The Kinsley graphic. [volume] (Kinsley, Kan.) 1890-1940, 1891-08-14

divine, preached to a large concourse of
people at Topeka, Kan. during his late
western trip. The subject OF the ser
mon was, "a Poor Investment and
the text Isaiah lii: 8: EYE have sold
yourselves for nought; and ye shall be
redeemed without money" He said;
The Lords people had gone headIong
into sin, and as a punishment they had
been carried captive to Babylon They
found that iniquity did not pay. Cyrus
seized Babylon, and felt so sorry for
these poor captives that without dol
lar OF compensation, he let them go
home. So that. literally, my text was
fulfilled: ''Ye have sold yourselves for
noughti and ye shall be redeemed with
out money"
There iseuough gospel in the text for
fifty sermons. There are persons here
who have, like the people OF the text,
sold out. You do not seem to belong
either to yourselves or 20 God The
title deeds have passed over to the
world, the flesh and the devil, " but the
purchaser never paid up. I'VE have
sold yourselves for nought."
When q man passes himself over to
the world he expects to get some ade-
quate compensation He has heard the
great things that the world does for a
man, and he believes it. he wants
$3.50, goo. That will be horses and
houses, and summer resort and Jolly
with his physical health by Overworlz.
He parts with his conscience. He parts
with much domestic enjoyment. He
parts with opportunities for literary
culture. He parts with his soul And
SO he makes over his entire nature to
the world. He does it in four INSTALL
ments- He pays down his first INSTALL
ment and one-fourth of his nature is
gone. He pays down the second in
stallment. and one-half of his nature
is gone. He pays down the third in
stallment, and three-quarters of his
nature are gone; and after many years
have gone by he pays down the fourth
installment. and 10! his entire nature is
gone. Then he comes up to the world
and says: Good morning, have de-
livered to you the goods. have passed
over to you my body, my mind and my
soul and have come now to
collect the two hundred and
fifty thousand dollars 1.-TWO hun
dred and fifty thousand dOllarsY'' says
the world what do you mean?''
well" you say, u come to collect the
money you owe me and expect you to
fulfill your part of the contract. 8"
But" says the world, 81 have failed.
I an bankrupt I cannot possibly pay
that debt I have not for a long while
expected to pay it" s'WeIl, " you then
say, ''give me back the goods" 80,
no." says the world, ''they are all gone.
I cannot give them back to you.'' And
there you stand on the confines of eter-
nifty, your spiritual character gone,
staggering under the consideration that
you have sold yourself for nought-"
1 tell you the world is a liar; it does
not keep its promises. It is q cheat and
it heeces everything it can put its hands
on It is a bogus world. It is 6, OOO-
Year-Old swindle. Even if it pays the
$3.50, 900 for which you contracted it
-, -
worth anything in "a little while. Just
as a man may pay down StO 600 il hard
cash and get for 1t worthless scrip, SO
the world passes over to you the $3.50, 600
in that shape which will not be worth
a farthing to you thousandth part of
a second after you are dead
Post norton emoluments are of no
use to you. The treasures of this world
will not pass current in the future
world; and If ali the wealth of the
Bank of England were put in the pocket
of your shroud, and you in the midst OF
the Jordan of death were asked to pay
three cents for your ferriRge, you could
not do it There comes a moment in
your existence beyond which all earth
ly values fail; and many a man has
Weakened up in such time to fad that
he has sold out for eternity and has
nothing to show for 1t.
History tell US of one who resolved
fed at one and the same time, and he
expended thousands of dollars on each
sense. He entered room, and there
were the first musicians of the land
pleasing his ear, and there were fine
pictures fascinating his eye, and there
were costly aromatics RECALLING his nos
tril, and there were the richest meats
and wines and fruits and cOnfections,
pleasing the appetite, and there was q
soft couch of sinful indulgence on
which he reclined; and the man de-
clered afterward that he would give
ten times what he had given if he could
have one week OF such enjoyment even
though he lost his soul by il! Ali that
was the rnbi He did lose his soul by
it! Cyrus the conqueror thought for q
little while that he was making fine
thing out Of this world, and yet before
he came TO his grave he wrote out this
pitiful epitaph for his monument: II
am Cyrus occupied the Persian en-
pire. was king over Asia Begrudge
me not this monument" But the world
in after years plOwed mp his sepu1cher.
The world claPPed its hands and
stamped its feet In honor of Charles
Lam b; but what does he say? II walk
up and down, thinking am happy, but
feeling I am not" Call the roll, and be
quick about it. Samuel johnson, the
learnedi Happy? mo. am afraid
shall some day get crazy" William
Hazlitt, the great essayisti Hsppyi
mo. I have been for two hours and q
half going up and down Patsrnostei
Row with a volcano IN my breast ,
Smollet, the witty authori Happy
mo. I am sick OF praise and blame
and I wish to God that had such cir
cumstances around me that could
throw my pen into oblivion Blu
ehanan, the vvorld-Fenowne6 writer
exiled from his own country, appealing
to Henry VIII. for protectioni Happy
''No. over mountains covered viii