The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1889-08-21
TALMAGE IN THE FAR WEST.
THE BROOKLYN DIVINE AT HELENA
A Thrilling Sermon on the Curse Of
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES Thousands
of the Princes, Gods Royal Fam
lily, Slain by Rum.


his text: "Who Slew All These PHI
Kings, X, Lobe preached a powerful dis
course on Drunkenness, the Nations
Curse" He said:
I see a long row of baskets coming up
toward the palace of King Jehu. l am
somewhat inquisitive to find out what Is
in the baskets. look in and find the
CORY heads of seventy slain princes. As
the baskets arrive at the gate of the palace
the heads are thrown into two heaps, one
on either side the gate. In the morning
the king comes out and he looks upon the
bleeding, CHASTITY heads OF the massacred
princes Looking on either side the gate
he cries out with ringing emphasis;
''Who slew all these?"
We have, my friends lived to see amore
fearful massacre. There is no use OF my
taking your time in trying to give you sta
tistics about the devastation and ruin and
the death which strong drink has wrought
in this country. Statistics do not seem to
mean ANYTHING. We are so hardened un-
der these statistics that the fact that $4,000
more men are slain or $4,000 less men are
slain seems to make no positive impression
on the public men. Suffice it to say that
iptemperance has slain an innumerable
company OF princes-the children of Gods
royal family; and at the gate of every
neighborhood there are two heaps OF the
slain and at the door of the household
there are two heaps of the slain; and at
the door Of the legislative hall there are
two heaps of the slain; and at the door OF
the university there are two heaps of the
slain; and at the gate of this nation there
are two heaps OF the slain. When 1 look
upon the desolation l am almost frantic
with the scene, while l cry out, "Who
slew all these?" 1 can answer that ques-
ton in half minute. The ministers of
Christ who have given no warming, the
courts of law that have offered the licens-
ure, the women who give strong drink on
New Years day, the fathers and mothers
who have rum on the sideboard, the hun
dreds of thousands of Christian men and
women in the land who are stolid in their
indifference on this subject-they slew all
these
I propose in this discourse to tell you
what / think are the sorrows and the
doom of the drunkard, so that you TO
whom speak may not come to the tor
ment.
Some one saws: "You had better let
those subjects alone" Why, my breth-
rem, we would be glad to let them alone If
they would let us alone; but when have
in my pocket now four requests saying
"Pray for my husband, pray for my son,
pray for my brother, pray for my friend,
who is the captive of strong drink | re-
ply, we are ready to let that question alone
when it is willing TO let US alone; but
when il stands blocking up the way to
heaven, and keeping multitudes away
from Christ and heaven, dare not be 81
lent, lest the Lord require their blood at
my hands.
think the subject has been kept back
very much by the merriment people
make over those slain by strong drink.
used to be very merry over these things,
having a keen sense of the ludicrous.
There was something very grotesque in
the gait of drunkard. IL is not so now;
for / saw in one OF the streets of Philadel-
phia a sight that changed the whole sub
iect 10 me. There was n young man being
led home. He was very much intoxicated
he was raving with intoxication. Two
young men were leading him along. The
BOYS hooted in the street, men laughed,
women sneered; but l happened TO be
very utdI TIC uDbA Mntib lt WNnb I'LL
was the door Of his fathers house saw
him 90 upstairs. / heard him shouting,
hooting, and blaspheming. lie had lost
bis hat, and the merriment increased with
the mob until he came up 10 the door, and
az the door was opened his mother came
out. When heard her cry that took all
the comedy away from the scene. Since
that time when | see a man walking
through the street, Keeling, the comedy is
all gone and il is n tragedy OF tears and
groans and heart-breaks. Never make
any fun around me about the grotesquc-
ness OF drunkard. Alas for his home
One OF these victims said 10 Christian
man "Sir, il were told that couldn'tget
drink until tomorrow night unless had
all my fingers cut of would say Bring
the Ratchet and cut them off now" /
have n dear friend in Philadelphia whose
nephew came 20 him one day, and when
he was exhorted about his evil habit said,
"Uncle, | can't give IL up. II there stood n
cannon and il was loaded, and glass of
wine sat on the mouth OF that cannon and
knew that you would fire il off just as
came up and took the glass | would start,
for / must have it," oh, il is n sad thing
for a man 10 wake up in this life and feel
that he is n captive. He says: 81 could
have got rid OF this once, but can't now.
might have lived an honorable life and
died a Christian death, but there is no
hope for me now; there is no escape for
me. Dead. but not buried. ] am walk
ing corpse. / am an apparition Of what
once was. / am Gagged immortal beating
against the wires OF my cage in this direc-
ton and in that direction, beating against
the cage until there is blood on the wires
and blood upon my SOUL vet not able to
get out. Destroyed without remedy
go further and say that the inebriate
suffers from the loss OF his usefulness. Do
you not recognize the fact that many of
those who are now captiyes OF strong
drink only little while ago were fore
most in the churches and in reformatory
institutions? Do you not know that
sometimes they knelt in the family circle?
DO you not know that they prayed in pub
lie, and some OF them carried around the
holy wine on sacramental days2 Oh, yes,
they stood in the very front rank, but
they gradually fell away. And now what
do you suppose is the feeling of such a
man that, when be thinks of his dishon-
ored vows and the dishonored sacrament
when he thinks of what he might have
been and of what he is now2 Do such
men laugh and seem very merry2 All,
there is, down in the depths of their soul,
very heavy weight Do not wonder
that they sometimes see strange things
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