The united opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1881-1970, 1895-11-08
HUMBLE WORKERS.
REV. DR.. TALMAGE SPEAKS FOR MOD
EST CHRISTIAN EFFORT.

Not Opportunity and Accomplishment, but
Genuine Effort the Standard of Gods
Justice-A Word For the Nobodies In
Life's Battle.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 3.-Dr. Talmage
today preached his second sermon since
coming to the national capital If posi-
BILE, the audience was even larger than
last Sunday. The subject was 1.-The
Disabled" the text selected being l
Samuel xxx, "a, Gas his part is that
goeth down to the battle, 30 shall his
part be that tarrieth by the stuff. "
If you have never seen an army
change quarters you have no idea OF the
amount of baggage-20 loads, 90 loads,
100 loads of baggage David and his
army were about to start on double
Quick march for the recovery OF their
captured families from the Amalekites.
So they left by the brook Besor their
blankets, their knapsacks, their bag
gage and their carriages. Who shall be
detailed to watch this stuff? There are
sick soldiers, and wounded soldiers, and
aged soldiers who are not able to go on
swift military expedition, but who are
able to do some work, and so they are
detailed to watch the baggage. There is
many a soldier who is not strong enough
to march 80 miles in a day and then
plunge into ten hours fight who is
able with drawn sword lifted against
his shoulder to pace up and down as
sentinel to keep off an enemy who might
put the torch to the baggage There are
200 of those crippled and aged wounded
soldiers detailed to watch the baggage.
Some of them, I suppose, had bandages
across the brow, and some of them had
their arms in sings, and some of them
Walked on crutches. They were not COW
ards Sinking duty. They had fought in
many fierce battle for their country
and their God. They are now part OF
the time in hospital and part of the
time on garrison duty, They almost cry
because they cannot go with the other
troops to the front While these senti-
nels watch the baggage the Lord
watches the sentinels.
: Taken by Surprise.
! There Is quite different scene being
enacted in the distance. The Amalek-
ties, having ravaged and ransacked and
robbed whole countries, are celebrating
their success in a roaring carousal.
Some Of them are dancing on the lawn
with wonderful gyration OF heel and
toe, and some Of them are examining
the spoils of victory-the finger rings
and earrings and necklaces, the wrist
lets, the headbands, diamond starred,
and the Golfers with coronets and carne-
lians and pearls and sapphires and emer-
aids and all the wealth Of plate, and
Jewels and decanters, and the silver and
the gold banked up on the earth in
princely profusion, and the embroid-
cries, and the robes. and the turbans,
and the cloaks of an imperial wardrobe.
The banquet has gone on until the ban
queters are maudlin and weak and stu
pid and indecent and loathsomely drunk.
What time it is now for David and his
men to swoop on them. So the English
lost the battle of Bannockburn because
the night before they were in wassail
and bibulous celebration, while the
Scotch were in prayer. So the Syrians
were overthrown in their carousal by
the Israelites. So Chedorlaomer and his
army were overthrown in their carousal
by Abraham and his men. So in our
civil wa more than once the battle was
lost because one of the generals was
drunk. Now is the time for David and
his men to swoop upon these carousing
Amalekites. Some of the Amalekites are
hacked to pieces on the spot, some of
them are just able to 60 staggering and
hiccoughing off the field, some of them
crawl on camels and speed off in the
distance David and his men gather to-
gether the wardrobes, the jewels, and
put them upon the backs Of camel and
into wagons, and they gather together
the sheep and cattle that had been stol-
en- and start back toward the garrison.
Yonder they come, yonder they come.
The limping men Of the garrison come
ont and greet them with wild huzza
The Bible says David saluted them
that is, be asked them how they all
were. "How is your broken arm?"
"How is your fractured jaw" "Has
the stiffened limb been unlimbered?"
'Have you had another chilli" Are
you getting better?" He saluted them.
But now came a very difficult thing,
the distribution of the spoils Of victory.
Drive up those laden camels now. Who
shall have the spoils? Well, some selfish
soul suggests that these treasures ought
all to belong to those who had been out
in active service. "We did all the fight
ing while these men stayed at home in
the garrison, and we ought to have all
the treasures. 4" But David looked into
the worn faces Of these veterans who
had stayed in the garrison, and he looked
around and saw how clearly everything
had been kept, and he saw that the bag
gage was all safe, and he knew that
these wounded and crippled men would
gladly enough have been at the front if
they had been able, and the little gen.
eral looks up from under his helmet and
says, "No, no, let us have fair play"
and he rushes up to one of these men
and he says, "Hold your hands to-
getber," and the hands are held to-
gether, and he fills them with silver.