Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1894-09-03

From The Memorable Earthquake Scsns in the
PhiliEpan Dungeon.
BROOKLYN. September Rev. DR..
TalmaGe, who is still absent in the
th Pacific. has selected as the sub
ject Of to-day's sermon through the
press, THE Rescue" the text chosen
being Acts Is: 81: "Bslieve on the Lord
Jesus Christ and thou shalt be- saved"
Jails are dark. dull, damp, loathsome
places even now; bat they were worse
y in the apostolic times. imagine, TO.
day, we are standing in the Philippian
kdungeon. Do you not feel the chill?
Do you not hear the grOan Of those in
carcerSted ones who for ten years have
hot seen the sunlight aud the deep sigh
Of women who remember their fathers
house, and mourn over their wasted es-
tates? Listen again. II is the cough
OF consumptive, OF the struggle Of one
In the nightmare Of great horror. You
listen again, and hear a culprlt, his
chains rafting as be rolls over in his
dH Anahpd you say: "God pity the
But there is another sound
vprison. 1t Is the song of joy
d gladness. What place TO sing in.
be music comes winding through the
brrldors OF the prison, and ia all the
Dark wards the whisper is heard:
'What's that? What's that?"
L "a Al eowv Of Don1 and Ef1aa Thav
cannot sleep. They have been whipped,
very badly whipped. The long gashes
on their backs are bleeding yet. They
fiat on the cold ground, their feet fast
10 wooden sockets. and OF course they
cannot sleep. But they can sing.
Jailer, what are YOU doing with these
people? Why have they been put ia
here? Oh, they have been trying to
make the world better. Is that all.
That Is all. A pit for Joseph. A lions
cave for Daniel. A blazing furnace for
Shadrach. Clubs for John Wesley. An
anathema for Philip Melanc5hOn. A
dungeon for Paul and Sias.
But while we are standing in the
gloom OF the Phiiippian dungeon, aud
we hear the mtugling voices of sob and
grnan aud blaSphemy and hallelujah,
suddenly an earthquake! The iron bars
OF the prison twist, thu pillars crack
of. the solid masonry begins to heave,
and all the doors swing open. The
jailer, feeling himself responsible for
these prisoners, and believing, in his
pagan ignorance,
SUICIDE TO BE HONORABLE
since Brutus killed himself, and Cato
killed himself and CasSius killed him
self-puts his sword TO his own heart,
proposing with one strOog keen thrust
10 put an end 20 bis excitement aud agi-
ration. But Paul cries out, "StOp!
stop! Do thyself 10 harm. We are all
here"
Then l see the jailer running through
the aust and amid the ruin Of that
- uapd ! -big~T6r6Wing himself
own 81 Of these prisoners 2
rying On what shall do? What
khall I do?" Did Paul answer, Get
out Of this place before there is another
earthquake; put handouts and hOpples
on these other prisoners, lest they get
aWay?" No word VI that kind. His
compact, thrilling, tremendous answer,
answer memorable all through earth
and heaven, was, believe on the Lord
Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved"
Well, we have all read of the earth
quake in Lisbon, in Lima, in AleppO,
and 10 Caracas; but we live In q lati-
tude where, in all our memory there has
not been one severe volcanic disturb
ance. Aud yet we have seen fifty earth
Quakes. Here is man who has been
building up large fortune. His bid on
the money market was felt 10 all the
cities tie thinks be has got beyond all
annoying rivalries ia trade, and be says
from all possible perturbation" Butin
1857 or ia 1873 a national panic strikes
the foundation Of the commercial world,
ana crash goes all that magnificent
business establishment Here Is q man
who has built up very beautiful home.
His daughters have just come home
from the seminary with diplomas Of
graduation. His sons have started In
life, honest temperate aud pure. When
the evening lights are struck, there Is
q happy and unbrOken family circle.
But there has been an accident down at
Long Branch. The young man ven
tured too TAR out 10 the surf. The tele-
graph hurled the terror up TO the city.
An earthquake struck under the fOun-
cati0n OF that beautiful home.
The pianos closed; the cuitains
SfSDped: the laughter hushed. Crash
20 at ~ehOse domestic hopes and pros
poets aud expectations. So, my friends,
we have all felt the shaking down Of
SOME GREAT TROUBLE,
and there was a time when we were as
much excited as this man Of the text,
aud we cried out as he did, What
shall I do? What shall / dO2" The
same reply that the apostle made to
him is appropriate 70 Us; believe on
the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt
be saved"
When, then, ask you who this is you
want me TO trust IN, you tell me be is
very attractive person. Contemporary
writers describe his whole appearance
rs being respendsnt. There was no
need for Christ 20 tell the children TO
come TO him. suffer little children to
come unto me, was not spoken 10 the
children; it was spoken TO the disciples.
The children came readily enough with
out any invitation. No sooner aid Jesus
appear than the little ones jumped from
their mOthers's arms, al avalanche OF
beauty and love, into his lap. Christ
did not ask John 10 put bis head down
on bis bosom; John could not help but
put his head there. / suppose = look
At Christ was just 10 love him.
- II oeerooffvo l,fQ Whw