The Opelousas courier., 1890-07-19

because the religion OF Christ paid no respect
70 their intellectual vanfties. Blount and
Boyle and the host Of infidels Matched out by
the vile reign Of Charles H., as reptiles crawl
out of a marsh of slime, could not keep their
patience because. as they passed along, there
were sitting in the gate Of Tie Church such
faen as Matthew and Mark, and Luke, and
John, who would not bend an inch in respect
to their rhilss5phiess
Satan told our first parents that they
would become as gods if they would only
reach up and take a taste or the frulG.
They tried it and failed. but their descend
ants afe n6t yet satisfsd With the expert
ment. We hay now many desiring to be
as gods, reaching UP after yet another
apple. Human reason, s~cornful of Gods
word, may foam and strut with the proud:
wrath Of a Hannah, and attempt to compel
the aonage of the good, but in the preseaca
d mon and angels it shall be COMPOUNDED,
God shall stnite thee thou Whtted wall"
'Vaea science began 60 make its Brilliant
discoveries there were great facts ~brouga56o
ignt that sesmed to overthrow the trash
IF tas Bible. The archasolog ist with his
| crowDar and the geologist with his nam
ner, and the chemist with his batteries
:aarged upon the Bible. Moses account OF
he creation seemed denied by the very
Gructure of tnS earth. The astronomer
Yl6Si6u FOulQ his b1lGScOp0 uuUA buo bcnsCA"
2 bodies seemed to marshal themselves
:,gainst the Bible, as the stars in their courses
.ougat against Sisera. Observatories and
universities rejoiced at what they considered
5ne extinction of Christianity. They gath
red new courage at what they considered
1ast victory, and pressed on their conquest
INTO the kingdom Of nature, until, alas. for
them! they discovered too much. Gods
gord had only been lying in ambush that,
IA some unguarded moment, with a sudden
bound, it might tear inhdelity to pieces.
1t was when Joshua attacked the city ct
Al. He selected thirty thousand men, and
concealed most Of them; then with a few
! men he assailed the city, which poured out
its numbers and strength upon Joshua's lit
lie band. According to previous plan they
.ell back in seeming defeat, but, after all the
proud inhabitants Of the city had been
brought out of their homes, and had joined
n the pursuit of Joshua, suddenly that brave
nan halted in his fight, and With his spear
pointing toward the city, thirty thousand
men bounded from the thickets as panthers
spring to their prey, and the pur
suers were dashed to pieces, while
the hosts of Joshua pressed up to the
into flame. Thus it was that the discoveries
of science seemed to give temporary victory
| against God and the Bible, and for a while
the church acted as if she were on a retreat;
but, when all the opposers of God and truth
J had Joined in the pursuit. and were sure OF
/ the field, Christ gave the signal to His
! church, and, turning, they drove back their
| foes in shame. There was found TO be no
antagonism between nature n revelation.
The universe and the Bible were found to be
the work Of the same hand, two strokes OF
the same pen, their authorship the sans
God.
Again: Learn the lesson that pride goes
before a fall. Wa any man ever 80 far up
as Hannah, who tumbled SO far down?
Yes, ON a smaller scale every day the world
sees the same thing. Against their very
advantages men trip into desHncbion.
When God humbles proud men, it IS usu-
ally at the moment of their greatest AFRO
gancy. If there be q man in your COM
munity greatly pulled up with worldly
success. YOU have but to stand a little
while and you will SEQ him come down.
You say, / wonder that God allows that
man to on riding over others heads
There is no wonder about it. Hannah has
not vet got to the top. Pride is a COM
mander. well plumed and caparisoned, but
it leads forth a dark and frowning host.
We have the best of authority for saying
that pride goeth before destruction, and
a naughty spirit before a fall" the arrows
from the Almighty's culver are apt to strike
a man when on the wing. Goliath shakes
his great spear in defiance, but the small
stones from the brook Etah make him stag
ger and fall like an OK under the butchers
bludgeon. He who is down cannot fall.
Vessels ~scudding under bare poles do not
feel the force of the storm, but those with all
sails set capsize at the sudden descent OF the
tempest.
Again: This oriental tale reminds us Of
the fact that wrongs we prepare for others
return upon ourselves. b gallows that
Haman built for Mordecai became the pri ne
minister's strangulation. Ro6esplerre, vac
sent SO many to guiltotins, had his ova head
chopped off by that horrid instrument. The
evil you practice on others will recoll upon
yoar oW4l pate. ISLANDERS come home. Up
prsssions come home. Cruelties come home.
You will vet De a lackey walking beside tle
very charger on which you expected to ride
others down. When Charles l., VINO had
DESTROYED STAFFORD. was about to be be-
headed. ne said: II basaiv ra5iisd an unjust
sentence, ami tae similar injustice | an nos
to undergo is a sensible retribution fos tue
punishment 1 inflicted IN an innocent man
Lord Jefries, after incarcerabing many
innocen5 and good psople in London
tower. was himself imprisoned IL the sans
nIaca. where the shades of those whom hs
had m~altreated seemed to haunt him SO that
he kept CRYING to his attendants: "Xesp then
off. aentlemen! for Gods sake, keep then
off5 Tbs chickens had come home to roost,
The body OF Bradshaw. the English judge
who had been ruthless and cruel in his de
cisions, was taken from his splendid tom II
Westminster Abbey, aud at Tyburn hume OF
j gallows from morning until night In tn
presence of jesring rnultitudes, Haaaan'
ga4Inws came a little late. but they came
OPPORTUNITIES fly in a straight line, and JUS
touch us as they pass from eternity to e6sf
nifty. but the wrongs we do others fly II a cir
Gle. and however the circle may widen out
they are sure to come back TO the point from
which they started. There are guns tina
kick!
Furthermore, LET the story OF Harna
teach lis how quickly turns the wheel o
fortune. One day. excepting the King
Haman was the mighties6 man IN Persia
but the e day. a lackey. So we 60 up
and so we come down. You seldom fin
any man twenty years in the same c.rea1
twenty years aga wers the most pra1nifaait
how few remain in conspicuity. P9iisica
parties make certain men do their lart
work, and then, after using than a
hacks, turn them out on the commons to lie
Every four years there is a comols5e r3F III.
ton. and about fvethousa1d men " u 81 I'd
certainly to be the next President ara SIT ne
fully disappointed; while soma, WI sdal
are obscure and poverty-stricxea, VII rid
upon the shoulders Of the people, and tax
their turn at admiration and thu s.1a1s 81
Office. Oh, how quickly the waee TINS
Ballot boxes are the steps on While i III / IN,
down as often as taay 20 up. o. tl1s. rat
were long ago succassfulin the acou II ss.o.
of property, now few nave not met Wit re
verses! while many of those va. sae
were s~traightaned in circumstance loy