The Portland daily press., 1886-09-28
LESSONS FROM REAL LIFE.
Some Sermons Delivered by Portland
Pastors Sunday.


Sunday morning several of the Portland
pastors preached sermons relating to the de-
falcation of Mr.. Gould, either directly oI
indirectly, and below we publish extracts
from two of them. The following extracts
from those preached by Rev. DR.. Bashford
and Rev. Mr.. Blanchard are given:
THE CAUSE AND CURE OF TEMPTATIONS
IN BUSINESS LIFE"
Extract from a Sermon by Rev. DR..
Bashford.l
But they that desire to be rich fall into tempta
tion and a snare and many foolish and hurtful
lusts, such as drown men in destruction and per.
diti0n. For the love of money is root of all
kinds of evil which some reaching after have
been led astray from the filth, and have pierced
themselves through with many sorrows.-l Tim,
vi, 9-10.
In opening the minister said that his text
was taken from the revised version because
the revised version is more correct The
Bible does not say that the love of money is
the root of all evil. 1t is not the only root of
evil. The Bible, correctly translated, de-
clares the love of money to be one of the
. roots of all kinds Of evil.
: The texeas,ssssaks of temptations. Tempta-
tions come in on bnsiiless life;
I. By adopting the aeortd dssssslas-Ihe text
does not simply warn us against weairh.,, 1t
warns US against the desire for wealth. 1t
does not say that the possession of money is
a root of all kinds of evil. If that were the
language of the text, many OF US might sit
in perfect security this afternoon. We have
not sufficient possessions to expose us to
danger in that line. But the text touches
our aims. 1t tells us that the love of wealth.
tba 1ac for rrio 1ood I1c iOtO tamntQ-
tions and foolish and hurtful lusts. Ii,
therefore, you have no desire for wealth, if
your aim is entirely different the text has
no warning for you. But the poorest person
in the church may have as strong love for
money as the richest, and so may be In equal
need of the warning of the gospel. The real
danger of wealth is that it leads us to aim at
possessions instead of character. Here also
is seen the stupidity of this worlds aim.
Possessions are at best outside of us. They
are something foreign to us. Their very
name is misnomer, for we never really pos
sess houses and lands; we only control them.
Their other name, property, is equally de-
ceitful. The name property implies what is
ones own, what may be regarded as a part
of ones self. Worldly wealth is never prop
erty in this highest sense. We cannot take
it with us when we go hence. These mere
external possessions should at best be only
the means which a soul seeks that 1t may
use them for noble ends. much prefer the
ship when we speak of our relation to these
external things. When we think of wealth
in the light of the Bible we con-
fess an astonishment at the infatuatlon
with which we are all to greater or less de-
gree possessed in regard to mere external
possessions. When consider the real end
of life, wonder that more souls do not cry
with the noble Agassiz: Il have no time 1or
mere money making" Whenever an lmmor-
tai soul makes wealth instead of moral per-
foation hn1inacc Cod -liRQOncc itc Orpat
earthly aim, it falls into fundamental error,
and its lesser choices are certain to be wrong.
"They that desire to be rich fall into temp
tation and a snare, and many foolish and
hurtful lusts, such as drown men in destruc-
tion and perdition."
u.-By adopting the words standard of
living. The expenses of many of our families
are determined not by an income but by the
standard of those around us. 1t is not ad-
visable to wholly ignore the standard Of So
ciety. By the peculiarities in unessentials
he may lose his power to impress upon 9TH
erS principles which are essential to society.
But if our houses and clothing are neat and
appropriate, they may be as plain as our fin
nancial circumstances, demand without los
ing us the respect of the community. Very
many of us, however, have an ambition to
dress more finely and live more sumptuously
than our neighbors. This is a source of I'm
ancial embarrassment, epecially to young
people. We have hundreds in every COM
thus constantly irritated in their family life
by unexpected expenses and tempted to dis
honesty in their business. While some women
are seriously to blame for this, yet in nine
cases out of ten if a husband will unfold his
difficulties to his wife and plan the. ex-
penses with her, she will willingly join him
in the sacrifices necessary to honest living.
1t is easy for all of us to apply these remarks
to persons living in $4,000 houses and hav-
ing servants, carriages, etc. But the re-
MARKS inst q : 1nnIica hla Tn V0nnO npOnIl
who are marrying and trying to live on an
income of 5000 or $1,000.
1t requires sacrifice to begin your family
life whence your fathers and mothers
began instead of whence they left Off But
the first source of independence, of freedom
from worry, of real happiness in home life
is for young people to live within their in
come and keep out of debt. Young people
will be agreeably astonlshed at the added
respect which they will secure from the best
part of the community when they show their
independence of false and ruinouS standard
of expenses. Paul voiced the best expert
ence of the race as well as the divine thought
when he wrote: lowe no man anything,
save to love one another"
III.-By adopting the worlds methods Of
business.
Before considering the temptations which
come to us personally notice two ways in
which we place temptations before our BROTH
ers, by dealing with them in selfish spirit,
instead of in accordance with the golden
rule. We directly tempt our brothers to dis
honesty when we pay them less than we
know to be just wages. If an employe shows
exceptional ability and makes very large
gains for the stockholders, and his ability
and services are recognized by them in trust
ing him with grave responsibilities, they
should also be recognized by just compen-
satiOn His earningsishould be not far below
those of other men who have not half his
responsibilities, and who have not half his
reputation for ability and character. During
a recent hsrse car strike, an arbitrator said
to the directors: considering the hours they
work, these conductors indeed receive small
pay" "The conductors get enough out of
us, one of the directors replied significantly
'We expect some losses to our company by
peculation and lower the salaries according
w." he added. Treating an employe with
injustice because you have the power to do
it tempts him to secure justice by wicked
methods Parents tempt their children to
dishonesty by explosions of anger over faults
which the children confess, and sometimes
over broken articles, torn clothes, or other
losses which are purely accidental on the
children's part Husbands sometimes treat
their wives so meanly that the wife can Sc
cure dollar which she may call her own
only by deceit and indirection. Let us be-
ware of giving weak brothers any excuse for
SHINING by using our power over them sell
fishly and treating them with injustice.
Another way in which we tempt on broth
ers to sin is by not using thoroughly the
guards which the law places over
their integrity. The child at home
or in school, the clerk in the store and the
cashier at a. bank soon learns how carelesSly
we will oversee in the duties he is expect
ed to perform. Alas! how many of us fail in
these responsibilities through lazinesS or
through false, unchristian conception of
kindness to those beneath us. If a man ac-
cepts the position of director or manager
in any business he owes it to those whose
money is intrusted to his watchcare and to
whose integrity he is to vouch for
to be thorough and conscientious in the over
sight of that business. How strange that
government official and directors of bank
wholly theirvery position can demand access
tuition safe year after year when a common
expert will discover Irregularities in few
hours examination. | wish bank examiners
were put under bonds for $4,000 or $780,
900, and were made responsible for losses
which subsequent examination shows that
they failed to discover through carelessness
or collusion. 1t is not remarkable that
Christ took twelve unframed fishermen and
carried them through crisis during which
they at one time expected the Kingdoms OF
this world and at another time did not hope
to escape with their lives with such fidelity
that only one of them became corrupt In
that case Christs fidelity is so signal that
no skeptic has yet dreamed of charging the
foil of Judas to the carelessness of Christ.
Would that as much eonld be said of ali in
authority over others!
Let us pass now to the temptations which
come to ourselves by adopting the worlds