The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-04-06
THE QUEEN OF FESTIVALS.
Six Thousand People Listen to Rev. I.
Dewitt Talmage's Easter Sermon.
The Tomb Described as Sort of ClOak-ROom
Leading Into the Splendors of the
Parl0r of the Universe.
Special to the Indianapolis Journal.

Special to the Indianapolis Journal.
BROOKLYN n Y, April Sat the services
in the Brooklyn Tabernacle this morning, the
Easter festival, there were 5000 people inside
the building, and 5000 more outside, vainly
seeking entrance. The platform and galleries
were one great scene of floral decoration. Mrs.
Evelyn Lyon Hegeman rendered two appropriate
pieces, and Professors Brown and Ali afforded a
special programme of music. Hymn No. SO was
sung, the first verse being
"Glory to God on Hight
Let heaven and ea tn reply;
Praise We His name!"
Dr. Talmage's sermon was On ''The Queen of
Festivals, and his text was taken from Cor
inthans, XIV, "a: death is swallowed up in vic
tory Following is the sermon in FULL
About /, 851 Easter mornings have awakened
the earth In France for about three centuries
the almanacs made the year begin at Easter
until Charles TX started the year at January l.
In the Tower of London there is kept on the
royal payroll of Edward l an entry of eighteen
Easter eggs, with which the people sported. In
Russia slaves were freed and aims distributed on
Easter. Ecclesiastical councils met at Pontus,
at GALES, at Rome, at Achaa to decide the par
ticular day, and after controversy more animated
than gracious decided it, and now all through
Christendom liz some way the first Sunday after
the full moon which happens upon or next after
March 81, is filed with Easter rejoicings The
royal Court of the Sabbaths is made up o.
ffty-two Fifty OF them are princesses, but
Easter is queen of the royal household. She
wears richer diadem and swings more jeweled
sceptre than any of our courts, and in her smile
nations are irradiated Unusually welcome this
year because of the harsh winter and late spring,
she seems to step out of the snow bank rather
than from the conservatory, to come out of the
north instead of the south. from the arctic in
stead of the tropics, dismounting from an icy
equinox. But welcome this queenly day that
holds high up in her right hand the wrenched-
off bolts of Chrsts sepulchre, and in her left the
key of all the cemeteries of Chrstendom. My
text is an ejaculation. 1t is spun out Of halle
lujahs Paul wrote on deliberately in his great
argument, observing all the laws of logic until
he came to the words of the text, and then his
fingers and his pen, and the parchment
on which he wrote took fire, and he shout
ed: death is swallowed up in victory"
1t is an exciting thing to see an army routed and
flying. They ruin each other down. They scat
ter everything valuable in their track. I'm
wheeled artillery! Hoof of horse and breast of
wounded and dying men! You have read of the
French falling back from Sedan, or Napoeon's
track of 60, 600 corpses in the snowbanks of Rus
STA, or the retreat of our forces from Manassas,
or the five kings tumbling down from the rocks
of Beth Horon with their armies, while the hail
stones of heaven and the swords of Joshua's
host struck them with their fury. In my text
is worse discontinue. 1t seems that black
giant proposed to conquer the earth. He gath
cred for his host all the aches, and palms, and
malarias, and distempers, and epidemics of the
ages He marched them down, drilling them in
the northeast wind and amid the slush Of tenn
pests He threw up barricades of grave mound.
He pitched tents of charnel house. Some of the
troops marched with slow tread commanded by
Consumptions, some by double-quick, command
ed by Pneumonias. Some he took by long be-
siegement of evil habit, and some by one stroke
of the battle-ax Of casualty. With bony hand he
pounded at the door of hospitals and sick rooms,
and won all the victories in all the great battle
fields of the five continents. Forward, conquer
or of conquerors And all the generals and
commanders in chief, and all the presidents and
kings and sultans and czars dropped under the
feet of his war charger. But one Christmas
night his antagonist was born. AS most of the
plaques and sicknesses and despotisms came
from the East, it was appropriate that the new
Conqueror should come out of the same quarter
Power is given Him to waken all the fallen of
all the cemeteries and of all lands, and marshal
them against the Black Giant. Fields have
already been won, but the last day of the
worlds existence will see the decisive battle.
When Christ shall lead forth His two brigades
the brigade of the risen dead and the brigade of
the celestial armies the Black Giant shall fall
back, and the brigade from the risen sepuchres
will take him from beneath, and the brigade Of
the descending immortals will take him from
above, and death shall be swallowed up in vic
tory.
DETHRoNED BRAGGART
The old braggart that threatened the conquest
and demolition of the planet has lost his throne;
has lost his sceptre has lost mis- palace: has lost
his prestige, and the one word written over ali
the gates of mausoleum. and catacomb, and
metropolis or cenotaph, or sarcophagus, or the
cairn of lone arctic explorer, catafalque of
cathedral written in letters Of Gala lily. written
in musical cadence, written in doxology of great
assembly. written on sculptured door
of family vault is ''Fictory!n Coronal
word, embannered word, apocalyptic word,
chief word on triumphal arch under which con-
querors return Victory; word shouted at Bala-
clava, at Inkermann, at Megiddo. at Blenheim.
at Marathon, where the Athenians drove back
the Modes, and at Poictiers. where Charles
Martel broke the ranks of the Saracens, and at
fight, COMPOUNDED the Persians, and at the door
of eastern cavern of chiseed rock, where
Christ came out of the dark recess and throttled
the King of Terrors and put him back in the
niche from which the Celestial Conqueror had
just emerged. ia! ha! When the jaws of the
Eastern Mausoleum took down the Black Giant