The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1888-07-26
StATAGEM.
JOSHUA CAPTURE OF Al.
Or. TaIugc breaches to the Thir-
teen New York Regiment.

TEXT: Then ne shall rise up from the
ombushid I'd seize upon the city"-Joshua,
viii, ~
Men the Thirteenth Regiment, and their
friendsere gathered, Of all occupations, and
profes,ns. men OF the city and men Of the
fields, ere is a theme fit for all OF us.
OneSabbath evening with my family
arouI me, we were talking over the scene
of thtext. In the wide-open eyes and the
Quic interrogations and the blanched
chees, realized what a thrilling drama IL
was There Is the old city, shorter by name
ths any other city in the ages, spelled with
wat to take IL. How to do IL Is the
qrstion. On former occasion, in
astraightforward, face to face fight
tey had been defeated; but now they are
ping to take it by ambuscade. General
joshua has two divisions i'm his army-the
me division the battle worn commander will
cad himself, the other division he sends Off
10 nCamp in an ambush on the west side of
the city OF All. No torches no lanterns, no
sound Of heavy battalions, but $4,000
speaking only in whisper; no
clicking OF swords against shields,
lest the watchmen of All discover IL, and the
stratagem I've n failure. IL a roystering
soldier in the lsraelitish army forgets him
self, all along the line the word is Hush"
Joshua takes the other division, the ono with
which he is TO march, and puts it on the north
side of the city of Al, and then spends the
night in reconnoitering 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, or
of Meade and Lee the night before Getty
burg. There he stands i'm the night and says
to himself: "Sonder Is the division in am
bush on the west side of Al. Here is the
division have under my especial command
on the north side of All. There is the old city
slumberng in its sin. Tomorrow will be the
battle. Look the morning already begins
to tip the hills. The military officers of All
look out in the morning very early, and
while they do not see the division in ambush,
they behold the other division OF Joshua,
and the cry: ITO armsl To arms!n
rings through all the streets of the
old town, and every sword, whether
brought out. and all the inhabitants Of
the city of All pour through the gates. an in
furiated torrent. and their cry is: Come,
well make quick work with Joshua and his
troops. No sooner had these people OF All
come out against the troops of Joshua than
Joshua gave such IA command as he seldom
gave: Fall back' Why, they could not
believe their own ears is Joshua's courage
failing him.
The retreat is beaten, and the Israelites are
flying, throwing blankets and canteens on
every side under this worse than Bull Run de-
Feat, And you ought to hear the soldiers of
Al cheer and cheer and cheer. But they huzza
too soon. The men lying in ambush are strain
ing their vision to get some signal from
Joshua that they may know what
time to drop upon the city. Joshua takes his
FURNISHED spear, glistening in the snn like
shaft OF doom, and points 10 toward the city;
ana when the men up yonder in the ambush
see II, with hawk like swoop they drop upon
Al, ana without stroke of sword or stab of
spear take the city and put it to the torch.
30 much Tor the division that was in am
bush. How about the division under Joshua's
command No sooner does Joshua stop in
Che hight than all his men stop with him, and
as he wheels they wheel, for in a voice of
thunder he cried: HALT" One strong arm
driving back torrent of flying troops. And,
then, as he points his spear through the
golden light toward that fatal city, his
troops know that they are to start for IL.
w hat scene IL was when the division in am
bush, which had taken the city marched down
against the men of Al on the one side and
the troops under Joshua doubled upon their
enemies from the other side and the men OF
al We're caught between these two hurricanes
or israelltish courage, thrust before and
Dehlnd, stabbed in breast and back ground
between the upper and the neither mllstones
or Gods Indignation. Woe TO the city Of
All Cheer for the triumphs Of Israel
Lesson the first: There Is such n thing as
victorious retreat Joshua's falling back
was the first chapter in his successful besiege-
ment. And there are times in your life when
the best thing you can do is to run. You
We're once the victim of strong drink. The
Toes They came down upon you with greater
fury than the men of All upon the men of
Joshua. Your only safety is to get away
from them. Your dissipating companions
VIII come around you for your overthrow.
Run for your life. Fall back! Fall back
from the drinking saloon. Fal back from
the wine party. Your flight is your advance.
Your retreat is your victory. There is a
saloon down on the next street that
mas almost been the ruin of your
NNaxF IL.
street, Why do you not pass through
some other street rather than by the place of
your calamity A spoonful of brandy taken
Tor medicinal purposes by man who twenty
years before had been reformed from drunk
enness, hurled into inebriety and the grave
one Of the best friends ever had Your re.
treat Is your victory. Here is converted
iniidel. He is so strong now in his
faith in the Gospel he says he
can read anything. What are you
Davis's tracts Tyndall's Glasgow Univers.
ity address! Drop them ami run You will
DO an iniidel before you die unless YOU ouit
that These men OF All will be too much for
you. Turn your back on the rank and file
OF unbelef. Fly before they cut Won with
their swords and transix you with their
javelins. '
I There are people who have been well.niph
ruined because they risked a fool-hardy exps-
dition IN the presence OF mighty and over
made morning meal Of them. So also there
Is such a thing as victorious retreat In the
religious world. Thousands OF times the
kingdom of Christ has seemed
TO fall back. When the blood of
the Scotch Covenanters gave a deeper
dye TO the heather of the Highlands, when
the Vaudois of France chose determination
rather than make an unchristian surrender,
when on st Bartholomew's Day mounted as
sassins rode the streets of Paris crying;
XIII! Blood-letting Is good in August
XIII Death to the Huguenotsl Kill!'
when Lady Jane Grey's head rolled from the
executioner's block, when Calvin was inn
prisoned in the castle, when John Knox died
Tor the truth; when John Bunyan lay rotting
IN Bedford Jail, saying: "lf God will help
me and my physical life continues will stay
mere until the moss grows on my eyebrows
rather than give up my faith" the days OF
retreat for the church were days of victory.
The Pilgrim Fathers fell back from the
other side of the sea to Plymouth Rock, but
now are marshaling continent for the
Christianization OF the world. The Church
OF Christ falling back from Piedmont,
falling back from Rue ST. Jacques, falling
back from St Denis, falling back from
Wurtemburg castles falling back from
the Brussels market place, yet all the
time triumphing. Notwithstanding all
the shocking reverses which the Church OF
Christ suffers, what do we see to-dayi Three