The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1893-03-22

tured at Tomiinson hall Wednesday night
delivering his famous lecture "The School
OF Scandal" The hall was well filed with
an appreciative audience and applause
was liberal. DR.. Talmage was in one Of
his hest moods and warmed to the occa-
sion with the growth of his subject until
the closing sentences wrought the au-
dience up 10 such pitch OF enthusiasm
that they did not realize that he was done
and sat for some moments while he was
bowling his acknowledgements and walk
ing backward toward his seat. In this
lecture it would seem that the attempt
has been made to group a series OF con-
trasts. for one is moved first to tears. then
to laughter and again to tears without real
izing what has been going on. The dider-
ences expressed and implied are such that
ones very heart is moved insensibly and
varying emotions sweep over one like
waves on the ocean.
The lecture may be said to be aimed at
the abuse of tattling and tale-bearing, and
the characterizations Of the female and
the male gossip were scathing in their in
tensity. 1t seemed almost impossible TO
find words sufficiently strong to express
the utter horror and contempt the speaker
felt. He said that only one tattler was
worse than a female tatiler-a male tat
tier. He declared that the gossip the
derogetory talk about ones neighboTs,
was worse than assassination. 1t would
be better to go down the street burning
the houses and cutting the Threats OF
those you meet. He aseribed nine-tenths
Of all the business failures to the male
gossip. "a man gets into difficulties.
The gossip begins to hint that he is In
trouble. He borrows money at the bank
and director tells everybody he dsres.
lie cells his carriages to help
tide him over. Some one whispers
I knew he'd never get over it. and the
impression gets abroad that his business
affairs are in a bad condition. and soon he
goes down-crash, crash, crash. crash
when a little charity. little disposition
to do so, would have helped him over
his hard place.
Stabbing Character.
"Then the whisperer stsbs the character
OF a woman, and many a noble. pure
woman has been whispered out of good
society; whispered about until her heart
was broken and whispered into her grave
literally killed by these internal scandal
mongers.
"Some people say there is no hell.
There can he no hell bad enough for this
Internal gang of whisperers, who will
spend all their time in the other world by
running to the gates. when a newcomer
arrives, and asking what the latest gossip
is down below or up above. That will be
hell enough"
His description OF a lie was powerful.
He called it longer than any reptile that
ever inhabited the earth during the
saurian age, taller than any mammoth
that found home here during the mann
malian age and more powerful and swift
than any bird that has winged the air
since the planet was created. Once set
on it's travels it never stops destroying,
never stops its internal work of injury, but
always presses forward. 1t is swifter than
the express train, and seven league boots
are unnecessary for its locomotion. No
matter where you may go 1t will always
be ahead of you, and no matter where you
hide it will ALWAYS find you. But il will
at last come back to rest on ones own
head, and one must finally suffer the con-
sequences of ones foolish and injurious
utterances against friend or foe.
A considerable portion OF the lecture
was devoted to the influences of heredity
in determining the life of a child. Some
men are good because they can't help it.
Their blood is coed. They have genera
tions of mothers in Israel behind them.
Their fathers have kept the law. Ii is no
great credit to them if they are good. They
ought to be and can't be any other way if
they try, unless they deliberately seek a
criminal life. On the other hand there
are those whose very blood is tainted with
criminality. They know nothing but
wickedness and criminal doings from the
time they can crawl on the floor until they
find themselves behind the bars of the
penitentiarv. If such a man as that
breaks away from his environments and
becomes good citizen. he deserves more
credit for 1t than any ten of the others.
What is bred in the bone will develop
f, sooner or later, and if the man cen con-
| quer his Unborn propensities he should be
accorded every encouragement in doing
co."
Nearest the Throne.
at have been asked a good many times
who will sit nearest the throne in heaven.
| l can't answer that, but think it will be
he who was tempted and has withstood
the temptation, he who has risen above
his birthright of sin and crime and has
been as good q man as his heredity would
| allow him to be. Some of them, even
after they fall, do SO only after they have
withstood more temptation than hun
| dreds of men together ever felt. They
| should be pitied and not criticised. They
have done Ms we'll as circumstances permit
ted and are deserving of the greatest
| praise"
Tie lecture continued with the most
! burning invectives against Islander the
| language is capable OF producing, Every
word that could convey the meaning OF
/ horror and terror was dragged in and
| made to do duty. Every one was ar
rsigned for any action OF that kind they
! might have been guilty of in the past,
| and. as q climax was reached, one OF those
sudden psuses would come which give
! such n striking effect to the dlscourses of
Dr. Talmsge, and one would hardly know
whether to laugh or feel sad. Story after
story followed in quick succession, some
pathetic, some full! of courage, some illus
tration OF the widespread injury resulting
| from lies and from scandal. As the points