The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1895-09-18
THE OPEN WINDOWS.
A SERMON OF CHRISTIAN CHGERF "
NESS AND ENCOURAGEMENT.

NESS AND ENCOURAGEMENT ).
Rev. Dr.. Ta,mase on Daniels De'otiohS
Before the Window that Faced HIS Ma
.,,s,,--The Battle with Sin and
Death--The Victory.
New YORK, Sept Sin his sermon
for today Rev. DR.. Talmage has chos-
en- a theme overfowing with Chris
tian cheerfulness and encouragement.
The subject is open Windows" and
the text selected was Daniel Vi, 10,
His windows being open in his
chamber toward Jerusalem. "
The scoundrelly princes OF Persia,
urged by political jealousy against
Daniel have succeeded in getting a
law passed that whosever prays to God
shall be put under the paws and teeth
of the lions, who are lashing them
selves in rage and hunger up and
down the stone cage, or putting their
lower jaws on the ground, believing
till the earth trembles. But the leon
inc threat did not hinder the devotions
of Daniel, the Coeur de Lion Of ages.
His enemies might as well have law
that the sun should not draw water,
or that the south wind should not
sweep across garden of magnollas,
or that God should be abolished. They
could not scare him with the redhot
furnaces, and they cannot now scare
him with the lions. AS soon as Dan
iel hears of this enactment he leaves
his Office of secretary of state, with its
upholstery of crimson and gold, and
comes down the white marble steps
and goes to his own house. He opens
his window and puts the shutters back
and pulls the curtain aside so that he
can look toward the sacred city Of
Jerusalem, and then Drays.
suppose the people in the street
gathered under and before his window
aud said: Just see that man defying
the law. He ought to be arrested" :"
And the constabulary of the city rush
to the police headquarters and report
that Daniel is on his knees at the vide
open window. You are my prisou
er, says the officer Of the law, drop
ping a heavy hand on the shoulder Of
the kneeling Daniel. As the consta-
bles open the door of the cavern to
thrust in their prisoner they see the
glaring eyes of the monsters. But
Daniel becomes the first lion tanner,
and they lick his hand and fawn at
his feet, and that night he sleeps with
the shaggy name Of a wild beast for
his pillow, while the king that night,
sleepless in the palace, has or him
the paw and teeth of a lion he cannot
tame-the lion of a remorseless con-
science
What picture it would be for some
artist. Darious, in the early dusk Of
morning, not waiting for footman or
chariot, fastening to the den, all
flushed and nervous and in dishabille
and looking through the crevices of
the cage to see what had become OF
his prime minister! "What, no
sound9" he says. /''Daniel is surely
devoured, and the lions are sleeping
after their horrid meal, the bones Of
the poor man scattered across the floor
OF the cavern" With trembling voice
Darius calls out, Daniel" No an
swer, for the prophet is yet in pro-
found slumber. But a lion, more
easily awakened, advances, and with
hot breath blown through the crevice
seems angrily to demand the cause of
this interruption, and then another
wild beast lifts his name from under
Daniels head, and the prophet, wax
ing up, comes forth to report himself
all unhurt and well.
But our text stands us at Daniels
window, open toward Jerusalem. Why
in that direction open2 Jerusalem was
his native land and all the pomp of
his Babylonish successes could not
make him forget it. He came there
from Jerusalem at Is years Of age and
he never visited it, though he lived to
be SIS years of age. Yet, when he
wanted to arouse the deepest emotions
and grandest aspirations of his heart,
he had his window open toward his
native Jerusalem. There are many of
you today who understand that with
out any exposition. This is getting to
be nation of foreigners. They have
come into all occupations. and profes-
sions. They SIT in all churches. 1t
may be 20 years ago since you got
your naturalization papers and you
may be thoroughly Americanized, but
you can't forget the land of your birth
and your warmest sympathies 60 out
toward it. Your windows are open to
Jerusalem. Your father and mother
are buried there. It may have been a
very humble home in which you were
born, but your memory often plays
around it and you hope some day to
90 and see 1.-THE hill. the tree, the
brook, the house, the place so sacred,
the door from which you started Off
with parental blessing to make your
own way in the world, and God only
knows how sometimes you have
loneed to see the familiar places of
your childhood and how in awful
crises of life you would like to have
caught glimpse of the old, wrinkled
face that bent over you as you lay on
the gentle lap 90 or 40 or so years ago.
You may have on this side Of the sea
risen in fortune, and, like Daniel,
have become great and may have
come into prosperities which you
never could have reached if you had
staid there, and you may have many
windows to your house-bay windows
and skyight windows and windows Of
conservatory and windows on all sides
but you have at least one window
open toward Jerusalem.
When the foreign steamer comes to
the wharf you see the long line of
sailors, with shouldered mailbags,
coming down the planks, carrying as
many letters as you might suppose to
be enough for years correspondence
and this repeated again and again
during the week. Multitudes OF them
are letters from home and at all the
postofices of the land people will 60