Dodge City times. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1876-1892, 1888-02-09
TALMAGES SERMON.
Fourth Sermon of the Series to the
Women Of America.

| YOUTH 00CmOU OF the 00I108 70 tu6
Women Of America.
The "Dominlon Of Fashion" and Its Sway
Over It's Votaries-Dfess tho index
OfNational and Individual Morale
-Some Sharp Hints.
Rsv. /: Dewitt falmage In the fourth
Of til. series OF Sermons to the Women
| of America, with Important Hints to
Men," Took for his subject the "Domini-
on of Fashion" His text was from
Deuteronomy xii, 5:
The woman shall not wear that which per-
| taineth uhtd . man, neither shall . man put
6n woman's garments: for all that do SO are
abomination unto the Lord thy God.
DR.. Talmage said: In this, tho fourth
sermon of the series of sermons. wish
those who hear TO bear in mind that take
into consideration not only those whom
have before me on Sabbath days, but the
| wider audienc opened through theprinting
press; and while some things may not be
| particularly appropriate for one locality,
they are appropriate for many other
| localities. And here / will tell secret
| that have never before told in public.
| About twenty years ago began to pray
that God would open to me- the oppor-
tunity of preaching through the secular
| newspaper press. The religious papers in
| which my sermons had been publ lshed
chiefly went to positively religious fami.
lies. So 1 asked God for the wider field in
which to proclaim the great truths OF re-
ligion and good morals. In a strange
way the answer came. And the syndic.
ates having charge of these matters in.
form me that every week there are now
18 100000 copies OF my discourses pub
lished in this country, and about 4, OJO 700
in other lands, whether English speaking
countries or by translation in many for =
eign tongues. l want people to under-
etand that it is all in answer to prayer to
God that this opportunity has come, and
pray for grace to occupy the field. 1t is
not, therefore. presumptu ous when give
wide scoops to these discourses and ad-
dress them ''to the women of America,
with important hints to men,"
God thought womanly attire of enough
Importance to have it discussed in the
B BILE. Paul the apostle, by no means
sentimentalist, and &C customed to dwell
on the great themes of God and the rssur.
rection, writes about the arrangement of
woman's hair and the style of her jew.
elry, and in my text Moses, his ear yet
filed with the thunder of Mount Sinai,
declares that womanly attire must be
in marked contrast with mas culine
attire, and infraction of that law
excites the indignation of high
Heaven. just in proportion as
the morals of a country or any age are
depressed is that law defied. Show me
the fashion plates Of any century from
the time Of the deluge to this and I will
tell you the exact state of public morals.
Bloomerism in this country We ars
ago seemed about to break down this DE-
vine law, but there was enough of good
in American society to beat back the in.
docency. Yet ever and anon we have inn
ported from France, or perhaps invented
on this side the sea, style that proposes
as far as possible to make women dress
like men, and thousands of young women
catch the mode, until some one goes
little too far in imitation of masculinity,
and the whole custom, by the good sense
of American womanhood, is obliterated.
The costumes of the coun tries are diff
ferent, and in the same country may
change, but there is divinely ordered
dissimilarity which must be forever OBJ
served. Any divergence from this is I'D.
illustrative of vice, and runs against the
keen thrust of the text which says:
The woman shall not wear that which per-
taineth unto man, neither shall man put on a
woman's garments, for all that do SO are abom-
nation unto the Lord, thy God.
Many years ago French authoress,
signing herself George Sand, by her cor.
rupt but brilliant writings depraved homes
and libraries innumerable, and wasa liter.
airy grandmother of all the present French
and American authors who have written
things so much worse that they have
made her putrefaction quite presentable.
That French authoress put on masculine
attire. She was consistent. Her writings
and her behavior were perfectly accord.
ant.
My text by implication, abhors mascu-
line women and womenly men. What a
sickening thing it is to see a man copying
the speech, the walk, the manner of a
woman. The trouble is, that they do not
initiate sens ible woman, but some
female imbecile. And they shipper; and
they 60 with mincing step, and lisp,
and scream at nothing, and take on
languishing look, and bang their hair, and
are the nauseation of honest folks of both
sexes. O. man, be a man! You belong
20 quite respectable sex. The starting
figure Of the human race was a man. Do
not try to cross over, and SO become q
hybrid, neither one nor the other, but .
failure, halfway between.
Alike repugnant are masculine women.
They copy . mans stalking gait and go
down the street with the stride Of
waking beam. They wish they could
smoke cigarettes, and some OF them do
They talk boisterously and try to sing
bass. They do not laugh, they roar.
They can not quite manage the broad
profanity of the sex they rival, but their
conversation is often q half-swear, and
If they said 20 Lord" in earnest pra yer
as often as they said it in lightness, they
would be high up in sainthood.
In my text, as by parable or figure Of
speech, it is made evident that Moses, the
inspired writer, as vehemently as our
selves, reprehended the efeminate man
and the masculine woman:
The woman shall not wear that which per
taineth unto . man, neither shall man put ON
. womau's garments; for all that do so are
abomination unto the Lord thy God
My text also sanctions fashions. In.
deed, it sets . fashion. There is great
deal Of senseless cant on the subject Of
fashion. A woman or man who does not
regard it is unfit for good neighborhood.
The only question is, what is right fashion
and what is wrong fashion. Before I stop
want to show you that fashion has been |
one of tho most potent Of rafermers and one |
of the vilest of usurpers. Sometimes it has |
been IN angel from Heaven, and at others |
it has been tho mother of denominations. |
As the world grows better there will be a. |