The Kinsley graphic. [volume] (Kinsley, Kan.) 1890-1940, 1890-08-29
A SOFT ANSWER.
DR.. Talmage Discourses on the
Power Of Kindness.
How Old Disputes May BE Easily Ended
Kind words Always Ensetive-The
Christians Weapon-The Sa-
viour's Wondrous Grace.

~ As Christ intended. would have saved
the church and the world from infinite
discord and sorrow-the power of kind
ness His text was: "a soft tongue
breaketh the bone" Proverbs, XIV. Is.
Following is his sermon:
When Solomon said this he drove
whole volume into one phrase. You, of
course. will not be so silly as to take
the words of the text in a literal sense.
They simgly mean to set forth the fact
that there is a tremendous power in
kind word Although it may seem to
be very insignificant its force is in
describable and illimitable- Pungent
and all conquering utterance: "a soft
tongue breal1eth the bone"
II the weather were not so hot and 1
had time, / would show you kindness as
a means of defense; kindness as a means
of usefulness; kindness as means Of
domestic harmony; kindness as best
employed by governments for the tam
ing and curing OF criminals; and kind
ness as best adapted for the settling and
adjusting of international quarrels; but
shall call your attention only to two
of these thoughts
And first 1 speak to you of kindness
rs q means of defense. Almost every
man in the course of his life is set upon
and assaulted. Your motives are mis-
interpreted or your religious or political
principles are bombarded What to do
under such circumstances is the ques-
ton The first impulse of the natural
heart says: Strike back Give as much
as he sent Trip him into the ditch
which he dug for your feetl Cash him
with as severe n wound as that which he
inflicted on your soul Shot for shot.
Sarcasm for sarcasm An eye for an
eye. A tooth for n tooth" But the
better spirit in the mans soul rises up
and says: ''You ought TO reconsider
that matter" You look upinto the face
OF Christ and say: "My Master, how
ought / to act under these difficult cir
cumstances?' And Christ instantly an
swers: ''Bless them that curse you, and
pray for them which despitefully use
you"
Then the old nature rises up again
and says: "You had better not forgive
until first you have chastised him. You
will never get him in tight corner
again. You will never have such an
opportunity of infiIcting the right kind
OF punishment upon him again. First
chastise him and then let him go. "
mo" says the better nature, "hush,
thou foul heart Try the soft tongue
that breaketh tho bone" Have you
over in all your life known acerbity and
acrimonious dispute to settle 4 quarrelf
Did they not always make matters
worse, and worse and worse?
Many years ago there was great
quarrel in tho Presbyterian family.
Ministers of Christ were thought ortho-
dox in proportion as they had measured
lances with other clergymen of the
same denomination. The most outra
geous personalities were abroad AS, in
the autumn, a hunter comes home with
n string of game. cartridges and wild
ducks, slung over his shoulder, so there
were many ministers who came back
from the ecclesiastical courts with long
strings of doctors of divinity whom they
had shot with their own rifle. The di
vision became wider, the luminosity
greater, until after awhile some good
men resolved upon another tack. They
began to explain away the difficulties
they began to forgive each others fault,
and lol the great church quarrel was
settled, and the New School Presbyte.
terrain Church became one. The differ
emit parts of the Presbyterian order
welded by hammer, little hammer,
Christion hammer that the Scripture
calls "soft tongue"
You have dispute with your neigh
Dor. You say to him: ~ despise you.
He replies: 81 can't bear the sight o
you" You say to him: Never ente
hArga - 10
come on my door sill, I'll kick you of.
You say TO him: ''Pll put you down.
He says to you: "You are mistaken
RACES; and year after year you act tn
christian part.
After awhile the better spirit seize
you, and one day you go over to you
neighbor, and say: Give me your hand
We have fought long enough. Time
so short and eternity is so near, tina
we can not afford any longer to quar-
rel. feel you have wrongcd me YER
much; but let us settle all now in on
great hand shaking, and be good friend
for all the rest OF our lives" You hav
risen TO higher platform than that o
which before you stood You win hi
admiration. and you get his apology
But IL you have not conquered him D
that way, at any rate you have won tn
applause of your own conscience, tn
high estimation of good men. and tn
honor of your Lord who died for Hi
armed enemies.
But" you say, what are we TO d
when ISLANDERS assault us, and Their
come acrimonious sayings all aroun
about us, and we arc abused and spi
upon?" My reply is: Do not go and al
tempt to chase down the SANDERS Lie
are prolific, and while you are KILN
one fifty are born. All your demonstra
tons of Indignation only exhaust your
self You might as we'll, on some sun
mer night when the swarms of insect
are coming up from the meadows an
disturbing you and disturbing you
family. bring up some great SWAN
angel" like that which Numbered owe
Charleston, and try to shoot them down
The game is too small for the gun.
But what then, are you TO do wit
the abuses that come upon you in life
You are to live item down. i saw
farmer GO out to get back swarm O
bees that had wandered of from tn
hive. AS he moved amid them the
buzzed around his head. and buZzel
around his hands. and buzzed aroun
his feet II no had killed one of ther
they would have stung him to death
But he moved in their midst in perfec
placidity until he hal captured tn
swarm of wandering bees And so
have seen men moving am d the annoy
ances. and the vexat ons and the assault
of life in such calm. Christian delibera
ton that all tho buzzing around abou
their soul amounted TO nothing. The
conquered, and above all they conquere
themselves