Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1893-04-20


all our great cities are full of such
homes. and the worst time the mid
night.
In the midnight. gambling does its
worst work. WHAT though the hours
be slipping away, alsl though the wife
be waiting in the cheerleSs home? Stir
up the fire. Bring on more drinks. Put
up more stakes. That commercial
out sign of copartnership will this sea-
son be wrecked on Il gamblers table.
Thre will be many a money till that
will spring Il leak A member of con-
gress gambled with Il member elect
and won S12O,OOO. The old way of
getting a living is slow. The old way
of getting a fortune is so stupid. Come,
let us toss up and see who shall have
it. And so the work goes on, from
the wheeling wretches pitching pennies
in rum grocery up to the millionaire
gambler in the stock market.
streets of our American cities, and you
hear the click of the dice and the sharp,
keen tap Of the pool-room ticker. At
these places merchant princes dis
mount, and legislators tired of making
All classes of people are robbed by this
crime, the importer of foreign silks and
the dealer in Chatham street pocket
handkerchiefS. The clerks of the store
take a hand after the shutters are put
up, and the officers of the court while
away their time while the jury is out.
In Baden Baden, when that city was
the greatest Of all gambling places on
earth, it was no unusual thing the next
morning, in the woods around that city,
to find the suspended bodies of suicides.
Whatever be the splendor of the sur
rOundingS. there is no excuse for this
crime. The thunderS of eternal de-
struction roll in the deep rumble of
that gambling ten-pin alley, and as men
come out to join the long procession
of sin. all the drums of woe beat the
dead-march of a thousand souls. In
one year in the city of New York, there
were S7.OOO.OOO sacrificed at the gam
ing table. Perhaps some of your friends
have been smitten of this sin. Per
haps some Of you have been smittcn by
it. Perhaps there may be stranger
in the house this morning come from
some of the hotels Look out for those
agents of iniquity who tarry around
about the hotels. and ask YOU. Would
YOU like to see the city," Yes. Have
you ever seen that splendid building up
town. No Then the villain will I'M
dcrtale to show you what he calls the
lions" and elephants" and aft
err young man. through NOR
bid curiosity or through madness
or through badness of soul. has seen
the "lons'' and the "elephants.' he
will be on enchanted ground. Look
out for these men who move around
the hotel with sleek hats-always sleek
hats-and pa.ronizing air. and unac-
cOuntablr interest about your welfare
and entertainment. You are fool
if YOU cannot see through it, They
want your money. In Chestnut street,
Philadelphia, while l was living in that
city. an incident occurred which was
familiar to us there. In Chestnut
street IL young man went Into Il gamb-
ling saloon, lost all his property, then
blew his brains out, and before the
blood was washed from the floor by the
maid the comrades was shuttiing cards
again. You see there is more mercy
in the highwayman for the belated
traveller on whose body he heaps the
stones, there is more mercy III the
frost for the flower that it kills, there
is more mercy in the hurricane that
shiycrs the steamer on the Long Island
coast, than there is mercy in the heart
of gambler for his victim.
Are there in this assemblage this
morning those who know by expert
ence the tragedies Of midnight III town!
l am not here to thrust you back with
one hard word. Take the bandage
from your bruised soul and put an 1t
the soothing salve Of Chrlsts gospel
and of Gods compassion. Many have
come. I see others coming to God this
morning tired of the sinful life. Cry up
the news to heaven. Set all the bells
ringing. Spread the banquet under the
arches. Let the crowned heads come
down and sit at the jubilee. tell you
there is more delight in heaven over
one man that gets reformed by the
grace Of God than over ninety and nine
that never got off the track. l could
give you the history in Il minute of one
of the best friends l ever had Out
side of my own family l never had &;
better friend. He Welscomed me at my
home at the West. He was of splendid
personal appearance, and he had IN
ardOr Of soul and Il warmth OF affection
that made me love him like Il brother.
1 saw men coming out Of the saloons
and gambling hclls. and they surround
ed my friend. and they took him at the
weak point, his social nature. and l saw
him going down, and l had fair talk
with him-for l never yet saw Il man
you could NOT talk with on the subject
OF his habits. if you talked with him in
the right way. 1 said to him, "Why
don't you give up your bad habits and
become 4 ChristianT / remember now
just how he looked. leaning over his
counter, as he replied: Il wish I could.
Oh! sir. l should like to be Christian,
but 1 have gone so far astray I can't
get back"
So the time went on. After awhile
the day of sickness came. l was sum-
moncd to his sick bed. l fastened 1t
took me but few mouents to get
there. l was surprised as 1 went in. I
saw him in his ordinary clothes, fully
dressed. lying on the top Of the bed.
gave him my hand, and he seized it
convdlsively and said: "Oh, how glad
I am to see you. sSit down there" l
sat down and he said: "Mr. Talmadge,
just where you sit now my mother sat
last night. She has been dead twenty
years Now, l don't want YOU to think