Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1891-09-18
ONLY ONE KIND WORD.
you SHOULD NEVER HESITATE
TO UTTER 1T.
DIR. Talmnge Returns TO Brooklyn
Tabernacle After sis summer Va
cation. sermon with Kindness as
the Text

Here we are on the Island of Malta,
another name for Melita- This island,
which has always been an important
commercial center, belonging at differ
ent times to PhHnicia, 10 Greece, to
Rome, To Arabia, To Spain, to France,
now belongs To England. The area of
the island is about one hundred square
miles. 1t is in the Mediterranean Sea.
and of such clarity of atmosphere that
Mount Etna, 137 miles away, can be
distinctly seen. The island is glori-
ously memorable, becanse the knights
of Malta for a long while ruled there.
but most famous because of the apos-
tolic shipwreck. The bestorrued vessel
on which Paul sailed had Laid to-
on the starboard tack and the wind
was blowing cast-northeast and the
vessel, drifting. probably mile and IA
half an hour, she struck at what is now
called St Pauls bay. Practical sailors
cided beyond controversy the place of
the shlpwreck. But the island
which has so rough coast
is for the most part garden.
Richest fruits and profusion of
honey characterized II in Pauls time
as well as now. The finest oranges,
figs, and olives grew there When
Paul and his comrades crawlcd up on
/ the beach, saturated with the salt
water, and hungry from long abstin-
ence from food, and chilled TO tho
! bone, the islanders, though called bar
barianS, because they cOuId not speak
Greek, opened their doors 10 the
shipwrecked unfortunatcs Everything
had Q, ne 10 the bottom of the deep,
and the barefooted, bareheadel apos-
tie and ships crew were in a condition
to appreciate hospitality. About
twenty-five such men a few seasons
ago | found in the life station near
Easthampton, Long Island. They
had got ashore in the night from
the sea, and not a hat or shoe had
they left. They found out, as Paul
and his fellow voyagers found out, that
the sea is the toughest OF all robbers.
My text finds the ships crew ashore
on Malta, and around a hot fire drying
themselves, and with the best pro-
vision the islanders can offer them.
And they go into government quarters
for three days to recuperate, Publius,
the ruler inviting them, although
he had severe sickness in the
|
with dvsentery and typhoid fever.
Yea, for three months they stayed on
the island watching for a ship, ana
putting the hospitalities of the island
ers To n severe test. But 1t endured
the test satisfactorily, and il is record
ed for all the ages of time and eternity
to read and hear in regard to the IN
| habitants of Malti: The Darbarous
people showed us no little kindness
There is is kindness of disposition,
kindness of word. kindness OF act, and
there is Jesus Christ the Improvisation
of all of them. Kindness. lou cannot
affect it, YOU cannot play it as a part,
you cannot enact it, You cannot dram
atize it. by the grace of cod you must
have it inside you, an everlasting sum
mer. or rather mbination OF June
and October, the geniality of the
one and the tonic of the
other. 1t cannot dwell with arrogance
or spite or revenge o. maleyolen {.
At its first appearance in the soul all
these Amalcllitcs and Gergishites and
Utilities and Jcbusites must quit, and
quit forever. Kindness wishes C cry
body well, every man well. every wo-
man wei, every child well, every ord
well, every horse well, every dog well,
every cat we'll Give this spirit full
swing and YOU would have no more
need of societies fer prevention
of cruelty to animals, no more need Of
protective sewing woman ASSOCIATION,
and il would dull every sword until it
would not cut skin deep, and unwheel
every battery till it could not roll, and
maze gnnpowder of no more use in the
world except for rock blasting or pyIo
ss1stnic celebration. Kindness is "a spir-
:. .tivinely implanted, and in answer to
pgayer, and then t. be seduousy Guilt
waited until it fills all nature with Il
perfume richer and more pungent than
mignonette, and, as if you put "A tuft of
that aromatic beauty behind the clock
on the mantel, or in some corner where
nobody car see tit, you find pc pie
walking about your room looking this
way and that. and you ask them,
'NN hat are you looking for?" and they
answer, "NFhere is that flower SO
if one has in his soul this infinite
sweetness of disposition its per-
fume will whelm everything
Tut are you waiting and hoping for
some one to be bankrupted or exposed,
or discounted. or in some way over
thrown. then kindness has not taken
possession of your nature. You are
wrecked on Malta where there ste
no oranges. You are entertaining n
guest so unlike kindess that kind
ness will not come and dwell un-
der the same roof The most
exhaustfng and unhealthy and ruin
Gus feeling on earth is a revengeful
spirit or rctaliating spirit, as | know
by experience, for / have tried il tor
five or ten minutes at time. When
some mean thing has been done me or
said about me, have felt Il will pay
him in his own coin. | will show him
up. The migrate! The traitor! The
liar! The villainn' But five or ten min
utes of the feeling has been SO UNI
rving and exhausting l have
abandoned 1t, and | cannot under
stand how people can go about tortur-
ing themselves five or ten or twenty
years, trying to get even with some
body. The only way you will ever
triumph over your enemies is by for
giving them and wishing them all good
and no evil. AS malevolence is the most
nj Il \