Connecticut western news., 1890-07-16
SHALL WE MEET AGAIN?.
DR. TALMAGE ANSWERS THE GREAT
 QUESTION AFFlRMATNELY.

QUESTION AFFIRMATIVELY.
 The Bible Gives Many Assurances That
 We VIII Know Our Friends in Heaven.
 They Are Waiting for Us on the Other
 Side.
 WAsECA, Minn., July 13.-The Rev. Dr. Talmage, who lectured here yester- day, preached to an enormous outdoor gathering here today. His subject was, Meeting Our Friends in Heaven" The eminent clergyman took for his text II Samuel xii, 23: ''I shall go to him. :" His sermon was as follows:
 There is a very sick child in the abode of David the king. Disease, which stalks up the dark lane of the poor and puts it's smothering hand on lip and nostril of the wan and wasted, also mounts the palace stairs, and bending over the pillow blows into the face of a young prince the frosts of pain and death. Tears are wine to the King of Terrors. Alas for David the king! He can neither sleep nor eat, and lies pros trate on his face, weeping and wailing until the palace rings with the outcry of woe.
 What are courtly attendants or vic- torious armies or conquered provinces under such circumstances? What to any parent is all splendid surrounding when his child is sick2 Seven days have passed on. There in that great house two eyelids are gently closed, two little hands folded, two little feet quiet, one heart still The servants come to bear the tidings to the king, but they cannot make up their minds to tell him, and they stand at the door whis- pering about the matter, and David hears them and he looks up and says to them: 'Is the child deadW "Yes, he is dead" David rouses himself up, washes himself, puts on new apparel, and sits down to food. What power hushed that tempest2 What strength was it that lifted up that king whom grief had dethroneda Oh, it was the thought that he would come again into the pos session of that darling child. No grave digger's spade could hide him. The wintry blasts of death could not put out the bright light. There would be forge somewhere that with silver hammer would weld the broken links. In the city where the hoofs of the pale horse never strike the pavement he would clasp his lost treasure. He wipes away the tears from his eyes, and he clears the choking grief from his throat and exclaims: ''I shall go to him."
 WILL WE MEET AGAIN?
 Was David right or wrong2 If we part on earth will we meet again in the next world2 "Wen," says some one, ''that seems to be an impossibility. Heaven is so large a place we never could find our kindred there. ," Going into some city, without having ap- pointed time and place for meeting, you might wander around for weeks and for months, and perhaps for years, and never see each other; and heaven is vaster than all earthly cities to- gether, and how are you going to find your departed friend in that country? It is so vast realm. John went up on one mountain of inspiration, and he looked off upon the multitude and he said, "Thousands of thousands. |" Then he came unon a greater altitude of inspiration, and looked off upon it again and he said, 'Ten thousand times ten thousand. And then he came on a higher mount of inspiration, and looked off again and he said, "A hundred and forty and four thousand and thousands of thousands" And he came on still greater height of inspi- ration, and he looked off again and ex- claimed, "A great multitude that no man can number"
 Now I ask, how are you going to find your friends in such throng as that2 Is not this idea we have been enter taining after all a falsity9 Is this doc urine of future recognition of friends in heaven a guess, a myth, 8 whim, or is it a granite foundation upon which the soul pierced of all ages may build a glorious hope9 Intense question. Every heart in this audience throbs right into it. There is in every soul here the tomb of at least one dead. Tremendous ques- tion. It makes the lip quiver, and the cheek flush, and the entire nature thrill. Shall we know each other there get letters almost every month ask ing me to discuss this subject. I get a letter in bold, scholarly hand, on gilt edged paper, asking me to discuss this question, and say, 'Ah, that is a curious man, and he wants curious question solved" But I get another letter. It is written with a trembling hand, and on what seems to be tor1. out leaf of book, and here and there is the mark of a tear, and say, "Oh, that is broken heart, and it wants to be comforted."
 IT IS TRUE.
 The object of this sermon is to take this theory out of the region of surmise and speculation into the region of posi- tive certainty. People say: 'It would be very pleasant if that doctrine were true. hope it may be true. Perhaps it is true. I wish it were true" But believe that I can bring an aocumu1a tion of argument to bear upon this mat ter which will prove the doctrine of future recognition as plainly as that there is any heaven at all, and that the kiss of reunion at the celestial gate will be as certain as the dying kiss at the door of the sepulcher.
 Now, when you are going to build a ship you must get the right kind of timber. You lay the keel and make the framework of the very best mate rials, the keelson, stanchions plank shear, counter timber knee, transoms all of solid oak You may build a ship of lighter material, but when the cy