The clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1883-1888, 1886-11-24

natural IN their ehayior-ready TO be waited
away. You had such a one In your house
bold. Gone now. II was toodeiicate plant
for this rough world The heavenly gardener
saw it and took It in We make splendid
Sunday school books out OF such children,
but they almost always Gle. have noticed
that, for the most part, the children that live
sometimes get cross. and pick up bad words
in the street, and quarrel with brother and
sister. aud prove Enthusiastically that they are
wicked-ls the Bible says, going astray from
the womb, speaking lies See the little ones
in the sabbath class. 50 sunshiny and beauti.
full, you would think they were always 50,
but mother, seated a little way of, looks
over at these children and thinks OF The awful
time she had to get them ready.
After TIC boy or girl omes little further
on in life the mark OF sin upon them is sim
more evident The son comes in from a
pucilistic encounter in the streets, bearing
the marks Of defeat. the daughter prac-
tees positive deception, and tue parent says:
what shall DOT / can't always Be cor
rectIng and scoldin-, and yet these things
must lie stopped. II is especially sad il the
parent secs his own faults copied by the
child. II Is very hard work 70 pull up q
nettle that NC ourselves planted. We re-
member that the greatest frauds that ever
shook the banking houses Of the country
started from boys deception good many
years ago; and The cleaning blade of the
murderer is only another blade of the knife
With which tire boy struck at his comrade
The cedar II Lebanon, that wrestles with the
nlast. started from seed lodged ia tho side Of
the mountain, and tho most tremendous dis
bonesties Of the world once toddled out from
the cradle All these things make parents
anxious
Anxiety on the part OF parents also arises
from the consciousness that there are 50
many temptations thrown all around our
young people. It may be almost impossible
70 take q castle by siege-straight
siege-but suppose in the night there is a
traitor within and he goes down and draws
the bolt and swings open the great door, and
then the castle falls Immediately. That Is
the trouble with the hearts Of the young:
thcy have foes without and foes within
There arc a great many who try to make our
young people believe that it is a sign Of weak
ness 10 b pure. The man will toss his head
and take dramatic attitudes and tell Of his
own indiscrctions and ask the young man if
he would not like TO Go the same. And
they call him verdant and they say he IS
green and unsuphisticated, and wonder how
be can bear the Puritanieal straight Jacket
mothers apron strings, and they say: ~ will
show you all about town Como with me
You ought to see the world. II won't hurt
you. Do as You please it viii be the making
Of YOU After q while the young man says:
II don't want to be odd, nor can | afford TO
sacrifice these friends, and I'll go and see for
myself From the gates OF hell there goes
n shout OF victory. Farewell to all inno-
cence; farewell to all early restraints favor
able to that innocence which once gone never
comes back. heard one of the best men l
ever knew, - years Of age, say: Sir, God
has forgiven me for all the sins OF my life
time. know that; but there is one sin / COM
united at 20 wears Of age that l never viii
forgive myself for. 1t sometimes comes over
me overwhelmingly, and it absolutely blots
out my hope of heaven"
Young man, hear It How many traps
there are set for our young people! That is
what makes parents 50 anxious. Here are
temptations for every form a dissipation
and every stage OF it. The yourS man when
he first goes into dissipation Is very particu-
lar where he goes. it must be n fashionable
hotel He could not be tempted into these
corner nuisances with red stained glass and n
mug OF beer painted on the sign board. You
ask the young man to go into that place and
he would say do you mean to insult met"
No: it must be a marble floored barToom.
There must lie no lustful pictures behind the
counter; there must be no drunkard hiccup-
ing while he takes his glass. 1t must be a
place where elegant gentlemen come in and
click their cut glass and drink to the an
nouncement of ilattering sentiment. Butthe
young man cannot always find that kind of n
place, yet he has thirst and it must lie graf
flied. Tho down grade is sleeper now, and
be is almost at the bottom. Here they sit in
an oyster cellar around card table, Wheel
ing, bloatcd and bloodshot, with cards so
greasy you can hardly tell who has
tho best hand But never mind, they
are only playing for drinks. Shuttle awayl
Shuttle away, The landlord stands in his
shirt sleeves with hands on his hips, watching
tho game md waiting for another call to ell
up the glasses 1t Is the hot breath of eternal
woe that Pushes that young mans cheek In
the jets OF gashght see the shooting out of
the fiery tongue of the worm that never
dies The clock strikes twelve; it is the toll
ing OF the bell of eternity at the burial of
soul Two hours pass on, and they are all
sound asleep in their chairs Landlord says:
"Comc, now, wake up; it's time to shut up"
Push them out into the air. They are going
home. Let tho wife crouch in the corner,
and the children hide under the bed They
arc going homel What Is the history of that
young mani He began his dissipation at the
Fifth Avenue hotel, and completed the dam
nation in the worst groS shop in Navy
street
But sin even does not stop here. 1t comes
to the door OF the drawing room. There are
men OF leprous hearts that go into tho very
best classes OF society. They are so fasci-
nating-they have such bewitching way of
Offering their arm. Yet the poison Of asIs is
under the tongue and their heart is hell At
first their sinful devices are hidden, but after
a while they begin to put forth their talons
of death. Now they begin TO show really
what they are. Suddenly, although you
could not have expected it, they were so
charming ia their manner, SO fascinating in
their address, suddenly a cloud, blacl1er than
was ever woven Of midnight or hurricane,
drops upon some domestic circle. There
is agony in the parental bosom that none but
the Lord God Almighty can measure-an ag
ony that wishes that the children of the
household had been swallowed by the grave,
when it would be only a loss of body instead
of q loss OF soul. What is the matter with
that household They have not had the front
windows open i'll six months or year. The
mothers hair suddenly turned white; father,
hollow checked and bent over prenaturely,
goes down the street. There has been no
death in that fanily-no loss OF property.
Has madness seized upon themf- MOI mol A
villain, kid gloved, patent leathered, with
gold chain and graceful manner, took that
cup OF domestic bliss, elevated il high in the
air until the sunlight struck it, and all the
rainbows danced about the brim, and then
dashed il down in the desolation and woe,
until all the harpies of darkness clapped their
hands with glee, and oil the voices of hell ut
tered a loud la. ha Oh, there are scores
and hundreds of homes that have been blast
ed, and if the awful statistics could be fully
set before you, your blood would freeze into
a solid cake Of ice at the heart. Do you
wonder that fathers and mothers are anxious
about their children, and that they ask them
selves the question day and night: What is
to become of thems what will be their des-
tinva
/ shall devote the rest of my remarks to al
deviation of parental anxiety Let me say
to you, as parents. that great deal of that
anxiety will be lifted il YOU will begin early
with your children Tom Paine said: "The
first five years OF my life became an in
hdcln a vessel goes out to sea: it has been
five days out. A storm comes on it: il
springs a leak; the helm will not work;
everything is out OF order. What is the
natter The ship is not seaworthy. and
never was II is poor time to find it out
now. Under the fury of the storm the vessel
goes down. with $50 passengers. to a watery
grave The time 10 make the ship seaworthy
was in the dry dock before It started Alas
for us, it we wait until our children get out
into the world before VIC try TO bring upon
them the influence of Christ's reliSioni I
tell you. the dry dock OF the Christian home
is tho place where we are to fit them for use
fulueSs and for heaven, In this world, under
the storm of vice and temptation, it will be
too late In the domestic circle you de-
eide whether your child shall be truthful or