The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1896-10-16

~ NAlW ereatest battlefield
REV. TALMAeE that the world has
ever seen. There Barak fought the Ca
NANTES; there Gideon fought the Mid
isnites; there Josiah fought the invad-
ing Egyptians The whole region
stands for battle and the Armageddon
of my text borrows its name from it
and is here used, not geographically,
but figuratively, while setting forth
the idea that there is to be worlds
closing battle, the greatest of all bat
ties, compared with which the conflicts
of this century and all other centuries
were insignificant, because of the
greater number of com bstants engaged.
the greater victory and the greater
defeat The exact date of that bat
tie we do not know, and the exact
locality is uncertain. 1t may be in
Asia, Europe, Africa or America; but
the fact that such a battle will take
place is as certain as Gods eternal
truth. When use the superlative de-
gree in regard to that coming conflict,
do not forget that there have been
wars all along on Ktupendous scale.
As when at Marathon Miltiades
brought on his men, not in ordinary
march, but in full run, upon the horse
men of Persia and the black archers
of Ethiopia, and scattered them, and
crying Bring fire! Bring fire! set
into flame the ships of the in
vaders. AS when Pizarro overcame
Peru. AS when Phillip IL triumphed
over Portugal. As when the. Huns
sacrificed themselves at Thermopyle.
AS when the Carthaginians took Agri-
gentum. As when Alexander headed
the Macedonian phaianX. AS when
Hannibal invaded Italy. Battle of
Hastingsl Battle of Valmy! Battle of
Pultowa! Battle of Arbelal Bat
tie of Tours! Battle of Boro-
dino! Battle of Lucknow! Battle
of Solferino! Battle of FOntenoy,
where 100000 were slain! Battle of
Chalons. where 300, 900 were massacred!
Battle of Herat, where Genghis Khan
destroyed 100000 lives! Battle of
Neishar, where 1,747,OO0 went down
to death! 1.Sl6,OOJ slain at Troy!
And American battles, too near
us now to allow us to appre-
ciate their awful grandeur and
significance, except you who were
there. facing the north or facing the
soulful But all the battles l have
named put together will not equal in
numbers enlisted, or fierceness, or tri-
umph, or rout, the coming Arranged
don contest. Whether it shall be
fought with printers type or keen
steel, whether by brain or muscle,
whether by pen or carblne, whether
by booming cannon or thunders OF
Christian eloquence, l do not know,
and you may take what l say as tgura-
tive or literal, but take as certain what
St. John, in his vision on the rocks of
the Grecian archipelago, is pleased to
call ''Armageddon."
Beginning with those who will fight
on the wrong side, l first mention the
regiments dlabolic. In this very chap
ter from which my text is taken we
are told that the spirits of devils will
be there. How many millions of them
no one can tell, for the statistics of the
satanic domains have never been re-
ported and the roll of that host has
never on earth been called; but from
the direful, and continental, and plan
etary work they have already done,
and the fact that every man and
woman and child on earth has
a temper, there must 6e at
least 1000 100000 of evil spirits
familiar with our world. Perhaps as
many more are engaged on especial
enterprises of abomination among the
nations and empires of earth. Beside
that. there must be an inconceivable
number of inhabitants in realms pam
demoniac, staying there to keep the
great capitals of sin going from age to
age. Many of them once lived in
Heaven, but engaging in consiracy to
put satan on the throne, they were
hurled out and down, and they are
now among the worst thugs of the
universe. Having been In three
earth and helf-they
have all the advantages of great ex-
perience. Their power, their speed,
their cunning, their hostility, wonder
full beyond all statement In the Ar
nageddon they will, doubt not, be
present in full array. They will have
no reserve corps, but all will be at the
front. There will not only be soldiers
in that battle who can be seen and
aimed at, but troops intangible and
without corporeity, and weapons may
strike clear through them without
giving them hurt. With what shout
Of defiance will they climb up the lad
iers of fire and leap from the battle
ments of asbestos into the last cam
paign of he'll!
Other regiments who will march into
the fight will be the regiments alco-
nolic. They will be made up OF the
brewers companies. distillery owners
and liquor dealers associations, and
he hundreds of millions of their pa
irons. They will move into the ranks
with what the Bible calls the "Song
Of the drunkard." And what bloat-
I'd, and soaked, and bleared, and
blasted, and hiccoughing, and nauseat-
ing hostl If now, according to sci
enlist, in England there are so, 900 |
deaths annually from strong drink, and |