The free press. (Poplarville, Miss.) 1890-19??, 1893-08-17
REV. DIR. TALMAGE.
THE BROOKLYN DIvINE'S SUM-
DAY SERMON.
Subject: 'schitdrenis- Rights"

mouth unto he Lord. 10 70 me accordiHq to
INT ,rkfch han, proceeded ont Of ing mouth.
judges xi., &C.
Jeph.hah was freebooter. Early turned
out from bone 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 considered
right for a man TO 90 ont on Independent
military expeditions. Jephthah was good
man according to the light of his dark age,
butthrough a wandering and predatory life
he became reckless and precipltate. lho
grace OF God rtanges n mans heart. but
never reverses his natural temperament.
The lsraeites wanted the Ammonites
driven out Of their country, 50 they sent a
delegation to Jephthah asking him to be-
come commander-in-chef OF all the forces
He might have said, ''YcI drove me out
when you had no use FOL, me, and now you
are in trouble YOU want mo back. but he did
not say that. He takes command Of the
army. sends messengers to the Ammonites to
tell them to vacate the country. and getting
no favorable response narshals his troops
for battle.
Before going out to the war Jephthah
makes very solemn vow that if the Lord
will give him the victory then on his return
home whatsoever first comes ont OF his door
way he will offer in sacrifice rs a burnt Of
fering. The battle opens. It was no Skin
mishing on the edges Of danger. no unlim-
bering OF batteries two miles away, but the
hurting of men on the points OF swords and
spears until the ground could no more drink
the blood and the horses reared to leap over
the piles 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 they 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.
Jepbthah wins the day Twelve cities lay
captured at his feet Sound the victory all
through the mountains of Gilead. Let the
trumpeters call up the survivors. Home
ward to your wives and children. Home
ward with your glittering treasures. Home
ward to have the applause Of an admirins
Nation. Build triumpha arches. Swing out
flags all over Mizpeh. Open all your doors
to receive the captured treasures. Through
every hall spread the banquet. Pile up the
viands. Fill high the tankards. The Nation
is redeemed. the invaders are routed, and the
National honor is indicated.
Huzza Tor Jephthah. the conqueror Jeph-
thab, seated on prancing steed, advances
amid acclaiming multitudes, but his eye is
not on the excited popuace. Remembering
that he had made a solemn VOW that, return
ing from victorious battle. whatsoever first
came out OF the doorway of his home that
should he sacrifice as burnt offering, he
has his anxious look upon the door. | won
der what spotless lamb. what brace ofdoves,
Will De thrown upon lne uT5S pI the DurHl
Offering Oh, horrors Palene5s OF death
blanches his cheek. Despair seiZes his
heart. His daughter, his only child, PUSHES
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 yanshes Holding back his child
from his heaving breast and pushing the
locks back from the fair brow and looking
into the eyes Of ineXtlnguishable affection,
with choked utterance he says: Would
God / lay stark on the bloody plain. My
daughter. my only child, Joy of my home,
life of my life, thou art the sacrifice !"
The whole matter was explained to her.
This was whining, hollow hearted girl
into whose eyes the father looked. All the
glory of sword and shield vanished in the
presence OF the yalor of that girl. There
may have been q tremor of the lip as a rose
leaftrembles in the sough OF the south wind,
there may have been the starting Of a tear
like a raindrop shook from the anther of a
water lily, bur with a sell sacrifice that man
may not reach and only womans heart can
compass she surrenders herself to fire and to
death. She cries out i'll the words of my
text. MY father, if thou hast opened thy
mouth unto the Lord do unto me whatso-
ever hath proceeded from thy mouth.
She bows to the knife, and the blood which
80 often at the fathers voice had rushed TO
the crimson cheek smokes in the fires of the
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 the girls
chaplet 1t is well that her name came not
to u.s. for no one can wear it. They may
take the name of Deborah Abigail or
Miriam, hut no one in all the ages can have
the title of this daughter of sacrifice.
OF course this Offering was not pleasing to
the Lord ;but before you hurl your denuncia-
tons at Jephthahs cruelty, remember that
in olden times, when VOWS were made, men
thought they must execute them, perform
them, whether they were wicked Or good
There were two wrong things about Jeph-
thah'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 pre-
tentious airs and saw Il cOuldnOt have done
as Jephthah did II to-dayyOu were stand
ing on the banks of the Ganges and you had
been born in India, you might have been
throwing your children to the crocodies. 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 II type OF the physi-
cal, mental and spiritual sacrifice OF 10000
children in this day. There are parents all
unwittingly bringing TO bear upon their chill
dren class Of influences which will as GER
tainly ruin them as knife and torch destroyed
Jephthah's daughter. While 1 speak, the
whole Nation without emotion and without
shame looks upon the stupendous sacrifice.
In the first place, | remark that much OF
the system of education in our day is sys-
tenn of sacrifice. When children spend six
or seven hours n day in school. and then
must spend two or three hours in prepara-
tion for school the next day, will you tell ma
how much time they will have for sunshine
and fresh air and the obtaining of that exu-
berance which is necessary for the duties OF
coming life?
No one can feel more thankful than / do
for the advancement OF common school edu.
cation. The printing OF books appuopriat
for schools, the multiplication of philosopt>-
ical apparatus, the establishment of normal
schools, which provide for our children teach.
ers of largest caliber, are themes on which
every phianthropist ought to be con gratulat.
ed. But this herding OF great multitudes o
children in iii ventilated school-rooms and
poorly equipped halls OF instruction is max.
ing many of the places of knowledge in this
country huge holocausts
Politics in many OF the cities gets into ed
rcational affairs, and while the two political
4 - IL.