Western Reserve chronicle. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1855-1921, 1873-03-12
From the New York Herald.l
A SERMON FOR THE TINES.
Ignorance, Intemperanee and COrrup.
tiOn in Public Office.

A SEhMOA EOk IHE IlMES.
Ignorance, Intemperanee and COrrup
tiOn in Public ONCE.
Mr.. Talmage made the Credit Mo
bilier disgrace, and incOmpetency
intemperance and corruption in pub
lie office, the subject of his sermon
yesterday morning, and he treates
them with a vigOr and in a name
which met with the approval of hi
immense audience, judging by thi
frequent applause during his remarks
In the opening part of his sermon h,
said he did not believe that our legis
lature and political councils were any
more corrupt now than they were il
olden time, and would not, so long a.
he read in history of such men a
Aaron Burr, stuffed with corruption
and with body, mind and soul soaked
in abOmination, the debauchee OF the
debauched. There had been a tenden
ey to contrast the past with the pres
ent to the Advantage of the former, anC
he supposed that political writers six
ty years from now would make angels
out of us, although the material now
seemed very unprOmising. Laughter
Mr.. Talmage continued IL stand
this morning in the presence of men
who hold in their hands the suffer
ages of the nation, and by whose vote
and by whose printing press and by
whose social icfiuence and by whose
prayers the future character of this
country is to be decided anu it is e
be determined whether we shall have
righteous rulers in public places ol
those who are acknowledged to be
iniquitous. In unrOlling, then
THIS SCROLL OF wIcKEDNEss,
in high places, the first thing that is
especially to be found now is ineom.
potency for Office. Ifa man seeks fol
a place and wins it when he is ineom-
petent, he has committed a crime
against God and man. What shall
we say then, of men who attempt to
conduct our State and national affairs
without the first qualification-men
not knowing enough to vote yea or
nay until they have looked for the
wink of Others Oftheir party {? So we
have had legislative and Congression-
al committees to make tariffs and
homestead bills and arrange about the
| hrst-men whose iDoompetenoy has
been .-
THE LAUGHING STOCK OFTHa WORLD.
You know as well as I do that in
this country To-day qualification for
Office is not the question, but how
much has be done for the party. And
so we had q congressional Committee
that made one tariff for flaxseed oil
and another for linseed oil-not
knowing in their stupidity that flax
seed and linseed oil are the same
thing. (Laughter.) The polished
civilian of integrity. who is profound
y acquainted with the spirit of our
institutions. is run over by the great
stampede of men who rush out from
their ignorance and take the positions
of trust in this country. So we had
in some parts Of the country school
commissioners nominated in a grog-
shop, hurrahed for by the Tabble, and
hardly able to read their own commits
sions when they were handed to them
and judges ofooqrts giving the charge
with so much inaecuracy of phrase
OlOgy that the thief in. the prisoners
box is more amused at
THE STUPIDITY OF THE BENcH
than alarmed at his own prospective
punishment.
L unroll the scroll a little further
and | see intemperance and the co.
ordinate crimes. / admit there has
been an improvement in this thing.
The grOgshop that used to flourish in
the basement of the capital at Wash
ington, where Daniel Webster aud
stephen A. Douglass used to go TO get
inspilatiOn for their speeches, has
been abolished, and yet there is
lowering around our
There is one weapon that |
has slain more Senators and Congress. I
men and Common Councilmen than
any other, and that Is the bottle, / /
lnroll the scroll of wlckednesS in /
high PLACES still further and l See the |
crime OF bribery. You know as well I
Is that in the past few years it has
been almost impossible 70 get a law
passed, by State or national legisla
ure, unless there was some financial
When 8 bill has APP
Ieared at the door the question among
Iour Representatives has been,
HOW MUCH MONEY Is IN THIS ?n
Mr.. Talmage then referred to brib-
ry in legislative bodies to secure the
'essage Of acts depicting the public
Teasury, and continued =
he CREDIT MOaILIER AND OAKEs
..... ... AAIEs. ....
We sit to-day, this whole nation, !
nder the shadow of Congressional !
ishOnOr. The Capital" !" the white
larble Of that beautiful building has !
ecOme the vast mausOlenm ofthe }
ain. Both political parties are inn J
iieated. The stables of Augeus uin-
leaned, after three thousand oxen :
ad stood there for thirty years, was Z
small job for Hecules compared q
ith what the Poland committee :
fHnd of national dirt in the Congress /
Onal halls. On that Union Pacific +
ailroad many of your Representa- i
yes took rex rs i.' 4
a THROUGH TICKET TO HE'LL! IL
They paid their fare In eighty per v
mt. dividend. They sold out poiit- b
al influence and honor aud Chris u
An principle and their immortal a
uls to Oakes Ames and the devil. q
laughter and applaqse,l But be n
refql. my friends, lest you smile g
e innOeeht with the guilty. / think fC
e nation is on the track of some p
en- who have Otbeen proved guilty, ,
amt believe that E1en, after THIRTY
ars of integrity amid temptations
here they haye made q million of n
liars, would now sell Heaven for tc
200. A solid column Of Oakes
mes re aching from BROOKLYN to OF
with uplifted hands in OF
emn oath, could not make me be. oC
re that a
HpHIER eoLFAX Is A VILLAIN. an
Loud applause and a few Kisses. M
!, my friends when 1 took up the bs
peIs aud saw that, that pure, holy, lis
'us, immaculate man Fernando oy
OOd-( Laughter)-moved for the ca
peaehment of Schuyler. Colfax, / m
aid to my wife. ''The millennium tb
lere.' (Renewed Laughter.) But va
! friends. we must admit that this So
lioR sits down to-day ia the shadow al
national dishonOr and Congression- M
iisgrace. Theorimes found in pub wi
places are only the index of polit- be
| abandOnment-the blotehes on "a
} surface only show the disease str
hin. ~ rf .- lIk
Yearly seventeen years have passed "
ce Brooks assault on Sumner, yet
= facts connected with it are every Lel
y and then coming to light. A w
ty of gentlemen were dining with al al
T.. n H. I