The Atlanta constitution. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1885-19??, 1892-11-29
AT THE TABERNACLE.
DIR. TALNAGE TALKS INTERESTING
LY ABOUT AMERICAN CORN.
Lessons Learned from Thanksgiving Season.
Heaven is a Great Sociable. with Joy
Like the Huslking Time.

brooklyn, November ZI.-(opeclaA.)-
Rev. DR.. Talmage today chose for his
subject Of discourse one eminently suited
to the time following the ingathering OF
the harveStS, and the Thanksgiving sea-
son The decorations Of the ThankSgiv-
ing Day still remained on the platform
and the galleries, and the long rows Of
yellow and white corn on the front and
back of the platform were in accord with
the sermon. The text selected was "As a
shock of corn cometh in in his season.
Dob $500
This is the time of the year for huSk-
ing corn. If you have recently been in
the fields of Pennsylvania, or New .Jer-
Sey, or New York, or New England, or in
any of the country districts, you know
that the corn is all cut. The sharp knife
struck through the stalks and left them
all along the fields until a man came with
q bundle OF straw and twisted few Of
these WiSpS OF straw into u band, and
then gathering up as much of the corn
as he could compass with his arms, he
bound it with this wisp of straw, and
then stood it i'll the field i'll what is
called a shock There are now at least
ing in the shock, or having been already
huSked. The farmers gather, one day
Don one farm and then another day on
another farm, and they put on their rough
husking apron, and they take the husking
peg, which is q piece of iron with q
leathern loop fastened to the hand, and
with it ullSheath the corn from the huSk
and toss it into the golden heap. Then
the wagons come along and take it to the
cOrn-crib.
About corn as an important cereal. or
corn as Il metaphor the Bible is con-
Stantly speaking. You know about the
people in famine coming to buy corn of
Joseph, and the foxes on fire running
into the standing corn" and about the
oxen ueadng out the corn, and about the
seven thin ears of corn that in Pharaoh's
dream dev0ured the seven good ears, and
the ''parchcd corn handed to beautiful
Ruth by the harvesters of Bethlehem,
and Abigaifs five measures Of "parched
corn" with which she hoped
to appeaSe the enemies of her drunken
husband, and Dayids description of the
valleys covered over with corn" and
1.-The handful of corn in the EARTH" and
the full corn in the ear" and Christs
Sabbath morning walk through cornfields,
and the disciples 'plucking ears of corn"
and SO | am not surprised to find corn
husklng time referred to in my text: las
shock Of corn cometh in in his season"
How wildly to all those of us who were
born i'll the country comes the remembrance
OF huSklng time. We waited for it as for
a gala day OF the year. 1t was called
frolic. The trees having for the most part
Shed their foliage, the farmers waded
through the fallen leaves and came through
the keen morning air to the gleeful company.
The trosts which had silvered everything
during the night began TO melt off the top
of the corn shocks. While the farmers were
waiting for others, they stood blowing their
breath through their fingers, or lhraShing
their arms around their body to keep up
warmth OF Circulation. Roaring mirth
greeted the late farmer rs he crawled over
the fence. Joke aud repartce and rustic
Salutatlon abOundcd. All ready. now, The
men take hold of the shock Of corn and hurl
it PROSTATE, While the moles and mice which
have secreted themselves there for warmth.
attempt escape. The withe Of straw is
unWound from the corn shock and the stalks
heavy with The wealth of grain are rolled
into two bundles. between which the husler
sits down. The huSking peg is thrust in
until il strikes the corn. and then the fin
gers rip off the Sheathing of the ear, and
there is crack az the root Of the corn
is snapped off from the huSk, and the grain,
disimprisoned is hurled up into the sunlight.
The air is so tonic, the work is so very ex-
Vibrating, the company is so blithe that
some laugh, and some shout, aud some
sing. aud some banter, and some tease
nclShbOr Tor Il romantic ride along the edge
of the woods i'll an eventldP, III 4 carriage
that holds but two, and some propheSy as
to the number of bushels 10 the field. and
others go into competition as 10 which shall
rifle the most corn shocks before shutdown.
After Il while the dinner horn sounds from
the farmhouse, and the table is surrounded
by a group of Jolly aud hungry men. From
all the pantreS and the cellars and the
perches of fowl on The place the richest
daintieS come, and there is carnival and
neighborhOod reunion, and a scene which
fills our memory, part with smiles but more
with tears, as we remember that the farm
belongs now 10 other owners, and other
hands gather iii the field. and many of those
who mingled in that merry husking scene
have themselves bean reaped, like rs Il
shock of corn cometh in III his season
There is Il difference of opinion as TO
whether the orentalslneW anything about
the corn as it stands i'll our fields; but re-
cent discoveries have found ont that the
Hebrew knew all about Indian maize. tor
there have been grains Of corn picked mp
out of the ancient crypts and eXhuned
from hiding places where they We're put
down many centuries ago, and they have
been planted in our time and have come
up just such Indian maize rs raise III
New York and Ohio; 50 | am right when
say that my text may refer TO Il shock of
corn just as you and bound it, just az you
and / threw it, just as you and l busked it.
There may come some practical and useful
and comforting lessons to all our souls.
while We think of coming in at last like II
shock of corn coming in i'll his season.
1t is high time that the King of terrors
were thrown ont Of the Christian vocabu-
larry. A vast multitude of people talk of
death as though il were the disaster OF die
asters instead Of being TO a good man the
blessing of blessings. 1t is moving out of
a cold vestibue into warm temple 1t is
migrating into groves of redoence and
perpetual fruitage 1t is change from
bleak March TO roseate June. 1t is q change
of manacles for garlands. 1t is Il transmit
ing OF the iron handouts of earthly incar-
ceraton into the diamonded wristlets of q
my text il is only husking time 1t is the
tearing off of the rough sheath of the
body that the bright and the beautiful
soul may go free. Coming in like Il
shock of corn cometh in III his sea son. Christ
broke up q funeral procession at the gate
of Main by making resurrection day for
Il young man and his mother And | would
that | could break up your sadnesses and
halt the long funeral procession of the
worlds grief by Some cheering and cheer
fuL-yiew of the last transition.
We all know that husking time was A
time of frost. Frost on the fence. Frost