The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1889-09-18


whom there comes the sudden swoop OF
temptation lest they perish, becoming cast
aways, castaways!
By talking with sea captains have found
out that some vessels come to this calamity
through sheer recklessness. There are
three million men who follow the sea for a
living 1t is a simple fact that the average
Of human life on the sea is twelve years.
This comes from the fact that men by IA
miliarity with danger sometimes become
reckless-the captain, the helmsman, the
stoker, the man on the lookout, become reck-
less, and in nine out Of ten shIpwrecks 1t IS
found that some one was awfully to blame.
SO have to tell you that men are morally
shipwrecked through sheer recklessness.
There are thousands who do not care where
they are in spiritual things. They do not
know which way they are sailing, and the
sea is black with piratical hulks that would
grapple them with hook Of steel and blind
fold them, and make them "walk the plank. ]"
They do not know what the next moment
may bring forth. Drifting in their theol-
ogv. Drifting in their habits. Drifting In
regard to all their future. No God, no
Christ. no settled anticipation Of eternal fe-
licity, but all the time coming nearer and
nearer to dangerous coast. Some Of them
are on fire with evil habit, and they shall
burn on the sea, the charred hulk tossed up
on the barren beach. Many Of them with
great troubles, financial troubles, domestic
troubles, social troubles; but they never
pray for comfort. With an aggravatlon OF
sin they pray for pardon. They do not steer
for the lightship that dances in gladness at
the mouth of Heavens harbor; reckless
as to where they come out, drifting
further from God, further from early reilS-
ious influences, further from happiness;
and what is the worst thing about it is, they
are taking their families along with them,
and the way one goes, the probability Is
they will all go. Yet no anxiety. As uncca-
scious Of danger as the passengers aboard the
Arctic one moment before the Vesta crashed
into her. Wrapped up in the business OF
the store, not remembering that soon they
must Quit ali their earthly possessions.
Absorbed in their social position, not know
ing that very soon they will have attended
the last levee and whirled in the last schot-
tische They do not deliberately choose to
be ruined; neither did the French frigate
Medusa aim for the Argpin banks, but there
It went to pieces. wish could wake you
up. The perils are so augmented, you Will
die Just as certainly as you sit there unless
you bestir yourself. Are you willing to be-
come castawaye You throw out 10 oar
You take no surroundings. You watch no
compass. You are not calculating your
bearings while the wind is abaft, and yon-
der is long line of foam bounding the
horizon, and you will be pushed on toward
it. and thousands have perished there, and
YOU are driving in the same direc-
ton. Ready about! Down helm! Hard
down! Man the life boat! Pull, my
lads, pull! ''He that being often
reproved har6eneth his neck, shall be sud
denly destroyed and that without remedy"
But some of you are saying within your
selves What shall do!'' Dos Doc Why,
my brother, DO what any ship does when IN
trouble. Lift a distress signal. On the sea
there is a fash and boom. You listen and
YOU look. A vessel is in trouble. The dis
tress gun is sounded, or rocket IS sent up,
or blanket is lifted, or bundle OF rags
anything to catch the eye Of passing
craft. So if you want to be taken OH
the wreck of your sin, you must lift
distress signal. The publican lifted
the distress signal when he cried: "God,
be merciful to me, sinuerw Peter lifted
the distress signal when he said: Lord,
save me, perishr' The blind man lifted
the distress signal when he said: "Lord,
that my eyes may be opened" The iailer
lifted the distress signal when he said:
"What mus: do to be savedw And help
will never come to your soul until you lift
some signal. You must make some demon
stration, give some sign; make some Heaven
piercing outcry for help, lifting the distress
signal for the church's prayer, lifting the
distress signal for Heavens pardon. Pray !
PRAY! The voice Of the Lord now sounds in
YOUR ears: '.In Me is thy nelp." Too proud
to raise such signal, too proud to be saved.
There was an old sailor humping about
in small boat in tempest. The larger
vessel had gone down. He felt he must die.
The surf was breaking over the boat, and
he said: II took off my life belt that 1t
might soon be over, and thought somewhat
indistinctly about my friends on shore, and
then bid them good bye like, and was
about sinking back and giving it up when l
saw bright star. The clouds were break,
ing away, and there that blessed star shone
down on me, and it seemed to take right
hold of me; aud some how, can not tell how
it was, but somehow, while was trying to
watch that star, it seemed to help me and
seemed to lift me-" o, sinking soul, see
YOU not the glimmer between the riffs OF
the storm cloud! That is the star Of hope.
Deathstruck, ceased the tide 70 stem,
When suddenly a star arose,
Irwas the star Of Bethlehem.
II there are any here who consider them
selves castaways, let me say God IS doing
every thing to save you. Did You ever
hear of Lione Luken! He was the inventor
of the insubmergible life boat. All honor
is due to his memory by searfaring men, as
well as by landsmen. How many lives he
saved by his invention! In after days that
invention was improved, and one day there
was a perfect life boat, the Northumber-
land, ready at Ramsgate. The life boat
being ready, to test it the crew came out
and leape6 on the gunwale on one side to
seeif the boat would upset; 1t was lmpos-
sible to upset it. Then. amid the huzzas OF
excited thousands, that boat was launched,
and it has gone and come, picking up a
great many of the shipwceckcd. But |
have to tell you now of grander launching,
and from the dry docks Of Heaven. Word
came up that q world was beating On the
rocks Ia the presence of she potentates OF
Heaven the life boat Of the worlds redemp-
ton was ~launched 1t showed off the
golden sands amid angelic hosannas. The
surges of darkness beat against its bow,
brt it sailed on. and it comes in sight OF Us
tn Is hour 1t comes for you, it comes for
M! Soull SOUL get into it. Make one
leap for Heaven. Let that boat 60 past and
your opportunity is gone
am expecting that there win be whole
families here who will set into that life
boat. In 1888 the Isabel came ashore oh
Hastings, England. The air was f led with
sounds-the hoarse sea trumpet, the crash
of the axes, and the believing OF the tor
uado. A boat from the shore came uncer
the stern of the disabled vessel. Ihere
were women and children on board that YES
sci. Some of the sailors jumped into the
,nolj hoat and said. tSNow give US the