Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1886-03-10
1.-THE MARRIAGE RING"
"HorEL AND BoARDING-HoUsEL LIFE VERSUS
HOME LIFE"

"HOTEL AND BOARDING-H0USE LIFE VERSUS
HOME LIFE"
BROOKLYN, February 2S.-Rev. T. De
Witt Talmage. D d preached to-day in
the Brooklyn Tabernacle the eighth of his
series of sermons on "The marriage Ring,
the subject being "Hotel and Boarding
house Life versus Home Life" Prof.
Henry Eyre Browne played 20 Sanctissi
ma," by Lux. The whole congregation
joined in singing the hymn:
"Gory to God on high!
Let Heaven and earth reply:
Praise ye His name"
DR. Talmage expOunded a chapter from
the second book of Samuel about the ark de-
posted in the house of Obed edom, about
which Josephus says that the man was poor
when the ark was left at his house and rich
before it left. The preacher remarked that
every house is rich which has in it the sacred
chest Of the Divine presence.
The text was Luke K, "a and 35: "AnG
brought him to an inn, and took care OF
him. And on the morrow when he depart
ed, he took out two pence, and gave them
to the host, and said unto him, Take care
of him, and whatsoever thou spendest more,
when come again, will repay 1hee."
Following is the sermon in full.
This is The good Samaritan paying the
hotel bill of man who had been robbed
and almost killed by bandits The good
Samaritan had found the unfortunate on a
louely, rocxy road, where to this very day
depredations are sometimes committed up
on travellers. and had put the injured man
into the saddle, while this merciful and
well-to do man had walked, till they got to
the hotel and the wounded man was put to
bed and cared for. 1t must have been a
very superior hotel in it's accommodations
for, though in the country, the landlord was
paid at the rate of what in our country
would be four Or Eve dollars day, penny
being then days wages and the two pell-
nies paid in this case about two days wages.
Moreover, il Was one ut thOs, kind hearted
landlords " no are wrapped up ID the happi
hess of their guests. because the good
Samarit all leaves the poor wounded fellow
to his entire care, p, ,Oniising that when he
came that way again he would pay all the
bills until the invalid got we'll.
Holels and boarding. houses are necessities.
In very ancient times they we're unknown,
because the world had comparatively few
inha bilants, who were not given to much
travel, and private hospitality met all the
wants of sojuurners; as when Abraham
rushed out at Mamre to invite The three
men to sit down to a dinner Of a veal; as
when Lydia urged the Apostles to accept Of
her home; as when the people were p ISL
tiv.ly commanded to be given to hospitali
ty; as in many of the places in the East
t. ese ancient customs are rIacticed to-day {.
But Z have now hotels pr. sided over by
go d Landlords. bolrding-hou,e presided
oven by excellent host Or hostess, i'll al,
M Iht WI la nd oiT Tit.c *
our congrat .lation at those OF our land
surpass all other lands. They rightly be-
come the permanent residences of many peo-
Pile, such as those who are without families,
such as those whose business keeps them
migratory, such rs those hU ought not, II
various reasons of health or preculiarity of
circumsl ances, take upon themselves the
cares Of housekeeping.
Many a man falling sick in one of these
boarding houses or hotels has been kindly
watched and cursed; and by the memory of
her OWL sufferiugs and losses the lady at
the head of such a house has done all that
mother could do for a sick chid. and the
slumberless eye of God sees and appreciates
her sacrifices in behalf of the stranger,-
Among the most marvellous cases Of pa
tience and Christian fidelity are many Of
those who keep boarding houses, enduring
without resentment the unreasonable de-
mands of their guests for expensive food
aud attentions for which they are not will
ing to- pay an equivalent-a lot of cranky
men and women who are not worthy to tie
the shoe of their queenly caterer. The
outrageous way in which boarders some-
times act to their landlords AID landlauies
shows that these critical guests had bad ear
ly rearing, and that in the making-up of
their natures all that constitutes the gentle
man and lady were left out. Some of the
most princely men and some of the most
elegant women that know of to-day keep
hotels and boarding-houses.
But one of the great evils of this day is
found in the fact that a large population of
our towns and cities are giving up and have
given mp their homes and taken apartments,
that they may have more freedom from do
mestic duties and more time for social life,
and because they like the whirl of public
ity better than the quiet and privacy of
they eau call their own. The
awful Use of these hutels and boarding
houses is for most people while they are in
but as terminus they are IN mauy
cases decentralization, utter aud complete
That is the puintat which families iunumer-
able have begun to disiutegrate. There
lies, healthy and abundauty able to sup
port and direct homes of theif own, have
struck tent and taken permanent abode in
these public establishments. 1t is an evil
v ide a, Cnriste" "d.'m, aud by vuice aud
through The newspaper press, utter warn
ing and burning protest, and ask Almighty
Gud to bless the word, whether i'll the hear
ing or reading.
II, fl,nSu ,,Ilt,lio psa,ipo tho rarnou
of gossip is apt to get lul sway. All the
boa, 'uu daily the gauntlet of general
they 10 when they cpme
down in the morning and when they get in
at night. and what they do for "a living, and
who they receive as guests III their rooms,
and what they wear and what they do not
wear, and how they eat and what they eat,
and how much they eat and how little they
eat. If a man proposes in such a place J''
be isolated and re tIcent and ainne, they will
begin to guess about HIM: Who is he p
Where did he come from ? How long is he
going to stay? Has he paid his board p
How much does he pay? PEI lhaps he has
committed some crime and does not want
to he Known; there must be S .mething
wrong about HIM Or he would speak. Tue
" hole honse goes INTO the detective bust
hess. They must find out about him They
must tihd out about him light away. If ne
leaves his door unlocked by accident, he will
find that his rooms have been inspected, hts
lru' explored, his letters folded different
ly from the way they were folded when he
put EN- away, Who is he? is the ques-
ton, asked with inteuscr interest until the
subject has become a monOrnan, The
simple fact is, that he is nobpdy in parti
cular, but minds his own business The
best landlords and landladies canuOt hinder
their places from becoming pandenlonium
OF wbl>perers. and regulations are torn to
tattefs, and evil suspicious are aroused. aud
scandals started, and the parliament of the
family is blown to atoms by some Guy
Fawkes who was not caught in time. as was
his English predecessor of gunpowdery re-
putation.
The reason is that while in private homes
families have SO much to keep them busy,
in these promiscuOus and multitudinnu
residences there are SO many who have moth
ing to do. and that always makes mischief.
They gather in each others. rooms and
spend hours in consultation about others.
If they had to walk half mile before they
got to the willing ear of some listener to de-
traction, they would get out of breath be-
fore reaching there, and not feel in full glow
Of animOsity or slander Or MIGHT becansp