The national leader., 1889-04-06
DIR. TALMAGE'S SERMON.
The Moonlight Ride.

A dead city is more suggestive than
Hvlng clty-past Rome than present
home-rulns rather than newly fres
COED cathedral. But the best time to
vlsit Is by moonlight. The Coliseum
Is Iar more fascinating to the traveller
AIter sundown than before. You may
stand by daylight and the monastic
runs or Melrose Abbey, and study
Snafted oriel, and rosetted stone and
mullion. but they throw their strongest
Wltchery by moonlight. Some of ycu
remember what the enchanter of SEQ,
land said IN the ''Lay of the Last
MINSTREL:
Wouldst thou view fair Melrose Alright.
20 visit it by the pale moonlight
Washington Irving describes the
Andaluslan moonlight upon the Alham.
ora ruins as amounting to the enchant-
ment. My text presents you
JERUSALEM IN RUINS.
Inc tower down. The gates down,
Inc walls, down. Everything down.
Nehemiah on horseback, by moon
ngnt lo~klng upon the ruins. While
ne rides, there are some friends on foot
going with him, for they do not want
the many horses to disturb the suspi-
clons or the people. These people do
not know the secret Of Nehemiah's
heart, but they are going as sort of
DOdy'guard. | hear the clicking hOOfs
or the horse on which Nehemiah rides,
as he guides it this way and that, into
this gate and out of that, winding
through that gate amid the debris of
once great Jerusalem. Now the horse
comes to dead halt at the tumbled
masonry where he cannot pass. Now he
Shies OFF at the cbarred timbers. Now
ne comes along where the water under
the moonlight flashes from the mouth
OF the dragon after which the gate
was named.
Heavy hearted Nehemiah Riding
in and out, now by his old home DESC
lated, now by the defaced temple, now
amid the scars OF the city that bad
gone down under battering.ram and
conhagration. The escorting party
knows not what Nehemiah means. Is
he getting crazy? Have his own per.
sonal sorrows, added to the sorrows
of the nation, unbalanced his intellect?
THE MIDNIGHT EXPLOITATION
goes on. Nehemiah on horseback rides
through the Fish gate, by the tower of
the furnaces, by the Kings pool, by
the Dragon well, in and out, In and
out, until the midnight ride is com.
pleted, and Nehemiah dismounts from
his horse, and to the amazed and con-
founded and incredulous body-guard,
declares the dead secret of his heart
when he says, Come, now, let US
build Jerusalem" 'What, Nehemiah,
have you any money!" "No." "Have
you any kingly authority?" mo"
Yet that midnight moonlight ride of
Nehemiah resulted in the glorious
rebuilding of the city OF Jerusalem.
The people knew not how the thing
was to be done, but with great enthu-
siasm they cried out, "Let us rise up
now and build the cityl" Some people
laughed, and said it could not be done.
Some people were lnfuriate, and of
fered physical violence, saying the
thing should not be done. But the
workmen went right on, standing on
the wall, tTowel IN one hand. sword in
the other. until the work was gloriously
completed. At that very time, in
Greece, Xenophon was writing his
tory. and Plato was making philosophy,
and Demosthenes was rattIing his
rhetorical thunder, but all of them
together did not do so much for the
world as this midnight moonlight ride
of praying, courageous, hOmeslck,
close. mouthed Nehemiah.
NV subject first impresses me with
the idea what an intense thing is
CHURCH AFFECTION.
Seize the bride of that horse and stop
Nehemiah. Why are you risking your
life here in the night? Your horse
will stumble over these ruins and fall
On YOU. Stop this useless exposure of
vonr life. No; Nehemiah will not
Ston He at last tells us the whole
story. He let's US know he was an
ariIe in far distant land, and he was
. servant. a cup-bearer in the palace of
rtaxerxes Longimanus, and one day,
Vile he was handing the cup of wine
RI the king, the king said to him.
ssWhat is the matter with you? You
ora not sick. / know you must have
some @ great trouble. What is the
matter with you?" Then he told the
L;ng how that beloved Jerusalem was
hroEen down; how that his fathers
tomb had been desecrated; how that
THE TEMPLE HAD BEEN DIsHoNoRED
md defaced; how that the walls were
H.tared anu and broken. "Well," says
Eing Artaxerxes, "wbat do you
nsyr go s.Well.'' said the cup-bearer
Nehemiah. 81 want to 60 home. 1
Nen e,t 70 fix ND the grave Of my father.
manS snt to restore the beauty of tie
We mdn 7 want to rebuild the mas
senpoi r1 of the city wall. Besides, 1 want
passports, bass SO that | shall not be i1 hind
sred in my journey. ana besides
nat. nat ,, as you find in the context, 81