The Forrest City times., 1890-08-09

down ths rod to psrditlon Tho great day at 6afatcEA and Long Branch and Cape May, and nearly all the other watering placos, is the day of the raccs. Tho hotels are throngcd, nearly every kind of equip age is taken up at an almost fabulous price, and thcre arc many respectable people mingling with Jockeys, and gamblers. and libertines, and foul-mouthed men and flushy women. Tho bartender stirs up the brandy smash. Tho bet runs high. The green horns, supposing all is fair, put In their money soon enough to losc it Three weeks before tho racc takes place tho struggle is decided, and the men in tho secret know on which steed to bet their money. The two mon on the horses riding around long bc- fore arranged who shall bc beat
 Leaning from the stand or from the carriage arc mon and women 30 absorbed in tho struggle of bone and muscle and mcttle that they mako . grand harvest for the piclxpockets, who carry of the pocket-books and portemonnaies Men looking on see only two horses with two riders flying around the ring; but there is many man on that stand whose honor and domestic happiness and fortune--white mane, white foot, white hank--are in the ring, racing with inebriety, and with fraud, and with profanity, and with ruin--black neck, black foot, black flank. Neck and neck they go in that morel Epson,
 Another temptation lowering around the watering place Is to the formation of nasty and lifelong alliances. The watering places are responsible for moro of the domestic infelicitles of this country than all tho other things combined. Society Is so arti- hcial there that no sure judgment of char acter can b. formed. Those who form companionships amid such circumstances go iato lottery where there are twenty blanks to one prize. In the severe tug of life you want moro than glitter and splash Lifo is not ballroom where the music decides tho step, and bow and prancc and graceful swing of long trail can make up for strong common sense. You may as well go among the gaily painted yachts of . summer regatta to find war vessels as to 90 among tho light spray of the summer watering place to find character that can stand the test of the great struggle of human life. An, in tho battle of life you want stronger weapon than . lace fan or croquet mallet! The load of life Is so heavy that in order to draw it, you want . team stronger than one made up of . masculine grasshoppcr and feminine butterfly
 If there is any man in the community that excites the contempt of every man and woman, it is the soft-handed, soft headed flop, who, perfumed until the air is actually sick spends hts summer in taking killing attitudes, and waving sentimental adieus, and talking infnitcsimal nothin1s, and finding his heaven In the set of lavender kid glove. Boots as tight as an Inquisition, two hours of consumniate skill exhibited in the tic of a flaming cravat. his conversation made upof 'Ahss' and ..Oh' ST and .sHc-hce's.s It would take five hun drysi of them stewed down to a make . teaspoonful of calves foot jelly There is only the counterpart to such man as that, and that Is the fr,othy young woman Ut the watering place. hcr conversation made up of French moonshine; what she has on her head only caualed by what she has on her back, useless ever since she was born, und to bc useless until she is dead: and what they will do with her in the next world do not know, except 10 set her upon the banks of tho Rivcr of Lifc for all eternity to look sweet God intends Us to admire music and fair faces mud graceful step but amid the heartlcssness and tue imitation nnd the fantastic influences Of our modern watering places beware how you make lifelong covenants.
 Another temptation hovcring ali around our watering. places is the intoxicating boy craze am told that 1t Is becoming more and more fashionable for women h drink I care not how well . woman may sircss. If she has taken enough of wine to flush her check and put giasscs on her eyes, she is tn1xa utxSt Gts~ assl t..,s q, ,50o carriage, and have diamonds enough to confcund the Tifranys~sh Is intoxicat- ea. She may be a graduate of great in. stitute. and the daughter of sotnc man in danger of being nominated for the presid- ency-she Is drunk. You may have larger voeahularly than 1 have, and you may say in rcgard to her that she is s'consisial." or she is merry or she k festive. or she k ''cxhiiarascd,' but you cannot with ail your garlands of verbiagc cover up the plain fact that 1t is an old-fashiouei case of drunk
 Now, the watering.plaecs are full of temptations to men and women to tipple. At the close of the ten-pin or billiard game they tlpplc At the eloso of tho cotillion they fipplc. Seated on the piazza cooling themselves on they iirplc. The tingesi glasses come around with bright stfaws. and they tipplc. First they tske light wines as they call them; but Tight wines" arc heavy enough 10 dehase tho appetite Therc is not a very long road between champagne at five dollars per bottle, and whisky at five cents glass,
 Satan has three or four grades down which he takes mcn to destruction. One man he takes up, and through one sproe pitches him into eternal darkness, That Is . rArc casa Very seldom, indeed. can you tiud man who will be such fool as that.
 When a man goes down to destruction Satan brings him to plane 1t is almost . level The depression k so slight that you can hardly see it Tho man does not actu- ally know that he Is on down grade, and it tips only little toward darkness just q little And the first milo 1t Is clarct, and the second mile it is sherry, and the third mile it Is punch, and the fourth milo 1t is aie. and the iifth mile 1t is porter, and tho sixth mile 1t k brandy, and then 1t gets sleeper and sleeper, and the man gcts frightened and says, ''Oh, let me get offr' '.No, aays tho conductor this Is an cx- press train, and 1t docs not stop until 1t gets to tho Grand Central Depot of Smashup- ton" An, Hook not thou upon tho wine when it is rcd, when 1t giveth its color in tho cup, when 1t moveth itself aright Al the Inst 1t biteth like serpent and stingcth like m sddcr."
 My frienda, whether you tarry at home which will b. quite q sAfe and perhaps quite e comfCrtAble-or 70 Into tho coun- try, arm yourself against temptation. Ths grace of God is the oaiy safe shelter, whether in town or country. There sxe watering plAcaa aCrcsaible to all of us You cannot open . book of tho Bihlc without finding out soma sucA watsrines placs. Fbuntains opea for sin and uncleanllness; weals of salva&ion; streams from Lchanon 1; Hood struck out Of the rock by Afoscs :; fountalns in the wilderness discovored by Hnsar; water to drink and water to bAthe in; The river of God, which h full of wnter; water Of which if man drink hs sAaQ nevsr thlrst; wclls of water h tho vnllov 0f Hncn: Hv3ne fnunt tnlna If ,ernfer. !.