St. Landry democrat., 1888-08-04
TALMAGE'S SERMON.
The Use of Strategy in the Various
Walks of Life.
Ene Victory of Joshua Over the City OF
Al Illustrative of Modern Methods
of Circuniventing and De-
feating the Devil.

Aof1SW1uB sermon TO JQe ln1rJ6enCn feSl
ment, of which he is Chaplain, at Peeks
XIII, N. Y, at the annual encampment o;
che regiment His text was:
Then ye shall rise mp from the ambush, ant
eize upon the city.-Joshua viil z.
Men Of the Thirteenth Regiment, anG
their friends here gathered, of all occu-
pations and professions, men of the city
and mem of the fields, here is theme I'll
for all OF us.
One Sabbath evening, with my family
around me, we were talking over the
scene Of the text. In the wide open eyes
and the quick interrogations and the
blanched cheeks, realized what thrill.
ing drama it was. There is the old city,
shorter by name than any other city in
the ages, spelled with two letters-A, J.
Al. Joshua and his men wanted to take
1t. How to do it is the question. On q
former occasion, in a straightforward,
face to face fight, they had been defeated;
but now they are going to take it by am
buscade. General Joshua has two divi-
sions in his army-the one division the
battle-worn commander will lead him.
self, the other division be sends
off to encamp in an ambush
on the west side of the city of Al No
battalions, but thirty thousand swarthy
warriors moving in silence, speaking
only in whisper; no clicking of swords
against shields, lest the watchmen of Al
discover 1t and tbs stratagem be fail
ure. II FOSTERING soldier in the Israel
itish army forgets himself, all along the
line the word is ''HuShW Joshua takes
the other division, the one with which he
mfg fha cit Ia
OF the city of Al, and then spends the
night In accommodating in the valley.
There he is, thinking over the fortunes of
the coming day, with something of the
feeling of Wellington the night before
Waterloo, or of Meade and Lee the night
before Gettysburg. There he stands in
the night, and says to himself:
ssYonder is the division in ambush 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
slumbering in its sin. Tomorrow will be
the battle. Look! the morning already
begins to tip the hills"
The military officers Of Al 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, TO arms! To arms!" rings
through all the streets Of the old town,
and every sword, whether hacked and
benton newly welded, is brought out, and
ell the inhabitants of the city of All pour
through the gates, an infuriated torrent,
and their cry is: sCome-we'l make
quick work with Joshua and his troopsw
No sooner had these people of All come
out against the troops OF Joshua than
Joshua gave such command as he sell
dom gave: "Fan backw Why, they
could not believe their own ears. Is
Joshua's courage failing him?
The retreat is beaten and the Tsraelites
are flying, throwing blankets and canteens
on every side under this worse than Bull
Run defeat. And you ought to hear the
soldiers of Al cheer, and cheer, and
sheer. But they huzza too soon. The
men lying In ambush are straining their
vision to get some signal from Joshua
that they may know what time to drop
upon the city. Joshua takes his Furnished
spear, glittering in the sun like shaft Of
doom, and points it toward the city, and
when the men up yonder in the ambush
see 1t, with hawk-like swoop they drop
upon Al, and without stroke Of sword or
stab of spear take the city and put it to
the torch. So much for the division that |
was In ambush. How about the division |
under Joshua's command? No sooner does |
Joshua stop in the fight than all his |
men stop with him, and as he wheels they /
wheel, for in a voice Of thunder he cried: |
ssHaltW One strong arm driving back a |
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 it. What |
scene twas when the division in ambush /
which had taken the city, marched down |
against the men Of All on the one side, |
and the troops under Joshua doubled up
their enemies from the other side, and
the men of Al were caught between these
two hurricanes OF Israelitish courage,
thrust before and behind, stabbed In
breast and back, ground between the up
per and neither millstones of Gods indig-
nation. Woe to the city Of All Cheer
for the triumphs of Israeli s
Lesson the first: There is such a thing
as victorious retreat, Joshua's falling
back WAS the first chapter in his success
sul Disagreement And there are times in |
your life when the best thing you oan do
Is to ran. You were once the victim of
strong drink. The dernijohn and the de-
,anter were your fierce foes, They came
iown upon you with greater fury than the i
men of All upon the men Of Joshua. Your
MY safety is to get away from them.
Your dissipatlng companions will come /
ars-nd for your overthrow. Run for your
ifei Fall backl Fall back from the
thinking saloon. Fall back from the
vine party. Your flight is your advanced
Your retreat is your victory. There is a
,aloon dawn on the next street that has
Almost been the ruin Of your soul. Then, T
Why do you go along that street, Why
10 you not pass through 8 some
Dthes street rather than by the place
# your calasnityf A, spoonful Of brandy
aiken for medicinal purposes by man
Who twenty years before had been re-
ormed from drunkenness. hurled into in
,briety and the grave one Of tho best
riends Lever had. Your retraat is your
7ictory; Here is q converted infdel. He
. so strong now in his faith In the Gospel
lie says he can read any thing What are
vou reading2 Bolingbroke? Andrew Jack
ON Davis tracts? Tyndalfs Glasgow
University address? Drop them and run.
You will be an infdel before you die nm
ess you quit that These men Of Al viii
10 too much for you. Turn your back on
he rank and file Of unbelief. Fly before
hey cut you with their swords and trans
IN vou with their iavelins.zltgF g4 t$4