Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1880-04-25

with increased volume to tb cir home in the
| ocean, so will the accumulated evils of a
mis- spent life return, with usury, sooner or
| later to the unfortunate bosom that gave
them birth. The rule is general in It's APP
| plicstion to the children of men. There is
/ no exception. HE that soweth to his flesh
shall of the flesh reap corruption" There
is no other alternative. =.
Is there any one in this immense audi
ence to-day that does not believe the truth
that this text contains, and which have
endeavored to elaborate and impress upon
your mind and conscience? If so, call
your attention, as additional proof, TO the
lsmentable tragedy which was enacted at
the amar House only three nights ago. /
do this, too, with no reluctance of feeling.
For the publicity of the act, itself, together
with the lessons which desire to draw from
it, will strip any personal allusion which /
may make, of all seeming indelIcacy and
bad taste. l do not say that the unfortu-
nate victim of that tragedy embodied all of
the grosser forms of evil which have just
portrayed ; not by any means. For he pos
sessed many exalted virtues. He was gem
erous and kind; affable and court in his
bearing None knew him but to love him.
Yet l can neither palliate nor disguise the
fact that his deeply deplored death is sad
com m entary upon his misspent life. Be-
fore God and these dying young men l
must speak the truth plainly. By grad
ual and pere istent violation ofGods law he
acquired the habit of drinking ardent spir-
its, from the intricate meshes of which he
ultimately found that he was utterly unable
to extricste himself And rather than lead
life of shame he resorted, in an evil mo-
ment. to the unwise expedient of taking his
own life. l have no judgment to pronounce
upon the motive that prompted this melans
choly act l leave that TO God who knows
the hearts of the children of men much bet
ter than l and who is too wise to err and
too good to do wrong. Ny remarks are not
in behalf of the dead, but of the living. In
looking deliberately at this occurrence it is
the more to be regretted that this noble
Christian household. From the day of his
birth he had been the subject of religious
nurture Was this act then, the legitimate
fruit of Christian teachingY If so, say
away with such Christianity But such is
not the case. Where then, is the trouble
Let us examine this for moment. make
the statement to-day, and do not apply it
specially to the case before us, but to every
household 10 this land, that there is a Woe
full lack in the vigorous and healthfuI exer-
else of Christian discipline and authority
| in the private circles Of home Boys, from
the very beginning of their caree are al
| lowed too many liberties and indulg gen cies.
They are taught to presume upon parental
| love and forbearance. The mandatory ele-
ment of the Preside does not predominate
Hence our children, IS a rule, select their
| own literature, pursue their own objects of
| pleasure, seek their own places of resort
and form their own habits of taste and ass
| ISOLATION, Where is the parent that does
not acknowledge this truth? And Just as
long MS this state of things exists, just SO
| long W II these occurrences and similar ones
shock the equinimity of this COM
munity An old father remarked
to me yesterday evening, and he is here to-
day, that the longer be lived, and the more
he saw of life, the more he was impressed
with the great importance of the vigorous
exercise of parental authority. The boy
is in imminent danger as long as home dis
cipline is slack. All distractions to sobri-
ETY. and temperance and morality should be
discarded from the household. Teach by
example as we'll as by precept. As soon as
the sun goes down, home is the place for
the father and the children.
The scriptural rule is good one, "Train
up a child in the way he should go, and
when he is old he will not Depart from it,"
Yet, my brethren, parents may be as strict
| and cautious with ther boys as pos ible
and still it is with great difficulty that they
are kept in the path OF reotitude. Espe
cially is this true in our MIDST to-day. And
| wby2 Because this community, notwith-
| standing its renowned institutions of learn
ing crown every hill, and its church stee-
Piles kiss the clouds, has within its corporate
| limits from sixty to seventy-fve whisky
| establishments. This evil, within itself is
sufficient to damn the boys of any city on the
face of the globe despite christian nurture
and the exercise of parental authority. And
| the most lamentable feature of this evil is
that these whisky establishments are main.
tanned largely by the patronage of some of
| our most respectable and influential citi.
zens. And even some who make loud pro-
LESSONS of religion and stand high in the
various churches of this city, frequent these
places daily, and if they do not drink them
Young men into such resorts and they sit
down behind the accu sed blind doors and
MAY cards by the hour. Such conduct is
| reprehe nsible in the superlatve degree, and
deserves to be denounced by every pulpit
in the land. 1t is a compromise of self re-
spect, an outrage upon morality, and
burning disgrace to evey instinct of virtue
and gentility. Can you hope to prevent
boys and young men from such sinks of in
EQUITY, when gray haired men, and men of
church affiliations keep the example before
them every day of Their lives2 The other
day incidentally looked from the second
story of one of our prominent buildings
into the rear yard of leading grog shop;
and, TO M supreme disgust, l saw just outside
oft door, a miserable, ragged set of wretch
es drinking, vomiting and embracing each
other in frantic delight-the most horrible
sight ever saw. They looked worse and
more filthy than collection of slimv YER
min. just through the windows of the
rear end of the house could see some ten
or twelve feet into the building. There |
saw several tables with cards and whisky
upon them. Around these there we're men
more respectable, in appearance only; some
were drinking; others playing cards. / see
those very men before me to-day They
are men whom / love- but / am heartily
ashamed of them. How a decent man
can be caught in such place is mystery
to me. As their friend, l stand here to-day
and tell them of their inconsistencies and
disgrace.
/ have no maledictcn to pronounce upon
the poor creatures engaged in the whisky
traffic If there are men for whom my
heart bleeds with pity and commiseration,
| it is the men who have so far lost all sense
of human welfare that for the sake of max
ing money, they will deal out this hellish
Auid by the glass and the barrel, and there.
by corrupt public morals, degrade man
| hood, carry orphanage to children, widow
| hood to mothers, and butcher in cold blood
the hearts and the souls of the sons of menl
God knows that / pity them with pity
that can find no adequate expression!
Young men, beware OF their influence, and
shun It as you woul1 the poison Of the
deadly viper.
And, Furthermore, my young friends, /
admonish you to begin now to lay foun-
dation of virtue, temperance and sobrety,
upon which to build character for time
and eternity. If you delay this matter
there is danger ahead. Well do remem-
har that inst about one wear ago TODAY how