Ceredo advance. [volume] (Ceredo, W. Va.) 1885-1939, 1892-06-29

a Short Journey From Darkness to
Heavenly Light.
a Beautiful Transition From a rrcusious
Abode Ia Court Paved With Love
and - Palace Lighted ny Kind
ness-Dr. Talmngcs' sermon.


Rev. DIR. Talmagc is now on the At
lantic. having sailed from New York on
the 18th inst for Liverpool, for preach
ing tour in England. Scotland. ireland
and Sweden. Before visiting Sweden,
DIR. Talmagc will go To Russia, there To
witness the reception and disposition of
the cargo of breadstuffs on board The
Christian Herald relief steamship Leo.
which sailed last week for ST. Peters
burg. Previous 10 his departure he die
tated to his stcnographer the following
farewell sermon, To bc read by the vast
and widely scattered audiences whom IL
Is his weekly privilege to address
through the medium of the newspaper
press. He took his text from III. limo
thy iv. q: THE time of my departures in
Mt hand"
Departure! This is word used only
twice in all the Bible. but IL is word
often used in the courtroom and means
the desertion of one course of pleading
| for another Ii Is used I'm navigation u
| describe the distance between two
meridians passing through the cx-
| trcmitics Of course. IL Is word
have recently heard applied to- my de-
| parture from America Ia Europe for
| preaching tour TO last until September
In smaller and less significant sense
| than implied I'm the text | can
say, THE slime of my departure is at
hand" Through the printing press
address this sermon 10 my readers all
the world over, and when they read IL
will be in mid ocean. and unless SO me-
thing new happens in my marine cx-
| pcrienccs | will bc in no condition to
preach. But how unimportant the word
departure when applied To change OF
continents as when applied 10 exchange
OF worlds as when Paul wrote. "rhe
time of my departure is at hand"
Now, departure implies starting
place and place of destination. When
Paul left this world. what was the
starting point? II was "A scene OF great
| physical distress. II was the Tullia-
mum. the lower dungeon Of the Manner
tine prison. Rome, Italy. The top dun
geon was bad enough, 1t having no
means of ingress or cgrcss but through
nm opening In the top. Through that
the prisoner was lowered. and through
that came all the food and air and light
received. IL was terrible place, that
upper dungeon, but the Tullianum was
the lower dungeon, and that was still
more wretched, the only light and the
only air coming through the roof, and
that roof the floor of the upper dun
geon. That was Pauls last earthly
residence. / was in that lower drn-
geon in November, 1882 II is made OF
volcanic stone. / measured IL, and
from wall to wall Il was fifteen feet
The highest of the roof was seven feet
from the floor, and the lowest OF the
roof five feet seven inches The OPEN
Ing in the roof through which Paul was
let down was three feet wide.
The dungeon has seat of rock two
and a half feet high. and shelf OF rock
four feet high. IL was there that Paul
spent his last days on earth, and It Is
there that see him now, in the fearful
dungeon. shivering, blue with the cold,
waiting for that old overcoat which he
had sent for up To Troas, and which
they had not yet sent down, notwith-
standing that he had written for IT,
III some sltiliful surgeon should 90
into that dungeon where Paul Is In
carcerated, we might find out what are
the prospects OF Paul's living through
the rough imprisonment In the first
place, hs Is an old man, only two years
short of70. At that very time when
he most needs the warmth and the sun
light and the fresh air, he Is shut out
from tho sun. What are those
were gotten when he was fast.
his feet in the stocks Every time
he turned, the flesh on his ankles start
ed. What are those scars ON his back?
You know he was whipped five times,
each time getting thirty-nine strokes
one hundred and ninety-five bruises on
the back count themD made by the
Jews with rods of e1m-wood, each one
Of the 1875 strokes bringing the blood.
Look at Paurs face and look at his
arms. Where did he get those bruises?
j think IL was when he was struggling
ashore amidst the shivering timbers of
the shipwreck. I sec q cash in Paul's
side. Where did he get that? think
he got that in the tussle with highway
men, for he had been IN peril Of rob
bers, and had money Of liis own. lie
| was n mechanic as we'll a. an apostle.
and think the tents he made were as
good as his sermons.
| There IS a wanncss about Paurs looks.
What makes that? think a part Of
that came from the fact that he was for
twenty-fOur hours on n plank in the
Mediterranean sea, suffering terribly.
before he was rescued: for he says posi-
lively. ~ was a night and day in the
deep Oh. wOrn-out old man. surely
you must be melancholy; no constitu-
tiOn could endure this aud be cheerful.
But press my way through the prison
until come mp close 90 where he is
and by the fain. light tina, streams
through the opening I see on his face %
supernatural joy. and bow before him
and say: Aged man, how can you keep
cheerful amidst all this gioomg' His
voice starties the darkness % the place
as he cries out: II am now ready 10 be-
offered, and the time II my departure
Is AZ hand" Ilark' what = that shut.
fling Of fee. IN the upper dungeon?
Why. Paul has an invitation 10
banquet and he - going - dine with
the King. Those shutting feet are the
feet Of the cxecutiOuers. They come.
and they cry down through the hole
II the dungeon. Hurry up. old man.
Come, now, get yourself ready" Why.