The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1891-04-08
REV. DR.. TALMAGE.
THE BROOKLYN DIVINE'S SUN
DAY SERMON.
Subject: "Baleful Amusements."

TEXT: "Let the young men now aris.
and play before us."-II Samuel, H., IA.
There are two armies encamped by the
J pool of Gibeon. The time hangs heavily on
! their hands. One army proposes game OF
sword fencing. Nothing could be more
healthful and innocent. The other army ac-
cepts the challenge. Twelve men against
twelve men, the sport opens. But something
went adversely. Perhaps one of the swords
men got an unlucky clip, or in some way had
his ire aroused. and that which opened in
| sportfulness ended in violence, each one TAX
ing his contestant by the hair, and then with
the sword thrusting him in the side, so that
| that which opened in innocent fun ended in
the massacre of oil the twenty-four sports
! men. Was there ever a better illustration
Of what was true then, and is true now, that
that which is innocent may be made de-
| structive?
What Of a worldly nature is more i'm
portant and strengthening and innocent than
amusement and yet what has counted more
victims? Ihave no sympathy with straight
jacket religion. This is a very bright world
to me, and propose to do all can to make
it bright for others.
never could keep step to dead march,
A book years ago issued says that Chris
tian man has right to some amusements.
For instance, if he comes home at night
weary from his work, aud feeling in need Of
recreation, puts on his slippers and goes into
his garret and walks lively round the floor
several times there can be no harm in it, l
believe the church of God has made a tre-
mendous mistake in trying to suppress the
5portfulness Of youth and drive oat from
men their love Of amusement. If God ever
implanted anything in us he implanted this
desire.
But instead of providing for this demand
Of our nature, the church Of God has, for the
main part, ignored it. As in riot, the
mayor plants battery at the end Of the
street, and has it fired off 80 that everything
Is cut down that happens to stand In the
range, the good as well as the bad, SO there
teries Of condemnation and fire away indis-
criminately. Everything is condemned.
But my Bible commends those who use the
world without abusing it, and in the natural
world God has done everything to please and
amuse US. In poetic figures we sometimes
speak of natural objects as being in pain,
but it is mere fancy. Poets say the clouds
weep, but they never yet shed tear; and
the winds sight, but they never did have
any trouble; and that the storm howls but
It never lost its temper. The world is
rose, and the universe garland.
am glad to know that in all our cities
there are plenty Of places where we may find
elevated, moral entertainment But all
honest men and good women will agree with
me in the statement that one Of the worst
plaques Of these cities is corrupt amusement.
Multitudes have gone down under the blast
Ing influence never to rise. If we may judge
of what is going on in many Of the places Of
amusement by the Sodomic pictures. on
windows. there is not much lower depth Of
profigacy to reach. At Naples, Italy, they
keep such pictures locked up from indis-
criminate inspection. These pictures were
exhumed from Pompeii and are not At for
public gaze. If the effrontery of bad Llaces
Of amusement in handing out improper ad-
vertisements Of what they are doing night
by night grows worse in the same propor-
tion, in fifty years New York and Brooklyn
will beat not only Pompeii, but Sodom.
To help stay the plague now raging pro-
ject certain principles by which you may
Judge in regard to any amusement or re-
creation, finding out for yourself whether it
is right or whether it is wrong.
Iremark in the first place that you can
Judge of the moral character Of any amuse-
ment by its healthful result or by its baleful
reaction. There are people who seem made
up Of hard facts. They are com animation OF
multiplication tables and statistics. If you
show them an exquisite picture they will be-
coloring. If you show them beautiful rose
they will submit it to botanical analysis,
which is only the post-mortem examination
of a flower They have no rebound in their
nature. They never do anything more than
smile. There are no great tides OF feeling
surging up from the depths Of their soul in
billow after billow Of reverberating laugh
ter. They seem as if nature had built them
by contract anG made bungling job OF it.
But, blessed be God, there arepeople in the
world who have bright faces, and whose life
Even their troubles are like the vines that
crawl up the side of great tower, on the top
of which the sunlight sits, and the soft air
of summer hold perpetual carnival. They
are the people you like to have come to your
house; they are the people like to have
come to my house. II you but touch the
hem Of their garments you are healed.
Now it is these exhilarant and sympathe-
tic and warm hearted people that are most
tempted to pernicious amusements. In pro-
portion as ship is swift it wants strong
helmsman; in proportion as horse Is gay.
It wants stout driver; and these people OF
exuberant nature will do we'll to look at the
reaction Of all their amusements. II an
amusement sends you home at night nervous
so that you cannot sleep, and you rise up in
the morning, not because you are slept out,
but because your duty drags you from your
glumbers, you have been where you ought
not to have been. There are amusements
that send man next day to his work blood
shot, yawning, stupid, nauseated; and they
are wrong kinds Of amusement. They are
entertain Ients that give man disgust with
the drudgery Of life, with tools because they
are not swords, with working aprons because
they are not robes, with cattle because they
are not infuriated bulls of the arena.
If any amusement sends you home longing
for a life of romance and thrilling adventure,
love that takes poison and shoots itself,
moonlight adventures and hair breadth es
capes, you may depend upon it that you are
the sacrificed victim Of unsanctifed pleasure
Our recreations are intended to build up
and if they pull US down as to our moral OF
as to our physical strength you may come to
the conclusion that they are obnoxious.
There is nothing more depraving than at
tendance upon amusements that are full OF
innuendo and low suggestion. The young
man enters At first he sits far back with
his hat on and his coat collar up, fearful that
somebody there may know him. Several
nights pass on. He takes off his hat earlier
and puts his coat collar down. The blush
that first came into his cheek when anything
indecent was enacted comes no more to his
cheek. Farewell, young mani You have
probaDly SIarteo on the long Ioau WHICH
ends in consummate destruction. The
stars of hope will 60 out one by one,
until you will be left in utter darkness, Hear
you not the rush of the maelstrom, in whose
outer circle your boat now dances, making
merry with the whirling waters? But you
are being drawn in and the gentle motion
will become terrific agitation. You cry fol
help. In vain! You pull at the oar to put
back, but the struggle will not avail You
will be tossed and dashed and shipwrecked
and swallowed in the whirlpool that has al:
ready crushed in its wrath ten thousand
hulks.