Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1893-05-20
HARP AND JAVELIN.
DIR. TALMAeE breaches ON A NOV
Ell SUBJECT.

L. SOOSES'.
The Wonderful Soothing and Healing Pow.
er Of Music us Illustrated by David DO
fore snul-When Resisted. tho EVIL Is All
tho GrenteY.
BROOKLYN, May 14.-In his sermon
this forenoon In the Brooklyn Tabernacle
Rev. DR.. Talmage brought In q novel and
practical conjunction that is suggested
by text perhaps never before chosen.
The opening hymn, led by organ and
,oornet and Joined In by thousands Of
voices, was:
Before Jehovahs awful throne
Ye,nationn bow With sacred Joy.
s Thesubject was: Harp and
Javelin," tho text being I Samuel. eight
zenith chapter. tenth and eleventh verses
''And David played with his hand as 81
oshsrs times, and there was javehn in
.Saalashand And Baul cost the 3avelin,
Tor he said, will smite David eren to
the wall with it. And David avoided oui
OF his presence twice"
What spectacle for all sgesl Saul. a
giant, and David, 8. dwarf An unfor-
tunate war ballad had been composed and
sung enlogizing David above Saul. Thai
song threw 9aul into a paroxysm Of rage
which brought on one OF his old spells OF
insanity to which he had been subject.
II one is disposed to some physical all
mcnt and be get real mad, 1t Is very spt
to bring on one OF his old attacks. Saul
ia rnving maniac. and he goes to imi-
tating tho false prophets or sibyls, who
kicked and gesticulsted wildly when
they pretended to be foretelling events.
Whatever the physicians Of the royal
staff may have prescribed for the dis
ordered king know not. but David pre-
scribed music. Having keyed up the
harp, his fingers began TO pull tho rhythm
from tho vibrating strings. Thrnml
Ihrum! Thrurnl No use The king will
not listen to the exquisite cadenccs. He
lots fly q javelin. expecting to pin the
minstrel to the wall, but David lodged
the weapon and kept on, for he was con-
fdent that he could, as before, subdue
Sal's bad spirit by music.
Again the javelin Is flung, and David
lodges 1t and departs. What q contrast!
Roseate David with harp and onraged
Saul with javelin. Who would not
rather play tho one than fling the other,
But that was not the only time in tho
worlds history that harp and javclin
met. Where their birthplace was 1 can
not declare. It is sold THAI the Tyre was
first suggested by the tight drawing of
the sinews Of tortoise across It's shell,
and that the flute was first suggested by
the blowing of the wind across bed Of
reeds, and that the ratio Of musical In
tervals was first suggested to Pythago-
ras by the different hammers on the anvil
of the smithy, but the harp seems to me-
: to have dropped out of the sky and the
javelin to have been thrown up from the
pit.
The Oldest stringed instrument of tn,
world is the harp. Jubal sounded his
harp In the book Of Genesis. David
played many Of his psalms on the harp
while he sang them. The captives In
Babylon. hung their harps on thewillows:
Josephus celebrated the invention Of the
-1O-stringed harp. Timotheus, the Mile
sian, was imprisoned for adding the
twelfth string to the harp, because too
much luxury Of sound might enervate
the people. Egyptian harps, Scottish
harps, Welsh harps, Irish harps have
been celebrated. What an inspired tri-
angle!
Everlasting honors to Sebastian Erard,
who by pedals invented called tho foot
as we'll US the hand to the harp. When
tho harpsicord maker for whom be
worked discharged him for his genius,
the employer not wanting to be eclipsed
by his subordinate, Erard suffered from
the same passion Of jealousy that threw
Saul Of my text into the fit during which
he flung javelin at the harpist. The
harp Is almost human, as you find when
you put your finger on Its pulse
Other instruments have louder voice
and may be better for battle charge,
but what exquisite sweetness slumbexs
between the harp strings, waking st the
FIRST touch Of the tips Of the fingers. 1t
can weep. It can plead. Ii can soothe.
1t can pray. The flute is more mellow,
the trumpet is more startling, the organ
is more majestic, the cymbals are more
festive, the drum L. more resounding,
but the harp has o richness OF its own
and will continue Its mission through oil
time and then take part In celestial sym
phonies. for St. John says he hoard IN
heaven the harps of God.
THE ANCIENT JAvELlN.
But the javelin of my text is just ss
old It is about 81 feet long, with wood
On handle and steel point, keen and sharp.
But 1t belongs to the great family of
death dealers and is brother to sword
and spear and bayonet, and first cousin
to all the implements that wound and
slay. It has cut Its way through the
ages. It was old when Saul, in the scene
of my text, tried-to harpoon David. 1t
has gashed the earth with grave trenches.
Its keen tip is Redeemed with the blood
Of American wars, English wars, Ger.
man wars, Russian wars, French wars.
Crusader wars and wars of all nations
and of all ages.
The structure of the javelin shows
what It was made for. The plowshare
is sharp, but aimed to cut the earth In
preparation for harvests. The lightning
rod is sharp. but aimed to disarm the
Ightnings and secure safety. The ak Is
sharp, but aimed to fell forests and
clear the way for human habitaaon.
The knife Is sharp, but aimed to cut the
bread for sustenanoe. But the javelin
is sharp only to open human arteries and
eytinguish human eyesight and take
human life and fill the earth with the
cries of orphanage and widowhood and
childlessness.
Oh, am SO glad that my text brings
them so close together that We can see
The contract between the harp and the