Milford chronicle., 1893-08-04
CHILDREN'S RIGHTS.
DR.. TALMAeE ON A TOUR m THE
WEST AND PREACHING AS HE GOES.

Daughter Contains Many Lessons OF
warning to the Rash and some sugges-
tions to Parents-Training In Childhood.
BROOKLYN, July sO.-Rev. DR. Talmage,
who is now on his vacation tour in the
west, has chosen for a topic for this morn
ing, "Childrens Rights" the text being
Judges XII SO, MY father, if thou hast
opened thy mouth unto the Lord, do to me
according to that which hath proceeded out
r of thy mouth"
} Jephthah was freebooter Early turned
out from a home where he ought to have
been cared for, he consorted with rough
men and went forth to earn his living as
best he could. In those times it was con
sidered right for a man to go out on indie
pendent military expeditions. Jephthah
was good man according to the light Of
his dark age, but through wandering and
a predatory life he became reckless and
precipitate. The grace of God changes a
mans heart, but never reverses his natural
temperament.
The Israelites wanted the Ammonites
driven out of their country, so they sent
delegation to Jephthah, asking him to be-
come commander in chief of all the forces.
He might have said, you drove me out
when you had no use for me, and now you
are in trouble you want me back" But he
did not say that. He takes command of
the army, sends messengers to the Ammon-
ties to tell them to vacate the country, and
getting no favorable response marshals his
troops for battle.
A RASH MANS VOW
Before going out to the war Jephthah
makes a very solemn vow that if the Lord
will give him the victory then on his return
] homo haf HrsaN nrrk Of IA
doorway he will offer in sacrifice as a
burnt offering The battle opens. 1t was
/ no skirmishing on the edges of danger, no
unlimbering of batteries two miles away,
but the hurting of men on the point of
1 swords and spears until the ground could no
more drink the blood, and the horses reared
to leap over the pile of bodies Of the slain.
In those old times opposing forces would
| fight until their swords were broken, and
then each one would throttle his man until
both fell, teeth to teeth, grip to grip, death
stare to death stare, until the plain was
one tumbled mass of corpses from which
the last trace of manhood had been dashed
out.
Jephthah wins the day. Twenty cities
lay captured at his feet. Sound the victory
all through the mountains of Gileadl Let
the trumpeters call up the survivors,
Homeward with your glittering treasuresl
Homeward to have the applause of an adj
miring nation Build triumphal arches!
Swing out flags all over Mizpeh Open all
your doors to receive the captured treas
uresl Through every hall spread the ban |
quetl Pile up the viands! Fill high the |
tankardsl The nation is redeemed, the in |
vaders are routed, and the national honor !
is vindicatedl
Huzza for Jephthah, the eonquerori |
Jephthah, seated on a prancing steed, adj /
vances amid acelaiming multitudes, but /
his eye is not on the excited populace. Re /
membering that he had made a solemn |
vow that, returning from victorious battle, |
whatsoever first came out of the doorway /
of his home, that should be sacrificed as
burnt Offering he has his anxious look
upon the door. l wonder what spotless
lamb, what brace of doves will be thrown
upon the fires of the burnt offering. Oh,
horrorsI Paleness Of death blanches his
cheek. Despair seizes his heart.
His daughter, his only child, rushes out
the doorway to throw herself in her fathers
arms and shower upon him more kisses
than there were wounds on his breast or
dents on his shield. All the triumphal
splendor vanishes. Holding back this
child from his heaying breast and pushing
the locks back from the fair brow and look
ing into the eyes of inextinguishable affec-
tion, with choked utteranee, he says:
Would God 1 lay stark on the bloody
plainl My daughter, my only child, joy of
my home, life of my life, thou art the sac
rificeW
A BRAVE GIRLS FATE.
The whole matter was explained to her.
This was no whining, hollow hearted girl
into whose eyes the father looked. All the
glory of sword and shield vanished in the
presence of the valor of that girl There
may have been tremOr of the lip as a rose
leaf trembles in the sough of the south
wind. There may have been the starting
of tear like a raindrop shook from the
anther Of a water lily, but with self sacri-
fee that man may not reach and only wOm-
ans heart can compass she surrenders her
self to fire and to death, She cries out in
the words Of my text, my father, if thou
hast opened thy mouth unto the Lord, do
unto me whatsoever hath proceeded from
thy mouth"
She bows to the knife, and the blood,
which so often at the fathers voice had
rushed to the crimson cheek, smokes in
the fires of the burnt offering. No one can
tell us her name. There is no need that
we know her name, The garlands that
Mizpeh twisted for Jephthah the warrior
had gone into the dust, but all ages are
twisting this girls chaplet. 1t is well that
her name came not to US, for no one can
wear it. They may take the name of Deb
orah or Abigail or Miriam, but no one in
all the ages can have the title of this daugh
ter of sacrifice
OF course this offering was not pleasing to
the Lord, but before you hurl your denun-
Citations at Jephthah's cruelty remember
that in olden times when VOWS were made
men thought that they must execute them,
perform them, whether they were wicked
or good. There were two wrong things
about Jephthah's vow. First, he ought
never to have made it. Next. having made
it, it were better broken than kept. But
do not take on pretentious airs and say, Il
could not have done as Jephthah did" II
today you were standing on the banks Of
the Ganges, and you had been born in India,
you might have been throwing your chill
dren to the crocodiles. 1t is not because we
are naturally any better, but because we
have more gospel light.
Now, / make very practical use of this
question when tell you that the sacrifice
Of Jephthah's daughter was a type of the 9
physical, mental and spiritual sacrifice Of {
10, 600 children in this day There are par
snts all unwittingly bringing to bear upon
their children class of influences which
will as certainly ruin them as knife and
torch destroyed Jephthah's daughter
While I speak, the whole nation, without =
emotion and without shame, looks upon /
The stupendous sacrifice. !
SACRIFICED IN SCHOOL.
In the first, place I remark that much of
The system of education in our day is a
system of sacrifice. When children spend
six or seven hours day in school and then
must spend Two or three hours in prepare 7
.s..., - sel..-i 81. sis da- will .srrl cell
ne how much time they will have for sun t
Ihine and fresh air and the obtaining Of f
hat exuberance which is necessary for the
iuties of coming life? y
No one can feel more thankful than do o
lor the advancement Of common school ad- .
lcation. The printing Of books appropri- u