Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1893-11-09
UNSAFE LIFEBOAYS.
Theme for Sermon by Rev. T.
Dewitt Talmage.
It Was Suggested by the Recent Interna-
tionai Yacht faces Theosophy The
New Lifeboat Christian Ipeon-
sistencies Another The Cos
pei Lifeboat the Only
Safe One.

>.
text being Acts xvii, 80:
Then the soldiers cut of the ropes OF +,
boat, and let her fall on
While your faces are vet somewhat
bronzed by attendance on the interim
tional boat contest between the Wig
liant and the EaliSvrie, | address YOU.
Good things when there is no betting
or dissipation, these outdoor sports.
We want more fresh air and breeziness
in our temperaments and our religion.
a stale and slow and lugu brious reli-
gion may have done for other times
yet viii not do for these But my text
calls our attention to boat of a differ
ent sort, and instead of the Atlantic it
is the Mediterranean. and instead OF
not wind enough, as the crews Of the
Nigilant and NallSyrie the other dav
complained, there is too much wind
and the swoop of Euroelydon l am
not calling your attention So much to
the famous ship, on which Paul was
the distinguished passenger, but to the
lifeboat of that ship which no one
seems to notice. For a fortnight the
main vessel had been tossed and driv-
en-. For that two weeks the account
says the passengers had continued
fasting" | suppose the salt water
dashing over, had spoiled the sea bis
cult, and the passengers were seasiclx
anyhow. The sailors said: 1T is no
use; this ship must 90 down, and they
proposed among themselves to lower
the lifeboat and get into it and take
their chances for reaching shore, al
though they pretended they were GO
ing to get over the sides of the biz
ship and down into the lifeboat
only to do sailors duty That was
not sailor-lil1e. for the sailors that
have known were all intrepid fellows,
and would rather go down with the |
ship than do such a mean thing as |
those Jack Tars of my text attempted
When on the Mediterranean last June
the Victoria sank under the ram of the
Camperdown, the most ma iestie thing
about that awful scene was that all /
the sailors staid at their posts doing |
their duty As class all over the |
world, sailors are valorous, but the
sailors of the text were exceptional. I
and pretended to do duty while they
were really preparing for fight in the
hfeboat But these marines ON
board-sea-soldiers-had in especial
charge little missionary who was
turning the world upside down. and
when these marines saw the trick the
sailors were about to play, they lifted
the cutlasses from the girdle, and chopl
chop went those cutlasses into the
ropes that held the lifeboat. and splash.
it dropped into the sea. My text de-
scribes it: THE soldiers cut off the
hopes of the boat, and let her fall of. +"
As that empty lifeboat dropped and
was capsized on sea where for
two weeks winds and pillows had been
In battle, think that many on board
the main vessel felt their last hope of |
ever reaching home had vanished In
that tempestuous sea a small boat
could not have lived five minutes
My subject is Unsafe Lifeboats."
We cannot exaggerate the Importance
Of the lifeboat. All honor to the mem
DRY of Lionel Lulsin, the coach-builder
OF Long Acre, London, who invented
the first lifeboat, and / do not blame
him for ordering put up on his tomb
stone in Kent the inscription that you
may still read there:
This Lionel Lulin was the first who
built lifeboat. and was the original
inventor of that principle of safety, by
which many lives and much property
have been preserved from shipwreclx:
and he obtained for it the kings pat
emit in the year 1885"
All honor to the memory of Sir Will
liam Hillary, who. living in the Isle of :
Man, and after assisting with his own
hands in the rescue of 305 lives of the
stirred the English par
lament to quick action in the construc- |
ion of lifeboats. Thanks to God for the |
sublime and pathetic and divine mis-
non of the lifeboat. No one will doubt 9
is important mission who has read of
he wreck of the Amazon in the bay of I
Bscay; of the Tweed running on the 7
eefs of the Gulf of Mexico, or of the .
ocean Monarch on the coast of Wales
u Of the Birkenhead on The Cape of
iood Hope, or of the Royal Charter on
he coast of Anglesea, or of the Elk
mouth on the Scotch breakers, or of
he Cambria on Tie Irish coast, or of q
he Atlantic on the rocks of Nova $
scotia, or OF the Lexington on Long =
sland Sound. To add still further to D
he Importance of the lifeboat, remem-
Yer there are 5000, 600 men following Q
he sea, to say nothing of the I'M
ounted millions this moment ocean G
'assengers We ''land-lubbers," as u
ailors call us, may not know the diff
erenee between a marlin spike and a :,
ing bolt. or anything about heaving a g
og or rigging out flying jibboom. or > >
urling top sail. bnt we all realize to =
'reater or less extent the Importance :,
7 lifeboat in every marine equip =
lent But do we feel the importance =
lifeboat in the matter OF the souls o.
tscue? There are times when w ~ y
eel that we are out at sea. ana as =
aany disturbing and anxious question =
Il