Sharp County record., 1888-04-26
TALMAGES SERTUy.
4 HomiIy on the Perniciou5 Ha0I' Oh
Profane Speaking.
e,,snbemv and Profanity and How II
o-i,.ir,+ed and How it Grows-Dl-
inc Punfsbments-IIOw the HaDiE
May be Overcome

rvn Tabernacle the habit Oh clE'--7 d--''
swearing. His text was:
so went Satan forth from the presence OF tnc
Lord. and smote job with sore DolLs lton 'H1
sore NJ his foot unto the crown. Ana ne 1ooH
him q notsherd to scrape himself WlthaI' anu
no sat down among the ashes. Then sald MS
wife unfo him: Dost thou still retain Jn.ue .H
tegrirvs Curse God and die.-Book Oh Jou' A''
:, and Q.
A story Oriental and marvellous. JOB was
the richest man in all the East. de hau
cameIs and oxen and asses and sheep,anu'
what would have made him rich without
anv thing else, seven sons and three
daughters. It was the habit OF these cA-I-
dran TO gather together for family reunion
One day Job is thinking OF his cn--uEeu as
gathered together at a banquet aC me
elder brothers house.
While the old man is seated at his tent
door he sees some one running, eVloenLy'
from his manner, bringing bad news
What is the matter now? "Oh," says the
messenger "a fOraging party OF SaDFala
have fallen upon the oxen and the asses
and destroyed them, and butcnered all
the servants except myself"
Stand aside. Another messenger run
ming. What is the matter now.
oh" says the man, "the lightning mas
struck the sheep and the shepherds, and
all the shepherds are destroyed except
mvself.o Stand aside. Another messen-
ger running. What is the matter now:
"gh.r he SAYS, "the ChaIdeans have
captured the camels, and slain all the
camel drivers, except myself" stand
aside. Another messenger running
What is the matter now?
"Oh." he says, "a hurricane struck the
four corners Of the tent where your chill
dren were assembled at the banquet, and
chey are all dead"
But the chapter Of calamity has not
ended. Job was smitten with elephana-
asis. or black Ieprosy. TumOrs from head
to ofoot.foreheadrid ridged with tubercles,eye-
lashes fall out, nostrils excoriated, voice
DESTROYED. intOlerable exhalatiOns from
the entire body, until, with none to dress
his sores. he sits down in the ashes with
nothing but pieces Of pottery to use IN the
surgery Of his wounds. At this moment,
when he needed all encouragement, and
all consolation, his wife comes IN, IN q
fret and a rage, and says:
This is intolerable. Our property gone,
our children slain, and now you covered
I'D with this Ioathsome and disgusting dis
ease. Why don't you swear? Curse God
and die"
All, Job knew right well that swearing
would not cure one Of the tumors OF his
agonized body, would not bring back one
of his destroyed camels, would not re-
store one Of his dead children. He knew
that profanity would only make the pair
more unbearable, and the poverty more
distressing, and the bereavement more
axcruciating. But, Judging from the pro
family abroad in our day, you might come
to the conclusion that there was some
great advantage to be reaped from pro
family.
Bla jphemy is all abroad. You hear itir
every direction. The drayman swearing
1t his cart, the sewing girl imprecatin9
the tangled skein, the accountant curs1nG
the long line Of troublesome figures
Swearing at the store, swearing in the
loft. swearing in the cellar, swearing II
the street, swearing in the factory. Chill
dren swear. Men swear. Women swear
Swearing from the rough calling on the
Almighty in the low restaurant clear "
to the reckless "Oh, Lord" Of glitterlnt
drawing-room; and the one is as muct
blasphemy as the other.
There are times when we must cry Ou
to the Lord by reason Of our phTslca
aronv or our mental distress, and that l!
only throwing out our weak hand TOWARD
the strong arm Of a father. 1t was no pro
family when James A. Garfield, 5hotln tht
Washington depot, cried out: My God
what does this mean" There is no pro
family in calling out upon God in the da.
IF troubles, in the day Of darkness, in tn,
day Of physical anguish, in the day OF be
reavement; but am speaking now OF III
trivialitv and Of the reckIessness will
which the name of God is sometimes man
aged. The whole land is cursed with it.
A gentleman coming from the far Wes
sat in the car day after day behind tw,
persons who were indulging in profani
tv. and he made up his mindh would max
a record Of their profanities, and at tn
end of two days several sheets Of pape
were filed with these imprecations, an
at the end Of the journey he handed the pa
per to one Of the persons in front OF him
sIs it possible" said the man, that W
have uttered so many prOfanities the las
few days."
'It is, replied the gentleman.
ssThen." said the man who had takel
the manuscript, 81 will never swea
again"
But it is a comparatively unimportan
thing if a man makes record OF our i'm
proprieties Of speech. The more memor
able consideration is that every imprope
word, every oath uttered, has record Il
the book Of Gods remembrance, and tha
the day will come when all our crimes o
speech. if unrepented Of, will be our con
demnation. l shall not to-day deal in alb
stractions. hate distractions am go
ing to have plain talk with you, m
brother. about habit that you admit t
be wrong.
The habit grows in the community in tn
fact that young people think it manly t
swear. Little children, hardly able to wal
straight on the street, yet have enoug
distinctness of utterance to let you know
that they are damning their own souls, o
damning the souls Of others. 1t is al
awful thing the first time the little feet ar
lifted to have them set down on the burn
ing pavement Of hell!
Between sixteen and twenty years o
age there is apt to come a time when
young man is as much ashamed or no
heinr able TO swear gracefnllY as he is o