Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1893-12-01

Talmage took for his subject a most sea-
sonable one: "A Hunting Scene" the
text being Genesis 40 90: Sin the morning
he shall devour the prey, ami at night he
shall divide the spoil"
A few nights ago eight hundred men
encamped along the Long Island rail
road SO as to be ready for the next
morning which was the first "open
day" for deer-hunting. Between sun
rise aud o'clock in the afternoon of
that day fifteen deer were shot. On
the Goth of October OUR woods and
forests resound with a shock of fire
arms, ard are tracked of pointers and
settlers, because the quail are then a
lawful prize for the sportsman. On u
certain day in all England you can
hear the crack of the sportsman's gun,
because the grouse hunting has be-
gun; and every man that can afford
the time and ammunition, and
can draw bead, starts for
the fields. Xenophon grew eloquent
in regard to the art of hunting. In
the far east people, elephant mounted,
chase the tiger The American Indian
darts his arrow at the buffalo until the
frightened herd tumble over the rocks.
European mobiles are often found in the
fox chase and at the stag hunt. Fran
els I. was called the father of hunting.
Moses declares of Nimrod: "IIe was a
mighty hunter before the Lord. :"
Therefore, Ia all ages of the world the
imagery of ny text ought to be sug-
gestive, whether it means a wolf after
a fox or a man after lion. Old Jacob,
dying, is telling the fortunes of his
children. He prophesies the devouring
propensities of benjamin and his de-
scendants. With his dim old eyes he
looks off and sees the hunters going
out to the fields, ranging them all day,
and at nightfall coming home, the
game slung over the shoulder, and
reaching the door Of the tent the hunt
ers begin TO distribute the game, and
one takes coney, and another rab-
bit, and another roe. In the morn
ing he shall devour the prey, and at
night he shall divide the spoil" Or it
may be a reference to the habits of
wild beasts that STAY their prey and
then drag it back 10 the cave or lair
and divide it among the young.
take my text, in the first place, as
descriptive Of those people who in the
morning Of their life give themselves
up to hunting the world, but afterward,
by the grace of God, in the evening of
their life divide among themselves the
spoilS of Christian character. There are
aged Christian men and women in this
would tell you that in the morning of
their life they were after the world as
intense as hound after hare, or as a
falcon swoops upon a gazelle. They
wanted the worlds plaud.ts and the
worlds gains. They felt that if they
could got this world they wudld
have everything. Some of them
started out for the pleasures of the
world. They thought that the man
who laughed loudest was happiest
They tried repartee, and conundrum,
and burlesque, and madrigal They
thought they would like to be Tom
Hoods, or Charles Lambs, or Edgar A.
Poes. They mingled wine, and music, and
the spectacular. They we're worship
pers of the harlequin, and the Merry
Andrew, and the buffoon and the jester.
Life was to them foam, and bubble,
and exclamation, and registering, and
grimace. They were so full of glee
they could hardly repress their mirth,
even on solemn occasions, and they
came near bursting out hilarious)y
even at the burial, because there was
something so dolorous in the tone or
countenance of the undertaken. After
awhile, misfortune struck them hard
on the back. They found there was
something they could not laugh at,
Under their late hours their health
gave way, or there was death in the
house. OF every green thing their soul
was exfoliated. They found out that
life was more than a joke. From the
heart of God there blazed into their
soul an earnestness they had never felt
before. They awoke 10 their sinful
ness and their immortality, and here
they sit at 60 or 20 yearu of age, as APP
preciative of all innocent mirth as they
. CNCI NNICs bub OiitN sAC DClib OL a oby IL
of satisfaction which in earthly life
they never hunted; the evening
of their days brighter than the morn
ing. In the morning they devoured
the prey, but at night they divided the
spoils.
Then there are others who started
out for financial success. They see
how timber the rim of n mans hat is
when he bows down before some one
transpicuous. They felt they would
like to see how the world look, d from
the window of four thousand doll 1T
turnout. They thought they would
Ike TO have the morn ng sunlight
tangled in the headgear of a dashing
span. They wanted the bridges in the
park to REBOUND under the rataplan of
their swift hoofs. They wanted a
gilded bal3rick, and so they started on
the dollar hunt They chased it up
one street and chased it down another.
They followed it when it burrowed IN
the cellar. They freed it in the roof
Wherever dollar was expected 20 be,
they were. They chased it actoss the
ocean. 1heA chased it across the land