Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1893-11-30


Ralston, living at the rate Of $4,000 a
month, leaping from San Francisco wharf
hscause be could not continue to live at the
same ratio. They saw the wien and para,
lytic bankers who had changed their souls
into molten gold stamped with the image
Of the earthly, earthly. They saw some great
souls by avarice turned into homunculi,
and they said to themselves. ~ will seek
after higher treasure"
DEvoURRp By THE WORLD.
From that time they did not care whether
they walked or rode II Christ walked with
them; nor whether they lived In q mansion
Or in hut II they dwelt under the shadow
OF the Almighty; nor whether they were
robed in French broadcloth or in homespua
II they had the robe of the Saviour's right
eousness; nor II they were sandalled with
morocco or calfskin IL they were shod with
the preparation Of the Gospel Now you
see peace on their countenance. Now that
man says: what a fool was to be en-
chanted with this world. Why, / have
more satisfaction in five minutes in the sery-
ice Of God than had IN all the first years
Of my life while was gaingetting. like
this evening OF my day great deal better
greedily devoured the prey, but now 1t is
evening, and l am gloriously dividing the
spoil"
Ny friends, this world is poor thing to
hunt. 1t is healthful to 60 out in the woods
and hunt. 1t rekindles the luster Of the
eye. 1t strikes the brown Of the autumnal
leaf into the cheek. 1t gives to the rheu-
matte limbs the strength to leap like roe.
Christopher North's pet gun, the muckle-
mould Meg, going of in the summer in the
forests had its echo in the winter time in
the eloquence that rang through the uni
versity halls of Edinburgh. 1t is healthy
to go hunting in the fields, but / tell you
that 1t is belittling and bedwarfng and
belaming for q man to hunt this world.
The hammer comes down on the guncap,
and the barrel explodes and hills you in
stead of that which you are pursuing.
When you turn out to hunt the world,
The world turns out to hunt you, and as
many sportsman aiming his gun at a
panther's heart has gone down under the
striped claws, SO while you have been at
tempting to devour this world the world
has been devouring you. So it was with
Lord Byron. So it was with Coleridge. So
it was with Catherine of Russia. Henry
II went out hunting for this world, and its
lances struck through his heart. Francis
| aimed at the world, but the assassin's
dagger put an end to his ambition and his
life at one stroke Mary Queen of Scots
wrote on the window of her castle:
From the top of oil my trust
Mishap hath laid me in tho dust.
SALVATION POSTPONED FOREVER.
The queen dowager of Navarro was of.
iered for her wedding day a costly and beau
tiful pair of gloves, and she put them on,
but they were poisoned gloves, and they
took her life Better bare hand of cold
privation than warm and poisoned glove
of ruinous success. "Oh," says some young
man in the audience, II believe what you
are preaching. am going to do that very
thing. In the morning of my life am 60
ing to devour the prey, and in the evening
shall divide the spoils Of Christian char.
acter. | only want little while to SOW my
wild oats, and then will be good"
Young man, did you ever take the census
of all the old peop!ef How many old peo
pie are there in your house2 One, two OF
noneP How many in vast assemblage
like this? Only here and there gray head
like the patches of snow here and there in
the fields on late April day. The fact is
that the tides of the years are so strong that
men 60 down under them before they get
to be 60, before they get to be 80, before
they get to be 40, before they get to be 30
and If you, my young brother, resolve now
that you will spend the morning of youl
days in devouring the prey the probability
is that you will never divide the spoilf
in the evening hour. He who postpones
until old age the religion of Jesus Christ
postpones it forever.
Where are the men who, 30 years ago, re
solved to become Christians in old age, put
| ting it off certain number of years? They
never got to be old. The railroad collision
or the steamboat explosion, or the slip on
the ice, or the falling ladder, or the sudden
| cold put an end to their opportunities
They have never had an opportunity since
and never will have an opportunity again
They locked the door of heaven against
their soul, and they threw away the keys
They chased the world, and they died in the
chase. The wounded tiger turned on them
| They failed to take the game they pursued
Mounted on a swift courser, they leaped
the hedge, but the courser fell on them and
soul for the world, they lost both and got
neither
LIES BRIEF DAY.
| While this is an encouragement to ole
people who are still unpardoned, it is nc
encouragement to the young who are put
ting off the day of grace. This doctrine
that the old may be repentant is to be TAX
en- cautiously. 1t is medicine that kills Of
| cures. The same medicine given to differ
ent patients, in one case it saves life and iT
the other it destroys it. This possibility o.
repentance at the close of life may cure the
old man while it kills the young Be eau
tious in taking it.
Again, my subject is descriptive of thost
who come to sudden and radical change
| You have noticed how short time it i!
from morning to night-only seven OF
eight hours. You know that the day ha.
very brief life. It's heart beats "a times
and then it is dead. How quick this transi
tion in the character of these Benjamites
"In the morning they shall devour thu
prey, and at night they shall divide tht
spoils" Is it possible that there shall b'
such transformation in any of our char
actersP, Yes, man may be at o'clock il
|
and at o'clock at night he may be a peace
full, distributive Christian.
Conversion is instantaneous. A mar
passes into the kingdom Of God quicker
than down the sky runs zigzag lightning
A man may be anxious about his soul for {
great many years; that does not make hin
Christian. A man may pray grea
while; that does not make him Christian
A man may resolve on the reformation O.
his character and have that resolution go
ing on great while; that does not maxi
him Christiap But the very instan
when he filings his soul on the mercy of Je
sus Christ, that instant is lustration
emancipation, resurrection. Up to tina
point he is going in the wrong direction
after that point he is going in the right di
rection. Before that moment he is chile