Audubon County Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Audubon Co., Iowa) 1885-1894, 1891-08-13


TOPEKA, Kan, Aug. DIR. TalmagC
reached this city yesterday in the
course of his Western trip. He was
warmly welcomed by the citizens who
came in large numbers to hear the
famous Brooklyn divine. The subjec'
of the sermon for this week is: "a
Poor Investment" and the text Isaiah
1913: "Ye have sold yourselves for
naught; and We shall be redeemed
without money"
The Lords people had gone headlong
into sin, and as punishment they had
been carried captive to Babylon. They
found that iniquity di | not pay. Cyrus
seized Babylon. and felt so sorry for
these poor captiyes that, without a
dollar of compensation. he let them go
home. SO that, literally, my text was
fulfilled: "Ye have sold yourselves for
nought; and we shall be redeemed
without money
When a man passes himself over to
the wo Id he expects to get some ade-
quate compensation. He has heard
the great things that the world does
for man, and he believes it. He
wants two hundred and fifty thousand
dollars That will be horses and
houses, and summer resort and
jolly companionship. TO get it he
parts with his physical health by
overwork. He parts with his conscience.
He parts with much domestic enjoy
ment. He parts with opportunities for
literary culture. lie parts with his
soul. And so nc makes over his entire
nature TO the world. He does it in
four installmentS. lie pays down the
first inStallmcnt, and One-fourth of his
nature is gone. lie pays down the
sc .ond installmcnt, and one half of his
nature is gone. lie pays down the
third installment, and three-quarters
of his nature are gone; and after many
years are gone by he pays down the
fourth installmcnt, AID 10! his entire
nature is gone. Then ne comes
up to the world and says ::
Good morning. | have delivered to
you the goods. have passed Ov-r to
you my body, my mind, and my soul
and | have come now to collect the
$50, OOO" "Two hundred and fifty
thousand dollars says the world,
"What do you mean well, you
say, Il come to collect the money you
owe me, and expect you to fulfill your
part of the contract but" says
the world, II have failed. | am
bankrupt. cannot possibly pay that
debt. have not for long while eX-
pected to pay it." "Well," you then
say, give me back the goods" "Oh,
no, says the world, they arc all
gone. | cannot give them back to
you And there you stand on the
confines of eternity, your spiritual
character gone, staggering under the
consideration "that you have sold your
self for nought.
tell you the world is liar; it does
not keep its promises. 1t is cheat,
and it fleeces everything it can put its
hands on. 1t is bogus world. 1t is a
six-thousand-year-ol swindle. Even if
it pays the $3.50, 600 for which you con-
tracted, it pays them IN bonds that will
not be worth anything in little while
Just as man may pay down SO, 900 in
hard cash and get for it worthless
script-so the world passes over to you
the S2j0,O00 n that shape which will
not be worth farthing to you thou
sundth part of second after you are
dead. "Oh,' You say, 1t will help to
bury me anyhow. Oh, my brother,
you need not worry about that. The
world will bury you soon enough from
sanitary considerations.
History tells us of one who resolved
that he would have all his senses graft
fed at one and the same time, and he
expended thousands of dollars on each
sense. He entered room. and there
were the first musicians of the land
pleasing his ear, and there were fine
pictures fascinating his eye, and there
were costly arOmatics RECALLING his nos
tril, and there were the richest meats
and wines, and fruits, and cOnfectiOns,
pleasing the appetite, and there was a
soft couch of sinful indulgence on
which he rcclined: and the man de-
clarcd aflerward that he would give
ten times what n had given if he could
have one week of such enjoyment,
even though he lost his soul by it. All,
that was the rub. lie dId lose his soul
by it! Cyrus the ConquerOr thought
for little while that he was making
fine thing out of this world,
and yet before he came to mis-
grave he wrote out this pitiful cpl
taph for his monument: Il am Cyrus,
| occupied the Persian Empire. ! was
king over Asia. Begrudgc me not this
monument" But the world in after
years plowcd up his scpul:hre.
The world clapped its hands and
stamped its feet in honor of Charles
Lamb: but what does nc say? Il walk
up and down, thinking am happy. but
feeling am not" Call the roll, and be
quick about it, Samuel johnson, the
learned, Happy! No. ! am afraid
shall some day get crazy William
Ilazlitt, the great essayist! Happy.
No. have been for two hours and &
half going up and down Paternostei
| Row with volcano in my breast.
| Smollet, the witty author Happy;
NO. am sick Of praise and blame
and | wish to God that had such cir
cumstanccs around me that | coult
| throw my pen into oblivion.
| Buchanan, the world-renowneC
writer, exilcd from his own country
/ appealing to Henry VIII for prOtec
ton Happy? NO. Over mountains
| covered with snow. and through valleys
! flooded with rain, come q fugitive
/ MOlierc, the popular dramatic author
| Happy? NO. That wretch of an ac
! tor Just now rccited four of my line'
without the proper accent and gesture
To have the children of my brain 81
hung, drawn and chartered, torture
Inc like condemned spirit"
went to see wording die. As
went into the hall / saw its floor wa
tesScllated, and its wall was picture
gallery. | found his dcath-chambel
adorned with tapestry until it seemed a
if the clouds of the setting sun had set
tied in the room. The man had givel
forty years to the world-his wit, hi!
time, his genius. his talent, his soul. Die
the world to come in TO stand by hi
deathbcd. and clearing off the Walls O
bitter medicine, put down any compen
sation? Oh, no! The word does no
like sick and dying people, and leave
them in the lurch. II ruined this man
and then left him. He had magnifi
cent funeral. All the ministers wor
scarfs, and there were forty-three car
ciages in row; but the departed maj
appreciated not the obsequies.
want to persuade my audience tina
this world is a poor investment; tina
It does not pay ninety per cent of sat
tsfaction, nor eighty per cent, no
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