West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1886-12-09
kALMAGE'S SERMON.
WHAT Is TO BECOME OF OuB
CHILDREN.

Text; Seeing that his life is bound up in
the lads life. e.h--Gcnesis Aliv., %.
These words were spoken bv Judnh ne de.
ecriptivc OF the tenderness and affection
which Jacob fclt toward Beni0min the
youngest son OF that patriarchal family but
,ney are words Just az appropriate 20 many
y parent IN this holse-since his life is
bound up in the lads life.n / have known
parents who seemed 20 have but little interest
IN their childrcn. A father says: ''My SON
,n1se t,s l0ok out Tor himself. IL he comes up
Wet, all right; IL he turns out badly Icannot
nelp i1 am not responsible for his behav-
ior. he must take the same risk in life that
took" As well might the shepherd throw a
isn,t, ihSJ NO oen oil Hons and then say Little
IL Is generally tho case that even the beast
looks after its young / have gone through
,he wo0ds on summers day, and have
Learu great outcry in birds nest, and
nave climbed up TO see what was the matter
found out that the birds were starving and
that the mother bird bad gone OF not 10
como back again. But that Is an execution.
~ Is generally the case that the old bird will
PICK your eyes out rather than let YOU come
nlgn It's brood. The lion will rend Won i'm
IVAN II you approach too nearly the
wneipsi tho fowl I'm the harvard.
ciuuisJ-tooted and heavy winged, flies fierce.
~ at you II you cCme too near the little
group, and God intended every father aud
mother 70 be the protection and the helm OF
tne chilo, Jesus comes into every dwelling
\
been looking after this child's BODY and
mind tie time has come when YOU ought To
De looking after its immortal soul.n / stnnd
before hundreds OF people with whom tho
question morn ng, noon and night is: "IYhat
Is 10 be ome Of the childi What will be its
historyl Will it Ihoose paths OF virtue or
Nmet We VIII 1t accept Christ or reject Himl
where Will it spend eternityla
read OF vessel that foundered Tho
boats were launched; many of the passengers
We're struggling in the water. A mother
with one hand beat the waves and with the
otner hand lifted up her little child toward
the life-boat, crying: "Save my childl save
my chlld! The impassioned out,ry of that
inother Is the prayer OF hundreds of Chris
uan people who sit listening this morning
Wote speak. propose 10 show some of the
.auses OF parental anxiety, aad then how
that anxiety may be alleviated
=, nnd the hrst cause of parental anxiety i'm
the inetficiency and imperfection Of parents
themselves. We have slight hope, all of us,
mat our chiidren may escape our faults We
hide our imperfections, and think they will
steer clear of them. Alas there Ia n moor.
prospect OF that! There is more probability
that they will choose our vices than choos,
our virtues. There is something like sacred
ness in parental imperfections when tho child
looks upon them. Tho folly of the
parents is not so repulsive when the
child looks at il. He saws: "Father
indulges in it; mother indulges in
~; IL can't be so Lnd' Your boy, ten wears
oil age, goes up a back street smoking his ci-
gar-an Old stump that he found in the
street-and a neighbor aCcosts him and saXrs.
What are you doing tn fort What would
your father say il he know itp' The bow
says: 20, father does that himselfn There
Is Is not one OF us this morning that would do
iiberately choose that his children shouId in
all things follow his example, and it Is tlo
CONSCIOUSNESS of imperfection on our part as
parents that makes us most anxious for our
childre1. ''' ''i
We are also distressed on account Of the
unwisdom of our discipline and instruction.
It requires great deal of ingenuity to build
house or fashion ship; but moro Ingenuity
70 build the temple of a child's character,
and launch 10 on the great ocean of time and
eternity. Where there is ono rarent that
seems quelffied for the work, thero seem to
pc twenty parents who miserably fail Here
Is father who says: "My child shall know
nothing but religion: no shall hear nothinr,
but religion; he shall see nothing but religion
The boy is aroused at g o.. lcok in the morning,
to recite the Ten Commandments He *
awakened off the sofa on Sunday night 10 ses
how much he knows of the Westminster Cat-
echism. IL is religion morning. noon and
night Passages OF Scripture arc plastered
on the bedroom wal lac looks for the daV
oi the month In religious almanac. Every
minister that comes TO tho house is told To
take the boy aside and talk e. him. aud
ell him what great sinner he is
Alter while the boy comes TO that
Perioi of life when he is too old
Tor chastisement, and too young to know
and feel the force OF moral princjple
Father aud mother are sitting un for the bow
70 come home. It Is nine o'clock at night.
len oclock-it is twelve o'clock-it is half
past twelve, and they hear the NIGHT kew
Jingle in the door. They say he is coming
George goes very softly through the hall
hol ing to get up stairs before he is accosted
Ihe father says: "George, where have
you beenp "Been outP Yes he has
been out, and he has been down. and he
Is on the broad.roa 20 destruction for this
lie and the life 20 come. Father saws:
mere IS no use in the Ten Conmandmeuts !.
the Catechism seems 60 me TO be an utter
failure" All, my friend, you make n very
great mistake. You stuffed that child with
religion until he could not digest it: Won
made that whi h is JOY in many households
an abhorrenCe in yoursl a man in mid-Iife
said TO me: II can't become n Chris ian. In
my fathers house / got such a pfe .ud co
@Roinst religion doi Z want any Of IT, NV
fatfSer was one Of the best men that ever
Gyed, bat he had such severe notions ab,,u;
things, and he ammei religion down my
throat, until j d1nt want any OF IL, sir
direction 80 '''''
There are households whore mother puIl,
one way ana father yulls the other. Father
eys; NY son, y tod yea the first time ]
caught you IN falsci,oOd would chastiee
you. and now az 8 iny 20 do itr Mother
says: Don't; let him OF This time" In some
families II b all scoling in fretfulness with
1ne I childi from .Monday fuo ming 90 Satur-
day night u Is that style of culture The
boy Is icked at, and picked af, and picke
Of Now you might better give one sound
chastisement aud have done With m than n
indulge in the perpetuol sc1ldHn9 md fretfnl.
ne g. There is mo @ health Ia ono Good fit,n-
derstorm thnn I'm three or four dave ~ roIa
drizzlo
Hero Is parent who SAYS. n win not orr
on the side that parent hnserrcd I'm being too
strict with D s children. n will lof mine do
as they please III they want to com ia H.
prayers, they can; if chev want fo ploV nj
cards { ey an: tLoY can do anyabinp fbov
pleas --thorc shall la 10 hiudr4ufo iioff
Here are tic k.ts tor the oVera and thentre.
son. Ioko our friends with You DO what
ever you desiret' One day n gentloIrau comes
IN from the auE 90 his fathers office, and
says;
They want 70 Sc YOU over Of the hank
minute Father gr g. into the bank Tn
casnier says. IL that your che.km Fafhsr
looks nt ~ aud says: 'No. ne pr gave that
check ] never ,r ss o. in that vvav.
never axe the curl TO " iu that wav II
g noJ my enecK; tnavs forgery. send for
me polceP "Ah," says tho cashier. don't
be 20 quick; your son did thatw The fact
vas that the boy had been out in disspating
ercles, and ten and 6ftv dollars went
IN that direction ora ho had boon
treated and he hal 10 treat otinfa nui tho
Doy teit he must have $50 81 karp hirneo. n
IN that circle. That nioht tho fathor eife ti-,
TOT the son TO come home IL te ofrionr 49,