Sharp County record., 1888-02-23
TALMAGES SERMON.
Fourth Sermon Of the Series 70 the
Women Of America.
Tho "Domininn OF Fashion" AMI rs sway
Over Its -aries-Dras- the Index
ofNlrionaI auJ Iudjvi lUal Morale
Some sharp HAT.

Rev. T Dewitt TaImage In the fourth
of the series of Sermons TO the Women
OF America. with Imp 1--aI5 Hints TO
Men, Took for his subject -aa "D7miu1-
on Of Fashion His text was rom
Deuteronomy xii, >:
The woman shall I0E wear that WHICH per-
taiueth INTO N m. neither shall q ma1 pIL
on q v0mgus garments. for a-l that 10 50 1te
ab0mnatt0u into the Lord thy God.
DR.. TaLmaze sad: In this. the fourth
sermon Of the series Of sermons, 1 wish
those VINO hear TO bear in mind that 1 take
into consideration not only those whom I
have before me On Sabbath days, but the
wider audienC opened through the printing
rrass. and while some things may not be
DarticuIarIv appropriate for one locality,
thew are appropriate for many other
localities And here I viii tell secret
that 7 have never before toll in public.
About twenty years ago I began to pray
that God would open to me- the opp0r'
tunitT Of preaching through the secular
newsnaDer press. The religious papers In
which nv sermons had been pub. Isned
chiefly went TO post .vsIv religious famI-
lies. So Lasked God FOR the wider field IN
which to proclaim the great truths Of re-
Hgf0n and GOOD morals In strange
vav the answer cam. AMI the svndIc'
ares having charge Of these matters IN
form me that every week there are now
Is 100000 copies Of nv ttsc1urses pub
HsLed in this country, and about +,OhJJJ
in other Iands. wdsrhar EugI.sh-speakng
countries or bv translation in many for
ei-u tongues. [ want people TO UNDER
stand that it is all In answer to prayer 10
God that this opportunity has come, and
pray for grace to occupy the field. Is
not. therefore. DrssunYtu0us whaI I give
wide scoDa 10 these disc5Tses and adj
dress them $50 the women ot America,
with important hints to men,
God thought vomanIr attire OF enough
importance TO have i- discussed IN the
B bic. Paul the apostle, by no means
sentimentalist, and accustomed to dwell
on the great themes OF God and the resur'
recton, writes about the arrangement OF
voman'5 hair and the style Of her Jew
eIrv, and in nv text Moses, his ear vet
filed with the thunder of Mount Sinai,
declares
in marked contrast with masculine
attire, and infractlon Of that law
excites the Indignation Of high
Heaven. Just N proportion as
the morals Of a country or any age are
dapressed IS that law deied. Show me
the fashion plates Of any century from
the time Of the leugs to this and l will
tell you the exact state of public morals.
BIoomerism in this country years
ago seemed about to break down this d
vine law. but there was enough of good
in American society TO beat back the in
dsceucy. Yet ever and anon we have i'm
ported from France, or perhaps invented
on this side the sea, a style that proposes
as far as DOss ible TO make women dress
ike 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 ObliteraCed.
The costumes of the countries are diff
fereut, and in the same country may
cnange. but there is a diviney ordered
dissimilarity which must be forever OBJ
served. ANY divergence from this is adj
minisra5ive 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 4
woman garments. for all that 10 so are abOm-
nation unto the Lord, thy God.
Many years ago a French authoress,
sim ing herself George Sand, BY her cor
ruDt but brilliant writings depra7ed homes
and libraries innumerabIe, and wasa liter
arv grandmother Of all the present French
and American authors who have written
things so much worse that they have
made her putrefaction quite presentab,e.
That French authora75 put on masculine
attire She was consistent. Her writings
and her behavior were perfectly acCord-
ant.
Nv text by implication, abhOr5 mascu-
line women and wOmenIy men. What
sickening thing it is 10 see a man copying
the speech, tue walk, the manner Of
woman. The trouble is that they do not
initiate a sensible woman, but some
female imbscile. And they simper, and
they 20 with mincjng step, and lisp,
and scream at nothing and take on
Ian-uishIng look, and bang their hair, and
are the nausaation Of honest 70 k Of both
sexes. O. man, be man! You belong
TO quite a respectable sex. The starting
figure of the human race was a man. Do
not try TO cross over, and so become a
hybrid, neither one nor the other, but
failure, halfway between.
Alike repugnaut are masculine women.
They copy a mans stalking gait and 90
down the street with the stride Of a
waking beam. Thew wish they could
smoke cigarettes, ald some of them do.
Thev talk bOisteroUsiy 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 a ha.f-5vear, and
if they said 80 L1rd' in earnest pra yer
as often as they said tin ligh5ness, they
would be high up in SainrhO1d.
In my text, a. by parable or figure Of
speech, is made e7id mt that Moses, the
inspired writer, a. vehementiy as our
selves. reprehended the effeminate man
and the masculine woman:
The woman shall not wear that which per.
taineth unto a man. neither shall q man put on
a w0maus garments; for all that do so are
sbomination unto the Lord thy God.
nv text also sanctions fashions. In
deed, it sets a fashion. There is a great
deal Of sen5eIess cant on the subject of
fashion. \ woman Or man who does not
regard It is unfit for good neignb0rhood.
The only question is, what is right fashion
and what is wrong fashion, Before I stop