The Brookhaven leader. [volume] (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1883-1891, 1886-04-08
TALMAGE'S SERMON.
Twelfth Discourse of the Series on
"The Marriage Ring"
The value OF Good Mothers In q Com
munity--The story OF Hannah and the
Child samuel ny way Of Illustrs-
tion-The Price of Soul.

Rev. T. Dewitt Talmage's twelfth ser.
mon on 1.-THE Marriage Ring" takes up the
subject of Motherhood" the text being
the words:
Moreover his mother mate him a little
coat, and brought It to him from year to
year, when she came up with her husband
70 offer she yearly sa crhce.-L samuel, H., 10
The stories of Deborah and Abigail are
very apt to discourage a woman's soul.
She says within herself: at is impossible
that ever can achieve any such grandeur
of character, and don't mean to try" as
though child should refuse to play the
eight notes because he can not execute a
"William Tell" This Hannah Of the text
differs from the persons | just now named.
She was an ordinary woman, with ordi-
nary intellectual capacity, placed in the
ordinary circumstances, and yet, by ex-
traordlnary piety, standing out before all
the ages to come, the model Christian
mother.
Hannah was the wife Of Elknnnnh, who
was a person very much like herself-un-
romantic and plain, never having fought
battle or been the subject of marvellous
escape. Neither of them would have been
called genius. Just what you and |
might be, that was Elkannah and Han
nah.
The brightest time in all the history of
that family was the birth of Samuel. AL
though no star ran along the Heavens
pointing down to his birthplace, think
the angels of God stopped at the coming of
so wonderful prophet.
AS Samuel had been given in answer to
prayer, Elkannah and all his family, save
Hannah, started up to Shiloh to offer sac
rifices of thanksgiving. The cradle where
the child slept was altar enough for Han
nah's grateful heart, but when the boy was
old enough she took him to Shiloh and
took three bullocks, and an ephah of flour,
and bottle of wine, and made Offering OF
sacrifice unto the Lord, and there, accord
ing to a previous vow, she left him; for
there he was to stay all the days of his
life, and minister in the Temple.
Years rolled on, and every year Hannah
made with her own hands a garment for
Samuel, and took it over Co him. The lad
would have got along well without that
garment, for suppose he was well clad by
the ministry of the Temple; but Hannah
could not be contented unless she was all
the time doing something for her darling
boy. Moreover, his mother made him a
little coat, and brought it to him from
year to year, when she came up with her
husband to offer the yearly sacrifice"
l. Hannah stands before you, then, in
the first place, as an industrious mother.
There was no need FOR her TO work. Ell
hannah, her husband, was far from poor.
He belonged to distinguished family, for
the Bible tells us that he was the son of
Jeroboam, the son of Elihu, the son of
John, the son of Zuph. "WhO were thew"
you say. l do not know, bat they were
distinguished people, no doubt, or their
names would not have been mentioned.
Hannah might have seated herself with
her family, and with folded arms and d-
sheveled hair, read novels from year to
year, if there had been any to read;
but " hen see her making that garment,
and taking it over to Samuel, know she
is industrious from principle as well as
from pleasure. God would not have
mother become drudge or slave; he
would have her employ all the helps pos
sible in this day in the rearing of her chill
dEen. But Hannah ought never to be
ashamed to be found making a coat for
Samuel.
Most mothers need no counsel in this d.
rection. The wrinkles on theA brow, the
pallor on their cheek, the thimble- mark
on their finger attest that they are faith
full in their maternal duties. The bloom,
and the brightness, and the vivacity of
girlhood have given place for the grander
dignity, and usefulness, and industry of
motherhood. But there is a heathenish
idea getting abroad in some of the fami-
lies of Americans; there are mothers
who Danish themselves from tie
home circle. For three fourths
of their maternal duties they
prove themselves incompeteE. They
are ignorant of what their children wear,
and what their children eat, and what
their children read. They intrust to ir-
responsible persons these young immor-
tails, and ALLOW them to he under Influenced
which may cripple their bodies, or faint
their purity, or ~poil their manners, or de-
stroy their souls.
From the awkward cut Of Somuel's coat
you know his mother Hannah did not make
it. Out from under flaming chandeliers,
and off from imported carpets, and down
the granite stairs, there has come q great
crowd of children in this day. unframed,
saucy, incompetent for all practical duties
of life, ready to be caught in the first whirl
of crime and sensuality. Indolent and
unfaithful mothers will make INDECENT and
unfaithful children. You can not expect
neatness and order in any house where the
daughters see nothing but slatternliness
and upside downativenessi in their parents.
Let Hannah be idle, and most certainly
Samuel will grow up idle.
Who are the industrious men in all our
occupations and professionsf Who are
they managing the merchandise of the
world, building the walls, timing the
roofs, weaving the carpets, making the
laws, governing the nations, making the
earth to quake and heave and roar and
rattle with the tread of gigantic enter
prises? Who are they? For the most part
they descended from industrious mothers,
who, in the old homestead, used to spin
their own yarn, and weave their own
carpets, and plat their own doormats, and
flag their own chairs and do their OWL
work. The stalwart men and the in
huential women of this day, ninety mine
out of a hundred of them, came from an
illustrious ancestry of hard knuckles and
homespun.
And who are these people in society,
light as froth, blown every whittier Of
temptation and fashion-the peddlers of
filthy stories, the dancing jacks of political
parties, the scum OF society, the tavern
longing, the store-infesting, the men
of low wink and filthy chuckle, aud
brass breastpins, and rotten associa-
tions? For the most part they
came from mothers idle and disgusting
The scandal-monger of society, going from
house to house, attending to everybody's