The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1896-12-30

no right to practice an imposition. Broken
hearted now, she started on the way, the
tears falling on the dust of the road all the
way from Shiloh 10 Tr2ah Broken
hearted now, she is not careful any more to
hide her queenly gait and manner. True TO
the prophecy, the moment her feet touch the
gate Of the city the child dies. As she goes
the city palace is joined by the lanentation
Of nation, and as they carry good Abijah
to his grave the air Is filed with the voice OF
eulogy for the departed youth and tho groan
Of an afflicted kingdom. t .t
= 1t Is for no insignificant purpose that pre-
sent you the thrilling story OF the text. In
the first place learn that wickednees in-
wolves others, trying to make them sdupes,
Its allies and its scapegoats, Jeroboam pro-
posed to hoodwink the Lords prophet. How
did he do it2 Did he 60 and do the work
himself No. 10 sent his wife to do 1t.
Hers the peril OF exposure, hers the fatigue
OF the way, hers the execution of the plot,
his, nothing. Iniquity is Q bras, but tis great
else to execute 1t puts down the gunpowder
train and gets some one else to touch 1t on;
contrives mischief and gets some one else to
work It; starts q lie and gets some one elseto
circulate II. In nearly all the great crimes
OF the world II Is found ont that those who
planned the arson, the murder, the theft, the
fraud go free, while those who were decoyed
and cheated and hoodwinked into the c5n-
spiracy clank the chain and mount the gall
lows. y 4, y y
& Aaron Burr, with heart filled with impur-
ity and ambition, plots for the overthrow OF
the United States Government and gets OF
with few threats and little censure, while
Blenneshassett. the learned Blennerhassett,
the sweet tempered Blennerhassett, is de-
coyed by him from the orchards and the
laboratories and the gardens and the home
On the banks of the Ohio River, and his for
prison, and. his family, brought mp In lux
ury, is turned out to die. Abotninable Aaron
Burr has 1t comparatively easy. Sweet tenn
pered Blennerhassett has 1t hard. Benedict
Arnold proposed to sell out the forts OF the
United States; to surrender the Revolutionary
army and TO destroy the United States t4ev-
ernment. He gets Off with his pockets full
Of pounds sterling, while Major Andre, the
brave and the brilliant, Is 5decoyed into the
conspiracy and suffers on the gsbbet on the
banks OF. the Hudson; so that even the
literature-the marble tablature that COM
Inemorated that eyent-has been blasted by
midnight desperadoea. Benedict Arnold has
II easy. Major Andre has.it hard. Ihare
noticed that nine-tenths Of those who suffer
for crimes are merely the satellites OF some
juggler which by sleight Of hand and leger-
demain makes the gcld that 1t stole appear
In somebody else's pocket. Jeroboam plots
the lie, contrives the imposition. and gets
his wife to execute It. Stand of from all
imposition and chicanery. Do not consent
TO be anybody's dupe, anybody's ally In
wickedness, anybodyfs scapegoat.
The story Of the text also impreeses me
with the fact that royalty sometimes passes
in disguise. The frook, the veil, the hood Of
the peasant woman hid the queenly char
acter OF this woman Of Tirzah. Nobodysus
pected that she was queen or q princess as
she passed by, but she was just as much q
queen as though she stood In the. palace, her
around about us there are princesses and
queens whom the world does not recognize.
They sit on no throne Of royalty, they ride
in no chariot, they elicit no huzza, they
make no pretense, but by the grace Of God
they are princesses and they are queens;
sometimes In their poverty, sometimes In
their self-denial, sometimes In their hard
struggles Of Christian service-God knows
they are queens. The world does not recog-
pize them. t..t.. X. 3:-,.l -
\ Royalty passing in disguise, kings without
the crown, conquerors without the palm,
empresses without the jewel. You saw her
yesterday on the street. You saw nothing
important In her appearance, but she is
regnant over o vast realm OF virture and
goodness realm vaster than Jeroboam
ever looked at. You went down into the
house Of destitution and want and suffering.
You saw the story of trial written on the
wasted hand of the mother, on the pale
cheeks Of the children. on the empty bread
tray, on the freless hearth. on the broken
chair. You would not have given dollar
for oil the furniture In the house. But by
the grace of God she Is princess. The
overseers OF the poor come there and discuss
the cause and say, "It's pauper." They
do not realize that God has FURNISHED for
her crown, and that after she has got
through the fatiguing journey from Tirzah
to ShiloK and from Shiloh back to- !Trzah
there will be throne Of royalty on which
she shall rest forever, Glory veiled. Al
A queen in mask. A princess in disguise.
When you think Of q queen you do not
think OF Catherine Of Russia, or Maria
Theresa Of Germany, or Mary, queen OF
Scots When you think OF queen, you
think Of a plain woman who sat opposite
your father Mt the table or walked with him
down the path Of life arm In arm, sometimes
to the Thanksgiving BANQUET, sometimes to
the grave, but always side by side, soothing
your little SORROWS and adjusting your little
quarrels, listening to your evening prayer.
toiling with the needle or at the spinning
wheel, and on cold nights tucking you up
snug and warm. And then on that dark dny
when she lay a-dying, putting those thin
hands that had toiIed for you 30 long, put
ting them together in dying prayer com.
mending you to that God in whom she had
taught you to trust. Oh, she was the queen.
now without having the deepest emotions OF
your soul stirred, and you feel as u you
could cry as though you were now sitting In
infancy on her lap, and II you call her back
to speak your name with thetenderness with
which she once spoke you would be willing
now to throw yourself on the sod that covers
her grave, crying. Mother, mother" Ab,
she was the queeni Your father knew it.
You knew it. She was the queen. but the
queen In disguise. The world did not re-
eognize 1t. g.. r.....
But there was grander Disgusting. The
favorite Of a great house looked out OF the
window of bis palace, and He saw that the
people were carrying heavy burdens. and
that some Of them were hobbling on
crutches, and He saw some lying at the gate
exhibiting their sores. and then he heard
their lamentations. and he said: II will just
put on the clothes Of those poor people, and
I will 60 down and see what their sorrows
are, and will sympathiHe with them. and l
will be one OF them, and WILL help them.
Well, the day came for Him TO start: The
lords OF the land came to see Him on. All
who could sing Joined In the parting song,