The Bolivar bulletin. (Bolivar, Tenn.) 1888-1946, 1896-05-29
BAD COMPANY.
Rev. DR.. Tamlage Discourses Upon
q Fruitful Theme.
The Folly OF Conserving with Question:
able Companions FOrcIbIy 1lluatfAa
ted-sOsne Of Those TO steer,
clear OF.

Y. Il
. De Witt T1lnage before his Washing
ton congreR alton. being based on tn,
text:
Walk not thou IN the way with them.-Pro
verbs l., IS
Hardly any young man goes te :
place of dissipation alone, Each on,
Is accompanied 10 man goes to ruin
alone lie always takes some one else
with him. ebay 1t please the court,
said convicted criminal, when asked
II he had anything to say before sen.
tence of death was passed ur3on htm44
may IL please the eoGrh had coInpanv
has been my ruin. l received the
blessing Of good parents, and, y r.
turn. promised To nk5id all evil asso-
Cations. Had / kept my promise, /
should have been saved this shame.
and been free from the load of guilt
that hangs around me like a vulture.
threatening to drag me to justice for
crimes yet unrevealed. /, who once
moved In the first circles Of society,
have been the guest Of distinguished
public men, am lost, and all through
bad company.
This is but one Of the thousand
l. ifs that evil Associations blast and
destroy, 1t is the invariable rule.
There is well man in the wards of a
hospital, where there are 100 people
sick with ship fever, and he will not be
so apt to take the disease as good
man would be apt to be snitten with
moral distemper IL shut up with IN
iquitous companions. In olden times
prisoners were herded together Jn the
Same cell, but each Learned the vices
of all the culpFits, so that, instead of
being reformed by Incarceration. the
day of liberation turned thgm out
upon society, beeets, not men,
We mey, In our places of business
be compelled to talk to and minplz
with bad men; but he who deliberately
chooses to associate himself with
vicious people Is engaged in carrying
an eourtship with a Delilah whose
shears will clip off all the locks of his
strength, and he will be trippe1 into
perdition. Sin is catching, Is infec-
tious, is epidemic I will let you look
over The millions of people now inhab-
itihg the earth, and | challenge Won to
show me good man who, after one
year, has made choice and consorted
with the wicked. A thousand dollars
reward for one such instance, / care |
not how strong your character may be.
Go with the corrupt and you will be- |
come corrupt. Clan with Burglars.
and you will become a burglar. Go |
among the uhclean, and you will be- |
como unclean- Many a young rzn /
has been destroyed by net aupreciat-
ing this As wakes up some morning
I'm FRA aRcat city, and knows no one |
except the persons into whose employ
he has entered. AS he goes into the
store all the clerks mark him, measure
him and discuss him. The uprieht
young men of the store wish him we'll.
but perhaps wait for a formal intFoa
duction, and even then have SOME deli
cacy about inviting him into their
associations. But the bad Young men
Of the store at the first opFr,s-
tunlty approach and Offer their serY-
ICES They Patrohize him, They pro-
less to Know all about the town.
They will take him anywhere he
wishes to go-if he will pay the ex-
'enses. tor IL a good young man
lnd n bad young man 70 TO ,
'ome place where they ought not, the
rood young man has invariably to pay {
ne charge. AT the moment the ticket
s paid for, or the champagne settled
iOr, the bad young man feels around ,
n his pockets and sayss 81 have for-
rotten my pocket-booi5. In As hours
Ifter the young man has entered the ,
tore the bad fellows of the establish
nent slap him on the shoulder fsnhIli- !
.rly and, at his stupidity in taking :
'ertain ellHsions, say, MY young
riend, you will have to be broken lh!N
nd they Immediately proceed to =
freak him In, Young man, in the :
lame OF God, I. warn you to beware I
low yog let bad man talk famil. {
arIy with you. If such an one slap j
-ou on the shoulder familiarity, turn !
round and give him a withefing look.
Intil the wretch crouch In your pres :
nee, There is no monstrocitv of +
that can stand abashed +
nder the glance of purity and honor. |,
rod keeps the lightnlnrs of Heaven in !
lis own scat bard, and no human arm 8
an WELD them; but God gives to o
very young man a lightning that he G
lay use, and that is the lightning of v
n honest eye. Those who have been G
lose observers of city life will not /,
'onder why give warning to young a
len, and say: Beware of evil COM h
\
/ warn you to shun the skeptic-the il
Dung man who puts his fingers in HIS a
est and laughs at your old-fashioned IL
eligiOn, and turns over to some mys- h
Try of the Bible and says: Explain Al
lat, my pious Friends; explain that" n
nd who says: Nobody shall scare f.
e; l am not afraid of the future; / h,
sed to believe in such things, and so II
ID my father and mother, but have bi
0t over it" Yes, he has got over it; r.
nd If you sit in his company little al
niger you will get over it, too. With w
n presenting one argument against II
lie Christian religion, such men will, w
y their jeers and SCOTS and carica-
Tres, destroy your respect for that re- 70
gion which was the strength of your n,
lther in his declining years and the on
How of your old mother when she e
y a-dying. II
Alasl a time will come when this eli
ustering young infdeI will have to Ss
e, and then his diamond ring will PI
ash no splendor in the eyes of Death, gr
he stands over the couch, waiting on
r his soul Those beautiful locks CT
III be uncombed upon the pillow; and ne
e dying man viii say: 81 can not die as
l can not die" Death standing ready Bl
side the couch, saws: You must die. lif