Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1888-07-23
USES OF STRATAGEM.
CHAPLAIN TALMAGB breaches 10 HIS
REGIMENT IN CAMP.
The Uses Of Staagsm-HOw Joshua Took the Pso-
pie Of E-Ths Retreat Of the Visa
Victorious Defeat - The Battle for
the Church TO Fight
Special Ttleoram TO the Reoistr.

7. Dewitt Talmage preached to-day Il
the Thirteenth Regiment of the New Yorl
State National Guards, now encampet
here. The regiment assembled at 3 p. m.
when people from the neighboring coun
try, towns and cities were present in i'm
mense numbers. A military band con
Quoted the musical part Of the service
Chaplain Talmsge's sermon, which was OF
uses of Stratagem," was based OF
Joshua, Ch. 8, VI: Then ye shall ris'
mp from the ambush, and seize upon th'
city," He said:
"Men of the Thirteenth Regiment, ani
thSir friends here gathered, of all occupa
tions, and professions, men of the city ant
men of the fields, here is theme fit for al
of us.
One Sabbath evening, with my family
around me, we were talking over the seen,
of the text. In the wide open eyes ant
the quick interrogations and the blanchet
cheeks, l realized what a thrilling drams
it was. There is the old city, shorter by
name than any other city in the age
spelled with two letters -Ai-Ai. Joshus
and his men went to take it. How to dc
it is the question. On former occasion
in a straightforward, face to face fight
they had been defeated; but now they are
going to take it by smbuscade.. Gen
Joshua has two divisions in his army
the one division the battle-worn com
mander will lead himself, the other di'
vision he sends off to encamp in an am
bush on the west side OF the city of Al.
No torches, no lanterns, no sound of heavy
battalions, but 1000 swarthy warriors
moving in silence, speaking only in whis
per; no clicking of swords against shields
lest the watchmen of Al discover it and
the stratagem be a failure. If royster-
ing soldier in the Israelitish army forgets
himself, all along the line the word is
Hush" Joshua takes the other division
the one with which he is to march, and
puts it ou the north side of the city of Al,
and then spends the night in reconnoiter.
ing in the valley. There he is, thinking
over the fortunes of the coming day, with
something of the feelings of Wellington the
night before Waterloo, E of Meade and
Lee the night before Gettysburg There
he stands in the night, and says to himself
"Yonder ia
THE DIVISION IN AMBUSH
on the west side of Al. Here is the divi
sion have under my especial control on
the north side of Al. There is the ole
city slumbering in it's sin. Tomorrow
will be the battle. Look! the morning
already begins to tip the bills. The mill
tary officers of Al look out in the mornin.
very early, and while they do not see tn;
division in ambush, they behold the othe
division of Joshua, and the cry, ITO arms
To arms" rings through all the streets o
the old town, and every sword, whethe
hacked and bent or newly welded, il
brought ont, and all the inhabitants o
the city of Al pour through the gates, ar
infnriatei torrent, and their cry is: Come
we'll make quick work with Joshua ant
his troops" No sooner had these peopl,
of All come out against the troops of Joshua
than Joshua gave such command as b,
seldom gave. Fall back" Why, they
could not believe their own ears. Il
Joshua's courage failing him?
The retreat is beaten, and the Israelite
are flying, throwing blankets and csnteen
on every side under this worse than Bul
Run defeat. And you ought to hear tn,
soldiers of All cheer and cheer and cheer
But athey huzza too soon. The mel
lying in ambush are straining their vision
to get some signal from Joshua that they
may know what time to drop upon tn,
city. Joshua takes his FURNISHED spear
glittering in the sun like a shaft Of doom
and points it toward the city; and whel
the men up yonder in the ambush see it
with hawk-like swoop they drop upon Al
and without stroke of sword or stab o
spear take the city and put it to the torch
So much for the division that was in am
bush. How about the division unde
Joshua's commando No sooner doe
Joshua stop in the fight than all his mel
stop with him, and as he wheels the,
wheel, for in goice of thunde
he cried, "Haltw One strong arm
| DRIVING BACK A TORRENT
of flying troops. And then, az he point
his spear through the golden light towsrt
that fatal city, his troops know that the,
are to start for it. What scene it wa
when the division in ambush which hn'
taken the city marched down against tn
men of Al on the one side, and the troop
under Joshua doubled up their enemie
from the other side, and the men OF A
were caught between these two hurricane
of Israelitish courage, thrust before an
behind, stabbed in breast and back
ground between the upper and the nethe
millstone's of Gods indigustion Woe h
the city Of Al! Cheer for the triumphs O
Israel!
Lesson the first There is such thin,
az victorious retreat. Joshus's fsllin
back was the first chapter in his success
full besiegement. And there are times il
your life when the best thing you can d
is to run. The demijohn and the decante
were your fierce foes. They came dow
upon you with greater fury than the me
of Al upon the men of Joshua. You
only safety is to get away from them
Your dissipating companions will com
around you for your overthrow. Run 70
your life! Fall back Fall back fror
the drinking saloons. Fall back from tn
wine party. Your flight is your sdvance
Your retreat is your victory.
But there is more marked ILLUSTRATION
Of victorious retreat in the life of on
Joshua, the Jesus of the ages. First fall
ing back from an appalling height to a
appalling depth, falling from celestial hill
to terrestrial valleys, from throne I
manger; yet that did not seem to sufic
Him as q retreat. Falling back stil
further from Bethlehem to Nazareth, fror
Nazareth to Jerusalem, hack from Jerusa
lem to Gnlgotha, back from Golgotha I
the msusoleum in the rock, back dow
over the precipices Of perdition until II
walked amid the caverns of the eterns
captives and drank of the wine Of tn
wrath of Almighty God amid the Ahab
aud the Jezsbels and the Belshazzars.
men Of the pulpit and men Of the pew
Christ's
DESCENT FROM HEAyKS
to earth does not measure half the dis
tance- 1t was from glory to perditior
He descended into hell. All the record
of earthly retreat are as nothing compare
with this falling back. Santa Anna, wit
L a - Il 4 d. H.. ID.