Delaware State journal and statesman. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1855-1870, 1861-01-08

Il Sermon preached on The last SdbbdM 81 Me gear
by Rep. George n. WiswelI, Of The Ceatrat
PyesbyteriGn Church.
Gray hairsare here and there upon him. yet he ko seth
1t nQt:-H0ssA VII, o.
shall this text as descriptive Of the uncons 10
elects of time upon the body and the gradual bur
extngushmen Of life by the lapse Of years Primarily
II Is used to illustrate the condition Of nation whose
powers wasting, and whose glory Is uneonsciousy de
parting Time whose feet like those Of the AvengIng Cd
are Bhod with WOOL comes on nOssessy and lays hand
gentyUpon that altogether uncunseously pass
through the periods Of infancy, childhood youth,
hood old age and at last he lays away sepuehre
Horace tue latin poet represents this process thus;
Years following years, steal something every day,
At last they stell us from ourselves away
to any real experience Of old age, few Of say
anything The decrepitude and feebeness of extreme le
have ct fallen upon many Of this congregation aud
il MAJ seem illmed for me TO speak TO you OF old sge
hut you to remember that while not all old
all grOying DID, The time have chosen is also
Instructive the hal sabbath of year, with all its oemn
and admOnitory voices is most Hitting occasion TO dis
Of the waning and unconscious wasting Of lie.-
The theme is indeed hAekneyeu but quite unlike its sub
Jet 1t that will never grow old Pfeschers poets
painters philosophers and have discoursed OF old
age and still it Is unexhAuHted People all and al
wGys growing oll-the world is growing od-the say
growing Wrnkled and will soon be rolled tosethsr-lha
hills and mountains, " fsckrbhed and ancient the
sun, growing od-the whole systom OF nature is
growing old going decay; and this whole pro-
forward gradually that we are nncoaseons Of
It, We all older than tho hnal Sabbath Of 1885,
yet who reilizes ~ Who through any given prid Of
the year has had brought vvidy to his consciousness
the fact that he WIS growing old and approaching, by
successive yet sure steps the place OF his death and Ll
burial Is the kindly arrangemrn nts OF Proyi-
denee that but sieknsasee and frequent physical
ailments, the man Of o. feels youthful As when he
gamboleda boy Of 10 years And tie wide interval Of
years between youth and early ssnescenee has all been
kept In great from his consciousness he has at
no time felt that he was growing away from his boyho1d
time realized tho advance Of years any more than the
apple peach that bushes red and rpens pendent its
native siea Il is very beautiful that this Is so That
not made to feel keeny, the swing and shock Of
the steady hours aud days, aud years Of measured and
diminished lie. Werett otherwise so that each revolving
day and each dying year communicated TO our physical
By outward sign impulse, the tale Of
perishing mortality should scarcely endure the strain
and pressure upon hearts 1t is also beautiful and
bengnan arrangement of Providence that we cannot
just when to be young aud hegln to be old =
Those who past fifty cannot say when they began to
think that young manhood had ended, when they no
Longer excused themselves from duty on the ground Of
being "too young We sd-irom one stage on to another
without observing any dividing lines
Youth is the OF romance and wild adyenturei
but one conscious OF the passing from that stage
into less romantic period. As we reach mi die aud so
pass to advanced years. look back upon child
ho with clear Idea Of the ehsnge that has ASen place
In the kinding glow Of imagination everything
on greaY mAguihed scale and surrounded by corona
of gorgeous hues We shall again such
trees As those that threw their grateful shade over the
house where We were born never aBan shall we know
such large fields and forests those where We picked
berries and chased the butterfly and roamed listening te
repeated echoes o childish voices among the grand
trees We shall never travel such ng Ioass tuVe by
which We t'upd the school houts, III we evtr be
hold high stetpls as that when shot oreVe u
the clouds ron tie c. urch in which hl We
good way
The man Of years luk at .,, Iuinrr a. ng amiisi
Ou toe wal It panied = sa uhe nlAn VI
twenty-five. Ihr Il en- WIN iosks :. is iuddy inea
ment Us he does not mech likeness there he %,
Is unable to reeognzu hi preaent SELF Bot At no tins
through the sen. Ape Of these long eventul years has
he been sonsble Of any change. How very benevolent
aud beautiful ia this order Of Code pr0vdsnt eeobeny
There are ii is true certain phykca signs ald tymptom
Of sdvanens ase that cannot be concealed from tbs OBJ
server The step Is lits hrm and tbs carriage
little more formal dsnined And stately Ihsrs ID 0f'