The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1888-02-17
TALMAGE'S SERMON.
fifth Discourse Of the Series to the
Women Of America.


i
By Scripture Charscfer-A Writ.
| No No, Fully Underssooti.
Rev. I. Dewitt Talmage preached the
dfth Of the "Series Of Sermons to the
Women Of America, with Important Hinta
to Men," His subject was 1.-THE Vail OF
Nodesty," and his text:
The Queen vashti refused to come.-Esthcr,
Ia
II you will accept my arm will escort
you into q throne room. In this fifth
sermon Of the series Of sermons there are
certain wcmanly excelencies which l
wish to commend, but instead Of putting
them in dry abstraction, present you
their impecsonation in one who seldom,
IL ever, gets sermonic recognition.
We stand amid the palaces of Shust on.
The pinnacles are afiame with the morn
ing light. The columns rise festconeo and
wreathed, the wealth Of empires flashing
from the grooves; the ceilings adorned
with images Of bird and beast, and scenes
of prowess and conquest. The walls are
hung with shields and emb.azoned until
it seems that the whole round OF splen.
doris is exhausted. Each arch is mighty
leap of architectural achievement. Gold.
en- stars, shining down on glowing
arsbesque. Hangings Of embroidered
| work, in which mingle the blueness Of
the sky, the greenness of the grass, and
the whiteness IF the sea foam. Tapes
tries lung on silver rings, wedding to.
gether the pillars of marble. Pavilions
| reaching out in every direction. These
for repose, filed with luxuriant couches,
in which weary limbs sink until all ia.
tigue Is submerged. These for carousal,
where kings drink down kine dom at one
swallow. Amazing spectacle! Light of
silver dripping down over stairs of ivory
on shields of gold. Floors of stained
marble, sunset red and night black, and
inlaid with cleaning pearl. Why, it
seems as if a heavenly vision of anne.
thyst. and jscinth, and topaz, and chrys-
opresus had descended aud alighted upon
Shusbnn.
In another part Of the palace, Queen
Vashti is entertaining the Pr:ncesses Of
Persia at banquet. Drunken Ahasuerus
says to his servants: "Y,u 60 out and
fetch Vashti from the banquet with the
women and bring her to this banquet with
the men, and let her display her beauty"
The servants Immediately started to obey
the Kings command, but there was a
rule in Oriental society that no woman
might appear in public without having
her face vailed. Yet. here was
mandate that no one dare dis
pute, demanding that Vashti come
in unvailed before the multitude.
However. there was in Vashti's soul
principle more regal than Ahasuerus,
more brilliant than the gold of Shushan,
of more wealth than the realm of Persia,
which commanded her to d:sobey this
order of the King; and SO all the right
eousness, and holiness and modesty of
her natures rise up into sublims refusal.
She says: IL will not go into the ban.
quet unvailsd." OF course Ahasuerus
was Infatuated; and Vashti, robbed Of her
position and her estate, is driven forth in
poverty and ruin to suffer the scorn
of a nation and yet to receive
the applause of after gener-
atoms who shall rise up to admire this
martyr to kingly insolence. Well, the
last vestige of that feast is gone; the last
garland has faded; the last arch has
fallen; the last tapkard has been de.
stroyed. and Shushan is a ruin; but as
long az the world stands there will be
multitudes of men and women, familiar
with the Bible, who will come into this pict.
ure gallery Of God aud admire the divine
portrait of Vashti the Queen, Vnshti the
vailed, Vashti the sacrifice, Vashti the
silent.
In the first place, I want you to look
upon Vashti the Queen. A blue ribbon,
rayed with white. drawn around her
forehead, indicated her queenly position.
1. was no small honor to be Queen in such
realm as that. Hark to the rustic of
her rob,si See the b!az, of her jewels!
And yet, my friends, it is not necessary
to have palace and regal robe in order to
be queenlv. When ses a woman with
stout faith in God putting her foot upon
all meanness, and selfshness, and god.
less display. going right forward to serve
Christ and the race by a grand and glori.
Gus service. I say: "That woman is q
queen" AMI the ranks of Heaven look
over the battlements upon the coronation,
and whether she come up from the
shanty on the commons or the
mansion of tho fashionable square,
I greet her with the shout: "An hail!
Queen vashti." What glory was there
on the brow Of Mary Of Scotland, or
Elizabeth Of England, or Margaret OF
France, or Catherine of Russia compared
with the worth Of some OF our Christian
mothers, many of them gone into glory?
--or OF that woman mentioned in the
Scriptures who put her all into the Lords
treasury:-or Of Jephthah's daughter,
~ho made q demonstration of unselfish
,atriotism:-or of Abigail, who rescued
the herds and focks Of her busband:-
or of Ruth, who toiled under a tropical
sun for poor, old. helpless Naomi?-or of
Mrs. Adomrain Judson. who kindled the
lights OF salvation amid the darkness of
Burmab?-or of Mrs. Hemans, who
poured ont her holy s:I in words
which will forever b. associated
with hunters horn. and captive's chair,
and bridal hour, and lutI's throb, and cur.
few's knell at the dying day land scores
and hundreds Of women, unknown on
earth. who have given waterto the thirsty.
and bread to the hungry. and medi.
cine to the sick, aud smiles to the dis.
couraged-their footsteps heard along
dark lane, and in government hospital,
and in alms-house corridor, and by pris-
on gate? There may be no royal robe
there may be no pa,atial surroundings.
She does not need them. for all charita-
bic men will unite With the cracking
lips Of fever.struck hospital and plague
blotched lazaretto in greeting her as she
passed: Hail! hail! Queen Vashti."
Among the queens whom Ihonor are the
female day.school teachers of this land.
put upon their brow the coronet. They
are the sisters and the daughters of our
towns and cities. selected out Of vast
number of applicants, because of their
special intellectual and moral endow.
ments. There are in none Of your homes
women moro worthy. These persons,
some Of them, come out from aff3uent
homes. choosing teaching as useful pro
fession; Others, finding that father is
oldar ian ha ,asad In ba and fha Z his ava.