Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1893-02-25
REV. DR.. TALMAGH.
The Eminent Brooklyn Divine's Sun.
day Sermon.
Subject: "God Among tn. Shells"


Subject: "God Among tn. Shells"
TEXT: "And the Lord said unto Noses
lake unto thee saceet spices, stacte anc
onychd"-Exodus XXX, 81.
You may not have noticed the shells Of
tne Dinie' although in this early part of the
sacred book God calls you to consider and
employ them az He lied Moses to consider
and employ them. The onycha OF nv text
is shell found on the banks OF the Rad Sea.
anu moses and bis army must have crusae
many OF them under foot as they crossed
tne oisected waters, onycha on the beach
ana onycha in the unfolded bed of the deep.
snaii speak OF this shell as beautiful and
practlcal revelation of God, and as true as
the first chapter of Genesis and the last
chapter OF Revelation or everything be-
tween.
Not only Is this shell, the onychs. found
at the Red Sea, but in the waters Of India.
II not only DELEGATES the eye with it, convo-
buttons of beauty, white and lustrous an
serrated, but blesses the nostril with a pun.
gent aroma. This shelIfisb. acc,,stornad IA
feed on spikenard, is redolent with that
o1orous plant-redolent when alive and re.
doient when dead. Its shells waen burned
oewitch the air with fragrance.
In my text God comman is Moses TO mix
TINS onchya with the perfumes of the altar
Ia tne ancient tabernacle, and l propose to
NIX some OF Its perfumes at the altar of
DrookIyn tabernacle, for, having spoken 10
God Among the Stars" the Chronology OF
me bihle; or, God Among the Centuries -
tue 'Ornithology Of the Bibla: or Col
among the Birds;n the '.Mineraloyy of ths
Bible; or, God Among the Amethysts:'
the .ichthyolo3y of the Bible: or, Go |
Among the Fishes | now come TO speak Of
tne "Conchology Of the Bible; or Col
Among the Shells"
1t Is secret that you may keep for me.
Tor have never before told It TO any one.
That In all the realms of the natural world
tnere Is nothing to me go fascinating, 50
completely absorbing, SO full of suggestive.
ness, as shell. Wnat' More entertaining
than bird. which can sing, when shell
cannot sinsi Well, there you have made a
great mistake. Pick up the onycha from
the banks of the Red S "a or pic up biyalya
from the beach OF the Atlantic Ocean and
listen, and you hear whole choir of marine
voices-bass. alto, sopranc-n an unknown
tongue, but seeming TO chant, as put them
TO my ear, The sea is His and He made it,
others singing, Thy way. o God, is in the
sea" others hymning. "1e ruleth the raging
of the sea-"
What" says some one else, does the
some respects. yes, because | can handle the
shell and closely study the shell, while
caLnot handle the star, and if study it
must study it at distance OF millions and
millions of miles.
What" says some one else 'ars YOU
more Impressed by the shell than the
nowerP' Yes, for it has far greater varie-
ties and far greater richness of color, as
could show you in thousands OF specimens.
1aI
the rose leaf, but maintains its beauty CEN
fury after century, so that the onycha
which the hoof of Pharaoh's horse kriocSei
aside IN the chase of the Israeiites across .he
Red Sea may have kept its luster to this
hour Yes they are so partieolorei AMI
many oolored that you might pile them up
until you would have wall with all the
colors OF the wall of heaven from the jasper
at the bottom to the amethyst at the top
/ Oh, the shells! The petrifei foam of ths
sea. Oh, the shellsl The hardened bubbles
OF the deep. %, the shells. which are tns
! diadems thrown by the ocean to the feet OF
the continents. How the shells are ribbed
grooved. cylindered, notified, iridescent!
They were used as coin by some of the Ma
tons. They were fastened in belts by
others, and made in handles of WOO len ini-
! plements by still others. Mollusks not on y
| oil the sea, but nollusks Of the land. Do you
know how much they have had to DO with
the worlds history They saved the church
! OF God from extinguishment
The Israelites marched out of Egypt
2,0Oo, 600 strong, besides focks and herds,
The Bible says ''the people took tn ,ir dough
before it was leavened, their kneading
troughs being bound u N the clothes on
their shoulders. They were thrust forth out
of Egypt and could not tarry; neither had
they prepared for themselves any victuals."
/ just think OF it? Forty years In the wilder.
ness. lnddelity triumphantly asks, How
could they live forty } ears in the wilderness
without foodf You say mama fell. Oh,
that was after a long while. They would
have starved fifty times before the mamma
fell The fact Is, they were chiefly kept
alive by the molusks OF the land or sheiled
creatures Mr.. Fronton and Mr.. Sicari
took the same route from Egypt toward
Canaan that the Israelites took, and they
( give this as their testimony.
Although the children of Israel must
have consisted of about 2, 900. 900 souls. with
baggage and innumerabie foc6s aud herds
they were not likely to experience any in.
! convenience in their march. Several thou
sand persons might walk abreast with tie
greatest ease in the very narrowest part of
the valley i'll which they first began to file
off. 1t soon afterwari expands to above
three leagues in width. With respect to
forage they would be at no loss. Tbs
ground is covered with tamarisk, broom,
! clover and saint foiD, of which latter
especially camels are passion ltely foo I. be .
sides almost every variety OF odoriferous
I plant and herb proper for pasturage.
THE whole sides of the valley throu III
which the children of Israel marched are
I still tufted with brushwooi, watch doubt
less afforded TODD for their beasts, together
with many drier sorts for lighting fire on
which the israetes could with the greatest
ease take the dou IN they brought with them
on small iron plates, which form constant
appendage to the baggage of an oriental
! Traveller. Lastly, the heroage underneath
these trees and shrubs is completely covere
with snails OF protigious SIZE and of the
best sort, and, however uninviing sucl a
repast ought appear to us they are here es-
teemed great delicacy. They are so pleut
full in this valley that it may be literally said
that 1t is difficult to take one step without
treading on them"
So the shelled creatures saved the host oil
israeites on the march to the promise
land, and the attack of infidelty at tbi.
point is defeated by the facts, as inf lefty i,
always defeated by facts, since it is founded
on ignorance. In writing aud printing ouI
Interrogation point has at the bottom mar!
like period an over it flourish like tbs
swing o. n Transfers whip, and we put this
Interrogation point at the end of question
hut in the Spanish language the interroga.
ton point is twice use for each question
At the beginning of the gu ,stoi the inter
rogation point is presented upside down
an at the c.ose OF the questi IN right sid
up When iuidelity puts question about
the Scriptures, as it always indicates ign1
rance. the question ought to be printed will
two interrogation points, one at the begin
ming and one at the close, but oo:a upsi1t
down.
Thank God for the wealth OF mollusks al
up and down the earth, whether feedin
the Israelites on their way 10 the land flow
ing with milk and honey, or, rs we are bet
Ter acquainted with The mollusks, whe
flung TO the beach of lake or sea There ar
three great families of them. II | shout
ask yon TO name three of the great roya
families of tue oarth perhaps you would re
spond, the house of Stewart, the house o
Hapsburg, the house of Bourbon, but tn
three royal families OF mollusks are the un'
valve, or shell in one part, the bivalve. o
shell OF two parts and mu.tivalve, or she
in many parts. and see Col in their ev r
hinge, in their every tooth, IN thel
every cartilage, In their every iigament. |
their every spiral ridge, and In their ever
co.or. PRISM on prism, and their aiaptatio
nt thin shells for still ponds and thick coal
ing for boisterous seas. They all dash upo
me the thought OF the providential care c
God.
" hat is the cce Of all this architecture o
the shell. and why is it pictured from tn
outside lip clear down into its labyrinths o
construct on, Why the inflnitv o. skill an
radanc. in shells What is the use OF til
color and exquisite curve OF thing so in
significant asa shelhsh, Why, when tn
conchoiosist bv dire 'ge or rake fetcaes tn
crustaceous specimens to the shore. does h
find at his feet whole alhambras and co
seums and parthenons and crystal palaces O