St. Paul daily globe., 1885-12-21
DR.. Talmage Sees Myriad Of Temptations
to the Young in the Allurements Of
Boreas' Carnival Season.
His Vivid Pen Picture Of Satan as the
Prince ofGood Manners s-The Mean
ing Of the Mystic Xxx.
The Religion That is Glorious ssFee1
Good's Is Not Rectttude, Says
Mr. Beecher.
He Takes Occasion to Give the Boston
Style OF Orthodoxy a Vigorous
Rubbing Up.
Ta1naage,s Sermon.

pIcdCAliiS dilU lcCUuIlllS Ill ultcoLl CltlcS VI
the Union, the Rev. T. De Witt Talmage,
d. D.. has returned to Brooklyn. He oc-
cupied his pulpit to-day, when Brooklyn
BILE to find seats. The subject Of Dr.. Tai
to Meet 1t. His text was taken from Mat
thew xiv, 90: ''Pray ye that your flight
be not in the winter" Following is the
sermon in full: The inhabitants Of the old
cities were here told that they would have
to fly for their lies. Such flight would be
painful even in the flush of spring time,
but superlatively aggravating it in cold
weather: therefore they were told to pray
that their flight be not in the winter. There
is something in the winter season that not
only tests our physical endurance but, es-
pecially in the city, tries our moral char
acter. It is the winter months that ruin
morally and forever many of our young
men. We sit in the house on winters
night and hear the storm raging on the out
side, and imagine the helpless crafts driven
on the coast; but if our ears were only good
enough we could, on any winter night, hear
the crash of hundred moral shlpWrecks.
Many who came last September to town by
the 1st of March will have been blasted. 1t
only takes one winter to ruin young man.
When the long winter evenings have come
many of our young men will improve them
in forming more intimate acquaintance
with books, contracting higher social friend
ships and Strengthening and ennobling
characters. But not so with all. will
show you before get through that at this
season of the year temptations are espe-
cially rampant, and my counsel is, look out
how you spend your winter nights! re-
mark, first. that there is no season Of the
year in which
VICIOUS ALLUREMENTs
are so active. In warm weather places of
dissipation win their tamest triumphs.
People do not feel like going in the hot
nights of summer among the blazing gas
lights or breathing the fetid air of assem-
blages. The receipts Of most grog shops on
December night are three times what
they are in any night in July Or August. I
doubt not there are larger audiences in the
casinos in winter than in the summer
weather. Iniquity plies more profitable
trade. December, January and February
are harvest months for the devil. The play
bills of the low entertainments then are
more charming, the acting is more exqui-
site, the enthusiasm Of the spectators more
bewitching. Many young man who makes
out to keep right the rest of the year cap
sizes now. When he came to town in the
autumn his eye was bright, his cheek rosy,
his step elastic; but before spring, as you
pass him you will say to your friend: ''What
is the matter with that young man?" The
fact is that one winter of dissipation has
done the work of ruin. Stand back, young
man! Take not the first step in the path
that leads to drunkenness. Let not the
flame of strong drink ever scorch your
tongue. You may tamper with these
things and escape, but your influence will
be wrong. Can you not make sacrifice
for the good of others? When the good ship
London went down, the captain was told
that there was way of escape in one of
the life-boats. He said: ''No; will go
down with the passengers" All the world
acknowledged that heroism. Can you not
deny yourself insignificant indulgences for
the good of others? Be not allured by the
fact that you drink only the moderate bev-
erageS.
YOU TAKE ONLY ALE,
and man has to drink a large amount of
it to become intoxicated. Yes; but there's
not in all the city to-day an inebriate that
did not begin with ale. ''XXX," what
does that mark mean? Xxx" on the
beer barrels; Xxx" on the brewers dray;
''XXA" on the door of the gin shop;
Xxx" on the side of the bottle. Not be-
ing able to find any one who could tell me
what this mark means, / have
had to guess that the whole thing was
an allegory: "XXX"-that is thirty
heart-breaks, thirty agonies, thirty DESC
lated homes, thirty chances for a drunk
ards grave, thirty ways to perdition.
"XXXw If I were to write story the
first chapter would be ''XXX;" the last
would be the pawnbroker's shop. Be watch
full! At this season all the allurements to
dissipation will be especially busy. Letnot
your flight to hell be in the winter. pray
We that your flight be not in the winter. y
Arm yourself against the especial tempta-
tions of this season. Poets and painters
have represented Satan as horned and
hoofed. II were poet I should describe
him with manners polished to the last per-
fection; hair flowing in graceful ringlets;
eye a little bloodshot, but floating in be-
witching languor; hands soft and dia-
monded; step light and artistic; voice mel
low as flute: boot elegantly shaped; con-
versation facile, carefully toned and
Frenchy; breath perfumed until it would
seem that nothing had ever touched his lips
save balm and myrrh. But his heart ]
would encase with the scales Of monster,
then fill with pride, with beastliness of de-
sire, with recklessness, with hypocrisy,
with death. Then I would have him
touched with some rod of disenchantment
until his two eyes would become the cold
orbs of the adder; and on his lip would
come the foam of raging intoxication; and
to his feet the spring of panther; and
HIS SOFT HAND
would become the clammy hand of wasted
skeleton, while suddenly from his heart
would burst in cracking and all-devour-
ing fury the unquenchable fame, and, in
the affected lisp of his tongue, would come
the kiss of the worm that never dies. But,
until disenchanted, nothing but myrrh and
balm and ringlet and diamond and flute
like voice and conversation aromatic, facile
and Frenchy. o, it is beautiful to see a
young man living life of purity; standing
upright where thousands of other young
men fall! You will move in honorable cir
cles all your days, and some old friend OF
aYour.f father will meet you and say: ''My
son, how glad am to see you look so
well. Just like your father, for all the
world. ] thought you would turn out well
when used to hold you on my knee" But
here is a young man who takes the other
route. The voices of sin charm him away.
He reads bad books, lives in vicious circles,
loses the glow from his cheek, the sparkle
from his eye and the purity from his SOUL
The good shun him. Down he goes, little
by little. They who knew him when he
came to town. while yet lingering on his
head was pure mothers blessing, and on
his lip the dew of pure sisters kiss, now
pass him and say, ''What an awful wreckr'
His eyes bleared with frequent carousals
his cheek bruised in the grog shop fight, his
lip swollen with evil indulgences. Look
out what you say to him: for trife he will
take your life. Lower down and lower
down until, outcast Of God and man, he lies
in the almshouse blotch of loathsomeness
1,air, So1r,ctir,oc ho oa lie out for God