The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1894-08-10


than we can pay for.
There are clerks in stores and banks
on limited salaries who, in the vain at
tempt to keep the wardrobe of their
family as snowy as other folks ward
robes, are dying of muffs, and diamonds,
and shawls, and high hats, and they
have nothing left except what they
give to cigars and wine suppers, and
they die before their time, and they
will expect us ministers to preach about
them as though they were the victims
of early piety, and after a high-class
funeral, with silver handles at the sides
of the coffin, of extraordinary bright
ness it will be found out that the
undertaken is cheated out of his legiti-
mate expenses! Do not send to me
to preach the funeral sermon of man
who dies like that. 1 will blurt out
the whole truth, and tell that he was
strangled to death by his wife's rib
bons. Our countries are dressed to
death. You are surprised to hear
that the putting up of one public
building in New York cost millions of
cost, when you find that the man who
gave out the contract paid more than
five thousand dollars for his wife's
wedding dress. Cashmeres of one
thousand dollars each are not rare on
Broadway. 1t is estimated that there
are ten thousand women in these two
cities who have expended on their per-
sonal array $1,000 a year.
What are men to do in order to keep
up such home wardrobes? Steal-that
is the only respectable thing they can
do. During the last fifteen years there
have been innumerable fine businesses
shipwrecked on the wardrobe. The
temptation comes in this way: A man
thinks more of his family than the
world outside, and if they spend the
evening in describing to him the supe-
rior wardrobe of the family across the
street, that they cannot bear the sight
of, the man is thrown on his gallantry
and on his pride of family, and, with
out translating his feelings into
plain language, he goes into ex-
tortion and issuing of false
stock and skillful penmanship in writ
ing somebody else's name at the foot
of promissory note; and they all go
down together-the husband to the
prison, the wife to the sewing machine,
the children to be taken care of by
those who were called poor relations.
o! for some new Shakespeare to arise
and write the tragedy of human
clothes.
Act the first of the tragedy-A plain
but beautiful home. Enter, the newly
married pair. Enter, simplicity of
manner and behavior. Enter. as much
happiness as is ever found in one home.
Act the second-Discontent with the
humble home. Enter, envy. Enter,
jealousy Enter, desire of display.
Act the hird-Enlargement of ex-
penses. Enter, all the queenly dress
makers Enter, the French milliners.
Act the fourth-The tip-top of socie-
ETY.. Enter, princes and princesses of
high life. Enter, magnificent plate
and equipage. Enter, everything
splendid.
Act the fifth. and last-Winding up
of the scene. Enter, the assignee. En-
ter, the sheriff. Enter, the creditors.
Enter. humiliation. Enter, the wrath
of God. Enter, the contempt of So
ciety. Enter, death. Now, let the silk
is ended and the lights are out.
VIII you forgive me if 1 say in ters-
est shape possible that some of the
men have to forge and to perjure and
to swindle to pay for their wives
dresses? 1 will say it, whether you
forgive me or not.
Again, inordinate fashion is the foe
of all Christian alms-giving. Men and
women put so much in personal dis
play that they often have nothing for
God and the cause of suffering human
ity. A Christian man cracking his
Palais royal glove across the back by
shutting up his hand to hide the one
cent he puts into the poor-box. A
Christian woman. at the story of the
Hottentots, crying copious tears into a
SIS handkerchief, and then giving a
two-cent piece to the collection,
thrusting it down under the bills
so people will not know but
it was $40 gold piece! On hundred
dollars for incense to fashion, two
cents for God. God gives us ninety
cents out of every dollar. The other
ten cents, by command of the Bible,
belong to Him. Is not God liberal ac-
cording to this tithing system laid
down in the Old Testament-is not God
liberal in giving us ninety cents out of
a dollar, when He takes but ten? We do
not like that. We want to have ninety
nine cents for ourselves and one for
God.
Now, would great deal rather
steal ten cents from you than from
God. think one reason why a great
many people do not get along in
worldly accumulationS faster is be-
cause they do not observe the divine
rule God says: "Well, if that man is
not satisfied with ninety cents of a
dollar, then 1 will take the whole
dollar, and 1 will give it to
the man or woman who is
honest with me-" The greatest OBJ
stacle to charity in the Christian
church to-day is the fact that men ex-
pend so much money on their table.
they have nothing left for the work OF
God and the worlds betterment. In
my first settlement at Belleville, n. j.,
the cause of missions was being pre-
sented one Sabbath, and plea for the
charity of the people was being made,
when an old Christian man in the audi
ence lost his balance and sal right out
in the midst of the sermon: Mr.. Tai
mage, how are we to give literally to
these grand and glorious causes when
our families dress as they do?' 1 did
not answer that question. 1t was the
only time in my life when had moth
ing to say!