Democratic messenger., 1893-11-04
TIE TEST OF FITNESS.
AN ANTE-ElGCTION SERMON FROM
THE BROOKLYN PASTOR.

actcr ns Applied to fOlitics-tOOd Adj
vice For All rariics--A Timely Topic
Treated.
BROOKLYN, Oct. Discussing the
approaching election. and nsin. the text,
Exodus XXX, Is, And all the people saw
the thundcrings, and the lishinings, and
the noise Of the trumpet. and the noun
tain smoking" Rev. DR.. Talmagc says:
On the eve of elections in the co coun-
ties of this state and i'll all the counties
of most of the United States. while there
are many hundreds of nominees Ia office.
it is appropriate and important that |
preach this before election sermon.
My text informs you that the light
nings and earthquakes united their forces
to wreck n mountain of Arabia Petr;ra
i'm olden time. and travellers today find
heaps of porphyry and greensboro rocks.
bowlder against bowldcr-the remains
Of the first law library. written not on
parchment or papyrus. but on shattered
slabs of granite. The corncrstones of
all morality, of all wise law. of all right
eous Jurisprudence, of all good govern
ment are the two tablets of stone on
which were written the Ten Command
ments.
All Roman law, all French law, all
English law. all American law that is
worth anything. all common law. civil
law, criminal law, martial law. law of
nations were rocked i'll the cradle Of the
twentieth chapter of Exodus. And it
would he well in these times Of great
political agitation if the newspapers
would print the Dccalogue some day in
place of the able editorial The fact is
that some people suppose that the law
has passed out of existence, and some
are not aware of some of the passages of
that law. and others say this or that is
of the more Importance. when no one
has any right To make snch an assertion.
These laws are the pillars of society, and
if you remove one pillar you damage
the whole structure.
have noticed that men are rarticu-
larly vehement against sins to which
they are not particularly tempted and
find no especial wrath against sins in
which they themselves indulge. They
take ont one gun from this battery of 10
guns. and load that. and unlimber that,
and fire that. They say, This is an
Armstrong gun. and this is a krupp
gun. and this is n Norlcnfclit five bar
relied gun. and this is u Gatling 10 bar
relied gun. and this is II Martini 30
barrclcd gun" But have to tell them
that they are all of the same calibcr and
that they shoot from eternity to eternity.
Many questions are before the people
in the coming elections all over this
laid. but ] shall try ia show you that
the most important thing TO be settled
about all these candidates is their per-
sonal. moral character. The Dccaloguc
forbids idolatry. image making. prof:In-
ity, maltrcaimcnt of parents. Sabbath
dissertation. murder. theft. incontinencc,
lying and covc.ousness. That is the Dec
alogue 10y which you and will have to
be tried, and by the same Decaloguc YOU
and must try candidates for office.
OF course we shall not find anything
like perfection. II we do not vote until
we find an immaculate nominee. we will
never vote at all. We have So many
faults of our own we ought not To be
censorious "r malcdiciory or hypercritic-
al in regard 10 the faults of others. The
Christly rule is as appropriate for No
vembcr as any other month in the year,
Judge not that yc bc not Judged. for
with what measure We lncte ii shall be
measured To YOU again"
AN I-NpAITISAN VIEW
Most certainly are we not to take the
statement of rcdhot partisanship as the
real character of any man. From nearly
all the great cities Of this land receive
daily or weekly newspapers. sent to mo
regularly and in compliment. so see both
sides-l see all sidcs-and il is most en-
tertaining and my regular amusement
to read the opposite statements. The
one statement says the man is an angel,
and the other says he is devil. and |
split the difference. and find him half
way between.
There never has been an honest or re-
spectacle man running for the United
States presidency. or for Il judgeship, or
for the mayoraliy. or for the shrievalty
since the foundation Of the American
government. il we may believe the old
files of newspapers in the museums.
What mercy it is that they were not
all hung before they were inaugurated!
If Il man believe one-half of what he sees
in the newspapers in these times. his ca
reer will bc very short outside of Bloom
ingdale insane asylum.
| was absent two or three years ago
during one week Of n political canvass,
and was dependent entirely upon what
| read in regard to what had occurred
in these cities. and | rcad there was n
in New York of 5000 patriots,
and Il minute after | read in another
sheet that there were 1000. and then
read in regard to another procession that
there were 10000. and then read in an
other paper that there We're GO.0O0.
A campaign orator in the Rink or the
Academy Of Music received a very cold
very chilling reception
said one statement. The other statement
said the audience rose ut HIM; so great
was the enthusiasm that for n long while
the orator could not be heard and it was
only after lifting his hand that the vo-
began to subside! One state
ment will twist IN interview one way,
and another statement will twist an in
terview another way You must admit
it is very difficult thing in times like
these to get Il very accurate estimate of
Il mans character. and charge you, as
your religious teacher charge you to
caution and To mcrcifulness and to
prayer.
warn you also against the mistake
which many are making and always do
make If applying different standard
of character for those in prominent po-
sition from the standard they apply for
ordinary persons. However much "a
man may have, or how, yer high posi-