Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1895-07-06
THE GATES OF HE'LL
REV. Or. rALMAeE SPECIFIES SOME
or THEM.

Or tHeM.
Ne Tells what They Are Made Of and
Anvil Of Code Truth swinging Ont and
Swinging In.
NEW YORK. Juno e0-In his sermon for
today DIR. Talmage chose Q momentous
and awful topic. Tho Gates Of He'll, the
text selected being tho familiar passage In
Matthew xvi, is. Tho gntcs Of hell shall
not pr'vail against Il. -
Entranccd, until we could endure no
moro OF the spiendor, we have often gazcd
NJ tho shining gates. tho gates Of pearl the
gates of heaven. but we are for awhile 70
look in the opposite direction and see
swinging open and shut the gates Of hell
remember. when the Franco German
war was going on, that stood one day In
Paris looking AZ the gates OF the Tuilcries,
and was 50 absorbed In the scuipturine
at the top Of the gntes--the masonry and
the bronzc-that forgot myself, and after
awhile, looking down. I saw that there
wcrc officers of the law scrutinizing me,
supposing. no doubt was German and
looking nc those gates for adverse purposes
But. my friends, we shall not stand look.
ing nj tho outside Of the gates OF hell. In
this sermon I shall tell you Of both sides,
and shall tell you what those gates nrc
made Of. With the hammer Of Gods truth
shall pound on the brazen panels, and
with the lantern of Gods truth shall
fiash light upon the shining hinges!
Impure Literature.
Gate the First.-Impure literature. An
thouy Comstock seized 30 tons Of had
books. plates aud letter press, and when
our Professor Cochran Of the Polytechnic
institute poured tho destructive acids on
those plates they smoked In the righteous
snnihilation. And yet a great deal Of the
bad literature OF the day Is not grippcd Of
the law. IL Is strcwn In your parlors; it
Is In your libraries Some of your children
read IL at night after they have retired
the gas burner swung as near ~ possible
10 their pillow. Much Of this literature Is
under the title Of scientific information. A
book agent with ono Of these Internal
books. CLOSED over with scientific nomcn-
claturc, went into hotel and sold In one
day hundred copies and sold them all TO
women, Il Is appalling that mon and
women who can get through their family
physician all the useful information they
may need. and without any contamination.
cursed literature under the plea Of getting
useful knowledge. and that printing presses
hoping TO Be called decent lend themselves
10 this infamy. Fathcs and mothers, be
not deceived by the title medical works"
Nine-tenths Of those books come hot from
the lost world, though they may have on
them the names OF the publishing houses
Of New York, Chicago and Philadelphia.
Then there Is all the novelette, literature Of
the day flung over the land by the million.
As there are good novels that arc long, 20
suppose there may be good novels that
are short, and so there may be q good nov
elette. but II Is the exception. No one
mark this-no one systematically reads the
average novelette, Of this day and keeps
either integrity or virtue. The most Of
these novelties arc written by broken
down literary men for small compcnsa-
ton. on the principle that, having failed
In literature elevated and pure. they hope
20 succeed In the tainted and the nasty.
oh, this Is n wide gate OF hell! Every
panel Is made out Of bad book or news
paper Every hinge Is tho interjoined type
Of n corrupt printing PRESS Every bolt or
lock Of that gate Is made out Of the plate
Of an unclean pictorial. In other words,
there are q million men and women In the
United States today reading themselves
into he'll
When In ono Of our cities prosperous
family fell into ruins through the mlsdccds
OF one Of its members, the amazed mother
said to the officer Of the law: "why,
never supposed there was anything wrong.
never thought there could be anything
wrong" Then she sat weeping In silence
for some time and said: "Oh, have got
Il nowi know, know. found In her
bureau after she went away n bad book.
That's what slew her" These lcprous
booksellers have gathered mp the catalogues
Of all the male and female scminarics In
the United States. catalogues containing
the names and residences OF all the stu
dents, and circulars of death are sent to
every one, without any exception. Can
you imagine anything more deathfulf
There Is not u young person. male or fe-
male, or an old person, who hAs not had
offered TO him or her bad book or bad
picture. Scour your house 20 find out
whether there are any OF these ndders coiied
on your parlor center table or coilcd amid
the toilet set on the dressing case. I adjurc
you before the sun goes down 70 explore
your family libraries with an inexorable
scrutiny. Remember that one bad book
or bad picture may do the work for e.er-
nifty. want 60 arouse nil your suspicion
about novelettcs. want 20 put you on
the watch against everything that may
seem like surreptitious correspondence
through the postoffice. want you 20 un-
derstand that impure literature Is one Of
the lost
The Dissoiute Dance.
Gate the Second.-The dissolute dance.
AL mot ef. eha
subject Of dancing. Whatever you may
think Of the parlor dance or the methodic
motion Of the body TO sounds Of music In
the family or the social circle, I am not
now discussing that question. ] want you
90 unite with mo this hour In recognizing
the fact that there Is n dissolutc dance.
You know Of what speak. II Is seen not
only In the low haunts Of death, but In
elegant mansions. IL Is the 1rst step 90
eternal ruin for great multitude Of both
sexes. You know. my friends what pos
lures and attitudes and figures arc sug-
gcsted OF the devil.
They who glide into the dissoiute dance
glide over an inclined plane, and the dann
is swifter and swiftcr, wilder and wilder,
until with the speed Of lightning they
whirl of the edges Of n decent lifc into q
fiery future. This gate Of hell swings
across the administer Of many n fine par
Tor, and across the ballroom Of the sum
mer watering place. You have no right,
my brother, my sister-you have no right
10 take an attitude 20 the sound Of music
which would b. unbocoming In the absence
Of music. No Chickcring grand Of city
parlor or fiddle of mountain picnic can
oonsecrate that which God hath cursed
Indiscreet Apparel.
Gate the Third.-Indiscrcef apparel.
The attire ~ woman for the last few years
has been beautiful and graceful beyond
anything ] have known, but there are
those who will always carry that which Ia
right into the extraordinary and lndscYeet.
i charge Christian women, neither by style
OF dress nor adjustment 81 apparel, 10 be-
come administrative 81 evil. Perhaps
sonc else will dare TO tell you, 90 WIN
ell you that there are multitudes OF men
who owe their eternal damnation 20 whit
has been at different times the boldness Of
womanly attire. Show mo the fashion
plates Of any age between this and the
slime Of Louis XVI Of France and Henry
VIII Of England and will tell ron the
type Of morals or iInmorals Of that age or
that year. No exception 20 IL. Modest up
parel means n righteous people. Iinmodcst
apparel always means q contaminated and
depraved society. You wonder that the
city Of Tyre was destroyed with such q
terrible destruction. Have you ever seen
the fashion Mat. ~ fha city ~ Tvref I