Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1889-02-16
OUR OWN GENERATION.
SERMON PREACHED BY REV. r.
De WITT TALMAGE Fec. 10.

Had Served It's Own Generation. Fell
Asleep"
BROOKLYN, Feb. iO.-Beforc an audience
gathered from all parts Of the earth the Rev.
T. De Witt Talmasc, d. d., cxpoundcl pas
sagcs Of Scripture descriptive Of stirring
scenes In Davids life. led by organ and
cornct tho multitu,l,s joined in singing:
Time. like an ever rolling stream,
Ecars all It's sons away:
They iiy. forgotten. rs u dream
Dies at the opening day.
The subjcc, Of DR.. Talmage's sermon was
"Our Own Generation" and his text, Acts
xiii. 81: David. after he had served his own
generation. fell asleep"
That il a text which has Tor a long time
been running through my mind, but not I'm.
I'll now has 1t been fully revealed To me- Ser.
mons have b tinic tn he born rs well rs
time to die. u cradle as III as grave Da-
vid, cowboy and stone singer and fighter
AMI car and ,lramatist and blank vcrse
writer and prophet, did his best for the peo-
pie Of his time, and then went and laid down
on the southern hill Of Jerusalem in that
sound slumbcr which nothing but an arch.
angelic blast can startlc. David, after
he had served his own generation. fell
asleep"
II was his own generation that he had
served; that is, the people living a; the time
he lived Aud have you ever thought that
our responsibilities arc chiefly with the poo
pie now walking abreast Of vs. There are
about four generations 10 n ccatury now, but
In ohlen time life was longer AMI there was
perhaps only one generation 10 century.
Taking these facts into calculation, make q
rough GUESS AMI say that there have been at
least one hundred aud eighty generations Of
the human family. With reference To them
We have no responsibility. We cannot teach
them, We cannot correct their mistakes, VIC
cannot soothc their SORROWS. we cannot heal
their wounds. Their scpulchcrs are deaf and
dumb 20 anything We might say TO them.
The last regimen, Of that great army has
passed out Of sight. We nigh; Lalloo a. load
rs We could, not one of them would avert his
head TO scc what We wanted
SHE COULD NOT LEAVE niM OFT.
l admit that am in sympathy with the
child whose father hal suddenly dicVl, and
who In her little evening prayer wanted 10
continue Ia pray Tor her father, although hc
had gone into heaven and no more needed
her prayers ami looking up into her mothers
face. sail: 20. mother, cannot leave him
all out. lat me say. Thank God that had
ago@l father once, No | can keep him in my
prayers" but the one hundred and eighty
generations have passed or Passed up.
Passed down. Gone forever Then there are
generations To come after our earthly exist
ence has ceased, perhaps hundred and
eighty generations more. perhaps Thousand
generations mere. We shall not see them,
We shall not hear any cf their voices, We will
take no part In their conversations. their clcc-
tions, their revolutions, their Catastrophcs,
their triuimp!S We will in ,.o wise affect
the one hundred AMI eighty generations gone,
or the one hundred AMI eighty generations to
come, except e, Irom tie galleries OF heaven
the former generations look down and rejoice
at our victories. az rs We mGy h. our
behavior start influences, good or had,
that shall roll On through the atlvancin. ages
But our business is. ike David. to serve our
own generation, the pcoplc now living, those
now beat. And ,larl; you. i: j. no; silent
procession. but moving. lisa forced march
nj twcniy-fcur mill day, each hour bcing
mile. Goii!:; with that celebrity, il has got
20 b. quick 'crvicc on our part, or no service
nj all. We not only canno: teach tie one
hundred and eight generations past AID will
not SEE the one hundred generations 10 come,
but this generation ROW on the a,acc y i'll soon
be OF and we ourselves will be or with
them. The fact is that you and will have
to start very soon for cur wcr.; or IL will Ln
honical and sarcastic for any one after our
exit 10 say Of Us, Us il was sail u David
in our text, "aitor lie Lad served Ill. own
generation, lc fell aslcsp."
Well. now, L.; US lool. around earnestly,
rsaycrfully and In common sans. way and
SEC what We can 10 for our own generation.
First of all let Us scc TO II that. a. Ear Is We
can, they have enough 10 cat The human
body is ~ constituted tia: i,lrcc Times a day
the body nectls food as much u, li,::p needs
oil, as much rs locomotive needs fuel To
meet this want God has gir,llel the earth
with apple orchards, orange groves, wheat
fields and oceans full % fish ard prairics full
Of cattle And notwithstanding this, will
undertake to say that the vas, majority Of
the human family are suffering either for
lack OF food or the right kind Of food Our
civilization Is all asscw on this tub;cc; and
God only can set IL right.
REMEMBER THE room.
Many Of the greatest estates II today have
been built out Of the blood and bones II I'M
rcquited toll In Sden times, for tie build
ing of forts anu towers, the inhabitants Of
Ispahan had 10 contribute seventy thousand
human skulls and Bagdad ninety thousand
human skulls, nnd tina; number Of people
were slain NJ as 10 furnish the ,.;ullS. But
these two contributions added together made
only one hundred and sixty thousand skulls,
while into the tower Of tho worlds wealth
and pomp and magniilccncc have been
wrought the skeletons OF uncouni,d numbers
Of the half fed populations OF tho earth,
millions Of skulls
Don't sit down at your table with i've or
six courses Of abundant supply AMI think
nothing ~ that family In the mex, street who
would take amy one Of thoso i've c,,ugses b.
tween soup and almond nuts and f,el they
were in heaven The lack Of the right Kind
Of food Is the cause Of much u the drunken.
ness. Afterlrinking what many ~ our groccrs
call coffee, swcc,encd with what many call
sugar, AMI eating what many of Our butchers
call meat, and chewing what many ol our
bakers call bread. many Of the lal.oring
classes feel ~ miserable they ara tempted To
put into their nasty pipes what tLo tobacco-
mist calls tobacco. or 80 into The drinking
saloons for what tho rum seller, call bccr
Good coffee would do much in driving cut
bad rum. Adnltcraiion Ok food hes got 90 10
an evil against which all the health officers,
and all the doctors, and all tho ministers, and
all the rcforIners, and all tho Christians need
TO 81 themselves In battle array How can
We srve our generation with enough 10 eat :
BY sitting down in embroidered slippers and
lounging hack In an arm chair. our mouth