, 1874-04-27
Great City"
Babylon under Bolshazzar and Chicago
under tho Peoples Party.
The Rev E, Powers on Modern Un-
belief.
a. Voice Raised Against the
Drama.
The Rev. Mr.. Frost Exposes Its
Ahominations. q -.
DR.. Walton on sAlnusements in
Religion" "
Tho Rev. j. Munroe Gibsons First
Sermon.
Rev. Mr.. Frost Exposes Its
Ahominations. y -,
DR.. Walton on "Alnusements In
Religion"
Tho Rev. j. Munroe Gibson's First
Sermon.
THE RUIN OF A GREAT CITY.

Tho following sermon WAS recently preholed
by tho Rov. W. A.. Daniels, OF the Park Avenue
Methodist Episcopal Church. and by roquost was
twice repeated. The toxt WAC from 1antah xiy.,
IL, as follows: ,.
How nrt thou fallen from Heaven, Lueifer, son Of
the morning. -!
This prophecy against the King Of Babylon was
delivered in tho year $50 B. @. and its fulhlmont
began ia years aftorwards whom CyruB tho
Great captured that city and slow it's proud and
infamous King. Some people have supposed
this text referred to tho fall Of Satan from
Heavon an event mentionod by our Savior In
tho tonth chapter Of Luke and worked up into
high poetry by John Milton in "Paradise Lost"
and Lucifer haa come to be one Of the proper
names for tho devil, though It doos not refor to
the devil at all, but to that distinguished friend
Of hts. Belshazzar, the last and worst OF the
Babylon was Built to defy tho world and stand
forever. It WAS the strongest; most magnificent,
aud wiokodcst city which pride. and wealth. and
sin ever conBpired to build. It was tho Capital
Of an Empire whose resources were almost
boundle8s. and wns at once tho terror and ad-
uiration Of mankind. It's luxury and lloentiou us-
ness wera beyond description, -hissory and
language bronx down under Bucl q load.
Tho walls which inclosed an area Of nfteen
miles aauare, wero 900 feot high and thoir tops
Afforded roadway wider than our widest svo-
MUGS. Outside these Was vast dltoh or n1oat
whore tlo eattn 1aQ pabu tRkou 0ut u luaho lug
brick for tho wills; huge double towers COM
manaol tho river where It entered and left tho
oity; its gates woro Of solid braBs and this huge
oitadol was heavily garrisoued and progisioned to
stand sicgs Of twenty years. o., ;,o, ,o 1..,,
pronounced it's doom. ":rhou hast said IN thy
heart will ascend unto heavon. I will oxalt
my throne above tho stars Of God, yot thou
sst be brought down to hq so the sides 9f
prophecy againatit It. "Flee out Of tho midst OF
Babylon, and deliver overy man his soul; bo not
cut 81 in hes ulqplty for this is tho time OF tho
Now, how could sucl, predictions bo received
by the loading oitizons Of Dabylop, especially
when their armies returned from tho capture OF
Jerusalem, whore old Jereuiah himsaif had
saerod Ds % vossea of the Tepo 81 fo JehoV La
been brought to bo placed as trophies in the
temples Of Baal and ABhtoroth2 " Lot these
old fellows prato," they would say, Who is
temple. much loss hia people p" So, In spite Of
God and luis prophets, this great power went on,
breaking tho necks Of KiuGs and tearing King
doms to piocos, till even grand old Egypt had
fallen before its arms.
But, in q herdsman's hnt in tho ncighboring
Kingdom OF Media, tho grandson Of a King was
growing up to manhood, boy whom an uncia
had declared should ono day unseat the reign-
Asia. Scared by this oracle. bis royal grand
ordors to kill him secretly but he, protesting to
haye dono go, gaye the boy to a poor shepherd,
,En Tno brought 'g him up wit with -, his Is own soas
named, soon gayo him u mastory over bis rude
companions and whtlo yet youth ho had =
1ttlo army Of his own with which ho raised a
revolt against his would-be murderer, seized bis
Kingdom. md commenced q career Of conquest
which soon made him feol strong enough to
grapp!o Will, old Babylon itself.
This Cyrus was a man Of destiny, . chosen
agent OF God for the destruction Of TINT naughty
Prince Of nations whose existence WAS ono
MonslrouB never-ceasiug Hln. Moro than 100
yoarB before he was born, Isaiah had prophesicd
Of him BY name: "Thus saith the Lord to His
holden, to subdao nations bofofe him" q have
aurnanlcd thee though thou hast not known NO. =
Persian swords wero no sharper than those Of
Babylon and they were not 80 many but they
monothes.io religion Of tho persiana saved them
from tho vices of idol Worship, and this, with q
mission from God, was their only conceivable
advantage. That impioue sayng OF the great
heaviest battalions, is aa false to history as It il
rovo!tlng to faith. It was the only chance fol
Cyrus that God was On his side. Whom his army
sat down before that vast 'iutronohmont they
must hnve been tho objects Of derision and con
tempt. From tho mountain heights OF those
hugo bnttements his mon and horses seemed O.
no more account than SO many grasahoppe1a
Ills engines OF war could not reach tue walls
away at the Pyramids. No arrow could plerco
mailed warrior ut the top Of those towers, and n,
ladders could holp the besiogors to climb 500 fee
into the sky, but down from those dizzy height
Persian helmet and the Peraian skull that WIS |.
1t. II It WAS proposed to starvo the city into sur
rondor. Cyrus aud Ills army would grow gray ant
shaky with ago before tho twenty years stock O
provisions would bn exhausted, and than the bra
zen gates could only open to pour out innumora
bic hoBta Of armed mon to grind him aud hi
hosts to powder.
Two years Of siege had pasuea, and tho grea
city had grown familiar with the BIghta Of til
Persian camps, looking down upon them as al
eagle might look down from, her mountain era,
upon pack Of hungry wolves. and Aowlng afte
theproy hho was feeding to her ooglets ; for Dab
Eagles nesta are safe from wolves, O., till wing
grow ont on them and they learn how to fly.
But thero was ono woak place in tho city, no
IN lta walls or gatos or mont. or towors, but Ii
tival was bold in honor of ao1ne Babylonish idol
and tho entire population, soldiers and all, gav
themselves up to reyolry and shame. The fur.
Of the dobauch shut QUE all thought Of oyrl
thom. This was the day for Which the grea
eolder had waited. Az tho night came dow,
1000 mon, armed with apadea, commenced t
deepon the old canals through which, !n u
Itvof were drained into q neighboring lake, an
before midnight they had lowered tho Euphrate
so as to leave narrow strip of land between
tho river and tho walls, only wide enough 10
half dozen men to pass abreast, wiloae on
trance handful Of the guard might have viii.
Btood till, from tho double towers on elthe
eide tho simplest missiles might hav
t!aa!lod tho slondor llno in plecea. Du
tho beHioged woro heathens
was part Of their religion to be drunk On thu
particular day aud night, the four ha1atlfuls o
tho guard wore not at hand, aud 10 in these foii
narrow limos death and dostruotion marched int
IN 1f,Ik n1uf1n Hfn In, Isl
own baaquat-haII with tho wine yet in him who
20 lad drunk to liH Idol out Of the golden cup
hss fathor had stolen from Jehoyall'a tomplo.
Then began tue execution OF Gods sentence
2, Ls3iier Light, I'earer, star OF tho morning
eil TUG citfoa Of tic carth as the morning ata
eutatlnes tue stars Of night. how art thou fallol
from tas lleasan,defying majesty. how art tho,
brought down to the dust which tildst bring othe
nations down
WarH and revolutions from thls time foruar