The Penn's Grove record., 1895-04-26

| will leave you bare for the beating OF the
storm. 1t Is my business to strip the slain."
You are Fastening on toward Tie consum-
nation of all that is sad. To-day you stop and
think, but 1t is only for moment, and then
you will tramp on, and at the close Of this
service you will go out. and the question
will be, SHOW did you like the sermon?"
And one man will say, II liked it very WELL"
and another mar will say, 81 didn't like it
at all" but neither CT the answers will touch
the tremendous fact that If impenitent you
are going at thirty knots an hour toward
shipwreck. Yea, you are in a battle where
you will fall, and while your surviving rel
atives will take your remaining estate and
the cemetery will take your body the messen-
gers of darkness will take your soul and
come and go about you, stripping the slain.
Many are crying out, ~ admit l am slain;
I admit it," On what battlefield, my broth
ers? By what weapon2 "Poluted imagina-
ton" says one man; Intoxicating liquor"
says another man; '.My own hard heart"
says another man. Do you realize this?
Then 1 come to tell you that the omnipo-
tent Christ is ready to walk across this bat
tlefeld and revive and rosuscitate and resur-
rect your dead soul Let Him take your
hand and u away the numbness, your head
and battle off the aching, your heart and
'top its wild throb. He brought Lazarus to
life, He brought Jairus's daughter to life. He
brought the young man Of Main to life, and
sucnt III lhEGO DIOOlb du9uOM tudL 1O Cdu
bring you to life.
When the Philistines came down on the
field, they stepped between the corpses, and
they rolled over the dead, Inc they took
lway everything that was valuable. And so
t was with the people that followed alter the
armies at Charlottesville and at Pittsburg
Landing and at Stone River and at Atlanta.
tripping the slain, but the Northern and
,outhern women-God bless them!-came on
he field with basins and pads and towels
Ind lint and cordials and Christian en-
enlargement, and the poor fellows that lay
here lifted up their arms and said, 'f0h,
how good that-does feel since you dressed
tr!' And others looked up and said, ooh,
low you make me think OF my motherr'
And others said, "Tell the folks at home l
died thinking about them.'' And another
looked up and said, miss, won't you sing
ne a verse of Home, Sweet Home, before I
die?" And then the tattoo was sounded, and
.he hats were of, and the service was read,
II am the resurrection and the life." And
In honor of the departed the muskets were
loaded n the command given, "Present-
1re!" And there was a shingle set up at the
head Of the grave, with the epitaph Of
Lieutenant - in the Fourteenth Massa-
.husetts regulars" or captain - in the
Fifteenth regiment Of South Carolina volun-
~ieers." And so now, across this great field
If moral and spiritual battle, the angels of
God come walking among the slain, and
there was voices Of comfort and voices of
hope and voices OF resurrection N voices OF
heaven.
One night ! saw a tragedy On the corner
u Broadway and Houston street. A young
nan, evidently doubling as to which direc-
hon he had better take, his hat lifted high
enough SO that you could see he had an in
!elligent forehead, stout chest; he had a
robust development. Splendid young man.
Cultured young man. Honored young man.
Why did he stop there while SO many were
going up and down? The fact ia that every
man has = good angel and a bad angel con-
tending for the mastery of his spirit, and
there were a good angel and a bad angel
struggling with that young mans soul at
the corner Of Broadway and Houston street,
hCome with me-" said the good angel; ~
will take you home; 1 will spread my wings
over your pillow; I will lovingly escort you
all through life under supernatural protec-
lion; I will bless every cup you drink out of,
every couch you rest on, every doorway you
enter; l will consecrate you tears when you
weep, your sweat when you toll, and at the
last I will hand over your grave into the
hand of the bright angel Of a Christian re-
surrection. In answer to your fathers petit
lion and FOUR mothers prayer / nave been
sent Of the Lord out OF heaven to be your
guardian spirit. Come with me-" said the
good angelin a voice of unearthly symphony.
It was music like that which drops from a
lutte OF heaven when a seraph breathes on ii.
mo, no." said the bad angel; 'comew with
me; I have something better to Offer. The
wines / pour are from chaliceS of b~ewitching
carousaf; the dance I lead is over floor tes-
sellated with unrestrained indulgences; there
Is no God to frown on the temples of sin
where 1 worship. The skies are Italian The
paths l tread are through meadows, daisied
and primrosed. Come with me-"
The young man hesitated at a time when
Wrrn6 and md &hn AnI .-A
smote 8, good angel until it departed,
spreat Swings through the starlight up
ward a AWAY until a door flashed open in
The sky and forever the wings vanished.
That was the turning point in that young
mans history, for, the good angel flown, he
hesitated no longer, but started on a path
way which is beautiful at the opening, but
blasted at last. The bad angel, leading the
way, opened gate after gate, and at each
gate the road became rougher and the sky
more lurid, and, what was peculiar, as the
gate slammed shut 1t came to with a jar that
Indicated that it would never open.
Passed each portal there was q grinding
Of locks n u showing of bolts, and the seem
hry on either side of the road changed from
gardens to deserts, and the June air became
Ia cutting December blast, and the bright
wings of the bad angel turned to sackcloth,
bnd the eyes Of light became hollow with
hopeless grief, and the fountains, that at the
ftart had tossed with wine, poured forth
bubbling tears and foaming blood, and
on the right side of the road there was
. serpent. and the man said to the bad angel,
"What is that serpent?" and the answer was,
"That Is the serpent OF singing remorse."
On the left side the road there was a lion,
and the mar asked the bad angel, ''What Is
that lion?" and the answer was. "That is the
lion of all d~evouring despair" A vulture
flew through the sky, and the man asked the
bad angel, "What Is that vulture2" and the
answer was, 'fThat is the vulture waiting foy
The carcasses Of the slain"
And then the man began to try to pull of
him the folds OF something that had wound
him round and round. and he said to the bad
angel, ''What is 1t that twists me In this aw-
full convulsion?" AMI the answer was, "That
Is the worm that never dies" And then the
man said to the bad angel: "What does all
this mean? I trusted in what you SAID at the
,orner Of Broadway AMI Houston street; I
trusted it all, aud why have you thus de-
.eived mef' Then the last deception fell of
the charmer, and 1t said: ~ was sant forth
from the pit to destroy yoursoul. Watched
my chanc for many a long year. When you
hesitated that night on Broadway, / gained
my triumph. Now you are here. Ha, ha!
You are here. Come, let us fill these two
.halices of fire and drink together to dark
ness and woe and death. Hail, hailV' Oh,
youngm man! will the good angel sent forth
by Christ or the bad angel sent forth by sin
get the victory over your soul2 Their wings
ire tnterlocked this moment above you, con-
iasdlng for your destiny, as above the Apen-
aines eagle and condor fight mid-sky. This
>cur may decide your destiny.
Some people often wonder when
dishnnestv nrosners more III honesty.