The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1886-08-09

gelic innocence looking down upon such
moral precipitation. You had better get
down on your knees and first pray AL
mighty God for their rescue, ana next
thank the Lord that you have not been
thrown under the wheels of that jugger-
naut.
In Great Britain and in the United
States, in every generation, there are tens
of thousands Of persons who are fully de.
veloped criminals and incarcerated.
say in every generation. Then, ! sup
pose, there are tens of thousands of
persons not found out in their Grim.
inality. In addition to these there
are tens of thousands of persons who, not
positively becoming criminals, neverthe.
less have criminal tendency. Amy one
of all those thousands by the grace of God
may become Christian, and resist the an
cestral infiu ence, and open new chapter
of behavior; but the vast majority of
them will not, and it becomes all men,
professional, unprofessional, ministers OF
religion, judges of courts, philanthropists
and Christian workers, to recognize the
fact that there are these Atlantic and
Pacific surges of hereditary evil rolling on
through the centuries.
Isay. of course, man can resist this
tendency, Just as in the ancestral line
mentioned in the first chapter of Matthew.
You see in the same line in which there
was a wicked Reho hoam and desperate
Manassas, there afterward came pious
Joseph and glorious Christ. But, my
friends, you must recognize the fact that
these influences go on from generation to
generation. am glad to know, however,
that river which has produced nothing
but miasma for one hundred miles, may
after awhile turn the wheels of factories
sDd help to support industrious and virtu-
GUS populations; and there are family
LINES which were poisoned that are bene.
dicton now. At the last day it will be
found out that there are men who have
gone clear over into all forms of inquity
and plunged into other abandonment, who
before they yielded to the first temptation
resisted more evil than many man who
has been moral and upright all his life.
Again, have to remark that in our esti-
mate of the misdoings of people who have
fallen from high responsibility and useful.
ness, we must take into consideration the
conjunction of circumstances. In nine
cases out of ten the man who goes astray
does not intend any positive wrong. He
has trust funds. He risks part of these
fuudc in In tNnU IL
should lose that investment have my
own property, five times as much, and if
this investment should 60 wrong l could
easily make it up; could five times make
it up" With that wrong reasoning he
goes on and makes the investment, and it
does not turn out quite so we'll as he ex-
pected, and he makes another invest
meNt, and strange to say at the time all
his other affairs get entangled, and all his
other resources fail, and his hands are
tied. Now he wants to extricate himself.
He goes little farther on in the wrong
investment. He takes a plunge further
ahead, for he wants to save his wife and
children; he wants to save his home; he
wants to save his membership in the
church. He takes one more plunge and
all Is lost. Some morning at ten O'Clock
the bank door is not opened, and there Is
a card on the door signed by an officer of
the bank, indicating there is trouble, and
the name of the defaulter Oh the defrauder
heads the newspaper column.
Under these conditions hundreds Of men
say, "Good for him;" hundreds of other
men say: "I'm glad he's found out at
last" hundreds of other men say: "Just
as told you;" hundreds Of other men
say, 1--WE couldn't possibly have been
tempted-no conjunction Of circumstances
could ever have thrown mes" and there Is
superabundance Of indignation, but no
pity. The heavens full of lightning, but
not one drop of dew. II God treated US as
society treats that man we would all have
been in hell long agol Wait for the
alleviating circumstances. Perhaps he
may have been the dupe of others. Before
you let all the hounds out from their
ennels to maui and tear that man, find out
If he has not been brought up in com.
mercial establishment where there was a
wrong system of ethics taught; find out
whether that man has not ali extravagant
wife, who is not satisfied with his honest
earnings, and in temptation to please her
he has gone into that ruin into which
enough men have fallen, and by the same
temptation, to make procession Of many
miles. Perhaps some sudden sickness may
have touched his brain and his judgment
may be unbalanced. He is wrong; he Is
awfully wrong, and he must be condemn.
ed, but there may be mitigating circum-
stances. Perhaps under the same tempta.
ton you might have fallen.
You deaantly say: ~ could not be
tempted in that way" Perhaps you may
be tested after awhile. God has a very
| good memory, and he sometimes seems to
say: "This man feels so strong in his in.
nate power and goodness he shall be
tested; he is so full of bitter invective
against that unfortunate it shall be shown
now whether he has the power to stand"
Fifteen years 60 by. The wheel of for.
tune turns several times, and you are in a
crisis that you never could have antici.
pated. Now, all the powers Of darkness
come around, and they chuckle, and they
chatter, and they say: saba here Is the
old fellow who was so proud of his integ.
rity, and who Dragged he couldn't be
overthrown by temptation, and was so up.
roarious in his demonstrations Of indigna-
ton at the defalcation fifteen years ago.
Let Us see." God let's the man 60. God,
who has kept that man under His protect.
ing care, lets the man 20, and try for him
self the majesty Of his integrity. God
letting the man 60, the powers of dark.
ness pounce upon him.
see you some day In your Office in
great excitem emit. One Of two things you
can do. Be honest, and be pauperised