Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1894-08-22
REV. Dr.. T':LMACf.
THE BROOKLYN DIVINE'S SUN
DAY SERMON.
Subject: "The Tragedy of Dress"

TEXT: "whose adorning let it not be that
outward adorning OF plating the hair and
the wearing OF gold or of putting on OF ap-
parel, but let II be the hidden man OF the
heart. - Peter ILL.,, 3, 4.
That We should all be clad Is proved by
the opening Of the first wardrobe in paradise,
with its apparel OF dark green. That We
should all, as far as our means allow US, be
beautifully and gracefully appareled 10
proved by the fact that God never made =
wave hut He gilded 1t with golden sunbeams,
or Q tree but He garlanded 1t with blossoms,
or a sky but He studded IT with stars, or al
lowed even the smoke Of a furnace to ascend
but He columned and turreted and domed
and scrolled II into outlines OF indescribable
grncefulness. When L see the apple Or
chards OF the spring and the paeeantry OF
the autumnal forests. come to the conclu-
| sion that, If nature does ever Join the church.
while she may be Quaker in the silence OF
her worship, she never will be q Quaker in
n fern leaf or the stamen of water lily?
Whv, when the day departs, does it let the
folding doors OF heaven stay open so long
when It might go In so quickly?
One summer morning l saw An army OF a
| million spears, each one adorned with n
| diamond Of the first water-I mean the
grase, with the dew on 1t. When the
prodigal came home, his father not only
put a cont on his back, but jewelry on his
hand. Christ wore n beard. Paul, the
bachelor apostle, not afflicted with any
sentimcntality, admired the arrangement OF
woman's hair when he said in his epistle,
I'll woman have long hair, 1t is glory
unto her."
There will be fashion in heaven as on
earth, but 1t will bs different kind OF
fashion. II will decide the color of the dress.
and the population of that country, by a
beautiful law. Will wear white. say these
things as background to nv sermon to
show you that l have no prim, precise,
prudish or east iron theories on the subject
OF human apparel. But the goddess OF
fashion has set up her throne in this world,
and at the soun OF the timbrels we are all
expected TO fall down and worship. The
Old and New Testament OF her Bible are
! the fashion plates. Her altars smoke with
the sacrifice of the bodies, minds and souls
OF 10000 victims In her temple folr
people stand in the organ loft. and from
them there comes down a cold drizzle OF
muse, freezing on the ears of her worshipers.
This goddess of fashion has become a rival
of the Lord of heaven and earth, and it Is
high time that We unlimbered our batteries
against this idolatry When 1 come to
count the victims OF fashion. l find Us many
mascu line as feminine. Men make an easy
TRADE against woman. As though she were
tho chief worshiper at this idolatrous
shrine. and no doubt some men in the more
conspicuous part Of the pew have already
east glanoes at the more retired part OF the
pew, their look prophecy of generous dis
tribution. NY sermon shall be as appropriate
for one end OF the pew as forthe otner
Men are rs much the idoiators OF fashion
as women, tut they sacrifice on n different
part of the altar, With men tho fashion
goes to cigars and c,uhrooms and yachting
parties and wine suppers. In the United
States the men chew up and smoke $780,
0O0. 900 worth OF tobacco every year. That
is their fashion. In London not long ago a
man died who started In life with $3.50. .OOo,
but he ate II all up in Ciultonies. sending his
agents TO all parts OF the earth for some rare
deiicacy for the palate. sometimes one plate
Of food costing him $500 or s40O. He ate
up his whole fortune and had only = guinea
left. With that he bought woodcock and
had it dressed in the very bSst style, ate IT.
gave two hours for digestion. then walked
out on Westminster bridge and threw himself
into the Thames and died. doing on a large
scale what you and have often seen done
on . small scale. But men do not abstain
from millinery and elaboration OF skirt
through any superiority OF humility. 1t is
only because such appendages would be a
blockade to business. What would sashes
and trains three and half yards long do in
a stock market? And yet men arc the dis
ciples OF fashion just much rs women.
Some OF them wear boots so tight they can
hardly walk in the paths OF Righteousness.
Anu tutlt are men WHO Duv expensive SUITS
OF clothes and never pay for them. and who
70 through the streets in great stripes OF
color like animated eheckerbosrds. / say
these things because want to show you that
/ am Impartial in my discourse, and that
both sexes. in tho language OF tho eurro-
gates office, shall "share and share alike"
As God may help me. shall show you what
arc the des. roying and deathiul influences
OF inor!ina fashion.
The first baleful influence I notice is In
fraud, illimltable and ghastly. Do you know
that Arnold OF the revolution proposed to
sell his country IN oNieR to get money to
support his wife's wardroass? 1 6eclars here
before God and this people that the acnxs to
keep up expensive establishments N tiis
country Is sending more business men to
temporal perdhion than all other causes
combined. What was 1t that sent Gilman to
the peniteDtiery and Philadelphia Mort ton to
the Watering of stock, and tho life insurance
presidents to perjured statements about
their assets, and has completely upset our
American finances? What was it that over
threw the United States secretary at WASH
tnGtoA. the crash OF whose fall shook tho
continent! But why should go to these IA
mous defaultinSs to show what men will da
In order to keep up great home style and eN-
pensive wardrobe when You aud l know
scores OF men who are put to their wits end
and are lashed from January to December
In the attempt? Our politicians may theor-
i2e until the expiration of their terms OF o.
fee as to the best way of improving our
monetary coudition in this country 1t will
be Of no use, and things will be no better
until we can learn to put on our heads and
backs and feet and hands no more than We
can pay for.
There are clerks in stores and banks on
limited salaries who. in the vain attempt 10
keep the wardrobe OF their family as snowy
as other folks wardrobes, 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 be-
fore their time. and they will expect min
listers to preach about them as though they
were the victims OF early piety, and after a
high class funeral, with silver handles at the
side OF the coffin OF exiraordinary bright
ness, Il will be found out that the under
taker Is cheated out OF his legitimate ex.
penses. Do not send to me to preach the
funeral sermon OF n man who dies like that
will blurt out the whole trutl and tell that
he was strangled to death by mis- wiies rib
bons. Our countries are dressed to death.
You are not surprised to find that the putt
ting up one public building in New York
cost millions OF dollars more than 1t ought
to have cost when you find that the man
who gave out the contracts paid more than
e50OO for his daughters wedding dress.
OAkhmeres Of thousand Sn..--. .ncE .-.
not rare on Broadway. It Is estimated that
there are 10, 600 women in these two cities
who have expended on their personal array
$4,000 year.
What are men TO do in order TO keep mp
such home wardrobes2 Steal? That is the
only respectable thing they can do! During
the last fifteen years there have been in
Vulnerable fine businesses shipwrecked on
the wardrobe. The temptation comes In
thrs way man thinks more OF his family
than Of all the world outside, and If they
spend the evening in describing to him tlS
superior wardrobe of the family across tho
street that they cannot bear the sight of tas
man is thrown on his gallantry and on his
pride OF family. and without translating his
feelings into plain language he goes into ex-
tortion and Issuing false stock and skillful
penmanship in writing somebody else's
name at the foot OF a promissory note. and
they all go down toSether-the husband to
the prison. the wife TO the sewing machi9Sf
the children to be taken care OF by those wA
were called poor relations. o.. for some new