred rooms sixteen feet 
square for each ascending soul1 though  
this  world should lose a hundred       

millions yearly4 ,but all the rooms of  
heaven will be ours1 for they are family
 rooms2 and as no room in your  house is
 too good for your children1 so all the 
rooms of all the  palaces of the        
heavenly ,jerusalem will be free to     
,god's children and  even the           
throne-room will not be denied1 and you 
may run up the steps  of the throne1 and
 put your hand on the side of the       
throne1 and sit  down beside the king   
according to the promise3 ,to him that  
overcometh  will ,i grant to sit with me
 in my throne4    ,but you can not go in
 except as conquerors4 ,many years ago  
the ,turks  and ,christians were in     
battle1 and the ,christians were        
defeated1 and  with their commander     
,stephen fled toward a fortress where   
the mother  of this commander was       
staying4 ,when she saw her son and his  
army in  disgraceful retreat1 she had   
the gates of the fortress rolled shut1  
and then from the top of the battlement 
cried out to her son1 ,you can  not     

enter here except as conqueror6 ,then   
,stephen rallied his forces  and resumed
 the battle and gained the day1 twenty  
thousand driving  back two hundred      
thousand4 ,for those who are defeated in
 the battle  with sin and death and hell
 nothing but shame and contempt2 but for
  those who gain the victory through our
 ,lord ,jesus ,christ the gates of  the 
,new ,jerusalem will hoist1 and there   
shall be an abundant entrance  into the 
everlasting kingdom of our ,lord1 toward
 which you do well to  keep your windows
 open4          ,,stormed ,,and ,,taken4
        ,and ,abimelech gat him up to   
,mount ,zalmon1 he and all the          
people that were with him1 and          
,abimelech took an ax in his      hand1 
and cut down a bough from the trees1 and
 took it1 and      laid it on his       
shoulder4444 ,and all the people        
likewise cut      down every man his    
bough1 and followed ,abimelech1 and put 
them      to the hold1 and set the hold 
on fire upon them2 so that all      the 

men of the tower of ,shechem died also1 
about a thousand      men and           
women4--,,judges ix3 #dh1 #di4          
,abimelech is a name malodorous in      
,bible history1 and yet full of         
profitable suggestion4 ,buoys are black 
and uncomely1 but they tell  where the  
rocks are4 ,the snake's rattle is       
hideous1 but it gives  timely warning4  
,from the piazza of my summer home1     
night by night ,i  saw a lighthouse     
fifteen miles away1 not placed there for
 adornment1  but to tell mariners to    
stand off from that dangerous point4 ,so
 all  the iron-bound coast of moral     
danger is marked with ,saul1 and ,herod1
  and ,rehoboam1 and ,jezebel1 and      
,abimelech4 ,these bad people are       
mentioned in the ,bible1 not only as    
warnings1 but because there were        
sometimes flashes of good conduct in    
their lives worthy of imitation4  ,god  
sometimes drives a very straight nail   
with a very poor hammer4    ,the city of
 ,shechem had to be taken1 and          

,abimelech and his men were to  do it4  
,i see the dust rolling up from their   
excited march4 ,i hear the  shouting of 
the captains and the yell of the        
besiegers4 ,the swords  clack sharply on
 the parrying shields1 and the          
vociferation of two  armies in          
death-grapple is horrible to hear4 ,the 
battle goes on all  day1 and as the sun 
is setting ,abimelech and his army cry  
,surrender6  to the beaten foe4 ,and1   
unable longer to resist1 the city of    
,shechem  falls2 and there are pools of 
blood1 and dissevered limbs1 and glazed 
eyes looking up beggingly for mercy that
 war never shows1 and dying  soldiers   
with their head on the lap of mother1 or
 wife1 or sister1 who  have come out for
 the last offices of kindness and       
affection3 and a  groan rolls across the
 city1 stopping not1 because there is no
 spot  for it to rest1 so full is the   
place of other groans4 ,a city wounded6 
,a city dying6 ,a city dead6 ,wail for  
,shechem1 all ye who know the  horrors  

of a sacked town6    ,as ,i look over   
the city ,i can find only one building  
standing1 and  that is the temple of the
 god ,berith4 ,some soldiers outside of 
the  city1 in a tower1 finding that they
 can no longer defend ,shechem1 now     
begin to look out for their own personal
 safety1 and they fly to this  temple of
 ,berith4 ,they get within the door1    
shut it1 and they say1  ,now we are     
safe4 ,abimelech has taken the whole    
city1 but he can not  take this temple  
of ,berith4 ,here we shall be under the 
protection of  the gods4 ,oh1 ,berith1  
the god6 do your best now for these     
refugees4  ,if you have eyes1 pity them4
 ,if you have hands1 help them4 ,if you 
have  thunderbolts1 strike for them4    
,but how shall ,abimelech and his army  
take this temple of ,berith and  the men
 who are there fortified8 ,will they do 
it with sword8 ,nay4  ,will they do it  
with spear8 ,nay4 ,with battering-ram1  
rolled up by  hundred-armed strength1   
crashing against the walls8 ,nay4       

,abimelech  marches his men to a wood in
 ,zalmon4 ,with his ax he hews off a    
limb of  a tree1 and puts that limb upon
 his own shoulder1 and then he says to  
his men1 ,you do the same4 ,they are    
obedient to their commander4    ,oh1    
what a strange army1 with what strange  
equipment6 ,they come to the  foot of   
the temple of ,berith1 and ,abimelech   
takes his limb of a tree  and throws it 
down2 and the first platoon of soldiers 
come up and they  throw down their      
branches2 and the second platoon1 and   
the third1  until all around about the  
temple of ,berith there is a pile of    
tree-branches4 ,the ,shechemites look   
out from the windows of the temple  upon
 what seems to them childish play on the
 part of their enemies4  ,but soon the  
flints are struck1 and the spark begins 
to kindle the  brush1 and the flame     
comes up all through the pile1 and the  
red  elements leap to the casement1 and 
the woodwork begins to blaze1 and  one  
arm of flame is thrown up on the right  

side of the temple1 and  another arm of 
flame is thrown up on the left side of  
the temple1  until they clasp their     
lurid palms under the wild night sky1   
and the  cry of ,fire6 within1 and      
,fire6 without announces the terror1 and
  the strangulation1 and the doom of the
 ,shechemites1 and the complete         
overthrow of the temple of the god      
,berith4 ,then there went up a shout1   
long and loud1 from the stout lungs and 
swarthy chests of ,abimelech  and his   
men1 as they stood amid the ashes and   
the dust1 crying3  ,victory6 ,victory6  
,now1 ,i learn first from this subject  
the folly of depending upon any  one    
form of tactics in anything we have to  
do for this world or for  ,god4 ,look   
over the weaponry of olden              
times--javelins1 battle-axes1           
habergeons--and show me a single weapon 
with which ,abimelech and his  men could
 have gained such complete victory4 ,it 
is no easy thing to  take a temple thus 
armed4 ,i saw a house where1 during     

revolutionary  times1 a man and his wife
 kept back a whole regiment hour after  
hour1  because they were inside the     
house1 and the assaulting soldiers were 
outside the house4 ,yet here ,abimelech 
and his army come up1 they  surround    
this temple1 and they capture it without
 the loss of a single  man on the part  
of ,abimelech1 although ,i suppose some 
of the old  ,israelitish heroes told    
,abimelech3 ,you are only going up there
 to be  cut to pieces4 ,yet you are     
willing to testify to-day that by no    
other  mode--certainly not by ordinary  
modes--could that temple so easily1 so  
thoroughly have been taken4 ,fathers and
 mothers1 brethren and sisters  in      
,jesus ,christ1 what the ,church most   
wants to learn this day is that  any    
plan is right1 is lawful1 is best1 which
 helps to overthrow the  temple of sin1 
and capture this world for ,god4 ,we are
 very apt to  stick to the old modes of 
attack4    ,we put on the old-style coat
 of mail4 ,we come up with the sharp1   

keen1  glittering steel spear of        
argument1 expecting in that way to take 
the  castle1 but they have a thousand   
spears where we have ten4 ,and so the   
castle of sin stands4 ,oh1 my friends1  
we will never capture this world  for   
,god by any keen saber of sarcasm1 by   
any glittering lances of  rhetoric1 by  
any sapping and mining of profound      
disquisition1 by any  gunpowdery        
explosions of indignation1 by sharp     
shootings of wit1 by  howitzers of      
mental strength made to swing shell five
 miles1 by  cavalry horses gorgeously   
caparisoned pawing the air4 ,in vain all
 the  attempts on the part of these     
ecclesiastical foot soldiers1 light     
horsemen1 and grenadiers4    ,my        
friends1 ,i propose this morning a      
different style of tactics4 ,let  each  
one go to the forest of ,god's promise  
and invitation1 and hew  down a branch  
and put it on his shoulder1 and let us  
all come around  these obstinate        
iniquities1 and then1 with this pile1   

kindled by the  fires of a holy zeal and
 the flames of a consecrated life1 we   
will  burn them out4 ,what steel can not
 do1 fire may4 ,and ,i1 this morning1   
announce myself in favor of any plan of 
religious attack that  succeeds--any    
plan of religious attack1 however       
radical1 however odd1  however          
unpopular1 however hostile to all the   
conventionalities of  ,church and       
,state4 ,we want more heart in our song1
 more heart in our  alms-giving1 more   
heart in our prayers1 more heart in our 
preaching4  ,oh1 for less of            
,abimelech's sword1 and more of         
,abimelech's  conflagration6 ,i have    
often heard        ,there is a fountain 
filled with blood    sung artistically  
by four birds perched on their ,sunday  
roost in the  gallery1 until ,i thought 
of ,jenny ,lind1 and ,nilsson1 and      
,sontag1 and  all the other warblers2   
but there came not one tear to my eye1  
nor one  master emotion to my heart4    
,but one night ,i went down to the      

,african  ,methodist meeting-house in   
,philadelphia1 and at the close of the  
service a black woman1 in the midst of  
the audience1 began to sing  that hymn1 
and all the audience joined in1 and we  
were floated some  three or four miles  
nearer heaven than ,i have ever been    
since4 ,i saw  with my own eyes that    
fountain filled with blood--red1        
agonizing1  sacrificial1 redemptive--and
 ,i heard the crimson plash of the wave 
as  we all went down under it3          
,for sinners plunged beneath that flood 
,lose all their guilty stains4    ,oh1  
my friends1 the ,gospel is not a        
syllogism2 ,it is not casuistry1 it  is 
not polemics1 or the science of         
squabble4 ,it is blood-red fact2 it  is 
warm-hearted invitation2 it is leaping1 
bounding1 flying good news2  it is      
efflorescent with all light2 it is      
rubescent with all glow2 it  is         
arborescent with all sweet shade4 ,i    
have seen the sun rise on ,mount        
,washington1 and from the ,tip-top      

,house2 but there was no beauty in  that
 compared with the day-spring from on   
high when ,christ gives light  to a     
soul4 ,i have heard ,parepa sing2 but   
there was no music in that  compared    
with the voice of ,christ when ,he said3
 ,thy sins are forgiven  thee2 go in    
peace4 ,good news6 ,let every one cut   
down a branch of this  tree of life and 
wave it4 ,let him throw it down and     
kindle it4 ,let all  the way from ,mount
 ,zalmon to ,shechem be filled with the 
tossing joy4  ,good news6 ,this bonfire 
of the ,gospel shall consume the last   
temple of  sin1 and will illumine the   
sky with apocalyptic joy that ,jesus    
,christ  came into the world to save    
sinners4 ,any new plan that makes a man 
quit his sin1 and that prostrates a     
wrong1 ,i am as much in favor of as     
though all the doctors1 and the bishops1
 and the archbishops1 and the  synods1  
and the academical gownsmen of          
,christianity sanctioned it4 ,the       
temple of ,berith must come down1 and ,i

 do not care how it comes4    ,still    
further1 ,i learn from this subject the 
power of example4 ,if  ,abimelech had   
sat down on the grass and told his men  
to go and get the  boughs1 and go out to
 the battle1 they would never have gone 
at all1  or1 if they had1 it would have 
been without any spirit or effective    
result2 but when ,abimelech goes with   
his own ax and hews down a  branch1 and 
with ,abimelech's arm puts it on        
,abimelech's shoulder1 and  marches     
on--then1 my text says1 all the people  
did the same4 ,how  natural that was6   
,what made ,garibaldi and ,stonewall    
,jackson the most  magnetic commanders  
of this century8 ,they always rode      
ahead4 ,oh1 the  overcoming power of    
example6 ,here is a father on the wrong 
road2 all  his boys go on the wrong     
road4 ,here is a father who enlists for 
,christ2 his children enlist4    ,i saw1
 in some of the picture-galleries of    
,europe1 that before many of  the great 
works of the masters--the old           

masters--there would be  sometimes four 
or five artists taking copies of the    
pictures4 ,these  copies they were going
 to carry with them1 perhaps to distant 
lands2  and ,i have thought that your   
life and character are a masterpiece1   
and  it is being copied1 and long after 
you are gone it will bloom or blast  in 
the homes of those who knew you1 and be 
a ,gorgon or a ,madonna4 ,look  out what
 you say4 ,look out what you do4        
,eternity will hear the echo4  ,the best
 sermon ever preached is a holy life4   
,the best music ever  chanted is a      
consistent walk4    ,i saw1 near the    
beach1 a wrecker's machine4 ,it was a   
cylinder with  some holes at the side1  
made for the thrusting in of some long  
poles  with strong leverage2 and when   
there is a vessel in trouble or going   
to pieces out in the offing1 the        
wreckers shoot a rope out to the        
suffering men4 ,they grasp it1 and the  
wreckers turn the cylinder1 and  the    
rope winds around the cylinder1 and     

those who are shipwrecked are  saved4   
,so at your feet to-day there is an     
influence with a tremendous  leverage4  
,the rope attached to it swings far out 
into the billowy  future4 ,your         
children1 your children's children1 and 
all the  generations that are to follow1
 will grip that influence and feel the  
long-reaching pull long after the       
figures on your tombstone are so  near  
worn out that the visitor can not tell  
whether it was in #ahhe1 or  #agge1 or  
#afge that you died4    ,still further1 
,i learn from this subject the          
advantages of concerted  action4 ,if    
,abimelech had merely gone out with a   
tree-branch the work  would not have    
been accomplished1 or if ten1 twenty1 or
 thirty men had  gone2 but when all the 
axes are lifted1 and all the sharp edges
 fall1  and all these men carry each his
 tree-branch down and throw it about    
the temple1 the victory is gained--the  
temple falls4 ,my friends1 where  there 
is one man in the ,church of ,god at    

this day shouldering his  whole duty    
there are a great many who never lift an
 ax or swing a  blow4    ,oh1 we all    
want our boat to get over to the golden 
sands1 but the most  of us are seated   
either in the prow or in the stern1     
wrapped in our  striped shawl1 holding a
 big-handled sunshade1 while others are 
blistered in the heat1 and pull until   
the oar-locks groan1 and the  blades    
bend till they snap4 ,oh1 religious     
sleepy-heads1 wake up6 ,while  we have  
in our church a great many who are      
toiling for ,god1 there are  some too   
lazy to brush the flies off their heavy 
eyelids4    ,suppose1 in military       
circles1 on the morning of battle the   
roll is  called1 and out of a thousand  
men only a hundred men in the regiment  
answered4 ,what excitement there would  
be in the camp6 ,what would the  colonel
 say8 ,what high talking there would be 
among the captains1 and  majors1 and the
 adjutants6 ,suppose word came to       
head-quarters that  these delinquents   

excused themselves on the ground that   
they had  overslept themselves1 or that 
the morning was damp and they were      
afraid of getting their feet wet1 or    
that they were busy cooking  rations4   
,my friends1 this is the morning of the 
day of ,god ,almighty's  battle6 ,do you
 not see the troops8 ,hear you not all  
the trumpets of  heaven and all the     
drums of hell8 ,which side are you on8  
,if you are on  the right side1 to what 
cavalry troop1 to what artillery        
service1 to  what garrison duty do you  
belong8 ,in other words1 in what        
,sabbath-school do you teach8 in what   
prayer-meeting do you exhort8 to  what  
penitentiary do you declare eternal     
liberty8 to what almshouse do  you      
announce the riches of heaven8 ,what    
broken bone of sorrow have you  ever    
set8 ,are you doing nothing8 ,is it     
possible that a man or woman  sworn to  
be a follower of the ,lord ,jesus       
,christ is doing nothing8 ,then  hide   
the horrible secret from the angels4    

,keep it away from the book  of         
judgment4 ,if you are doing nothing do  
not let the world find it  out1 lest    
they charge your religion with being a  
false-face4 ,do not  let your cowardice 
and treason be heard among the martyrs  
about the  throne1 lest they forget the 
sanctity of the place and curse your    
betrayal of that cause for which they   
agonized and died4    ,may the eternal  
,god rouse us all to action6 ,as for    
myself1 ,i feel ,i  would be ashamed to 
die now and enter heaven until ,i have  
accomplished  something more decisive   
for the ,lord that bought me4 ,i would  
like to  join with you in an oath1 with 
hand high uplifted to heaven1 swearing  
new allegiance to ,jesus ,christ1 and to
 work more for ,his kingdom4 ,are  you  
ready to join with me in some new work  
for ,christ8 ,i feel that  there is such
 a thing as claustral piety1 that there 
is such a thing  as insular work2 but it
 seems to me that what we want now is   
concerted  action4 ,the temple of       

,berith is very broad1 and it is very   
high4 ,it  has been going up by the     
hands of men and devils1 and no human   
enginery can demolish it2 but if the    
fifty thousand ministers of  ,christ in 
this country should each take a branch  
of the tree of life1  and all their     
congregations should do the same1 and we
 should march on  and throw these       
branches around the great temples of    
sin1 and  worldliness and folly1 it     
would need no match1 or coal1 or torch  
of  ours to touch off the pile2 for1 as 
in the days of ,elijah1 fire would  fall
 from heaven and kindle the bonfire of  
,christian victory over  demolished sin4
 ,it is kindling now6 ,huzzah6 ,the day 
is ours6    ,still further1 ,i learn    
from this subject the danger of false   
refuges4  ,as soon as these ,shechemites
 got into the temple they thought they  
were safe4 ,they said3 ,berith will take
 care of us4 ,abimelech may  batter down
 everything else2 he can not batter down
 this temple where  we are now hid4 ,but

 very soon they heard the timbers       
crackling1 and  they were smothered with
 smoke1 and they miserably died4 ,and   
you and ,i  are just as much tempted to 
false refuges4 ,the mirror this morning 
may  have persuaded you that you have a 
comely cheek2 your best friends  may    
have persuaded you that you have elegant
 manners4 ,satan may have  told you that
 you are all right2 but bear with me if 
,i tell you that1  if unpardoned1 you   
are all wrong4 ,i have no clinometer by 
which to  measure how steep is the      
inclined plane you are descending1 but  
,i know  it is very steep4 ,well1 you   
say1 if the ,bible is true ,i am a      
sinner4 ,show me some refuge2 ,i will   
step right into it4    ,i suppose every 
person in this audience this moment is  
stepping into  some kind of refuge4     
,here you step in the tower of good     
works4 ,you  say3 ,i shall be safe here 
in this refuge4 ,the battlements are    
adorned2 the steps are varnished2 on the
 wall are pictures of all the  suffering

 you have alleviated1 and all the       
schools you have  established1 and all  
the fine things you have ever done4 ,up 
in that  tower you feel you are safe4   
,but hear you not the tramp of your     
unpardoned sins all around the tower8   
,they each have a match4 ,they are      
kindling the combustible material4 ,you 
feel the heat and the  suffocation4 ,oh1
 may you leap in time1 the ,gospel      
declaring3 ,by the  deeds of the law    
shall no flesh living be justified4     
,well1 you say1 ,i have been driven out 
of that tower2 where shall ,i  go8 ,step
 into this tower of indifference4 ,you  
say3 ,if this tower is  attacked1 it    
will be a great while before it is      
taken4 ,you feel at  ease4 ,but there is
 an ,abimelech1 with ruthless assaults1 
coming on4  ,death and his forces are   
gathering around1 and they demand that  
you  surrender everything1 and they     
clamor for your immortal overthrow1 and 
they throw their skeleton arms in the   
windows1 and with their iron  fists they

 beat against the door2 and while you   
are trying to keep  them out you see the
 torches of judgment kindling1 and every
 forest is  a torch1 and every mountain 
a torch1 and every sea a torch2 and     
while  the ,alps1 the ,pyrenees1 and    
,himalayas turn into a live coal1 blown 
redder and redder by the whirlwind      
breath of a ,god omnipotent1 what  will 
become of your refuge of lies8    ,but1 
says some one1 you are engaged in a very
 mean business1  driving us from tower  
to tower4 ,oh1 no4 ,i want to tell you  
of a  ,gibraltar that never has been and
 never will be taken2 of a wall that  no
 satanic assault can scale2 of a bulwark
 that the judgment  earthquakes can not 
budge4 ,the ,bible refers to it when it 
says3 ,in  ,god is thy refuge1 and      
underneath thee are the everlasting     
arms4 ,oh1  fling yourself into it6     
,tread down unceremoniously everything  
that  intercepts you4 ,wedge your way   
there4 ,there are enough hounds of death
  and peril after you to make you hurry4

 ,many a man has perished just  outside 
the tower1 with his foot on the step1   
with his hand on the  latch4 ,oh1 get   
inside6 ,not one surplus second have you
 to spare4  ,quick1 quick1 quick6       
,great ,god1 is life such an uncertain  
thing8 ,if ,i bear a little too  hard   
with my right foot on the earth1 does it
 break through into the  grave8 ,is this
 world1 which swings at the speed of    
thousands of miles  an hour around the  
sun1 going with tenfold more speed      
toward the  judgment-day8 ,oh1 ,i am    
overborne with the thought2 and in the  
conclusion ,i cry to one and ,i cry to  
the other3 ,oh1 time6 ,oh1  eternity6   
,oh1 the dead6 ,oh1 the judgment-day6   
,oh1 ,jesus6 ,oh1 ,god6  ,but1 catching 
at the last apostrophe1 ,i feel that ,i 
have something to  hold on to3 for in   
,god is thy refuge1 and underneath thee 
are the  everlasting arms4 ,and1        
exhausted with my failure to save       
myself1 ,i  throw my whole weight of    
body1 mind1 and soul on this divine     

promise1  as a weary child throws itself
 into the arms of its mother2 as a      
wounded soldier throws himself on the   
hospital pillow2 as a pursued  man      
throws himself into the refuge2 for in  
,god is thy refuge1 and  underneath thee
 are the everlasting arms4 ,oh1 for a   
flood of tears  with which to express   
the joy of this eternal rescue6         
,,all ,,the ,,world ,,akin4        ,and 
hath made of one blood all nations of   
men4--,,acts xvii3 #bf4      ,some have 
supposed that ,god originally made an   
,asiatic ,adam and a  ,european ,adam   
and an ,african ,adam and an ,american  
,adam1 but that  theory is entirely     
overthrown by my text1 which says that  
all nations  are blood relatives1 having
 sprung from one and the same stock4 ,a 
difference in climate makes much of the 
difference in national temper4    ,an   
,american goes to ,europe and stays     
there a long while1 and finds his  pulse
 moderating and his temper becoming more
 calm4 ,the air on this  side the ocean 

is more tonic than on the other side4   
,an ,american  breathes more oxygen than
 a ,european4 ,a ,european coming to    
,america  finds a great change taking   
place in himself4 ,he walks with more   
rapid  strides1 and finds his voice     
becoming keener and shriller4 ,the      
,englishman who walks in ,london ,strand
 at the rate of three miles the  hour1  
coming to ,america and residing for a   
long while here1 walks  ,broadway at the
 rate of four miles the hour4 ,much of  
the difference  between an ,american and
 a ,european1 between an ,asiatic and an
 ,african1  is atmospheric4 ,the lack of
 the warm sunlight pales the            
,greenlander4  ,the full dash of the    
sunlight darkens the ,african4    ,then1
 ignorance or intelligence makes its    
impression on the physical  organism--in
 the one case ignorance flattening the  
skull1 as with the  ,egyptian2 in the   
other case intelligence building up the 
great dome of  the forehead1 as with the
 ,german4 ,then the style of god that   

the  nation worships decides how much it
 shall be elevated or debased1 so  that 
those nations that worship reptiles are 
themselves only a  superior form of     
reptile1 while those nations that       
worship the natural  sun in the heavens 
are the noblest style of barbaric       
people4 ,but  whatever be the difference
 of physiognomy1 and whatever the       
difference  of temperament1 the         
physiologist tells us that after careful
 analysis  he finds out that the plasma 
and the disk in the human blood have the
  same characteristics3 so that if you  
should put twenty men from twenty       
nationalities abreast in line of battle1
 and a bullet should fly  through the   
hearts of the twenty men1 the blood     
flowing forth would1  through analysis1 
prove itself to be the same blood in    
every instance4  ,in other words1 the   
science of the day confirming the truth 
of my text  that ,god hath made of one  
blood all nations of men4    ,i have    
thought1 my friends1 it might be        

profitable this morning if ,i  gave you 
some of the moral and religious         
impressions which ,i received  when1    
through your indulgence1 ,i had         
transatlantic absence4 ,first1 ,i       
observe that the majority of people in  
all lands are in a mighty  struggle for 
bread4 ,while in nearly all lands there 
are only a few  cases of actual         
starvation reported1 there is a vast    
population in  every country ,i visited 
who have a limited supply of food1 or   
such  food as is incompetent to sustain 
physical vigor4 ,this struggle in  some 
lands is becoming more agonizing1 while 
here and there it is  lightened4 ,i have
 joy in reporting that ,ireland1 about  
the sufferings  of which we have heard  
so much1 has far better prospects than  
,i have  seen there in previous visits4 
,in #ahgi1 coming home from that land1  
,i  prophesied the famine that must come
 upon1 and did come upon1 the  deluged  
fields of that country4 ,this year the  
crops are large1 and  both              

parties--those who like the ,english    
,government and those who  don't like   
it--are expecting relief4 ,i said to one
 of the intelligent  men of ,ireland3   
,tell me in a few words what are the    
sufferings of  ,ireland1 and what is the
 ,land ,relief enactment8 ,he replied3  
,i will  tell you4 ,suppose ,i am a     
landlord and you a tenant4 ,you rent    
from me a  place for ten pounds a year4 
,you improve it4 ,you turn it from a bog
  into a garden4 ,you put a house upon  
it4 ,after a while ,i1 the landlord1    
come around1 and ,i say to my agent3    
',how much rent is this man  paying2'   
,he answers1 ',ten pounds4' ',is that   
all8 ,put his rent up to  twenty        
pounds4' ,the tenant goes on improving  
his property1 and after  awhile ,i come 
around and ,i say to my agent1 ',how    
much rent is this man  paying8' ,he     
says1 ',twenty pounds4' ',put his rent  
up to twenty-five  pounds4' ,the tenant 
protests and says1 ',i can't pay it4'   
,then ,i1 the  landlord1 say1 ',pay it  

or get out2' and the tenant is helpless1
 and1  leaving the place1 the property  
in its improved condition turns over  to
 the landlord4 ,now1 to stop that       
outrage the ,relief ,enactment comes  in
 and appoints commissioners who shall   
see that if the tenant is  turned out1  
he shall receive the difference of value
 between the farm  as he got it and the 
farm as he surrenders it4 ,moreover1 the
  government loans money to the tenant1 
so that he may buy the property  out and
 out if the landlord will sell4 ,mighty 
advancement toward the  righting of a   
great wrong6 ,but there and in all      
lands1 not excepting  our own1 there is 
a far-reaching distress4 ,and let those 
who broke  their fast this morning1 and 
those who shall dine to-day1 remember   
those who are in want1 and by prayer and
 practical beneficence do all  they can 
to alleviate the hunger swoon of        
nations4    ,another impression         
was--indeed the impression carried with 
me all the  summer--the thought already 

suggested1 the brotherhood of man4 ,the 
fact is that the differences are so     
small between nations that they  may be 
said to be all alike4 ,though ,i spent  
the most of the summer in  silence1 ,i  
spoke a few times and to people of      
different nations1 and  how soon ,i     
noticed that they were very much alike6 
,if a man knows how  to play the piano1 
it does not make any difference whether 
he finds it  in ,new ,orleans or ,san   
,francisco or ,boston or ,st4           
,petersburg or ,moscow  or ,madras2 it  
has so many keys1 and he puts his       
fingers right on them4  ,and the human  
heart is a divine instrument1 with just 
so many keys in  all cases1 and you     
strike some of them and there is joy1   
and you  strike some of them and there  
is sorrow4 ,plied by the same motives1  
lifted up by the same success1 depressed
 by the same griefs4 ,the  cab-men of   
,london have the same characteristics as
 the cab-men of ,new  ,york1 and are    
just as modest and retiring4 ,the gold  

and silver drive  ,piccadilly and the   
,boulevards just as they drive ,wall    
,street4 ,if there  be a great political
 excitement in ,europe1 the ,bourse in  
,paris howls  just as loudly as ever did
 the ,american gold-room4    ,the same  
grief that we saw in our country in     
#ahfd you may find now in  the military 
hospitals of ,england containing the    
wounded and sick from  the ,egyptian    
wars4 ,the same widowhood and orphanage 
that sat down in  despair after the     
battles of ,shiloh and ,south ,mountain 
poured their  grief in the ,shannon and 
the ,clyde and the ,dee and the ,thames4
 ,oh1 ye  men and women who know how to 
pray1 never get up from your knees until
  you have implored ,god in behalf of   
the fourteen hundred millions of  the   
race just like yourselves1 finding life 
a tremendous struggle6 ,for  who knows  
but that as the sun to-day draws up     
drops of water from the  ,caspian and   
the ,black seas and from the ,amazon and
 the ,mississippi1  after a while to    

distill the rain1 these very drops on   
the fields--who  knows but that the sun 
of righteousness may draw up the tears  
of your  sympathy1 and then rain them   
down in distillation of comfort o'er all
  the world8    ,who is that poor man1  
carried on a stretcher to the ,afghan   
ambulance8  ,he is your brother4 ,if in 
the ,pantheon at ,paris you smite your  
hand  against the wall among the tombs  
of the dead1 you will hear a very       
strange echo coming from all parts of   
the ,pantheon just as soon as you  smite
 the wall4 ,and ,i suppose it is so     
arranged that every stroke of  sorrow   
among the tombs of bereavement ought to 
have loud1 long1 and  oft-repeated      
echoes of sympathy all around the world4
 ,oh1 what a  beautiful theory it       
is--and it is a ,christian theory--that 
,englishman1  ,scotchman1 ,irishman1    
,norwegian1 ,frenchman1 ,italian1       
,russian1 are all  akin4 ,of one blood  
all nations4 ,that is a very beautiful  
inscription  that ,i saw a few days ago 

over the door in ,edinburgh1 the door of
 the  house where ,john ,knox used to   
live4 ,it is getting somewhat dim now1  
but there is the inscription1 fit for   
the door of any household--,love  ,god  
above all1 and your neighbor as         
yourself4    ,i was also impressed in   
journeying on the other side the sea    
with the  difference the ,bible makes in
 countries4 ,the two nations of ,europe 
that are the most moral to-day and that 
have the least crime are  ,scotland and 
,wales4 ,they have by statistics1 as you
 might find1 fewer  thefts1 fewer       
arsons1 fewer murders4 ,what is the     
reason8 ,a bad book  can hardly live in 
,wales4 ,the ,bible crowds it out4 ,i   
was told by one  of the first literary  
men in ,wales3 ,there is not a bad book 
in the  ,welsh language4 ,he said3 ,bad 
books come down from ,london1 but they  
can not live here4 ,it is the ,bible    
that is dominant in ,wales4 ,and  then  
in ,scotland just open your ,bible to   
give out your text1 and there  is a     

rustling all over the house almost      
startling to an ,american4 ,what  is it8
 ,the people opening their ,bibles to   
find the text1 looking at  the context1 
picking out the referenced passages1    
seeing whether you  make right          
quotation4 ,scotland and ,wales         
,bible-reading people4 ,that  accounts  
for it4 ,a man1 a city1 a nation that   
reads ,god's ,word must be  virtuous4   
,that ,book is the foe of all           
wrong-doing4 ,what makes  ,edinburgh    
better than ,constantinople8 ,the       
,bible4    ,oh1 ,i am afraid in ,america
 we are allowing the good book to be    
covered  up with other good books6 ,we  
have our ever-welcome morning and       
evening  newspapers1 and we have our    
good books on all subjects--geological  
subjects1 botanical subjects1           
physiological subjects1 theological     
subjects--good books1 beautiful books1  
and so many good books that we  have not
 time to read the ,bible4 ,oh1 my       
friends1 it is not a matter of  very    

great importance that you have a family 
,bible on the center-table  in your     
parlor6 ,better have one pocket ,new    
,testament1 the passages  marked1 the   
leaves turned down1 the binding worn    
smooth with much  usage1 than fifty     
pictorial family ,bibles too handsome to
 read6 ,oh1  let us take a whisk-broom  
and brush the dust off our ,bibles6 ,do 
you  want poetry8 ,go and hear ,job     
describe the war-horse1 or ,david tell  
how  the mountains skipped like lambs4  
,do you want logic8 ,go and hear ,paul  
reason until your brain aches under the 
spell of his mighty intellect4  ,do you 
want history8 ,go and see ,moses put    
into a few pages stupendous  information
 which ,herodotus1 ,thucydides1 and     
,prescott never preached  after4 ,and1  
above all1 if you want to find how a    
nation struck down by  sin can rise to  
happiness and to heaven1 read of that   
blood which can  wash away the pollution
 of a world4 ,there is one passage in   
the ,bible  of vast tonnage3 ,god so    

loved the world that ,he gave ,his only 
begotten ,son1 that whosoever believeth 
in ,him should not perish1 but  have    
everlasting life4 ,oh1 may ,god fill    
this country with ,bibles and  help the 
people to read them6    ,i was also     
impressed in my transatlantic journeys  
with the wonderful  power that ,christ  
holds among the nations4 ,the great name
 in ,europe  to-day is not ,victoria1   
not ,marquis of ,salisbury1 not ,william
 the  ,emperor1 not ,bismarck2 the great
 name in ,europe to-day is ,christ4 ,you
  find the crucifix on the gate-post1   
you find it in the hay field1 you  find 
it at the entrance of the manor1 you    
find it by the side of the  road4       
,the greatest pictures in all the       
galleries of ,italy1 ,germany1 ,france1 
,england1 and ,scotland are ,bible      
pictures4 ,what were the subjects of    
,raphael's great paintings8 ,the        
,transfiguration1 ,the ,miraculous      
,draught of ,fishes1 ,the ,charge to    
,peter1 ,the ,holy ,family1 ,the        

,massacre of the ,innocents1 ,moses at  
the ,burning ,bush1 ,the  ,nativity1    
,michael the ,archangel1 and the four or
 five exquisite  ,madonnas4 ,what are   
,tintoretto's great pictures8 ,fall of  
,adam1  ,cain and ,abel1 ,the ,plague of
 the ,fiery ,serpent1 ,paradise1 ,agony 
in the ,garden1 ,the ,temptation1 ,the  
,adoration of the ,magi1 ,the           
,communication1 ,baptism1 ,massacre of  
the ,innocents1 ,the ,flight  into      
,egypt1 ,the ,crucifixion1 ,the         
,madonna4 ,what are ,titian's great     
pictures8 ,the ,flagellation of ,christ1
 ,the ,supper at ,emmaus1 ,the  ,death  
of ,abel1 ,the ,assumption1 ,the        
,entombment1 ,faith1 ,the  ,madonna4    
,what are ,michael ,angelo's great      
pictures8 ,the  ,annunciation1 ,the     
,spirits in ,prison1 ,at the feet of    
,christ1 ,the  ,infant ,christ1 ,the    
,crucifixion1 ,the ,last ,judgment4     
,what are ,paul  ,veronese's great      
pictures8 ,queen of ,sheba1 ,the        
,marriage in ,cana1  ,magdalen ,washing 

the ,feet of ,christ1 ,the ,holy        
,family4 ,who has not  heard of ,da     
,vinci's ,last ,supper8 ,who has not    
heard of ,turner's  ,pools of ,solomon8 
,who has not heard of ,claude's         
,marriage of ,isaac  and ,rebecca8 ,who 
has not heard of ,drer's ,dragon of the 
,apocalypse8 ,the mightiest picture on  
this planet is ,rubens'  ,scourging of  
,christ4 ,painter's pencil loves to     
sketch the face of  ,christ4 ,sculptor's
 chisel loves to present the form of    
,christ4 ,organs  love to roll forth the
 sorrows of ,christ4    ,the first time 
you go to ,london go into the ,dor      
picture gallery4 ,as ,i  went and sat   
down before ,christ ,descending the     
,steps of the  ,prtorium1 at the first  
,i was disappointed4 ,i said3 ,there    
isn't  enough majesty in that           
countenance1 not enough tenderness in   
that  eye2 but as ,i sat and looked at  
the picture it grew upon me until ,i    
was overwhelmed with its power1 and ,i  
staggered with emotion as ,i went  out  

into the fresh air1 and said2 ,oh1 for  
that ,christ ,i must live1  and for that
 ,christ ,i must be willing to die6     
,make that ,christ your  personal       
friend1 my sister1 my brother4 ,you may 
never go to ,milan to  see ,da ,vinci's 
,last ,supper2 but1 better than that1   
you can have  ,christ come and sup with 
you4 ,you may never get to ,antwerp to  
see  ,rubens' ,descent of ,christ from  
the ,cross1 but you can have ,christ    
come down from the mountain of ,his     
suffering into your heart and abide     
there forever4 ,oh1 you must have ,him6 
,we are all so diseased with sin  that  
we want that which hurts us1 and we     
won't have that which cures  us4 ,the   
best thing for you and for me to do     
to-day is to get down on  our bended    
knees before ,god and say3 ,oh1         
,almighty ,son of ,god1 ,i am  blind6 ,i
 want to see4 ,my arms are palsied4 ,i  
want to take hold of thy  cross4 ,have  
mercy on me1 ,o ,lord ,jesus6 ,why will 
you live on husks  when you may sit down

 to this white bread of heaven8 ,oh1    
with such a  ,god1 and with such a      
,christ1 and with such a ,holy ,spirit1 
and with  such an immortal nature1 wake 
up6    ,once more1 ,i was impressed     
greatly on the other side the sea with  
the  wonderful triumphs of the          
,christian religion4 ,the tide is       
rising1 the  tide of moral and spiritual
 prosperity in the world4 ,i think that 
any  man who keeps his eyes open1       
traveling in foreign lands1 will come to
  that conclusion4 ,more ,bibles than   
ever before1 more churches1 more        
consecrated men and women1 more people  
ready to be martyrs now than  ever      
before1 if need be2 so that instead of  
there being1 as people  sometimes say1  
less spirit of martyrdom now than ever  
before1 ,i  believe where there was once
 one martyr there would be a thousand   
martyrs if the fires were kindled--men  
ready to go through flood and  fire for 
,christ's sake4 ,oh1 the signs are      
promising6 ,the world is on  the way to 

millennial brightness4 ,all art1 all    
invention1 all  literature1 all commerce
 will be the ,lord's4    ,these ships   
that you see going up and down ,new     
,york harbor are to be  brought into the
 service of ,god4 ,all those ships ,i   
saw at ,liverpool1  at ,southampton1 at 
,glasgow1 are to be brought into the    
service of  ,christ4 ,what is that      
passage1 ,ships of ,tarshish shall bring
  presents8 ,that is what it means4 ,oh1
 what a goodly fleet when the  vessels  
of the sea come into the service of     
,god6 ,no guns frowning  through the    
port-holes1 no pikes hung in the        
gangway1 nothing from  cut-water to     
taffrail to suggest atrocity4 ,those    
ships will come from  all parts of the  
seas4 ,great flocks of ships that never 
met on the  high sea but in wrath1 will 
cry1 ,ship ahoy6 and drop down beside   
each other in calmness1 the flags of    
,emmanuel streaming from the            
top-gallants4 ,the old slaver1 with     
decks scrubbed and washed and  glistened

 and burnished--the old slaver will     
wheel into line2 and the  ,chinese junk 
and the ,venetian gondola1 and the      
miners' and the  pirates' corvette1 will
 fall into line1 equipped1 readorned1   
beautified1 only the small craft of this
 grand flotilla which shall  float out  
for the truth--a flotilla mightier than 
the armada of ,xerxes  moving in the    
pomp and pride of ,persian insolence2   
mightier than the  ,carthaginian navy   
rushing with forty thousand oarsmen upon
 the ,roman  galleys1 the life of       
nations dashed out against the gunwales4
    ,rise1 ,o sea6 and shine1 ,o        
heavens6 to greet this squadron of light
 and  victory6 ,on the glistening decks 
are the feet of them that bring good    
tidings1 and songs of heaven float among
 the rigging4 ,crowd on all the  canvas4
 ,line-of-battle ship and merchantmen   
wheel into the way4 ,it is  noon4       
,strike eight bells4 ,from all the      
squadron the sailors' songs  arise4     
,surely the isles shall wait for thee1  

and the ships of  ,tarshish to bring thy
 sons from afar1 their silver and their 
gold with  them1 to the name of the     
,lord thy ,god1 and the ,holy ,one of   
,israel4          ,a ,,momentous        
,,quest4        ,seek ye the ,lord while
 he may be found4--,,isa4 lv3 #f4       
,isaiah stands head and shoulders above 
the other ,old ,testament authors  in   
vivid descriptiveness of ,christ4 ,other
 prophets give an outline of  our       
,saviour's features4 ,some of them      
present1 as it were1 the side  face of  
,christ2 others a bust of ,christ2 but  
,isaiah gives us the  full-length       
portrait of ,christ4 ,other ,scripture  
writers excel in some  things4 ,ezekiel 
more weird1 ,david more pathetic1       
,solomon more  epigrammatic1 ,habakkuk  
more sublime2 but when you want to see  
,christ  coming out from the gates of   
prophecy in all ,his grandeur and glory1
  you involuntarily turn to ,isaiah4 ,so
 that if the prophecies in regard  to   
,christ might be called the ,oratorio of

 the ,messiah1 the writing  of ,isaiah  
is the ,hallelujah ,chorus1 where all   
the batons wave and  all the trumpets   
come in4 ,isaiah was not a man picked up
 out of  insignificance by inspiration4 
,he was known and honored4 ,josephus1   
and  ,philo1 and ,sirach extolled him in
 their writings4 ,what ,paul was among  
the apostles1 ,isaiah was among the     
prophets4    ,my text finds him standing
 on a mountain of inspiration1 looking  
out  into the future1 beholding ,christ 
advancing and anxious that all men      
might know ,him2 his voice rings down   
the ages3 ,seek ye the ,lord while  ,he 
may be found4 ,oh1 says some one3 that  
was for olden times4  ,no1 my hearer4   
,if you have traveled in other lands you
 have taken a  circular letter of credit
 from some banking-house in ,new ,york1 
and in  ,st4 ,petersburg1 or ,venice1 or
 ,rome1 or ,antwerp1 or ,brussels1 or   
,paris2  you presented that letter and  
got financial help immediately4 ,and ,i 
want you to understand that the text1   

instead of being appropriate for  one   
age1 or for one land1 is a circular     
letter for all ages and for  all lands1 
and wherever it is presented for help1  
the help comes3  ,seek ye the ,lord     
while ,he may be found4    ,i come1     
to-day1 with no hair-spun theories of   
religion1 with no nice  distinctions1   
with no elaborate disquisition2 but with
 a plain talk on  the matters of        
personal religion4 ,i feel that the     
sermon ,i preach this  morning will be  
the savor of life unto life1 or of death
 unto death4  ,in other words1 the      
,gospel of ,christ is a powerful        
medicine3 it either  kills or cures4    
,there are those who say3 ,i would like 
to become a  ,christian1 ,i have been   
waiting a good while for the right kind 
of  influences to come2 and still you   
are waiting4 ,you are wiser in  worldly 
things than you are in religious things4
 ,if you want to get to  ,albany1 you go
 to the ,grand ,central ,depot1 or to   
the steam-boat wharf1  and1 having got  

your ticket1 you do not sit down on the 
wharf or sit  in the depot2 you get     
aboard the boat or train4 ,and yet there
 are men  who say they are waiting to   
get to heaven--waiting1 waiting1 but not
  with intelligent waiting1 or they     
would get on board the line of          
,christian influences that would bear   
them into the kingdom of ,god4    ,now  
you know very well that to seek a thing 
is to search for it with  earnest       
endeavor4 ,if you want to see a certain 
man in ,new ,york1 and  there is a      
matter of #aj1jjj connected with your   
seeing him1 and you  can not at first   
find him1 you do not give up the search4
 ,you look in  the directory1 but can   
not find the name2 you go in circles    
where you  think1 perhaps1 he may       
mingle1 and1 having found the part of   
the city  where he lives1 but perhaps   
not knowing the street1 you go through  
street after street1 and from block to  
block1 and you keep on  searching for   
weeks and for months4    ,you say3 ,it  

is a matter of #aj1jjj whether ,i see   
him or not4 ,oh1  that men were as      
persistent in seeking for ,christ6 ,had 
you one half  that persistence you would
 long ago have found ,him who is the joy
 of  the forgiven spirit4 ,we may pay   
our debts1 we may attend church1 we  may
 relieve the poor1 we may be public     
benefactors1 and yet all our  life      
disobey the text1 never seek ,god1 never
 gain heaven4 ,oh1 that the  ,spirit of 
,god would help this morning while ,i   
try to show you1 in  carrying out the   
idea of my text1 first1 how to seek the 
,lord1 and in  the next place1 when to  
seek ,him4 ,seek ye the ,lord while ,he 
may be  found4    ,i remark1 in the     
first place1 you are to seek the ,lord  
through earnest  and believing prayer4  
,god is not an autocrat or a despot     
seated on a  throne1 with ,his arms     
resting on brazen lions1 and a sentinel 
pacing  up and down at the foot of the  
throne4 ,god is a father seated in a    
bower1 waiting for ,his children to come

 and climb on ,his knee1 and get  ,his  
kiss and ,his benediction4 ,prayer is   
the cup with which we go to  the        
fountain of living water1 and dip up    
refreshment for our  thirsty soul4      
,grace does not come to the heart as we 
set a cask at the  corner of the house  
to catch the rain in the shower4 ,it is 
a pulley  fastened to the throne of     
,god1 which we pull1 bringing the       
blessing4    ,i do not care so much what
 posture you take in prayer1 nor how    
large  an amount of voice you use4 ,you 
might get down on your face before      
,god1 if you did not pray right         
inwardly1 and there would be no         
response4 ,you might cry at the top of  
your voice1 and unless you had a        
believing spirit within1 your cry would 
not go further up than the  shout of a  
plow-boy to his oxen4 ,prayer must be   
believing1 earnest1  loving4 ,you are in
 your house some summer day1 and a      
shower comes up1  and a bird1           
affrighted1 darts into the window1 and  

wheels about the  room4 ,you seize it4  
,you smooth its ruffled plumage4 ,you   
feel its  fluttering heart4 ,you say1   
,poor thing1 poor thing6 ,now1 a prayer 
goes out of the storm of this world into
 the window of ,god's mercy1  and ,he   
catches it1 and ,he feels its fluttering
 pulse1 and ,he puts it  in ,his own    
bosom of affection and safety4 ,prayer  
is a warm1 ardent1  pulsating exercise4 
,it is the electric battery which1      
touched1 thrills  to the throne of ,god6
 ,it is the diving-bell in which we go  
down into  the depths of ,god's mercy   
and bring up pearls of great price4     
,there  was an instance where prayer    
made the waves of the ,gennesaret solid 
as  ,russ pavement4 ,oh1 how many       
wonderful things prayer has             
accomplished6  ,have you ever tried it8 
,in the days when the ,scotch           
,covenanters were  persecuted1 and the  
enemies were after them1 one of the head
 men  among the ,covenanters prayed3    
,oh1 ,lord1 we be as dead men unless    

,thou  shalt help us6 ,oh1 ,lord1 throw 
the lap of ,thy cloak over these poor   
things6 ,and instantly a ,scotch mist   
enveloped and hid the persecuted  from  
their persecutors--the promise literally
 fulfilled3 ,while they  are yet        
speaking ,i will hear4    ,oh1          
impenitent soul1 have you ever tried the
 power of prayer8 ,god  says3 ,he is    
loving1 and faithful1 and patient4 ,do  
you believe that8  ,you are told that   
,christ came to save sinners4 ,do you   
believe that8  ,you are told that all   
you have to do to get the pardon of the 
,gospel  is to ask for it4 ,do you      
believe that8 ,then come to ,him and    
say3 ,oh1  ,lord6 ,i know ,thou canst   
not lie4 ,thou hast told me to come for 
pardon1  and ,i could get it4 ,i come1  
,lord4 ,keep ,thy promise1 and liberate 
my  captive soul4    ,oh1 that you might
 have an altar in the parlor1 in the    
kitchen1 in the  store1 in the barn1 for
 ,christ will be willing to come again  
to the  manger to hear prayer4 ,he would

 come in your place of business1 as ,he 
confronted ,matthew1 the tax            
commissioner4 ,if a measure should come 
before ,congress that you thought would 
ruin the nation1 how you would  send in 
petitions and remonstrances6 ,and yet   
there has been enough sin  in your heart
 to ruin it forever1 and you have never 
remonstrated or  petitioned against it4 
,if your physical health failed1 and you
 had the  means1 you would go and spend 
the summer in ,germany1 and the winter  
in  ,italy1 and you would think it a    
very cheap outlay if you had to go all  
round the earth to get back your        
physical health4 ,have you made any     
effort1 any expenditure1 any exertion   
for your immortal and spiritual  health8
 ,no1 you have not taken one step4    ,o
 that you might now begin to seek after 
,god with earnest prayer4 ,some  of you 
have been working for years and years   
for the support of your  families4 ,have
 you given one half day to the working  
out of your  salvation with fear and    

trembling8 ,you came here this morning  
with an  earnest purpose1 ,i take it1 as
 ,i have come hither with an earnest    
purpose1 and we meet face to face1 and  
,i tell you1 first of all1 if  you want 
to find the ,lord1 you must pray1 and   
pray1 and pray4    ,i remark again1 you 
must seek the ,lord through ,bible      
study4 ,the ,bible  is the newest book  
in the world4 ,oh1 you say1 it was made 
hundreds  of years ago1 and the learned 
men of ,king ,james translated it       
hundreds  of years ago4 ,i confute that 
idea by telling you it is not five      
minutes old1 when ,god1 by ,his blessed 
,spirit1 retranslates it into the       
heart4 ,if you will1 in the seeking of  
the way of life through  ,scripture     
study1 implore ,god's light to fall upon
 the page1 you will  find that these    
promises are not one second old1 and    
that they drop  straight from the throne
 of ,god into your heart4    ,there are 
many people to whom the ,bible does not 
amount to much4 ,if  they merely look at

 the outside beauty1 why it will no more
 lead them  to ,christ than             
,washington's farewell address or the   
,koran of ,mohammed  or the ,shaster of 
the ,hindoos4 ,it is the inward light of
 ,god's ,word  you must get or die4 ,i  
went up to the church of the ,madeleine1
 in  ,paris1 and looked at the doors    
which were the most wonderfully         
constructed ,i ever saw1 and ,i could   
have stayed there for a whole  week2 but
 ,i had only a little time1 so1 having  
glanced at the  wonderful carving on the
 doors1 ,i passed in and looked at the  
radiant  altars1 and the sculptured     
dome4 ,alas1 that so many stop at the   
outside door of ,god's ,holy ,word1     
looking at the rhetorical beauties1     
instead of going in and looking at the  
altars of sacrifice and the  dome of    
,god's mercy and salvation that hovers  
over penitent and  believing souls6     
,o my friends6 if you merely want to    
study the laws of language1 do not  go  
to the ,bible4 ,it was not made for     

that4 ,take ,howe's ,elements of        
,criticism--it will be better than the  
,bible for that4 ,if you want to  study 
metaphysics1 better than the ,bible will
 be the writings of  ,william ,hamilton4
 ,but if you want to know how to have   
sin pardoned1  and at last to gain the  
blessedness of ,heaven1 search the      
,scriptures1  for in them ye have       
eternal life4    ,when people are       
anxious about their souls--and there are
 some such  here to-day--there are those
 who recommend good books4 ,that is all 
right4 ,but ,i want to tell you that the
 ,bible is the best book under  such    
circumstances4 ,baxter wrote ,a ,call to
 the ,unconverted1 but the  ,bible is   
the best call to the unconverted4       
,philip ,doddridge wrote ,the  ,rise and
 ,progress of ,religion in the ,soul1   
but the ,bible is the best  rise and    
progress4 ,john ,angell ,james wrote    
,advice to the ,anxious  ,inquirer1 but 
the ,bible is the best advice to the    
anxious inquirer4    ,o1 the ,bible is  

the very book you need1 anxious and     
inquiring soul6 ,a  dying soldier said  
to his mate3 ,comrade1 give me a drop6  
,the comrade  shook up the canteen1 and 
said3 ,there isn't a drop of water in   
the  canteen4 ,oh1 said the dying       
soldier1 that's not what ,i want2 feel  
in my knapsack for my ,bible1 and his   
comrade found the ,bible1 and  read him 
a few of the gracious promises1 and the 
dying soldier said3  ,ah1 that's what ,i
 want4 ,there isn't anything like the   
,bible for a  dying soldier1 is there1  
my comrade8 ,o blessed book while we    
live6  ,blessed book when we die6    ,i 
remark1 again1 we must seek ,god through
 church ordinances4 ,what1  say you1    
can't a man be saved without going to   
church8 ,i reply1  there are men1 ,i    
suppose1 in glory1 who have never seen a
 church3 but  the church is the ordained
 means by which we are to be brought to 
,god2  and if truth affects us when we  
are alone1 it affects us more mightily  
when we are in the assembly--the        

feelings of others emphasizing our  own 
feelings4 ,the great law of sympathy    
comes into play1 and a truth  that would
 take hold only with the grasp of a sick
 man1 beats mightily  against the soul  
with a thousand heart-throbs4    ,when  
you come into the religious circle1 come
 only with one notion1  and only for one
 purpose--to find the way to ,christ4   
,when ,i see people  critical about     
sermons1 and critical about tones of    
voice1 and  critical about sermonic     
delivery1 they make me think of a man in
  prison4 ,he is condemned to death1 but
 an officer of the government  brings a 
pardon and puts it through the wicket of
 the prison1 and  says3 ,here is your   
pardon4 ,come and get it4 ,what6 ,do you
 expect me  to take that pardon offered 
with such a voice as you have1 with such
  an awkward manner as you have8 ,i     
would rather die than so compromise  my 
rhetorical notions6 ,ah1 the man does   
not say that2 he takes it6 ,it  is his  
life4 ,he does not care how it is handed

 to him4 ,and if1 this  morning1 that   
pardon from the throne of ,god is       
offered to our souls1  should we not    
seize it1 regardless of all criticism1  
feeling that it  is a matter of heaven  
or hell8    ,but ,i come now to the last
 part of my text4 ,it tells us when we  
are to  seek the ,lord4 ,while ,he may  
be found4 ,when is that8 ,old age8 ,you 
may  not see old age4 ,to-morrow8 ,you  
may not see to-morrow4 ,to-night8 ,you  
may not see to-night4 ,now6 ,o if ,i    
could only write on every heart in      
three capital letters1 that word        
,n-,o-,w--,now6    ,sin is an awful     
disease4 ,i hear people say with a toss 
of the head and  with a trivial manner3 
,oh1 yes1 ,i'm a sinner4 ,sin is an     
awful  disease4 ,it is leprosy4 ,it is  
dropsy4 ,it is consumption4 ,it is all  
moral disorders in one4 ,now you know   
there is a crisis in a disease4         
,perhaps you have had some illustration 
of it in your family4 ,sometimes  the   
physician has called1 and he has looked 

at the patient and said3  ,that case was
 simple enough2 but the crisis has      
passed4 ,if you had  called me          
yesterday1 or this morning1 ,i could    
have cured the patient4  ,it is too late
 now2 the crisis has passed4 ,just so it
 is in the  spiritual treatment of the  
soul--there is a crisis4 ,before that1  
life6  ,after that1 death6 ,o my dear   
brother1 as you love your soul do not   
let  the crisis pass unattended to6     
,there are some here who can remember   
instances in life when1 if they  had    
bought a certain property1 they would   
have become very rich4 ,a few  acres    
that would have cost them almost nothing
 were offered them4  ,they refused them4
 ,afterward a large village or city     
sprung up on  those acres of ground1 and
 they see what a mistake they made in   
not  buying the property4 ,there was an 
opportunity of getting it4 ,it never    
came back again4 ,and so it is in regard
 to a man's spiritual and  eternal      
fortune4 ,there is a chance2 if you let 

that go1 perhaps it  never comes back4  
,certainly1 that one never comes back4  
,a gentleman told me that at the battle 
of ,gettysburg he stood upon a  height  
looking off upon the conflicting armies4
 ,he said it was the  most exciting     
moment of his life2 now one army seeming
 to triumph1 and  now the other4 ,after 
awhile the host wheeled in such a way   
that he  knew in five minutes the whole 
question would be decided4 ,he said the 
emotion was almost unbearable4 ,there is
 just such a time to-day with  you1 ,o  
impenitent soul6--the forces of light on
 the one side1 and the  siege-guns of   
hell on the other side1 and in a few    
moments the matter  will be settled for 
eternity4    ,there is a time which     
mercy has set for leaving port4 ,if you 
are on  board before that1 you will get 
a passage for heaven4 ,if you are not   
on board1 you miss your passage for     
heaven4 ,as in law courts a case is     
sometimes adjourned from term to term1  
and from year to year till the  bill of 

costs eats up the entire estate1 so     
there are men who are  adjourning the   
matter of religion from time to time1   
and from year to  year1 until heavenly  
bliss is the bill of costs the man will 
have to  pay for it4    ,why defer this 
matter1 oh1 my dear hearer8 ,have you   
any idea that sin  will wear out8 that  
it will evaporate8 that it will relax   
its grasp8  that you may find religion  
as a man accidentally finds a lost      
pocket-book8 ,ah1 no6 ,no man ever      
became a ,christian by accident1 or by  
the relaxing of sin4 ,the embarrassments
 are all the time increasing4  ,the     
hosts of darkness are recruiting1 and   
the longer you postpone this  matter the
 steeper the path will become4 ,i ask   
those men who are  before me this       
morning1 whether1 in the ten or fifteen 
years they have  passed in the          
postponement of these matters1 they have
 come any nearer  ,god or heaven8    ,i 
would not be afraid to challenge this   
whole audience1 so far as they  may not 

have found the peace of the ,gospel1 in 
regard to the matter4  ,your hearts1 you
 are willing frankly to tell me1 are    
becoming harder  and harder1 and that if
 you come to ,christ it will be more of 
an  undertaking now than it ever would  
have been before4 ,oh1 fly for  refuge6 
,the avenger of blood is on the track6  
,the throne of judgment  will soon be   
set2 and1 if you have anything to do    
toward your eternal  salvation1 you had 
better do it now1 for the redemption of 
your soul  is precious1 and it ceaseth  
forever6    ,oh1 if men could only catch
 just one glimpse of ,christ1 ,i know   
they  would love ,him6 ,your heart leaps
 at the sight of a glorious sunrise or  
sunset4 ,can you be without emotion as  
the ,sun of ,righteousness rises  behind
 ,calvary1 and sets behind ,joseph's    
sepulcher8 ,he is a blessed  ,saviour6  
,every nation has its type of beauty4   
,there is ,german beauty1  and ,swiss   
beauty1 and ,italian beauty1 and        
,english beauty2 but ,i care  not in    

what land a man first looks at ,christ1 
he pronounces ,him chief  among ten     
thousand1 and the ,one altogether       
lovely4 ,o my blessed  ,jesus6 ,light in
 darkness6 ,the ,rock on which ,i build6
 ,the ,captain of  ,salvation6 ,my joy6 
,my strength6 ,how strange it is that   
men can not  love ,thee6    ,the diamond
 districts of ,brazil are carefully     
guarded1 and a man does  not get in     
there except by a pass from the         
government2 but the love of  ,christ is 
a diamond district we may all enter1 and
 pick up treasures  for eternity4 ,oh1  
cry for mercy6 ,to-day1 if ye will hear 
,his voice1  harden not your hearts4    
,there is a way of opposing the mercy of
 ,god  too long1 and then there         
remaineth no more sacrifice for sin1 but
 a  fearful looking for judgment and    
fiery indignation1 which shall devour   
the adversary4 ,my friends1 my          
neighbors1 what can ,i say to induce you
  to attend to this matter--to attend to
 it now8 ,time is flying1  flying--the  

city clock joining my voice this moment1
 seeming to say to  you1 ,now is the    
time6 ,now is the time6 ,oh1 put it not 
off6    ,why should ,i stand here and   
plead1 and you sit there8 ,it is your   
immortal soul4 ,it is a soul that shall 
never die4 ,it is a soul that  must soon
 appear before ,god for review4 ,why    
throw away your chance for  heaven8 ,why
 plunge off into darkness when all the  
gates of glory are  open8 ,why become a 
castaway from ,god when you can sit upon
 the throne8  ,why will ye die miserably
 when eternal life is offered you1 and  
it  will cost you nothing but just      
willingness to accept it8 ,come1 for    
all things are now ready4 ,come1 ,christ
 is ready1 pardon is ready6 ,the        
,church is ready4 ,heaven is ready4 ,you
 will never find a more  convenient     
season1 if you should live fifty years  
more1 than this  very one4 ,reject this1
 and you may die in your sins4 ,why do  
,i say  this8 ,is it to frighten your   
soul8 ,oh1 no6 ,it is to persuade you4  

,i  show you the peril4 ,i show you the 
escape4 ,would ,i not be a coward       
beyond all excuse1 if1 believing that   
this great audience must soon be        
launched into the eternal world1 and    
that all who believe in ,christ  shall  
be saved1 and that all who reject       
,christ will be lost--would ,i  not be  
the veriest coward on earth to hide that
 truth or to stand  before you with a   
cold1 or even a placid manner8 ,my dear 
brethren1 now  is the day of your       
redemption4    ,it is very certain that 
you and ,i must soon appear before ,god 
in  judgment4 ,we can not escape it4    
,the ,bible says3 ,every eye shall see  
,him1 and they also which pierced ,him1 
and all the kindreds of the  earth shall
 wail because of ,him4 ,on that day all 
our advantages will  come up for our    
glory or for our discomfiture--every    
prayer1 every  sermon1 every exhortatory
 remark1 every reproof1 every call of   
grace2  and while the heavens are       
rolling away like a scroll1 and the     

world is  being destroyed1 your destiny 
and my destiny will be announced4 ,alas6
  alas6 if on that day it is found that 
we have neglected these matters4  ,we   
may throw them off now4 ,we can not     
then4 ,we will all be in earnest  then4 
,but no pardon then4 ,no offer of       
salvation then4 ,no rescue then4        
,driven away in our                     
wickedness--banished1 exiled1 forever6  
,have you ever imagined what will be the
 soliloquy of the soul on that  day     
unpardoned1 as it looks back upon its   
past life8 ,oh1 says the  soul1 ,i had  
glorious ,sabbaths6 ,there was one      
,sabbath in autumn when  ,i was invited 
to ,christ4 ,there was a ,sabbath       
morning when ,jesus stood  and spread   
out ,his arm and invited me to ,his holy
 heart4 ,i refused  ,him4 ,i have       
destroyed myself4 ,i have no one else to
 blame4 ,ruin  complete6 ,darkness      
unpitying1 deep1 eternal6 ,i am lost6   
,notwithstanding all the opportunities  
,i have had of being saved1 ,i am  lost6

 ,o ,thou long-suffering ,lord ,god     
,almighty1 ,i am lost6 ,o day of        
judgment1 ,i am lost6 ,o father1 mother1
 brother1 sister1 child in  glory1 ,i am
 lost6 ,and then as the tide goes out1  
your soul goes out  with it--further    
from ,god1 further from happiness1 and  
,i hear your  voice fainter1 and        
fainter1 and fainter3 ,lost6 ,lost6     
,lost6 ,lost6  ,lost6 ,o ye dying1 yet  
immortal men1 seek the ,lord while ,he  
may be  found4    ,but ,i want you to   
take the hint of the text that ,i have  
no time to  dwell on--the hint that     
there is a time when ,he can not be     
found4  ,there is a man in ,new ,york1  
eighty years of age1 who said to a      
clergyman who came in1 ,do you think    
that a man at eighty years of age  can  
get pardoned8 ,oh1 yes1 said the        
clergyman4 ,the old man said3 ,i  can't2
 when ,i was twenty years of age--,i am 
now eighty years--the  ,spirit of ,god  
came to my soul1 and ,i felt the        
importance of attending  to these       

things1 but ,i put it off4 ,i rejected  
,god1 and since then ,i  have had no    
feeling4 ,well1 said the minister1      
wouldn't you like to  have me pray with 
you8 ,yes1 replied the old man1 but it  
will do no  good4 ,you can pray with me 
if you like to4 ,the minister knelt down
  and prayed1 and commended the man's   
soul to ,god4 ,it seemed to have no     
effect upon him4 ,after awhile the last 
hour of the man's life came1  and       
through his delirium a spark of         
intelligence seemed to flash1 and  with 
his last breath he said2 ,i shall never 
be forgiven6 ,o seek the  ,lord while   
,he may be found4          ,,the ,,great
 ,,assize4    ,,doctor ,,talmage',s     
,,sermon1 ,,preached ,,at ,,cork1       
,,ireland1  ,,sunday ,,morning1 ,,sept  
#fth1 #ahhe4        ,when the ,son of   
,man shall come in ,his glory1 and all  
the holy      angels with ,him1 then    
shall ,he sit upon the throne of ,his   
glory3 and before ,him shall be gathered
 all nations3 and ,he      shall        

separate them one from another1 as a    
shepherd divideth      his sheep from   
the goats4--,,matthew xxv3 #ca1 #cb4    
,half-way between ,chamouny1            
,switzerland1 and ,martigny1 ,i reined  
in the  horse on which ,i was riding1   
and looked off upon the most wonderful  
natural amphitheater of valley and      
mountain and rock1 and ,i said to my    
companion1 ,what an appropriate place   
this would be for the last  judgment4   
,yonder overhanging rock the place for  
the judgment seat4  ,these galleries of 
surrounding hills occupied by attendant 
angels4  ,this vast valley1 sweeping    
miles this way and miles that1 the      
audience-room for all nations4 ,but     
sacred geography does not point  out the
 place4 ,yet we know that somewhere1    
some time1 somehow1 an  audience will be
 gathered together stupendous beyond all
 statistics1  and just as certainly as  
you and ,i make up a part of this       
audience  to-day1 we will make up a part
 of that audience on that day4    ,a    

common sense of justice in every man's  
heart demands that there  shall be some 
great winding-up day1 in which that     
which is now  inexplicable shall be     
explained4    ,why did that good man    
suffer1 and that bad man prosper8 ,you  
say1 ,i  don't know1 but ,i must know4  
,why is that good ,christian woman dying
  of what is called a spider cancer1    
while that daughter of folly sits       
wrapped in luxury1 ease1 and health8    
,you say1 ,i don't know1 but ,i  must   
know4 ,there are so many wrongs to be   
righted that if there were  not some    
great righting-up day in the presence of
 all ages1 there  would be an outcry    
against ,god from which ,his glory would
 never  recover4 ,if ,god did not at    
last try the nations1 the nations would 
try  ,him4 ,we are1 therefore1 ready for
 the announcement of the text4 ,the     
world never saw ,christ except in       
disguise4 ,if once when ,he was on      
earth ,he had let out ,his glory1       
instead of the blind eyes being  healed1

 all visions would have been            
extinguished4 ,no human eye could  have 
endured it4 ,and instead of bringing the
 dead to life1 all around  about him    
would have been the slain under that    
overpowering  effulgence4 ,disguise of  
human flesh4 ,disguise of seamless robe4
  ,disguise of sandal4 ,disguise of     
voice4 ,from ,bethlehem caravansary to  
mausoleum in the rock1 a complete       
disguise4    ,but on the day of which ,i
 speak the ,son of ,man will come in    
,his glory4  ,no hiding of luster4 ,no  
sheathing of strength4 ,no suppression  
of  grandeur4 ,no wrapping out of sight 
of the ,godhead4 ,any fifty of the  most
 brilliant sunsets that you ever saw on 
land or sea would be dim  as compared   
with the cerulean appearance on that day
 when ,christ  rolls through1 and rolls 
on1 and rolls down in ,his glory4 ,the  
air will  be all abloom with ,his       
presence1 and everything from horizon to
  horizon aflame with ,his splendor4    
,elijah rode up the sky-steep in a      

chariot1 the wheels of whirling fire    
and the horses of galloping fire1 and   
the charioteer drawing reins of  fire on
 bits of fire2 but ,christ will need no 
such equipage1 for the  law of          
gravitation will be laid aside1 and the 
natural elements will  be laid aside1   
and ,christ will descend swiftly enough 
to make speedy  arrival1 but slowly     
enough to allow the gaze of millions of 
spectators4 ,in his glory6 ,glory of    
form1 glory of omnipotence1 glory  of   
holiness1 glory of justice1 glory of    
love4 ,in ,his glory6 ,an  unveiled1 an 
uncovered ,god descending to meet the   
human race in an  interview which will  
be prolonged only for a few hours1 and  
yet which  shall settle all the past and
 all the present and all the future1 and
  be closed before the end of that day1 
which will close1 not with  setting sun1
 but with the destruction of the planet 
as a snuffers  takes off the top of a   
burned wick4    ,it is a solemn time in 
a court-room when there is an important 

case on  hand1 and the judge of the     
,supreme ,court enters1 and he sits     
down1 and  with gavel strikes on the    
desk commanding bar and jury and        
witnesses  and audience into silence4   
,all voices are hushed1 all heads are   
uncovered4 ,but how much more impressive
 when ,christ shall take the  judgment  
seat on the last day of the last week of
 the last month of  the last year of the
 world's existence1 and with gavel of   
thunder-bolt  shall smite the mountains1
 commanding all the land and all the sea
  into silence4    ,can you have any    
doubt about who it is on the seat on the
 judgment  day8 ,better make            
investigation1 to see whether there are 
any scars  about ,him that reveal ,his  
person4 ,apparel may change4 ,you can   
not  always tell by apparel4 ,but scars 
will tell the story after all else      
fails4 ,i find under ,his left arm a    
scar1 and on ,his right hand a scar1    
and on ,his left hand a scar1 and on    
,his right foot a scar1 and on ,his     

left foot a scar4 ,oh1 yes1 ,he is the  
,son of ,man in ,his glory4 ,every  mark
 of wound now a badge of victory1 every 
ridge showing the fearful  gash now     
telling the story of pain and sacrifice 
which ,he suffered in  behalf of the    
human race4    ,but what is all that    
commotion and flutter1 and surging to   
and fro  above ,him and on either side  
of ,him8 ,it is a detailed regiment of  
heaven1 a constabulary angelic1 sent    
forth to take part in that scene1  and  
to execute the mandates that shall be   
issued4 ,ten regiments1 a  hundred      
regiments1 a thousand regiments of      
angels2 for on that day all  heaven will
 be emptied of its inhabitants to let   
them attend the  scene4 ,all the holy   
angels4 ,from what a center to what a   
circumference4 ,widening out and        
widening out1 and higher up and higher  
up4 ,wings interlocking wings4          
,galleries of cloud above galleries of  
cloud1 all filled with the faces of     
angels come to listen and come to       

watch1 and come to help on that day for 
which all other days were  made4 ,who   
are those two taller and more           
conspicuous angels8 ,the one is         
,michael1 who is the commander of all   
those who come out to destroy  sin4 ,the
 other is ,gabriel1 who is announced as 
commander of all those  who come forth  
to help the righteous4 ,who is that     
mighty angel near  the throne8 ,that is 
the resurrection angel1 his lips still  
aquiver and  his cheek aflush with the  
blast that shattered the cemeteries and 
woke  the dead4 ,who is that other great
 angel1 with dark and overshadowing     
brow8 ,that is the one who in one night1
 by one flap of his wing1  turned one   
hundred and eighty-five thousand of     
,sennacherib's host into  corpses4      
,who are those bright immortals near the
 throne1 their faces partly  turned     
toward each other as though about to    
sing8 ,oh1 they are the  ,bethlehem     
chanters of the first ,christmas night6 
,who are this other  group standing so  

near the throne8 ,they are the          
,saviour's especial  bodyguard1 which   
hovered over ,him in the wilderness and 
administered  to ,him in the hour of    
martyrdom1 and heaved away the rock of  
,his  sarcophagus1 and escorted ,him    
upward on ,ascension ,day1 now          
appropriately escorting ,him down4      
,divine glory flanked on both sides  by 
angelic radiance4    ,but now lower your
 eye from the divine and angelic to the 
human4 ,the  entire human race is       
present4 ,all nations1 says my text4    
,before that  time the ,american        
,republic1 the ,english ,government1 the
 ,french  ,republic1 all modern modes of
 government may be obliterated for      
something better2 but all nations1      
whether dead or alive1 will be  brought 
up into that assembly4 ,thebes and ,tyre
 and ,babylon and ,greece  and ,rome as 
wide awake in that assembly as though   
they had never  slumbered amid the dead 
nations4 ,europe1 ,asia1 ,africa1 ,north
 and ,south  ,america1 and all the      

nineteenth century1 the eighteenth      
century1 the  twelfth century1 the tenth
 century1 the fourth century--all       
centuries  present4 ,not one being that 
ever drew the breath of life but will be
  in that assembly4    ,no other        
audience a thousandth part as large4 ,no
 other audience a  millionth part as    
large4 ,no human eye could look across  
it4 ,wing of  albatross and falcon and  
eagle not strong enough to fly over it4 
,a  congregation1 ,i verily believe1 not
 assembled on any continent1  because no
 continent would be large enough to hold
 it4 ,but1 as the  ,bible intimates1 in 
the air4 ,the law of gravitation        
unanchored1 the  world moved out of its 
place4 ,as now sometimes on earth a     
great tent  is spread for some great    
convention1 so over that great audience 
of  the judgment shall be lifted the    
blue canopy of the sky1 and  underneath 
it for floor the air made buoyant by the
 hand of ,almighty  ,god4 ,an           
architecture of atmospheric galleries   

strong enough to hold up  worlds4       
,surely the two arms of ,god's          
almightiness are two pillars  strong    
enough to hold up any auditorium4       
,but that audience is not to remain in  
session long4 ,most audiences on  earth 
after an hour or two adjourn4 ,sometimes
 in court-rooms an  audience will tarry 
four or five hours1 but then it         
adjourns4 ,so this  audience spoken of  
in the text will adjourn4 ,my text says1
 ,he will  separate them one from       
another as a shepherd divideth the sheep
 from  the goats4    ,no1 says my       
,universalist friend1 let them all stay 
together4 ,but  the text says1 ,he shall
 separate them4 ,no1 say the kings of   
this  world1 let men have their choice1 
and if they prefer monarchical          
institutions1 let them go together1 and 
if they prefer republican  institutions1
 let them go together4 ,no1 say the     
conventionalities  of this world1 let   
all those who moved in what are called  
high  circles go together1 and all those

 who on earth moved in low circles  go  
together4 ,the rich together1 the poor  
together1 the wise together1  the       
ignorant together4 ,ah6 no4 ,do you not 
notice in that assembly the  king is    
without his scepter1 and the soldier    
without his uniform1 and  the bishop    
without his pontifical ring1 and the    
millionaire without  his certificates of
 stock1 and the convict without his     
chain1 and the  beggar without his rags1
 and the illiterate without his bad     
orthography1 and all of us without any  
distinction of earthly  inequality8 ,so 
,i take it from that as well as from my 
text that the  mere accident of position
 in this world will do nothing toward   
deciding the questions of that very     
great day4    ,he will separate them as 
a shepherd divideth the sheep from the  
goats4 ,the sheep1 the cleanliest of    
creatures1 here made a symbol of  those 
who have all their sins washed away in  
the fountain of redeeming  mercy4 ,the  
goat1 one of the filthiest of creatures1

 here a type of  those who in the last  
judgment will be found never to have had
 any  divine ablution4 ,division        
according to character4 ,not only       
character  outside1 but character       
inside4 ,character of heart1 character  
of  choice1 character of allegiance1    
character of affection1 character       
inside as well as character outside4    
,in many cases it will be a complete and
 immediate reversal of all  earthly     
conditions4 ,some who in this world wore
 patched apparel will  take on raiment  
lustrous as a summer noon4 ,some who    
occupied a palace  will take a dungeon4 
,division regardless of all earthly     
caste1 and  some who were down will be  
up1 and some who were up will be down4  
,oh1  what a shattering of              
conventionalities6 ,what an upheaval of 
all social  rigidities1 what a turning  
of the wheel of earthly condition1 a    
thousand revolutions in a second6       
,division of all nations1 of all  ages1 
not by the figure #i1 nor the figure #h1

 nor the figure #g1 nor the  figure #f1 
nor the figure #e1 nor the figure #d2   
but by the figure #b4    ,two6 ,two     
characters1 two destinies1 two estates1 
two dominions1 two  eternities1 a       
tremendous1 an all-comprehensive1 an    
all-decisive1 and  everlasting two6     
,i sometimes think that the figure of   
the book that shall be opened  allows us
 to forget the thing signified by the   
symbol4 ,where is the  book-binder that 
could make a volume large enough to     
contain the names  of all the people who
 have ever lived8 ,besides that1 the    
calling of  such a roll would take more 
than fifty years1 more than a hundred   
years1 and the judgment is to be        
consummated in less time than passes    
between sunrise and sunset4 ,ah6 my     
friends1 the leaves of that book of     
judgment are not made out of paper1 but 
of memory4 ,one leaf in every  human    
heart4 ,you have known persons who were 
near drowning1 but they  were afterward 
resuscitated1 and they have told you    

that in the two or  three minutes       
between the accident and the            
resuscitation1 all their  past life     
flashed before them--all they had ever  
thought1 all they had  ever done1 all   
they had ever seen1 in an instant came  
to them4 ,the  memory never loses       
anything4 ,it is only a folded leaf4 ,it
 is only a  closed book4    ,though you 
be an octogenarian1 though you be a     
nonagenarian1 all the  thoughts and acts
 of your life are in your mind1 whether 
you recall  them now or not1 just as    
,macaulay's history is in two volumes1  
although the volumes may be closed1 and 
you can not see a word of  them1 and    
will not until they are opened4 ,as in  
the case of the  drowning man1 the      
volume of memory was partly open1 or the
 leaf partly  unrolled2 in the case of  
the judgment the entire book will be    
opened1  so that everything will be     
displayed from preface to appendix4     
,you have seen self-registering         
instruments which recorded how many     

revolutions they had made and what work 
they had done1 so the  manufacturer     
could come days after and look at the   
instrument and find  just how many      
revolutions had been made1 or how much  
work had been  accomplished4 ,so the    
human mind is a self-registering        
instrument1 and  it records all its past
 movements4 ,now that leaf1 that        
all-comprehensive leaf in your mind and 
mine this moment1 the leaf of  judgment1
 brought out under the flash of the     
judgment throne1 you can  easily see how
 all the past of our lives in an instant
 will be seen4  ,and so great and so    
resplendent will be the light of that   
throne that  not only this leaf in my   
heart and that leaf in your heart will  
be  revealed at a flash1 but all the    
leaves will be opened1 and you will     
read not only your own character and    
your own history1 but the  character and
 history of others4    ,in a military   
encampment the bugle sounded in one way 
means one thing1  and sounded in another

 way it means another thing4 ,bugle     
sounded in  one way means1 ,prepare for 
sudden attack4 ,bugle sounded in another
  way means1 ,to your tents1 and let all
 the lights be put out4 ,i have  to tell
 you1 my brother1 that the trumpet of   
the ,old ,testament1 the  trumpet that  
was carried in the armies of olden      
times1 and the trumpet  on the walls in 
olden times1 in the last great day will 
give  significant reverberation4 ,old1  
worn-out1 and exhausted ,time1 having   
marched across decades and centuries and
 ages1 will halt1 and the sun  and the  
moon and the stars will halt with it4   
,the trumpet6 the  trumpet6    ,peal the
 first3 ,under its power the sea will   
stretch itself out dead1  the white foam
 on the lip1 in its crystal sarcophagus1
 and the  mountains will stagger and    
reel and stumble1 and fall into the     
valleys  never to rise4 ,under one puff 
of that last cyclone all the candles of 
the sky will be blown out4 ,the trumpet6
 the trumpet6    ,peal the second3 ,the 

alabaster halls of the air will be      
filled with  those who will throng up   
from all the cemeteries of all the      
ages--from  ,greyfriar's ,churchyard and
 ,roman ,catacomb1 from ,westminster    
,abbey and  from the coral crypts of    
oceanic cave1 and some will rend off the
  bandage of ,egyptian mummy1 and others
 will remove from their brow the        
garland of green sea-weed4 ,from the    
north and the south and the east  and   
the west they come4 ,the dead6 ,the     
trumpet6 the trumpet6    ,peal the      
third3 ,amid surging clouds and the roar
 of attendant armies  of heaven1 the    
,lord comes through1 and there are      
lightnings and  thunder-bolts1 and an   
earthquake1 and a hallelujah1 and a     
wailing4 ,the  trumpet6 the trumpet6    
,peal the fourth3 ,all the records of   
human life will be revealed4 ,the  leaf 
containing the pardoned sin1 the leaf   
containing the unpardoned  sin4 ,some   
clapping hands with joy1 some grinding  
their teeth with  rage1 and all the     

forgotten past becomes a vivid present4 
,the trumpet6  the trumpet6    ,peal the
 last3 ,the audience breaks up4 ,the    
great trial is ended4 ,the  high court  
of heaven adjourns4 ,the audience hie   
themselves to their  two termini4 ,they 
rise1 they rise6 ,they sink1 they sink6 
,then the blue  tent of the sky will be 
lifted and folded up and put away4 ,then
 the  auditorium of atmospheric         
galleries will be melted4 ,then the     
folded  wings of attendant angels will  
be spread for upward flight4 ,the fiery 
throne of judgment will become a dim and
 a vanishing cloud4 ,the  conflagration 
of divine and angelic magnificence will 
roll back and  off4 ,the day for which  
all other days are made has closed1 and 
the  world has burned down1 and the last
 cinder has gone out1 and an angel      
flying on errand from world to world    
will poise long enough over the  dead   
earth to chant the funeral litany as he 
cries1 ,ashes to ashes6    ,that        
judgment leaf in your heart ,i seize    

hold of this moment for  cancellation4  
,in your city halls the great book of   
mortgages has a  large margin1 so that  
when the mortgagor has paid the full    
amount to  the mortgagee1 the officer of
 the law comes1 and he puts down on that
  margin the payment and the            
cancellation2 and though that mortgage  
demanded vast thousands before1 now it  
is null and void4 ,so ,i have to  tell  
you that that leaf in my heart and in   
your heart1 that leaf of  judgment1 that
 all-comprehensive leaf1 has a wide     
margin for  cancellation4    ,there is  
only one hand in all the universe that  
can touch that margin4  ,that hand this 
moment lifted to make the record null   
and void forever4  ,it may be a         
trembling hand1 for it is a wounded     
hand1 the nerves were  cut and the      
muscles were lacerated4 ,that record on 
that leaf was made  in the black ink of 
condemnation2 but if cancellation take  
place1 it  will be made in the red ink  
of sacrifice4 ,o judgment-bound brother 

and  sister6 let ,christ this moment    
bring to that record complete and       
glorious cancellation4 ,this moment1 in 
an outburst of impassioned  prayer1 ask 
for it4 ,you think it is the fluttering 
of your heart4 ,oh1  no6 it is the      
fluttering of that leaf1 that judgment  
leaf4    ,i ask you not to take from    
your iron safe your last will and       
testament1 but ,i ask for something of  
more importance than that4 ,i ask  you  
not to take from your private papers    
that letter so sacred that  you have put
 it away from all human eyesight1 but ,i
 ask you for  something of more meaning 
than that4 ,that leaf1 that judgment    
leaf in  my heart1 that judgment leaf in
 your heart1 which will decide our      
condition after this world shall have   
five thousand million years been  swept 
out the heavens1 an extinct planet1 and 
time itself will be so  long past that  
on the ocean of eternity it will seem   
only as now seems  a ripple on the      
,atlantic4    ,when the goats in vile   

herd start for the barren mountains of  
death1  and the sheep in fleeces of     
snowy whiteness and bleating with joy   
move  up the terraced hills to join the 
lambs already playing in the high       
pastures of celestial altitude1 oh1 may 
you and ,i be close by the  ,shepherd's 
crook6 ,when the ,son of ,man shall come
 in ,his glory1 and  all the holy angels
 with ,him1 then shall ,he sit upon the 
throne of ,his  glory2 and before ,him  
shall be gathered all nations2 and ,he  
shall  separate them one from another1  
as a shepherd divideth the sheep from   
the goats4    ,oh1 that leaf1 that one  
leaf in my heart1 that one leaf in your 
heart6  ,that leaf of judgment6 ,oh1    
those two tremendous words at the last1 
,come6 ,go6 ,as though the overhanging  
heavens were the cup of a  great bell1  
and all the stars were welded into a    
silvery tongue and  swung from side to  
side until it struck1 ,come6 ,as though 
all the  great guns of eternal disaster 
were discharged at once1 and they       

boomed forth in one resounding cannonade
 of ,go6 ,arithmetical sum in  simple   
division4 ,eternity the dividend4 ,the  
figure two the divisor4  ,your          
unalterable destiny the quotient4       
,,the ,,road ,,to ,,the ,,city4         
,and an highway shall be there1 and a   
way1 and it shall be      called the way
 of holiness2 the unclean shall not pass
 over      it2 but it shall be for      
those3 the wayfaring men1 though        
fools1 shall not err therein4 ,no lion  
shall be there1 nor any      ravenous   
beast shall go up thereon1 it shall not 
be found      there2 but the redeemed   
shall walk there2 and the ransomed of   
the ,lord shall return1 and come to     
,zion with songs and      everlasting   
joy upon their heads3 they shall obtain 
joy and      gladness1 and sorrow and   
sighing shall flee away4--,,isaiah      
xxxv3 #h-aj4      ,there are hundreds of
 people in this house this morning who  
want to  find the right road4 ,you      
sometimes see a person halting at cross 

roads1 and you can tell by his looks    
that he wishes to ask a question  as to 
what direction he had better take4 ,and 
,i stand in your presence  this morning 
conscious of the fact that there are    
many of you here who  realize that there
 are a thousand wrong roads1 but only   
one right one2  and ,i take it for      
granted that you have come in to ask    
which one it  is4 ,here is one road that
 opens widely1 but ,i have not much     
faith in  it4 ,there are a great many   
expensive toll-gates scattered all along
  that way4 ,indeed at every road you   
must pay in tears1 or pay in            
genuflexions1 or pay in flagellations4  
,on that road1 if you get  through it at
 all1 you have to pay your own way2 and 
since this  differs so much from what ,i
 have heard in regard to the right way1 
,i  believe it is the wrong way4        
,here is another road4 ,on either side  
of it are houses of sinful              
entertainment1 and invitations to come  
in1 and dine and rest2 but1  from the   

looks of the people who stand on the    
piazza ,i am very certain  that it is   
the wrong house and the wrong way4 ,here
 is another road4 ,it  is very beautiful
 and macadamized4 ,the horses' hoofs    
clatter and ring1  and they who ride    
over it spin along the highway1 until   
suddenly they  find that the road breaks
 over an embankment1 and they try to    
halt1  and they saw the bit in the mouth
 of the fiery steed1 and cry ,ho6  ho6  
,but it is too late1 and--crash6--they  
go over the embankment4 ,we  shall turn1
 this morning1 and see if we can not    
find a different kind  of a road4       
,you have heard of the ,appian ,way4 ,it
 was three hundred and fifty miles      
long4 ,it was twenty-four feet wide1 and
 on either side the road was a  path for
 foot passengers4 ,it was made out of   
rocks cut in hexagonal  shape and fitted
 together4 ,what a road it must have    
been6 ,made of  smooth1 hard rock1 three
 hundred and fifty miles long4 ,no      
wonder that  in the construction of it  

the treasures of a whole empire were    
exhausted4 ,because of invaders1 and the
 elements1 and time--the old  conqueror 
who tears up a road as he goes over     
it--there is nothing  left of that      
structure excepting a ruin4 ,but ,i have
 this morning to  tell you of a road    
built before the ,appian ,way1 and yet  
it is as good  as when first            
constructed4 ,millions of souls have    
gone over it4  ,millions more will come4
        ,the prophets and apostles1 too1
        ,pursued this road while here   
below2      ,we therefore will1 without 
dismay        ,still walk in ,christ1   
the good old way4    ,an highway shall  
be there1 and a way1 and it shall be    
called the way  of holiness2 the unclean
 shall not pass over it2 but it shall be
 for  those3 the wayfaring men1 though  
fools1 shall not err therein4 ,no lion  
shall be there1 nor any ravenous beast  
shall go up thereon1 it shall  not be   
found there2 but the redeemed shall walk
 there2 and the  ransomed of the ,lord  

shall return1 and come to ,zion with    
songs and  everlasting joy upon their   
heads2 they shall obtain joy and        
gladness1  and sorrow and sighing shall 
flee away6    ,i4 ,first1 this road of  
the text is the ,king's highway4 ,in the
  diligence you dash over the ,bernard  
pass of the ,alps1 mile after mile1  and
 there is not so much as a pebble to jar
 the wheels4 ,you go over  bridges which
 cross chasms that make you hold your   
breath2 under  projecting rock2 along by
 dangerous precipices2 through tunnels  
adrip  with the meltings of the         
glaciers2 and1 perhaps for the first    
time1  learn the majesty of a road built
 and supported by government  authority4
 ,well1 my ,lord the ,king decided to   
build a highway from  earth to heaven4  
,it should span all the chasms of human 
wretchedness2  it should tunnel all the 
mountains of earthly difficulty2 it     
should be  wide enough and strong enough
 to hold fifty thousand millions of the 
human race1 if so many of them should   

ever be born4 ,it should be  blasted out
 of the ,rock of ,ages1 and cemented    
with the blood of the  ,cross1 and be   
lifted amid the shouting of angels and  
the execration of  devils4    ,the ,king
 sent ,his ,son to build that road4 ,he 
put head and hand and  heart to it1 and1
 after the road was completed1 waved    
,his blistered  hand over the way1      
crying1 ,it is finished6 ,napoleon paid 
fifteen  million francs for the building
 of the ,simplon ,road1 that his cannon 
might go over for the devastation of    
,italy2 but our ,king1 at a greater     
expense1 has built a road for a         
different purpose1 that the banners of  
heavenly dominion might come down over  
it1 and all the redeemed of  earth      
travel up over it4    ,being a ,king's  
highway1 of course it is well built4    
,bridges splendidly  arched and         
buttressed have given way and crushed   
the passengers who  attempted to cross  
them4 ,but ,christ1 the ,king1 would    
build no such  thing as that4 ,the work 

done1 ,he mounts the chariot of ,his    
love1 and  multitudes mount with ,him1  
and ,he drives on and up the steep of   
heaven  amid the plaudits of gazing     
worlds6 ,the work is done--well         
done--gloriously done--magnificently    
done4    ,,ii4 ,still further3 this road
 spoken of is a clean road4    ,many a  
fine road has become miry and foul      
because it has not been  properly cared 
for2 but my text says the unclean shall 
not walk on  this one4 ,room on either  
side to throw away your sins4 ,indeed1  
if you  want to carry them along1 you   
are not on the right road4 ,that bridge 
will break1 those overhanging rocks will
 fall1 the night will come  down1       
leaving you at the mercy of the mountain
 bandits1 and at the  very next turn of 
the road you will perish4 ,but if you   
are really on  this clean road of which 
,i have been speaking1 then you will    
stop  ever and anon to wash in the water
 that stands in the basin of the        
eternal rock4 ,ay1 at almost every step 

of the journey you will be  crying out3 
,create within me a clean heart6 ,if you
 have no such  aspirations as that1 it  
proves that you have mistaken your way2 
and if  you will only look up and see   
the finger-board above your head1 you   
may read upon it the words3 ,there is a 
way that seemeth right unto a  man1 but 
the end thereof is death4 ,without      
holiness no man shall see  the ,lord2   
and if you have any idea that you can   
carry along your sins1  your lusts1 your
 worldliness1 and yet get to the end of 
the ,christian  race1 you are so awfully
 mistaken that1 in the name of ,god1    
this  morning ,i shatter the delusion4  
,,iii4 ,still further1 the road spoken  
of is a plain road4 ,the wayfaring  men1
 though fools1 shall not err therein4   
,that is1 if a man is three  fourths an 
idiot1 he can find this road just as    
well as if he were a  philosopher4 ,the 
imbecile boy1 the laughing-stock of the 
street1 and  followed by a mob hooting  
at him1 has only just to knock once at  

the  gate of heaven1 and it swings open3
 while there has been many a man  who   
can lecture about pneumatics1 and       
chemistry1 and tell the story of        
,farraday's theory of electrical        
polarization1 and yet has been shut  out
 of heaven4 ,there has been many a man  
who stood in an observatory  and swept  
the heavens with his telescope1 and yet 
has not been able to  see the ,morning  
,star4 ,many a man has been familiar    
with all the higher  branches of        
mathematics1 and yet could not do the   
simple sum1 ,what  shall it profit a man
 if he gain the whole world and lose his
 own  soul8 ,many a man has been a fine 
reader of tragedies and poems1 and  yet 
could not read his title clear to       
mansions in the skies4 ,many a  man has 
botanized across the continent1 and yet 
not know the ,rose of  ,sharon and the  
,lily of the ,valley4 ,but if one shall 
come in the right  spirit1 crying the   
way to heaven1 he will find it a plain  
way4 ,the  pardon is plain4 ,the peace  

is plain4 ,everything is plain4    ,he  
who tries to get on the road to heaven  
through the ,new ,testament  teaching   
will get on beautifully4 ,he who goes   
through philosophical  discussion will  
not get on at all4 ,christ says3 ,come  
to ,me1 and ,i  will take all your sins 
away1 and ,i will take all your troubles
 away4  ,now what is the use of my      
discussing it any more8 ,is not that    
plain8  ,if you wanted to go to ,albany1
 and ,i pointed you out a highway       
thoroughly laid out1 would ,i be wise in
 detaining you by a geological          
discussion about the gravel you will    
pass over1 or a physiological           
discussion about the muscles you will   
have to bring into play8 ,no4  ,after   
this ,bible has pointed you the way to  
heaven1 is it wise for me  to detain you
 with any discussion about the nature of
 the human will1  or whether the        
atonement is limited or unlimited8      
,there is the  road--go on it4 ,it is a 
plain way4    ,this is a faithful       

saying1 and worthy of all acceptation1  
that ,christ  ,jesus came into the world
 to save sinners4 ,and that is you and  
that  is me4 ,any little child here can 
understand this as well as ,i can4      
,unless you become as a little child1   
you can not see the kingdom of  ,god4   
,if you are saved1 it will not be as a  
philosopher1 it will be as  a little    
child4 ,of such is the kingdom of       
,heaven4 ,unless you get  the spirit of 
little children1 you will never come out
 at their  glorious destiny4    ,,iv4   
,still further3 this road to heaven is a
 safe road4 ,sometimes the  traveler in 
those ancient highways would think      
himself perfectly  secure1 not knowing  
there was a lion by the way1 burying his
 head deep  between his paws1 and then1 
when the right moment came1 under the   
fearful spring the man's life was gone1 
and there was a mauled carcass  by the  
roadside4 ,but1 says my text1 ,no lion  
shall be there4 ,i wish ,i  could make  
you feel1 this morning1 your entire     

security4 ,i tell you  plainly that one 
minute after a man has become a child of
 ,god1 he is  as safe as though he had  
been ten thousand years in heaven4 ,he  
may  slip1 he may slide1 he may stumble2
 but he can not be destroyed4 ,kept  by 
the power of ,god1 through faith1 unto  
complete salvation4  ,everlastingly     
safe4    ,the severest trial to which   
you can subject a ,christian man is to  
kill  him1 and that is glory4 ,in other 
words1 the worst thing that can  happen 
a child of ,god is heaven4 ,the body is 
only the old slippers  that he throws   
aside just before putting on the sandals
 of light4 ,his  soul1 you can not hurt 
it4 ,no fires can consume it4 ,no floods
 can  drown it4 ,no devils can capture  
it4        ,firm and unmoved are they   
,who rest their souls on ,god2          
,fixed as the ground where ,david stood1
        ,or where the ark abode4    ,his
 soul is safe4 ,his reputation is safe4 
,everything is safe4 ,but1  you say1    
suppose his store burns up8 ,why1 then1 

it will be only a  change of investments
 from earthly to heavenly securities4   
,but1 you  say1 suppose his name goes   
down under the hoof of scorn and        
contempt8 ,the name will be so much     
brighter in glory4 ,suppose his         
physical health fails8 ,god will pour   
into him the floods of  everlasting     
health1 and it will not make any        
difference4 ,earthly  subtraction is    
heavenly addition4 ,the tears of earth  
are the crystals  of heaven4 ,as they   
take rags and tatters and put them      
through the  paper-mill1 and they come  
out beautiful white sheets of paper1 so1
  often1 the rags of earthly            
destitution1 under the cylinders of     
death1  come out a white scroll upon    
which shall be written eternal          
emancipation4    ,there was one passage 
of ,scripture1 the force of which ,i    
never  understood until one day at      
,chamounix1 with ,mont ,blanc on one    
side1  and ,montanvent on the other1 ,i 
opened my ,bible and read3 ,as the      

mountains are around about ,jerusalem1  
so the ,lord is around about them  that 
fear ,him4 ,the surroundings were an    
omnipotent commentary4        ,though   
troubles assail1 and dangers affright2  
,though friends should all fail1 and    
foes all unite2      ,yet one thing     
secures us1 whatever betide1      ,the  
,scriptures assure us the ,lord will    
provide4    ,v4 ,still further3 the road
 spoken of is a pleasant road4 ,god     
gives a  bond of indemnity against all  
evil to every man that treads it4 ,all  
things work together for good to those  
who love ,god4 ,no weapon formed        
against them can prosper4 ,that is the  
bond1 signed1 sealed1 and  delivered by 
the ,president of the whole universe4   
,what is the use of  your fretting1 ,o  
child of ,god1 about food8 ,behold the  
fowls of the  air3 for they sow not1    
neither do they reap1 nor gather into   
barns2  yet your heavenly ,father       
feedeth them4 ,and will ,he take care of
 the  sparrow1 will ,he take care of the

 hawk1 and let you die8 ,what is the    
use of your fretting about clothes8     
,consider the lilies of the field4      
,shall ,he not much more clothe you1 ,o 
ye of little faith8 ,what is the  use   
worrying for fear something will happen 
to your home8 ,he blesseth  the         
habitation of the just4 ,what is the use
 of your fretting lest you  will be     
overcome of temptations8 ,god is        
faithful1 who will not suffer  you to be
 tempted above that ye are able2 but    
will with the temptation  also make a   
way to escape1 that ye may be able to   
bear it4    ,o this ,king's highway6    
,trees of life on either side1 bending  
over  until their branches interlock and
 drop midway their fruit and shade4     
,houses of entertainment on either side 
the road for poor pilgrims4  ,tables    
spread with a feast of good things1 and 
walls adorned with  apples of gold in   
pictures of silver4 ,i start out on this
 ,king's  highway1 and ,i find a harper1
 and ,i say3 ,what is your name8 ,the   

harper makes no response1 but leaves me 
to guess1 as1 with his eyes  toward     
heaven and his hand upon the trembling  
strings this tune comes  rippling on the
 air3 ,the ,lord is my light and my     
salvation4 ,whom  shall ,i fear8 ,the   
,lord is the strength of my life2 of    
whom shall ,i be  afraid8 ,i go a little
 further on the same road and meet a    
trumpeter  of heaven1 and ,i say3       
,haven't you got some music for a tired 
pilgrim8 ,and wiping his lip and taking 
a long breath1 he puts his  mouth to the
 trumpet and pours forth this strain3   
,they shall hunger  no more1 neither    
shall they thirst any more1 neither     
shall the sun  light on them1 nor any   
heat1 for the ,lamb which is in the     
midst of the  throne shall lead them to 
living fountains of water1 and ,god     
shall  wipe away all tears from their   
eyes4 ,i go a little distance further   
on the same road1 and ,i meet a maiden  
of ,israel4 ,she has no harp1 but  she  
has cymbals4 ,they look as if they had  

rusted from sea-spray2 and ,i  say to   
the maiden of ,israel3 ,have you no song
 for a tired pilgrim8  ,and like the    
clang of victors' shields the cymbals   
clap as ,miriam  begins to discourse3   
,sing ye to the ,lord1 for ,he hath     
triumphed  gloriously2 the horse and the
 rider hath ,he thrown into the sea4    
,and  then ,i see a white-robed group4  
,they come bounding toward me1 and ,i   
say3 ,who are they8 ,the happiest1 and  
the brightest1 and the fairest  in all  
heaven--who are they8 ,and the answer   
comes3 ,these are they  who came out of 
great tribulations1 and had their robes 
washed and  made white with the blood of
 the ,lamb4    ,i pursue this subject   
only one step further4 ,what is the     
terminus8 ,i  do not care how fine a    
road you may put me on1 ,i want to know 
where it  comes out4 ,my text declares  
it3 ,the redeemed of the ,lord come to  
,zion4 ,you know what ,zion was4 ,that  
was the ,king's palace4 ,it was a       
mountain fastness4 ,it was impregnable4 

,and so heaven is the fastness  of the  
universe4 ,no howitzer has long enough  
range to shell those  towers4 ,let all  
the batteries of earth and hell blaze   
away2 they can  not break in those      
gates4 ,gibraltar was taken1 ,sebastopol
 was taken1  ,babylon fell2 but these   
walls of heaven shall never surrender   
either  to human or ,satanic            
besiegement4 ,the ,lord ,god ,almighty  
is the defense  of it4 ,great capital of
 the universe6 ,terminus of the ,king's 
highway6    ,doctor ,dick said that1    
among other things1 he thought in heaven
 we  should study chemistry1 and        
geometry1 and conic sections4 ,southey  
thought that in heaven he would have the
 pleasure of seeing ,chaucer  and       
,shakespeare4 ,now1 ,doctor ,dick may   
have his mathematics for all  eternity1 
and ,southey his ,shakespeare4 ,give me 
,christ and my old  friends--that is all
 the heaven ,i want1 that is heaven     
enough for me4  ,o garden of light1     
whose leaves never wither1 and whose    

fruits never  fail6 ,o banquet of ,god1 
whose sweetness never palls the taste1  
and  whose guests are kings forever6 ,o 
city of light1 whose walls are          
salvation1 and whose gates are praise6  
,o palace of rest1 where ,god is  the   
monarch and everlasting ages the length 
of ,his reign6 ,o song  louder than the 
surf-beat of many waters1 yet soft as   
the whisper of  cherubim6    ,o my      
heaven6 ,when my last wound is healed1  
when the last heart-break  is ended1    
when the last tear of earthly sorrow is 
wiped away1 and when  the redeemed of   
the ,lord shall come to ,zion1 then let 
all the harpers  take down their harps1 
and all the trumpeters take down their  
trumpets1 and all across heaven there be
 chorus of morning stars1  chorus of    
white-robed victors1 chorus of martyrs  
from under the  throne1 chorus of ages1 
chorus of worlds1 and there be but one  
song  sung1 and but one name spoken1 and
 but one throne honored--that of  ,jesus
 only4          ,,the ,,ransomless4     

,beware lest ,he take thee away with    
,his stroke3 then a great      ransom   
can not deliver thee4--,,job xxxvi3 #ah4
      ,trouble makes some men mad4 ,it  
was so with ,job4 ,he had lost his      
property1 he had lost his physical      
health1 he had lost his dear  children1 
and the losses had led to exasperation  
instead of any  spiritual profit4 ,i    
suppose that he was in the condition    
that many are  now in who sit before me4
 ,there are those here whose fortunes   
have  begun to flap their wings1 as     
though to fly away4 ,there is a hollow  
cough in some of your dwellings4 ,there 
is a subtraction of comfort and         
happiness1 and you feel disgusted with  
the world1 and impatient with  many     
events that are transpiring in your     
history1 and you are in the  condition  
in which ,job was when the words of my  
text accosted him3  ,beware lest ,he    
take thee away with ,his stroke and then
 a ransom can  not deliver thee4    ,i  
propose to show you that sometimes ,god 

suddenly removes from us our  gospel    
opportunities1 and that1 when ,he has   
done so1 our case is  ransomless4       
,beware lest ,he take thee away with    
,his stroke3 then a  great ransom can   
not deliver thee4    ,i4 ,sometimes the 
stroke comes in the removal of the      
intellect4    ,oh1 says some man1 as    
long as ,i keep my mind ,i can afford to
  adjourn religion4 ,but suppose you do 
not keep it8 ,a fever1 the  hurling of a
 missile1 the falling of a brick from a 
scaffolding1 the  accidental discharge  
of a gun--and your mind is gone4 ,if you
 have ever  been in an anatomical room1 
and have examined the human brain1 you  
know what a delicate organ it is4 ,and  
can it be possible that our  eternity is
 dependent upon the healthy action of   
that which can be so  easily destroyed8 
,oh1 says some one1 you don't know how  
strong a mind ,i have4 ,i  reply3       
,losses1 accident1 bereavement1 and     
sickness may shipwreck the  best        
physical or mental condition4 ,there are

 those who have been ten  years in      
lunatic asylums who had as good a mind  
as you4 ,while they had  their minds    
they neglected ,god1 and when their     
intellect went1 with it  went their last
 opportunity for heaven4 ,now they are  
not responsible  for what they do1 or   
for what they say2 but in the last day  
they will  be held responsible for what 
they did when they were mentally well2  
and if1 on that day1 a soul should say3 
,oh1 ,god1 ,i was demented1 and  ,i had 
no responsibility1 ,god will say3 ,yes1 
you were demented2 but  there were long 
years when you were not demented4 ,that 
was your chance  for heaven1 and you    
missed it4 ,oh1 better be1 as the       
,scotch say1 a  little daft1            
nevertheless having grace in the heart2 
better be like  poor ,richard ,hampson1 
the ,cornish fool1 whose biography has  
just  appeared in ,england--a silly man 
he was1 yet bringing souls to ,jesus    
,christ by scores and scores--giving an 
account of his own conversion1  when he 

said3 ,the mob got after me1 and ,i lost
 my hat1 and climbed  up by a           
meat-stand1 in order that ,i might not  
be trampled under foot1  and while ,i   
was there1 my heart got on fire with    
love toward those who  were chasing me1 
and1 springing to my feet1 ,i began to  
exhort and to  pray4 ,oh1 my ,god1 let  
me be in the last1 last day the ,cornish
 fool1  rather than have the best       
intellect ,god ever created unillumined 
by  the ,gospel of ,jesus ,christ6      
,consider what an uncertain possession  
you have in your intellect1 when  there 
are so many things around to destroy it2
 and beware1 lest before  you use it in 
making the religious choice1 ,god takes 
it away with a  stroke4 ,i know a good  
many of my friends who are putting off  
religion  until the last hour4 ,they say
 when they get sick they will attend to 
it1 but generally the intellect is      
beclouded2 and oh2 what a doleful  thing
 it is to stand by a dying bed1 and talk
 to a man about his soul1  and feel1    

from what you see of the motion of his  
head1 and the glare  of his eye1 and    
from what you hear of the jargon of his 
lips1 that he  does not understand what 
you are saying to him4 ,i have stood    
beside  the death-bed of a man who had  
lived a sinful life1 and was as         
unprepared for eternity as it is        
possible for a man to be1 and ,i tried  
to make him understand my pastoral      
errand2 but all in vain4 ,he could  not 
understand it1 and so he died4    ,oh6  
ye who are putting off until the sick   
hour preparation for  eternity1 let me  
tell you that in all probability1 you   
will not be  able in your last hour to  
attend to it at all4 ,there are a great 
many  people who say they will repent on
 the death-bed4    ,i have no doubt     
there are many who have repented on the 
death-bed1 but  ,i think it is the      
exception4 ,albert ,barnes1 who was one 
of the coolest  of men1 and gave no rash
 statistics1 said thus3 that in a       
ministry of  nearly half a century--he  

was over seventy when he went up to     
glory--he had known a great many people 
who said they repented on the  dying    
bed1 but1 unexpectedly to themselves1   
got well2 and he says1 ,how  many of    
those1 do you suppose1 who thought it   
was their dying bed1 and  who1 after    
they repented on that dying bed1 having 
got well1 lived  consistently1 showing  
that it was real repentance1 and not    
mock  repentance--how many8 not one6 not
 one6    ,,ii4 ,again3 this stroke may  
come to you in the withdrawal of ,god's 
spirit4    ,i see people before me who  
were1 twenty years ago1 serious about   
their  souls4 ,they are not now4 ,they  
have no interest in what ,i am saying4  
,they will never have any anxiety in    
what any minister of the ,gospel  says  
about their souls4 ,their time seems to 
have passed4 ,i know a man1             
seventy-five years of age1 who1 in early
 life1 became almost a  ,christian1 but 
grieved away the spirit of ,god1 and he 
has never  thought earnestly since1 and 

he can not be roused4 ,i do not believe 
he  will be roused until eternity       
flashes on his astonished vision4    ,it
 does seem as if sometimes1 in quite    
early life1 the ,holy ,spirit  moves    
upon a heart1 and being grieved away and
 rejected1 never comes  back4 ,you say  
that is all imaginary8 ,a letter1 the   
address of which ,i  will not give1     
dated last ,monday morning1 came to me  
on ,tuesday1  saying this3 ,your sermon 
last night 7that is1 last ,sabbath      
night7  did not fit my case1 although ,i
 believe it did all others in the       
,academy2 but your sermon of a week ago 
did fit my case1 for ,i am 'past        
feeling4' ,i am not ashamed to be a     
,christian4 ,i would as soon be known   
to be a ,christian as anything else4    
,indeed1 ,i wish ,i was1 but ,i have    
not the least power to become one4      
,don't you know that with some  persons 
there is a tide in their spiritual      
natures which1 if taken at  the flood1  
leads on to salvation8 ,such a tide ,i  

felt two years ago4 ,i  want you to pray
 for me1 not that ,i may be led to      
,christ--for that  prayer would not be  
answered--but that ,i may be kept from  
the  temptation to suicide6    ,what ,i 
had to say to the author of that ,i said
 in a private letter2  but what ,i have 
to say to this audience is3 ,beware lest
 you grieve the  ,holy ,ghost1 and ,he  
be gone1 and never return4 ,next        
,wednesday1 at two  or three o'clock1 a 
,cunard steamer will put out from       
,jersey ,city wharf  for ,liverpool4    
,after it has gone one hour1 and the    
vessel is down by  the ,narrows1 or     
beyond1 go out on the ,jersey ,city     
wharf1 and wave your  hand1 and shout1  
and ask that steamer to come back to the
 wharf4 ,will  it8 ,yes1 sooner than the
 ,holy ,ghost will come back when once  
,he has  taken his final flight from thy
 soul4 ,with that ,holy ,spirit some of 
you have been in treaty1 my dear        
friends4    ,the ,holy ,spirit said3    
,come1 come to ,christ4 ,you said3 ,no1 

,i won't4  ,the ,spirit said1 more      
importunately3 ,come to ,christ4 ,you   
said3  ,well1 ,i will after awhile1 when
 ,i get my business fixed up2 when my   
friends consent to my coming2 when they 
won't laugh at me--then ,i'll  come4    
,but the ,holy ,spirit more emphatically
 said3 ,come now4 ,you  said3 ,no1 ,i   
can't4 ,i can't come now4 ,and that     
,holy ,spirit stands in  your heart     
to-night1 with ,his hand on the door of 
your soul1 ready to  come out4 ,will you
 let ,him depart8 ,if so1 then1 with a  
pen of light1  dipped in ink of eternal 
blackness1 the sentence may be now      
writing3  ,ephraim is joined to his     
idols4 ,let him alone6 ,let him alone6  
,when  that fatal record is made1 you   
might as well brace yourselves up       
against the sorrows of the last day1    
against the anguish of an  unforgiven   
death-bed1 against the flame and the    
overthrow of an undone  eternity2 for   
though you might live thirty years after
 that in the  world1 your fate would be 

as certain as though you had already    
entered  the gates of darkness4 ,that is
 the dead line4 ,look out how you cross 
it6        ',there is a line by us      
unseen1        ,that crosses every path2
      ,the hidden boundary between      
,god's patience and ,his wrath4'    ,and
 some of you1 to-night1 have come up to 
that line4 ,ay1 you have  lifted your   
foot1 and when you put it down1 it will 
be on the other  side6 ,look out how you
 cross it6 ,oh1 grieve not the ,spirit  
of ,god1  lest ,he never come back6     
,,iii4 ,this fatal stroke spoken of in  
the text may be our exit from this      
world4 ,i hear aged people sometimes    
saying3 ,i can't live much  longer4 ,but
 do you know the fact that there are a  
hundred young  people and middle-aged   
people who go out of this life to one   
aged  person1 for the simple reason that
 there are not many aged people to      
leave life8 ,the aged seem to stand     
around like stalks--separate stalks  of 
wheat at the corner of the field2 but   

when death goes a-mowing1 he  likes to  
go down amid the thick of the harvest4  
,what is more to the  point3 a man's    
going out of this world is never in the 
way he  expects--it is never at the time
 he expects4 ,the moment of leaving     
this world is always a surprise4 ,if you
 expect to go in the winter1 it  may be 
in the summer2 if in the summer1 it may 
be in the winter2 if in  the night1 it  
maybe in the day-time2 if you think to  
go in the  day-time1 it may be in the   
night4 ,suddenly the event will rush    
upon  you1 and you will be gone4 ,where8
 ,if a ,christian--into joy4 ,if not a  
,christian--into suffering4    ,the     
,gospel call stops outside of the door  
of the sepulcher4 ,the  sleeper within  
can not hear it4 ,if that call should be
 sounded out  with clarion voice louder 
than ever rang through the air1 that    
sleeper  could not hear it4 ,i suppose  
every hour of the day1 and now1 while ,i
  am speaking1 there are souls rushing  
into eternity unprepared4 ,they  slide  

from the pillow1 or they slip from the  
pavement1 and in an  eye-twinkling they 
are gone4 ,elegant and eloquent funeral 
oration will  not do them any good4     
,epitaph1 cut on polished ,scotch       
granite1 will  not do them any good4    
,wailing of beloved kindred can not call
 them  back4    ,but1 says some one3    
,i'll keep out of peril2 ,i will not go 
on the sea1  ,i will not go into        
battle--,i'll keep out of all danger4   
,that is no  defense4 ,thousands of     
people1 last night1 on their couches1   
with the  front door locked1 and no     
armed assassin anywhere around1         
surrounded  by all defended             
circumstances1 slipped out of this life 
into the  next4 ,if time had been on one
 side of the shuttle and eternity on the
  other side of the shuttle1 they could 
not have shot quicker across it4  ,a man
 was saying3 ,my father was lost at sea1
 and my grandfather1 and  my            
great-grandfather4 ,wasn't it strange8  
,a man1 talking to him1 said3  ,you     

ought never to venture on the sea1 lest 
you1 yourself1 be lost at  sea4 ,the man
 turned to the other1 and said3 ,where  
did your father  die8 ,he replied3 ,in  
his bed4 ,where did your grandfather    
die8 ,in  his bed4 ,where did your      
great-grandfather die8 ,in his bed4     
,then1 he said1 be careful1 lest some   
night1 while you are asleep on  your    
couch1 your time may come6    ,death    
alone is sure4 ,suddenly1 you and ,i    
will go out of life4 ,i am not  saying  
anything to your soul that ,i am not    
going to say to my own  soul4 ,we have  
got to go suddenly out of this life4 ,if
 ,i am prepared  for that change1 ,i do 
not care where my body is taken from--at
 what  point ,i am taken out of this    
life4 ,if ,i am ready1 all is well4 ,if 
,i am  not ready1 though ,i might be at 
home1 and though my loved ones might  be
 standing around me1 and though there   
might be the best surgical and  medical 
ability in the room1 ,i tell you1 if ,i 
were not prepared1 ,i  would be         

frightened more than tongue can tell4   
,it may seem like  cowardice1 but ,i am 
not ashamed to say that ,i should have  
the most  indescribable horror about    
going out of this world if ,i thought ,i
 was  unprepared for the next--if ,i had
 no ,christ in my soul2 for it would  be
 a plunge compared with which a leap    
from the top of ,mont ,blanc  would be  
nothing4    ,but this brings me to the  
most tremendous thought of my text4 ,the
 text  supposes that a man goes into    
ruin1 and that an effort is made        
afterward for his rescue1 and then says 
the thing can not be done4 ,is  that so8
 ,after death seizes upon that soul1 is 
there no resurrection8  ,if a man       
topples off the edge of life1 is there  
nothing to break his  fall8 ,if an      
impenitent man goes overboard1 are there
 no  grappling-hooks to hoist him into  
safety8 ,the text says distinctly3      
,then a great ransom can not deliver    
thee4    ,i know there are people who   
call themselves ,restorationists1 and   

they say a sinful man may go down into  
the world of the lost2 he stays  there  
until he gets reformed1 and then comes  
up into the world of  light and         
blessedness4 ,it seems to me to be a    
most unreasonable  doctrine--as though  
the world of darkness were a place where
 a man  could get reformed4 ,is there   
anything in the society of the lost     
world--the abandoned and the wretched of
 ,god's universe--to elevate a  man's   
character and lift him at last to       
heaven8 ,can we go into  companionship  
of the ,neroes and the ,herods1 and the 
,jim ,fisks1 and  spend a certain number
 of years in that lost world1 and then  
by that  society be purified and lifted 
up8 ,is that the kind of society that   
reforms a man and prepares him for      
heaven8 ,would you go to ,shreveport  or
 ,memphis1 with the yellow fever there1 
to get your physical health  restored8  
,can it be that a man may go down into  
the diseased world--a  world overwhelmed
 by an epidemic of transgressions--and  

by that  process1 and in that           
atmosphere1 be lifted up to health and  
glory8  ,your common sense says3 ,no6   
no6 ,in such society as that1 instead of
  being restored1 you would go down     
worse and worse1 plunging every hour    
into deeper depths of suffering and     
darkness4 ,what your common sense  says 
the ,bible reaffirms1 when it says3     
,these shall go away into  three months 
of punishment4 ,i have quoted it wrong4 
,these shall go  away into ten years of 
punishment4 ,i have quoted it wrong4    
,these  shall go into a thousand years  
of punishment4 ,i have quoted it wrong4 
,these shall go into everlasting        
punishment4 ,and now ,i have quoted  it 
right2 or1 if you prefer1 in the words  
of my text3 ,then a great  ransom can   
not deliver thee4    ,now just suppose  
that a spirit should come down from     
heaven and knock  at the gates of woe   
and say3 ,let that man out6 ,let me come
 in and  suffer in his stead4 ,i will be
 the sacrifice4 ,let him come out4 ,the 

grim jailer would reply3 ,no1 you don't 
know what a place this is1 or  you would
 not ask to come in2 besides that1 this 
man had full warning  and full          
opportunity of escape4 ,he did not take 
the warning1 and now a  great ransom    
shall not deliver him4    ,sometimes men
 are sentenced to imprisonment for life4
 ,there comes  another judge on the     
bench1 there comes another governor in  
the chair1  and in three or four years  
you find the man who was sentenced for  
life  in the street4 ,you say3 ,i       
thought you were sentenced for life4    
,oh6  he says1 politics are changed1 and
 ,i am now a free man4 ,but it will  not
 be so for a soul at the last4 ,there   
will be no new judge or new  governor4  
,if at the end of a century a soul might
 come out1 it would  not be so bad4 ,if 
at the end of a thousand years it might 
come out1  it would not be so bad4 ,if  
there were any time in all the future1  
in  quadrillions and quadrillions of    
years1 that the soul might come out1  it

 would not be so bad2 but if the ,bible 
be true1 it is a state of  unending     
duration4    ,far on in the ages one    
lost soul shall cry out to another lost 
soul3  ,how long have you been here8 and
 the soul will reply3 ,the years of  my 
ruin are countless4 ,i estimated the    
time for thousands of years2  but what  
is the use of estimating when all these 
rolling cycles bring  us no nearer the  
terminus4 ,ages6 ,ages6 ,ages6          
,eternity6 ,eternity6  ,eternity6 ,the  
wrath to come6 ,the wrath to come6 ,the 
wrath to come6 ,no  medicine to cure    
that marasmus of the soul4 ,no hammer to
 strike off  the handcuff of that       
incarceration4 ,no burglar's key to pick
 the locks  which the ,lord hath        
fastened4 ,sir ,francis ,newport1 in his
 last moment1  caught just one glimpse  
of that world4 ,he had lived a sinful   
life4  ,before he went into the eternal 
world he looked into it4 ,the last      
words he ever uttered were1 as he       
gathered himself up on his elbows in    

the bed3 ,oh1 the insufferable pangs of 
hell6 ,the lost soul will cry  out3 ,i  
can not stand this6 ,i can not stand    
this6 ,is there no way  out8 and the    
echo will answer3 ,no way out4 ,and the 
soul will cry3  ,is this forever8 and   
the echo will answer3 ,forever6    ,is  
it all true8 ,these shall go away into  
everlasting punishment1  while the      
righteous go into life eternal4 ,are    
there two destinies8  and must all this 
audience share one or the other8 ,shall 
,i give an  account for what ,i have    
told you to-night8 ,have ,i held back   
any truth1  though it were plain1 though
 it were unpalatable8 ,must ,i meet you 
there1 oh1 you dying but immortal       
auditory8 ,i wish that my text1 with    
all its uplifted hands of warning1 could
 come upon your souls3 ,beware  lest ,he
 take thee away with ,his stroke3 then a
 great ransom can not  deliver thee4    
,glory be to ,god1 there is a ransom    
that can now deliver you1 braver  than  
,grace ,darling putting out in a        

life-boat from ,eddystone  ,light-house 
for the rescue of the crew of the       
,forfarshire  steamer--,christ the ,lord
 launched from heaven1 amid the shouting
 of  the angels4 ,thirty-three years    
afterward1 ,christ the ,lord launched   
from earth to heaven1 amid human and    
infernal execration2 yet staying  here  
long enough to save all who will believe
 in ,him4 ,do you hear  that8 ,to save  
all who will believe in ,him4 ,oh1 that 
pierced side6 ,oh1  that bleeding brow6 
,oh1 that crushed foot6 ,oh1 that broken
 heart6 ,that  is your hope1 sinner4    
,that is your ransom from sin1 and      
death1 and  hell4    ,why have ,i told  
you all these things to-night1 plainly  
and frankly8 ,it  is because ,i know    
there is redemption for you1 and ,i     
would have you  now come and get it4    
,oh1 men and women long prayed for1 and 
striven  with1 and coaxed of the mercy  
of ,god--have you concentrated all your 
physical1 mental1 and spiritual energies
 in one awful determination to  be lost8

 ,is there nothing in the value of your 
soul1 in the  graciousness of ,christ1  
in the thunders of the last day1 in the 
blazing glories of heaven1 and the      
surging wrath of an undone eternity  to 
start you out of your indifference1 and 
make you pray8 ,oh1 must ,god  come upon
 you in some other way8 ,must ,he take  
another darling child  from your        
household8 ,must ,he take another       
installment from your  worldly estate8  
,must life come upon you with sorrow    
after sorrow1 and  smite you down with  
sickness before you will be moved1 and  
before you  will feel8    ,oh1 weep now1
 while ,jesus will count the tears6     
,sigh1 now in  repentance1 while ,jesus 
will hear the grief4 ,now clutch the    
cross of  the ,son of ,god before it be 
swept away4 ,beware1 lest the ,holy     
,spirit  leave thy heart4 ,beware1 lest 
this night thy soul be required of thee4
  ,beware1 lest he take thee away with  
,his stroke3 then a great ransom  can   
not deliver thee4 ,oh1 ,lord ,god of    

,israel1 see these impenitent  souls on 
the verge of death ready to topple over6
 ,see them6 ,is there  no help8 ,is this
 plea all in vain8 ,i can not believe   
it1 blessed ,god4  ,oh1 thou mighty     
,one1 whose garments are red with the   
wine-press of  ,thine own sufferings1 in
 the greatness of ,thy strength ride    
through  this audience1 and may all this
 people fall into line1 the willing     
captives of ,thy grace4 ,men and women  
immortal6 ,i lay hold of you  to-night  
with both hands of entreaty and of      
prayer1 and ,i beg of you1  prepare for 
death1 judgment1 and eternity4          
,,the ,,three ,,groups4        ,and they
 sat down in ranks by hundreds and by   
fifties4--,,mark      vi3 #dj4      ,the
 sun was far down in the west1 night was
 coming on1 and there were  five        
thousand people tired1 hungry1          
shelterless4 ,you know how  ,washington 
felt at ,valley ,forge1 when his army   
was starving and  freezing4 ,you may    
imagine how any great-hearted general   

would feel  while his troops were       
suffering4 ,imagine1 then1 how ,christ1 
with ,his  great heart1 must have felt  
as ,he saw these five thousand          
hunger-bitten people4 ,yes1 ,i suppose  
there were ten thousand there1  for the 
,bible says there were five thousand    
men1 besides women and  children4 ,the  
case is put in that way1 not because the
 women and  children were of less       
importance than the men1 but because    
they would  eat less2 and the whole     
force of the miracle turns on the amount
 of  food required4    ,how shall this  
great multitude be supplied8 ,i see a   
selfish man in  that crowd pulling a    
luncheon out of his own pocket1 and     
saying3 ,let  the people starve4 ,they  
had no business to come out here in the 
desert  without any provisions4 ,they   
are improvident1 and the improvident    
ought to suffer4 ,there is another man1 
not quite so heartless1 who  says3 ,go  
up into the village and buy bread4 ,what
 a foolish  proposition6 ,there is not  

enough food in all the village for this 
crowd2 besides that1 who has the money  
to pay for it8 ,xerxes' army1  one      
million strong1 was fed by a private    
individual of great wealth  for only one
 day1 but it broke him4 ,who1 then1     
shall feed this  multitude8    ,i see a 
man rising in that great crowd and      
asking3 ,is there any one  here who has 
bread or meat8 ,a kind of moan goes     
through the whole  throng4 ,no bread--no
 meat4 ,but just at that time a lad     
steps up4 ,you  know when a great crowd 
goes off upon an excursion1 there are   
always  men and boys to go along for the
 purpose of merchandise and to strike  a
 bargain3 and so1 ,i suppose1 this boy  
had gone along for the purpose  of      
merchandise2 but he was nearly all sold 
out1 having only five  loaves and two   
fishes left4 ,he is a generous boy1 and 
he turns them  over to ,christ4    ,but 
these loaves would not feed twenty      
people1 how much less ten  thousand6    
,though the action was so generous on   

the part of the boy1 so  far as         
satisfying the multitude1 it was a dead 
failure4 ,then ,jesus  comes to the     
rescue4 ,he is apt to come when there is
 a dead lift4 ,he  commands the people  
that they sit down in ranks1 by hundreds
 and by  fifties1 as much as to say3    
,order6 order6 so that none be missed4  
,it was fortunate that that arrangement 
was made2 otherwise1 at the  very first 
appearance of bread1 the strong ones    
would have clutched  it1 while the      
feeble and the modest would have gone   
unsupplied4    ,i suppose it was no easy
 work to get that crowd seated1 for they
 all  wanted to be in the front row1    
lest the bread give out before their    
turn come4 ,no sooner are they seated   
than there comes a great hush  over all 
the people4 ,jesus stands there1 ,his   
light complexion and  auburn locks      
illumined by the setting sun4 ,every eye
 is on ,him4 ,they  wonder what ,he will
 do next4 ,he takes one of the loaves   
that the boy  furnished and breaks off  

it a piece1 which immediately grows to  
as  large a size as the original loaf1  
the original loaf staying as large  as  
it was before the piece was broken off4 
,and they leaned forward  with intense  
scrutiny1 saying3 ,look6 look6 ,when    
some one1 anxious to  see more minutely 
what is going on1 rises in front1 they  
cry3 ,sit  down in front6 ,let us look  
for ourselves4    ,and then1 when the   
bread is passed around1 they taste of it
  skeptically and inquiringly1 as much  
as to say3 ,is it bread8 ,really1  is it
 bread8 ,yes1 the best bread that was   
ever made1 for ,christ made  it4 ,bread 
for the first fifty and second fifty4   
,bread for the first  hundred and the   
second hundred4 ,bread for the first    
thousand and the  second thousand4 ,pass
 it all around the circle3 there1 where 
that aged  man sits leaning on his      
staff1 and where that woman sits with   
the  child in her arms4 ,pass it all    
around4 ,are you all fed8 ,ay6 ay6      
respond the ten thousand voices2 all    

fed4 ,one basket would have held  the   
loaves before the miracle2 it takes     
twelve baskets now4 ,sound it  through  
all the ages of earth and heaven1 that  
,christ the ,lord comes  to our         
suffering race with the bread of this   
life in one hand1 and the  bread of     
eternal life in the other hand4    ,you 
have all immediately run out the analogy
 between that scene and  this4 ,there   
were thousands there2 there are         
thousands here4 ,they were  in the      
desert2 many of you are in the desert of
 trouble and sin4 ,no  human power could
 feed them2 no human power can feed you4
 ,christ  appeared to them2 ,christ     
appears to you4 ,bread enough for all in
 the  desert2 bread enough for all who  
are here4 ,and1 as on that occasion1  so
 in this3 we have the people sit down in
 ranks by hundreds and by  fifties2 for 
the fact that many of you stand is no   
fault of ours1 for  we have tried to    
give you seats4 ,as ,christ divided that
 company into  groups1 so ,i divide this

 audience into three groups3 the        
pardoned1 the  seeking1 the careless4   
,i4 ,and1 first1 ,i speak to the        
pardoned4    ,it is with some of you    
half past five in the morning1 and some 
faint  streaks of light4 ,with others it
 is seven o'clock1 and thus full dawn4  
,with others it is twelve o'clock at    
noon1 and you sit in full blaze of      
,gospel pardon4 ,i bring you            
congratulation4 ,joseph delivered from  
,potiphar's dungeon2 ,daniel lifted from
 the lion's den2 ,saul arrested  and    
unhorsed on the road to ,damascus4 ,oh1 
you delivered captives1 how  your eyes  
should gleam1 and your souls should     
bound1 and your lips  should sing in    
this pardon6 ,from what land did you    
come8 ,a land of  darkness4 ,what is to 
be your destiny8 ,a land of light4 ,who 
got you  out8 ,christ1 the ,lord4 ,can  
you sit so placidly and unmoved while   
all  heaven comes to your soul with     
congratulation1 and harps are strung1   
and crowns are lifted1 and a great joy  

swings round the heavens at the  news of
 your disinthrallment8 ,if you could    
realize out of what a pit  you have been
 dug1 to what height you are to be      
raised1 and to what  glory you are      
destined1 you would spring to your feet 
with ,hosanna6    ,in #ahjh there was a 
meeting of the emperors of ,france and  
,russia at  ,erfurt4 ,there were        
distinguished men there also from other 
lands4 ,it  was so arranged that when   
any of the emperors arrived at the door 
of  the reception-room1 the drum should 
beat three times2 but when a  lesser    
dignitary should come1 then the drum    
would sound but twice4  ,after awhile   
the people in the audience-chamber heard
 two taps of the  drum4 ,they said3 ,a  
prince is coming4 ,but after awhile     
there were  three taps1 and they cried3 
,the emperor6 ,oh1 there is a more      
glorious arrival at your soul to-night6 
,the drum beats twice at the  coming in 
of the lesser joys and congratulations  
of your soul2 but it  beats once1 twice1

 thrice at the coming in of a glorious  
,king--,jesus  the ,saviour1 ,jesus the 
,god6 ,i congratulate you4 ,all are     
yours--things  present and things to    
come4    ,,ii4 ,i come now to speak of  
the second division--those who are      
seeking2  some of you with more         
earnestness1 some of you with less      
earnestness4  ,but ,i believe that      
to-night1 if ,i should ask all those who
 wish to  find the way to heaven to     
rise1 and the world did not scoff at    
you1  and your own proud heart did not  
keep you down1 there would be a         
thousand souls who would cry out as they
 rose up3 ,show me the way to  heaven6  
,that young man who smiled to the one   
next to him1 as though  he cared for    
none of these things1 would be on his   
knees crying for  mercy4 ,why this      
anxious look8 ,why this deep disquietude
 in the soul8  ,why1 at the beginning of
 this service1 did you do what you have 
not  done for years--bow your head in   
prayer8 ,you are seeking4    ,i am a    

gambler1 says one man4 ,there is mercy  
for you4 ,i am a  libertine1 says       
another4 ,there is mercy for you4 ,i    
have plunged into  every abomination4   
,mercy for you4 ,the door of grace does 
not stand  ajar to-night1 nor half swung
 around on the hinges4 ,it is wide1 wide
  open2 and there is nothing in the     
,bible1 or in ,christ1 or ,god1 or      
earth1 or heaven1 or hell1 to keep you  
out of the door of safety1 if  you want 
to go in4 ,christ has borne your        
burdens1 fought your battles1  suffered 
for your sins4 ,the debt is paid1 and   
the receipt is handed to  you1 written  
in the blood of the ,son of ,god--will  
you have it8 ,oh1  decide the matter    
now6 ,decide it here6 ,fling your       
exhausted soul down  at the feet of an  
all-compassionate1 all-sympathizing1    
all-pitying1  all-pardoning ,jesus4 ,the
 laceration on ,his brow1 the gash in   
,his side1  the torn muscles and nerves 
of ,his feet beg you to come4    ,but   
remember that one inch outside the door 

of pardon1 and you are in  as much peril
 as though you were a thousand miles    
away4 ,many a  shipwrecked sailor has   
got almost to the beach1 but did not get
 on it4  ,there are thousands in the    
world of the lost who came very near    
being  saved--perhaps as near as you are
 to-night--but were not saved4    ,on   
the eastern coast of ,england1 a few    
weeks ago1 in a  fishing-village1 there 
was a good deal of excitement4 ,while   
people  were in church1 the sailors and 
fishermen hearing the ,gospel on the    
,sabbath1 there was a cry3 ,to the      
beach6 and the minister closed the      
,bible1 and with his congregation went  
out to help1 and they saw in the  offing
 a ship in trouble2 but there was some  
disorder amid the  fishing-smacks1 and  
amid all the boats1 and it was almost   
impossible  to get anything launched4   
,but after awhile they did1 and they    
pulled  away for the wreck1 and came    
almost up1 when suddenly the distressed 
bark in the offing capsized1 and they   

all went down4 ,oh1 if the  lifeboats   
had only been ten minutes quicker6 ,and 
how many a life-boat  has been launched 
from the ,gospel shore6 ,it has come    
almost up to the  drowning1 and yet1    
after all1 they were not rescued4       
,somehow they did  not get into it6     
,i suppose there are people who have    
asked for our prayers1 and ,i  suppose  
there were some in the side room1 last  
,sabbath night1 talking  about their    
souls1 who will miss heaven4 ,they do   
not take the last  step1 and all the    
other steps go for nothing until you    
have taken the  last step1 for ,i have  
here1 in the presence of ,god and this  
people1 to  announce the solemn truth1  
that to be almost saved is to be lost   
forever4 ,that is all ,i have to say to 
the second division4    ,,iii4 ,i come  
now to speak to the careless4 ,you look 
indifferent1 and ,i  suppose you are    
indifferent4 ,you say3 ,i came in here  
because a friend  invited me to see what
 is going on1 but with no serious       

intentions  about my soul4 ,i have so   
much work1 and so much pleasure on hand1
  don't bother me about religion4 ,and  
yet you are gentlemanly1 and you  are   
lady-like1 in your behavior1 and1       
therefore1 ,i know that you will  listen
 respectfully if ,i talk courteously4   
,christian people are  sometimes afraid 
to talk to men and women of the world   
lest they be  insulted4 ,if they talk   
courteously to people of the world1 they
 will  listen courteously4 ,so now ,i   
try to come in that way1 and in that    
spirit1 and talk to those of you who    
tell me that you are careless  about    
your soul4    ,then you have a soul1    
have you8 ,yes1 precious1 with infinite 
capacity  for joy or suffering1 winged  
for flight somewhere4 ,beckoned upward1 
beckoned downward4 ,fought after by     
angels and by fiends4 ,immortal6        
,the sun is but a spark of fire1        
,a transient meteor in the sky3         
,the soul1 immortal as its ,sire1       
,can never die4    ,your body will soon 

be taken down1 the castle will be       
destroyed1 the  tower will be in the    
dust1 the windows will be broken out1   
and the  place where your body sleeps   
will be forgotten2 but your soul1 after 
that1 will be living1 acting1 feeling1  
thinking--where8 where8 ,oh1  there must
 be something of incomputable worth in  
that for which heaven  gave up its best 
inhabitant1 and ,christ went into       
martyrdom1 and at  the coming of which  
angels chant an eternal litany and      
devils rush to  the gate4 ,when         
everything above you1 and beneath you1  
and around you1  is intent upon that    
soul1 you can not afford to be careless1
  especially when ,i think1 this moment 
while ,i speak1 there are  thousands of 
souls in heaven rejoicing that they     
attended to this  matter in time1 while 
at this very instant there are souls in 
the lost  world mourning that they did  
not attend to it in time4 ,hark to the  
howling of the damned6    ,oh1 if this  
room could be vacated of this audience1 

and you were all  gone1 and the wan     
spirits of the lost could come up and   
occupy this  place1 and ,i could stand  
before them with offers of pardon       
through  ,jesus ,christ1 and then ask   
them if they would accept it1 there     
would  come up an instantaneous1        
multitudinous1 overwhelming cry3 ,yes6  
yes6  yes6 yes6 ,no such fortune for    
them4 ,they had their day of grace1 and 
sacrificed it4 ,you have yours2 will you
 sacrifice it8 ,i wish that ,i  could   
have you see these things as you will   
one day see them4    ,suppose1 on your  
way home1 a runaway horse should dash   
across the  street1 or between the dock 
and the boat you should accidentally    
slip1  where would you be at twelve     
o'clock to-night or seven o'clock       
to-morrow morning8 ,or for all eternity 
where would you be8 ,i do not  answer   
the question4 ,i just leave it to you to
 answer4    ,but suppose you escape     
fatal accident4 ,suppose you go out by  
the  ordinary process of sickness4 ,i   

will just suppose now that your last    
hour has come4 ,the doctor says1 as he  
goes out of the room3 ,can't get  well4 
,there is something in the faces of     
those who stand around you  that        
prophesies that you can not get well4   
,you say within yourself3 ,i  can't get 
well4 ,where are your comrades now8 ,oh1
 they are off to the  gay party that    
very night6 ,they dance as well as they 
ever did4 ,they  drink as much wine4    
,they laugh as loud as though you were  
not dying4  ,they destroyed your soul1  
but do not come to help you die4        
,well1 there are father and mother in   
the room4 ,they are very quiet1  but    
occasionally they go out into the next  
room and weep bitterly4 ,the  bed is    
very much disheveled4 ,they have not    
been able to make it up  for two or     
three days4 ,there are four or five     
pillows lying around1  because they have
 been trying to make you as easy as they
 could4 ,on  the one side of your bed   
are all the past years of your life--the

  ,bibles1 the sermons1 the             
communion-tables1 the offers of mercy4  
,you  say3 ,take them away4 ,your mother
 thinks you are delirious4 ,she says3   
,there is nothing there1 my dear1       
nothing there4 ,there is something      
there6 ,it is your wasted opportunities4
 ,it is your procrastinations4  ,it is  
those years you gave to the world that  
you ought to have given  to ,christ4    
,they are there2 and some of them put   
their fingers on your  aching temples1  
and some of them feel for the strings of
 your heart1  and some put more thorns  
in your tumbled pillow1 and you say3    
,turn me  over4 ,and they turn you over1
 but1 alas6 there is a more appalling   
vision4 ,you say3 ,take that away6 ,they
 say3 ,there is nothing there1  nothing 
there4 ,there is--an open grave there6  
the judgment is there6  a lost eternity 
is there6 ,take it away6 ,they can not  
take it away4    ,you say3 ,how dark it 
is getting in the room6 ,why1 the       
burners are  all lighted4 ,your family  

come up one by one1 and tenderly kiss   
you  good-bye4 ,your feet are cold1 and 
the hands are cold1 and the lips are    
cold1 and they take a small mirror and  
they put it over your mouth to  see if  
there is any breathing1 and that mirror 
is taken away without a  single blur    
upon it2 and they whisper through the   
room3 ,she is gone4  ,and then the door 
of the body opens and the soul flashes  
out4 ,make  room for the destroyed      
spirit4    ,push back that door6 ,lost6 
,let it come into its eternal residence4
  ,woe6 woe6 ,no cup of merriment now1  
but cup of the wrath of ,almighty  ,god4
 ,the last chance for heaven gone4 ,the 
door of mercy shut4 ,the doom  sealed4  
,the blackness of darkness forever6     
,voltaire is there4 ,herod is there4    
,robespierre is there4 ,the  debauchees 
are there4 ,the murderers are there4    
,all the rejectors of  ,jesus ,christ   
are there4 ,and you will be there unless
 you repent4 ,you  can not say1 my dear 
brother1 that you were not warned4 ,this

 sermon  would be a witness against you4
 ,you can not say that ,god's ,holy     
,spirit  never strove with your heart4  
,he is striving now4 ,you can not say   
that  you had no chance for heaven1 for 
the ,omnipotent ,son of ,god offers you 
,his rescue4 ,you can not say3 ,i had no
 warning about that world2 ,i  didn't   
know there was any such place1 for the  
,bible distinctly rings  in your ears   
to-day1 saying3 ,at the end of the world
 the angels shall  separate the wicked  
from among the just1 and shall cast them
 into a  furnace of fire4 ,and again    
that book says3 ,the wicked shall be    
turned into hell1 and all the nations   
that forget ,god4 ,and again it  says3  
,the smoke of their torment ascendeth   
for ever and ever4    ,you can not say  
that you did not hear about heaven1 the 
other  alternative1 for you hear of it  
now3 ,the ,lamb which is in the midst   
of the throne shall lead them to living 
fountains of water1 and ,god  shall wipe
 away all tears from their eyes4 ,no    

sorrow1 no suffering1  no death4 ,oh1   
will you be careless any longer1 when ,i
 tell you that  ,christ1 the ,conqueror 
of earth and hell1 offers you now escape
 from  all peril1 and offers to         
introduce you this very hour into the   
peace  and pardon of the ,gospel1       
preparing you for that good land8 ,the  
sides  of ,calvary run blood for you4   
,jesus1 who had not where to lay ,his   
head1 offers you ,his heart as a pillow 
of rest4 ,christ offers with ,his  own  
body to bridge over the chasm of death1 
saying3 ,walk over ,me2 ,i  am the way4 
,o suffering ,jesus6 the thief scoffed  
at ,thee1 and the malefactor spat  on   
,thee1 and the soldiers stabbed ,thee2  
but these who sit before ,thee  to-day  
have no heart to do that4 ,o ,jesus6    
tell them of ,thy love1 tell  them of   
,thy sympathy1 tell them of the rewards 
,thou wilt give them in  the better     
land4 ,groan again1 ,o blessed ,jesus6  
groan again1 and  perhaps when the rocks
 fall1 their hard hearts may break4     

,nothing brought ,him from above1       
,nothing but redeeming love4    ,the    
promise is all free1 the path all clear4
 ,come1 ,mary1 and sit  to-night at the 
feet of ,jesus4 ,come1 ,bartimeus1 and  
have your eyes  opened4 ,come1 ,o       
prodigal6 and sit at thy father's table4
 ,come1 ,o you  suffering1 sinning1     
dying the soul6 and find rest on the    
heart of  ,jesus4 ,the ,spirit and      
,bride say ,come1 and ,churches militant
 and  triumphant say ,come1 and all the 
voices of the past1 mingling with  all  
the voices of the future1 in one great  
thunder of emphasis1 bid  you ,come now6
 ,are not those of you who are in the   
third class ready  to pass over into the
 second division1 and become seekers    
after  ,christ8 ,ay1 are you not ready  
to pass over into the first division1   
and become the pardoned sons and        
daughters of the ,lord ,almighty8 ,i    
can do no more than offer you1 through  
,jesus ,christ1 peace on earth  and     
everlasting residence in ,his presence4 

,when ,god makes up ,his last account   
,of natives in ,his holy mount1         
',twill be an honor to appear      ,as  
one new-born and nourished there4       
,good-night6 ,the ,lord bless you6 ,go  
to your homes seeking after ,christ4    
,sleep not until you have made your     
peace with ,god4 ,good-night--a deep1   
hearty1 loving1 ,christian good-night6  
,,the ,,insignificant4        ,and she  
went1 and came1 and gleaned in the field
 after the      reapers3 and her hap was
 to light on a part of the field        
belonging unto ,boaz1 who was of the    
kindred of      ,elimelech4--,,ruth ii3 
#c4      ,the time that ,ruth and ,naomi
 arrive at ,bethlehem is harvest-time4  
,it  was the custom when a sheaf fell   
from a load in the harvest-field for    
the reapers to refuse to gather it up3  
that was to be left for the  poor who   
might happen to come along that way4 ,if
 there were handfuls  of grain scattered
 across the field after the main harvest
 had been  reaped1 instead of raking it1

 as farmers do now1 it was1 by the      
custom  of the land1 left in its place1 
so that the poor1 coming along that     
way1 might glean it and get their bread4
 ,but1 you say1 ,what is the  use of all
 these harvest-fields to ,ruth and      
,naomi8 ,naomi is too old  and feeble to
 go out and toil in the sun2 and can you
 expect that  ,ruth1 the young and the  
beautiful1 should tan her cheeks and    
blister  her hands in the harvest-field8
    ,boaz owns a large farm1 and he goes
 out to see the reapers gather in  the  
grain4 ,coming there1 right behind the  
swarthy1 sun-browned  reapers1 he       
beholds a beautiful woman gleaning--a   
woman more fit to  bend to a harp or sit
 upon a throne than to stoop among the  
sheaves4  ,ah1 that was an eventful day6
    ,it was love at first sight4 ,boaz  
forms an attachment for the womanly     
gleaner--an attachment full of undying  
interest to the ,church of ,god  in all 
ages2 while ,ruth1 with an ephah1 or    
nearly a bushel of barley1  goes home to

 ,naomi to tell her the successes and   
adventures of the  day4 ,that ,ruth1 who
 left her native land of ,moab in       
darkness1 and  traveled through an      
undying affection for her mother-in-law1
 is in the  harvest-field of ,boaz1 is  
affianced to one of the best families in
  ,judah1 and becomes in after-time the 
ancestress of ,jesus ,christ1 the  ,lord
 of glory6 ,out of so dark a night did  
there ever dawn so bright a  morning8   
,i4 ,i learn1 in the first place1 from  
this subject how trouble develops       
character4 ,it was bereavement1 poverty1
 and exile that developed1  illustrated1
 and announced to all ages the sublimity
 of ,ruth's  character4 ,that is a very 
unfortunate man who has no trouble4 ,it 
was  sorrow that made ,john ,bunyan the 
better dreamer1 and ,doctor ,young the  
better poet1 and ,o',connell the better 
orator1 and ,bishop ,hall the  better   
preacher1 and ,havelock the better      
soldier1 and ,kitto the better          
encyclopdist1 and ,ruth the better      

daughter-in-law4    ,i once asked an    
aged man in regard to his pastor1 who   
was a very  brilliant man1 ,why is it   
that your pastor1 so very brilliant1    
seems  to have so little heart and      
tenderness in his sermons8 ,well1 he    
replied1 the reason is1 our pastor has  
never had any trouble4 ,when  misfortune
 comes upon him1 his style will be      
different4 ,after awhile  the ,lord took
 a child out of that pastor's house2 and
 though the  preacher was just as       
brilliant as he was before1 oh1 the     
warmth1 the  tenderness of his          
discourses6 ,the fact is1 that trouble  
is a great  educator4 ,you see sometimes
 a musician sit down at an instrument1  
and  his execution is cold and formal   
and unfeeling4 ,the reason is that all  
his life he has been prospered4 ,but let
 misfortune or bereavement come  to that
 man1 and he sits down at the           
instrument1 and you discover the  pathos
 in the first sweep of the keys4        
,misfortune and trials are great        

educators4 ,a young doctor comes into a 
sick-room where there is a dying child4 
,perhaps he is very rough in  his       
prescription1 and very rough in his     
manner1 and rough in the  feeling of the
 pulse1 and rough in his answer to the  
mother's anxious  question2 but years   
roll on1 and there has been one dead in 
his own  house2 and now he comes into   
the sick-room1 and with tearful eye he  
looks at the dying child1 and he says1  
,oh1 how this reminds me of my          
,charlie6 ,trouble1 the great educator4 
,sorrow--,i see its touch in the        
grandest painting2 ,i hear its tremor in
 the sweetest song2 ,i feel its  power  
in the mightiest argument4    ,grecian  
mythology said that the fountain of     
,hippocrene was struck out  by the foot 
of the winged horse ,pegasus4 ,i have   
often noticed in life  that the         
brightest and most beautiful fountains  
of ,christian comfort  and spiritual    
life have been struck out by the        
iron-shod hoof of  disaster and         

calamity4 ,i see ,daniel's courage best 
by the flash of  ,nebuchadnezzar's      
furnace4 ,i see ,paul's prowess best    
when ,i find him on  the foundering ship
 under the glare of the lightning in the
 breakers  of ,melita4 ,god crowns ,his 
children amid the howling of wild beasts
 and  the chopping of blood-splashed    
guillotine and the crackling fires of   
martyrdom4 ,it took the persecutions of 
,marcus ,aurelius to develop  ,polycarp 
and ,justin ,martyr4 ,it took the pope's
 bull and the cardinal's  curse and the 
world's anathema to develop ,martin     
,luther4 ,it took all  the hostilities  
against the ,scotch ,covenanters and the
 fury of ,lord  ,claverhouse to develop 
,james ,renwick1 and ,andrew ,melville1 
and ,hugh  ,mc,kail1 the glorious       
martyrs of ,scotch history4 ,it took the
 stormy  sea1 and the ,december blast1  
and the desolate ,new ,england coast1   
and  the war-whoop of savages1 to show  
forth the prowess of the ,pilgrim       
,fathers--        ,when amid the storms 

they sung1        ,and the stars heard1 
and the sea1      ,and the sounding     
aisles of the dim wood        ,rang to  
the anthems of the free4    ,it took all
 our past national distresses1 and it   
takes all our present  national sorrows1
 to lift up our nation on that high     
career where it  will march along after 
the foreign aristocracies that have     
mocked and  the tyrannies that have     
jeered1 shall be swept down under the   
omnipotent wrath of ,god1 who hates     
despotism1 and who1 by the strength  of 
,his own red right arm1 will make all   
men free4 ,and so it is  individually1  
and in the family1 and in the ,church1  
and in the world1  that through darkness
 and storm and trouble men1 women1      
churches1  nations1 are developed4      
,,ii4 ,again1 ,i see in my text the     
beauty of unfaltering friendship4 ,i    
suppose there were plenty of friends for
 ,naomi while she was in  prosperity2   
but of all her acquaintances1 how many  
were willing to  trudge off with her    

toward ,judah1 when she had to make that
 lonely  journey8 ,one--the heroine of  
my text4 ,one--absolutely one4 ,i       
suppose  when ,naomi's husband was      
living1 and they had plenty of money1   
and all  things went well1 they had a   
great many callers2 but ,i suppose that 
after her husband died1 and her property
 went1 and she got old and  poor1 she   
was not troubled very much with callers4
 ,all the birds that  sung in the bower 
while the sun shone have gone to their  
nests1 now  the night has fallen4       
,oh1 these beautiful sun-flowers that   
spread out their color in the  morning  
hour6 but they are always asleep when   
the sun is going down6  ,job had plenty 
of friends when he was the richest man  
in ,uz2 but when  his property went and 
the trials came1 then there were none so
 much  that pestered as ,eliphaz the    
,temanite1 and ,bildad the ,shuhite1 and
  ,zophar the ,naamathite4    ,life     
often seems to be a mere game1 where the
 successful player pulls  down all the  

other men into his own lap4 ,let        
suspicions arise about a  man's         
character1 and he becomes like a bank in
 a panic1 and all the  imputations rush 
on him and break down in a day that     
character which  in due time would have 
had strength to defend itself4 ,there   
are  reputations that have been half a  
century in building1 which go down      
under some moral exposure1 as a vast    
temple is consumed by the touch  of a   
sulphurous match4 ,a hog can uproot a   
century plant4    ,in this world1 so    
full of heartlessness and hypocrisy1 how
 thrilling  it is to find some friend as
 faithful in days of adversity as in    
days  of prosperity6 ,david had such a  
friend in ,hushai2 the ,jews had such a 
friend in ,mordecai1 who never forgot   
their cause2 ,paul had such a  friend in
 ,onesiphorus1 who visited him in jail2 
,christ had such in  the ,marys1 who    
adhered to ,him on the cross2 ,naomi had
 such a one in  ,ruth1 who cried out3   
,entreat me not to leave thee1 or to    

return from  following after thee2 for  
whither thou goest1 ,i will go2 and     
where  thou lodgest1 ,i will lodge2 thy 
people shall be my people1 and thy ,god 
my ,god2 where thou diest will ,i die1  
and there will ,i be buried3 the  ,lord 
do so to me1 and more also1 if aught but
 death part thee and me4    ,,iii4      
,again1 ,i learn from this subject that 
paths which open in  hardship and       
darkness often come out in places of    
joy4 ,when ,ruth  started from ,moab    
toward ,jerusalem1 to go along with her 
mother-in-law1 ,i suppose the people    
said3 ,oh1 what a foolish creature  to  
go away from her father's house1 to go  
off with a poor old woman  toward the   
land of ,judah6 ,they won't live to get 
across the desert4  ,they will be       
drowned in the sea1 or the jackals of   
the wilderness will  destroy them4 ,it  
was a very dark morning when ,ruth      
started off with  ,naomi2 but behold her
 in my text in the harvest-field of     
,boaz1 to be  affianced to one of the   

lords of the land1 and become one of the
  grandmothers of ,jesus ,christ1 the   
,lord of glory4 ,and so it often is     
that a path which often starts very     
darkly ends very brightly4    ,when you 
started out for heaven1 oh1 how dark was
 the hour of  conviction--how ,sinai    
thundered1 and devils tormented1 and the
  darkness thickened6 ,all the sins of  
your life pounced upon you1 and it  was 
the darkest hour you ever saw when you  
first found out your sins4  ,after      
awhile you went into the harvest-field  
of ,god's mercy2 you  began to glean in 
the fields of divine promise1 and you   
had more  sheaves than you could carry1 
as the voice of ,god addressed you1     
saying3 ,blessed is the man whose       
transgressions are forgiven1 and  whose 
sins are covered4 ,a very dark starting 
in conviction1 a very  bright ending in 
the pardon and the hope and the triumph 
of the  ,gospel6    ,so1 very often in  
our worldly business or in our spiritual
 career1 we  start off on a very dark   

path4 ,we must go4 ,the flesh may shrink
 back1  but there is a voice within1 or 
a voice from above1 saying1 ,you must   
go2 and we have to drink the gall1 and  
we have to carry the cross1  and we have
 to traverse the desert and we are      
pounded and flailed of                  
misrepresentation and abuse1 and we have
 to urge our way through ten  thousand  
obstacles that have been slain by our   
own right arm4 ,we have  to ford the    
river1 we have to climb the mountain1 we
 have to storm the  castle2 but1 blessed
 be ,god1 the day of rest and reward    
will come4 ,on  the tip-top of the      
captured battlements we will shout the  
victory2 if  not in this world1 then in 
that world where there is no gall to    
drink1  no burdens to carry1 no battles 
to fight4 ,how do ,i know it8 ,know it6 
,i  know it because ,god says so3 ,they 
shall hunger no more1 neither  thirst   
any more1 neither shall the sun light on
 them1 nor any heat1  for the ,lamb     
which is in the midst of the throne     

shall lead them to  living fountains of 
water1 and ,god shall wipe all tears    
from their  eyes4    ,it was very hard  
for ,noah to endure the scoffing of the 
people in his  day1 while he was trying 
to build the ark1 and was every morning 
quizzed about his old boat that would   
never be of any practical use2  but when
 the deluge came1 and the tops of the   
mountains disappeared  like the backs of
 sea-monsters1 and the elements1 lashed 
up in fury1  clapped their hands over a 
drowned world1 then ,noah in the ark    
rejoiced in his own safety and in the   
safety of his family1 and looked  out on
 the wreck of a ruined earth4           
,christ1 hounded of persecutors1 denied 
a pillow1 worse maltreated than  the    
thieves on either side of the cross1    
human hate smacking its lips  in        
satisfaction after it had been draining 
,his last drop of blood1 the  sheeted   
dead bursting from the sepulchers at    
,his crucifixion4 ,tell me1  ,o         
,gethsemane and ,golgotha6 were there   

ever darker times than those8  ,like the
 booming of the midnight sea against the
 rock1 the surges of  ,christ's anguish 
beat against the gates of eternity1 to  
be echoed back  by all the thrones of   
heaven and all the dungeons of hell4    
,but the day  of reward comes for       
,christ2 all the pomp and dominion of   
this world  are to be hung on ,his      
throne1 uncrowned heads are to bow      
before ,him on  whose head are many     
crowns1 and all the celestial worship is
 to come  up at ,his feet1 like the     
humming of the forest1 like the rushing 
of  the waters1 like the thundering of  
the seas1 while all heaven1 rising  on  
their thrones1 beat time with their     
scepters3 ,hallelujah1 for the  ,lord   
,god omnipotent reigneth6 ,hallelujah1  
the kingdoms of this world  have become 
the kingdoms of our ,lord ,jesus        
,christ6        ,that song of love1 now 
low and far1      ,ere long shall swell 
from star to star2      ,that light1 the
 breaking day which tips      ,the      

golden-spired ,apocalypse4    ,,iv4     
,again1 ,i learn from my subject that   
events which seem to be most            
insignificant may be momentous4 ,can you
 imagine anything more  unimportant than
 the coming of a poor woman from ,moab  
to ,judah8 ,can  you imagine anything   
more trivial than the fact that this    
,ruth just  happened to alight--as they 
say--just happened to alight on that    
field  of ,boaz8 ,yet all ages1 all     
generations1 have an interest in the    
fact  that she was to become an ancestor
 of the ,lord ,jesus ,christ1 and all   
nations and kingdoms must look at that  
one little incident with a  thrill of   
unspeakable and eternal satisfaction4   
,so it is in your  history and in mine3 
events that you thought of no importance
 at all  have been of very great moment4
 ,that casual conversation1 that        
accidental meeting--you did not think of
 it again for a long while2  but how it 
changed all the phase of your life6     
,it seemed to be of no importance that  

,jubal invented rude instruments  of    
music1 calling them harp and organ2 but 
they were the introduction  of all the  
world's minstrelsy2 and as you hear the 
vibration of a  stringed instrument1    
even after the fingers have been taken  
away from  it1 so all music now of lute 
and drum and cornet is only the         
long-continued strains of ,jubal's harp 
and ,jubal's organ4 ,it seemed to  be a 
matter of very little importance that   
,tubal ,cain learned the uses  of copper
 and iron2 but that rude foundry of     
ancient days has its echo  in the rattle
 of ,birmingham machinery1 and the roar 
and bang of  factories on the ,merrimac4
    ,it seemed to be a matter of no     
importance that ,luther found a ,bible  
in  a monastery2 but as he opened that  
,bible1 and the brass-bound lids  fell  
back1 they jarred everything1 from the  
,vatican to the furthest  convent in    
,germany1 and the rustling of the wormed
 leaves was the  sound of the wings of  
the angel of the ,reformation4 ,it      

seemed to be a  matter of no importance 
that a woman1 whose name has been       
forgotten1  dropped a tract in the way  
of a very bad man by the name of        
,richard  ,baxter4 ,he picked up the    
tract and read it1 and it was the means 
of  his salvation4    ,in after-days    
that man wrote a book called ,the ,call 
to the  ,unconverted1 that was the means
 of bringing a multitude to ,god1 among 
others ,philip ,doddridge4 ,philip      
,doddridge wrote a book called ,the     
,rise and ,progress of ,religion1 which 
has brought thousands and tens  of      
thousands into the kingdom of ,god1 and 
among others the great  ,wilberforce4   
,wilberforce wrote a book called ,a     
,practical ,view of  ,christianity1     
which was the means of bringing a great 
multitude to  ,christ1 among others     
,legh ,richmond4 ,legh ,richmond wrote a
 tract called  ,the ,dairyman's         
,daughter1 which has been the means of  
the salvation  of unconverted           
multitudes4 ,and that tide of influence 

started from the  fact that one         
,christian woman dropped a ,christian   
tract in the way of  ,richard           
,baxter--the tide of influence rolling  
on through ,richard  ,baxter1 through   
,philip ,doddridge1 through the great   
,wilberforce1  through ,legh ,richmond1 
on1 on1 on1 forever1 forever4 ,so the   
insignificant events of this world seem1
 after all1 to be most  momentous4 ,the 
fact that you came up that street or    
this street seemed  to be of no         
importance to you1 and the fact that you
 went inside of  some church may seem to
 be a matter of very great              
insignificance to  you1 but you will    
find it the turning-point in your       
history4    ,v4 ,again1 ,i see in my    
subject an illustration of the beauty of
 female  industry4    ,behold ,ruth     
toiling in the harvest-field under the  
hot sun1 or at noon  taking plain bread 
with the reapers1 or eating the parched 
corn which  ,boaz handed to her4 ,the   
customs of society1 of course1 have     

changed1  and without the hardships and 
exposure to which ,ruth was subjected1  
every intelligent woman will find       
something to do4    ,i know there is a  
sickly sentimentality on this subject4  
,in some  families there are persons of 
no practical service to the household or
  community2 and though there are so    
many woes all around about them in  the 
world1 they spend their time languishing
 over a new pattern1 or  bursting into  
tears at midnight over the story of some
 lover who shot  himself6 ,they would   
not deign to look at ,ruth carrying back
 the barley  on her way home to her     
mother-in-law1 ,naomi4 ,all this        
fastidiousness  may seem to do very well
 while they are under the shelter of    
their  father's house2 but when the     
sharp winter of misfortune comes1 what  
of  these butterflies8 ,persons under   
indulgent parentage may get upon        
themselves habits of indolence2 but when
 they come out into practical  life     
their soul will recoil with disgust and 

chagrin4 ,they will feel  in their      
hearts what the poet so severely        
satirized when he said3        ,folks   
are so awkward1 things so impolite1     
,they're elegantly pained from morning  
until night4    ,through that gate of   
indolence how many men and women have   
marched1  useless on earth1 to a        
destroyed eternity6 ,spinola said to    
,sir ,horace  ,vere3 ,of what did your  
brother die8 ,of having nothing to do1  
was  the answer4 ,ah6 said ,spinola1    
that's enough to kill any general of    
us4 ,oh6 can it be possible in this     
world1 where there is so much  suffering
 to be alleviated1 so much darkness to  
be enlightened1 and so  many burdens to 
be carried1 that there is any person who
 cannot find  anything to do8    ,madame
 de ,stal did a world of work in her    
time2 and one day1 while  she was seated
 amid instruments of music1 all of which
 she had  mastered1 and amid manuscript 
books which she had written1 some one   
said to her3 ,how do you find time to   

attend to all these things8  ,oh1 she   
replied1 these are not the things ,i am 
proud of4 ,my chief  boast is in the    
fact that ,i have seventeen trades1 by  
any one of which  ,i could make a       
livelihood if necessary4 ,and if in     
secular spheres  there is so much to be 
done1 in spiritual work how vast the    
field6 ,how  many dying all around about
 us without one word of comfort6 ,we    
want  more ,abigails1 more ,hannahs1    
more ,rebeccas1 more ,marys1 more       
,deborahs  consecrated--body1 mind1     
soul--to the ,lord who bought them4     
,,vi4 ,once more ,i learn from my       
subject the value of gleaning4    ,ruth 
going into that harvest-field might have
 said3 ,there is a straw1  and there is 
a straw1 but what is a straw8 ,i can't  
get any barley for  myself or my        
mother-in-law out of these separate     
straws4 ,not so said  beautiful ,ruth4  
,she gathered two straws1 and she put   
them together1  and more straws1 until  
she got enough to make a sheaf4 ,putting

 that  down1 she went and gathered more 
straws1 until she had another sheaf1    
and another1 and another1 and another1  
and then she brought them all  together1
 and she threshed them out1 and she had 
an ephah of barley1  nigh a bushel4 ,oh1
 that we might all be gleaners6         
,elihu ,burritt learned many things     
while toiling in a blacksmith's  shop4  
,abercrombie1 the world-renowned        
philosopher1 was a philosopher  in      
,scotland1 and he got his philosophy1 or
 the chief part of it1  while1 as a     
physician1 he was waiting for the door  
of the sick-room to  open4 ,yet how many
 there are in this day who say they are 
so busy they  have no time for mental or
 spiritual improvement2 the great duties
 of  life cross the field like strong   
reapers1 and carry off all the hours1   
and there is only here and there a      
fragment left1 that is not worth        
gleaning4 ,ah1 my friends1 you could go 
into the busiest day and  busiest week  
of your life and find golden            

opportunities1 which1  gathered1 might  
at last make a whole sheaf for the      
,lord's garner4 ,it  is the stray       
opportunities and the stray privileges  
which1 taken up  and bound together and 
beaten out1 will at last fill you with  
much  joy4    ,there are a few moments  
left worth the gleaning4 ,now1 ,ruth1 to
 the  field6 ,may each one have a       
measure full and running over6 ,oh1 you 
gleaners1 to the field6 ,and if there be
 in your household an aged one  or a    
sick relative that is not strong enough 
to come forth and toil in  this field1  
then let ,ruth take home to feeble      
,naomi this sheaf of  gleaning3 ,he that
 goeth forth and weepeth1 bearing       
precious seed1  shall doubtless come    
again with rejoicing1 bringing his      
sheaves with  him4 ,may the ,lord ,god  
of ,ruth and ,naomi be our portion      
forever6          ,,the ,,three ,,rings4
        ,put a ring on his hand4--,,luke
 xv3 #bb4      ,i will not rehearse the 
familiar story of the fast young man of 

the  parable4 ,you know what a splendid 
home he left4 ,you know what a hard     
time he had4 ,and you remember how after
 that season of vagabondage and         
prodigality he resolved to go and weep  
out his sorrows on the bosom of         
parental forgiveness4 ,well1 there is   
great excitement one day in front  of   
the door of the old farmhouse4 ,the     
servants come rushing up and  say3      
,what's the matter8 ,what is the matter8
 ,but before they quite  arrive1 the old
 man cries out3 ,put a ring on his hand4
 ,what a  seeming absurdity6 ,what can  
such a wretched mendicant as this fellow
  that is tramping on toward the house  
want with a ring8 ,oh1 he is the        
prodigal son4 ,no more tending of the   
swine-trough4 ,no more longing for  the 
pods of the carob-tree4 ,no more        
blistered feet4 ,off with the rags6  ,on
 with the robe6 ,out with the ring6     
,even so does ,god receive every  one of
 us when we come back4 ,there are gold  
rings1 and pearl rings1  and carnelian  

rings1 and diamond rings2 but the       
richest ring that ever  flashed on the  
vision is that which our ,father puts   
upon a forgiven  soul4    ,i know that  
the impression is abroad among some     
people that religion  bemeans and       
belittles a man2 that it takes all the  
sparkle out of his  soul2 that he has to
 exchange a roistering independence for 
an  ecclesiastical strait-jacket4 ,not  
so4 ,when a man becomes a ,christian1   
he does not go down1 he starts upward4  
,religion multiplies one by ten         
thousand4 ,nay1 the multiplier is in    
infinity4 ,it is not a blotting  out--it
 is a polishing1 it is an arborescence1 
it is an efflorescence1  it is an       
irradiation4 ,when a man comes into the 
kingdom of ,god he is  not sent into a  
menial service1 but the ,lord ,god      
,almighty from the  palaces of heaven   
calls upon the messenger angels that    
wait upon the  throne to fly and put a  
ring on his hand4 ,in ,christ are the   
largest  liberty1 and brightest joy1 and

 highest honor1 and richest adornment4  
,put a ring on his hand4    ,i remark1  
in the first place1 that when ,christ   
receives a soul into  ,his love1 ,he    
puts upon him the ring of adoption4     
,eight or ten years  ago1 in my church  
in ,philadelphia1 there came the        
representative of  the ,howard ,mission 
of ,new ,york4 ,he brought with him     
eight or ten  children of the street    
that he had picked up1 and he was trying
 to  find for them ,christian homes2 and
 as the little ones stood on the  pulpit
 and sung1 our hearts melted within us4 
,at the close of the  services a        
great-hearted wealthy man came up and   
said3 ,i'll take this  little           
bright-eyed girl1 and ,i'll adopt her as
 one of my own  children2 and he took   
her by the hand1 lifted her into his    
carriage1  and went away4    ,the next  
day1 while we were in the church        
gathering up garments for  the poor of  
,new ,york1 this little child came back 
with a bundle under  her arm1 and she   

said3 ,there's my old dress2 perhaps    
some of the  poor children would like to
 have it1 while she herself was in      
bright  and beautiful array1 and those  
who more immediately examined her said  
that she had a ring on her hand4 ,it was
 a ring of adoption4    ,there are a    
great many persons who pride themselves 
on their ancestry1  and they glory over 
the royal blood that pours through their
 arteries4  ,in their line there was a  
lord1 or a duke1 or a prime minister1 or
 a  king4 ,but when the ,lord1 our      
,father1 puts upon us the ring of ,his  
adoption1 we become the children of the 
,ruler of all nations4 ,behold  what    
manner of love the ,father hath bestowed
 upon us1 that we should  be called the 
sons of ,god4 ,it matters not how poor  
our garments may  be in this world1 or  
how scant our bread1 or how mean the hut
 we live  in1 if we have that ring of   
,christ's adoption upon our hand we are 
assured of eternal defenses4            
,adopted6 ,why1 then1 we are brothers   

and sisters to all the good of  earth   
and heaven4 ,we have the family name1   
the family dress1 the  family keys1 the 
family wardrobe4 ,the ,father looks     
after us1 robes us1  defends us1 blesses
 us4 ,we have royal blood in our veins1 
and there  are crowns in our line4 ,if  
we are ,his children1 then princes and  
princesses4 ,it is only a question of   
time when we get our coronet4  ,adopted6
 ,then we have the family secrets4 ,the 
secret of the ,lord is  with them that  
fear ,him4 ,adopted6 ,then we have the  
family  inheritance1 and in the day when
 our ,father shall divide the riches of 
heaven we shall take our share of the   
mansions and palaces and  temples4      
,henceforth let us boast no more of an  
earthly ancestry4 ,the  insignia of     
eternal glory is our coat of arms4 ,this
 ring of adoption  puts upon us all     
honor and all privilege4 ,now we can    
take the words of  ,charles ,wesley1    
that prince of hymn-makers1 and sing3   
,come1 let us join our friends above1   

,who have obtained the prize1      ,and 
on the eagle wings of love        ,to   
joy celestial rise4        ,let all the 
saints terrestrial sing        ,with    
those to glory gone2      ,for all the  
servants of our ,king1        ,in heaven
 and earth1 are one4    ,i have been    
told that when any of the members of any
 of the great  secret societies of this 
country are in a distant city and are in
 any  kind of trouble1 and are set upon 
by enemies1 they have only to give a    
certain signal and the members of that  
organization will flock around  for     
defense4 ,and when any man belongs to   
this great ,christian  brotherhood1 if  
he gets in trouble1 in trial1 in        
persecution1 in  temptation1 he has only
 to show this ring of ,christ's         
adoption1 and  all the armed cohorts of 
heaven will come to his rescue4         
,still further1 when ,christ takes a    
soul into ,his love ,he puts upon it  a 
marriage-ring4 ,now1 that is not a whim 
of mine3 ,and ,i will betroth  thee unto

 ,me forever2 yea1 ,i will betroth thee 
unto ,me in  righteousness1 and in      
judgment1 and in loving-kindness1 and in
  mercies4 7,hosea ii3 #ai47 ,at the    
wedding altar the bridegroom puts a     
ring upon the hand of the bride1        
signifying love and faithfulness4       
,trouble may come upon the household1   
and the carpets may go1 the  pictures   
may go1 the piano may go1 everything    
else may go--the last  thing that goes  
is that marriage-ring1 for it is        
considered sacred4 ,in  the burial hour 
it is withdrawn from the hand and kept  
in a casket1  and sometimes the box is  
opened on an anniversary day1 and as you
 look  at that ring you see under its   
arch a long procession of precious      
memories4 ,within the golden circle of  
that ring there is room for a  thousand 
sweet recollections to revolve1 and you 
think of the great  contrast between the
 hour when1 at the close of the ,wedding
 ,march1  under the flashing lights and 
amid the aroma of orange-blossoms1 you  

set that ring on the round finger of the
 plump hand1 and that other  hour when1 
at the close of the exhaustive watching1
 when you knew that  the soul had fled1 
you took from the hand1 which gave back 
no  responsive clasp1 from that         
emaciated finger1 the ring that she had 
worn so long and worn so well4    ,on   
some anniversary day you take up that   
ring1 and you repolish it  until all the
 old luster comes back1 and you can see 
in it the flash  of eyes that long ago  
ceased to weep4 ,oh1 it is not an       
unmeaning thing  when ,i tell you that  
when ,christ receives a soul into ,his  
keeping ,he  puts on it a marriage-ring4
 ,he endows you from that moment with   
all  ,his wealth4 ,you are one--,christ 
and the soul--one in sympathy1 one in   
affection1 one in hope4    ,there is no 
power in earth or hell to effect a      
divorcement after  ,christ and the soul 
are united4 ,other kings have turned out
 their  companions when they got weary  
of them1 and sent them adrift from the  

palace gate4 ,ahasuerus banished        
,vashti2 ,napoleon forsook ,josephine2  
but ,christ is the husband that is true 
forever4 ,having loved you once1  ,he   
loves you to the end4 ,did they not try 
to divorce ,margaret1 the  ,scotch girl1
 from ,jesus8 ,they said3 ,you must give
 up your religion4  ,she said3 ,i can't 
give up my religion4 ,and so they took  
her down to  the beach of the sea1 and  
they drove in a stake at low-water mark1
 and  they fastened her to it1 expecting
 that as the tide came up her faith     
would fail4 ,the tide began to rise1 and
 came up higher and higher1 and  to the 
girdle1 and to the lip1 and in the last 
moment1 just as the  wave was washing   
her soul into glory1 she shouted the    
praises of  ,jesus4    ,oh1 no1 you can 
not separate a soul from ,christ6 ,it is
 an everlasting  marriage4 ,battle and  
storm and darkness can not do it4 ,is it
 too much  exultation for a man1 who is 
but dust and ashes like myself1 to cry  
out this morning3 ,i am persuaded that  

neither height1 nor depth1 nor          
principalities1 nor powers1 nor things  
present1 nor things to come1  nor any   
other creature shall separate me from   
the love of ,god which is  in ,christ   
,jesus my ,lord8 ,glory be to ,god that 
when ,christ and the  soul are married  
they are bound by a chain1 a golden     
chain--if ,i might  say so--a chain with
 one link1 and that one link the golden 
ring of  ,god's everlasting love4    ,i 
go a step further1 and tell you that    
when ,christ receives a soul  into ,his 
love ,he puts on him the ring of        
festivity4 ,you know that it  has been  
the custom in all ages to bestow rings  
on very happy  occasions4 ,there is     
nothing more appropriate for a birthday 
gift than  a ring4 ,you delight to      
bestow such a gift upon your children at
 such  a time4 ,it means joy1 hilarity1 
festivity4 ,well1 when this old man of  
the text wanted to tell how glad he was 
that his boy had got back1 he  expressed
 it in this way4 ,actually1 before he   

ordered sandals to be  put on his bare  
feet2 before he ordered the fatted calf 
to be killed  to appease the boy's      
hunger1 he commanded3 ,put a ring on his
 hand4    ,oh1 it is a merry time when  
,christ and the soul are united6 ,joy of
  forgiveness6 ,what a splendid thing it
 is to feel that all is right  between  
me and ,god4 ,what a glorious thing it  
is to have ,god just take  up all the   
sins of my life and put them in one     
bundle1 and then fling  them into the   
depths of the sea1 never to rise again1 
never to be  talked of again4 ,pollution
 all gone4 ,darkness all illumined4 ,god
  reconciled4 ,the prodigal home4 ,put a
 ring on his hand4    ,every day ,i find
 happy ,christian people4 ,i find some  
of them with no  second coat1 some of   
them in huts and tenement houses1 not   
one earthly  comfort afforded them2 and 
yet they are as happy as happy can be4  
,they  sing ,rock of ,ages as no other  
people in the world sing it4 ,they      
never wore any jewelry in their life but

 one gold ring1 and that was  the ring  
of ,god's undying affection4 ,oh1 how   
happy religion makes us6  ,did it make  
you gloomy and sad8 ,did you go with    
your head cast down8 ,i  do not think   
you got religion1 my brother4 ,that is  
not the effect of  religion4 ,true      
religion is a joy4 ,her ways are ways of
 pleasantness1  and all her paths are   
peace4    ,why1 religion lightens all   
our burdens4 ,it smooths all our way4   
,it  interprets all our sorrows4 ,it    
changes the jar of earthly discord for  
the peal of festal bells4 ,in front of  
the flaming furnace of trial it  sets   
the forge on which scepters are hammered
 out4 ,would you not like  to-day to    
come up from the swine-feeding and try  
this religion8 ,all  the joys of heaven 
would come out and meet you1 and ,god   
would cry from  the throne3 ,put a ring 
on his hand4    ,you are not happy4 ,i  
see it4 ,there is no peace1 and         
sometimes you  laugh when you feel a    
great deal more like crying4 ,the world 

is a  cheat4 ,it first wears you down   
with its follies1 then it kicks you out 
into darkness4 ,it comes back from the  
massacre of a million souls to  attempt 
the destruction of your soul to-day4 ,no
 peace out of ,god1 but  here is the    
fountain that can slake the thirst4     
,here is the harbor  where you can drop 
safe anchorage4    ,would you not like1 
,i ask you--not perfunctorily1 but as   
one brother  might talk to              
another--would you not like to have a   
pillow of rest to  put your head on8    
,and would you not like1 when you retire
 at night1 to  feel that all is well1   
whether you wake up to-morrow morning at
 six  o'clock1 or sleep the sleep that  
knows no waking8 ,would you not like  to
 exchange this awful uncertainty about  
the future for a glorious  assurance of 
heaven8 ,accept of the ,lord ,jesus     
to-day1 and all is well4  ,if on your   
way home some peril should cross the    
street and dash your  life out1 it would
 not hurt you4 ,you would rise up       

immediately4 ,you  would stand in the   
celestial streets4 ,you would be amid   
the great  throng that forever worship  
and are forever happy4 ,if this day some
  sudden disease should come upon you1  
it would not frighten you4 ,if you  knew
 you were going you could give a calm   
farewell to your beautiful  home on     
earth1 and know that you are going right
 into the  companionship of those who   
have already got beyond the toiling and 
the  weeping4    ,you feel on ,saturday 
night different from the way you feel   
any other  night of the week4 ,you come 
home from the bank1 or the store1 or the
  shop1 and you say3 ,well1 now my      
week's work is done1 and to-morrow is   
,sunday4 ,it is a pleasant thought4     
,there is refreshment and               
reconstruction in the very idea4 ,oh1   
how pleasant it will be1 if1 when  we   
get through the day of our life1 and we 
go and lie down in our bed  of dust1 we 
can realize3 ,well1 now the work is all 
done1 and  to-morrow is ,sunday--an     

everlasting ,sunday4        ,oh1 when1  
thou city of my ,god1        ,shall ,i  
thy courts ascend8      ,where          
congregations ne'er break up1           
,and ,sabbaths have no end4    ,there   
are people in this house to-day who are 
very near the eternal  world4 ,if you   
are ,christians1 ,i bid you be of good  
cheer4 ,bear with  you our              
congratulations to the bright city4     
,aged men1 who will soon be  gone1 take 
with you our love for our kindred in the
 better land1 and  when you see them1   
tell them that we are soon coming4 ,only
 a few more  sermons to preach and hear4
 ,only a few more heart-aches4 ,only a  
few  more toils4 ,only a few more tears4
 ,and then--what an entrancing          
spectacle will open before us6          
,beautiful heaven1 where all is light1  
,beautiful angels clothed in white1     
,beautiful strains that never tire1     
,beautiful harps through all the choir2 
,there shall ,i join the chorus sweet1  
,worshiping at the ,saviour's feet4     

,i stand before you on this ,sabbath1   
the last ,sabbath preceding the  great  
feast-day in this ,church4 ,on the next 
,lord's-day the door of  communion will 
be open1 and you will all be invited to 
come in4 ,and so  ,i approach you now   
with a general invitation1 not picking  
out here and  there a man1 or here and  
there a woman1 or here and there a      
child2 but  giving you an unlimited     
invitation1 saying3 ,come1 for all      
things are  now ready4 ,we invite you to
 the warm heart of ,christ1 and the     
inclosure of the ,christian ,church4 ,i 
know a great many think that the        
,church does not amount to much--that it
 is obsolete2 that it did its  work and 
is gone now1 so far as all usefulness is
 concerned4 ,it is the  happiest place  
,i have ever been in except my own home4
    ,i know there are some people who   
say they are ,christians who seem to    
get along without any help from others1 
and who culture solitary  piety4 ,they  
do not want any ordinances4 ,i do not   

belong to that class4  ,i can not get   
along without them4 ,there are so many  
things in this  world that take my      
attention from ,god1 and ,christ1 and   
heaven1 that ,i  want all the helps of  
all the symbols and of all the          
,christian  associations2 and ,i want   
around about me a solid phalanx of men  
who  love ,god and keep ,his            
commandments4 ,are there any here who   
would like  to enter into that          
association8 ,then by a simple1         
child-like faith1  apply for admission  
into the visible ,church1 and you will  
be received4  ,no questions asked about 
your past history or present            
surroundings4  ,only one test--do you   
love ,jesus8    ,baptism does not amount
 to anything1 say a great many people2  
but the  ,lord ,jesus declared1 ,he that
 believeth and is baptized shall be     
saved1 putting baptism and faith side by
 side4 ,and an apostle  declares1       
,repent and be baptized1 every one of   
you4 ,i do not stickle  for any         

particular mode of baptism1 but ,i put  
great emphasis on the  fact that you    
ought to be baptized4 ,yet no more      
emphasis than the ,lord  ,jesus ,christ1
 the ,great ,head of the ,church1 puts  
upon it4    ,the world is going to lose 
a great many of its votaries next       
,sabbath4  ,we give you warning4 ,there 
is a great host coming in to stand under
  the banner of the ,lord ,jesus        
,christ4 ,will you be among them8 ,it is
  going to be a great harvest-day4 ,will
 you be among the gathered  sheaves8    
,some of you have been thinking on this 
subject year after year4 ,you  have     
found out that this world is a poor     
portion4 ,you want to be  ,christians4  
,you have come almost into the kingdom  
of ,god2 but there  you stop1 forgetful 
of the fact that to be almost saved is  
not to be  saved at all4 ,oh1 my        
brother1 after having come so near to   
the door of  mercy1 if you turn back1   
you will never come at all4 ,after all  
you  have heard of the goodness of ,god1

 if you turn away and die1 it will  not 
be because you did not have a good      
offer4        ,god's spirit will not    
always strive        ,with hardened1    
self-destroying man2      ,ye who       
persist ,his love to grieve        ,may 
never hear his voice again4    ,may ,god
 ,almighty this hour move upon your soul
 and bring you back from  the husks of  
the wilderness to the ,father's house1  
and set you at the  banquet1 and put a  
ring on your hand4          ,,how ,,he  
,,came ,,to ,,say ,,it4        ,if any  
man love not the ,lord ,jesus ,christ1  
let him be      ,anathema               
,maranatha4--,i ,,cor4 xvi3 #bb4        
,the smallest lad in the house knows the
 meaning of all those words  except the 
last two1 ,anathema ,maranatha4         
,anathema1 to cut off4  ,maranatha1 at  
,his coming4 ,so the whole passage might
 be read3 ,if any  man love not the     
,lord ,jesus ,christ1 let him be cut off
 at ,his coming4  ,well1 how could the  
tender-hearted ,paul say that8 ,we have 

seen him  with tears discoursing about  
human want1 and flushed with excitement 
about human sorrow2 and now he throws   
those red-hot iron words into  this     
letter to the ,corinthians4 ,had he lost
 his patience8 ,ok1 no4 ,had  he        
resigned his confidence in the          
,christian religion8 ,oh1 no4 ,had the  
world treated him so badly that he had  
become its sworn enemy8 ,oh1 no4  ,it   
needs some explanation1 ,i confess1 and 
,i shall proceed to show by  what       
process ,paul came to the vehement      
utterance of my text4 ,before ,i  close1
 if ,god shall give ,his ,spirit1 you   
shall cease to be surprised  at the     
exclamation of the ,apostle1 and you    
yourselves will employ the  same        
emphasis1 declaring1 ,if any man love   
not the ,lord ,jesus ,christ1  let him  
be ,anathema ,maranatha4    ,if the     
photographic art had been discovered    
early enough1 we should  have had the   
facial proportions of ,christ--the front
 face1 the side  face1 ,jesus sitting1  

,jesus standing--provided ,he had       
submitted to that  art2 but since the   
sun did not become a portrait painter   
until  eighteen centuries after ,christ1
 our idea about the ,saviour's personal 
appearance is all guess work4 ,still1   
tradition tells us that ,he was  the    
most infinitely beautiful being that    
ever walked our small earth4  ,if ,his  
features had been rugged1 and ,his gait 
had been ungainly1 that  would not have 
hindered ,him from being attractive4    
,many men you have  known and loved have
 had few charms of physiognomy4         
,wilberforce was  not attractive in     
face4 ,socrates was repulsive4          
,suwarrow1 the great  ,russian hero1    
looked almost an imbecile4 ,and some    
whom you have known1  and honored1 and  
loved1 have not had very great          
attractiveness of  personal appearance4 
,the shape of the mouth1 and the nose1  
and the  eyebrow1 did not hinder the    
soul from shining through the cuticle of
  the face in all-powerful irradiation4 

,but to a lovely exterior ,christ joined
 all loveliness of disposition4  ,run   
through the galleries of heaven1 and    
find out that ,he is a  non-such4 ,the  
sunshine of ,his love mingling with the 
shadows of ,his  sorrows1 crossed by the
 crystalline stream of ,his tears and   
the  crimson flowing forth of ,his      
blood1 make a picture worthy of being   
called the masterpiece of the           
eternities4 ,hung on the wall of heaven1
  the celestial population would be     
enchanted but for the fact that they    
have the grand and magnificent original1
 and they want no picture4 ,but  ,christ
 having gone away from earth1 we are    
dependent upon four  indistinct         
pictures4 ,matthew took one1 ,mark      
another1 ,luke another1  and ,john      
another4 ,i care not which picture you  
take1 it is lovely4  ,lovely8 ,he was   
altogether lovely4    ,he had a way of  
taking up a dropsical limb without      
hurting it1 and of  removing the        
cataract from the eye without the knife1

 and of starting  the circulation       
through the shrunken arteries without   
the shock of the  electric battery1 and 
of putting intelligence into the dull   
stare of  lunacy1 and of restringing the
 auditory nerve of the deaf ear1 and of 
striking articulation into the stiff    
tongue1 and of making the  stark-naked  
madman dress himself and exchange       
tombstone for ottoman1  and of unlocking
 from the skeleton grip of death the    
daughter of  ,jairus to embosom her in  
her glad father's arms4 ,oh1 ,he was    
lovely--sitting1 standing1 kneeling1    
lying down--always lovely4    ,lovely in
 ,his sacrifice4 ,why1 ,he gave up      
everything for us4 ,home1  celestial    
companionship1 music of seraphic harps1 
balmy breath of  eternal summer1 all    
joy1 all light1 all music1 and heard the
 gates  slam shut behind ,him as ,he    
came out to fight for our freedom1 and  
with  bare feet plunged on the sharp    
javelins of human and satanic hate1     
until ,his blood spurted into the faces 

of those who slew ,him4 ,you want  the  
soft1 low1 minor key of sweetest music  
to describe the pathos2 but  it needs an
 orchestra1 under swinging of an        
archangel's baton1  reaching from throne
 to manger1 to drum and trumpet the     
doxologies of  ,his praise4 ,he took    
everybody's trouble--the leper's        
sickness1 the  widow's dead boy1 the    
harlot's shame1 the ,galilean           
fisherman's poor  luck1 the invalidism  
of ,simon's mother-in-law1 the sting of 
,malchus'  amputated ear4    ,some      
people cry very easily1 and for some it 
is very difficult to cry4  ,a great many
 tears on some cheeks do not mean so    
much as one tear on  another cheek4     
,what is it that ,i see glittering in   
the mild eye of  ,jesus8 ,it was all the
 sorrows of earth1 and the woes of hell1
 from  which ,he had plucked our souls1 
accreted into one transparent drop1     
lingering on the lower eyelash until it 
fell on a cheek red with the  slap of   
human hands--just one salt1 bitter1     

burning tear of ,jesus4 ,no  wonder the 
rock1 the sky1 and the cemetery were in 
consternation when  ,he died6 ,no wonder
 the universe was convulsed6 ,it was the
 ,lord ,god  ,almighty bursting into    
tears4 ,now1 suppose that1              
notwithstanding all  this1 a man can not
 have any affection for ,him4 ,what     
ought to be done  with such hard        
behavior8    ,it seems to me that there 
ought to be some chastisement for a man 
who  will not love such a ,christ4 ,does
 it not make your blood tingle to  think
 of ,jesus coming over the tens of      
thousands of miles that seem to         
separate ,god from us1 and then to see a
 man jostle ,him out1 and push  ,him    
back1 and shut the door in ,his face1   
and trample upon ,his  entreaties8      
,while you may not be able to rise up to
 the towering  excitement of the        
,apostle in my text1 you can at any rate
 somewhat  understand his feelings when 
he cried out3 ,after all this1 'if a man
  love not the ,lord ,jesus ,christ1 let

 him be ,anathema ,maranatha4'    ,just 
look at the injustice of not loving     
,him4 ,now1 there is nothing  that      
excites a man like injustice4 ,you go   
along the street1 and you  see your     
little child buffeted1 or a ruffian     
comes and takes a boy's  hat and throws 
it into the ditch4 ,you say3 ,what great
 meanness1 what  injustice that is6 ,you
 can not stand injustice4 ,i remember1  
in my  boyhood days1 attending a large  
meeting in ,tripler ,hall1 ,new ,york4  
,thousands of people were huzzaing1 and 
the same kind of audiences were         
assembled at the same time in ,boston1  
,edinburgh1 and ,london4 ,why8  ,because
 the ,madaii family1 in ,italy1 had been
 robbed of their ,bible4  ,a little     
thing1 you say4 ,ah1 that injustice was 
enough to arouse the  indignation of a  
world4 ,but while we are so sensitive   
about injustice  as between man and man1
 how little sensitive we are about      
injustice  between man and ,god4 ,if    
there ever was a fair and square        

purchase of  anything1 then ,christ     
purchased us4 ,he paid for us1 not in   
shekels1  not in ancient coins inscribed
 with effigies of ,hercules1 or gina's  
tortoise1 or lyre of ,mitylene1 but in  
two kinds of coin--one red1 the  other  
glittering--blood and tears6 ,if        
anything is purchased and paid  for1    
ought not the goods to be delivered8 ,if
 you have bought property  and given the
 money1 do you not want to come into    
possession of it8  ,yes1 you say1 ,i    
will have it4 ,i bought and paid for it4
 ,and you  will go to law for it1 and   
you will denounce the man as a          
defrauder4  ,ay1 if need be1 you will   
hurl him into jail4 ,you will say3 ,i am
 bound  to get that property4 ,i bought 
it4 ,i paid for it6    ,now1 transpose  
the case4 ,suppose ,jesus ,christ to be 
the wronged  purchaser on the one side1 
and the impenitent soul on the other1   
trying to defraud ,him of that which ,he
 bought at such an exorbitant  price1   
how do you feel about that injustice8   

,how do you feel toward  that spiritual 
fraud1 turpitude and perfidy8 ,a man    
with an ardent  temperament rises and he
 says that such injustice as between man
 and  man is bad enough1 but between man
 and ,god it is reprehensible and       
intolerable1 and he brings his fist down
 on the pew1 and he says3 ,i  can stand 
this injustice no longer4 ,after all    
this purchase1 'if any  man love not the
 ,lord ,jesus ,christ1 let him be       
,anathema ,maranatha'6    ,i go still   
further1 and show you how suicidal it is
 for a man not to  love ,christ4 ,if a  
man gets in trouble1 and he can not get 
out1 we have  only one feeling toward   
him--sympathy and a desire to help him4 
,if he  has failed for a vast amount of 
money1 and can not pay more than ten    
cents on a dollar--ay1 if he can not pay
 anything--though his  creditors may    
come after him like a pack of hounds1 we
 sympathize with  him4 ,we go to his    
store1 or house1 and we express our     
condolence4 ,but  suppose the day before

 that man failed1 ,william ,e4 ,dodge   
had come into  his store and said3 ,my  
friend1 ,i hear you are in trouble4 ,i  
have come  to help you4 ,if ten thousand
 dollars will see you through your      
perplexity1 ,i have a loan of that      
amount for you4 ,here is a check for    
the amount of that loan4 ,suppose the   
man said3 ,with that ten  thousand      
dollars ,i could get through until next 
spring1 and then  everything will be all
 right2 but1 ,mr4 ,dodge1 ,i don't want 
it2 ,i won't  take it2 ,i would rather  
fail than take it2 ,i don't even thank  
you for  offering it4 ,your sympathy for
 that man would cease immediately4 ,you 
would say3 ,he had a fair offer2 he     
might have got out2 he wants to  fail2  
he refuses all help2 now let him fail4  
,there is no one in all  this house who 
would have any sympathy for that man4   
,but do not let us be too hasty4 ,christ
 hears of our spiritual  embarrassments1
 he finds that we are on the very verge 
of eternal  defalcation4 ,he finds the  

law knocking at our door with this dun3 
,pay  me what thou owest4    ,we do not 
know which way to turn4 ,pay8 ,we can   
not pay a farthing of  all the millions 
of obligation4 ,well1 ,christ comes in  
and says3 ,here  is ,my name2 you can   
use ,my name4 ,your name would be       
worthless1 but ,my  red handwriting on  
the back of this obligation will get you
 through  anywhere4 ,now suppose the    
soul says3 ,i know ,i am in debt2 ,i    
can't  meet these obligations either in 
time or eternity2 but1 oh1 ,christ1 ,i  
want not ,thy help2 ,i ask not ,thy     
rescue4 ,go away from me4 ,you would    
say3 ,that man1 why1 he deserves to die4
 ,he had the offer of help2 he  would   
not take it4 ,he is a free agent2 he    
ought to have what he wants2  he chooses
 death rather than life4 ,ought you not 
give him freedom of  choice8 ,though    
awhile ago there was only one ardent man
 who  understood the ,apostle1 now there
 are hundreds in the house who can  say1
 and do say within themselves3 ,after   

all this ingratitude1 and  rejection1   
and obstinacy1 'if any man love not the 
,lord ,jesus ,christ1  let him be       
,anathema ,maranatha4'    ,i go a step  
further1 and say it is most cruel for a 
man not to love  ,jesus4 ,the meanest   
thing ,i could do for you would be      
needlessly to  hurt your feelings4      
,sharp words sometimes cut like a       
dagger4 ,an unkind  look will sometimes 
rive like the lightning4 ,an unkind deed
 may  overmaster a sensitive spirit1 and
 if you have made up your mind that  you
 have done wrong to any one1 it does not
 take you two minutes to  make up your  
mind to go and apologize4 ,now1 ,christ 
is a bundle of  delicacy and            
sensitiveness4 ,how you have shocked    
,his nerves6 ,how you  have broken ,his 
heart6    ,did you1 my brother1 ever    
measure the meaning of that one passage3
  ,behold1 ,i stand at the door and     
knock8 ,it never came to me as it did   
this morning while ,i was thinking on   
this subject4 ,behold1 ,i stand at  the 

door and knock4 ,some ,january day1 the 
thermometer five degrees  below zero1   
the wind and sleet beating mercilessly  
against you1 you go  up the steps of a  
house where you have a very important   
errand4 ,you  knock with one knuckle4   
,no answer4 ,you are very earnest1 and  
you are  freezing4 ,the next time you   
knock harder4 ,after awhile with your   
fist  you beat against the door4 ,you   
must get in1 but the inmate is careless 
or stubborn1 and he does not want you   
in4 ,your errand is a failure4  ,you go 
away4    ,the ,lord ,jesus ,christ comes
 up on the steps of your heart1 and with
  very sore hand he knocks hard at the  
door of your soul4 ,he is standing  in  
the cold blasts of human suffering4 ,he 
knocks4 ,he says3 ,let me in4  ,i have  
come a great way4 ,i have come all the  
way from ,nazareth1 from  ,bethlehem1   
from ,golgotha4 ,let ,me in4 ,i am      
shivering and blue with the  cold4 ,let 
,me in4 ,my feet are bare but for their 
covering of blood4 ,my  head is         

uncovered but for a turban of brambles4 
,by all these wounds of  foot1 and head1
 and heart1 ,i beg you to let ,me in4   
,oh1 ,i have been  here a great while1  
and the night is getting darker4 ,i am  
faint with  hunger4 ,i am dying to get  
in4 ,oh1 lift the latch--shove back the 
bolt6 ,won't you let ,me in8 ,won't you8
 ',behold1 ,i stand at the door and     
knock6'    ,but after awhile1 my        
brother1 the scene will change4 ,it will
 be  another door1 but ,christ will be  
on the other side of it4 ,he will be  on
 the inside1 and the rejected sinner    
will be on the outside1 and the  sinner 
will come up and knock at the door1 and 
say3 ,let me in1 let me  in4 ,i have    
come a great way4 ,i came all the way   
from earth4 ,i am sick  and dying4 ,let 
me in4 ,the merciless storm beats my    
unsheltered head4  ,the wolves of a     
great night are on my track4 ,let me in4
 ,with both  fists ,i beat against this 
door4 ,oh1 let me in4 ,oh1 ,christ1 let 
me in4  ,oh1 ,holy ,ghost1 let me in4   

,oh1 ,god1 let me in4 ,oh1 my glorified 
kindred1 let me in4 ,no answer save the 
voice of ,christ1 who shall  say3       
,sinner1 when ,i stood at your door you 
would not let ,me in1 and  now you are  
standing at ,my door1 and ,i can not let
 you in4 ,the day of  your grace is     
past4 ,officer of the law1 seize him4   
,and while the  arrest is going on1 all 
the myriads of heaven rise on gallery   
and  throne1 and cry with loud voice1   
that makes the eternal city quake  from 
capstone to foundation1 saying3 ,if any 
man love not the ,lord  ,jesus ,christ1 
let him be ,anathema ,maranatha4        
,sabbath audience in the ,brooklyn      
,tabernacle1 and all to whom these      
words shall come on both sides the sea1 
notice here the tremendous  alternative3
 it is not whether you live in          
,pierrepont ,street or  ,carlton        
,avenue1 walk ,trafalgar ,square or the 
,canongate2 nor whether  your dress     
shall be black or brown2 nor whether you
 shall be robust  or an invalid2 nor    

whether you shall live on the banks of  
the ,hudson1  the ,shannon1 the ,seine1 
the ,thames1 the ,tiber2 but it is a    
question  whether you will love ,christ 
or suffer banishment2 whether you will  
give yourselves to ,him who owns you or 
fall under the millstone2  whether you  
will rise to glories that have no       
terminus or plunge to a  depth which has
 no bottom4 ,i do not see how you can   
take the  ten-thousandth part of a      
second to decide it1 when there are two 
worlds fastened at opposite ends of a   
swivel1 and the swivel turns on  one    
point1 and that point is now1 now4 ,is  
it not fair that you love  ,him8 ,is it 
not right that you love ,him8 ,is it not
 imperative that you  love ,him8 ,what  
is it that keeps you from rushing up and
 throwing the  arms of your affection   
about ,his neck8    ,my text pronounces 
,anathema ,maranatha upon all those who 
refuse to  love ,christ4 ,anathema--cut 
off4 ,cut off from light1 from hope1    
from  peace1 from heaven4 ,oh1 sharp1   

keen1 sword-like words6 ,cut off6       
,everlastingly cut off6 ,behold1        
therefore1 the goodness and severity of 
,god3 on them which fell1 severity2 but 
toward thee1 goodness1 if thou  continue
 in ,his goodness2 otherwise thou also  
shalt be cut off4  ,maranatha--that is  
the other word4 ,when he comes is the   
meaning of  it4    ,will ,he come8 ,i   
see no signs of it4 ,i looked into the  
sky as ,i rode  down to church4 ,i saw  
no signs of the coming4 ,no signal of   
,god's  appearance4 ,the earth stands   
solid on its foundation4 ,no cry of     
welcome or of woe4 ,will ,he come6 ,he  
will4 ,maranatha6 ,hear it ye           
mountains1 and prepare to fall4 ,ye     
cities1 and prepare to burn4 ,ye        
righteous1 and prepare to reign4 ,ye    
wicked1 and prepare to die4  ,maranatha6
 ,maranatha6    ,but1 oh1 my brother1 ,i
 am not so aroused by that coming as ,i 
am by a  previous coming1 and that is   
the coming of our death hour1 which will
  fix everything for us4 ,i can not help

 now1 while preaching1 asking  myself   
the question--,am ,i ready for that8 ,if
 ,i am ready for the first  ,i will be  
ready for the next4 ,are you ready for  
the emergency8 ,shall ,i  tell you when 
your death hour will come8 ,oh1 no1 says
 some one1 ,i  don't want to know4 ,i   
would rather not know4 ,some one says3  
,i would  rather know1 if you can tell  
me4 ,i will tell you4 ,it will be at the
  most unexpected moment1 when you are  
most busy1 and when you think you  can  
be least spared4 ,i can not exactly say 
whether it will be in the  noon1 or at  
the sundown when people are coming home1
 or in the morning  when the world is   
waking up1 or while the clock is        
striking twelve at  night4 ,but ,i tell 
you what ,i think1 that with some of you
 it will be  before next ,saturday      
night4    ,a minister of the ,gospel    
said to an audience3 ,before next       
,sabbath  some of you will be gone4 ,and
 a man said during the week3 ,i shall   
watch now1 and if no one dies in our    

congregation during this week ,i  shall 
go and tell the minister his falsehood4 
,a man standing next to  him said3 ,why1
 it may be yourself4 ,oh1 no1 he        
replied2 ,i shall  live on to be an old 
man4 ,that night he breathed his last4  
,standing before some who shall be      
launched into the great eternity1  what 
are your equipments8 ,about to jump1    
where will you land8 ,oh1 the  subject  
is overwhelming to me2 and when ,i say  
these things to you1 ,i  say them to    
myself4 ,lord1 is it ,i8 ,is it ,i8     
,some of us part to-night  never to meet
 again4 ,if never before1 ,i now here   
commit my soul into  the keeping of the 
,lord ,jesus ,christ4 ,i throw my sinful
 heart upon ,his  infinite mercy4 ,but  
some of you will not do that4 ,you will 
go over to  the store to-morrow1 and    
your comrades will say3 ,where were you 
yesterday8 ,you will say3 ,i heard      
,talmage preach1 and ,i don't believe   
what he preaches4 ,and you will go on   
and die in your sins4    ,feeling that  

you are bound unto death eternal ,i     
solemnly take leave of  you4 ,be careful
 of your health1 for when your          
respiration gives out  all your good    
times will have ended4 ,be careful in   
walking near a  scaffold1 for one       
falling brick or stone might usher you  
into the  great eternity for which you  
have no preparation4 ,a few months1 or  
weeks1 or days1 or hours will pass on1  
and then you will see the last  light1  
and hear the last music1 and have the   
last pleasant emotion1  and a destroyed 
eternity will rush upon you4 ,farewell1 
oh1 doomed  spirit6 ,as you shove off   
from hope1 ,i wave you this last        
salutation4  ,oh1 it is hard to part    
forever and forever6 ,i bid you one     
long1 last1  bitter1 eternal adieu6     
,,castle ,,jesus4        ,who have fled 
for refuge4--,,heb4 vi3 #ah4      ,paul 
is here speaking of the consolations of 
,christians4 ,he styles  them these who 
have fled for refuge4    ,moses         
established six cities of refuge--three 

on the east side of the  river ,jordan1 
and three on the west4 ,when a man had  
killed any one  accidentally he fled to 
one of these cities4 ,the roads leading 
to them  were kept perfectly good1 so   
that when a man started for the refuge  
nothing might impede him4 ,along the    
cross-roads1 and wherever there  might  
be any mistake about the way1 there were
 signs put up pointing  in the right    
way1 with the word ,refuge4 ,having     
gained the limits of  one of these      
cities the man was safe1 and the mothers
 of the priests  provided for him4      
,some of us have seen our peril1 and    
have fled to ,christ1 and feel that  we 
shall never be captured4 ,we are among  
those who have fled for  refuge4 ,christ
 is represented in the ,bible as a      
,tower1 a ,high ,rock1 a  ,fortress1 and
 a ,shelter4 ,if you have seen any of   
the ancient castles  of ,europe1 you    
know that they are surrounded by        
trenches1 across which  there is a      
draw-bridge4 ,if an enemy approach1 the 

people1 for defense1  would get into the
 castle1 have the trenches filled with  
water1 and  lift up the draw-bridge4    
,whether to a city of safety1 or a      
tower1  ,paul refers1 ,i know not1 and  
care not1 for in any case he means      
,christ1 the safety of the soul4    ,but
 why talk of refuge8 ,who needs it1 if  
the refuge spoken of be a  city or a    
castle1 into which men fly for safety8  
,it is all sunlight  here4 ,no sound of 
war in our streets4 ,we do not hear the 
rush of armed  men against the doors of 
our dwellings4 ,we do not come with     
weapons to  church4 ,our lives are not  
at the mercy of an assassin4 ,why1 then1
 talk  of refuge8    ,alas6 ,i stand    
before a company of imperiled men4 ,no  
flock of sheep was  ever so threatened  
or endangered of a pack of wolves2 no   
ship was ever  so beaten of a storm2 no 
company of men were ever so environed of
 a  band of savages4 ,a refuge you must 
have1 or fall before an  all-devouring  
destruction4 ,there are not so many     

serpents in ,africa2  there are not so  
many hyenas in ,asia2 there are not so  
many panthers  in the forest1 as there  
are transgressions attacking my soul4 ,i
 will  take the best unregenerated man  
anywhere1 and say to him1 ,you are      
utterly corrupt4 ,if all the sins of    
your past life were marshaled in  single
 file1 they would reach from here to    
hell4 ,if you have escaped  all other   
sins1 the fact that you have rejected   
the mission of the ,son  of ,god is     
enough to condemn you forever1 pushing  
you off into  bottomless darkness1      
struck by ten thousand hissing          
thunder-bolts of  ,omnipotent wrath4    
,you are a sinner4 ,the ,bible says it1 
and your conscience affirms it4  ,not a 
small sinner1 or a moderate sinner1 or a
 tolerable sinner1 but a  great sinner1 
a protracted sinner1 a vile sinner1 an  
outrageous  sinner1 a condemned sinner4 
,as ,god1 with ,his all-scrutinizing    
gaze1  looks upon you to-day1 ,he can   
not find one sound spot in your soul4   

,sin has put scales on your eyes1 and   
deadened your ear with an awful         
deafness1 and palsied your right arm1   
and stunned your sensibilities1  and    
blasted you with an infinite blasting4  
,the ,bible1 which you admit  to be     
true1 affirms that you are diseased from
 the crown of your head  to the sole of 
your foot4 ,you are unclean2 you are a  
leper4 ,believe  not me1 but believe    
,god's ,word1 that over and over again  
announces1 in  language that a fool     
might understand1 the total and complete
  depravity of the unchanged heart3 ,the
 heart is deceitful above all  things1  
and desperately wicked4    ,in addition 
to the sins of your life there are      
uncounted troubles in  pursuit of you4  
,bereavements1 losses1 disappointments  
are a flock of  vultures ever on the    
wing4 ,did you get your house built1 and
  furnished1 and made comfortable any   
sooner than misfortune came in  without 
knocking1 and sat beside you--a skeleton
 apparition8 ,have not  pains shot their

 poisoned arrows1 and fevers kindled    
their fire in  your brain8 ,many of you1
 for years1 have walked on burning marl4
 ,you  stepped out of one disaster into 
another4 ,you may1 like ,job1 have      
cursed the day in which you were born4  
,this world boils over with  trouble for
 you1 and you are wondering where the   
next grave will gape1  and where the    
next storm will burst4 ,oh1 ye pursued1 
sinning1 dying1  troubled1 exhausted    
souls1 are you not ready now to hear me 
while ,i  tell you of ,christ1 the      
,refuge8    ,a soldier1 during the war1 
heard of the sickness of his wife and   
asked for a furlough4 ,it was denied    
him1 and he ran away4 ,he was  caught1  
brought back1 and sentenced to be shot  
as a deserter4 ,the  officer took from  
his pocket a document that announced his
 death on  the following morning4 ,as   
the document was read1 the man flinched 
not  and showed no sorrow or anxiety4   
,but the officer then took from his     
pocket another document that contained  

the prisoner's pardon4 ,then he  broke  
down with deep emotion at the thought of
 the leniency that had  been extended4  
,though you may not appear moved while  
,i tell you of the  law that thundered  
its condemnation1 while ,i tell you of  
the pardon  and the peace of the ,gospel
 ,i wonder if they will not overcome    
you4    ,jesus is a safe refuge4 ,fort  
,hudson1 ,fort ,pulaski1 ,fort          
,moultrie1 ,fort  ,sumter1 ,gibraltar1  
,sebastopol were taken4 ,but ,jesus is a
 castle into  which the righteous       
runneth and is safe4 ,no battering-ram  
can demolish  its wall4 ,no sappers or  
miners can explode its ramparts1 no     
storm-bolt  of perdition leap upon its  
towers4 ,the weapons that guard this    
fort  are omnipotent4 ,hell shall       
unlimber its great guns as death only to
  have them dismantled4 ,in ,christ our 
sins are pardoned1 discomforted1        
blotted out1 forgiven4 ,an ocean can not
 so easily drown a fly as the  ocean of 
,god's forgiveness swallow up1 utterly  

and forever1 our  transgressions4 ,he is
 able to save unto the uttermost4       
,you who have been so often overcome in 
a hand-to-hand fight with the  world1   
the flesh1 and devil1 try this fortress4
 ,once here1 you are  safe forever4     
,satan may charge up the steep1 and     
shout amid the uproar  of the fight1    
,forward1 to his battalions of darkness2
 but you will  stand in the might of the
 great ,god1 your ,redeemer1 safe in the
  refuge4 ,the troubles of life1 that   
once overwhelmed you1 may come on  with 
their long wagon-trains laden with care 
and worryment2 and you  may hear in     
their tramp the bereavements that once  
broke your heart2  but ,christ is your  
friend1 ,christ your sympathizer1       
,christ your  reward4 ,safe in the      
refuge6    ,death at last may lay the   
siege to your spirit1 and the shadows of
 the  sepulcher may shake their horrors 
in the breeze1 and the hoarse howl  of  
the night wind may be mingled with the  
cry of despair1 yet you will  shout in  

triumph from the ramparts1 and the pale 
horse shall be hurled  back on his      
haunches4 ,safe in the refuge6 ,to this 
castle ,i fly4 ,this  last fire shall   
but illumine its towers2 and the rolling
 thunders of  the judgment will be the  
salvo of its victory4    ,just after    
,queen ,victoria had been crowned--she  
being only nineteen or  twenty years of 
age--,wellington handed her a           
death-warrant for her  signature4 ,it   
was to take the life of a soldier in the
 army4 ,she said  to ,wellington3 ,can  
there nothing good be said of this man8 
,he said3  ,no2 he is a bad soldier1 and
 deserves to die4 ,she took up the      
death-warrant1 and it trembled in her   
hand as she again asked3 ,does  no one  
know anything good of this man8         
,wellington said3 ,i have heard  that at
 his trial a man said that he had been a
 good son to his old  mother4 ,then let 
his life be spared1 said the queen1 and 
she  ordered his sentence commuted4     
,christ is on a throne of grace4 ,our   

case is brought before him4 ,the        
question is asked3 ,is there any good   
about this man8 ,the law says3  ,none4  
,justice says3 ,none4 ,our own          
conscience says3 ,none4  ,nevertheless1 
,christ hands over our pardon1 and asks 
us to take it4  ,oh1 the height and     
depth1 the length and breadth of his    
mercy6    ,again1 ,christ is a near     
refuge4 ,when we are attacked1 what     
advantage  is there in having a fortress
 on the other side of the mountain8     
,many  an army has had an intrenchment1 
but could not get to it before the      
battle opened4 ,blessed be ,god1 it is  
no long march to our castle4 ,we  may   
get off1 with all our troops1 from the  
worst earthly defeat in  this           
stronghold4 ,in a moment we may step    
from the battle into the  tower4 ,i sing
 of a ,saviour near4    ,during the late
 war the forts of the ,north were named 
after the  ,northern generals1 and the  
forts of the ,south were named after the
  ,southern generals4 ,this fortress of 

our soul ,i shall call ,castle  ,jesus4 
,i have seen men pursued of sins that   
chased them with feet of  lightning1 and
 yet with one glad leap they bounded    
into the tower4 ,i  have seen troubles1 
with more than the speed and terror of a
 cavalry  troop1 dash after a retreating
 soul1 yet were hurled back in defeat   
from the bulwarks4 ,jesus near6 ,a      
child's cry1 a prisoner's prayer1 a     
sailor's death-shriek1 a pauper's moan  
reaches him4 ,no pilgrimages on  spikes4
 ,no journeying with a huge pack on your
 back4 ,no kneeling in  penance in cold 
vestibule of mercy4 ,but an open door6  
,a compassionate  ,saviour6 ,a present  
salvation6 ,a near refuge6 ,castle      
,jesus6    ,oh1 why do you not put out  
your arm and reach it8 ,why do you not  
fly  to it8 ,why be riddled1 and        
shelled1 and consumed under the rattling
  bombardment of perdition1 when one    
moment's faith would plant you in  the  
glorious refuge8 ,i preach a ,jesus     
here2 a ,jesus now2 a fountain  close to

 your feet2 a fiery pillar right over   
your head2 bread already  broken for    
your hunger2 a crown already gleaming   
for your brow4 ,hark  to the castle     
gates rattling back for your entrance6  
,hear you not the  welcome of those who 
have fled for refuge to lay hold upon   
the hope  set before us8    ,again1 it  
is a universal refuge4 ,a fortress is   
seldom large enough to  hold a whole    
army4 ,i look out upon fourteen hundred 
millions of the  race2 and then ,i look 
at this fortress1 and ,i say that there 
is room  enough for all4 ,if it had been
 possible1 this salvation would have    
been monopolized4 ,men would have said3 
,let us have all this to  ourselves--no 
publicans1 no plebeians1 no lazzaroni1  
no converted  pickpockets4 ,we will ride
 toward heaven on fierce chargers1 our  
feet  in golden stirrups4 ,grace for    
lords1 and dukes1 and duchesses1 and    
counts4 ,let ,napoleon and his marshals 
come in1 but not the common  soldier    
that fought under him4 ,let the ,girards

 and the ,barings come  in1 but not the 
stevedores that unloaded their cargoes1 
or the men who  kept their books4       
,heaven would have been a glorified     
,windsor ,castle1  or ,tuileries1 or    
,vatican2 and exclusive aristocrats     
would have  strutted through the golden 
streets to all eternity4    ,thank ,god1
 there is mercy for the poor6 ,the great
 ,doctor ,john ,mason  preached over a  
hundred times the same sermon2 and the  
text was3 ,to  the poor the ,gospel is  
preached4 ,lazarus went up1 while ,dives
 went  down2 and there are candidates   
for ,imperial splendors in the back     
alley1 and by the peat-fire of the      
,irish shanty4 ,king ,jesus set up ,his 
throne in a manger1 and made a          
resurrection day for the poor widow of  
,nain1 and sprung the gate of heaven    
wide open1 so that all the  beggars1 and
 thieves1 and scoundrels of the universe
 may come in if  they will only repent4 
,i can snatch the knife from the        
murderer's hand  while it is yet        

dripping with the blood of his victim1  
and tell him of  the grace that is      
sufficient to pardon his soul4 ,do you  
say that ,i  swing open the gate of     
heaven too far8 ,i swing it open no     
wider than  ,christ1 when ,he says3     
,whosoever will1 let him come4 ,don't   
you want  to go in with such a rabble8  
,then you can stay out4    ,the whole   
world will yet come into this refuge4   
,the windows of heaven  will be opened2 
,god's trumpet of salvation will sound1 
and ,china will  come from its          
tea-fields and rice-harvests1 and lift  
itself up into  the light4 ,india will  
come forth1 the chariots of salvation   
jostling  to pieces her ,juggernauts4   
,freezing ,greenland1 and sweltering    
,abyssinia1 will1 side by side1 press   
into the kingdom2 and transformed       
,bornesian cannibal preach of the       
resurrection of the missionary he has   
slain4 ,the glory of ,calvary will tinge
 the tip of the ,pyrenees2 and  ,lebanon
 cedars shall clap their hands2 and by  

one swing of the sickle  ,christ shall  
harvest nations for the skies4    ,i    
sing a world redeemed4 ,in the rush of  
the winds that set the forest  in       
motion1 like giants wrestling on the    
hills1 ,i see the tossing up of  the    
triumphal branches that shall wave all  
along the line of our ,king  as ,he     
comes to take empire4 ,in the stormy    
diapason of the ocean's  organ1 and the 
more gentle strains that in the calm    
come sounding up  from the crystal and  
jasper keys at the beach1 ,i hear the   
prophecy3  ,the earth shall be filled   
with the knowledge of ,god as the waters
  fill the sea4    ,the gospel morning  
will come like the natural morning4 ,at 
first it  seems only like another hue of
 the night4 ,then a pallor strikes      
through the sky1 as though a company of 
ministering spirits1 pale with  tedious 
watching through the night1 had turned  
in their flight upward  to look back    
upon the earth4 ,then a faint glow of   
fire1 as though on a  barren beach a    

wrecked mariner was kindling a          
flickering flame4 ,then  chariots and   
horses of fire racing up and down the   
heavens2 then  perfect day3 ,who is she 
that cometh forth as the morning8       
,come in1 black ,hottentot and          
snow-white ,caucasian1 come in1 mitered 
official and diseased beggar2 let all   
the world come in4 ,room in  ,castle    
,jesus6 ,sound it through all lands2    
sound it by all tongues4 ,let  sermons  
preach it1 and bells chime it1 and      
pencils sketch it1 and  processions     
celebrate it1 and bells ring it3 ,room  
in ,castle ,jesus6    ,again1 ,christ is
 the only refuge4 ,if you were very     
sick1 and there was  only one medicine  
that would cure you1 how anxious you    
would be to get  that medicine4 ,if you 
were in a storm at sea1 and you found   
that the  ship could not weather it1 and
 there was only one harbor1 how anxious 
you would be to get into that harbor4   
,oh1 sin-sick soul1 ,christ is the  only
 medicine2 oh1 storm-tossed soul1       

,christ is the only harbor4 ,need  ,i   
tell a cultured audience like this that 
there is no other name given  among men 
by which ye can be saved8 ,that if you  
want the handcuffs  knocked from your   
wrists1 and the hopples from your feet1 
and the icy  bands from your heart1     
there is just one ,almighty arm in all  
the  universe to do everything8 ,there  
are other fortresses to which you  might
 fly1 and other ramparts behind which   
you might hide1 but ,god  will cut to   
pieces1 with the hail of ,his vengeance1
 all these refuges  of lies4    ,some of
 you are foundering in terrible         
,euroclydon4 ,hark to the howling  of   
the gale1 and the splintering of the    
spars1 and the starting of the  timbers1
 and the breaking of the billow1 clear  
across the hurricane  deck4 ,down she   
goes6 ,into the life-boat6 ,quick6 ,one 
boat6 ,one shore6  ,one oarsman6 ,one   
salvation6 ,you are polluted2 there is  
but one well at  which you can wash     
clean4 ,you are enslaved2 there is but  

one  proclamation that can emancipate4  
,you are blind2 there is but one  salve 
that can kindle your vision4 ,you are   
dead2 there is but one  trumpet that can
 burst the grave4    ,i have seen men   
come near the refuge but not make       
entrance4 ,they came  up1 and fronted   
the gate1 and looked in1 but passed on1 
and passed  down2 and they will curse   
their folly through all eternity1 that  
they  despised the only refuge4 ,oh6    
forget everything else ,i have said1 if 
you will but remember that there is but 
one atonement1 one sacrifice1  one      
justification1 one faith1 one hope1 one 
,jesus1 one refuge4 ,there  is that old 
,christian4 ,many a scar on his face    
tells where trouble  lacerated him4 ,he 
has fought with wild beasts at ,ephesus4
 ,he has had  enough misfortune to      
shadow his countenance with perpetual   
despair4  ,yet he is full of hope4 ,has 
he found any new elixir8 ,no1 he says2  
,i  have found ,jesus the refuge4       
,christ is our only defense at the last4

 ,john ,holland1 in his  concluding     
moment1 swept his hand over the ,bible1 
and said3 ,come1 let  us gather a few   
flowers from this garden4 ,as it was    
even-time he said  to his wife3 ,have   
you lighted the candles8 ,no1 she said2 
we have  not lighted the candles4 ,then1
 said he1 it must be the brightness  of 
the face of ,jesus that ,i see4    ,ask 
that dying ,christian woman the source  
of her comfort4 ,why that  supernatural 
glow on the curtains of the             
death-chamber2 and the  tossing out of  
one hand1 as if to wave the triumph1 and
 the reaching  up of the other1 as if to
 take a crown8 ,hosanna on the tongue4  
,glory  beaming from the forehead4      
,heaven in the eyes4 ,spirit departing4 
,wings  to bear it4 ,anthems to charm   
it4 ,open the gates to receive it4      
,hallelujah6 ,speak1 dying              
,christian--what light do you see8 ,what
 sounds  do you hear8 ,the thin lips    
part4 ,the pale hand is lifted4 ,she    
says3  ,jesus the refuge6 ,let all in   

the death-chamber stop weeping now4     
,celebrate the triumph4 ,take up a song4
 ,clap your hands4 ,shout it4           
,hallelujah6 ,hallelujah6    ,but this  
refuge will be of no worth to you unless
 you lay hold of it4  ,the time will    
come when you will wish that you had    
done so4 ,it will  come soon4 ,at an    
unexpected moment it will come4 ,the    
castle bridge  will be drawn up and the 
fortress closed4 ,when you see this     
discomfiture1 and look back1 and look up
 at the storm gathering1 and  the       
billowy darkness of death has rolled    
upon the sheeted flash of  the storm1   
you will discover the utter desolation  
of those who are  outside of the refuge4
    ,what you propose to do in this     
matter you had better do right away4 ,a 
mistake this morning may never be       
corrected4 ,jesus1 the ,great ,captain  
of salvation1 puts forth his wounded    
hand to-day to cheer you on the  race to
 heaven4 ,if you despise it1 the        
ghastliest vision that will  haunt the  

eternal darkness of your soul will be   
the gaping1 bleeding  wounds of the     
dying ,redeemer4    ,jesus is to be     
crucified to-day4 ,think not of it as a 
day that is  past4 ,he comes before you 
to-day weary and worn4 ,here is the     
cross1  and here is the victim4 ,but    
there are no nails1 and there are no    
thorns1 and there are no hammers4 ,who  
will furnish these8 ,a man out  yonder  
says3 ,i will furnish with my sins the  
nails6 ,now we have the  cross1 and the 
victim1 and the nails4 ,but we have no  
thorns4 ,who will  furnish the thorns8  
,a man in the audience says3 ,with my   
sins ,i will  furnish the thorns6 ,now  
we have the cross1 the victim1 the      
nails1 and  the thorns4 ,but we have no 
hammers4 ,who will furnish the hammers8 
,a  voice in the audience says3 ,my hard
 heart shall be the hammer6  ,everything
 is ready now4 ,the crucifixion goes    
out6 ,see ,jesus dying6  ,behold the    
,lamb of ,god1 that taketh away the sins
 of the world4          ,,stripping     

,,the ,,slain4        ,and it came to   
pass on the morrow1 when the            
,philistines came      to strip the     
slain1 that they found ,saul and his    
three sons      fallen in ,mount        
,gilboa4--,i4 ,,sam4 xxxi3 #h4          
,some of you were at ,south ,mountain1  
or ,shiloh1 or ,ball's ,bluff1 or       
,gettysburg1 and ,i ask you if there is 
any sadder sight than a  battle-field   
after the guns have stopped firing8 ,i  
walked across the  field of ,antietam   
just after the conflict4 ,the scene was 
so sickening  ,i shall not describe it4 
,every valuable thing had been taken    
from the  bodies of the dead1 for there 
are always vultures hovering over and   
around about an army1 and they pick up  
the watches1 and the memorandum  books1 
and the letters1 and the daguerreotypes1
 and the hats1 and the  coats1 applying 
them to their own uses4 ,the dead make  
no resistance4  ,so there are always    
camp followers going on and after an    
army1 as when  ,scott went down into    

,mexico1 as when ,napoleon marched up   
toward  ,moscow1 as when ,von ,moltke   
went to ,sedan4 ,there is a similar     
scene in  my text4    ,saul and his army
 had been horribly cut to pieces4 ,mount
 ,gilboa was  ghastly with the dead4 ,on
 the morrow the stragglers came on to   
the  field1 and they lifted the latchet 
of the helmet from under the chin  of   
the dead1 and they picked up the swords 
and bent them on their  knee to test the
 temper of the metal1 and they opened   
the wallets and  counted the coin4 ,saul
 lay dead along the ground1 eight or    
nine feet  in length1 and ,i suppose the
 cowardly ,philistines1 to show their   
bravery1 leaped upon the trunk of his   
carcass1 and jeered at the  fallen      
slain1 and whistled through the mouth of
 the helmet4 ,before  night those       
cormorants had taken everything valuable
 from the field3  ,and it came to pass  
on the morrow1 when the ,philistines    
came to strip  the slain1 that they     
found ,saul and his three sons fallen in

 ,mount  ,gilboa4    ,before ,i get     
through to-day ,i will show you that the
 same process is  going on all the world
 over1 and every day1 and that when men 
have  fallen1 ,satan and the world1 so  
far from pitying them or helping them1  
go to work remorselessly to take what   
little is left1 thus stripping  the     
slain4    ,there are tens of thousands  
of young men every year coming from the 
country to our great cities4 ,they come 
with brave hearts and grand             
expectations4 ,they think they will be  
,rufus ,choates in the law1 or  ,drapers
 in chemistry1 or ,a4,t4 ,stewarts in   
merchandise4 ,the country  lads sit down
 in the village grocery1 with their feet
 on the iron rod  around the red-hot    
stove1 in the evening1 talking over the 
prospects  of the young man who has gone
 off to the city4 ,two or three of them 
think that perhaps he may get along very
 well and succeed1 but the  most of them
 prophesy failure2 for it is very hard  
to think that those  whom we knew in    

boyhood will ever make any stir in the  
world4    ,but our young man has a fine 
position in a dry-goods store4 ,the     
month  is over4 ,he gets his wages4 ,he 
is not accustomed to have so much money 
belonging to himself4 ,he is a little   
excited1 and does not know  exactly what
 to do with it1 and he spends it in some
 places where he  ought not4 ,soon there
 come up new companions and             
acquaintances from  the bar-rooms and   
the saloons of the city4 ,soon that     
young man begins  to waver in the battle
 of temptation1 and soon his soul goes  
down4 ,in  a few months1 or few years1  
he has fallen4 ,he is morally dead4 ,he 
is a  mere corpse of what he once was4  
,the harpies of sin snuff up the taint  
and come on the field4 ,his garments    
gradually give out4 ,he has pawned  his 
watch4 ,his health is failing him4 ,his 
credit perishes4 ,he is too  poor to    
stay in the city1 and he is too poor to 
pay his way home to  the country4 ,down6
 down6 ,why do the low fellows of the   

city now stick  to him so closely8 ,is  
it to help him back to a moral and      
spiritual  life8 ,oh1 no6 ,i will tell  
you why they stay2 they are the         
,philistines  stripping the slain4      
,do not look where ,i point1 but yonder 
stands a man who once had a  beautiful  
home in this city4 ,his house had       
elegant furniture1 his  children were   
beautifully clad1 his name was          
synonymous with honor and  usefulness2  
but evil habit knocked at his front     
door1 knocked at his  back door1 knocked
 at his parlor door1 knocked at his     
bedroom door4  ,where is the piano8     
,sold to pay the rent4 ,where is the    
hat-rack8 ,sold  to meet the butcher's  
bill4 ,where are the carpets8 ,sold to  
get bread4  ,where is the wardrobe8     
,sold to get rum4 ,where are the        
daughters8  ,working their fingers off  
in trying to keep the family together4  
,worse and worse1 until everything is   
gone4 ,who is that going up the  front  
steps of that house8 ,that is a         

creditor1 hoping to find some  chair or 
bed that has not been levied upon4 ,who 
are those two  gentlemen now going up   
the front steps8 ,the one is a          
constable1 the  other is the sheriff4   
,why do they go there8 ,the unfortunate 
is morally  dead1 socially dead1        
financially dead4 ,why do they go there8
 ,i will  tell you why the creditors1   
and the constables1 and the sheriffs go 
there4 ,they are1 some on their own     
account1 and some on account of the     
law1 stripping the slain4    ,an        
ex-member of ,congress1 one of the most 
eloquent men that ever stood  in the    
,house of ,representatives1 said in his 
last moments3 ,this is  the end4 ,i am  
dying--dying on a borrowed bed1 covered 
by a borrowed  sheet1 in a house built  
by public charity4 ,bury me under that  
tree in  the middle of the field1 where 
,i shall not be crowded1 for ,i have    
been  crowded all my life4 ,where were  
the jolly politicians and the           
dissipating comrades who had been with  

him1 laughing at his jokes1  applauding 
his eloquence1 and plunging him into    
sin8 ,they have left4  ,why8 ,his money 
is gone1 his reputation is gone1 his wit
 is gone1 his  clothes are gone1        
everything is gone4 ,why should they    
stay any longer8  ,they have completed  
their work4 ,they have stripped the     
slain4    ,there is another way1        
however1 of doing that same work4 ,here 
is a man  who1 through his sin1 is      
prostrate4 ,he acknowledges that he has 
done  wrong4 ,now is the time for you to
 go to that man and say3 ,thousands  of 
people have been as far astray as you   
are1 and got back4 ,now is  the time for
 you to go to that man and tell him of  
the omnipotent  grace of ,god1 that is  
sufficient for any poor soul4 ,now is   
the time to  go to tell him how swearing
 ,john ,bunyan1 through the grace of    
,god1  afterward came to the celestial  
city4 ,now is the time to go to that    
man and tell him how profligate ,newton 
came1 through conversion1 to be  a      

world-renowned preacher of              
righteousness4 ,now is the time to tell 
that man that multitudes who have been  
pounded with all the flails of  sin and 
dragged through all the sewers of       
pollution at last have risen  to        
positive dominion of moral power4       
,you do not tell him that1 do you8 ,no4 
,you say to him3 ,loan you money8  ,no4 
,you are down4 ,you will have to go to  
the dogs4 ,lend you a  shilling8 ,i     
would not lend you five cents to keep   
you from the  gallows4 ,you are         
debauched6 ,get out of my sight1 now6   
,down2 you will  have to stay down6 ,and
 thus those bruised and battered men are
  sometimes accosted by those who ought 
to lift them up4 ,thus the last  vestige
 of hope is taken from them4 ,thus those
 who ought to go and  lift and save them
 are guilty of stripping the slain4     
,the point ,i want to make is this3 sin 
is hard1 cruel1 and merciless4  ,instead
 of helping a man up it helps him down2 
and when1 like ,saul and  his comrades1 

you lie on the field1 it will come and  
steal your sword  and helmet and shield1
 leaving you to the jackal and the crow4
    ,but the world and ,satan do not do 
all their work with the outcast and     
abandoned4 ,a respectable1 impenitent   
man comes to die4 ,he is flat on  his   
back4 ,he could not get up if the house 
were on fire4 ,adroitest  medical skill 
and gentlest nursing have been a        
failure4 ,he has come to  his last hour4
 ,what does ,satan do for such a man8   
,why1 he fetches up  all the inapt1     
disagreeable1 and harrowing things in   
his life4 ,he  says3 ,do you remember   
those chances you had for heaven1 and   
missed  them8 ,do you remember all those
 lapses in conduct8 ,do you remember all
  those opprobrious words and thoughts  
and actions8 ,don't remember them1  eh8 
,i'll make you remember them4 ,and then 
he takes all the past and  empties it on
 that death-bed1 as the mail-bags are   
emptied on the  post-office floor4 ,the 
man is sick4 ,he can not get away from  

them4    ,then the man says to ,satan3  
,you have deceived me4 ,you told me that
  all would be well4 ,you said there    
would be no trouble at the last4 ,you   
told me if ,i did so and so1 you would  
do so and so4 ,now you corner me1  and  
hedge me up1 and submerge me in         
everything evil4 ,ha6 ha6 says  ,satan1 
,i was only fooling you4 ,it is mirth   
for me to see you suffer4  ,i have been 
for thirty years plotting to get you    
just where you are4  ,it is hard for you
 now--it will be worse for you after    
awhile4 ,it  pleases me4 ,lie still1    
sir4 ,don't flinch or shudder4 ,come    
now1 ,i will  tear off from you the last
 rag of expectation4 ,i will rend away  
from  your soul the last hope4 ,i will  
leave you bare for the beating of the   
storm4 ,it is my business to strip the  
slain4    ,while men are in robust      
health1 and their digestion is good1 and
 their  nerves are strong1 they think   
their physical strength will get them   
safely through the last exigency4 ,they 

say it is only cowardly women  who are  
afraid at the last1 and cry out for     
,god4 ,wait till ,i come to  die4 ,i    
will show you4 ,you won't hear me pray1 
nor call for a minister1  nor want a    
chapter read me from the ,bible4 ,but   
after the man has been  three weeks in a
 sick-room his nerves are not so steady1
 and his  worldly companions are not    
anywhere near to cheer him up1 and he is
  persuaded that he must quit life3 his 
physical courage is all gone4    ,he    
jumps at the fall of a teaspoon in a    
saucer4 ,he shivers at the idea  of     
going away4 ,he says3 ,wife1 ,i don't   
think my infidelity is going to  take me
 through4 ,for ,god's sake don't bring  
up the children to do as ,i  have done4 
,if you feel like it1 ,i wish you would 
read a verse or two  out of ,fannie's   
,sabbath-school hymn-book or ,new       
,testament4 ,but ,satan  breaks in1 and 
says3 ,you have always thought religion 
trash and a  lie2 don't give up at the  
last4 ,besides that1 you can not1 in the

 hour  you have to live1 get off on that
 track4 ,die as you lived4 ,with my     
great black wings ,i shut out that      
light4 ,die in darkness4 ,i rend away   
from you that last vestige of hope4 ,it 
is my business to strip the  slain4     
,a man who had rejected ,christianity   
and thought it all trash1 came to  die4 
,he was in the sweat of a great agony1  
and his wife said3 ,we had  better have 
some prayer4 ,mary1 not a breath of     
that1 he said4 ,the  lightest word of   
prayer would roll back on me like rocks 
on a drowning  man4 ,i have come to the 
hour of test4 ,i had a chance1 and ,i   
forfeited  it4 ,i believed in a liar1   
and he has left me in the lurch4 ,mary1 
bring  me ,tom ,paine1 that book that ,i
 swore by and lived by1 and pitch it in 
the fire1 and let it burn and burn as ,i
 myself shall soon burn4 ,and  then1    
with the foam on his lip and his hands  
tossing wildly in the  air1 he cried    
out3 ,blackness of darkness6 ,oh1 my    
,god1 too late6 ,and  the spirits of    

darkness whistled up from the depth1 and
 wheeled around  and around him1        
stripping the slain4    ,sin is a luxury
 now2 it is exhilaration now2 it is     
victory now4 ,but  after awhile it is   
collision2 it is defeat2 it is          
extermination2 it is  jackalism2 it is  
robbing the dead2 it is stripping the   
slain4 ,give it  up to-day--give it up6 
,oh1 how you have been cheated on1 my   
brother1  from one thing to another6    
,all these years you have been under an 
evil  mastery that you understood not4  
,what have your companions done for     
you8 ,what have they done for your      
health8 ,nearly ruined it by  carousal4 
,what have they done for your fortune8  
,almost scattered it by  spendthrift    
behavior4 ,what have they done for your 
reputation8 ,almost  ruined it with good
 men4 ,what have they done for your     
immortal soul8  ,almost insured its     
overthrow4    ,you are hastening on     
toward the consummation of all that is  
sad4  ,to-day you stop and think1 but it

 is only for a moment1 and then you     
will tramp on1 and at the close of this 
service you will go out1 and  the       
question will be3 ,how did you like the 
sermon8 ,and one man will  say3 ,i liked
 it very well1 and another man will say3
 ,i didn't like  it at all2 but neither 
of the answers will touch the tremendous
 fact  that1 if impenitent1 you are     
going at eighteen knots an hour toward  
shipwreck6 ,yea1 you are in a battle    
where you will fall2 and while  your    
surviving relatives will take your      
remaining estate1 and the  cemetery will
 take your body1 the messengers of      
darkness will take  your soul1 and come 
and go about you for the next ten       
million years1  stripping the slain4    
,many are crying out3 ,i admit ,i am    
slain1 ,i admit it6 ,on what            
battle-field1 my brothers8 ,by what     
weapon8 ,polluted imagination1  says one
 man2 ,intoxicating liquor1 says another
 man2 ,my own hard  heart1 says another 
man4 ,do you realize this8 ,then ,i come

 to tell you  that the omnipotent       
,christ is ready to walk across this    
battle-field1  and revive1 and          
resuscitate1 and resurrect your dead    
soul4 ,let ,him  take your hand and rub 
away the numbness2 your head1 and bathe 
off the  aching2 your heart1 and stop   
its wild throb4 ,he brought ,lazarus to 
life2 ,he brought ,jairus' daughter to  
life2 ,he brought the young man of      
,nain to life1 and these are three      
proofs anyhow that he can bring you  to 
life4    ,when the ,philistines came    
down on the field1 they stepped between 
the  corpses1 and they rolled over the  
dead1 and they took away everything     
that was valuable2 and so it was with   
the people that followed after  our army
 at ,chancellorsville1 and at ,pittsburg
 ,landing1 and at ,stone  ,river1 and at
 ,atlanta1 stripping the slain2 but the 
,northern and  ,southern women--,god    
bless them6--came on the field with     
basins1 and  pads1 and towels1 and lint1
 and cordials1 and ,christian           

encouragement2  and the poor fellows    
that lay there lifted up their arms and 
said3  ,oh1 how good that does feel     
since you dressed it6 and others looked 
up and said3 ,oh1 how you make me think 
of my mother6 and others  said3 ,tell   
the folks at home ,i died thinking about
 them2 and another  looked up and said3 
,miss1 won't you sing me a verse of     
',home1 ,sweet  ,home1' before ,i die8  
,and then the tattoo was sounded1 and   
the hats  were off1 and the service was 
read3 ,i am the resurrection and the    
life2 and in honor of the departed the  
muskets were loaded1 and the  command   
given3 ,take aim--fire6 ,and there was a
 shingle set up at the  head of the     
grave1 with the epitaph of ,lieutenant  
---- in the  ,fourteenth ,massachusetts 
,regulars1 or ,captain ---- in the      
,fifteenth  ,regiment of ,south         
,carolina ,volunteers4 ,and so to-night1
 across this  great field of moral and  
spiritual battle1 the angels of ,god    
come  walking among the slain1 and there

 are voices of comfort1 and voices  of  
hope1 and voices of resurrection1 and   
voices of heaven4    ,christ is ready to
 give life to the dead4 ,he will make   
the deaf ear to  hear1 the blind eye to 
see1 the pulseless heart to beat1 and   
the damp  walls of your spiritual       
charnel-house will crash into ruin at   
,his cry3  ,come forth6 ,i verily       
believe there are souls in this house   
who are  now dead in sin1 who in half an
 hour will be alive forever4 ,there was 
a thrilling dream1 a glorious dream--you
 may have heard of it4 ,ezekiel  closed 
his eyes1 and he saw two mountains1 and 
a valley between the  mountains4 ,that  
valley looked as though there had been a
 great battle  there1 and a whole army  
had been slain1 and they had been       
unburied2  and the heat of the land1 and
 the vultures coming there1 soon the    
bones were exposed to the sun1 and they 
looked like thousands of  snow-drifts   
all through the valley4 ,frightful      
spectacle6 ,the bleaching  skeletons of 

a host6    ,but ,ezekiel still kept his 
eyes shut2 and lo6 there were four      
currents of wind that struck the        
battle-field1 and when those four       
currents of wind met1 the bones began to
 rattle2 and the foot came to  the      
ankle1 and the hand came to the wrist1  
and the jaws clashed  together1 and the 
spinal column gathered up the ganglions 
and the  nervous fiber1 and all the     
valley wriggled and writhed1 and        
throbbed1  and rocked1 and rose up4     
,there1 a man coming to life4 ,there1 a 
hundred  men4 ,there1 a thousand2 and   
all falling into line1 waiting for the  
shout of their commander4 ,ten thousand 
bleached skeletons springing up  into   
ten thousand warriors1 panting for the  
fray4 ,i hope that instead  of being a  
dream it may be a prophecy of what we   
shall see here  to-day4 ,let this north 
wall be one of the mountains1 and the   
south  wall be taken for another of the 
mountains1 and let all the aisles and   
the pews be the valley between1 for     

there are thousands here to-day  without
 one pulsation of spiritual life4    ,i 
look off in one direction1 and they are 
dead4 ,i look off in another  direction1
 and they are dead4 ,who will bring them
 to life8 ,who shall  rouse them up8 ,if
 ,i should halloo at the top of my voice
 ,i could not  wake them4 ,wait a       
moment6 ,listen6 ,there is a rustling4  
,there is a gale  from heaven4 ,it comes
 from the north1 and from the south1 and
 from the  east1 and from the west4 ,it 
shuts us in4 ,it blows upon the slain4  
,there a soul begins to move in         
spiritual life2 there1 ten souls2       
there1 a score of souls2 there1 a       
hundred souls4 ,the nostrils  throbbing 
in divine respiration1 the hands lifted 
as though to take  hold of heaven1 the  
tongue moving as in prayer and          
adoration4 ,life6  immortal life coming 
into the slain4 ,ten men for            
,god--fifty--a  hundred--a regiment--an 
army for ,god6 ,oh1 that we might have  
such a  scene here to-day6 ,in          

,ezekiel's words1 and in almost a frenzy
 of  prayer1 ,i cry3 ,come from the four
 winds1 ,o ,breath6 and breathe upon    
the slain4    ,you will have to         
surrender your heart to-day to ,god4    
,you can not take  the responsibility of
 fighting against the ,spirit in this   
crisis which  will decide whether you   
are to go to heaven or to hell--to join 
the  hallelujahs of the saved1 or the   
lamentations of the lost4 ,you must     
pray4 ,you must repent4 ,you must this  
day fling your sinful soul on the       
pardoning mercy of ,god4 ,you must6 ,i  
see your resolution against ,god  giving
 way1 your determination wavering4 ,i   
break through the breach in  the wall   
and follow up the advantage gained1     
hoping to rout your last  opposition to 
,christ1 and to make you ground arms at 
the feet of the  ,divine ,conqueror4    
,oh1 you must6 ,you must6    ,the moon  
does not ask the tides of the ,atlantic 
,ocean to rise4 ,it only  stoops down   
with two great hands of light1 the one  

at the ,european  beach1 and the other  
at the ,american beach1 and then lifts  
the great  layer of molten silver4 ,and 
,god1 it seems to me1 is now going to   
lift  this audience to newness of life4 
,do you not feel the swellings of the   
great oceanic tides of ,divine mercy8   
,my heart is in anguish to have  you    
saved4 ,for this ,i pray1 and preach1   
and long1 glad to be called a  fool for 
,christ's sake1 and your salvation4     
,some one replies3 ,dear me1 ,i do wish 
,i could have these matters  arranged   
with my ,god4 ,i want to be saved4 ,god 
knows ,i want to be  saved2 but you     
stand there talking about this matter1  
and you don't  show me how4 ,my dear    
brother1 the work has all been done4    
,christ did  it with ,his own torn hand1
 and lacerated foot1 and bleeding side4 
,he  took your place1 and died your     
death1 if you will only believe         
it--only accept ,him as your substitute4
    ,what an amazing pity that any man  
should go from this house unblessed1    

when such a large blessing is offered   
him at less cost than you would  pay for
 a pin--without money and without price4
 ,i have driven down  to-day with the   
,lord's ambulance to the battle-field   
where your soul  lies exposed to the    
darkness and the storm1 and ,i want to  
lift you in1  and drive off with you    
toward heaven4 ,oh1 ,christians1 by your
 prayers  help to lift these wounded    
souls into the ambulance6 ,god forbid   
that  any should be left on the field1  
and that at last eternal sorrow1 and    
remorse1 and despair should come up     
around their soul like the bandit       
,philistines to the field of ,gilboa1   
stripping the slain4          ,,sold    
,,out4        ,ye have sold yourselves  
for nought2 and ye shall be redeemed    
without money4--,,isa4 lii3 #c4         
,the ,jews had gone headlong into sin1  
and as a punishment they had been       
carried captive to ,babylon4 ,they found
 that iniquity did not pay4  ,cyrus     
seized ,babylon1 and felt so sorry for  

these poor captive ,jews  that1 without 
a dollar of compensation1 he let them go
 home4 ,so that1  literally1 my text was
 fulfilled3 ,ye have sold yourselves for
 nought2  and ye shall be redeemed      
without money4    ,there is enough      
,gospel in this text for fifty sermons2 
though ,i never  heard of its being     
preached on4 ,there are persons in this 
house who  have1 like the ,jews of the  
text1 sold out4 ,you do not seem to     
belong  either to yourselves or to ,god4
 ,the title-deeds have been passed over 
to the world1 the flesh1 and the devil1 
but the purchaser has never  paid up4   
,ye have sold yourselves for nought4    
,when a man passes himself over to the  
world he expects to get some  adequate  
compensation4 ,he has heard the great   
things that the world  does for a man1  
and he believes it4 ,he wants two       
hundred and fifty  thousand dollars4    
,that will be horses1 and houses1 and a 
summer-resort1 and jolly companionship4 
,to get it he parts with his  physical  

health by overwork4 ,he parts with his  
conscience4 ,he parts  with much        
domestic enjoyment4 ,he parts with      
opportunities for literary  culture4 ,he
 parts with his soul4 ,and so he makes  
over his entire  nature to the world4   
,he does it in four installments4 ,he   
pays down the  first installment1 and   
one fourth of his nature is gone4 ,he   
pays down  the second installment1 and  
one half of his nature is gone4 ,he pays
  down the third installment1 and three 
quarters of his nature are gone2  and   
after many years have gone by he pays   
down the fourth installment1  and1 lo6  
his entire nature is gone4 ,then he     
comes up to the world and  says3        
,good-morning4 ,i have delivered to you 
the goods4 ,i have passed  over to you  
my body1 my mind1 and my soul1 and ,i   
have come now to  collect the two       
hundred and fifty thousand dollars4 ,two
 hundred and  fifty thousand dollars8   
says the world4 ,what do you mean8      
,well1  you say1 ,i come to collect the 

money you owe me1 and ,i expect you now 
to fulfill your part of the contract4   
,but1 says the world1 ,i have  failed4  
,i am bankrupt4 ,i can not possibly pay 
that debt4 ,i have not  for a long while
 expected to pay it4 ,well1 you then    
say1 give me  back the goods4 ,oh1 no1  
says the world1 they are all gone4 ,i   
can  not give them back to you4 ,and    
there you stand on the confines of      
eternity1 your spiritual character gone1
 staggering under the  consideration    
that you have sold yourself for nought4 
,i tell you the world is a liar2 it does
 not keep its promises4 ,it is a  cheat1
 and it fleeces everything it can put   
its hands on4 ,it is a  bogus world4 ,it
 is a six-thousand-year-old swindle4    
,even if it pays  the two hundred and   
fifty thousand dollars for which you    
contracted1  it pays them in bonds that 
will not be worth anything in a little  
while4 ,just as a man may pay down ten  
thousand dollars in hard cash  and get  
for it worthless scrip--so the world    

passes over to you the  two hundred and 
fifty thousand dollars in that shape    
which will not be  worth a farthing to  
you a thousandth part of a second after 
you are  dead4 ,oh1 you say1 it will    
help to bury me1 anyhow4 ,oh1 my        
brother6 you need not worry about that4 
,the world will bury you soon  enough1  
from sanitary considerations4 ,after you
 have been deceased for  three or four  
days you will compel the world to bury  
you4    ,post-mortem emoluments are of  
no use to you4 ,the treasures of this   
world will not pass current in the      
future world2 and if all the wealth  of 
the ,bank of ,england were put in the   
pocket of your shroud1 and you  in the  
midst of the ,jordan of death were asked
 to pay three cents for  your ferriage1 
you could not do it4 ,there comes a     
moment in your  existence beyond which  
all earthly values fail2 and many a man 
has  wakened up in such a time to find  
that he has sold out for eternity1  and 
has nothing to show for it4 ,i should as

 soon think of going to  ,chatham       
,street to buy silk pocket-handkerchiefs
 with no cotton in  them1 as to go to   
this world expecting to find any        
permanent  happiness4 ,it has deceived  
and deluded every man that has ever put 
his  trust in it4    ,history tells us  
of one who resolved that he would have  
all his senses  gratified at one and the
 same time1 and he expended thousands of
  dollars on each sense4 ,he entered a  
room1 and there were the first          
musicians of the land pleasing his ear1 
and there were fine pictures            
fascinating his eye1 and there were     
costly aromatics regaling his  nostril1 
and there were the richest meats1 and   
wines1 and fruits1 and  confections     
pleasing the appetite1 and there was a  
soft couch of  sinful indulgence on     
which he reclined2 and the man declared 
afterward  that he would give ten times 
what he had given if he could have one  
week of such enjoyment1 even though he  
lost his soul by it4 ,ah6 that  was the 

rub4 ,he did lose his soul by it6 ,cyrus
 the ,conqueror thought  for a little   
while that he was making a fine thing   
out of this world1  and yet before he   
came to his grave he wrote out this     
pitiful epitaph  for his monument3 ,i am
 ,cyrus4 ,i occupied the ,persian       
,empire4 ,i was  king over ,asia4       
,begrudge me not this monument4 ,but the
 world in after  years plowed up his    
sepulcher4    ,the world clapped its    
hands and stamped its feet in honor of  
,charles  ,lamb2 but what does he say8  
,i walk up and down1 thinking ,i am     
happy1  but feeling ,i am not4 ,call the
 roll1 and be quick about it4 ,samuel   
,johnson1 the learned6 ,happy8 ,no4 ,i  
am afraid ,i shall some day get  crazy4 
,william ,hazlitt1 the great essayist6  
,happy8 ,no4 ,i have been  for two hours
 and a half going up and down           
,paternoster ,row with a  volcano in my 
breast4 ,smollett1 the witty author6    
,happy8 ,no4 ,i am  sick of praise and  
blame1 and ,i wish to ,god that ,i had  

such  circumstances around me that ,i   
could throw my pen into oblivion4       
,buchanan1 the world-renowned writer1   
exiled from his own country1  appealing 
to ,henry ,,viii4 for protection6       
,happy8 ,no4 ,over mountains  covered   
with snow1 and through valleys flooded  
with rain1 ,i come a  fugitive4 ,molire1
 the popular dramatic author6 ,happy8   
,no4 ,that  wretch of an actor just now 
recited four of my lines without the    
proper accent and gesture4 ,to have the 
children of my brain so hung1  drawn1   
and quartered1 tortures me like a       
condemned spirit4    ,i went to see a   
worldling die4 ,as ,i went into the hall
 ,i saw its floor  was tessellated1 and 
its wall was a picture-gallery4 ,i found
 his  death-chamber adorned with        
tapestry until it seemed as if the      
clouds  of the setting sun had settled  
in the room4 ,the man had given forty   
years to the world--his wit1 his time1  
his genius1 his talent1 his  soul4 ,did 
the world come in to stand by his       

death-bed1 and clearing  off the vials  
of bitter medicine1 put down any        
compensation8 ,oh1 no6  ,the world does 
not like sick and dying people1 and     
leaves them in the  lurch4 ,it ruined   
this man1 and then left him4 ,he had a  
magnificent  funeral4 ,all the ministers
 wore scarfs1 and there were forty-three
  carriages in a row2 but the departed  
man appreciated not the  obsequies4     
,i want to persuade my audience that    
this world is a poor investment2  that  
it does not pay ninety per cent4 of     
satisfaction1 nor eighty per  cent41 nor
 twenty per cent41 nor two per cent41   
nor one2 that it gives  no solace when a
 dead babe lies on your lap2 that it    
gives no peace  when conscience rings   
its alarm2 that it gives no explanation 
in the  day of dire trouble2 and at the 
time of your decease it takes hold of   
the pillow-case1 and shakes out the     
feathers1 and then jolts down in  the   
place thereof sighs1 and groans1 and    
execrations1 and then makes  you put    

your head on it4 ,oh1 ye who have tried 
this world1 is it a  satisfactory       
portion8 ,would you advise your friends 
to make the  investment8 ,no4 ,ye have  
sold yourselves for nought4 ,your       
conscience  went4 ,your hope went4 ,your
 ,bible went4 ,your heaven went4 ,your  
,god  went4 ,when a sheriff under a writ
 from the courts sells a man out1 the   
officer generally leaves a few chairs   
and a bed1 and a few cups and  knives2  
but in this awful vendue in which you   
have been engaged the  auctioneer's     
mallet has come down upon body1 mind1   
and soul3 ,going6  ,gone6 ,ye have sold 
yourselves for nought4    ,how could you
 do so8 ,did you think that your soul   
was a mere trinket  which for a few     
pennies you could buy in a toy shop8    
,did you think  that your soul1 if once 
lost1 might be found again if you went  
out  with torches and lanterns8 ,did you
 think that your soul was  short-lived1 
and that1 panting1 it would soon lie    
down for extinction8  ,or had you no    

idea what your soul was worth8 ,did you 
ever put your  forefingers on its       
eternal pulses8 ,have you never felt the
 quiver of  its peerless wing8 ,have you
 not known that1 after leaving the body1
  the first step of your soul reaches to
 the stars1 and the next step to  the   
furthest outposts of ,god's universe1   
and that it will not die  until the day 
when the everlasting ,jehovah expires8  
,oh1 my brother1  what possessed you    
that you should part with your soul so  
cheap8 ,ye  have sold yourselves for    
nought4    ,but ,i have some good news  
to tell you4 ,i want to engage in a     
litigation for the recovery of that soul
 of yours4 ,i want to show that  you    
have been cheated out of it4 ,i want to 
prove1 as ,i will1 that you  were crazy 
on that subject1 and that the world1    
under such  circumstances1 has no right 
to take the title-deed from you2 and if 
you will join me ,i shall get a decree  
from the ,high ,chancery ,court of      
,heaven reinstating you into the        

possession of your soul4 ,oh1 you  say1 
,i am afraid of lawsuits2 they are so   
expensive1 and ,i can not  pay the cost4
 ,then have you forgotten the last half 
of my text8 ,ye  have sold yourselves   
for nought2 and ye shall be redeemed    
without  money4    ,money is good for a 
great many things1 but it can not do    
anything in  this matter of the soul4   
,you can not buy your way through4      
,dollars and  pounds sterling mean      
nothing at the gate of mercy4 ,if you   
could buy  your salvation1 heaven would 
be a great speculation1 an extension of 
,wall ,street4 ,bad men would go up and 
buy out the place1 and leave us  to     
shift for ourselves4 ,but as money is   
not a lawful tender1 what is8  ,i will  
answer3 ,blood6 ,whose8 ,are we to go   
through the slaughter8 ,oh1  no2 it     
wants richer blood than ours4 ,it wants 
a king's blood4 ,it must  be poured from
 royal arteries4 ,it must be a sinless  
torrent4 ,but where  is the king8 ,i see
 a great many thrones and a great many  

occupants1  yet none seem to be coming  
down to the rescue4 ,but after awhile   
the  clock of night in ,bethlehem       
strikes twelve1 and the silver pendulum 
of  a star swings across the sky1 and ,i
 see the ,king of ,heaven rising up1    
and ,he descends1 and steps down from   
star to star1 and from cloud to  cloud1 
lower and lower1 until ,he touches the  
sheep-covered hills1 and  then on to    
another hill1 this last skull-covered1  
and there1 at the  sharp stroke of      
persecution1 a rill incarnadine trickles
 down1 and we  who could not be redeemed
 by money are redeemed by precious and  
imperial blood4    ,we have in this day 
professed ,christians who are so        
rarefied and  etherealized that they do 
not want a religion of blood4 ,what do  
you  want8 ,you seem to want a religion 
of brains4 ,the ,bible says3 ,in the    
blood is the life4 ,no atonement without
 blood4 ,ought not the apostle  to know8
 ,what did he say8 ,ye are redeemed not 
with corruptible  things1 such as silver

 and gold1 but by the precious blood of 
,christ4  ,you put your lancet into the 
arm of our holy religion and withdraw   
the  blood1 and you leave it a mere     
corpse1 fit only for the grave4 ,why did
  ,god command the priests of old to    
strike the knife into the kid1 and  the 
goat1 and the pigeon1 and the bullock1  
and the lamb8 ,it was so  that when the 
blood rushed out from these animals on  
the floor of the  ancient tabernacle the
 people should be compelled to think of 
the  coming carnage of the ,son of ,god4
 ,no blood1 no atonement4    ,i think   
that ,god intended to impress us with   
the vividness of that  color4 ,the green
 of the grass1 the blue of the sky1     
would not have  startled and aroused us 
like this deep crimson4 ,it is as if    
,god had  said3 ,now1 sinner1 wake up   
and see what the ,saviour endured for   
you4  ,this is not water4 ,this is not  
wine4 ,it is blood4 ,it is the blood of 
my own ,son4 ,it is the blood of the    
,immaculate4 ,it is the blood of  ,god4 

,without the shedding of blood is no    
remission4 ,there has been  many a man  
who in courts of law has pleaded not    
guilty1 who  nevertheless has been      
condemned because there was blood found 
on his  hands1 or blood found in his    
room2 and what shall we do in the last  
day if it be found that we have         
recrucified the ,lord of ,glory and have
  never repented of it8 ,you must       
believe in the blood or die4 ,no        
escape4 ,unless you let the sacrifice of
 ,jesus go in your stead you  yourself  
must suffer4 ,it is either ,christ's    
blood or your blood4    ,oh1 says some  
one1 the thought of blood sickens me4   
,good4 ,god  intended it to sicken you  
with your sin4 ,do not act as though you
 had  nothing to do with that ,calvarian
 massacre4 ,you had4 ,your sins were    
the implements of torture4 ,those       
implements were not made of steel1  and 
iron1 and wood1 so much as out of your  
sins4 ,guilty of this  homicide1 and    
this regicide1 and this deicide1 confess

 your guilt  to-day4 ,ten thousand      
voices of heaven bring in the verdict   
against you  of guilty1 guilty4 ,prepare
 to die1 or believe in that blood4      
,stretch  yourself out for the          
sacrifice1 or accept the ,saviour's     
sacrifice4 ,do  not fling away your one 
chance4    ,it seems to me as if all    
heaven were trying to bid in your soul4 
,the  first bid it makes is the tears of
 ,christ at the tomb of ,lazarus2 but   
that is not a high enough price4 ,the   
next bid heaven makes is the  sweat of  
,gethsemane2 but it is too cheap a      
price4 ,the next bid heaven  makes seems
 to be the whipped back of ,pilate's    
hall2 but it is not a  high enough      
price4 ,can it be possible that heaven  
can not buy you in8  ,heaven tries once 
more4 ,it says3 ,i bid this time for    
that man's soul  the tortures of        
,christ's martyrdom1 the blood on ,his  
temple1 the blood  on ,his cheek1 the   
blood on ,his chin1 the blood on ,his   
hand1 the blood  on ,his side1 the blood

 on ,his knee1 the blood on ,his        
foot--the blood  in drops1 the blood in 
rills1 the blood in pools coagulated    
beneath  the cross2 the blood that wet  
the tips of the soldiers' spears1 the   
blood that plashed warm in the faces of 
,his enemies4 ,glory to ,god1  that bid 
wins it6 ,the highest price that was    
ever paid for anything  was paid for    
your soul4 ,nothing could buy it but    
blood6 ,the estranged  property is      
bought back4 ,take it4 ,you have sold   
yourselves for  nought2 and ye shall be 
redeemed without money4 ,o atoning      
blood1  cleansing blood1 life-giving    
blood1 sanctifying blood1 glorifying    
blood of ,jesus6 ,why not burst into    
tears at the thought that for thee  ,he 
shed it--for thee the hard-hearted1 for 
thee the lost8    ,no1 says some one2 ,i
 will have nothing to do with it except 
that1  like the ,jews1 ,i put both my   
hands into that carnage and scoop up    
both  palms full1 and throw it on my    
head and cry3 ',his blood be on us and  

on our children6' ,can you do such a    
shocking thing as that8 ,just rub  your 
handkerchief across your brow and look  
at it4 ,it is the blood of  the ,son of 
,god whom you have despised and driven  
back all these years4  ,oh1 do not do   
that any longer6 ,come out frankly and  
boldly and  honestly1 and tell ,christ  
you are sorry4 ,you can not afford to so
  roughly treat ,him upon whom          
everything depends4    ,i do not know   
how you will get away from this subject4
 ,you see that  you are sold out1 and   
that ,christ wants to buy you back4     
,there are  three persons who come after
 you to-night3 ,god the ,father1 ,god   
the  ,son1 and ,god the ,holy ,ghost4   
,they unite their three omnipotences in 
one movement for your salvation4 ,you   
will not take up arms against the       
,triune ,god1 will you8 ,is there enough
 muscle in your arm for such a  combat8 
,by the highest throne in heaven1 and by
 the deepest chasm in  hell1 ,i beg you 
look out4 ,unless you allow ,christ to  

carry away your  sins1 they will carry  
you away4 ,unless you allow ,christ to  
lift you  up1 they will drag you down4  
,there is only one hope for you1 and    
that  is the blood4 ,christ1 the        
sin-offering1 bearing your              
transgressions4  ,christ1 the surety1   
paying your debts4 ,christ1 the divine  
,cyrus1  loosening your ,babylonish     
captivity4    ,would you not like to be 
free8 ,here is the price of your        
liberation--not money1 but blood4 ,i    
tremble from head to foot1 not  because 
,i fear your presence1 for ,i am used to
 that1 but because ,i  fear that you    
will miss your chance for immortal      
rescue1 and die4 ,this  is the          
alternative divinely put3 ,he that      
believeth on the ,son shall  have       
everlasting life2 and he that believeth 
not on the ,son shall not  see life1 but
 the wrath of ,god abideth on him4 ,in  
the last day1 if  you now reject        
,christ1 every drop of that sacrificial 
blood1 instead  of pleading for your    

release as it would have pleaded if you 
had  repented1 will plead against you4  
,it will seem to say3 ,they refused  the
 ransom2 they chose to die2 let them    
die2 they must die4 ,down with  them to 
the weeping and the wailing4 ,depart6 go
 away from me4 ,you  would not have me1 
now ,i will not have you4 ,sold out for 
eternity4    ,o ,lord ,god of the       
judgment day6 avert that calamity6 ,let 
us see the  quick flash of the cimeter  
that slays the sin but saves the sinner4
  ,strike1 omnipotent ,god1 for the     
soul's deliverance6 ,beat1 ,o eternal   
sea6 with all thy waves against the     
barren beach of that rocky soul1  and   
make it tremble4 ,oh6 the oppressiveness
 of the hour1 the minute1  the second1  
on which the soul's destiny quivers1 and
 this is that  hour1 that minute1 that  
second6    ,i wonder what proportion of 
this audience will be saved8 ,what      
proportion will be lost8 ,when the      
,schiller went down1 out of three       
hundred and eighty people only forty    

were saved4 ,when the ,ville du  ,havre 
went down1 out of three hundred and     
forty about fifty were  saved4 ,out of  
this audience to-day1 how many will get 
to the shore of  heaven8 ,it is no idle 
question for me to ask1 for many of you 
,i shall  never see again until the day 
when the books are open4    ,some years 
ago there came down a fierce storm on   
the sea-coast1 and a  vessel got in the 
breakers and was going to pieces4 ,they 
threw up some  signal of distress1 and  
the people on the shore saw them4 ,they 
put out  in a life-boat4 ,they came on1 
and they saw the poor sailors1 almost   
exhausted1 clinging to a raft2 and so   
afraid were the boatmen that the  men   
would give up before they got to them1  
they gave them three rounds  of cheers1 
and cried3 ,hold on1 there6 ,hold on6   
,we'll save you6 ,after  awhile the boat
 came up4 ,one man was saved by having  
the boat-hook put  in the collar of his 
coat2 and some in one way1 and some in  
another2  but they all got into the     

boat4 ,now1 says the captain1 for the   
shore4 ,pull away now1 pull6 ,the people
 on the land were afraid the  life-boat 
had gone down4 ,they said3 ,how long the
 boat stays4 ,why1 it  must have been   
swamped1 and they have all perished     
together4    ,and there were men and    
women on the pier-heads and on the beach
  wringing their hands2 and while they  
waited and watched1 they saw  something 
looming up through the mist1 and it     
turned out to be the  life-boat4 ,as    
soon as it came within speaking distance
 the people on  the shore cried out3    
,did you save any of them8 ,did you save
 any of  them8 ,and as the boat swept   
through the boiling surf and came to the
  pier-head1 the captain waved his hand 
over the exhausted sailors that  lay    
flat on the bottom of the boat1 and     
cried3 ,all saved6 ,thank ,god6  ,all   
saved6 ,so may it be to-day4 ,the waves 
of your sin run high1 the  storm is on  
you1 the danger is appalling4 ,oh6      
shipwrecked soul1 ,i have  come for you4

 ,i cheer you with this ,gospel hope4   
,god grant that within  the next ten    
minutes we may row with you into the    
harbor of ,god's  mercy4 ,and when these
 ,christian men gather around to see the
 result of  this service1 and the       
glorified gathering on the pier-heads of
 heaven  to watch and to listen1 may we 
be able to report all saved6 ,young and 
old1 good and bad6 ,all saved6 ,saved   
from sin1 and death1 and hell4  ,saved  
for time4 ,saved for eternity4 ,and so  
it came to pass that they  all escaped  
safe to land4          ,,summer         
,,temptations4        ,come ye          
yourselves apart unto a desert place and
 rest      awhile4--,,mark vi3 #ca4     
,here ,christ advises ,his apostles to  
take a vacation4 ,they have been  living
 an excited as well as a useful life1   
and ,he advises that they  get out into 
the country4 ,when1 six weeks ago1      
standing in this place1  ,i advocated1  
with all the energy ,i could command1   
the ,saturday  afternoon holiday1 ,i did

 not think the people would so soon get 
that  release4 ,by divine fiat it has   
come1 and ,i rejoice that more people   
will have opportunity of recreation this
 summer than in any previous  summer4   
,others will have whole weeks and months
 of rest4 ,the railway  trains are being
 laden with passengers and baggage on   
their way to the  mountains and the     
lakes and the sea-shore4 ,multitudes of 
our citizens  are packing their trunks  
for a restorative absence4    ,the city 
heats are pursuing the people with torch
 and fear of  sunstroke4 ,the long      
silent halls of sumptuous hotels are all
 abuzz  with excited arrivals4 ,the     
crystalline surface of ,winnipiseogee is
  shattered with the stroke of steamer1 
laden with excursionists4 ,the  antlers 
of ,adirondack deer rattle under the    
shot of city sportsmen4  ,the trout make
 fatal snaps at the hook of adroit      
sportsmen and toss  their spotted       
brilliance into the game-basket4        
,already the baton of  the orchestral   

leader taps the music-stand on the hotel
 green1 and  ,american life puts on     
festal array1 and the rumbling of the   
tenpin  alley1 and the crack of the     
ivory balls on the green-baized billiard
  tables1 and the jolting of the        
bar-room goblets1 and the explosive     
uncorking of champagne bottles1 and the 
whirl and the rustle of the  ball-room  
dance1 and the clattering hoofs of the  
race-courses1 attest  that the season   
for the great ,american watering-places 
is fairly  inaugurated4 ,music--flute   
and drum and cornet--piston and clapping
  cymbals--will wake the echoes of the  
mountains4    ,glad ,i am that          
fagged-out ,american life for the most  
part will have an  opportunity to rest1 
and that nerves racked and destroyed    
will find a  ,bethesda4 ,i believe in   
watering-places4 ,let not the commercial
 firm  begrudge the clerk1 or the       
employer the journeyman1 or the patient 
the  physician1 or the church its       
pastor1 a season of inoccupation4       

,luther  used to sport with his         
children2 ,edmund ,burke used to caress 
his  favorite horse2 ,thomas ,chalmers1 
in the dark hours of the church's       
disruption1 played kite for             
recreation--as ,i was told by his own   
daughter--and the busy ,christ said to  
the busy apostles3 ,come ye  apart      
awhile into the desert and rest         
yourselves4 ,and ,i have observed  that 
they who do not know how to rest do not 
know how to work4    ,but ,i have to    
declare this truth to-day1 that some of 
our fashionable  watering-places are the
 temporal and eternal destruction of a  
multitude that no man can number1 and   
amid the congratulations of  this season
 and the prospect of the departure of   
many of you for the  country ,i must    
utter a note of warning--plain1 earnest1
 and  unmistakable4    ,i4 ,the first   
temptation that is apt to hover in this 
direction is to  leave your piety all at
 home4 ,you will send the dog and cat   
and canary  bird to be well cared for   

somewhere else2 but the temptation will 
be  to leave your religion in the room  
with the blinds down and the door       
bolted1 and then you will come back in  
the autumn to find that it is  starved  
and suffocated1 lying stretched on the  
rug stark dead4 ,there  is no surplus of
 piety at the watering-places4 ,i never 
knew any one to  grow very rapidly in   
grace at the ,catskill ,mountain ,house1
 or ,sharon  ,springs1 or the ,falls of 
,montmorency4 ,it is generally the case 
that  the ,sabbath is more of a carousal
 than any other day1 and there are      
,sunday walks and ,sunday rides and     
,sunday excursions4    ,elders and      
deacons and ministers of religion who   
are entirely  consistent at home1       
sometimes when the ,sabbath dawns on    
them at  ,niagara ,falls or the ,white  
,mountains take the day to themselves4  
,if  they go to the church1 it is apt to
 be a sacred parade1 and the  discourse1
 instead of being a plain talk about the
 soul1 is apt to be  what is called a   

crack sermon--that is1 some discourse   
picked out of  the effusions of the year
 as the one most adapted to excite      
admiration2 and in those churches1 from 
the way the ladies hold their  fans1 you
 know that they are not so much         
impressed with the heat as  with the    
picturesqueness of half-disclosed       
features4 ,four puny souls  stand in the
 organ-loft and squall a tune that      
nobody knows1 and  worshipers1 with two 
thousand dollars' worth of diamonds on  
the right  hand1 drop a cent into the   
poor-box1 and then the benediction is   
pronounced and the farce is ended4      
,the toughest thing ,i ever tried to do 
was to be good at a  watering-place4    
,the air is bewitched with the world1   
the flesh1 and  the devil4 ,there are   
,christians who in three or four weeks  
in such a  place have had such terrible 
rents made in their ,christian robe that
  they had to keep darning it until     
,christmas to get it mended6 ,the       
health of a great many people makes an  

annual visit to some mineral  spring an 
absolute necessity2 but1 my dear people1
 take your ,bible  along with you1 and  
take an hour for secret prayer every    
day1 though  you be surrounded by guffaw
 and saturnalia4 ,keep holy the         
,sabbath1  though they denounce you as a
 bigoted ,puritan4 ,stand off from those
  institutions which propose to imitate 
on this side the water the  iniquities  
of ,baden-,baden4 ,let your moral and   
your immortal health  keep pace with    
your physical recuperation1 and remember
 that all the  waters of ,hathorne and  
sulphur and chalybeate springs can not  
do you  so much good as the mineral1    
healing1 perennial flood that breaks    
forth from the ,rock of ,ages4 ,this may
 be your last summer4 ,if so1  make it a
 fit vestibule of heaven4    ,,ii4      
,another temptation around nearly all   
our watering-places is the  horse-racing
 business4 ,we all admire the horse4    
,there needs to be a  redistribution of 
coronets among the brute creation4 ,for 

ages the lion  has been called the king 
of beasts4 ,i knock off its coronet and 
put  the crown upon the horse1 in every 
way nobler1 whether in shape or  spirit 
or sagacity or intelligence or affection
 or usefulness4 ,he is  semi-human1 and 
knows how to reason on a small scale4   
,the centaur of  olden times1 part horse
 and part man1 seems to be a suggestion 
of the  fact that the horse is something
 more than a beast4    ,job sets forth  
his strength1 his beauty1 his majesty1  
the panting of  his nostril1 the pawing 
of his hoof1 and his enthusiasm for the 
battle4 ,what ,rosa ,bonheur did for the
 cattle1 and what ,landseer did  for the
 dog1 ,job1 with mightier pencil1 does  
for the horse4  ,eighty-eight times does
 the ,bible speak of him4 ,he comes into
 every  kingly procession and into every
 great occasion and into every  triumph4
 ,it is very evident that ,job and      
,david and ,isaiah and ,ezekiel  and    
,jeremiah and ,john were fond of the    
horse4 ,he came into much of  their     

imagery4 ,a red horse--that meant war2 a
 black horse--that meant  famine2 a pale
 horse--that meant death2 a white       
horse--that meant  victory4    ,as the  
,bible makes a favorite of the horse1   
the patriarch and the  prophet and the  
evangelist and the apostle1 stroking his
 sleek hide1  and patting his rounded   
neck1 and tenderly lifting his          
exquisitely  formed hoof1 and listening 
with a thrill to the champ of his bit1  
so  all great natures in all ages have  
spoken of him in encomiastic terms4     
,virgil in his ,georgics almost seems to
 plagiarize from the description  of    
,job4 ,the ,duke of ,wellington would   
not allow any one irreverently to  touch
 his old war-horse1 ,copenhagen1 on whom
 he had ridden fifteen  hours without   
dismounting at ,waterloo2 and when old  
,copenhagen died1  his master ordered a 
military salute fired over his grave4   
,john  ,howard showed that he did not   
exhaust all his sympathies in pitying   
the human race1 for when sick he writes 

home3 ,has my old chaise-horse  become  
sick or spoiled8    ,but we do not think
 that the speed of the horse should be  
cultured at  the expense of human       
degradation4 ,horse-races1 in olden     
times1 were  under the ban of ,christian
 people1 and in our day the same        
institution  has come up under          
fictitious names1 and it is called a    
,summer  ,meeting1 almost suggestive of 
positive religious exercises4 ,and it is
  called an ,agricultural ,fair1        
suggestive of everything that is        
improving in the art of farming4 ,but   
under these deceptive titles are  the   
same cheating and the same betting1 the 
same drunkenness and the  same          
vagabondage and the same abominations   
that were to be found under  the old    
horse-racing system4    ,i never knew a 
man yet who could give himself to the   
pleasures of the  turf for a long reach 
of time1 and not be battered in morals4 
,they  hook up their spanking team1 and 
put on their sporting-cap1 and light    

their cigar1 and take the reins1 and    
dash down the road to perdition4  ,the  
great day at ,saratoga1 and ,long       
,branch1 and ,cape ,may1 and nearly  all
 the other watering-places1 is the day  
of the races4 ,the hotels are  thronged1
 nearly every kind of equipage is taken 
up at an almost  fabulous price1 and    
there are many respectable people       
mingling with  jockeys1 and gamblers1   
and libertines1 and foul-mouthed men and
 flashy  women4 ,the bar-tender stirs up
 the brandy-smash4 ,the bets run high4  
,the greenhorns1 supposing all is fair1 
put in their money soon enough  to lose 
it4 ,three weeks before the race takes  
place the struggle is  decided1 and the 
men in the secret know on which steed to
 bet their  money4 ,the two men on the  
horses riding around long before        
arranged  who shall beat4    ,leaning   
from the stand or from the carriage are 
men and women so  absorbed in the       
struggle of bone and muscle and mettle  
that they make  a grand harvest for the 

pickpockets1 who carry off the          
pocket-books  and portemonnaies4 ,men   
looking on see only two horses with two 
riders  flying around the ring2 but     
there is many a man on that stand whose 
honor and domestic happiness and        
fortune--white mane1 white foot1  white 
flank--are in the ring1 racing with     
inebriety1 and with fraud1  and with    
profanity1 and with ruin--black neck1   
black foot1 black  flank4 ,neck and neck
 they go in that moral ,epsom4    ,ah1  
my friends1 have nothing to do with     
horse-racing dissipations this  summer4 
,long ago the ,english government got   
through looking to the  turf for the    
dragoon and light-cavalry horse4 ,they  
found the turf  depreciates the stock1  
and it is yet worse for men4 ,thomas    
,hughes1 the  member of parliament and  
the author1 known all the world over1   
hearing  that a new turf enterprise was 
being started in this country1 wrote a  
letter1 in which he said3 ,heaven help  
you1 then2 for of all the  cankers of   

our old civilization there is nothing in
 this country  approaching in unblushing
 meanness1 in rascality holding its head
  high1 to this belauded institution of 
the ,british turf4 ,another  famous     
sportsman writes3 ,how many fine domains
 have been shared among  these hosts of 
rapacious sharks during the last two    
hundred years2 and  unless the system be
 altered1 how many more are doomed to   
fall into  the same gulf6 ,the ,duke of 
,hamilton1 through his horse-racing     
proclivities1 in three years got through
 his entire fortune of  #gj1jjj1 and ,i 
will say that some of you are being     
undermined by it4  ,with the bull-fights
 of ,spain and the bear-baitings of the 
pit may the  ,lord ,god annihilate the  
infamous and accursed horse-racing of   
,england  and ,america4    ,,iii4 ,i go 
further1 and speak of another temptation
 that hovers over  the watering-places2 
and this is the temptation to sacrifice 
physical  strength4 ,the modern         
,bethesda was intended to recuperate the

 physical  health2 and yet how many come
 from the watering-places1 their health 
absolutely destroyed6 ,new ,york and    
,brooklyn idiots boasting of having     
imbibed twenty glasses of ,congress     
water before breakfast4 ,families       
accustomed to going to bed at ten       
o'clock at night gossiping until one  or
 two o'clock in the morning4            
,dyspeptics1 usually very cautious about
  their health1 mingling ice-creams1 and
 lemons1 and lobster-salads1 and        
cocoa-nuts1 until the gastric juices    
lift up all their voices of  lamentation
 and protest4 ,delicate women and       
brainless young men  chassezing         
themselves into vertigo and catalepsy4  
,thousands of men and  women coming back
 from our watering-places in the autumn 
with the  foundations laid for ailments 
that will last them all their life long4
  ,you know as well as ,i do that this  
is the simple truth4    ,in the summer  
you say to your good health3 ,good-bye1 
,i am going to  have a good time for a  

little while4 ,i will be very glad to   
see you  again in the autumn4 ,then in  
the autumn1 when you are hard at work in
  your office1 or store1 or shop1 or    
counting-room1 ,good ,health will  come 
and say3 ,good-bye1 ,i am going4 ,you   
say3 ,where are you going8  ,oh1 says   
,good ,health1 ,i am going to take a    
vacation6 ,it is a poor  rule that will 
not work both ways1 and your good health
 will leave you  choleric and splenetic 
and exhausted4 ,you coquetted with your 
good  health in the summer-time1 and    
your good health is coquetting with you 
in the winter-time4 ,a fragment of      
,paul's charge to the jailer would be   
an appropriate inscription for the      
hotel-register in every  watering-place3
 ,do thyself no harm4    ,,iv4 ,another 
temptation hovering around the          
watering-place is to the  formation of  
hasty and life-long alliances4 ,the     
watering-places are  responsible for    
more of the domestic infelicities of    
this country than  all the other things 

combined4 ,society is so artificial     
there that no  sure judgment of         
character can be formed4 ,those who form
  companionships amid such circumstances
 go into a lottery where there  are     
twenty blanks to one prize4 ,in the     
severe tug of life you want  more than  
glitter and splash4 ,life is not a      
ball-room where the music  decides the  
step1 and bow and prance and graceful   
swing of long trail  can make up for    
strong common sense4 ,you might as well 
go among the  gayly painted yachts of a 
summer regatta to find war vessels as to
 go  among the light spray of the summer
 watering-place to find character  that 
can stand the test of the great struggle
 of human life4 ,ah1 in  the battle of  
life you want a stronger weapon than a  
lace fan or a  croquet mallet6 ,the load
 of life is so heavy that in order to   
draw it1  you want a team stronger than 
one made up of a masculine grasshopper  
and a feminine butterfly4    ,if there  
is any man in the community that excites

 my contempt1 and  that ought to excite 
the contempt of every man and woman1 it 
is the  soft-handed1 soft-headed fop1   
who1 perfumed until the air is actually 
sick1 spends his summer in taking       
killing attitudes1 and waving           
sentimental adieus1 and talking         
infinitesimal nothings1 and finding  his
 heaven in the set of a lavender        
kid-glove4 ,boots as tight as an        
,inquisition1 two hours of consummate   
skill exhibited in the tie of a  flaming
 cravat1 his conversation made up of    
,ah's and ,oh's and  ,he-hee's4 ,it     
would take five hundred of them stewed  
down to make a  teaspoonful of          
calves-foot jelly4 ,there is only one   
counterpart to  such a man as that1 and 
that is the frothy young woman at the   
watering-place1 her conversation made up
 of ,french moonshine2 what she  has on 
her head only equaled by what she has on
 her back2 useless ever  since she was  
born1 and to be useless until she is    
dead3 and what they  will do with her in

 the next world ,i do not know1 except  
to set her  upon the banks of the ,river
 ,life for eternity to look sweet6 ,god 
intends us to admire music and fair     
faces and graceful step1 but amid  the  
heartlessness and the inflation and the 
fantastic influences of  our modern     
watering-places1 beware how you make    
life-long covenants6    ,v4 ,another    
temptation that will hover over the     
watering-place is that  of baneful      
literature4 ,almost every one starting  
off for the summer  takes some reading  
matter4 ,it is a book out of the library
 or off the  bookstand1 or bought of the
 boy hawking books through the cars4 ,i 
really believe there is more pestiferous
 trash read among the  intelligent      
classes in ,july and ,august than in all
 the other ten  months of the year4 ,men
 and women who at home would not be     
satisfied  with a book that was not     
really sensible1 ,i found sitting on    
hotel-piazzas or under the trees reading
 books the index of which  would make   

them blush if they knew that you knew   
what the book was4    ,oh1 they say1 you
 must have intellectual recreation6     
,yes4 ,there is  no need that you take  
along into a watering-place ,hamilton's 
,metaphysics or some thunderous         
discourse on the eternal decrees1 or    
,faraday's ,philosophy4 ,there are many 
easy books that are good4 ,you  might as
 well say3 ,i propose now to give a     
little rest to my  digestive organs2    
and1 instead of eating heavy meat and   
vegetables1 ,i  will for a little while 
take lighter food--a little strychnine  
and a  few grains of ratsbane4 ,literary
 poison in ,august is as bad as         
literary poison in ,december4 ,mark     
that4 ,do not let the frogs and the     
lice of a corrupt printing-press jump   
and crawl into your ,saratoga  trunk or 
,white ,mountain valise4    ,would it   
not be an awful thing for you to be     
struck with lightning  some day when you
 had in your hand one of these          
paper-covered  romances--the hero a     

,parisian rou1 the heroine an           
unprincipled  flirt--chapters in the    
book that you would not read to your    
children  at the rate of #ajj a line8   
,throw out all that stuff from your     
summer  baggage4 ,are there not good    
books that are easy to read--books of   
entertaining travel1 books of congenial 
history1 books of pure fun1  books of   
poetry ringing with merry canto1 books  
of fine engravings1  books that will    
rest the mind as well as purify the     
heart and elevate  the whole life8 ,my  
hearers1 there will not be an hour      
between this  and the day of your death 
when you can afford to read a book      
lacking  in moral principle4    ,,vi4   
,another temptation hovering all around 
our watering-places is the  intoxicating
 beverage4 ,i am told that it is        
becoming more and more  fashionable for 
woman to drink4 ,i care not how well a  
woman may dress1  if she has taken      
enough of wine to flush her cheek and   
put glassiness  on her eyes1 she is     

intoxicated4 ,she may be handed into a  
#bejj  carriage1 and have diamonds      
enough to confound the ,tiffanys--she is
  intoxicated4 ,she may be a graduate of
 ,packer ,institute1 and the  daughter  
of some man in danger of being nominated
 for the  ,presidency--she is drunk4    
,you may have a larger vocabulary than  
,i  have1 and you may say in regard to  
her that she is convivial1 or she  is   
merry1 or she is festive1 or she is     
exhilarated1 but you can  not with all  
your garlands of verbiage cover up the  
plain fact that it  is an old-fashioned 
case of drunk4    ,now1 the             
watering-places are full of temptations 
to men and women to  tipple4 ,at the    
close of the tenpin or billiard-game    
they tipple4 ,at  the close of the      
cotillon they tipple4 ,seated on the    
piazza cooling  themselves off they     
tipple4 ,the tinged glasses come around 
with bright  straws1 and they tipple4   
,first they take light wines1 as they   
call  them2 but light wines are heavy   

enough to debase the appetite4 ,there   
is not a very long road between         
champagne at #e a bottle and whiskey  at
 five cents a glass4    ,satan has three
 or four grades down which he takes men 
to destruction4  ,one man he takes up1  
and through one spree pitches him into  
eternal  darkness4 ,that is a rare case4
 ,very seldom1 indeed1 can you find a   
man  who will be such a fool as that4   
,when a man goes down to destruction    
,satan brings him to a plane4 ,it is    
almost a level4 ,the depression is so   
slight that you can hardly see  it4 ,the
 man does not actually know that he is  
on the down grade1 and  it tips only a  
little toward darkness--just a little4  
,and the first  mile it is claret1 and  
the second mile it is sherry1 and the   
third  mile it is punch1 and the fourth 
mile it is ale1 and the fifth mile it   
is porter1 and the sixth mile it is     
brandy1 and then it gets steeper  and   
steeper and steeper1 and the man gets   
frightened and says1 ,oh1  let me get   

off6 ,no1 says the conductor1 this is an
 express train1  and it does not stop   
until it gets to the ,grand ,central    
,depot at  ,smashupton4 ,ah1 look not   
thou upon the wine when it is red1 when 
it  giveth its color in the cup1 when it
 moveth itself aright4 ,at the last  it 
biteth like a serpent and stingeth like 
an adder4 ,and if any young  man in my  
congregation should get astray this     
summer in this direction  it will not be
 because ,i have not given him fair     
warning4    ,my friends1 whether you    
tarry at home--which will be quite as   
safe and  perhaps quite as              
comfortable--or go into the country1 arm
 yourself  against temptation4 ,the     
grace of ,god is the only safe shelter1 
whether  in town or country4 ,there are 
watering-places accessible to all of us4
  ,you can not open a book of the ,bible
 without finding out some such          
watering-place4 ,fountains open for sin 
and uncleanliness2 wells of  salvation2 
streams from ,lebanon2 a flood struck   

out of the rock by  ,moses2 fountains in
 the wilderness discovered by ,hagar2   
water to  drink and water to bathe in2  
the river of ,god1 which is full of     
water2  water of which if a man drink he
 shall never thirst2 wells of water in  
the ,valley of ,baca2 living fountains  
of water2 a pure river of water  as     
clear as crystal from under the throne  
of ,god4    ,these are watering-places  
accessible to all of us4 ,we do not have
 a  laborious packing up before we      
start--only the throwing away of our    
transgressions4 ,no expensive hotel     
bills to pay2 it is without money  and  
without price4 ,no long and dirty travel
 before we get there2 it  is only one   
step away4 ,california in five minutes4 
,i walked around and  saw ten fountains1
 all bubbling up1 and they were all     
different4 ,and  in five minutes ,i can 
get through this ,bible parterre and    
find you  fifty bright1 sparkling       
fountains bubbling up into eternal life4
    ,a chemist will go to one of these  

summer watering-places and take the     
water and analyze it and tell you that  
it contains so much of iron1  and so    
much of soda1 and so much of lime1 and  
so much of magnesia4 ,i  come to this   
,gospel well1 this living fountain and  
analyze the water1  and ,i find that its
 ingredients are peace1 pardon1         
forgiveness1 hope1  comfort1 life1      
heaven4 ,ho1 every one that thirsteth1  
come ye to this  watering-place6        
,crowd around this ,bethesda this       
morning6 ,oh1 you sick1 you lame1 you   
troubled1 you dying--crowd around this  
,bethesda6 ,step in it6 ,oh1 step  in   
it6 ,the angel of the covenant this     
morning stirs the water4 ,why do  you   
not step in it8 ,some of you are too    
weak to take a step in that  direction4 
,then we take you up in the arms of our 
closing prayer and  plunge you clean    
under the wave1 hoping that the cure may
 be as sudden  and as radical as with   
,captain ,naaman1 who1 blotched and     
carbuncled1  stepped into the ,jordan1  

and after the seventh dive came up1 his 
skin  roseate-complexioned as the flesh 
of a little child4          ,,the       
,,banished ,,queen4        ,also ,vashti
 the queen made a feast for the women in
 the royal      house which belonged to 
,king ,ahasuerus4 ,on the seventh day   
when the heart of the king was merry    
with wine1 he commanded      ,mehuman1  
,biztha1 ,harbona1 ,bigtha1 and         
,abagtha1 ,zethar1 and      ,carcas1 the
 seven chamberlains that served in the  
presence of      ,ahasuerus the king1 to
 bring ,vashti the queen before the king
      with the crown royal1 to show the 
people and the princes her      beauty3 
for she was fair to look on4 ,but the   
,queen ,vashti      refused to come at  
the king's commandment by his           
chamberlains2      therefore was the    
king very wroth1 and his anger burned in
      him4--,,esther i3 #i-ab4      ,we 
stand amid the palaces of ,shushan4 ,the
 pinnacles are aflame with  the morning 
light4 ,the columns rise festooned and  

wreathed1 the wealth  of empires        
flashing from the grooves2 the ceilings 
adorned with images  of bird and beast1 
and scenes of prowess and conquest4 ,the
 walls are  hung with shields1 and      
emblazoned until it seems that the whole
 round  of splendors is exhausted4 ,each
 arch is a mighty leaf of architectural 
achievement4 ,golden stars shining down 
on glowing arabesque4 ,hangings  of     
embroidered work in which mingle the    
blueness of the sky1 the  greenness of  
the grass1 and the whiteness of the     
sea-foam4 ,tapestries  hung on silver   
rings1 wedding together the pillars of  
marble4  ,pavilions reaching out in     
every direction4 ,these for repose1     
filled  with luxuriant couches1 in which
 weary limbs sink until all fatigue is  
submerged4 ,those for carousal1 where   
kings drink down a kingdom at one       
swallow4    ,amazing spectacle6         
,light of silver dripping down over     
stairs of ivory on shields of gold4     
,floors of stained marble1 sunset red   

and night black1 and inlaid with        
gleaming pearl4    ,in connection with  
this palace there is a garden1 where the
 mighty men  of foreign lands are seated
 at a banquet4 ,under the spread of oak 
and  linden and acacia the tables are   
arranged4 ,the breath of honeysuckle    
and frankincense fills the air4         
,fountains leap up into the light1 the  
spray struck through with rainbows      
falling in crystalline baptism upon     
flowering shrubs--then rolling down     
through channels of marble1 and         
widening out here and there into pools  
swirling with the finny tribes  of      
foreign aquariums1 bordered with scarlet
 anemones1 hypericums1 and  many-colored
 ranunculi4    ,meats of rarest bird and
 beast smoking up amid wreaths of       
aromatics4  ,the vases filled with      
apricots and almonds4 ,the baskets piled
 up with  apricots and figs and oranges 
and pomegranates4 ,melons tastefully    
twined with leaves of acacia4 ,the      
bright waters of ,eulus filling the     

urns and dropping outside the rim in    
flashing beads amid the  traceries4     
,wine from the royal vats of ,ispahan   
and ,shiraz1 in bottles  of tinged      
shell1 and lily-shaped cups of silver1  
and flagons and  tankards of solid gold4
 ,the music rises higher1 and the       
revelry breaks  out into wilder         
transport1 and the wine has flushed the 
cheek and  touched the brain1 and louder
 than all other voices are the hiccough 
of the inebriates1 the gabble of fools1 
and the song of the drunkards4    ,in   
another part of the palace1 ,queen      
,vashti is entertaining the  princesses 
of ,persia at a banquet4 ,drunken       
,ahasuerus says to his  servants1 ,you  
go out and fetch ,vashti from1 that     
banquet with the  women1 and bring her  
to this banquet with the men1 and let me
 display  her beauty4 ,the servants     
immediately start to obey the king's    
command2 but there was a rule in        
,oriental society that no woman might   
appear in public without having her face

 veiled4 ,yet here was a  mandate that  
no one dare dispute1 demanding that     
,vashti come in  unveiled before the    
multitude4 ,however1 there was in       
,vashti's soul a  principle more regal  
than ,ahasuerus1 more brilliant than the
 gold of  ,shushan1 of more wealth than 
the realm of ,persia1 which commanded   
her  to disobey this order of the king2 
and so all the righteousness and        
holiness and modesty of her nature rise 
up into one sublime refusal4  ,she says1
 ,i will not go into the banquet        
unveiled4 ,ahasuerus was  infuriate2 and
 ,vashti1 robbed of her position and her
 estate1 is  driven forth in poverty and
 ruin to suffer the scorn of a nation1  
and  yet to receive the applause of     
after generations1 who shall rise up to 
admire this martyr to kingly insolence4 
,well1 the last vestige of that  feast  
is gone2 the last garland has faded2 the
 last arch has fallen2  the last tankard
 has been destroyed2 and ,shushan is a  
ruin2 but as  long as the world stands  

there will be multitudes of men and     
women1  familiar with the ,bible1 who   
will come into this picture-gallery of  
,god and admire the divine portrait of  
,vashti the queen1 ,vashti the  veiled1 
,vashti the sacrifice1 ,vashti the      
silent4    ,i4 ,in the first place1 ,i  
want you to look upon ,vashti the queen4
 ,a  blue ribbon1 rayed with white1     
drawn around her forehead1 indicated    
her queenly position4 ,it was no small  
honor to be queen in such a  realm as   
that4 ,hark to the rustle of her robes6 
,see the blaze of her  jewels6 ,and yet1
 my friends1 it is not necessary to have
 place and  regal robe in order to be   
queenly4 ,when ,i see a woman with stout
 faith  in ,god1 putting her foot upon  
all meanness and selfishness and godless
  display1 going right forward to serve 
,christ and the race by a grand  and a  
glorious service1 ,i say3 ,that woman is
 a queen1 and the ranks  of heaven look 
over the battlements upon the           
coronation2 and whether  she comes up   

from the shanty on the commons or the   
mansion of the  fashionable square1 ,i  
greet her with the shout1 ,all hail1    
,queen  ,vashti6    ,what glory was     
there on the brow of ,mary of ,scotland1
 or ,elizabeth of  ,england1 or         
,margaret of ,france1 or ,catherine of  
,russia1 compared with  the worth of    
some of our ,christian mothers1 many of 
them gone into  glory8--or of that woman
 mentioned in the ,scriptures1 who put  
her all  into the ,lord's treasury8--or 
of ,jephtha's daughter1 who made a      
demonstration of unselfish              
patriotism8--or of ,abigail1 who rescued
 the  herds and flocks of her           
husband8--or of ,ruth1 who toiled under 
a  tropical sun for poor1 old1 helpless 
,naomi8--or of ,florence  ,nightingale1 
who went at midnight to stanch the      
battle wounds of the  ,crimea8--or of   
,mrs4 ,adoniram ,judson1 who kindled the
 lights of  salvation amid the darkness 
of ,burmah8--or of ,mrs4 ,hemans1 who   
poured  out her holy soul in words which

 will forever be associated with        
hunter's horn1 and captive's chain1 and 
bridal hour1 and lute's throb1  and     
curfew's knell at the dying day8--and   
scores and hundreds of  women1 unknown  
on earth1 who have given water to the   
thirsty1 and  bread to the hungry1 and  
medicine to the sick1 and smiles to the 
discouraged--their footsteps heard along
 dark lane and in government  hospital1 
and in almshouse corridor1 and by prison
 gate8 ,there may be  no royal          
robe--there may be no palatial          
surroundings4 ,she does not  need them2 
for all charitable men will unite with  
the crackling lips  of fever-struck     
hospital and plague-blotched lazaretto  
in greeting her  as she passes3 ,hail6  
,hail6 ,queen ,vashti6    ,,ii4 ,again1 
,i want you to consider ,vashti the     
veiled4 ,had she appeared  before       
,ahasuerus and his court on that day    
with her face uncovered she  would have 
shocked all the delicacies of ,oriental 
society1 and the  very men who in their 

intoxication demanded that she come1 in 
their  sober moments would have despised
 her4 ,as some flowers seem to thrive   
best in the dark lane and in the shadow1
 and where the sun does not  seem to    
reach them1 so ,god appoints to most    
womanly natures a retiring  and         
unobtrusive spirit4    ,god once in     
awhile does call an ,isabella to a      
throne1 or a ,miriam to  strike the     
timbrel at the front of a host1 or a    
,marie ,antoinette to  quell a ,french  
mob1 or a ,deborah to stand at the front
 of an armed  battalion1 crying out1    
,up6 ,up6 ,this is the day in which the 
,lord will  deliver ,sisera into thy    
hands4 ,and when the women are called to
 such  out-door work and to such heroic 
positions1 ,god prepares them for it2   
and they have iron in their soul1 and   
lightnings in their eye1 and  whirlwinds
 in their breath1 and the borrowed      
strength of the ,lord  ,omnipotent in   
their right arm4 ,they walk through     
furnaces as though  they were hedges of 

wild-flowers1 and cross seas as though  
they were  shimmering sapphire2 and all 
the harpies of hell down to their       
dungeon  at the stamp of womanly        
indignation4    ,but these are the      
exceptions4 ,generally1 ,dorcas would   
rather make a  garment for the poor boy2
 ,rebecca would rather fill the trough  
for the  camels2 ,hannah would rather   
make a coat for ,samuel2 the ,hebrew    
maid  would rather give a prescription  
for ,naaman's leprosy2 the woman of     
,sarepta would rather gather a few      
sticks to cook a meal for famished      
,elijah2 ,phebe would rather carry a    
letter for the inspired apostle2        
,mother ,lois would rather educate      
,timothy in the ,scriptures4 ,when ,i   
see  a woman going about her daily duty1
 with cheerful dignity presiding at  the
 table1 with kind and gentle1 but firm  
discipline presiding in the  nursery1   
going out into the world without any    
blast of trumpets1  following in the    
footsteps of ,him who went about doing  

good--,i say3  ,this is ,vashti with a  
veil on4    ,but when ,i see a woman of 
unblushing boldness1 loud-voiced1 with a
  tongue of infinite clitter-clatter1   
with arrogant look1 passing  through the
 streets with the step of a             
walking-beam1 gayly arrayed in  a very  
hurricane of millinery1 ,i cry out3     
,vashti has lost her veil6  ,when ,i see
 a woman struggling for political       
preferment--trying to  force her way on 
up to the ballot-box1 amid the masculine
 demagogues  who stand1 with swollen    
fists and bloodshot eyes and pestiferous
  breath1 to guard the polls--wanting to
 go through the loaferism and  the      
defilement of popular sovereigns1 who   
crawl up from the saloons  greasy and   
foul and vermin-covered1 to decide      
questions of justice and  order and     
civilization--when ,i see a woman1 ,i   
say1 who wants to press  through all    
that horrible scum to get to the        
ballot-box1 ,i say3 ,ah1  what a pity6  
,vashti has lost her veil6    ,when ,i  

see a woman of comely features1 and of  
adroitness of intellect1  and endowed   
with all that the schools can do for    
one1 and of high  social position1 yet  
moving in society with superciliousness 
and  hauteur1 as though she would have  
people know their place1 and with  an   
undefined combination of giggle and     
strut and rhodomontade1 endowed  with   
allopathic quantities of talk1 but only 
homeopathic  infinitesimals of sense1   
the terror of dry-goods clerks and      
railroad  conductors1 discoverers of    
significant meanings in plain           
conversation1  prodigies of badinage and
 innuendo--,i say3 ,vashti has lost her 
veil4    ,,iii4 ,again1 ,i want you this
 morning to consider ,vashti the        
sacrifice4  ,who is this that ,i see    
coming out of that palace gate of       
,shushan8 ,it  seems to me that ,i have 
seen her before4 ,she comes homeless1   
houseless1 friendless1 trudging along   
with a broken heart4 ,who is she8  ,it  
is ,vashti the sacrifice4 ,oh6 what a   

change it was from regal  position to a 
wayfarer's crust6 ,a little while ago1  
approved and  sought for2 now1 none so  
poor as to acknowledge her              
acquaintanceship4  ,vashti the          
sacrifice6    ,ah6 you and ,i have seen 
it many a time4 ,here is a home         
empalaced with  beauty4 ,all that       
refinement and books and wealth can do  
for that home  has been done2 but       
,ahasuerus1 the husband and the father1 
is taking  hold on paths of sin4 ,he is 
gradually going down4 ,after awhile he  
will  flounder and struggle like a wild 
beast in the hunter's net--further  away
 from ,god1 further away from the right4
 ,soon the bright apparel of  the       
children will turn to rags2 soon the    
household song will become  the sobbing 
of a broken heart4 ,the old story over  
again4 ,brutal  ,centaurs breaking up   
the marriage feast of ,lapith4 ,the     
house full of  outrage and cruelty and  
abomination1 while trudging forth from  
the  palace gate are ,vashti and her    

children4 ,there are homes represented  
in this house this morning that are in  
danger of such breaking-up4 ,oh1        
,ahasuerus6 that you should stand in a  
home1 by a dissipated life  destroying  
the peace and comfort of that home4 ,god
 forbid that your  children should ever 
have to wring their hands1 and have     
people point  their finger at them as   
they pass down the street1 and say1     
,there  goes a drunkard's child4 ,god   
forbid that the little feet should ever 
have to trudge the path of poverty and  
wretchedness6 ,god forbid that  any evil
 spirit born of the wine-cup or the     
brandy-glass should come  forth and     
uproot that garden1 and with a lasting1 
blistering1  all-consuming curse1 shut  
forever the palace gate against ,vashti 
and  the children4    ,one night during 
the war ,i went to ,hagerstown to look  
at the army1 and  ,i stood on a hill-top
 and looked down upon them4 ,i saw the  
camp-fires  all through the valleys and 
all over the hills4 ,it was a weird     

spectacle1 those camp-fires1 and ,i     
stood and watched them2 and the         
soldiers who were gathered around them  
were1 no doubt1 talking of  their homes1
 and of the long march they had taken1  
and of the battles  they were to fight2 
but after awhile ,i saw these camp-fires
 begin to  lower2 and they continued to 
lower1 until they were all gone out1 and
  the army slept4 ,it was imposing when 
,i saw the camp-fires2 it was  imposing 
in the darkness when ,i thought of that 
great host asleep4  ,well1 ,god looks   
down from heaven1 and ,he sees the      
fireside of  ,christendom and the loved 
ones gathered around these firesides4   
,these  are the camp-fires where we warm
 ourselves at the close of day1 and     
talk over the battles of life we have   
fought and the battles that are  yet to 
come4 ,god grant that when at last these
 fires begin to go out1  and continue to
 lower until finally they are           
extinguished1 and the  ashes of consumed
 hopes strew the hearth of the old      

homestead1 it may  be because we have   
,gone to sleep that last long sleep1    
,from which none ever wake to weep4     
,now we are an army on the march of     
life4 ,then we shall be an army         
bivouacked in the tent of the grave4    
,,iv4 ,once more3 ,i want you to look at
 ,vashti the silent4 ,you do not  hear  
any outcry from this woman as she goes  
forth from the palace  gate4 ,from the  
very dignity of her nature1 you know    
there will be no  vociferation4         
,sometimes in life it is necessary to   
make a retort2  sometimes in life it is 
necessary to resist2 but there are      
crises when  the most triumphant thing  
to do is to keep silence4 ,the          
philosopher1  confident in his newly    
discovered principle1 waited for the    
coming of  more intelligent generations1
 willing that men should laugh at the   
lightning-rod and cotton-gin and        
steam-boat--waiting for long years      
through the scoffing of philosophical   
schools1 in grand and  magnificent      

silence4    ,galileo1 condemned by      
mathematicians and monks and cardinals1 
caricatured everywhere1 yet waiting and 
watching with his telescope to  see the 
coming up of stellar reenforcements1    
when the stars in their  courses would  
fight for the ,copernican system2 then  
sitting down in  complete blindness and 
deafness to wait for the coming on of   
the  generations who would build his    
monument and bow at his grave4 ,the     
reformer1 execrated by his              
contemporaries1 fastened in a pillory1  
the  slow fires of public contempt      
burning under him1 ground under the     
cylinders of the printing-press1 yet    
calmly waiting for the day when  purity 
of soul and heroism of character will   
get the sanction of earth  and the      
plaudits of heaven4    ,affliction      
enduring without any complaint the      
sharpness of the pang1  and the violence
 of the storm1 and the heft of the      
chain1 and the  darkness of the         
night--waiting until a ,divine hand     

shall be put forth  to soothe the pang1 
and hush the storm1 and release the     
captive4 ,a  wife abused1 persecuted1   
and a perpetual exile from every earthly
  comfort--waiting1 waiting1 until the  
,lord shall gather up ,his dear         
children in a heavenly home1 and no poor
 ,vashti will ever be thrust  out from  
the palace gate4    ,jesus1 in silence  
and answering not a word1 drinking the  
gall1 bearing  the cross1 in prospect of
 the rapturous consummation when        
,angels thronged their chariot wheel1   
,and bore ,him to ,his throne1          
,then swept their golden harps and sung1
        ',the glorious work is done6'   
,oh1 woman6 does not this story of      
,vashti the queen1 ,vashti the veiled1  
,vashti the sacrifice1 ,vashti the      
silent1 move your soul8 ,my sermon      
converges into the one absorbing hope   
that none of you may be shut out  of the
 palace gate of heaven4 ,you can endure 
the hardships1 and the  privations1 and 
the cruelties1 and the misfortunes of   

this life if you  can only gain         
admission there4 ,through the blood of  
the everlasting  covenant you go through
 those gates1 or never go at all4 ,god  
forbid  that you should at last be      
banished from the society of angels1 and
  banished from the companionship of    
your glorified kindred1 and  banished   
forever4 ,through the rich grace of our 
,lord ,jesus ,christ1 may  you be       
enabled to imitate the example of       
,rachel1 and ,hannah1 and  ,abigail1 and
 ,deborah1 and ,mary1 and ,esther1 and  
,vashti4          ,,the ,,day ,,we      
,,live ,,in4        ,who knoweth whether
 thou art come to the kingdom for such a
      time as this8--,,esther iv4 #ad4  
,esther the beautiful was the wife of   
,ahasuerus the abominable4 ,the  time   
had come for her to present a petition  
to her infamous husband in  behalf of   
the ,jewish nation1 to which she had    
once belonged4 ,she was  afraid to      
undertake the work1 lest she should lose
 her own life2 but  her uncle1          

,mordecai1 who had brought her up1      
encouraged her with the  suggestion that
 probably she had been raised up of ,god
 for that  peculiar mission4 ,who       
knoweth whether thou art come to the    
kingdom  for such a time as this8       
,esther had her ,god-appointed work2 you
 and ,i  have ours4 ,it is my business  
to tell you what style of men and women 
you ought to be in order that you meet  
the demand of the age in which  ,god has
 cast your lot4 ,if you have come       
expecting to hear abstractions          
discussed1 or dry technicalities of     
religion glorified1 you have come  to   
the wrong church2 but if you really     
would like to know what this  age has a 
right to expect of you as ,christian men
 and women1 then ,i am  ready in the    
,lord's name to look you in the face4   
,when two armies have  rushed into      
battle the officers of either army do   
not want a  philosophical discussion    
about the chemical properties of human  
blood  or the nature of gunpowder2 they 

want some one to man the batteries  and 
swab out the guns4 ,and now1 when all   
the forces of light and  darkness1 of   
heaven and hell1 have plunged into the  
fight1 it is no  time to give ourselves 
to the definitions and formulas and     
technicalities and conventionalities of 
religion4    ,what we want is practical1
 earnest1 concentrated1 enthusiastic1   
and  triumphant help4    ,i4 ,in the    
first place1 in order to meet the       
special demand of this  age1 you need to
 be an unmistakably aggressive          
,christian4 ,of  half-and-half          
,christians we do not want any more4    
,the ,church of ,jesus  ,christ will be 
better without ten thousand of them4    
,they are the chief  obstacle to the    
,church's advancement4 ,i am speaking of
 another kind of  ,christian4 ,all the  
appliances for your becoming an earnest 
,christian  are at your hand1 and there 
is a straight path for you into the     
broad  daylight of ,god's forgiveness4  
,you may have come into this ,tabernacle

  the bondsmen of the world1 and yet    
before you go out of these doors  you   
may become princes of the ,lord ,god    
,almighty4 ,you remember what           
excitement there was in this country1   
years ago1 when the ,prince of  ,wales  
came here--how the people rushed out by 
hundreds of thousands to  see him4 ,why8
 ,because they expected that some day he
 would sit upon  the throne of ,england4
 ,but what was all that honor compared  
with the  honor to which ,god calls     
you--to be sons and daughters of the    
,lord  ,almighty2 yea1 to be queens and 
kings unto ,god8 ,they shall reign with 
,him forever and forever4    ,but1 my   
friends1 you need to be aggressive      
,christians1 and not like  those persons
 who spend their lives in hugging their 
,christian graces  and wondering why    
they do not make any progress4 ,how much
 robustness  of health would a man have 
if he hid himself in a dark closet8 ,a  
great  deal of the piety of the day is  
too exclusive4 ,it hides itself4 ,it    

needs more fresh air1 more out-door     
exercise4 ,there are many  ,christians  
who are giving their entire life to     
self-examination4 ,they  are feeling    
their pulses to see what is the         
condition of their  spiritual health4   
,how long would a man have robust       
physical health if  he kept all the days
 and weeks and months and years of his  
life  feeling his pulse instead of going
 out into active1 earnest1 every-day    
work8    ,i was once amid the wonderful1
 bewitching cactus growths of ,north    
,carolina4 ,i never was more bewildered 
with the beauty of flowers1 and  yet    
when ,i would take up one of these      
cactuses and pull the leaves  apart1 the
 beauty was all gone4 ,you could hardly 
tell that it had ever  been a flower4   
,and there are a great many ,christian  
people in this day  just pulling apart  
their ,christian experiences to see what
 there is in  them1 and there is nothing
 left in them4 ,this style of           
self-examination is a damage instead of 

an advantage to their  ,christian       
character4 ,i remember when ,i was a boy
 ,i used to have a  small piece in the  
garden that ,i called my own1 and ,i    
planted corn  there1 and every few days 
,i would pull it up to see how fast it  
was  growing4 ,now1 there are a great   
many ,christian people in this day      
whose self-examination merely amounts to
 the pulling up of that which  they only
 yesterday or the day before planted4   
,o my friends6 if you want to have a    
stalwart ,christian character1  plant it
 right out of doors in the great field  
of ,christian  usefulness1 and though   
storms may come upon it1 and though the 
hot sun  of trial may try to consume it1
 it will thrive until it becomes a      
great tree1 in which the fowls of heaven
 may have their habitation4 ,i  have no 
patience with these flower-pot          
,christians4 ,they keep  themselves     
under shelter1 and all their ,christian 
experience in a  small1 exclusive       
circle1 when they ought to plant it in  

the great  garden of the ,lord1 so that 
the whole atmosphere could be aromatic  
with their ,christian usefulness4 ,what 
we want in the ,church of ,god is  more 
brawn of piety4    ,the century plant is
 wonderfully suggestive and wonderfully 
beautiful1  but ,i never look at it     
without thinking of its parsimony4 ,it  
lets  whole generations go by before it 
puts forth one blossom2 so ,i have      
really more heartfelt admiration when ,i
 see the dewy tears in the blue  eyes of
 the violets1 for they come every       
spring4 ,my ,christian friends1  time is
 going by so rapidly that we can not    
afford to be idle4    ,a recent         
statistician says that human life now   
has an average of only  thirty-two      
years4 ,from these thirty-two years you 
must subtract all  the time you take for
 sleep and the taking of food and       
recreation2  that will leave you about  
sixteen years4 ,from those sixteen years
 you  must subtract all the time that   
you are necessarily engaged in the      

earning of a livelihood2 that will leave
 you about eight years4 ,from  those    
eight years you must take all the days  
and weeks and months--all  the length of
 time that is passed in childhood and   
sickness1 leaving  you about one year in
 which to work for ,god4 ,oh1 my soul1  
wake up6  ,how darest thou sleep in     
harvest-time and with so few hours in   
which  to reap8 ,so that ,i state it as 
a simple fact that all the time that    
the vast majority of you will have for  
the exclusive service of ,god  will be  
less than one year6    ,but1 says some  
man1 ,i liberally support the ,gospel1  
and the church  is open and the ,gospel 
is preached3 all the spiritual          
advantages are  spread before men1 and  
if they want to be saved1 let them come 
to be  saved2 ,i have discharged all my 
responsibility4 ,ah6 is that the        
,master's spirit8 ,is there not an old  
,book somewhere that commands us  to go 
out into the highways and the hedges and
 compel the people to  come in8 ,what   

would have become of you and me if      
,christ had not come  down off the hills
 of heaven1 and if ,he had not come     
through the door  of the ,bethlehem     
caravansary1 and if ,he had not with the
 crushed hand  of the crucifixion       
knocked at the iron gate of the         
sepulcher of our  spiritual death1      
crying1 ,lazarus1 come forth8 ,oh1 my   
,christian  friends1 this is no time for
 inertia1 when all the forces of        
darkness  seem to be in full blast2 when
 steam printing-presses are publishing  
infidel tracts2 when express railroad   
trains are carrying messengers  of sin2 
when fast clippers are laden with opium 
and rum2 when the  night-air of our     
cities is polluted with the laughter    
that breaks up  from the ten thousand   
saloons of dissipation and abandonment2 
when the  fires of the second death     
already are kindled in the cheeks of    
some  who1 only a little while ago1 were
 incorrupt4 ,oh1 never since the  curse 
fell upon the earth has there been a    

time when it was such an  unwise1 such a
 cruel1 such an awful thing for the     
,church to sleep6  ,the great audiences 
are not gathered in the ,christian      
churches2 the  great audiences are      
gathered in temples of sin--tears of    
unutterable  woe their baptism1 the     
blood of crushed hearts the awful wine  
of their  sacrament1 blasphemies their  
litany1 and the groans of the lost world
  the organ dirge of their worship4     
,,ii4 ,again1 if you want to be         
qualified to meet the duties which this 
age demands of you1 you must on the one 
hand avoid reckless  iconoclasm1 and on 
the other hand not stick too much to    
things because  they are old4 ,the air  
is full of new plans1 new projects1 new 
theories  of government1 new theologies1
 and ,i am amazed to see how so many    
,christians want only novelty in order  
to recommend a thing to their           
confidence2 and so they vacillate and   
swing to and fro1 and they are  useless1
 and they are unhappy4 ,new             

plans--secular1 ethical1  philosophical1
 religious1 cisatlantic1                
transatlantic--long enough to  make a   
line reaching from the ,german          
universities to ,great ,salt ,lake      
,city4 ,ah1 my brother1 do not take hold
 of a thing merely because it is  new4  
,try it by the realities of a ,judgment 
,day4    ,but1 on the other hand1 do not
 adhere to any thing merely because it  
is old4 ,there is not a single          
enterprise of the ,church or the world  
but has sometimes been scoffed at4      
,there was a time when men derided  even
 ,bible societies2 and when a few young 
men met near a hay-stack in             
,massachusetts and organized the first  
missionary society ever  organized in   
this country1 there went laughter and   
ridicule all around  the ,christian     
,church4 ,they said the undertaking was 
preposterous4 ,and  so also the work of 
,jesus ,christ was assailed4 ,people    
cried out1 ,who  ever heard of such     
theories of ethics and government8 ,who 

ever  noticed such a style of preaching 
as ,jesus has8 ,ezekiel had talked of   
mysterious wings and wheels4 ,here came 
a man from ,capernaum and  ,gennesaret1 
and he drew his illustration from the   
lakes1 from the  sand1 from the ravine1 
from the lilies1 from the corn-stalks4  
,how the  ,pharisees scoffed6 ,how      
,herod derided6 ,how ,caiaphas hissed6  
,and this  ,jesus they plucked by the   
beard1 and they spat in his face1 and   
they  called him this fellow6 ,all the  
great enterprises in and out of the     
,church have at times been scoffed at1  
and there have been a great  multitude  
who have thought that the chariot of    
,god's truth would fall  to pieces if it
 once got out of the old rut4    ,and so
 there are those who have no patience   
with anything like  improvement in      
church architecture1 or with anything   
like good1  hearty1 earnest church      
singing1 and they deride any form of    
religious  discussion which goes down   
walking among every-day men rather than 

that which makes an excursion on        
rhetorical stilts4 ,oh1 that the        
,church of ,god would wake up to an     
adaptability of work6 ,we must admit    
the simple fact that the churches of    
,jesus ,christ in this day do not  reach
 the great masses4 ,there are fifty     
thousand people in ,edinburgh  who never
 hear the ,gospel4 ,there are one       
million people in ,london who  never    
hear the ,gospel4 ,there are at least   
three hundred thousand souls  in the    
city of ,brooklyn who come not under the
 immediate ministrations  of ,christ's  
truth2 and the ,church of ,god in this  
day1 instead of being  a place full of  
living epistles1 read and known of all  
men1 is more  like a dead-letter        
post-office4    ,but1 say the people1   
the world is going to be converted2 you 
must  be patient2 the kingdoms of this  
world are to become the kingdoms of     
,christ1 ,never1 unless the ,church of  
,jesus ,christ puts on more speed  and  
energy4 ,instead of the ,church         

converting the world1 the world is      
converting the ,church4 ,here is a great
 fortress4 ,how shall it be  taken8 ,an 
army comes and sits around about it1    
cuts off the supplies1  and says3 ,now  
we will just wait until from exhaustion 
and starvation  they will have to give  
up4 ,weeks and months1 and perhaps a    
year1 pass  along1 and finally the      
fortress surrenders through that        
starvation and  exhaustion4 ,but1 my    
friends1 the fortresses of sin are never
 to be  taken in that way4 ,if they are 
taken for ,god it will be by storm2 you 
will have to bring up the great siege   
guns of the ,gospel to the very  wall   
and wheel the flying artillery into     
line1 and when the armed  infantry of   
heaven shall confront the battlements   
you will have to  give the quick        
command1 ,forward6 ,charge6    ,ah1 my  
friends1 there is work for you to do and
 for me to do in order  to this grand   
accomplishment6 ,here is my pulpit1 and 
,i preach in it4  ,your pulpit is the   

bank4 ,your pulpit is the store4 ,your  
pulpit is the  editorial chair4 ,your   
pulpit is the anvil4 ,your pulpit is the
 house  scaffolding4 ,your pulpit is the
 mechanic's shop4 ,i may stand in this  
place and1 through cowardice or through 
self-seeking1 may keep back  the word ,i
 ought to utter2 while you1 with sleeve 
rolled up and brow  besweated with toil1
 may utter the word that will jar the   
foundations  of heaven with the shout of
 a great victory4 ,oh1 that this morning
  this whole audience might feel that   
the ,lord ,almighty was putting upon    
them the hands of ordination4 ,i tell   
you1 every one1 go forth and  preach    
this gospel4 ,you have as much right to 
preach as ,i have1 or as  any man has4  
,only find out the pulpit where ,god    
will have you preach1  and there preach4
    ,hedley ,vicars was a wicked man in 
the ,english army4 ,the grace of ,god   
came to him4 ,he became an earnest and  
eminent ,christian4 ,they scoffed  at   
him1 and said3 ,you are a hypocrite2 you

 are as bad as ever you  were4 ,still he
 kept his faith in ,christ1 and after   
awhile1 finding  that they could not    
turn him aside by calling him a         
hypocrite1 they  said to him3 ,oh1 you  
are nothing but a ,methodist4 ,that did 
not  disturb him4 ,he went on performing
 his ,christian duty until he had       
formed all his troop into a             
,bible-class1 and the whole encampment  
was  shaken with the presence of ,god4  
,so ,havelock went into the heathen     
temple in ,india while the ,english army
 was there1 and put a candle  into the  
hand of each of the heathen gods that   
stood around in the  heathen temple1 and
 by the light of those candles1 held up 
by the  idols1 ,general ,havelock       
preached righteousness1 temperance1 and 
judgment to come4 ,and who will say1 on 
earth or in ,heaven1 that  ,havelock had
 not the right to preach8    ,in the    
minister's house where ,i prepared for  
college1 there was a man  who worked1 by
 the name of ,peter ,croy4 ,he could    

neither read nor  write1 but he was a   
man of ,god4 ,often theologians would   
stop in the  house--grave               
theologians--and at family prayers      
,peter ,croy would be  called upon to   
lead2 and all those wise men sat around1
 wonder-struck  at his religious        
efficiency4 ,when he prayed he reached  
up and seemed  to take hold of the very 
throne of the ,almighty1 and he talked  
with  ,god until the very heavens were  
bowed down into the sitting-room4 ,oh1  
if ,i were dying ,i would rather have   
plain ,peter ,croy kneel by my  bedside 
and commend my immortal spirit to ,god  
than the greatest  archbishop1 arrayed  
in costly canonicals4 ,go preach this   
,gospel4 ,you  say you are not licensed4
 ,in the name of the ,lord ,almighty1   
this  morning1 ,i license you4 ,go      
preach this ,gospel--preach it in the   
,sabbath-schools1 in the                
prayer-meetings1 in the highways1 in the
  hedges4 ,woe be unto you if you preach
 it not4    ,,iii4 ,i remark1 again1    

that in order to be qualified to meet   
your duty  in this particular age you   
want unbounded faith in the triumph of  
the  truth and the overthrow of         
wickedness4 ,how dare the ,christian    
,church  ever get discouraged8 ,have we 
not the ,lord ,almighty on our side8    
,how  long did it take ,god to slay the 
hosts of ,sennacherib or burn ,sodom or 
shake down ,jericho8 ,how long will it  
take ,god1 when ,he once arises in  ,his
 strength1 to overthrow all the forces  
of iniquity8 ,between this  time and    
that there may be long seasons of       
darkness--the  chariot-wheels of ,god's 
,gospel may seem to drag heavily2 but   
here is  the promise1 and yonder is the 
throne2 and when ,omniscience has lost  
its eyesight1 and ,omnipotence falls    
back impotent1 and ,jehovah is  driven  
from ,his throne1 then the ,church of   
,jesus ,christ can afford to  be        
despondent1 but never until then4       
,despots may plan and armies may  march1
 and the congresses of the nations may  

seem to think they are  adjusting all   
the affairs of the world1 but the mighty
 men of the  earth are only the dust of 
the chariot-wheels of ,god's providence4
    ,i think that before the sun of this
 century shall set the last tyranny     
will fall1 and with a splendor of       
demonstration that shall be the         
astonishment of the universe ,god will  
set forth the brightness and  pomp and  
glory and perpetuity of ,his eternal    
government4 ,out of the  starry flags   
and the emblazoned insignia of this     
world ,god will make a  path for ,his   
own triumph1 and1 returning from        
universal conquest1 ,he  will sit down1 
the grandest1 strongest1 highest throne 
of earth ,his  footstool4        ,then  
shall all nations' song ascend      ,to 
,thee1 our ,ruler1 ,father1 ,friend1    
,till heaven's high arch resounds again 
,with ',peace on earth1 good will to    
men4'    ,i preach this sermon because  
,i want to encourage all ,christian     
workers  in every possible department4  

,hosts of the living ,god1 march on6    
march  on6 ,his ,spirit will bless you4 
,his shield will defend you4 ,his sword 
will strike for you4 ,march on6 march   
on6 ,the despotism will fall1 and       
paganism will burn its idols1 and       
,mohammedanism will give up its false   
prophet1 and ,judaism will confess the  
true ,messiah1 and the great  walls of  
superstition will come down in thunder  
and wreck at the long1  loud blast of   
the ,gospel trumpet4 ,march on6 march   
on6 ,the besiegement  will soon be      
ended4 ,only a few more steps on the    
long way2 only a few  more sturdy blows2
 only a few more battle cries1 then ,god
 will put the  laurel upon your brow1   
and from the living fountains of heaven 
will  bathe off the sweat and the heat  
and the dust of the conflict4 ,march    
on6 march on6 ,for you the time for work
 will soon be passed1 and amid  the     
outflashings of the judgment throne1 and
 the trumpeting of  resurrection angels1
 and the upheaving of a world of graves1

 and the  hosanna and the groaning of   
the saved and the lost1 we shall be     
rewarded for our faithfulness or        
punished for our stupidity4 ,blessed  be
 the ,lord ,god of ,israel from         
everlasting to everlasting1 and let the 
whole earth be filled with ,his glory4  
,amen and ,amen4          ,,capital     
,,and ,,labor4        ,whatsoever ye    
would that men should do to you1 do ye  
even so      to them4--,,matt4 vii3 #ab4
      ,the greatest war the world has   
ever seen is between capital and labor4 
,the strife is not like that which in   
history is called the ,thirty  ,years'  
,war1 for it is a war of centuries1 it  
is a war of the five  continents1 it is 
a war hemispheric4 ,the middle classes  
in this  country1 upon whom the nation  
has depended for holding the balance of 
power and for acting as mediators       
between the two extremes1 are           
diminishing2 and if things go on at the 
same ratio as they are now  going1 it   
will not be very long before there will 

be no middle class  in this country1 but
 all will be very rich or very poor1    
princes or  paupers1 and the country    
will be given up to palaces and hovels4 
,the antagonistic forces are closing in 
upon each other4 ,the  telegraphic      
operators' strikes1 the railroad        
employs' strikes1 the  ,pennsylvania    
miners' strikes1 the movements of the   
,boycotters and the  dynamiters are only
 skirmishes before a general engagement1
 or1 if you  prefer it1 escapes through 
the safety-valves of an imprisoned force
  which promises the explosion of       
society4 ,you may pooh-pooh it2 you may 
say that this trouble1 like an angry    
child1 will cry itself to sleep2  you   
may belittle it by calling it           
,fourierism1 or ,socialism1 or ,st4     
,simonism1 or ,nihilism1 or ,communism2 
but that will not hinder the fact  that 
it is the mightiest1 the darkest1 the   
most terrific threat of  this century4  
,all attempts at pacification have been 
dead failures1  and monopoly is more    

arrogant1 and the trades unions more    
bitter4  ,give us more wages1 cry the   
employs4 ,you shall have less1 say the  
capitalists4 ,compel us to do fewer     
hours of toil in a day4 ,you  shall toil
 more hours1 say the others4 ,then1     
under certain  conditions1 we will not  
work at all1 say these4 ,then you shall 
starve1 say those1 and the workmen      
gradually using up that which they      
accumulated in better times1 unless     
there be some radical change1 we  shall 
have soon in this country three million 
hungry men and women4  ,now1 three      
million hungry people can not be kept   
quiet4 ,all the  enactments of          
legislatures and all the constabularies 
of the cities1  and all the army and    
navy of the ,united ,states can not keep
 three  million hungry people quiet4    
,what then8 ,will this war between      
capital  and labor be settled by human  
wisdom8 ,never4 ,the brow of the one    
becomes more rigid1 the fist of the     
other more clinched4    ,but that which 

human wisdom can not achieve will be    
accomplished by  ,christianity if it be 
given full sway4 ,you have heard of     
medicines so  powerful that one drop    
would stop a disease and restore a      
patient2 and  ,i have to tell you that  
one drop of my text properly            
administered will  stop all those woes  
of society and give convalescence and   
complete  health to all classes4        
,whatsoever ye would that men should do 
to you1  do ye even so to them4    ,i   
shall first show you this morning how   
this quarrel between monopoly  and hard 
work can not be stopped1 and then ,i    
will show you how this  controversy will
 be settled4    ,futile remedies4 ,in   
the first place1 there will come no     
pacification  to this trouble through an
 outcry against rich men merely because 
they  are rich4 ,there is no member of a
 trades-union on earth that would not   
be rich if he could be4 ,sometimes      
through a fortunate invention1 or       
through some accident of prosperity1 a  

man who had nothing comes to  large     
estate1 and we see him arrogant and     
supercilious1 and taking  people by the 
throat just as other people took him by 
the throat4  ,there is something very   
mean about human nature when it comes to
 the  top4 ,but it is no more a sin to  
be rich than it is a sin to be poor4    
,there are those who have gathered a    
great estate through fraud1 and  then   
there are millionaires who have gathered
 their fortune through  foresight in    
regard to changes in the markets1 and   
through brilliant  business faculty1 and
 every dollar of their estate is as     
honest as the  dollar which the plumber 
gets for mending a pipe1 or the mason   
gets  for building a wall4 ,there are   
those who keep in poverty because of    
their own fault4 ,they might have been  
well-off1 but they smoked or  chewed up 
their earnings1 or they lived beyond    
their means1 while  others on the same  
wages and on the same salaries went on  
to  competency4 ,i know a man who is all

 the time complaining of his  poverty   
and crying out against rich men1 while  
he himself keeps two  dogs1 and chews   
and smokes1 and is filled to the chin   
with whisky and  beer6    ,micawber said
 to ,david ,copperfield3 ,copperfield1  
my boy1 one pound  income1 twenty       
shillings and sixpence expenses3 result 
misery4 ,but1  ,copperfield1 my boy1 one
 pound income1 expenses nineteen        
shillings and  sixpence2 result1        
happiness4 ,and there are vast          
multitudes of people  who are kept poor 
because they are the victims of their   
own  improvidence4 ,it is no sin to be  
rich1 and it is no sin to be poor4 ,i   
protest against this outcry which ,i    
hear against those who1 through  economy
 and self-denial and assiduity1 have    
come to large fortune4  ,this           
bombardment of commercial success will  
never stop this quarrel  between capital
 and labor4    ,neither will the contest
 be settled by cynical and unsympathetic
  treatment of the laboring classes4    

,there are those who speak of them  as  
though they were only cattle or draught 
horses4 ,their nerves are  nothing1     
their domestic comfort is nothing1 their
 happiness is  nothing4 ,they have no   
more sympathy for them than a hound has 
for a  hare1 or a hawk for a hen1 or a  
tiger for a calf4 ,when ,jean ,valjean1 
the greatest hero of ,victor ,hugo's    
writings1 after a life of suffering  and
 brave endurance1 goes into             
incarceration and death1 they clap the  
book shut and say1 ,good for him6 ,they 
stamp their feet with  indignation and  
say just the opposite of ,save the      
working-classes4  ,they have all their  
sympathies with ,shylock1 and not with  
,antonio and  ,portia4 ,they are        
plutocrats1 and their feelings are      
infernal4 ,they are  filled with        
irritation and irascibility on this     
subject4 ,to stop this  awful imbroglio 
between capital and labor they will lift
 not so much  as the tip end of the     
little finger4    ,neither will there be

 any pacification of this angry         
controversy  through violence4 ,god     
never blessed murder4    ,the poorest   
use you can put a man to is to kill him4
 ,blow up to-morrow  all the            
country-seats on the banks of the       
,hudson1 and all the fine  houses on    
,madison ,square1 and ,brooklyn         
,heights1 and ,bunker ,hill1 and        
,rittenhouse ,square1 and ,beacon       
,street1 and all the bricks and timber  
and stone will just fall back on the    
bare head of ,american labor4 ,the      
worst enemies of the working-classes in 
the ,united ,states and ,ireland  are   
their demented coadjutors4              
,assassination--the assassination of    
,lord ,frederick ,cavendish and ,mr4    
,burke in ,phoenix ,park1 ,dublin1      
,ireland1 in the attempt to avenge the  
wrongs of ,ireland1 only turned  away   
from that afflicted people millions of  
sympathizers4 ,the recent  attempt to   
blow up the ,house of ,commons1 in      
,london1 had only this  effect3 to throw

 out of employment tens of thousands of 
innocent ,irish  people in ,england4    
,in this country the torch put to the   
factories that have discharged  hands   
for good or bad reason2 obstructions on 
the rail-track in front  of midnight    
express trains because the offenders do 
not like the  president of the company2 
strikes on shipboard the hour they were 
going to sail1 or in printing-offices   
the hour the paper was to go to  press1 
or in mines the day the coal was to be  
delivered1 or on house  scaffoldings so 
the builder fails in keeping his        
contract--all these  are only a hard    
blow on the head of ,american labor1 and
 cripple its  arms1 and lame its feet1  
and pierce its heart4 ,take the last    
great  strike in ,america--the telegraph
 operators' strike--and you have to     
find that the operators lost four       
hundred thousand dollars' worth of      
wages1 and have had poorer wages ever   
since4 ,traps sprung suddenly  upon     
employers1 and violence1 never took one 

knot out of the knuckle  of toil1 or put
 one farthing of wages into a callous   
palm4 ,barbarism  will never cure the   
wrongs of civilization4 ,mark that6     
,frederick the ,great admired some land 
near his palace at ,potsdam1 and  he    
resolved to get it4 ,it was owned by a  
miller4 ,he offered the miller  three   
times the value of the property4 ,the   
miller would not take it1  because it   
was the old homestead1 and he felt about
 as ,naboth felt  about his vineyard    
when ,ahab wanted it4 ,frederick the    
,great was a  rough and terrible man1   
and he ordered the miller into his      
presence2  and the king1 with a stick1  
in his hand--a stick with which he      
sometimes struck his officers of        
state--said to this miller3 ,now1 ,i    
have offered you three times the value  
of that property1 and if you  won't sell
 it ,i'll take it anyhow4 ,the miller   
said1 ,your majesty1  you won't4 ,yes1  
said the king1 ,i will take it4 ,then1  
said the  miller1 if your majesty does  

take it1 ,i will sue you in the         
,chancery  ,court4 ,at that threat      
,frederick the ,great yielded his       
infamous  demand4 ,and the most         
imperious outrage against the           
working-classes  will yet cower before  
the law4 ,violence and contrary to the  
law will  never accomplish anything1 but
 righteousness and according to law will
  accomplish it4    ,well1 if this      
controversy between ,capital and ,labor 
can not be settled  by human wisdom1 if 
to-day ,capital and ,labor stand with   
their thumbs  on each other's throat--as
 they do--it is time for us to look     
somewhere else for relief1 and it points
 from my text roseate and  jubilant1 and
 puts one hand on the broadcloth        
shoulder of ,capital1 and  puts the     
other hand on the homespun-covered      
shoulder of ,toil1 and  says1 with a    
voice that will grandly and gloriously  
settle this1 and  settle everything1    
,whatsoever ye would that men should do 
to you1 do  ye even so to them4 ,that   

is1 the lady of the household will say3 
,i  must treat the maid in the kitchen  
just as ,i would like to be treated  if 
,i were down-stairs1 and it were my work
 to wash1 and cook1 and  sweep1 and it  
were the duty of the maid in the kitchen
 to preside in  this parlor4 ,the maid  
in the kitchen must say3 ,if my employer
 seems  to be more prosperous than ,i1  
that is no fault of hers2 ,i shall not  
treat her as an enemy4 ,i will have the 
same industry and fidelity  down-stairs 
as ,i would expect from my subordinates1
 if ,i happened to  be the wife of a    
silk importer4    ,the owner of an iron 
mill1 having taken a dose of my text    
before  leaving home in the morning1    
will go into his foundry1 and1 passing  
into what is called the puddling-room1  
he will see a man there  stripped to the
 waist1 and besweated and exhausted with
 the labor and  the toil1 and he will   
say to him3 ,why1 it seems to be very   
hot in  here4 ,you look very much       
exhausted4 ,i hear your child is sick   

with  scarlet fever4 ,if you want your  
wages a little earlier this week1 so  as
 to pay the nurse and get the medicines1
 just come into my office  any time4    
,after awhile1 crash goes the money     
market1 and there is no more demand  for
 the articles manufactured in that iron 
mill1 and the owner does  not know what 
to do4 ,he says1 ,shall ,i stop the     
mill1 or shall ,i run  it on half time1 
or shall ,i cut down the men's wages8   
,he walks the  floor of his             
counting-room all day1 hardly knowing   
what to do4 ,toward  evening he calls   
all the laborers together4 ,they stand  
all around1  some with arms akimbo1 some
 with folded arms1 wondering what the   
boss  is going to do now4 ,the          
manufacturer says3 ,men1 times are very 
hard2  ,i don't make twenty dollars     
where ,i used to make one hundred4      
,somehow1  there is no demand now for   
what we manufacture1 or but very little 
demand4 ,you see ,i am at vast expense1 
and ,i have called you together  this   

afternoon to see what you would advise4 
,i don't want to shut up  the mill1     
because that would force you out of     
work1 and you have  always been very    
faithful1 and ,i like you1 and you seem 
to like me1  and the bairns must be     
looked after1 and your wife will after  
awhile  want a new dress4 ,i don't know 
what to do4    ,there is a dead halt for
 a minute or two1 and then one of the   
workmen  steps out from the ranks of his
 fellows1 and says3 ,boss1 you have     
been very good to us1 and when you      
prospered we prospered1 and now you  are
 in a tight place and ,i am sorry1 and  
we have got to sympathize  with you4 ,i 
don't know how the others feel1 but ,i  
propose that we take  off twenty per    
cent4 from our wages1 and that when the 
times get good  you will remember us and
 raise them again4 ,the workman looks   
around  to his comrades1 and says3      
,boys1 what do you say to this8 all in  
favor of my proposition will say ay4    
,ay6 ay6 ay6 shout two hundred  voices4 

,but the mill-owner1 getting in some new
 machinery1 exposes himself  very much1 
and takes cold1 and it settles into     
pneumonia1 and he dies4  ,in the        
procession to the tomb are all the      
workmen1 tears rolling down  their      
cheeks1 and off upon the ground2 but an 
hour before the  procession gets to the 
cemetery the wives and the children of  
those  workmen are at the grave waiting 
for the arrival of the funeral  pageant4
 ,the minister of religion may have     
delivered an eloquent  eulogium before  
they started from the house1 but the    
most impressive  things are said that   
day by the working-classes standing     
around the  tomb4    ,that night in all 
the cabins of the working-people where  
they have  family prayers the widowhood 
and the orphanage in the mansion are    
remembered4 ,no glaring populations look
 over the iron fence of the  cemetery2  
but1 hovering over the scene1 the       
benediction of ,god and man  is coming  
for the fulfillment of the ,christlike  

injunction1  ,whatsoever ye would that  
men should do to you1 do ye even so to  
them4    ,oh1 says some man here1 that  
is all ,utopian1 that is apocryphal1    
that is impossible4 ,no4 ,yesterday1 ,i 
cut out of a paper this3 ,one of  the   
pleasantest incidents recorded in a long
 time is reported from  ,sheffield1     
,england4 ,the wages of the men in the  
iron works at  ,sheffield are regulated 
by a board of arbitration1 by whose     
decision  both masters and men are      
bound4 ,for some time past the iron and 
steel  trade has been extremely         
unprofitable1 and the employers can not1
  without much loss1 pay the wages fixed
 by the board1 which neither  employers 
nor employed have the power to change4  
,to avoid this  difficulty1 the workmen 
in one of the largest steel works in    
,sheffield  hit upon a device as rare as
 it was generous4 ,they offered to work 
for  their employers one week without   
any pay whatever4 ,how much better  that
 plan is than a strike would be4    ,but

 you go with me and ,i will show        
you--not so far off as ,sheffield1      
,england--factories1 banking-houses1    
storehouses1 and costly  enterprises    
where this ,christ-like injunction of my
 text is fully  kept1 and you could no  
more get the employer to practice an    
injustice  upon his men1 or the men to  
conspire against the employer1 than you 
could get your right hand and your left 
hand1 your right eye and your  left eye1
 your right ear and your left ear1 into 
physiological  antagonism4 ,now1 where  
is this to begin8 ,in our homes1 in our 
stores1  on our farms--not waiting for  
other people to do their duty4 ,is there
  a divergence now between the parlor   
and the kitchen8 ,then there is         
something wrong1 either in the parlor or
 the kitchen1 perhaps in both4  ,are the
 clerks in your store irate against the 
firm8 ,then there is  something wrong1  
either behind the counter1 or in the    
private office1  or perhaps in both4    
,the great want of the world to-day is  

the fulfillment of this  ,christ-like   
injunction1 that which ,he promulgated  
in ,his sermon  ,olivetic4 ,all the     
political economists under the arch or  
vault of the  heavens in convention for 
a thousand years can not settle this    
controversy between monopoly and hard   
work1 between capital and labor4        
,during the ,revolutionary ,war there   
was a heavy piece of timber to be       
lifted1 perhaps for some fortress1 and a
 corporal was overseeing the  work1 and 
he was giving commands to some soldiers 
as they lifted3  ,heave away1 there6 yo 
heave6 ,well1 the timber was too heavy2 
they  could not get it up4 ,there was a 
gentleman riding by on a horse1 and  he 
stopped and said to this corporal1 ,why 
don't you help them lift8  ,that timber 
is too heavy for them to lift4 ,no1 he  
said1 ,i won't2  ,i am a corporal4 ,the 
gentleman got off his horse and came up 
to the  place4 ,now1 he said to the     
soldiers1 all together--yo heave6 and   
the timber went to its place4 ,now1 said

 the gentleman to the  corporal1 when   
you have a piece of timber too heavy for
 the men to  lift1 and you want help1   
you send to your commander-in-chief4 ,it
 was  ,washington4 ,now1 that is about  
all the ,gospel ,i know--the ,gospel of 
giving somebody a lift1 a lift out of   
darkness1 a lift out of earth  into     
heaven4 ,that is all the ,gospel ,i     
know--the ,gospel of helping  somebody  
else to lift4    ,oh1 says some         
wiseacre1 talk as you will1 the law of  
demand and  supply will regulate these  
things until the end of time4 ,no1 they 
will not1 unless ,god dies and the      
batteries of the ,judgment ,day are     
spiked1 and ,pluto and ,proserpine1 king
 and queen of the infernal  regions1    
take full possession of this world4 ,do 
you know who ,supply  and ,demand are8  
,they have gone into partnership1 and   
they propose to  swindle this earth and 
are swindling it4 ,you are drowning4    
,supply and  ,demand stand on the shore1
 one on one side1 the other on the other

  side1 of the life-boat1 and they cry  
out to you1 ,now1 you pay us what  we   
ask you for getting you to shore1 or go 
to the bottom6 ,if you can  borrow #ejjj
 you can keep from failing in business4 
,supply and ,demand  say1 ,now1 you pay 
us exorbitant usury1 or you go into     
bankruptcy4  ,this robber firm of       
,supply and ,demand say to you3 ,the    
crops are  short4 ,we bought up all the 
wheat and it is in our bin4 ,now1 you   
pay  our price or starve4 ,that is your 
magnificent law of supply and  demand4  
,supply and ,demand own the largest mill
 on earth1 and all the rivers  roll over
 their wheel1 and into their hopper they
 put all the men1  women1 and children  
they can shovel out of the centuries1   
and the  blood and the bones redden the 
valley while the mill grinds4 ,that     
diabolic law of supply and demand will  
yet have to stand aside1 and  instead   
thereof will come the law of love1 the  
law of cooperation1 the  law of         
kindness1 the law of sympathy1 the law  

of ,christ4    ,have you no idea of the 
coming of such a time8 ,then you do not 
believe  the ,bible4 ,all the ,bible is 
full of promises on this subject1 and as
  the ages roll on the time will come   
when men or fortune will be giving      
larger sums to humanitarian and         
evangelistic purposes1 and there will   
be more ,james ,lenoxes and ,peter      
,coopers and ,william ,e4 ,dodges and   
,george ,peabodys4 ,as that time comes  
there will be more parks1 more          
picture-galleries1 more gardens thrown  
open for the holiday people and  the    
working-classes4    ,i was reading only 
this morning in regard to a charge that 
had been  made in ,england against      
,lambeth ,palace1 that it was exclusive2
 and  that charge demonstrated the      
sublime fact that to the grounds of that
  wealthy estate eight hundred poor     
families have free passes1 and forty    
croquet companies1 and on the hall-day  
holidays four thousand poor  people     
recline on the grass1 walk through the  

paths1 and sit under the  trees4 ,that  
is ,gospel--,gospel on the wing1 ,gospel
 out-of-doors worth  just as much as    
in-doors4 ,that time is going to come4  
,that is only a hint of what is going to
 be4 ,the time is going to come  when1  
if you have anything in your house worth
 looking at--pictures1  pieces of       
sculpture--you are going to invite me to
 come and see it1  you are going to     
invite my friends to come and see it1   
and you will  say1 ,see what ,i have    
been blessed with4 ,god has given me    
this1 and so  far as enjoying it1 it is 
yours also4 ,that is ,gospel4    ,in    
crossing the ,alleghany ,mountains1 many
 years ago1 the stage halted1  and      
,henry ,clay dismounted from the stage1 
and went out on a rock at  the very     
verge of the cliff1 and he stood there  
with his cloak wrapped  about him1 and  
he seemed to be listening for something4
 ,some one said  to him1 ,what are you  
listening for8 ,standing there1 on the  
top of  the mountain1 he said3 ,i am    

listening to the tramp of the footsteps 
of the coming millions of this          
continent4 ,a sublime posture for an    
,american statesman6 ,you and ,i to-day 
stand on the mountain-top of  privilege1
 and on the ,rock of ,ages1 and we look 
off1 and we hear  coming from the future
 the happy industries1 and smiling      
populations1  and the consecrated       
fortunes1 and the innumerable           
prosperities of the  closing nineteenth 
and the opening twentieth century4      
,while ,i speak this morning1 there lies
 in state the dead author and  patriot  
of ,france1 ,victor ,hugo4 ,the ten     
thousand dollars in his will  he has    
given to the poor of the city are only a
 hint of the work he  has done for all  
nations and for all times4 ,i wonder not
 that they  allow eleven days to pass   
between his death and his burial1 his   
body  meantime kept under triumphal     
arch1 for the world can hardly afford to
  let go this man who for more than     
eight decades has by his  unparalleled  

genius blessed it4 ,his name shall be a 
terror to all  despots1 and an          
encouragement to all the struggling4 ,he
 has made the  world's burden lighter1  
and its darkness less dense1 and its    
chain  less galling1 and its thrones of 
iniquity less secure4 ,farewell1        
patriot1 genius of the century1 ,victor 
,hugo6 ,but he was not the  overtowering
 friend of mankind4    ,the greatest    
friend of capitalist and toiler1 and the
 one who will yet  bring them together  
in complete accord1 was born one        
,christmas night  while the curtains of 
heaven swung1 stirred by the wings      
angelic4  ,owner of all things--all the 
continents1 all worlds1 and all the     
islands of light4 ,capitalist of        
immensity1 crossing over to our         
condition4 ,coming into our world1 not  
by gate of palace1 but by door  of barn4
 ,spending ,his first night amid the    
shepherds4 ,gathering after  around ,him
 the fishermen to be ,his chief         
attendants4 ,with adze1 and  saw1 and   

chisel1 and ax1 and in a carpenter-shop 
showing himself  brother with the       
tradesmen4 ,owner of all things1 and yet
 on a hillock  back of ,jerusalem one   
day resigning everything for others1    
keeping not  so much as a shekel to pay 
for ,his obsequies1 by charity buried in
 the  suburbs of a city that had cast   
,him out4 ,before the cross of such a   
capitalist1 and such a carpenter1 all   
men can afford to shake hands  and      
worship4 ,here is the every man's       
,christ4 ,none so high1 but ,he was     
higher4 ,none so poor1 but ,he was      
poorer4 ,at ,his feet the hostile       
extremes will yet renounce their        
animosities1 and countenances which     
have glowered with the prejudices and   
revenge of centuries shall  brighten    
with the smile of heaven as ,he         
commands3 ,whatsoever ye would  that men
 should do to you1 do ye even so to     
them4          ,,despotism ,,of ,,the   
,,needle4        ,so ,i returned1 and   
considered all the oppressions that are 

done under the sun3 and behold the tears
 of such as were      oppressed1 and    
they had no comforter2 and on the side  
of their      oppressors there was      
power2 but they had no                  
comforter4--,,eccles4 iv3 #a4      ,very
 long ago the needle was busy4 ,it was  
considered honorable for  women to toil 
in olden time4 ,alexander the ,great    
stood in his palace  showing garments   
made by his own mother4 ,the finest     
tapestries at  ,bayeux were made by the 
queen of ,william the ,conqueror4       
,augustus1 the  ,emperor1 would not wear
 any garments except those that were    
fashioned  by some member of his royal  
family4 ,so let the toiler everywhere be
  respected6    ,the needle has slain   
more than the sword4 ,when the          
sewing-machine was  invented some       
thought that invention would alleviate  
woman's toil and  put an end to the     
despotism of the needle4 ,but no2 while 
the  sewing-machine has been a great    
blessing to well-to-do families in  many

 cases1 it has added to the stab of the 
needle the crush of the  wheel2 and     
multitudes of women1 notwithstanding the
 re-enforcement of  the sewing-machines1
 can only make1 work hard as they will1 
between  two dollars and three dollars  
per week4    ,the greatest blessing that
 could have happened to our first       
parents  was being turned out of ,eden  
after they had done wrong4 ,adam and    
,eve1  in their perfect state1 might    
have got along without work1 or only    
such slight employment as a perfect     
garden with no weeds in it  demanded4   
,but as soon as they had sinned1 the    
best thing for them was  to be turned   
out where they would have to work4 ,we  
know what a  withering thing it is for a
 man to have nothing to do4 ,old ,ashbel
  ,green1 at fourscore years1 when asked
 why he kept on working1 said3 ,i  do so
 to keep out of mischief4 ,we see that a
 man who has a large  amount of money to
 start with has no chance4 ,of the      
thousand  prosperous and honorable men  

that you know1 nine hundred and         
ninety-nine had to work vigorously at   
the beginning4 ,but ,i am now to  tell  
you that industry is just as important  
for a woman's safety and  happiness4    
,the most unhappy women in our          
communities to-day are those  who have  
no engagements to call them up in the   
morning2 who1 once  having risen and    
breakfasted1 lounge through the dull    
forenoon in  slippers down at the heel  
and with disheveled hair1 reading       
,ouida's  last novel1 and who1 having   
dragged through a wretched forenoon and 
taken their afternoon sleep1 and having 
passed an hour and a half at  their     
toilet1 pick up their card-case and go  
out to make calls1 and  who pass their  
evenings waiting for somebody to come in
 and break up  the monotony4 ,arabella  
,stuart never was imprisoned in so dark 
a  dungeon as that4    ,there is no     
happiness in an idle woman4 ,it may be  
with hand1 it may be  with brain1 it may
 be with foot2 but work she must1 or be 

wretched  forever4 ,the little girls of 
our families must be started with that  
idea4    ,the curse of ,american society
 is that our young women are taught that
  the first1 second1 third1 fourth1     
fifth1 sixth1 seventh1 tenth1  fiftieth1
 thousandth thing in their life is to   
get somebody to take  care of them4     
,instead of that1 the first lesson      
should be how under  ,god they may take 
care of themselves4 ,the simple fact is 
that a  majority of them do have to take
 care of themselves1 and that1 too1     
after having1 through the false notions 
of their parents1 wasted the  years in  
which they ought to have learned how    
successfully to maintain  themselves4   
,we now and here declare the inhumanity1
 cruelty1 and  outrage of that father   
and mother who pass their daughters into
  womanhood1 having given them no       
facility for earning their livelihood4  
,madame de ,stal said3 ,it is not these 
writings that ,i am proud of1  but the  
fact that ,i have facility in ten       

occupations1 in any one of  which ,i    
could make a livelihood4 ,you say you   
have a fortune to leave  them4 ,oh1 man 
and woman1 have you not learned that    
like vultures1 like  hawks1 like eagles1
 riches have wings and fly away8 ,though
 you should  be successful in leaving a 
competency behind you1 the trickery of  
executors may swamp it in a night8 or   
some officials in our churches  may get 
up a mining company and induce your     
orphans to put their money  into a hole 
in ,colorado1 and if by the most        
skillful machinery the  sunken money can
 not be brought up again1 prove to them1
 that it was  eternally decreed that    
that was the way they were to lose it1  
and that  it went in the most orthodox  
and heavenly style4 ,oh1 the damnable   
schemes that professed ,christians will 
engage in until ,god puts ,his  fingers 
into the collar of the hypocrite's robe 
and strips it clear  down to the bottom6
 ,you have no right1 because you are    
well off1 to  conclude that your        

children are going to be as well off4 ,a
 man died  leaving a large fortune4 ,his
 son fell dead in a ,philadelphia       
grog-shop4 ,his old comrades came in and
 said as they bent over his  corpse3    
,what is the matter with you1 ,boggsey8 
,the surgeon standing  over him said3   
,hush ye6 ,he is dead6 ,oh1 he is dead1 
they said4  ,come1 boys2 let us go and  
take a drink in memory of poor ,boggsey6
  ,have you nothing better than money to
 leave your children8 ,if you have  not1
 but send your daughters into the world 
with empty brain and  unskilled hand1   
you are guilty of assassination1        
homicide1 regicide1  infanticide4       
,there are women toiling in our cities  
for two and three dollars per  week who 
were the daughters of merchant princes4 
,these suffering ones  now would be glad
 to have the crumbs that once fell from 
their  fathers' table4 ,that worn-out1  
broken shoe that she wears is the       
lineal descendant of the twelve-dollar  
gaiters in which her mother  walked2 and

 that torn and faded calico had ancestry
 of magnificent  brocade that swept     
,broadway clean without any expense to  
the street  commissioners4 ,though you  
live in an elegant residence and fare   
sumptuously every day1 let your         
daughters feel it is a disgrace to  them
 not to know how to work4 ,i denounce   
the idea prevalent in society  that1    
though our young women may embroider    
slippers and crochet and  make mats for 
lamps to stand on without disgrace1 the 
idea of doing  anything for a livelihood
 is dishonorable4 ,it is a shame for a  
young  woman belonging to a large family
 to be inefficient when the father      
toils his life away for her support4 ,it
 is a shame for a daughter to  be idle  
while her mother toils at the wash-tub4 
,it is as honorable to  sweep the house1
 make beds or trim hats as it is to     
twist a  watch-chain4    ,as far as ,i  
can understand1 the line of             
respectability lies between  that which 
is useful and that which is useless4 ,if

 women do that which  is of no value1   
their work is honorable4 ,if they do    
practical work1 it  is dishonorable4    
,that our young women may escape the    
censure of doing  dishonorable work1 ,i 
shall particularize4 ,you may knit a    
tidy for the  back of an arm-chair1 but 
by no means make the money wherewith to 
buy  the chair4 ,you may with a delicate
 brush beautify a mantel ornament1  but 
die rather than earn enough to buy a    
marble mantel4 ,you may learn  artistic 
music until you can squall ,italian1 but
 never sing  ,ortonville or ,old        
,hundred4 ,do nothing practical if you  
would in  the eyes of refined society   
preserve your respectability4 ,i scout  
these fine notions4 ,i tell you a woman1
 no more than a man1 has a  right to    
occupy a place in this world unless she 
pays a rent for it4    ,in the course of
 a life-time you consume whole harvests 
and droves of  cattle1 and every day you
 live1 breathe forty hogsheads of good1 
pure  air4 ,you must by some kind of    

usefulness pay for all this4 ,our race  
was the last thing created--the birds   
and fishes on the fourth day1  the      
cattle and lizards on the fifth day1 and
 man on the sixth day4 ,if  geologists  
are right1 the earth was a million of   
years in the  possession of the insects1
 beasts1 and birds before our race came 
upon  it4 ,in one sense we were         
innovators4 ,the cattle1 the lizards1   
and the  hawks had pre-emption right4   
,the question is not what we are to do  
with the lizards and summer insects1 but
 what the lizards and summer  insects   
are to do with us4 ,if we want a place  
in this world1 we must  earn it4 ,the   
partridge makes its own nest before it  
occupies it4 ,the  lark by its morning  
song earns its breakfast before it eats 
it1 and  the ,bible gives an intimation 
that the first duty of an idler is to   
starve when it says3 ,if he will not    
work1 neither shall he eat4  ,idleness  
ruins the health2 and very soon nature  
says3 ,this man has  refused to pay his 

rent1 out with him6 ,society is to be   
reconstructed  on the subject of woman's
 toil4 ,a vast majority of those who    
would  have woman industrious shut her  
up to a few kinds of work4 ,my judgment 
in this matter is that a woman has a    
right to do anything that she can  do   
well4 ,there should be no department of 
merchandise1 mechanism1 art1  or science
 barred against her4 ,if ,miss ,hosmer  
has genius for  sculpture1 give her a   
chisel4 ,if ,rosa ,bonheur has a        
fondness for  delineating animals1 let  
her make ,the ,horse ,fair4 ,if ,miss   
,mitchell  will study astronomy1 let her
 mount the starry ladder4 ,if ,lydia    
will  be a merchant1 let her sell       
purple4 ,if ,lucretia ,mott will preach 
the  ,gospel1 let her thrill with her   
womanly eloquence the ,quaker           
meeting-house4    ,it is said1 ,if woman
 is given such opportunities she will   
occupy  places that might be taken by   
men4 ,i say1 ,if she have more skill and
  adaptedness for any position than a   

man has1 let her have it6 ,she has  as  
much right to her bread1 to her apparel1
 and to her home1 as men  have4 ,but it 
is said that her nature is so delicate  
that she is  unfitted for exhausting    
toil4 ,i ask in the name of all past    
history  what toil on earth is more     
severe1 exhausting1 and tremendous than 
that toil of the needle to which for    
ages she has been subjected8 ,the       
battering-ram1 the sword1 the carbine1  
the battle-ax1 have made no  such havoc 
as the needle4 ,i would that these      
living sepulchers in  which women have  
for ages been buried might be opened1   
and that some  resurrection trumpet     
might bring up these living corpses to  
the fresh  air and sunlight4    ,go with
 me and ,i will show you a woman who by 
hardest toil supports  her children1 her
 drunken husband1 her old father and    
mother1 pays her  house rent1 always has
 wholesome food on her table1 and when  
she can  get some neighbor on the       
,sabbath to come in and take care of her

  family1 appears in church with hat and
 cloak that are far from  indicating the
 toil to which she is subjected4 ,such a
 woman as that  has body and soul enough
 to fit her for any position4 ,she could
 stand  beside the majority of your     
salesmen and dispose of more goods4 ,she
  could go into your wheelwright shops  
and beat one half of your workmen  at   
making carriages4 ,we talk about woman  
as though we had resigned to  her all   
the light work1 and ourselves had       
shouldered the heavier4 ,but  the day of
 judgment1 which will reveal the        
sufferings of the stake and             
,inquisition1 will marshal before the   
throne of ,god and the hierarchs  of    
heaven the martyrs of wash-tub and      
needle4 ,now1 ,i say if there be  any   
preference in occupation1 let women have
 it4 ,god knows her trials  are the     
severest4 ,by her acuter sensitiveness  
to misfortune1 by her  hour of anguish1 
,i demand that no one hedge up her      
pathway to a  livelihood4 ,oh6 the      

meanness1 the despicability of men who  
begrudge a  woman the right to work     
anywhere in any honorable calling6    ,i
 go still further and say that woman    
should have equal compensation  with    
men4 ,by what principle of justice is it
 that women in many of our  cities get  
only two thirds as much pay as men1 and 
in many cases only  half8 ,here is the  
gigantic injustice--that for work       
equally well1 if  not better1 done1     
woman receives far less compensation    
than man4 ,start  with the ,national    
,government4 ,women clerks in           
,washington get nine  hundred dollars   
for doing that for which men receive    
eighteen hundred  dollars4 ,the wheel of
 oppression is rolling over the necks of
  thousands of women who are at this    
moment in despair about what they  are  
to do4 ,many of the largest mercantile  
establishments of our cities  are       
accessory to these abominations1 and    
from their large  establishments there  
are scores of souls being pitched off   

into death1  and their employers know   
it4 ,is there a ,god8 ,will there be a  
judgment8  ,i tell you1 if ,god rises up
 to redress woman's wrongs1 many of our 
large establishments will be swallowed  
up quicker than a ,south  ,american     
earthquake ever took down a city4 ,god  
will catch these  oppressors between the
 two millstones of his wrath and grind  
them to  powder4    ,why is it that a   
female principal in a school gets only  
eight hundred  and twenty-five dollars  
for doing work for which a male         
principal gets  sixteen hundred and     
fifty dollars8 ,i hear from all this    
land the wail  of womanhood4 ,man has   
nothing to answer to that wail but      
flatteries4  ,he says she is an angel4  
,she is not4 ,she knows she is not4 ,she
 is a  human being who gets hungry when 
she has no food1 and cold when she  has 
no fire4 ,give her no more flatteries2  
give her justice6 ,there are  sixty-five
 thousand sewing-girls in ,new ,york and
 ,brooklyn4 ,across the  sunlight comes 

their death groan4 ,it is not such a cry
 as comes from  those who are suddenly  
hurled out of life1 but a slow1         
grinding1  horrible wasting-away4       
,gather them before you and look into   
their  faces1 pinched1 ghastly1         
hunger-struck6 ,look at their fingers1  
needle-pricked and blood-tipped6 ,see   
that premature stoop in the  shoulders6 
,hear that dry1 hacking1 merciless      
cough6 ,at a large meeting  of these    
women held in a hall in ,philadelphia1  
grand speeches were  delivered1 but a   
needle-woman took the stand1 threw aside
 her faded  shawl1 and with her         
shriveled arm hurled a very thunder-bolt
 of  eloquence1 speaking out the horrors
 of her own experience4    ,stand at the
 corner of a street in ,new ,york at six
 or seven o'clock in  the morning as the
 women go to work4 ,many of them had no 
breakfast  except the crumbs that were  
left over from the night before1 or the 
crumbs they chew on their way through   
the street4 ,here they come6 ,the       

working-girls of ,new ,york and         
,brooklyn4 ,these engaged in head work1 
these in flower-making1 in millinery1 in
 paper-box making2 but1 most  overworked
 of all and least compensated1 the      
sewing-women4 ,why do they  not take the
 city cars on their way up8 ,they can   
not afford the five  cents4 ,if1        
concluding to deny herself something    
else1 she gets into  the car1 give her a
 seat4 ,you want to see how ,latimer and
 ,ridley  appeared in the fire4 ,look at
 that woman and behold a more horrible  
martyrdom1 a hotter fire1 a more        
agonizing death4 ,ask that woman how    
much she gets for her work1 and she will
 tell you six cents for making  coarse  
shirts and find her own thread4         
,years ago1 one ,sabbath night in the   
vestibule of this church1 after         
service1 a woman fell in convulsions4   
,the doctor said she needed  medicine   
not so much as something to eat4 ,as she
 began to revive1 in  her delirium she  
said1 gaspingly3 ,eight cents6 ,eight   

cents6 ,eight  cents6 ,i wish ,i could  
get it done1 ,i am so tired4 ,i wish ,i 
could get  some sleep1 but ,i must get  
it done4 ,eight cents6 ,eight cents6    
,eight  cents6 ,we found afterward that 
she was making garments for eight  cents
 apiece1 and that she could make but    
three of them in a day4 ,hear  it6      
,three times eight are twenty-four4     
,hear it1 men and women who have        
comfortable homes6 ,some of the worst   
villains of our cities are the          
employers of these women4 ,they beat    
them down to the last penny and  try to 
cheat them out of that4 ,the woman must 
deposit a dollar or two  before she gets
 the garments to work on4 ,when the work
 is done it is  sharply inspected1 the  
most insignificant flaws picked out1 and
 the  wages refused and sometimes the   
dollar deposited not given back4 ,the   
,women's ,protective ,union reports a   
case where one of the poor souls1       
finding a place where she could get more
 wages1 resolved to change  employers1  

and went to get her pay for work done4  
,the employer says3  ,i hear you are    
going to leave me8 ,yes1 she said1 and  
,i have come  to get what you owe me4   
,he made no answer4 ,she said3 ,are you 
not  going to pay me8 ,yes1 he said1 ,i 
will pay you1 and he kicked her         
down-stairs4    ,oh1 that ,women's      
,protective ,union1 #ai ,clinton ,place1
 ,new ,york6 ,the  blessings of ,heaven 
be on it for the merciful and divine    
work it is  doing in the defense of     
toiling womanhood6 ,what tragedies of   
suffering  are presented to them day by 
day6 ,a paragraph from their report3    
',can  you make ,mr4 ,jones pay me8 ,he 
owes me for three weeks at #b4ej a week1
  and ,i can't get anything1 and my     
child is very sick6' ,the speaker1 a    
young woman lately widowed1 burst into a
 flood of tears as she spoke4  ,she was 
bidden to come again the next afternoon 
and repeat her story  to the attorney at
 his usual weekly hearing of frauds and 
impositions4  ,means were found by which

 ,mr4 ,jones was induced to pay the     
#g4ej4    ,another paragraph from their 
report3 ,a fortnight had passed1 when   
she  modestly hinted a desire to know   
how much her services were worth4  ',oh1
 my dear1' he replied1 'you are getting 
to be one of the most  valuable hands in
 the trade2 you will always get the very
 best price4  ,ten dollars a week you   
will be able to earn very easily4' ,and 
the  girl's fingers flew on with her    
work at a marvelous rate4 ,the picture  
of #aj a week had almost turned her     
head4 ,a few nights later1 while        
crossing the ferry1 she overheard the   
name of her employer in the             
conversation of girls who stood near3   
',what1 ,john ,snipes8 ,why1 he  don't  
pay6 ,look out for him every time4      
,he'll keep you on trial1 as he  calls  
it1 for weeks1 and then he'll let you   
go1 and get some other  fool6' ,and thus
 ,jane ,smith gained her warning against
 the swindler4  ,but the ,union held him
 in the toils of the law until he paid  

the worth  of each of those days of     
'trial4'    ,another paragraph3 ,her    
mortification may be imagined when told 
that  one of the two five-dollar bills  
which she had just received for her     
work was counterfeit4 ,but her          
mortification was swallowed up in       
indignation when her employer denied    
having paid her the money1 and          
insultingly asked her to prove it4 ,when
 the ,protective ,union had  placed this
 matter in the courts1 the judge said3  
',you will pay  ,eleanor the amount of  
her claim1 #e4hc1 and also the costs of 
the  court4'    ,how are these evils to 
be eradicated8 ,some say3 ,give woman   
the  ballot4 ,what effect such ballot   
might have on other questions ,i am  not
 here to discuss2 but what would be the 
effect of female suffrage  on women's   
wages8 ,i do not believe that woman will
 ever get justice by  woman's ballot4   
,indeed1 women oppress women as much as 
men do4 ,do not  women1 as much as men1 
beat down to the lowest figure the woman

 who  sews for them8 ,are not women as  
sharp as men on washer-women and        
milliners and mantua-makers8 ,if a woman
 asks a dollar for her work1  does not  
her female employer ask her if she will 
not take ninety  cents8 ,you say1 ,only 
ten cents difference4 ,but that is      
sometimes the  difference between heaven
 and hell4 ,women often have less       
commiseration for women than men4 ,if a 
woman steps aside from the path  of     
rectitude1 man may forgive--woman never6
 ,woman will never get  justice done her
 from woman's ballot4 ,neither will she 
get it from  man's ballot4 ,how then8   
,god will rise up for her4 ,god has more
  resources than we know of4 ,the       
flaming sword that hung at ,eden's gate 
when woman was driven out will cleave   
with its terrible edge her  oppressors4 
,but there is something for women to do4
 ,let young people prepare to  excel in 
spheres of work1 and they will be able  
after awhile to get  larger wages4      
,unskilled and incompetent labor must   

take what is given3  skilled and        
competent labor will eventually make its
 own standard4  ,admitting that the law 
of supply and demand regulates these    
things1 ,i  contend that the demand for 
skilled labor is very great and the     
supply  very small4 ,start with the idea
 that work is honorable1 and that you   
can do some one thing better than       
anybody else4 ,resolve that1 ,god       
helping1 you will take care of yourself4
 ,if you are after awhile  called into  
another relation you will all the better
 be qualified for  it by your spirit of 
self-reliance1 or if you are called to  
stay as  you are1 you can be happy and  
self-supporting4    ,poets are fond of  
talking about man as an oak and woman   
the vine that  climbs it2 but ,i have   
seen many a tree fall that not only went
 down  itself1 but took all the vines   
with it4 ,i can tell you of something   
stronger than an oak for an ivy to climb
 on1 and that is the throne of  the     
great ,jehovah4 ,single or affianced1   

that woman is strong who leans  on ,god 
and does her best4 ,many of you will go 
single-handed through  life1 and you    
will have to choose between two         
characters4 ,young woman1  ,i am sure   
you will turn your back upon the        
useless1 giggling1  irresponsible       
nonentity which society ignominiously   
acknowledges to be  a woman1 and ask    
,god to make you an humble1 active1     
earnest ,christian4  ,what will become  
of that womanly disciple of the world8  
,she is more  thoughtful of the attitude
 she strikes upon the carpet than how   
she  will look in the judgment2 more    
worried about her freckles than her     
sins2 more interested in her apparel    
than in her redemption4 ,the  dying     
actress whose life had been vicious     
said3 ,the scene  closes--draw the      
curtain4 ,generally the tragedy comes   
first and the  farce afterward2 but in  
her life it was first the farce of a    
useless  life and then the tragedy of a 
wretched eternity4    ,compare the life 

and death of such a one with that of    
some ,christian  aunt that was once a   
blessing to your household4 ,i do not   
know that  she was ever asked to give   
her hand in marriage4 ,she lived single1
  that1 untrammeled1 she might be       
everybody's blessing4 ,whenever the     
sick were to be visited or the poor to  
be provided with bread she went  with a 
blessing4 ,she could pray or sing ,rock 
of ,ages for any sick  pauper who asked 
her4 ,as she got older there were many  
days when she  was a little sharp1 but  
for the most part auntie was a          
sunbeam--just  the one for ,christmas   
,eve4 ,she knew better than any one else
 how to  fix things4 ,her every prayer1 
as ,god heard it1 was full of everybody 
who had trouble4 ,the brightest things  
in all the house dropped from  her      
fingers4 ,she had peculiar notions1 but 
the grandest notion she  ever had was to
 make you happy4 ,she dressed           
well--auntie always  dressed well2 but  
her highest adornment was that of a meek

 and quiet  spirit1 which1 in the sight 
of ,god1 is of great price4 ,when she   
died  you all gathered lovingly about   
her2 and as you carried her out to      
rest1 the ,sunday-school class almost   
covered the coffin with  japonicas2 and 
the poor people stood at the end of the 
alley1 with  their aprons to their eyes1
 sobbing bitterly1 and the man of the   
world  said1 with ,solomon3 ,her price  
was above rubies2 and ,jesus1 as unto   
the maiden in ,judea1 commanded1 ,i say 
unto thee1 ,arise6          ,,tobacco   
,,and ,,opium4        ,let the earth    
bring forth grass1 the herb yielding    
seed4--,,gen4 i3 #aa4      ,the two     
first born of our earth were the        
grass-blade and the herb4  ,they        
preceded the brute creation and the     
human family--the grass for  the animal 
creation1 the herb for human service4   
,the cattle came and  took possession of
 their inheritance1 the grass-blade2 man
 came and  took possession of his       
inheritance1 the herb4 ,we have the herb

 for  food as in case of hunger1 for    
narcotic as in case of insomnia1 for    
anodyne as in case of paroxysm1 for     
stimulant as when the pulses flag  under
 the weight of disease4 ,the caterer    
comes and takes the herb and  presents  
it in all styles of delicacy4 ,the      
physician comes and takes  the herb and 
compounds it for physical recuperation4 
,millions of  people come and take the  
herb for ruinous physical and           
intellectual  delectation4 ,the herb1   
which was divinely created1 and for good
  purposes1 has often been degraded for 
bad results4 ,there is a useful  and a  
baneful employment of the herbaceous    
kingdom4    ,there sprung up in ,yucatan
 of this continent an herb that has     
bewitched the world4 ,in the fifteenth  
century it crossed the ,atlantic  ,ocean
 and captured ,spain4 ,afterward it     
captured ,portugal4 ,then the  ,french  
embassadors took it to ,paris1 and it   
captured the ,french  ,empire4 ,then    
,walter ,raleigh took it to ,london1 and

 it captured ,great  ,britain4          
,nicotiana1 ascribed to that genus by   
the botanists1 but we  all know it is   
the exhilarating1 elevating1            
emparadising1  nerve-shattering1        
dyspepsia-breeding1 health-destroying   
tobacco4 ,i  shall not in my remarks be 
offensively personal1 because you all   
use  it1 or nearly all6 ,i know by      
experience how it soothes and roseates  
the world1 and kindles sociality1 and ,i
 also know some of its baleful  results4
 ,i was its slave1 and by the grace of  
,god ,i have become its  conqueror4     
,tens of thousands of people have been  
asking the question  during the past two
 months1 asking it with great pathos and
 great  earnestness3 ,does the use of   
tobacco produce cancerous and other     
troubles8 ,i shall not answer the       
question in regard to any particular    
case1 but shall deal with the subject in
 a more general way4    ,you say to me1 
,did ,god not create tobacco8 ,yes4 ,you
 say to me1 ,is  not ,god good8 ,yes4   

,well1 then1 you say1 ,if ,god is good  
and he  created tobacco1 ,he must have  
created it for some good purpose4 ,yes1 
your logic is complete4 ,but ,god       
created the common sense at the same    
time1 by which we are to know how to use
 a poison and how not to use  it4 ,god  
created that just as ,he created henbane
 and nux vomica and  copperas and       
belladonna and all other poisons1       
whether directly  created by ,himself or
 extracted by man4    ,that it is a     
poison no man of common sense will deny4
 ,a case was  reported where a little   
child lay upon its mother's lap and one 
drop  fell from a pipe to the child's   
lip1 and it went into convulsions and   
into death4 ,but you say1 ,haven't      
people lived on in complete use of  it  
to old age8 ,oh1 yes2 just as ,i have   
seen inebriates seventy years  old4 ,in 
,boston1 years ago1 there was a meeting 
in which there were  several            
centenarians1 and they were giving their
 experience1 and one  centenarian said  

that he had lived over a hundred years1 
and that he  ascribed it to the fact    
that he had refrained from the use of   
intoxicating liquors4 ,right after him  
another centenarian said he had  lived  
over a hundred years1 and he ascribed it
 to the fact that for  the last fifty   
years he had hardly seen a sober moment4
 ,it is an  amazing thing how many      
outrages men may commit upon their      
physical  system and yet live on4 ,in   
the case of the man of the jug he lived 
on  because his body was pickled4 ,in   
the case of the man of the pipe1 he     
lived on because his body turned into   
smoked liver6    ,but are there no      
truths to be uttered in regard to this  
great evil8  ,what is the advice to be  
given to the multitude of young people  
who  hear me this day8 ,what is the     
advice you are going to give to your    
children8    ,first of all1 we must     
advise them to abstain from the use of  
tobacco  because all the medical        
fraternity of the ,united ,states and   

,great  ,britain agree in ascribing to  
this habit terrific unhealth4 ,the men  
whose life-time work is the study of the
 science of health say so1 and  shall ,i
 set up my opinion against theirs8 ,dr4 
,agnew1 ,dr4 ,olcott1 ,dr4  ,barnes1    
,dr4 ,rush1 ,dr4 ,mott1 ,dr4 ,harvey1   
,dr4 ,hosack--all the doctors1          
allopathic1 homeopathic1 hydropathic1   
eclectic1 denounce the habit as  a      
matter of unhealth4 ,a distinguished    
physician declared he considered  the   
use of tobacco caused seventy different 
styles of disease1 and he  says3 ,of all
 the cases of cancer in the mouth that  
have come under my  observation1 almost 
in every case it has been ascribed to   
tobacco4    ,the united testimony of all
 physicians is that it depresses the    
nervous system1 that it takes away      
twenty-five per cent4 of the  physical  
vigor of this generation1 and that it   
goes on as the years  multiply and1     
damaging this generation with           
accumulated curse1 it  strikes other    

centuries4 ,and if it is so deleterious 
to the body1 how  much more destructive 
to the mind4 ,an eminent physician1 who 
was the  superintendent of the insane   
asylum at ,northampton1 ,massachusetts1 
says3 ,fully one half the patients we   
get in our asylum have lost  their      
intellect through the use of tobacco4   
,if it is such a bad thing  to injure   
the body1 what a bad thing1 what a worse
 thing it is to  injure the mind1 and   
any man of common sense knows that      
tobacco  attacks the nervous system1 and
 everybody knows that the nervous       
system attacks the mind4    ,besides    
that1 all reformers will tell you that  
the use of tobacco  creates an unnatural
 thirst1 and it is the cause of         
drunkenness in  ,america to-day more    
than anything else4 ,in all cases where 
you find  men taking strong drink you   
find they use tobacco4 ,there are men   
who  use tobacco who do not take strong 
drink1 but all who use strong drink  use
 tobacco1 and that shows beyond         

controversy there is an affinity        
between the two products4 ,there are    
reformers here to-day who will  testify 
to you it is impossible for a man to    
reform from taking strong  drink until  
he quits tobacco4 ,in many of the cases 
where men have been  reformed from      
strong drink and have gone back to their
 cups1 they  have testified that they   
first touched tobacco and then they     
surrendered to intoxicants4    ,i say in
 the presence of this assemblage to-day1
 in which there are  many               
physicians--and they know that what ,i  
say is true on the  subject--that the   
pathway to the drunkard's grave and the 
drunkard's  hell is strewn thick with   
tobacco-leaves4 ,what has been the      
testimony  on this subject8 ,is this a  
mere statement of a preacher whose      
business  it is to talk morals1 or is   
the testimony of the world just as      
emphatic8 ,what did ,benjamin ,franklin 
say8 ,i never saw a well man in  the    
exercise of common sense who would say  

that tobacco did him any  good4 ,what   
did ,thomas ,jefferson say8 ,certainly  
he is good authority4  ,he says in      
regard to the culture of tobacco1 ,it is
 a culture  productive of infinite      
wretchdness4 ,what did ,horace ,greeley 
say of  it8 ,it is a profane stench4    
,what did ,daniel ,webster say of it8   
,if  those men must smoke1 let them take
 the horse-shed6 ,one reason why  the   
habit goes on from destruction to       
destruction is that so many  ministers  
of the gospel take it4 ,they smoke      
themselves into  bronchitis1 and then   
the dear people have to send them to    
,europe to  get them restored from      
exhausting religious services6 ,they    
smoke until  the nervous system is      
shattered4 ,they smoke themselves to    
death4 ,i  could mention the names of   
five distinguished clergymen who died of
  cancer of the mouth1 and the doctor   
said1 in every case1 it was the  result 
of tobacco4 ,the tombstone of many a    
minister of religion has  been covered  

all over with handsome eulogy1 when1 if 
the true epitaph  had been written1 it  
would have said3 ,here lies a man killed
 by too  much cavendish6 ,they smoke    
until the world is blue1 and their      
theology is blue1 and everything is     
blue4 ,how can a man stand in the       
pulpit and preach on the subject of     
temperance when he is indulging  such a 
habit as that8 ,i have seen a cuspadore 
in a pulpit into which  the holy man    
dropped his cud before he got up to read
 about blessed  are the pure in heart1  
and to read about the rolling of sin as 
a  sweet morsel under the tongue1 and to
 read about the unclean animals  in     
,leviticus that chewed the cud4         
,about sixty-five years ago a student at
 ,andover ,theological ,seminary        
graduated into the ministry4 ,he had an 
eloquence and a magnetism which  sent   
him to the front4 ,nothing could stand  
before him4 ,but in a few  months he was
 put in an insane asylum1 and the       
physician said tobacco  was the cause of

 the disaster4 ,it was the custom in    
those days to give  a portion of tobacco
 to every patient in the asylum4 ,nearly
 twenty  years passed along1 and that   
man was walking the floor of his cell in
  the asylum1 when his reason returned1 
and he saw the situation1 and he  took  
the tobacco from his mouth and threw it 
against the iron gate of  the place in  
which he was confined1 and he said3     
,what brought me  here8 ,what keeps me  
here8 ,tobacco6 tobacco6 ,god forgive   
me1 ,god help  me1 and ,i will never use
 it again4 ,he was fully restored to    
reason1  came forth1 preached the       
,gospel of ,christ for some ten years1  
and then  went into everlasting         
blessedness4    ,there are ministers of 
religion now in this country who are    
dying by  inches1 and they do not know  
what is the matter with them4 ,they are 
being killed by tobacco4 ,they are      
despoiling their influence through      
tobacco4 ,they are malodorous with      
tobacco4 ,i could give one paragraph  of

 history1 and that would be my own      
experience4 ,it took ten cigars to  make
 one sermon1 and ,i got very nervous1   
and ,i awakened one day to see  what an 
outrage ,i was committing upon my health
 by the use of tobacco4  ,i was about to
 change settlement1 and a generous      
tobacconist of  ,philadelphia told me if
 ,i would come to ,philadelphia and be  
his pastor  he would give me all the    
cigars ,i wanted for nothing all the    
rest of  my life4 ,i halted4 ,i said to 
myself1 ,if ,i smoke more than ,i ought 
to  now in these war times1 and when my 
salary is small1 what would ,i do  if ,i
 had gratuitous and unlimited supply8   
,then and there1 twenty-four  years ago1
 ,i quit once and forever4 ,it made a   
new man of me4 ,much of  the time the   
world looked blue before that1 because  
,i was looking  through tobacco smoke4  
,ever since the world has been full of  
sunshine1  and though ,i have done as   
much work as any one of my age1 ,god has
  blessed me1 it seems to me1 with the  

best health that a man ever had4    ,i  
say that no minister of religion can    
afford to smoke4 ,put in my hand  all   
the money expended by ,christian men in 
,brooklyn for tobacco1 and ,i  will     
support three orphan asylums as well and
 as grandly as the three  great orphan  
asylums already established4 ,put into  
my hand the money  spent by the         
,christians of ,america for tobacco1 and
 ,i will clothe1  shelter1 and feed all 
the suffering poor of the continent4    
,the  ,american ,church gives a million 
dollars a year for the salvation of  the
 heathen1 and ,american ,christians     
smoke five million dollars' worth  of   
tobacco4    ,i stand here to-day in the 
presence of a vast multitude of young   
people who are forming their habits4    
,between seventeen and twenty-five      
years of age a great many young men get 
on them habits in the use of  tobacco   
that they never get over4 ,let me say to
 all my young friends1  you can not     
afford to smoke1 you can not afford to  

chew4 ,you either  take very good       
tobacco1 or you take very cheap tobacco4
 ,if it is  cheap1 ,i will tell you why 
it is cheap4 ,it is made of burdock1 and
  lampblack1 and sawdust1 and           
colt's-foot1 and plantain leaves1 and   
fuller's earth1 and salt1 and alum1 and 
lime1 and a little tobacco1  and you can
 not afford to put such a mess as that  
in your mouth4 ,but  if you use         
expensive tobacco1 do you not think it  
would be better for  you to take that   
amount of money which you are now       
expending for this  herb1 and which you 
will expend during the course of your   
life if you  keep the habit up1 and with
 it buy a splendid farm and make the    
afternoon and the evening of your life  
comfortable8    ,there are young men    
whose life is going out inch by inch    
from  cigarettes4 ,now1 do you not think
 it would be well for you to listen  to 
the testimony of a merchant of ,new     
,york1 who said this3 ,in early  life ,i
 smoked six cigars a day at six and a   

half cents each4 ,they  averaged that4  
,i thought to myself one day1 ,i'll just
 put aside all ,i  consume in cigars and
 all ,i would consume if ,i keep on in  
the habit1  and ,i'll see what it will  
come to by compound interest4 ,and he   
gives  this tremendous statistic3 ,last 
,july completed thirty-nine years       
since1 by the grace of ,god1 ,i was     
emancipated from the filthy habit1  and 
the saving amounted to the enormous sum 
of #bi1ajb4jc by compound  interest4 ,we
 lived in the city1 but the children1   
who had learned  something of the       
enjoyment of country life from their    
annual visits to  their grandparents1   
longed for a home among the green       
fields4 ,i found  a very pleasant place 
in the country for sale4 ,the cigar     
money came  into requisition1 and ,i    
found it amounted to a sufficient sum to
  purchase the place1 and it is mine4   
,now1 boys1 you take your choice4       
,smoking without a home1 or a home      
without smoking4 ,this is common  sense 

as well as religion4    ,i must say a   
word to my friends who smoke the best   
tobacco1 and who  could stop at any     
time4 ,what is your ,christian influence
 in this  respect8 ,what is your        
influence upon young men8 ,do you not   
think it  would be better for you to    
exercise a little self-denial6 ,people  
wondered why ,george ,briggs1 ,governor 
of ,massachusetts1 wore a cravat  but no
 collar4 ,oh1 they said1 it is an absurd
 eccentricity4 ,this  was the history of
 the cravat without any collar3 ,for    
many years  before he had been talking  
with an inebriate1 trying to persuade   
him  to give up the habit of drinking   
and he said to the inebriate1 ,your     
habit is entirely unnecessary4 ,ah6     
replied the inebriate1 we do a  great   
many things that are not necessary4 ,it 
isn't necessary that you  should have   
that collar4 ,well1 said ,mr4 ,briggs1  
,i'll never wear a  collar again if you 
will stop drinking4 ,agreed1 said the   
other4  ,they joined hands in a pledge  

that they kept for twenty years--kept   
until death4 ,that is magnificent4 ,that
 is ,gospel1 practical ,gospel1  worthy 
of ,george ,briggs1 worthy of you4      
,self-denial for others4  ,subtraction  
from our advantage that there may be an 
addition to  somebody else's advantage4 
,but what ,i have said has been chiefly 
appropriate for men4 ,now my  subject   
widens and shall be appropriate for both
 sexes4 ,in all ages of  the world there
 has been a search for some herb or     
flower that would  stimulate lethargy   
and compose grief4 ,among the ancient   
,greeks and  ,egyptians they found      
something they called nepenthe1 and the 
,theban  women knew how to compound it4 
,if a person should chew a few of those 
leaves his grief would be immediately   
whelmed with hilarity4 ,nepenthe  passed
 out from the consideration of the world
 and then came hasheesh1  which is from 
the ,indian hemp4 ,it is manufactured   
from the flowers at  the top4 ,the      
workman with leathern apparel walks     

through the field and  the exudation of 
the plants adheres to the leathern      
garments1 and then  the man comes out   
and scrapes off this exudation1 and it  
is mixed with  aromatics and becomes an 
intoxicant that has brutalized whole    
nations4  ,its first effect is sight1   
spectacle glorious and grand beyond all 
description1 but afterward it pulls down
 body1 mind1 and soul into  anguish4    
,i knew one of the most brilliant men of
 our time4 ,his appearance in a         
newspaper column1 or a book1 or a       
magazine was an enchantment4 ,in the    
course of a half hour he could produce  
more wit and more valuable  information 
than any man ,i ever heard talk4 ,but he
 chewed hasheesh4 ,he  first took it out
 of curiosity to see whether the power  
said to be  attached really existed4 ,he
 took it4 ,he got under the power of it4
 ,he  tried to break loose4 ,he put his 
hand in the cockatrice's den to see     
whether it would bite1 and he found out 
to his own undoing4 ,his  friends       

gathered around and tried to save him1  
but he could not be  saved4 ,the father1
 a minister of the ,gospel1 prayed with 
him and  counseled him1 and out of a    
comparatively small salary employed the 
first medical advice of ,new ,york1     
,philadelphia1 ,edinburgh1 ,paris1      
,london1 and ,berlin1 for he was his    
only son4 ,no help came4 ,first his     
body gave way in pangs and convulsions  
of suffering4 ,then his mind  gave way  
and he became a raving maniac4 ,then his
 soul went out  blaspheming ,god into a 
starless eternity4 ,he died at thirty   
years of  age4 ,behold the work of      
accursed hasheesh4    ,but ,i must put  
my emphasis upon the use of opium4 ,it  
is made from the  white poppy4 ,it is   
not a new discovery4 ,three hundred     
years before  ,christ we read of it2 but
 it was not until the seventh century   
that it  took up its march of death1    
and1 passing out of the curative and the
  medicinal1 through smoking and        
mastication it has become the curse of  

nations4 ,in #ahfa there were imported  
into this country one hundred and  seven
 thousand pounds of opium4 ,in #ahhj1   
nineteen years after1 there  were       
imported five hundred and thirty        
thousand pounds of opium4 ,in  #ahgf    
there were in this country two hundred  
and twenty-five thousand                
opium-consumers4 ,now1 it is estimated  
there are in the ,united ,states  to-day
 six hundred thousand victims of opium4 
,it is appalling4    ,we do not know why
 some families do not get on4 ,there is 
something  mysterious about them4 ,the  
opium habit is so stealthy1 it is so    
deceitful1 and it is so deathful1 you   
can cure a hundred men of  strong drink 
where you can cure one opium-eater4     
,i have knelt down in this very church  
by those who were elegant in  apparel1  
and elegant in appearance1 and from the 
depths of their souls  and from the     
depths of my soul1 we cried out for     
,god's rescue4 ,somehow  it did not     
come4 ,in many a household only the     

physician and pastor  know it--the      
physician called in for physical relief1
 the pastor  called in for spiritual    
relief1 and they both fail4 ,the        
physician  confesses his defeat1 the    
minister of religion confesses his      
defeat1  for somehow ,god does not seem 
to hear a prayer offered for an         
opium-eater4 ,his grace is infinite1 and
 ,i have been told there are  cases of  
reformation4 ,i never saw one4 ,i say   
this not to wound the  feelings of any  
who may feel this awful grip1 but to    
utter a potent  warning that you stand  
back from that gate of hell4 ,oh1 man1  
oh1  woman1 tampering with this great   
evil1 have you fallen back on this as  a
 permanent resource because of some     
physical distress or mental  anguish8   
,better stop4 ,the ecstasies do not pay 
for the horrors4 ,the  ,paradise is     
followed too soon by the ,pandemonium4  
,morphia1 a blessing  of ,god for the   
relief of sudden pang and of acute      
dementia1  misappropriated and never    

intended for permanent use4    ,it is   
not merely the barbaric fanatics that   
are taken down by it4 ,did  you ever    
read ,de ,quincey's ,confessions of an  
,opium-,eater8 ,he says  that during the
 first ten years the habit handed to him
 all the keys  of ,paradise1 but it     
would take something as mighty as ,de   
,quincey's pen  to describe the         
consequent horrors4 ,there is nothing   
that ,i have ever  read about the       
tortures of the damned that seemed more 
horrible than  those which ,de ,quincey 
says he suffered4 ,samuel ,taylor       
,coleridge first  conquered the world   
with his exquisite pen1 and then was    
conquered by  opium4 ,the most          
brilliant1 the most eloquent lawyer of  
the nineteenth  century went down under 
its power1 and there is a vast multitude
 of  men and women--but more women than 
men--who are going into the dungeon  of 
that awful incarceration4    ,the worst 
thing about it is1 it takes advantage of
 one's weakness4 ,de  ,quincey says3 ,i 

got to be an opium-eater on account of  
my  rheumatism4 ,coleridge says3 ,i got 
to be an opium-eater on account of  my  
sleeplessness4 ,for what are you taking 
it8 ,for ,god's sake do not  take it    
long4 ,the wealthiest1 the grandest     
families going down under  its power4   
,twenty-five thousand victims of opium  
in ,chicago4  ,twenty-five thousand     
victims of opium in ,st4 ,louis1 and1   
according to  that average1 seventy-five
 thousand victims of opium in ,new ,york
 and  ,brooklyn4    ,the clerk of a drug
 store says3 ,i can tell them when they 
come in2  there is something about their
 complexion1 something about their      
manner1 something about the look of     
their eyes that shows they are  victims4
 ,some in the struggle to get away from 
it try chloral4 ,whole  tons of chloral 
manufactured in ,germany every year4    
,baron ,liebig says  he knows one       
chemist in ,germany who manufactures a  
half ton of chloral  every week4 ,beware
 of hydrate of chloral4 ,it is coming on

 with mighty  tread to curse these      
cities4 ,but ,i am chiefly under this   
head speaking  of the morphine4 ,the    
devil of morphia is going to be in this 
country1  in my opinion1 mightier than  
the devil of alcohol4 ,by the power of  
the  ,christian pulpit1 by the power of 
the ,christianized printing-press1 by   
the power of the ,lord ,god ,almighty1  
all these evils are going to be         
extirpated--all1 all1 and you have a    
work in regard to that1 and ,i  have a  
work4 ,but what we do we had better do  
right away4 ,the clock  ticks now1 and  
we hear it2 after awhile the clock will 
tick and we  will not hear it4    ,i sat
 at a country fireside1 and ,i saw the  
fire kindle and blaze1 and  go out4 ,i  
sat long enough at that fireside to get 
a good many  practical reflections1 and 
,i said3 ,that is like human life1 that 
fire  on the hearth4 ,we put on the     
fagots and they blaze up1 and out1 and  
on1 and the whole room is filled with   
the light1 gay of sparkle1 gay  of      

flash1 gay of crackle4 ,emblem of       
boyhood4 ,now the fire intensifies4     
,now the flame reddens into coals4 ,now 
the heat is becoming more and  more     
intense1 and the more it is stirred the 
redder is the coal4 ,now  with one sweep
 of flame it cleaves the way1 and all   
the hearth glows  with the intensity4   
,emblem of full manhood4 ,now the coals 
begin to  whiten4 ,now the heat lessens4
 ,now the flickering shadows die along  
the  wall4 ,now the fagots fall apart4  
,now the household hover over the       
expiring embers4 ,now the last breath of
 smoke is lost in the chimney4  ,the    
fire is out4 ,shovel up the white       
remains4 ,ashes6 ,ashes6          ,,why 
,,are ,,satan ,,and ,,sin ,,permitted8  
,wherefore do the wicked live8--,,job   
xxi3 #g1      ,poor ,job6 ,with tusks   
and horns and hoofs and stings1 all the 
misfortunes of life seemed to come upon 
him at once4 ,bankruptcy1  bereavement1 
scandalization1 and eruptive disease so 
irritating that  he had to re-enforce   

his ten finger-nails with pieces of     
earthenware  to scratch himself withal4 
,his wife took the diagnosis of his     
complaints and prescribed profanity4    
,she thought he would feel better  if   
between the paroxysms of grief and pain 
he would swear a little4  ,for each boil
 a plaster of objurgation4    ,probably 
no man was ever more tempted to take the
 bad advice than  when1 at last1 ,job's 
three exasperating friends came in1     
,eliphaz1  ,zophar1 and ,bildad1        
practically saying to him1 ,you old     
sinner1 serves  you right2 you are a    
hypocrite2 what a sight you are6 ,god   
has sent  these chastisements for your  
wickedness4    ,the disfigured invalid1 
putting down the pieces of broken saucer
 with  which he had been rubbing his    
arms1 with swollen eyelids looks up and 
says to his garrulous friends in        
substance1 ,the most wicked people      
sometimes have the best health and are  
the most prospered1 and then  in that   
connection hurls the question which     

every man and woman has  asked in some  
juncture of affairs1 ,wherefore do the  
wicked live8    ,they build up fortunes 
that overshadow the earth4 ,they        
confound all  the life-insurance tables 
on the subject of longevity1 dying      
octogenarians1 perhaps nonagenarians1   
possibly centenarians4 ,ahab in  the    
palace1 ,naboth in the cabinet4 ,unclean
 ,herod on the throne1  consecrated     
,paul twisting ropes for tent-making4   
,manasseh1 the worst  of all the kings  
of ,juda1 living longer than any of     
them4 ,while the  general rule is the   
wicked do not live out half their days1 
there are  exceptions where they live on
 to great age and in a ,paradise of     
beauty  and luxuriance1 and die with a  
whole college of physicians expending   
its skill in trying further prolongation
 of life1 and have a funeral  with      
casket under mountain of calla-lilies1  
the finest equipages of  the city       
jingling and flashing into line1 the    
poor1 angle-worm of the  dust carried   

out to its hole in the ground with the  
pomp that might  make a spirit from some
 other world suppose that the ,archangel
 ,michael  was dead4    ,go up among the
 finest residences of the city1 and on  
some of the  door-plates you will find  
the names of those mightiest for        
commercial  and social iniquity4 ,they  
are the vampires of society--they are   
the  gorgons of the century4 ,some of   
these men have each wheel of their      
carriage a juggernaut wet with the blood
 of those sacrificed to their  avarice4 
,some of them are like ,caligula1 who   
wished that all the  people had only one
 neck that he might strike it off at one
 blow4 ,oh1  the slain1 the slain6 ,a   
long procession of usurers and          
libertines and  infamous quacks and     
legal charlatans and world-grabbing     
monsters4 ,what  apostleship of         
despoliation6 ,demons incarnate4        
,hundreds of men  concentering all their
 energies of body1 mind1 and soul in one
  prolonged1 ever-intensifying1 and     

unrelenting effort to scald and  scarify
 and blast and consume the world4 ,i do 
not blame you for asking  me the        
quivering1 throbbing1 burning1          
resounding1 appalling question  of my   
text1 ,wherefore do the wicked live8    
,in the first place1 they live to       
demonstrate beyond all controversy  the 
long-suffering patience of ,god4 ,you   
sometimes say1 under some  great        
affront1 ,i will not stand it2 but      
perhaps you are compelled to  stand it4 
,god1 with all the batteries of         
omnipotence loaded with  thunderbolts1  
stands it century after century4 ,i have
 no doubt  sometimes an angel comes to  
,him and suggests1 ,now is the time to  
strike4 ,no1 says ,god2 wait a year1    
wait twenty years1 wait a  century1 wait
 five centuries4 ,what ,god does is not 
so wonderful as  what ,he does not do4  
,he has the reserve corps with which ,he
 could  strike ,mormonism and           
,mohammedanism and ,paganism from the   
earth in a  day4 ,he could take all the 

fraud in ,new ,york on the west side of 
,broadway and hurl it into the ,hudson1 
and all the fraud on the east  side of  
,broadway and hurl it into the ,east    
,river in an hour4 ,he  understands the 
combination lock of every dishonest     
money-safe1 and  could blow it up       
quicker than by any earthly explosive4  
,written all  over the earth1 written   
all over history are the words1 ,divine 
forbearance1 divine leniency1 divine    
long-suffering4    ,i wonder that ,god  
did not burn this world up two thousand 
years ago1  scattering its ashes into   
immensity1 its aerolites dropping into  
other worlds to be kept in their museums
 as specimens of a defunct  planet4     
,people sometimes talk of ,god as though
 ,he were hasty in ,his  judgments and  
as though ,he snapped men up quick4 ,oh1
 no6 ,he waited one  hundred and twenty 
years for the people to get into the    
ark1 and  warned them all the time--one 
hundred and twenty years1 then the flood
  came4 ,the ,anchor ,line gives only a 

month's announcement of the sailing  of 
the ,circassia1 the ,white ,star ,line  
gives only a month's  announcement of   
the sailing of the ,britannic1 the      
,cunard ,line gives  only a month's     
announcement of the sailing of the      
,oregon2 but of the  sailing of that    
ship that ,noah commanded ,god gave one 
hundred and  twenty years' announcement 
and warning4 ,patience antediluvian1    
patience postdiluvian1 patience in times
 ,adamic1 ,abrahamic1 ,mosaic1          
,davidic1 ,pauline1 ,lutheran1          
,whitefieldian4 ,patience with men and  
nations4 ,patience with barbarisms and  
civilizations4 ,six thousand  years of  
patience6 ,overtopping attribute of     
,god1 all of whose  attributes are      
immeasurable4 ,why do the wicked live8  
,that their  overthrow may be the more  
impressive and climacteric4 ,they must  
pile  up their mischief until all the   
community shall see it1 until the       
nation shall see it1 until all the world
 shall see it4 ,the higher it  goes up  

the harder it will come down and the    
grander will be the  divine vindication4
    ,god will not allow sin to sneak out
 of the world4 ,god will not allow  it  
merely to resign and quit4 ,this shall  
not be a case that goes by  default     
because no one appears against it4 ,god 
will arraign it1  handcuff it1 try it1  
bring against it the verdict of all the 
good1 and  then gibbet it so high up    
that if one half of the gibbet stood on 
,mount ,washington and the other on the 
,himalaya1 it would not be any  more    
conspicuous4    ,about fifteen years ago
 we had in this country a most          
illustrious  instance of how ,god lets a
 man go on in iniquity1 so that at the  
close  of the career his overthrow may  
be the more impressive1 full of  warning
 and climacteric4 ,first1 an honest     
chairmaker1 then an  alderman1 then a   
member of congress1 then a supervisor of
 a city1 then  school commissioner1 then
 state senator1 then commissioner of    
public  works--on and up1 stealing      

thousands of dollars here and thousands 
of  dollars there1 until the malfeasance
 in office overtopped anything the      
world had ever seen--making the new     
,court ,house in ,new ,york a monument  
of municipal crime1 and rushing the debt
 of the city from thirty-six  million   
dollars to ninety-seven millions4 ,now1 
he is at the top of  millionairedom4    
,country-seat terraced and arbored and  
parterred clear to the water's  brink4  
,horses enough to stock a king's        
equerry4 ,grooms and postilions  in full
 rig4 ,wine cellars enough to make a    
whole legislature drunk4  ,new ,york    
finances and ,new ,york politics in his 
vest pocket4 ,he winked1  and men in    
high place fell4 ,he lifted his little  
finger1 and  ignoramuses took important 
office4 ,he whispered1 and in ,albany   
and  ,washington they said it thundered4
 ,wider and mightier and more baleful   
his influence1 until it seemed as if    
,pandemonium was to be adjourned  to    
this world1 and in the ,satanic realm   

there was to be a change of             
administration1 and ,apollyon1 who had  
held dominion so long1 should  have a   
successful competitor4    ,to bring all 
to a climax1 a wedding came in the house
 of that man4  ,diamonds as large as    
hickory nuts4 ,a pin of sixty diamonds  
representing sheaves of wheat4          
,musicians in a semicircle1 half-hidden 
by a great harp of flowers4 ,ships of   
flowers4 ,forty silver sets1 one  of    
them with two hundred and forty pieces4 
,one wedding-dress that cost  five      
thousand dollars4 ,a famous libertine1  
who owned several ,long  ,island ,sound 
steamboats1 and not long before he was  
shot for his  crimes1 sent as a wedding 
present to that house a frosted silver  
iceberg1 with representations of arctic 
bears walking on  icicle-handles and    
ascending the spoons4 ,was there ever   
such a  convocation of pictures1        
bronzes1 of bric--brac1 of grandeurs1   
social  grandeurs8 ,the highest wave of 
,new ,york splendor rolled into that    

house and recoiled perhaps never again  
to rise so high4 ,but just at  that     
time1 when all earthly and infernal     
observation was concentered  on that    
man1 eternal justice1 impersonated by   
that wonder of the  ,american bar1      
,charles ,o',connor1 got on the track of
 the offender4  ,first arraignment1 then
 sentence to twelve years' imprisonment 
under  twelve indictments1 then         
penitentiary on ,blackwell's ,island1   
then a  lawsuit against him for six     
million dollars1 then incarceration in  
,ludlow ,street jail1 then escape to    
foreign land1 to be brought back  under 
the stout grip of the constabulary1 then
 dying of broken heart  in a prison     
cell4 ,god allowed him to go on in      
iniquity until all the  world saw as    
never before that the way of the        
transgressor is hard1  and that         
dishonesty will not declare permanent   
dividends1 and that you  had better be  
an honest chairmaker with a day's wages 
at a time than  a brilliant commissioner

 of public works1 all your pockets      
crammed  with plunder4    ,what a       
brilliant figure in history is ,william 
the ,conqueror1 the  intimidator of     
,france1 of ,anjou1 of ,brittany1 victor
 at ,hastings1  snatching the crown of  
,england and setting it on his own brow1
  destroying homesteads that he might   
have a larger game forest1 making  a    
,doomsday ,book by which he could keep  
the whole land under despotic           
espionage1 proclaiming war in revenge   
for a joke uttered in regard to  his    
obesity4 ,harvest fields and vineyards  
going down under the cavalry  hoof4     
,nations horror-struck4 ,but one day    
while at the apex of all  observation he
 is riding out and the horse put his    
hoof on a hot  cinder1 throwing the king
 so violently against the pommel of the 
saddle that he dies1 his son hastening  
to ,england to get the crown  before the
 breath has left his father's body4     
,the imperial corpse drawn by a cart1   
most of the attendants leaving it  in   

the street because of a fire alarm that 
they might go off and see  the          
conflagration4 ,and just as they are    
going to put his body down in  the      
church which he had built1 a man        
stepping up and saying1 ,bishop1  the   
man you praise is a robber4 ,this church
 stands on my father's  homestead4 ,the 
property on which this church is built  
is mine4 ,i  reclaim my right4 ,in the  
name of ,almighty ,god ,i forbid you to 
bury the  king here1 or to cover him    
with my glebe4 ,go up1 said the ambition
  of ,william the ,conqueror4 ,go up by 
conquest1 go up by throne1 go up  in the
 sight of all nations1 go up by         
cruelties4 ,but one day ,god  said1     
,come down1 come down by the way of a   
miserable death1 come down  by the way  
of an ignominious obsequies1 come down  
in the sight of all  nations1 come clear
 down1 come down forever4 ,and you and  
,i see the  same thing on a smaller     
scale many and many a                   
time--illustrations of  the fact that   

,god lets the wicked live that ,he may  
make their  overthrow the more          
climacteric4    ,what is true in regard 
to sin is true in regard to its author1 
,satan1  called ,abaddon1 called the    
,prince of the ,power of the ,air1      
called the  serpent1 called the dragon4 
,it seems to me any intelligent man must
  admit that there is a                 
commander-in-chief of all evil4    ,the 
,persians called him ,ahriman1 the      
,hindus called him ,siva4 ,he was       
represented on canvas as a mythological 
combination of ,thor and  ,cerberus and 
,pan and ,vulcan and other horrible     
addenda4 ,i do not care  what you call  
him1 that monster of evil is abroad1 and
 his one work is  destruction4 ,john    
,milton almost glorified him by witchery
 of  description1 but he is the         
concentration of all meanness and of all
  despicability4 ,my little child1 seven
 years of age1 said to her mother  one  
day1 ,why don't ,god kill the devil at  
once1 and have done with  it8 ,in less  

terse phrase we have all asked the same 
question4 ,the  ,bible says he is to be 
imprisoned and he is to be chained down4
 ,why  not heave the old miscreant into 
his dungeon now8 ,does it not seem as   
if his volume of infamy were complete8  
,does it not seem as if the last  fifty 
years would make an appropriate         
peroration8 ,no2 ,god will let him  go  
on to the top of all bad endeavor1 and  
then when all the earth and  all        
constellations and galaxies and all the 
universe are watching1 ,god  will hurl  
him down with a violence and ghastliness
 enough to persuade  five hundred       
eternities that a rebellion against ,god
 must perish4 ,god  will not do it by   
piecemeal1 ,god will not do it by small 
skirmish4 ,he  will wait until all the  
troops are massed1 and then some day    
when in  defiant and confident mood1 at 
the head of his army1 this ,goliath of  
hell stalks forth1 our champion1 the son
 of ,david1 will strike him  down1 not  
with smooth stones from the brook1 but  

with fragments from  the ,rock of ,ages4
 ,but it will not be done until this    
giant of evil and  his holy antagonist  
come out within full sight of the two   
great  armies4 ,the tragedy is only     
postponed to make the overthrow more    
impressive and climacteric4 ,do not     
fret4 ,if ,god can afford to wait you   
can afford to wait4 ,god's clock of     
destiny strikes only once in a  thousand
 years4 ,do not try to measure events by
 the second-hand on  your little        
time-piece4 ,sin and ,satan go on only  
that their overthrow  may at last be the
 more terrific1 the more impressive1 the
 more  resounding1 the more climacteric4
    ,why do the wicked live8 ,in order  
that they may build up fortresses for   
righteousness to capture4 ,have you not 
noticed that ,god harnesses men1  bad   
men1 and accomplishes good through them8
 ,witness ,cyrus1 witness               
,nebuchadnezzar1 witness the fact that  
the ,bastile of oppression was  pried   
open by the bayonets of a bad man4      

,recently there came to me the  fact    
that a college had been built at the    
,far ,west for infidel  purposes4 ,there
 was to be no nonsense of chapel        
prayers1 no ,bible  reading there4 ,all 
the professors there were pronounced    
infidels4 ,the  college was opened1 and 
the work went on1 but1 of course1       
failed4 ,not  long ago a ,presbyterian  
minister was in a bank in that village  
on  purposes of business1 and he heard  
in an adjoining room the board of       
trustees of that college discussing what
 they had better do with the            
institution1 as it did not get on       
successfully1 and one of the  trustees  
proposed that it be handed over to the  
,presbyterians1  prefacing the word     
,presbyterians with a very unhappy      
expletive4 ,the  resolutions were       
passed1 and that fortress of infidelity 
has become a  fortress of old-fashioned1
 orthodox religion1 the only religion   
that  will be worth a snap of your      
finger when you come to die or appear in

  the ,day of ,judgment4 ,the devil     
built the college4 ,righteousness       
captured it4    ,in some city there goes
 up a great club-house--the             
architecture1 the  furniture1 all the   
equipment a bedazzlement of wealth4     
,that particular  club-house is designed
 to make gambling and dissipation       
respectable4    ,do not fret4 ,that     
splendid building will after a while be 
a free  library1 or it will be a        
hospital1 or it will be a gallery of    
pure  art4 ,again and again             
observatories have been built by        
infidelity1 and  the first thing you    
know they go into the hand of ,christian
 science4  ,god said in the ,bible that 
,he would put a hook in ,sennacherib's  
nose  and pull him down by a way he knew
 not4 ,and ,god has a hook to-day in    
the nose of every ,sennacherib of       
infidelity and sin1 and will drag him   
about as ,he will4 ,marble halls        
deserted to sinful amusements will yet  
be dedicated for religious assemblage4  

,all these castles of sin are to  be    
captured for ,god as we go forth with   
the battle-shout that ,oliver  ,cromwell
 rang out at the head of his troops as  
he rode in on the field  of ,naseby3    
,let ,god arise and let ,his enemies be 
scattered6 ,after a  great fire in      
,london1 amid the ruins there was       
nothing left but an  arch with the name 
of the architect upon it2 and1 my       
friends1 whatever  else goes down1 ,god 
stays up4    ,why do the wicked live8   
,that some of them may be monuments of  
mercy4    ,so it was with ,john ,newton1
 so it was with ,augustine1 perhaps so  
it  was with you4 ,chieftains of sin to 
become chieftains of grace4 ,paul1  the 
apostle1 made out of ,saul1 the         
persecutor4 ,baxter1 the flaming        
evangel1 made out of ,baxter1 the       
blasphemer4 ,whole squadrons1 with      
streamers of ,emmanuel floating from the
 masthead1 though once they  were       
launched from the dry-docks of          
diabolism4 ,god lets these wicked  men  

live that ,he may make jewels out of    
them for coronets1 that ,he may  make   
tongues of fire out of them for         
,pentecosts1 that ,he may make  warriors
 out of them for ,armageddons1 that he  
may make conquerors out  of them for the
 day when they shall ride at the head of
 the  white-horse host in the grand     
review of the resurrection4    ,why do  
the wicked live8 ,to make it plain      
beyond all controversy that  there is   
another place of adjustment4 ,so many of
 the bad up1 so many  of the good down4 
,it seems to me that no man can look    
abroad without  saying--no man of common
 sense1 religious or irreligious1 can   
look  abroad without saying1 ,there must
 be some place where brilliant          
scoundrelism shall be arrested1 where   
innocence shall get out from  under the 
heel of despotism4 ,common fairness as  
well as eternal  justice demands it4    
,we adjourn to the great assizes1 the   
stupendous injustices of this  life4    
,they are not righted here4 ,there must 

be some place where they  will be       
righted4 ,god can not afford to omit the
 judgment day or the  reconstruction of 
conditions4 ,for you can not make me    
believe that  that man stuffed with all 
abomination1 having devoured widows'    
houses  and digested them1 looking with 
basilisk or tigerish eyes upon his      
fellows1 no music so sweet to him as the
 sound of breaking hearts1 is1  at      
death1 to get out of the landau at the  
front door of the sepulcher  and pass   
right on through to the back door of the
 sepulcher1 and find  a celestial       
turnout waiting for him1 so that he can 
drive tandem right  up primrosed hills1 
one glory riding as lackey ahead1 and   
another  glory riding as postilion      
behind1 while that poor woman who       
supported  her invalid husband and her  
helpless children by taking in washing  
and  ironing1 often putting her hand to 
her side where the cancerous  trouble   
had already begun1 and dropping dead    
late on ,saturday night  while she was  

preparing the garments for the ,sabbath 
day1 coming afoot  to the front door of 
the sepulcher1 shall pass through to the
 back  door of the sepulcher and find   
nothing waiting1 no one to welcome1 no  
one to tell her the way to the ,king's  
gate4 ,i will not believe it4  ,solomon 
was confounded in his day by what he    
represents as princes  afoot and beggars
 a-horseback1 but ,i tell you there must
 be a place  and a time when the right  
foot will get into the stirrup4 ,to     
demonstrate beyond all controversy that 
there is another place for  adjustment1 
,god lets the wicked live4    ,why do   
the wicked live8 ,for the same reason   
that ,he lets us live--to  have time for
 repentance4    ,where would you and ,i 
have been if sin had been followed by   
immediate  catastrophe8 ,while the foot 
of ,christ is fleet as that of a roebuck
  when ,he comes to save1 it does seem  
as if he were hoppled with great        
languors and infinite lethargies when   
,he comes to punish4 ,oh1 ,i  celebrate 

,god's slowness1 ,god's retardation1    
,god's putting off the  retribution6 ,do
 you not think1 my brother1 it would be 
a great deal  better for us to exchange 
our impatient hypercriticism of         
,providence  because this man1 by       
watering of stock1 makes a million      
dollars in one  day1 and another man    
rides on in one bloated iniquity year   
after  year--would it not be better for 
us to exchange that impatient           
hypercriticism for gratitude everlasting
 that ,god let us who were  wicked live1
 though we deserved nothing but capsize 
and demolition8  ,oh1 ,i celebrate      
,god's slowness6 ,the slower the        
rail-train comes the  better1 if the    
drawbridge is off4    ,how long have    
you1 my brother1 lived unforgiven8      
,fifteen1 twenty1  forty1 sixty years8  
,lived through great awakenings1 lived  
through  domestic sorrow1 lived through 
commercial calamity1 lived through      
providential crises that startled       
nations1 and you are living yet1        

strangers to ,god1 and with no hope for 
a great future into which you  may be   
precipitated4 ,oh1 would it not be      
better for us to get our  nature through
 the ,grace of ,christ revolutionized   
and transfigured8  ,for ,i want you to  
know that ,god sometimes changes ,his   
gait1 and  instead of the deliberate    
tread ,he is the swift witness1 and     
sometimes  the enemies of ,god are      
suddenly destroyed1 and that without    
remedy4    ,make ,god your ally4 ,what  
an offer that is6 ,do not fight against 
,him4  ,do not contend against your best
 interests4 ,yield this morning to the  
best impulse of your heart1 and that is 
toward ,christ and heaven4 ,do  not     
fight the ,lord that made you and offers
 to redeem you4    ,philip of ,france   
went out with his army1 with bows and   
arrows1 to  fight ,king ,edward ,,iii4  
of ,england2 but just as they got into  
the  critical moment of the battle1 a   
shower of rain came and relaxed the     
bow-strings so that they were of no     

effect1 and ,philip and his army  were  
worsted4 ,and all your weaponry against 
,god will be as nothing  when he rains  
upon you discomfiture from the heavens4 
,do not fight the  ,lord any longer4    
,change allegiance4 ,take down the old  
flag of sin1 run  up the new flag of    
grace4 ,it does not take the ,lord      
,jesus ,christ the  thousandth part of a
 second to convert you if you will only 
surrender1  be willing to be saved4 ,the
 ,american ,congress was in anxiety     
during  the ,revolutionary ,war while   
awaiting to hear news from the conflict 
between ,washington and ,cornwallis1 and
 the anxiety became intense and  almost 
unbearable as the days went by4 ,when   
the news came at last that  ,cornwallis 
had surrendered and the war was         
practically over1 so great  was the     
excitement that the doorkeeper of the   
,house of ,congress  dropped dead from  
joyful excitement4 ,and if this long war
 between your  soul and ,god should come
 to an end this morning by your entire  

surrender1 the war forever over1 the    
news would very soon reach the  heavens1
 and nothing but the supernatural health
 of your loved ones  before the throne  
would keep them from being prostrated   
with overjoy  at the cessation of all   
spiritual hostilities4      ,,the ,,end4