Democratic messenger., 1894-08-18

with revolver by his side, the cruel
instrument having had two bullets-one
for him and the other for the gunsmith
who Mt the coroner's inquest was exam
lining il and fell dead. Have you any
doubt Of the qualification of Hugh Mil.
Ter after his hot brain had ceased throb.
bing that winter night i'll his study AT
Portobello? Among the mighticst OF
earth. among the mightiest Of heaven.
No one ever doubted the picty of Will
liam Cowper. the author of those three
great hymns. ''Oh, For Closer Walk
With God" What Various Hin
drances We Meet" There Is Foun
tain Filled With Blood" William
Cowper. who shares with Isaac Watts
and Charles Wesley the chief honors of
Christian hymnology. In hypochondria
he resolved to take his own life and
rode to the river Thames. but found n
man seated on some goods at the very
point from which he expected to spring
and rode back to his home and that
night threw himself upon his own
knife, but the blade broke. and then he
hanged himself to the ceiling. but the
rope parted. No wonder that when God
me.cifully delivered him from that
awful dementia he sat down and wrote
TINT other hymn just as memorable:
God moves in mysterious way
His wonders 10 perform.
lie plants his footsteps in the sea
And rides upon the storm.
Blind unbelief is sure to err
And scan his work in vain.
God is his own interpreter.
And lac will make il plain.
Treason tn God.
While we make this merciful and
righteous allowance i'll regard to those
who were plunged into mental incoher-
ence. declare that the man who i'll the
use of his reason, by his own act, snaps
the bond between his body and his soul
goes straight into pcrdition. Shall
prove it? Revelation xxi. s. Murder.
ers shall have their part i'll the lake
which burneth with fire and birthstone"
Revelation xxi, 10, Without are dogs
and sorcerers and whoremongers and
murderers. You do not believe the
New Testament: Then perhaps you be-
lieve the Ten Commandments. "Thou
shalt not kill
Do you say all these passages refer to
the taking of the life of others: Then
ask you if you are not rs responsible for
your own life rs for the life of others:
God gave you special trust in your
life. He made you the custodian of
your life rs he made you the custodian
Of no other life. He gave you rs weap-
ons with which to defend it two arms
to strike back assailants. two eyes tc
watch for invasion and natural love
OF life which ought ever to be on the
alert. Assassination Of others is mild
crime compared with the assassination
of yourself, because in the latter case il
is treachery to an especial trust. it is the
surrender of castle you We're especially
appointed to keep. it is treason to n nat
ural law, and it is treason TO God add
ed to ordinary murder.
To show how God i'll the Bible looked
upon this crime point You to the rogucs'
picture gallery i'll some parts of the BIZ
BILE, the pictures of the people who have
committed this unnatural crime. Here
is the headless trunk of Saul on the
walls of Bathshan. Here is the man
who chased little David-l0 feet i'll
stature chasing 1. Here is the man
who consulted clairvoyant, witch of
Endor. Here is man who, whipped in
battle, instead of surrcndcring his
sword with dignity. rs many n man has
done, asks his servant to slay him, and
when the servant declines then the giant
plants the hilt Of the sword in the earth.
the sharp point sticking upward, and he
throws his body on it and expires. the
coward. the suicide! Here is Ahitho.
phel. the Machiavelli of olden times.
betraying his best friend. David, i'll or
der that he may become prime minister
Of Absalom and joining that fellow i'll
his attempt Mt parricide. Not getting
what he wanted by change of politics.
he takes short cut out of disgraced
life into the suicide s eternity. There he
Is. the migrate!
Two Cases In Point.
Here is Abimelech practically a sui.
eide. He is with an army bombarding
q tower when woman in the tower
takes a grindstone from its place and
drops it upon his head. and with what
life he has left in a cracked skull ht
commands his armor bearer, Draw thy
sword and slay me. lest men say wom
an slew me-" There is his post morten
photograph in the book of Samuel. But
the hero of this group is Judas Iscariot.
DR. Dome says he was martyr. and
we have in our day apologists for him.
And what wonder i'll this day when we
have book revealing Aaron Burr rs &
pattern of virtue, and iii this day wheI
we uncover statue to George Sand a
the benefactress Of literature, and in
this day when there are bctrayals OF
Christ on the part of some of his pre-
tended apostles-a betrayal so black il
makes the infamy of Judas Iscariot
white! Yet this man by his own hand
hung up for the execration of all the
ages, Judas Iscariot.
All the good men and women of the
Bible left To God the decision of theil
earthly terminus, and they could have
said with Job, who had right TO com
init suicide if any man ever had-whai
with his destroyed property. and hi:
bodyall afiame with insufferable carbun
cles. and everything gone from his home
except the chief curse Of it-a pestifer
ous wife-and four garrulous people
pelting him with comfortless talk Will,
he sits Oh heap of ashes scratching his
scabs with a piece of broken pottery.
yet crying out in triumph. "All tn.
days OF my appointed time will wait
till my change come "
Notwithstanding the Bible is against
this evil and the aversion which it Gre.
ates by the .oathsome and CHASTITY spec
tacle of those who have hurled them.
selves ont of life. and Notwithstanding
Christianity is against IL and the argu.
Joseph j. Devereaux,