The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1893-11-29
"a HUNTING SCENE
The Subject of a Seasonable Ser
mon by Rev. DIR. Talmage.
People Who Want the Worlds Plaudits
and the Worlds Gains-This World
Poor Thing to Hunt-Many
that Chase the World Die
in the Chase.


of his sermon q most seasonable one:
"a Hunting Scene," the text being
Genesis Xix, 81:
''In the morning he shall devour the prey, and
at night he shall divide the spoil"
A few nights ago eight hundred men
cncamped along the Long Island rail-
road, so as to be ready for the next
morning, which was the first open
day" for deer hunting. Between sun.
rise and o'clock In the afternoon OF
that day fifteen deer were shot. On the
goth of October our woods and forests
resound with shock Of firearms, and
are tracked Of pointers and settlers, be-
cause the quail are then lawful prize |
for the sportsman. On certain day In
all England you can hear the crack OF
the sportsman's gun because grouse
hunting has begun; and every man that
can afford the time and ammunition,
and can draw bead, starts for the
fields. Xenophon grew eloquent in re-
gard to the art of hunting. In the far
east, people, elephant-mounted, chase
the tiger The American Indian darts
his arrow at the buffalo until the
frightened herd tumble over the rocks.
European mobiles are often found in the
fox-chase and at the stag-hunt. Francis
/. was called the father of hunting.
Moses declares of Nimrod HE was
mighty hunter before the Lord"
Therefore, in all ages Of the world, the
imagery of my text ought to be sug-
gestive, whether 1t means wolf after
a fox, or a man after lion. Old Jacob,
dying, is telling the fortunes OF his
children. He prophesies the devouring
propensities of Benjamin and his de-
scendants With his dim old eyes he
looks of and sees the hunters going
out TO the fields, ranging them all day,
and at nightfall coming home, the
game slung over the shoulder, and
reaching the door of the tent, the
hunters begin to distribute the game,
and one takes coney, and another a
rabbit, and another n roe. I'm the
morning he shall devour the prey, and
at night he shall divide the spoil" Or
it may be reference to the
habits OF wild beasts that slay
their prey, and then drag II back to
the cave or lair, and divide it among
the young. / take my text, in the first
place, as descriptive of those people
who in the morning of their life give
themselves up to hunting the world
but afterward, by the grace of God, in
the evening of their life divide among
themselves the spoils Of Christian char
acter. There are aged Christian mer
: and women who, If they gave testi
mony, would tell you that in the morn
ing Of their life they were after The
world as intense as q hound after
hare, or as falcon swoops upon
gazelle. They wanted the world
plaudits and the worlds gains. The.
{, felt that IL they could get this worlt
they would have everything. Some'o
them started out for the pleasures o
the world They thought that the mai
= who laughed loudest was the happiest
They tried repartee, and conundrum
and burlesque and madrigal The.
!. thought they wonld like to be Ton
Hoods, or Charles Lambs or Edgar A
Poes. They mingled wine, and musi
. and the spectacular. They were wor
! shippers Of the harlequin, and the Merr.
- Andrew, and the buffoon and tn
lester. Life was to them foam, an
bauble, and cachination, and roystei
ing and grimace. They were so full o
glee they could hardly repress thei
mirth, even on solemn occasions, an
they came near bursting out hilariou.
ly even at the burial, because ther
was something so dolorous in the tone c
) countenance of the undertaken. Afte
= awhile misfortune struck them hard o
I the back They found there was som'
| thing they could not laugh at Unde
their late hours their health CAV
4 way or there was q death in th
| house. OF every green thin
j their soul was exfoliated. The
10 found out that life was more than
y Joke. From the heart of God thei
L blazed into their soul an earnestneS
q that they had never felt before. The
= awoke TO their sinfulness and their in
\ mortality, and here they sit at sixty
seventy years Of age, as appreciati'
of all innocenty mirth as they ev'
NJ we're, but they are bent on style I
" satisfaction which in early life the
-, never hunted; the evening OF their da,
brighter than the morning. In q
o. morning they devoured the prey, b'
= at night they divided the spoils.
Then there are others who starte
out for financial success. They see no
timber the rim of mans hat Is whe
he bows down before some one tran
picious. They felt they would like
see. how the world looked from Il
window OF four thousand dollar turl
out. They thought they would like
have the morning sunlight tangled
the headgear of q dashing span. The
wanted the bridges in the park 10 r
sound under the rataplan Of their swi
hoofs. They wanted a gilded baldricl
and so they started on the dollar hun
q They chased 1t up one street and chase
IL down another They followed
whom II burrowed In the cellar. The
freed It In the roof. Wherever doll
was expected TO be, they were. TIL,
chased IL across the ocean. They chas'
Il across the land. They stopped n
4 for the night Hearing that dolla
even In the darkness, thrilled them
~ an Adirondack sportsman is thrilled
he midnight by looms laugh. They chss'
that dollar 10 the money vault Th'
~ chased A. 10 the government treasur