, 1874-03-02

curly t0f tAcin anu Tor all Of uH H. Ill MI Inward
principle, hearts renewed aud kept by tho power
THE LOST EDEN.
Sermon by Prof. Swing, OF tho Fourth
rrcsbyteriain Church.
Yesterday morning Prof, Swing preached to n
largo congregation in his church, tho Fourth
Presbyterian, corner Of 1tush and Superior
streota. He took as his text
So ho drove out tho man, and ho rlacc at the cant
OF tho garden Of Eden cliornbItns aud inininE sword
which turned every way to keep tho why Of the tree Of
Hfe.-aGncsfs i'll: p.
The Biblical history Of mans flrat days upon
earth is 3 most wonderful symbol Of all tho Hub~
sequent history Of mankind. That honor md
thut dishouor, that happiness and TINT sorrow,
Soon microscopic photograph of tho coming
world, whoao 9o0,o00,o0 Of people, in two hem-
iBporoR, wore to tind and 1oHe: honor, and lind
mud loso happiness daily for thousands Of yoars.
Az there is an art which can copy the great Lon
don papor upon q Hpnce not lnrger than chilt1's
finger nail ,-as oil tho long columns of markets.
md Of daiy oyunts, aud Of speeches Of monl-
bors Of Parliament rotroat into that image
without tho loss Of single letter or ovou tho
minuteat mark Of putctuation,--so the vast his
tory of the human family, coming in from old
Agia or now America, flying back from the days
Of Solomon, or Cmasar. or Napoleon. botakes It.
scf into this first picture Of man, and finds tloro
perfect Image Of all its joy and grief, and OF
tho causes producing tlem. In ono OF tho
Arabinn stories sightscer bohetd long bright
cloud which, like column Of smoke from Il vol
cano reaching ont from tho East, began to
Withdraw, aud, Watching it, he aaw it hide itself
sase s % Which s'Sih xass on taS soad 1''' evs
carried in one hand to bis Int. Whoever looks
out upon tile great outsproad human race, mud
tthon looks at this first Gonesis, will seom to
have found an urn containing all Of lluman life
and doath-gro9tnesss md weaknoBa. snbso;;
qnont centuries hayo boen only the enlargement
Of tho picture. ParattiBea inllumerablo hlyo
como and gono; Adams md Ewes many Aayo
ono day boon happy and tho noxt beon oxllos
and always for tho same rehBon, - 'disrcgard of
divine law.
Before wo look at somo of the minor Causes
Of human frailty and SUCCESS, lot lii recall
to mind what q largo .part of this
story Of tho Garden Of ls1on must DO
inspired narrative. It ia not certainly d myth
that there is d human race, and honco thero
must havo bcon a first pnir i'll this long series;
and tile first pair must have Ind 4 first home
and creator just at hand; and this pair must
layc mado their first moyo in virtue or sin and
from what Sin VIC NOW Hoo in tho world, not
much doubt cau romain Us to what limo Of con-
duct this first par followed; and that thoy oarly
loft paradise OF virtue in the verdict Of history.
Tho theory most in conflict with tl,a Bible pic,
efaaal nSail result 0n o, 'nfa pfogroas % in Is tho
animal kingdom, aud mover ind = paradise hut
IL on the way, toward one from u cellular aud
Against this theory, hoWovor, Rios up tho fact
TINT, in tho thousands Of years Of history, no
animal has shown tho least signs Of passing over
into TINT moral conHciouHness, that solfhool,
highest orders OF brntes aro doing absolutely
nothing toward forming 4 language, or towards
reaching thai consciousness, of 4lno and "Eot
ma" which joins man to the divine. Thoro is
no Nc, effort a. yisiG1e IT'S. t,,i. on tho part Of
build as q school.houso % or Start '''' country
newspaper. And If, in tho historic period, no
progress has beon maae, and that, too, with tho
advantages Of human association, What could
they haye done iu prehistoric periods. II siS
ion yoara givo The best reason I can myself
bring to boar upon this matter loads mo to SEQ
man sotting forth as man, and sntting forth
from q creator. Hence Ito had place which We
may call Eden, and easily reason may join tho
Bible in giving It rivor- banks, and troes, and
flowers, and the songs Of birds.
Lot us now. In imagination, visit this primitive
man iu his Selkirk loneliness, aud tind what
thore is in his situation which explains tho loss
Of that Eden. aud Tue loss Of 90 many blessed
hours since TINT curly banishmont
/ shall not try to gathcr up all tho facts Of tho
caso, for this would involve discussion OF
froo-will md of the re'utlon to perfect God,
to tho fact OF evil III His world. We must omit
tury might weave over the little ora. Lot mo
ask you to notice only ono fact in tho surround
ings of tho original nlan,-tho flct that lo was
ordered to live restricted lifo. and 1nt1st not
oxpoct to bo al boundloss as Cod. Tho sit-
uation we may sunposo to bo cxprcascd in those
words: '.Ihou, Oh man, must claim grand
large world, but it shall not be inllnito. lho.e
il q troo OF which thou shalt not cat. Be-
tween thee aud mo perfect absolntism--
q great dividing ocean must always roll. Thy
world shall not bo tho whole nniversot but only
. continent. Thy ,powor, thy ambition. thy
knowledge shall Ge within bunks,-botwecn
banks endowed with Brnshino md ilowera,-but
still boundaries to ohcckthy stroan,." Such waa
0onosiB alono, but in subsequent facts which
moyo tho picture from tho danger of mythology
aud have It storotypcd in oil history,
This law Of Limitation man. did not respect.
but at once declared his world lawlosa. hi1nsolf
W Ward p s"E'@ hs found III hmspi M saoD a e3is oxe
lin md tho true Of lifc-botwccu him and tho
absoEntism OF God. This III the event which liA.
tory Inns taken up md verified, mol. only in IN
out Of this long history comes to liz today, III
loud acconts, the announcement OF tho great
principle TINT human life ii d restricted life,-a
lifo subject to law,-anl tint Ao wllo confesaos
this Hubjcottoh remains i'll Edcu !; he WHO l0nles
it IL balliahed.
Tie antiquariana arc seektng the place whore
tho first Eden must have boen but, wllllo they
thus sock, lot us behold only Tho ruins be-
twoon Babylon and lto,ne, ,-piacos where tic
gates of happiness have boon closod, only bo-
cauao tho inmates OF the garden declined 10 ac-
cept world lmtod by any law or proaonco ot
God, and daily hurled thoir froo-wll along, MS
though tho human breast woro tho only deity
Just aB the body illilouris onyunler itB limit
cd quantity Of labor ror food or pam, or pleasure,
no the soul: encon,passed by its peculiar laws,
and oil its development and hnppincss lio Within
those dou-.nntle walls. And tlio hour tint HeeH
man roaollng hia hand for fruits beyond these
walls, docs tho ilamng sword drawn hutwoon tho
llatla mud the invisible.
Tho human soul was filled with group Of |
virtues, and oaoh one OF those was marked will! |
its confines, within which WAS Joy beyond which |
vas grlet Each virtt,e had iia own forbidden