Milford chronicle., 1891-01-09


house heard the outburstao of religious EN-,
tion as he spake Of righteousness ar ltudl
ment to come Samuel Budget, the Chril
tian merchant, had it, and his benefaction
showered the world. John Newton ha
It, Bishop Latimer had it. Isabella Grs
ham had it. Andrew Fuller had it. Th
! great evangelists Daniel Baker and Dl
Nettleton and Truman Osborn and Charlie
1 G. Finney had it. In my boyhood I say
{ Truman Osborn rise to preach in the vii
lage church at Somerville, n. j., and be
fore he had given out his text or uttered
! word people in the audience sobbed alou,
with religious emotion. It was the powe
/ from on high. All in greater or less dc
( gree may have it.. Once get it and moth
ing can stand before you. Satan zoe
down. Carieature goes down. Inhdelit,
goes down. Worldliness goes down. Al
opposition goes down.
TIMES OF BLESSING.
Several times in the history of the churcl
and the world has this power from on higl
been demonstrated In the Seventeenth
century, after a great season of moral de
preston, this power from on high cam,
down upon John Tillotsnn and Owen anC
Flavel and Baxtef and Bu.-. and ther,
was a deluge Of mercy higf the
tops Of the highest mounti
the Eighteenth century, in Ehs
America, religion was at low water maIl.
William Cowper. writing Of the clergy o.
those days said;
Except few with Ellis spirit blest, s,5o
Hophni and Phineas may describe the 5s1ll
The infidel writings of Shaftesbr " and
Hobbies and Chubb had done their work
But power from on high came upon both
the Wesleys and Lady Huntington on the
other side the Atlantic, and upoEi William
Tennant and Gilbert Tenant ard David
Brainerd on this side the Atlfntic, and
both hemispheres felt the tread of a par
doning God. Coming to later ate, there
may be here and there in this Audience an
aged man or woman who ear, remember
New York il, 1872, when this power from
on highs Skiyed most wondrOusly It
came. Seess s6ors and congregations and
theatresSre4d commercial establishments.
Chatham Street theatre, New York, was
the scene Of a most tremendous religious
awakening.
A committee of Christian gentlemen
called upon the lessee of the theatre, and
said they would like to buy the lease of the
theatre. He said, What do you want it
for?" They replied For a church" ''FOr
wh-a-at" said the owner. "FOr a church, "
was the reply. The owner said, you may
have it, and I viii give you thousand
dollars to help you on with your work. "
Arthur Tappan, man nightly persecuted
in his time, but q man, as / saw him in his
last days, as honest and pure and good as
any man 1 ever knew, stepped on the stage
Of old Chatham theatre as the actors were
closing their morning rehearsal and said,
''There will be preaching here tonight on
this stage;' and then gave out and sang
with such people as were there the old
hymn;
The voice Of free grace cries, escape to the
mountain,
For all that believes Christ has opened a fountain
The barroom of the theatre was turned
into prayer room, and eight hundred per
sons were present at the first meeting. For
seventy successive nights religious services !
we're held in that theatre, and such scenes |
If mercy and salvation as will be subjects |
# conversation and oongratulation among 4
he ransomed in glory as long as heaven |
asts. But I come to a later time-1S57-
by many who are here. 1 re-
member it especially, as had just entered |
he Office Of the ministry. 1t was year of |
lard times. a great panic had flung hun
lreds of thousands Of people pen1less.
Starvation entered habitations that had
IeYer before known a want. Domestic
ife IN many cases became a tragedy. Sui
ide, garroting, burglary assassination
we're rampant. What an awful day that
ras when the banks went down. There
as been nothing like it in thirty years,
nd pray God there may not be anything
Ike it in the next thirty centuries. Talk
bout your Black Fridaysl It was Black
aturday, Black Sunday, Black Monday
'lack Tuesday, Black Wednesday, Black
thursday IS well as Black Friday.
This nation in its extremity fell helpless
efore the Lord and cried for pardon and
sace, and upon ministers and laymen the
over from on high descended. Engine
ouses, ware rooms, hotel parlors, muse
ms, factories, from u to / o'clock, while
ne operatives were resting, were opened
n prayers and sermons and inquiry
1Oms, and Burton's old theatre on Cham
ers street, where our ancestors used to
;semble to laugh at the comedies, and all
p and down the streets, and out on the
Dcks and on the decks of ships lying at
le wharf people sang, "All hail the power ,
Jesus name" while others cried for J
ercy. A great mass meeting Of Chris [
ans on a week day, in Jayne's hall, Phila- !
llphia, telegraphed to Fulton Street Z
rayer meeting in New York, saying, {
What hath God wroughtY and a tele- .
am went back saying, Two hundred {
uls saved ab our meeting today" A B
ip came through the NarFows into our 4
Irbor, the captain reporting that himself 5
ID all the crew had been converted to 4
ID between New Orleans and New York a
In the busiest marts of our busiest Amer &
an cities, where the woIshipers of Nam a
on had been counting their golden beads, b
sn began to calculate, "What shall it =
ofib man if he gain the whole world :
d lose his soul?" The walters in restau-
nts after the closing of their days work Z
elt among the tables where they had
we'd. Policemen asked consent of the =
Of police to be permitted to !.
end religious meetings. At Albany
.mbers of the New York legislature as :
nbled in the room Of the court Of APP g
ais at half-past o'clock IN the morning :
prayer and praise. Printed invitations
re sent out to the fremen Of New !,
rk saying, "Come as suits your conve- !,
nee best, whether in fire or citizens "
IS, but eomel comew Quarrymen knelt | :,
ong therooks. Fishermen knelt in their :,
IT'S, Weayers knelt among the looms =
lors knelt among the hammocks,
knelt among their classes. a
gentleman travelling said there was a Z
e of prayer meetings from Omaha to a
lshington city, and he might have added v
ne Of prayer meetings from she Atlantie Il
5he Pacific coast, and from the st. Law oi
zee to the Gulf of Mexico. Of
BLESS COD FOR 1851 "
q those days what songs, what sermons, ff
at turnings to God, what recital Of "
illing experiences, what prodigals tC
nght home, what burning tidings Of 10
Is saved, what serfd6m Of sin emapci-
ed, what wild rout OF the forces
kuess, what victories for the
lat millions on earth and in be
Y thanking God for 1857, "
year Of worst finaneis'
year Of Americas
How do yor
-itual triu~-
idly mis-
s the