Democratic Northwest and Henry County news. [volume] (Napoleon, O. [Ohio]) 1894-1905, 1895-08-08
IN SATAN'S SERVICE.
JONAH OF OLD SOON TIRED OF THE
DEVILS BUSINESS.

But It Took Heroic Treatment to Bring
Him to His Sense$-Dr. Talmags Draws
Instructive Moral Lessons From Jonah's
Misadventure In the Mediterranean.
NEW YORK, Aug AT this season Of
the year, when q large portion of the COM
munity Is journeying either by land or
Bea, Rev. DR.. Talmage, who is still absent
IN his midsummer preaching and lecturing
tour, has chosen as the subject of his ser
mon for today, "Man Overheard, the text
being Jonah 1, 8: $50 the shipmaster came
to him, and said unto him: What meanest
thou, o sleeperS Arise, call upon thy God
If so be that God will think upon us, that
we perish not"
God told Jonah to go TO Nineveh on an
unpleasant errand He would not go. He
thought to get away from his duty by put
ting to sea. With pack under hiA. arm, I
find him on his way TO Joppa, a seaport.
He goes down among the shipping, and
says to the men lying around on the rocks,
(which of these vessels sails today?" The
sailors answer, "Yonder is a vessel going
to Tarshish. I think, If you hurry, you
may get on board her." Jonah steps on
board the rough craft, asks how much the
fare is and pays it. Anchor is weighed,
sails are hoisted and the rigging begins to
rattle in the strong breeze of the Mediter-
ranean. Joppa is an exposed harbor, and
it does not take long for the vessel to get
out on the broad sea. The sailors like what
they call Spanking breeze" and the
plunge of the vessel from the crest of a tall
wave is exhilarating to those at home on
the deep. But the strong breeze becomes q
gale, the gale hurricane. The affrighted
passengers ask the captain if he ever saw
anything like this before.
"Oh, yes," he says; "this Is nothing"
Mariners are slow to admit danger to
landsmen. But after awhile crash goes
the mast, and the vessel pitches so far
"abeam's end" there is fear she will not
be righted. The captain answers few
questions and orders the throwing out OF
boxes and bundles and of so much of the
cargo as they can get at. The captain at
last confesses there is but little hope and
tells the passengers that they had better
go to praying. 1t is seldom that a sea cap
tain is an atheist. He knows that there Is
a God, for he has seen him at every point
of latitude between Sandy Hook and
Queenstown. Captain Moody command
ing the Cuba of the Cunard line, at Sun
day service led the music and sang like a
Methodist The captain of this Mediter-
ranean craft, having set the passengers to
praying, goes around examining the ves-
sell at every point. He descends into the
cabin to see whether in the strong wres-
tling of the waves the vessel had sprung
leak, and he finds Jonah asleep. Jonah
had had wearisome tramp and had spent
many sleepless nights about questions Of
duty, and he is so sound asleep that all
the thunder of the storm and the scream
ing Of the passengers does not disturb him.
The captain lays hold Of him and begins
to shake him out of his Inconsistencies
with the cry: "Don't you see that we are
all going to the bottom? Wake up and go
to praying, IL you have any God to go to.
What meanest thou, o sleeperP Arise call
upon thy God, If so be that God win think
upon us, that we perish not" The rest of
the story will not rehearse, for you know
it well. To appease the SEQ they threw
Jonah overheard.
The DEVILS Dupes.
Learn that the devil takes mans mon
ey and then sets him down in poor land
ing place. The Bible says he paid his fare
to Tarshish. But see him get out. The
sailors bring him to the side of the ship,
lift him over "the guards, and let him
drop with a loud splash into the waves.
He paid his fare all the way to Tarshish,
but did not get the worth of his money.
Neither does any one who turns his back
on his duty and does that which is not
right.
There is young man who, during the
past year, has spent q large part of his sal
ary in carousal. What has he gained by itp
A soiled reputation, half starved purse, a
dissipated look, petulant temper, dis
turbed conscience. The manacles of one
or two bad habits that are pressing tighter
and tighter will keep ON until they wear
to the bone. You paid your fare to Tar
shish, but you have been set down in the
midst of seq of disquietude and perplex-
ity.
One hundred dollars for Sunday horse
hire
One hundred dollars for wine suppers!
One hundred dollars for cigars!
One hundred dollars for frolics that
shall be nameless!
Making S400 for his damnationl
Instead of being in Tarshish now, he Is
in the middle of the Mediterranean.
Here Is a literary man, tired of the faith
Of his fathers, who resolves to launch out
into what is called free thinking He buys
Theodore Parker's works for $12, Remains
Life of Christ for $3.50, Andrew Jack
son Davis works for $50. Goes to hear
infdels talk at the clubs and to see spirit
ualism at the table rapping. Talks glibly
of David, the psalmist as an old libertine,
of Paul as q wild enthusiast and of Christ
as decent kind of mana little weak
in some respects, but almost as good as
himself. Talks smilingly of Sunday as
good day to put q little extra blacking on
ones boots, and of Christians as, for the
most part hypocrites, and of eternity as
"the great to be, " "the everlasting now,"
or "the infinite what is it." Some day he
gets his feet very wet and finds himself
that night chilly. The next morning has
hot mouth and is headachy Sends word
over to the store that he will not be there
today. Bathes his feet, has mustard plas-
ters, calls the doctor. The medical man
bays aside, "This is going to be bad case
of congestion Of the lungs" Voice fails.
Children must be kept down stairs or sent
to the neighbors to keep the house quiet.
You say, "Sond for the minister" But
no; he does not believe in ministers. You
say "Read the Bible to him." No; he does
not believe in the Bible. A lawyer comes
in, and sitting by his bedside writes doc
ument that begins: "In the name of God.
Amen. 1, being of sound mind, do make
this my last will and testament" 1t is
certain where the sick man s body will be
in less than week. 1t is quite certain
who will get his property. But what will
become Of his soul? 1t will go into "the
great to be-" or the everlasting now," or
"the infinite what is it," His soul is in
deep waters, and the wind is blowing