Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1891-12-31

". TALMAGE RELATES HIS EXPE-
RleNCE AT CHRlST'S BIRTHPLACE.

Immortal Masterpieces of Art which
Portray the scenes of the Nativity.
Mission of Children in the Scriptures.
The Shepherds and Other Heroes.
BROOKLYN, Dec. 21.-Rev DR.. Talmage
preached this morning Il sermon appro-
briate to the Christmas season. Taking up
The subject of the Nativity, he drew from it
lessons which, though perfectly legitimate,
are commonly overlooked. His text was
Luke ii, 1G, And they came with haste,
and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe
lying In a manager"
The black window shutters of n Deem
Der night were thrown open, and some of
the best singers of "A world where they all
sing stood there, and putting back the
drapery of cloud, ChHnted peace anthem,
until all the echoes of hill aud valley APP
plaulled and eucored the Rallelujah chorus.
Come, let us 90 into that Christmas scene as
though we had never before worshpad at
the man!;ct. Here is "A Madonna worth
looking at. ] wonder not that the most
frequent name in all lands and in ali
Christian centuries Is Mary. And there
are MaryS in palaces and Marys in cabins,
and though German and French and Italian
erently, they are ali nanesakes OF the one
whom we find ON a bed of straw, with her
pale face against the soft cheek of Christ
in the night of the Nativity All the great
painters have tried on canvas to present
Mary and her child and the incidents of
that most famous night of the world his
tory. Raphael, in three different master
pieces, celebrated them. Tintoretto and
Ghirlandaj 10 surpassed themselves in the
alteration of the Magi. Correggio needed
to do nothing more than his Madonna to
become immortal The Madonna of the
Lily, by LeonArtio da Ninci will kinde
the admiration of all ages But all the
galleries OF Dresden are forgotten when |
think of the small room of thaU gallery con
tanning Sistine Madonna. Yet all Of them
were copies of ST Matthew's Madonna and
Luke's Madonna, the inspired Madonna of
the Old BooE, which we had put into our
hands when we were infants, ana that we
hope to have under our heads when we die.
AMID THE BEASTS OF THE STALL.
Behold, in the first place, that on the
first night Ct Chrst's life God honored the
brute creation. You cannot get into that
Bethlehem barn without going past the
camels, the mules, the dogs, the oxen. The
brutes of that stable heard the first cry of
the infant Lord Some OF the old painters
represent the oxen and cunels kneeling
that night before the newborn babe. And
well might they kneell Have you ever
thought that Christ came among other
things to alleviate the suf4erines of the
brute creation? Was it not appropriate
that he should, during the first few days
and nights of his life on earth, be sur
rounded by the dumb beasts, whose moan
and plant and believing have for ages
their fortunes and the rghting of their
wrongs? 1t did not merely happen so"
that the unlnteih@ent creatures of God
should have been that night il close neigh
borhood
Not Il kennel in all the centuries not
birds nest, not WORKOUT horse OH tow
path. not nerd freezing in the poorly
bulIi COW pen not freight car in summer
time bringing the beeves to market with
out water through "A thousand miles of
agony, not Il surgeon ; room witnessing the
struggles OF fox or rabbit or pigeon or
dog in the horrors of viVsection but has
an interest in the fact that Christ was born
in a stable, surrounded by brutes. He ~
members that night and the prayer he
heurd in their pitiful moan he will answer
in the punishment Of those who malIrcat
the dumb brutcs They surely have rs
the first chapter of Genesis You may see
that they Were placed on the earth before
man was, the fish and fowl created he fifth
dag, and the quadrupe3s the morning OF
the sixth day, and man not until the after
noon OF that day The whale, the eagle,
the hon, ana all the lesser creatures of their
Kind were predecessors OF the human ia.
mily. They nave the world by right of
possession. They have also paid rent for
the places they occupied. What an army
of defense all over the land are the faith
full watChdoSs md who can tell what
the world owes to the hoIee and camel
and OK Tor transportation? And robin and
lark have by the caututi.s with which they
have filled orchard and forest, more than
paid for the few grains they have picked
up for their sustuuance. When you abuse
any creature of God you strike its Creator
and you insult the Christ who. though he
might have been welcomed into life by
princes and taken his first infantie Stun
Der amid Tyrian plush and canopied
coucles and ripplng waters from royal
aqueducte Tipping into basins of ivory
and pearl, CuOse to be born on the level
with II COW horn, or ii cameis Loof, Oh d
dogs uestril, that he might be the alcVia-
ton of alsr,Ni suffering as well as the re-
deenler OF rnan
CBUELIT TO ANIMALS.
Standing, then, Us imagine now do in
that Bethlehem night, with an infant
Christ on the oHe side and the speechless
creatures Of God an the other, cry look
out how You strike the rowel into that
horses side Take of that curbed bit
from that bleeding mouth. Remove that
saddle from that raw back Shoot not for
fun thur bird that is too small for food.
f.t,, ?