The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1894-10-12
THE GIRL HADASSAH.
Or. TALMAee PRESENTS THE MORAL
OF EsTHER'S STORY.

OF ESTHER'S STORY.
Ahssuerus, or xerxcs. Probably Had L.
centious and Incorporate Court, but
One Good Woman In 1t Was Able to
Save Hes People.
BROOKLYN, Oct. Rev. DR.. Tai.
mage, who is still absent on his round
the world tour, has selected as the sub
ject of today's sermon through the
press "Hadassah, the text chosen be-
Ing Esther ii, Z, "And he brought up
Hadassah.
A beautiful child was born in the cap
iJal of Persia. She was an orphan and
captive, her parents having been stolen
from their Israelitish home and carried
to Shushan and had died, leaving thor
daughter poor and in strange land.
But an Israelitc who had been carried
into tho same captivity was attracted
by the case of the orphan. He educated
her in his holy religion, and under the
rvof of that good man this adopted child
began to develop sweetness and excel
lency of character, if ever equaled, GER
tainly never surpassed. Beautiful Ha.
dassah! Could that adopted father ever
spare her from his household? :, Her art
1essness, her girlish sports, her inno-
cence, her orphanage, had wound them.
selves thoroughly around his heart, just
as around each parents heart among us
there are tandrils climbing and fasten-
ing and blossoming and growing stron-
ger.
expect he was like others who have
loved ones at home-wondering some-
times If sickness will come and death
and bereavement. Alas, worse than any.
thing that the father expects happens to
is adopted child Ahasuerus. prince
" scoundrel, demands that Hadassah,
the fairest one in all the kingdom, be-
come his wife. Worse than death was
marriage to such monster OF iniquityl
How great the change when this young
woman left the home where God was
worshipcd and religion honored to enter
a palace devoted to pride, idolatry and
sensualityl "As lamb to the slaugh-
teri"
Inc CapClVe queen.
Ahasuerus knew not that his wife was
Jewcss. At the instigation of the infa-
nous prime minister the king decreed
that all the Jews in the land should be
slain. Hadassah pleads the cause Of her
people, breaking through tho rules Of
the court and presenting herself in the
very.face of death. crying, IF perish,
/ perish" Oh, it was sad time among
that enslaved peoplel They Lad all heard
the decree concerning their death. Sor-
row, gaunt and CHASTITY, sat in thousands
of households, and mothers wildly
pressed their infants to their breasts as
the days of massacre fastened on, pray
ing that the same sword stroke which
slew the mother might also Stay the
child, rosebud and bud perishing in the
same blast
But Hadassah is busy at court. The
hard heart of the king is touched by her
story, and although he could not re-
verse his decree for the staying Of the
Jews he sent forth an order that they
should arm themselves for defense. On
horseback, on mules, on dromedaries,
messengers sped through the land bear
ing the kings dispatches, and shout
of joy went up from that enslaved peo-
pie at the faint hope of success, I doubt
not many rusty blade was taken down
and sharpened. Unbearded youths grew
stout as giants at the thought of defend
ing mothers and sisters Desperation
strung up towards into heroes, and
fragile women grasping their weapons
swung them about the cradles, impatient
for the time to strike the blow in behalf
Of household and country.
Triumph of the Jews:
The day of execution dawned. Gov
ernmelt officials, armed and drilled,
sowed before the battle shout of the op-
pressed people The cry of defeat rang
back to the palaces, but above the noun
tains of dead, above rs, 900 crushed and
mangled corpses, sounded the triumph of
the delivered Jews, and their enthusiasm
was as when the highlanders came to
tho relief of Lucknow, and the English
army, which stood in the very jaws Of
death, at the sudden hope of assistance
and rescue lifted the shout above belch-
ing cannon and the death groan Of
hosts crying: 1--WE are saved We are
savedF
My subject affords me opportunity of
illustrating what Christian character
may be under the greatest disadvantage.
There is no Christian now exactly what
he wants to lie. Your standard is much
| l,;chor +ho,, a,ytl,ip, Won b,yo a to;,ad
unto, If there be any man so puffed up
as to be thoroughly satisfied with the
amount Of excellency he has already at
tanned, have nothing to say to such
one, but to those who are dissatisfied
| with past attachments, who are toiling
under disadvantages which are keep
| ing them from being what they ought
to be, I have a message from God You
| each of you labor under difficulties.
| There is something in your tempera.
ment, in your worldly circumstances,
i'm your calling, that acts powerfully
against you. Admitting all this. in
troduce to you Hadassah of the text, a
noble Christian notwithstanding the
most gigantic difficulties. She whom
| you might nave expected 10 be one OF
| the worst of women is one of the best.
The Pious Orphan.
| IN the first place. our, subject IS an
Illustration of what Christian character
may be under orphanage This Bible
| line tells long story about Hadas-
sab. "She had neither father nor moth
er." A nobleman had become her guard
ian, but there is no one who can take
| the place of parent. Who so able at
| hight to hear child s prayer, or at twi-
} hit to chide youthful wanderings, or
to goothe youthful sorrows? An indi-
vidual will go through life bearing the
marks of orphanage. 1t will require
more strength, more persistence, more
grace to mako such ,one the right
kind of Christian. Hc who at 40
years loses n parent must reel under the
How, IN--a,, ,1.,vx,r 70 old mo