The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-02-06
A FORTUNE PUT IN PEWS
SOME OF THE FANCY PRICES PAID
AT THE TABERNACLE.

Parts of the House Kept Free So That
the Poorest May Not Be Banished
From the Spiritual Feast -"The Veil
of Modesty" the Subject of Yester-
days Sermon.
BROOKLYN, Feb. 5.-The annual pew let
ting in Brooklyn Tabernacle has just taken
place, and the rental exceeds all previous
years. For the best pews, five, six, seven
and eight hundred dollars were paid. But
parts of the house are kept Free SO that no
one can truthfully say that he cannot attend
church here for lack of means.
If this immense structure were twice as
large it would not contain all who desire to
worship here. By the time the service
begins the streets are blocked with people
going away.
The Rev. 7. Dewitt Talmage, D. D., the
pastor, preached this morning the fifth in
the "SerieS of Sermons to the Women of
America, with Important Hints to Men. "
His subject was "The Veil of Modesty," :"
and his text Esther j. II: "The Queen
VaShti refused to come"
If you will accept my arm I will escort
,
mon of the series of sermons there are GER
tain womanly eXcellencies which | wish to
commend, but instead of putting them in
dry abstraction, | present you their imper-
sonatiOn in one who seldom if ever gets SER
monic recognition.
We stand amid the palaces of Shushan.
The pinnacles are aflame with the morning
light. The columns rise feStooned 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 emblazoned until it seems
that the whole round of splendor is ex-
hausted. Each arch is a mighty leap of ar
chitectural achievement Golden stars,
besque. Hangings of embroidered
work in which mingle the bueness
of the sky, the greenness of the grass, and
the whlteness of the sea foam. Tapestries
hung on silver rings, wedding together the
pillars of marble. Pavilions reaching out
in every direction. These for repose, filled
with luxurian5 couches, in which weary
limbs sink until all fatigue is submerged.
These for carOusal, where kings drink down a
kingdom at one swallow. Amazing spec
tacle! 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
amethyst, and jacinth, and topaz, and
chrysoprasus had descended and alighted
upon Shushan. 1t seems as if a bilow of ce-
lestial glory had dashed clear over heavens
hattlements upon this metropolis of Persia.
In connection with this palace there is a
garden, where the mighty men of foreign
lands are seated at banquet. Under the
spread Of oak, and linden, and acacia, the
tables are arranged The breath of honey
suckle and frankincense fills the air. Foun-
tainS leap up into the light, the spray struck
through with rainbows falling in crystalline
baptism upon Towering shrubs-then roll
ing down through channels of marble and
widening out here and there into pools
swirling with the finny tribes, of foreign
aquariums, bOrdered with scarlet anemo-
MES hyperlcums, and many-colored ranun-
culus Meats of rarest bird and beast smok-
ing up amid wreaths of aromatics The
vases filled with apricOts and almonds.
The baskets piled up with apricots, and
dates, and figs and oranges, and pomegran-
ates. Melons tastefully twined with leaves
of acacia. The bright waters of Eulaeus
filling the urnS, and sweating outside the
rim in flashing beads amid the traceries
Wine from the royal watts of Ispahan and
Shiraz, in bottles of tinged shell, and lily
shaped cups of silver, and flagons and tank
ards of solid gold. The music rises higher,
and the revelry breaks out into wilder
transport, and the wine has flushed the
cheek and touched the brain, and louder
than all other voices are the hiccough of the
inehriates, the gabbe of fools, and the song
of the drunkards.
In another part of the palace Queen
Vashti is entertaining the Princesses of
Persia at a banquet. Drunken Ahasuerus
says to his servants: you go out and fetch
Vashti from that banquet with the women,
and bring her to this banquet with the
men, and let me display her beauty The
servants Immediately start to obey the
Kings command, but there was a rule in
Oriental society that no woman might ap-
pear in public without having her face
veiied. Yet here was mandate chat no
one dare dispute, demanding that Vashti
come in unveiled before the multitude.
However, there was in Vashti's soul prin-
ciple more regal than Ahasuerus, moro
brilliant than the gold of Shushan, of more
wealth than the realm of Persia, which
commanded her TO disobey this order of the
King; and so all the righteousness, and
holiness, and modesty of her nature rises
up into one sublime refusal. She
says: 81 will not go into
the banquet unveiled" OF course
Ahasuerus was infuriate; and Vashti,
robbed of her position and her es-
tate, is driven forth in poverty and ruin to
suffer the scorn of q nation, and yet to re
celVe Jne applause Oh aIUef generations VINO
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
tankard has been destroyed, and Shushan is
ruin; but as long as the world stands
there will be multitudes of men and women
familiar with the Bible, who will come into
this picture gallery Of God and admire the
divine portrait of Vashti the queen, Vashti
the yelled Vashti the sacrifice, Vashti the
silent
In the first place, want you to look upon
Vashti, the Queen. A blue ribbon, rayed
with white, drawn around her forehead in
dicated her queenly position. 1t was no
small honor 10 be queen in such "a realm as
that Hark to the rustic of her robes! See
the blaze of her iewels Aud yet, my
friends, il is not necessary to have palace
and regal robe in order TO be queenly.
When see a woman with stout faith in
God, putting her foot upon all meanness
and selfishness and goddess display, going
right forward to serve Christ and the race
by grand and glorious service, | say:
THAT woman is queen and 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 the fashionable square, l greet her
with the shout: "All haill Queen
Vashti.n What glory was there on the
brow of Mary Of Scotland. or Elizabeth of
England, or Margaret Of France, or Cath
A. Al