The Forrest City times., 1891-04-17


 serving the public In few years 1t vas estimated that there were fifty millions ei ! public treasure squandered. In thcee judge, or his lawyer would wink fop him,
 aud the question was decided for the
 defendant. Of the eight thousand people
 arrested in that city in one year. only three
 thousand were punished. These little
 matters wore liked up," whi;e tho inter-
 ests of society werc fixed down." You know as well as do that ono villain who
 escapes only opens the door for other criminalities. When thcse people go
 unarrested and unpunished, 1t is putting | high premium upon vice, and saying to the young criminals of this country, What Il safe thing it is to be . great l criminal" Let tho law swoop upon them. | Let it be known in this country that crime | will have no quarter. that the detectives
 are after It. that the police club is being brandished, that the iron door of the prison is being opened, that tho judge is ready to call on the case Too great leniency to criminals is too great severity | to society.
 Again; in your efforts to arrest this plague of crime, you need to consider the idle population. Of course, do not refer to people who are getting old, or to the sick, or to those who cannot get work; but tell you to look out for those athletic men
 and women who will not work do not
 care who the man is, you cannot afford to
 be idle. It is from the idle classes that the
 criminal classes are made up. Character,
 like water, gets putrid if 1t stands still too
 long. have watched these do-no,hings
 who spend their time stroking their boards,
 and re-touchng their toilet and criticizing
 industrious people, and pass their days and nights in bar-rooms and club houses,
 loungipg and smoking and chewing and card playing. These men for awhile smoke the best cigars, and wear the best clothes,
 and move in the highest sphere; but have noticed that very soon they come down to the pr.son. the almshouse or stop at the gallows.
 In this cluster of cities, whose cry of want interpret, there arc said to be, as far as l can figure it up from the reports. about three hundred thousand honest poor who arc dependent upon individual, city or state charities. If all their voices could como up at once. it would be groan that would shake the foundation of the city, and bring all earth and heaven to the rescue. But, for the most part, it suffers unexprcssed. It s.ts in silence, gnashing it's teeth, and sucking the blood of it's own arteries. waiting for the judgment day. Oh, should not wonder if on that day it would be found out that some of us had some things that belonged to them; some extra garment which might have made them comfortable in cold days; some bread thrust into the ash barrel that might have appeased their hunger for little while; some wasted candle or gus jet that might havo kindled up their darkness; some fresco on the ceiling that would have given them roof; some jewel which, brought to that orphan girl in time. might have kept her from being crowded of the precipices of an unclcan life; some New Testament that would have told them of him who 'camc to seek and save that which was lost. Oh. this wave of yagrancy and hunger and nakedness that dashes against our front door step. If the roofs of all the houses of destitutiou could be lifted so we could look down into them just as God looks, whose nerves would be strong enough to stand it? And yet there they gre. The fifty thousand sewing women in these three cities. some of them in hunger and cold, working night after night. until sometimes the blood spurts from nostril and lips. How well their grief was voiced by that despa:ring woman who stood by her invalid husband and invalid child and said to the city mis- s'onary: II am down hearted. Every things against us; and then there ara other things" What other things?' said the city missionary. .'O,. she re- piled, my sin" ''What do you mean by that?' 'Well," she said Il never hear or sec anything good It's work from Mon- day morning till Saturday night, and then when Sunday comes can't go out, and l walk the floor, and it makes me tremble to think that l have got to meet God o sir, it's so hard for us. We have to work so. and then we have so much trouble, and then we are getting nlong so poorly; and see this wee little thing growing weaker and weaker; and then to think we arc not getting nearer to God. but floating away from him. O, sir. do wish was ready to die"
 should not wonder if they had good deal better time than we in the future, to make up for the fact that they had such bad time here. It would be just like Jesus to say: Come up and take the highest seats. You suffered with mo on earth; now bc glor fled with me in heaven" 0, thou weeping One of Bethanyl o. thou dying One of the cross! Have mercy on the starving. freezing. homeless poor of these great cities.
 have preached this sermon for four or i've practical reasons: Because I want you to know who are the uprooting classes of society. Because want you to be moro discriminating in your charities Because l want your hearts open with generosity, and your hands open with charity. Because l want you to be made sworn friends of all city cvanyelization. and all ncwsboys' lodging houses, and all chlldren's ad societies and Doroas societies, under the .skillful manipulation of wives and mothers and sisters and daughters; let the spare garments of your wardrobes be fitted to the limbs of tho wan and shivering. 1 should not wonder If that hat that you gave should come back a iewelcd coronot, or If that garment that you hand out from your wardrobe should mystcr sousiy Do whitencd, ana somehow wrought into the Savsour's own robe, 90 in the last day ho would run his hand over 1t. and say: Fl was naked and ye clothed me. That would be putting your garments to glorious uses.
 But msro than that, havc preached the sermon because I thought in tho contrast you would see how very kindly God had dealt with you. and l thought that thou sands of you would go to your comfortable homes, and sit at your we'll filled tables and at tho warm registers, and look at the round faces of your childsvn, and that then you would burst into tears at the review
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