Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1896-08-01
WHOSE son ARE YOU 7
THE REV. DR.. TALMAcE's ELOQUENT
THOUGHTS ON hEREoITy.

The pedigree Of Davld--The Law Of He
red,ty Christian Ancestry. Its Power
and Its Responsibility Kings and Queens
az God and Heirs of Immortality.
WASHINGTON, July 26.-This sermon
by Rev. Dr.. Talmage on heredity will
bring all the family records into requi-
sition and lead people to study their
own proclivity toward good or evil.
The text chosen was Samuel xvii, So;
"Whose son art thou, thou young man9'
Never was there more unequal fight
than that between David and Goliath
David five feet high, Goliath ten; David
a shepherd boy brought up amid rural
scenes. Goliath warrior by profession
Goliath mountain of braggadocio,
David marvel of humility; Goliath
armed with an iron spear, David armed
with a sling, with smooth stones from
the brook. But you are not to despise
these latter weapons. There was regl-
ment Of singers in the Assyrian army
and q regiment of singers in the Egyp-
tian army, and they made terrible exc
cutiou, and they could cast stone with
as much accuracy and force as now can
be sent shot or she'll The Greeks IN
their army had singers who would
throw leaden plummets inscribed with
the irritating words, Take thisf
So it was a mighty weapon David
employed in that famous combat. A
Jewish rabbi says that the probability
is that Goliath was in such contempt
for David that in a paroxysm of laugh
ter he threw his head back and his
helmet fell off, and David saw the I'M
covered forehead, and his opportunity
had come, and taking this sling and
swinging it around his head two o.
three times, and aiming it at that I'M
covered forehead, crashed it III like al
eggshell. The battle over, behold the
tableau: King Saul sitting, little David
standing, his fingers clutched into the
hair of decapitated Goliath. AS Saul
sees David standing there holding in his
hand the CHASTITY, reeking, staring
trophy, evidence of the complete victory
over Gods enemies, the king wonders
what parentage was honored by sucl
heroisln, and in my text he asks DayiC
his pedigree, "Whose son art thou, thor
young MANI The king saw what yor
and see, that this question Of heredity
is mighty question.
Blood VIII Tell.
The longer l live the more ! believe
in blood-good blood, bad blood, PROUD
blood, humble blood, honest blood
thieving blood, heroic blood, cowardly
blood. The tendency may skip a genera
tion or two, but it is sure to come out
as in little child you sometimes see 1
sin{ arity to a grandfather whose
pis Re hangs on the wall. That tn,
piy cal and mental and moral qualities
a. lheritable is patent to any one wht
keeps his eyes open. The similarity is ST
striking sometimes as to be amusing
GS1at families, regal or literary, arr
attic have the characteristics all down
through the generations, and what il
mo.se perceptible in such families ma,
ks>teen ON a smaller scale in all fami
M A thousand years have no power
to obliterate the difference.
The large lip of the house of Austrii
is seen in all the generations and il
called the Hapsburg lip. The house o
Stuart always means in all generation
cruelty and bigotry and sensuality. Wit
ness Queen of Scots. Witness Charles
and Charles IL Witness James / ant
/ James Ii and all the other scoundrel
of that line. Scottish blood means per
sistence, English blood means reverence,
for the ancient, Welsh blood means re
ligiosity, Danish blood means fondnes
for the sea, Indian blood means roamin!
disposition, Celtic blood means fervidity
Roman blood means conquest. TIL
Jewish facility for accumulation yol
may trace clear back to Abraham. o
whom the Bible says che WIS rich il
silver and gold and cattle, and TO Isaa
and Jacob, -Mha- had tie same character
istics Some families are characterized
by longevity, and they have a tenacit,
of life positively Methuselish. Other
are characterized by Goliathian stature
and you can see it for one generation
4 two generations, five generations, in al
/ the generations. Vigorous theology run
down in the line of the Alexanders
| Tragedy runs on in the family of tn
/ Kembles. Literature runs on in the lin
of the Trollopes. Philanthropy runs o.
in the lines of the Wilberforces. States
manship runs on i'll the line of tn
Adamses. You see these peculiarities il
all generations. Henry and Catherin
/ of Navarro religious, all their familie
religious. The celebrated family O
/ Casini, all mathematicians The cele
brated family of the Medici, GRANDPA
Their, son and Catherine, all remarkabl
for keen intellect. The celebrated famil
of Gustavus Adolphus all warriors
This law of heredity asserts itsel
without reference to social or politica
condition, for you sometimes find tn
ignoble in high place and the HONORABLE
in obscure place. A descendant of Ed
ward l toll gatherer. A descendant c
Edward III a doorkeeper A descendan
of the Duke Of Northumberland a trun
maker. Some of the mightiest familie
of England are extinct, while some c
those most honored in the peerage e
back to an ancestry of hard knuckle
aud rough exterior. This law of heredit
Is entirely Independent of social or politi
cal conditions Then you find ayaric
and jealousy and sensuality and frau
having full swing in some families
The violent temper Of Frederick VII
liam is the inheritance of Frederick til
Great. 1t is not a theory founded b
worldly philosophy, but by divine at
thorlty. Do you not remember how til
Bible speaks of a chosen generation, {
the generation of the righteous, of til
generation of vipers, of an untowar
generation, Of a stubborn generation, {
the iniquity of the fathers visited upo
the children unto the third and fourt
generation? So that the text comes tt
day with the force of projectile hurle