The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1893-01-05
RUSSIA AND HER RULER.
Rev, T. Dewitt Telmage Talks on
the Land Of the Gear.
An Attempt to Correct Impressions Gre
Rted by Stories Published Broadcast
of Alleged Oppressive Govern
ment in Russia, Etc.

The following discourse was pre-
pared and delivered by Rev r. Dewitt
Talmage in the Brooklyn tabernacle
by way of refutatiou of calumnies in
regard to Russia and its ruler. The
text was: Ne
Presumptuous are they, self willed: they are
not afraid to speak evil of dignitics-II Peter,
H.. 10.
Amid most reprehensiblc crew, Pc
ter here paints by one stroke the por-
trait of those who delight to slash at
people in authority. Now, we all have
right to criticisc evil behavior, wheth-
err in high places or low, but the fact
that one is high up is no proof that he
ought to be brought down. 1t is bad
freak of human nature now. as it was
in the time of the text a bad streak of
human nature, that success of any kind
excites the jealous antipathy of those
who can not climb the same steep.
There never was David on the throne
that there was not some Absalom who
wanted to get it. There never was a
Christ but the world had saw and
hammer ready to fashion cross
On which to assasslnate him.
Out of this evil spirit grow
not only individual but national
and international defamation. To no
country has more injustice been done
than to our own in days that are past.
Long before Martin Chuzzlewit" was
printed, the literature of the world
scoffed at everything American. Vic
tor Hugo, as honest as he was I'M
equaled in literary power, was so mis-
informed concerning America that he
wrote: 'The most singular thing is
the need of whiting, with which all
Americans are possessed. It is such
that on Sunday they give the sailors
little bits of wood, because if they did
not they would white the ship. In
court, at the most critical moment, the
judge, whiting, says: Prisoner, are
you guilty? and the accused TRANQUILITY
responds, whiting: 4 am not guilty"
Lord John Russell called us "a bubble
bursting nationality" But our coun-
try has at last recovered from such
caricature, and there is not street in
any city of Europe or Asia where the
word America" will not win defer
ence.
What are the motives for misrepre-
sentation? Commercial interests and
international jealousy. Russia is as
large as all the rest of Europe put to-
gether. Remember that a nation is
only man or woman on n big scale
60 into any neighborhood of America
and ask the physician who has small
practice what he thinks of the physi-
clan who has large praetiee, Ask a
lawyer who has no briefs wasshe
thinks of the lawyer who hid -
rooms filled with clerks tryin-.rnee
to transact the superabundas =
that comes to him. Ask thu 81 n.
who has very limited audiendI
he thinks of the minister w
overlooking audiences? Why d
Europe like Russia? Because
enough acreage to swallow all
and feel she had only half d
Russia is as long as North and
America put together. "But
some one, do you mean to cha
authors and the lecturers VIII
written or spoken against Russ
falsehood?" BY no means. T
find in any city or nation evils
merable if you wish TO ~discourse]V s
them.
1t is most important that this cou
have right IDEAS concerning Russia
among all the nations this side
Heaven, Russia is Americas best fri
There has not been an hour in the
seventy-five years that the shipwI
of free institutions in America wd
not have called forth from Ill the
potisms of Europe and Asia a sho1I
g'adness wide as earth and deep AS
dition. But who ever else failed
Russia never did, and whoever else ii
doubtful, Russia never was Rus
then an old government, smiled on
cradle OF our government while We
It's earliest infancy. Empress Gather
OF Russia in 1176, or thereabouts
Tered kindly interference that our
teen colonies might not go down un
the cruelties of war. Again, in ID
Russia stretched forth toward II
merclfnl hand. When our dreadful c
war was raging and the two thun]
clouds of northern and southern va
elashed, Russia practically said
the nations of Europe: keep vd
hands off and let the brave men of 4
north and the south settle their O
troubles" | rehearsed some of III
scenes to the emperor last July, d fy-
ing: "You We're probably too young to
remember the posi- your father took
at that time but with radiant smile
he responded: ''Oh; yes, I remember
remember, and there was an accenta-
ton of the words which demonstrated
j to me that these occurrences had often
been talked of in the imperial house
hold. | stood on New York battery,
during the war, as I suppose many of
you aid, looking off through magnify
ing glass upon fleet of Russian ships.
What are they doing there?" Iasled.
and so everyone asked. What bust
ness have the Russian warships in our
New York marlboro" Word came that
another fleet of Russian ships was In
San Francisco harbor 'What does
this meant cur rulers asked, but
did not get immediate answer.
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