The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1889-08-29
TALMAGE'S SERMON.
The Weekly Discourse of the Great
Brooklyn Preacher
subject; "DrunI<enHcss the
Nations Curse" Preached
ui HlcIcuu. M0nsana.l

TEXT: WHO slco all these T'-II Kings
T., 10.
SEQ long row of baskets coming up To-
ward the palace Of King Jehu. am some
what inquistive TO find out what is in tho
baskets look in and l find the CORY heads
arrive at the gate Of tho palace, the heads are
thrown into two heaps, one on either side the
cate In the morning the King comes out,
and he looks upon the bleeding, CHASTITY
heads Of tho massacrod Princes. Looking on
either side the gate, he cries out with ring
ing emphasis: "Who slew all theseY'
We have, my friends, lived to see q more
taking your timo in trying to give you sta
ilstics about the devastation and ruin and
death which strong drink has wrought in
this country. Statistics do not seem TO mean
anything, We are so hardened under these
statistics that the fact that fifty thousand
more men are slain or fifiy thousand less
men are slain, seems 70 make no positive i'm
preston on the public mind. Suffice IL to
say, that intemperancc has sla II an in
of Gods royal family; and at the gate of
every neighborhood their are two heaps of
tho slain; and at the door Of the household
there are two heaps Of the slain; and at the
door of the legislative han there are two
heaps Of the slain; aud at the door of the
university there are two heaps of the slain;
and at the gate Of this nation there arc two
heaps OF the slain When I look upon
the dcsolation ] nm almost fran
tic with the scene, while
cry out: "Who slew all thesefn can answer
that question in half minute. The minis
tiers of Christ who have given no warning,
the courts Of law that have offered the licen-
sure, the women who give strong drink on
How Years day, the fathers aud mothers
W O Ii W. IlItn m ha thnh .,,,I
OF thousands of Christian man and women in
tho land who are stolid in their indifference
on this subject-they slew all these!
propose in this discourse to tell you what
| think are the sorrows and tho doom of the
drunkard, so that you to whom speak may
not come TO torment
Some one says; You had better let those
subjects alone" Why, my brethren, we
would be glad to let thom alone if they would
let US alone; but when ! have in my pocket
now four requests saying; Pray for my hus-
band, pray Tor my son, pray for my brother
pray for my friend, who is the captive of
strong drink, reply, we are ready to let
that question alone when it is willing to let us
alone; but when it stands blocking up tho
way to heaven, and keeping multitudes away
from Christ and heaven, dare not be silent.
lest the Lord require their blood at nv
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 ludcrous There was some
thing very grotesque in the gait of drunk
ard. 1t is not so now; for saw in one of the
streets Of Philadelphia sight that changed
the whole subject to me- There was young
man being led home. He was very much in.
to1icated-he was raving with intoxica-
tlon. Two young men were leading
him along. The boys hooted in the
street, men laughed, women sneered;
but l happened to be very near the door
whore he went init was the door of his
mothers house. l SAW him go up stairs. 1
heard him shouting, hooting and blasphem-
ing. He had lost his hat, and the merri-
ment increased with the mob until he came
to the door, and as the door was opened his
mother came out. Whom I heard her cry
that took all the comedy out of the scene,
Since that time whom | see man walking
through the street. reelng, the comedy is all
gone, and it is tragedy of tears and groans
and heartbreaks. Never make any fun
around me about the grotesqueness of a
drunkard. Alas for his home
The first suffering of the drunkard is in
the loss of his good name God has so ar
ranged 1t that no man ever loses his good
name except through his own act. Ali the
hatred of men and all the assaults of devils
cannot destroy mans good name if he
really maintains his integrity. If man is
industrious and pure and Christian, God
looks after him. Although he may be bonn
barded for twenty or thirty years, his integ-
rlty Is never lost and his good name is never
sacrificed. No force on earth or in hell
can capture such a Gibraltar. But when it
is said of man, HE drinks and it can
be proved, then what employer wants
him for workman? what store wants him
for clerk? what church wants him for q
member? who will trust hims what dying
man would appoint him his executor? He
may have been forty years in building up
recommendation the backing up of business
firms, brilliant ancestry cannot save him.
The world SHES Off Why? 1t is whispered
all through the community, HE drinks he
drinks" That blasts him When a man loses
his reputation for sobriety he might as well be
at the bottom of the sea. There are men
here who have their good name as their only
capital. You are now achieving your owr
livelihood; under God by your own right
arm. Now look out that there is no donb
Of your sobriety. Do not create any SUI
picion By going in and out of immoral place
or by any odor Of your breath, OF by az
glare OF your eye, or by any unnatural flu
of Your check You cannot afford to do il
| for your good name is your only capital, an
when that is blasted with the reputation 0
taking strong drink, all is gone.
Another loss which the inebrate suffers i
that of self respect. just as soon as mai
wakes up and find that he is the captive o
strong drink he feels demeaned. l do no
care how reckless he acts He may say, IS
don't care;n he does care. He cannot look
pure man in the eye unless it is with positiv
force of resolution. Three-fourths of his natur
is destroyed; his self respect gone; he say
things he would not otherwise say; he doc
things he would not otherwise do. When
man is nine-tenths gone with strong drint
the first thing he wants to do is to persuadeyo
that he can stop any time he wants to-. ID
cannot The Philistines have bound him han
and foot, and shorn his locks and put out h
eyes, and are making him grind in the mill {
a great horror. He cannot stop. will pro,
it. He knows that his course is bringing di
grace and ruin upon himself. He loves hin
self If he could stop he would. He know
his course is bringing ruin upon his famil,
He loves them. He would stop if he coul'
He cannot. Perhaps he could three montl
or a year ago; not now. just ask him
stop for month. He cannot; he knows
cannot, so he does not try. l had frierl
who for fifteen years was going down undo
this evil habit. He had large means. He ha
given thousands of dollars 60 Bible societi,
and reformatory institutions of all sort
lie was very genial and very gene
GUS and very lovablc, and whenever he talke
about this evil habit he would say: II ca
stop any time.n But he kept going on, goin
on. down. down. down. His family woul
say: Il wish you would stop why"
would reply, II can stop any time if wa,
to-" After a while he had delirium tremen
he had it twice; and yet after that he sail
Il could stop ut any time if l wanted to
He is dead now. What killed him? Run
Ruml And yet among his last utterancs
was: II can stop C. any time" He did M
stop it, because he could not stop it. Oh
there is point in inebriation beyond whicl
II a man goes he cannot stop!
One of these victims said to Christia
man: "Sir, if were told that couldn
get a drink until tomorrow night III
less l had all my fingers cut off I woul
say: Bring the Ratchet and cut thel
off now.'n l have dear friend in Phil;
delphia, whose nephew came to him one day
and when he was exhorted about his CIV
habit, said: "Uncle, I can't give it up
If there stood cannon, and it was loaded
and glass of wine sat on the mouth O
that cannon, and l knew that you woul
fire it off just as l came up and too
the glass, would start, for l must hav
it." Oh, it is a sad thing for a man :
wake up in this life snd feel that b
is a captive He says: II could have got ri
of this once, but I can't now. l might hav
lived an hosorable life and died {
Christian death; but there is no hope for m
I