Spirit of the age. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1849-1865, 1859-09-14

Il n
lment from which must read a few words
1 have no heart to write-but to bedumb
Except to say 8 1t is the Lord in refer
ence to this most awful death of our poor
friend. What blow to YOU as his Pas
.Etor. For nearly twenty seven years has his
house been my kind and affectionate home
and never anything bnt the most generous
and atfectionatc hospitality. did / receive
IRON him, and never did see ANYTHING IN
him ineonsistent with his profession a. a
christian need say no more in his
praise. Many Of you knew him well; If
iany knew him better thanmyself, he knew
more of the noblencss of his nature. Yet
this = the man whose name has for 4 week
6 past been IN every mouth whose sad, sad
! end we can never cease to deplore.
More than two years ago, as his pastor,
| could not but see and lament the begin
ming OF change In the aspect of his chris
| tian character. Business troubles annoyed
him and called him often from his home.
feared that he was forming new and in
Ijurious associations. Soon his attendance
at the communion table became irregular.
and ere long it ceased!. At last the fearful
truth was made teas apparent that there
were tempters about his steps, Turing him
to his ruin. | shall not recite what took
place in the repeated interviews between
the pastor and. this, his erring brother. He
ever took kindly my admonitions and nv
counsels. He ingenuously, and with self
loathing, acknowledged his faults. He
wept, he prayed, he resolved, he struggled,
he promised, he tried !; but the arch temp
ter had many willing. helpers, Watching,
laying snares for the destruction of body
, and SOUL
! Where were the men whoought to have
been this our brothers keeper Z?
God only knows how far he was respon-
sible; God only knows, whether by mi
racle OF grace, in the last hours, after the
fatal injury was received, when, perhaps
seemingly unconscious, he-so sought Gods
, mercy in Christ-so. believed-and the
work of Gods Spirit was. so wrought as to
rescue his precious soul. That soul is now
/ in the hands of the Judge of all the earth
j who will surely "do right" Happy is it
: that man is not the final jndge of his fol
i low-mortal. But here arraign as guilty
T of his death every man. who, knowing his
i weakness, partook with him in that most
: debasing of vices, in which only when rea-
son was dethroned by alcoholic drinks he
could stoop to indulge! These men
!. druggists saloon keepers, hotel keepers
i who, knowing the first glass would oper
IS the fiood-gates of evil, supplied him with
the maddenlng poison, must answer to Goo
5sssshs.'-e 5sI,s Isenaketh inquisition for blood
nrSt murdere-
er!"
Those men, who masking themselves Al
friends, lure their victims into their lurking
dcns, and when they have destroyed fo
4 the time all selfcontrol, plumber them o
= that which belongs. to their families, it may
be, their creditors or their employers
those men must meet the Investigations o
- of an Omniscient, ,infexible Judge, who ha
! !, power to cast soul and body into hell
&c There will they find what is the gift of him
- who, not his brothers keeper has been hi
:. brothers destroyer. There they will fine
= what is Gods estimate of conduct like tina
of which the past weeks Investigations hav'
7 disclosed; what the decision of Heaven
Il Supreme Court will be as, to the man who
y protesting Friendships ,eouldtake to his roor
or companion who, he k7ae,o; lost his self-con
~ ~ troll as quickly as he partook of the first in
be toxicating glass; who made of that rooI
what the Just verdict of society's unanimou
so execration calls hell who with malie
al nifty that one might have looked for onl
in the realm where the dewil-the first mul
- derer-rules, piled his companion with
- draught of moral death !; who won fror
- him (so the world describes this trade
Ia robbery all the money in his possession
n and who (if his own tale be true) opene
a. his door, led forth hisyictim-then incap'
I'd BILE of standing unaided--and, as thoug
.ds he would ensure his injury if not his dealt
NJ extinguished the light and left him in darl
i, ness on the stairs to grope and to stumbl
nn v and to, plunge headlong to destruction
az To each one of US, my hearers, the Prov
ne dence of God III this calamity has voic
a. er 1t speaks to each of us of the sin
nd drunkenness. There is not one word
rlv this sacred book, fromsf first to last, of Il
on disease of drunkenness. do not say it
nv never disease, nor never to be treated
M a disease ), but where man has such u
On of his mental and moral faculties as en-
,on bles him to know right from wrong,
- cannot excuse himself before God, il, whs
ew ever be his appetite or propensity, he yiel
to to the temptation. God classes the drum
fnl ard with the murderer. He says that
orc such there is no part in the kingdom
;ts Christ and of God. Not that it is an u
his m pardonable sin; but that it is like any OF
oh. er sin of the flesh, and one which the /
arc vine justice cannot let go unpunished. I
tor current conversation of society,". the col
;sm mon language of the press, deals altogeth
do. too lightly with this offence against G.
MD and against man. Even Christian men a
sss. women are too ready to make a jest of t
;rst drunkard and of his habits, fault whi
. may well remind rs of the Divine decla
III tion-"Fools make mock Of sin"
ris- OF the other vice into which our frie
this fell, can scarcely bring myself to speak
the all. Drunkenness drags man down
,ual the level of brute Gambling, persever
etu- in, degrades him to the baseness of fier
luse 1t was only by destroying his moral SCI
through the intoxicating cup that he col
sble be made to stoop to such degradation. I
OVID essential nature Of gambling is seen in
him revelation that hasbeen even partially ms
and in the investigations of the past week.
Ii a is worse than theft; worse than highv
~ A