Cherokee scout. [volume] (Murphy, N.C.) 188?-1961, 1896-06-23
DIR. TALMAGE.
yttR NOTED DIvINRs SUNDAY
DISCOURSE.
Subject: "rhe Bitter ATLAS

Subject: "The Bitter Attlla.''
q
TEXT: ''There fell q great Star from heaven,
burning as it were a lamb and it fell upon
the third part of the rivers, and upon the
fountains OF water, and the name of the
Star IL called Norwood. Revelation viii,
10, II.
Many commentators, like Patrick and
Lowth. Thomas Scott, Matthew Henry and
Albert Barnes agree In saying that the star
Norwood, mentioned in Revelation, was
Attila, king of the Huns. He was so called
Recat1se he W8s brilliant as d star, and, like
WormWood;, he ,enbittered everything he
todched: We have studied the star of
Bethlehem; and the M6rhing, Star OF the
Revelation; and the Star Of Peace; but my
present subject calls US 10 gaze at the star
WormwoQd, and my theme might be called
Brilliant Bitterness.
A more Extraordinary character history
| does not furnish than this man thtis referred
to, Atttla, the king of the Huns. One day a
wounded heifer came limping along through
the fields, and herdsman followed its
Dloody track on the grass to see where the
heifef was wounded, and went on back fur
ther and ftrther, Until he came to sword
fast in the earth; the point downward, as
though Is had dropped from the heavens and
against the edges of this sword the heifer
mad been cut. The herdsmau pulled up that
sword and presented 1t to Atti:a. AttiIa said
the swcrd must have dropped from the
heavens from the grasp Of the god Mars and
Its being given to him meant that Atilla
| should conquer and govern the whole earth.
Other mighty men have been delighted at
| being called llberatots, or tho merciful or the
| good, but Attlla called himself, and demand
| ed that others call him the Seoi1rge of God.
At the head Ct TOO 900, troops; mounted on
Cappadocian horses. he swept everything
| from the Adriatic to the Black Sea. He put
his iron heel on Macedonia and Greece and
| Thrace. He made Milan and Pavia aud
Padua and Verona beg for mercy, which he
bestowed not. Tho Byzantine castles, to
meet his ruinons levy: put up 1t auction
massive silver tables and vases of solid gold.
A city captured by him, the inhabitants
were brought out and divided into three
| elasses-the first class, those who could bear
arms; Who mtret Immediately enlist under
| Attlla or be bptchered; tbs keGt1nd Glass, the
beautiful women, who were made captfves to
| the Huns; the third class, the aged men and
| women, who were robbed of everything and
I let go back to the city to pay heavy tax.
1t was eommcn saying that the grass
never grew agaih = iefe the hoef Of Attila's
horse had tod: His armies Redeemed the
waters Of the Seine; and the Mosetie; and the
Rhine with carnage aid fought on the Cata-
lonian plains the, fiercest battle since the
| world stood-300. 900 dt ad left on the field!
On and on until those who could not oppose
prayer, and, a.cloud of dust seen in the dis
lance, bishop cried, "It is the aid of God!'
and all the people took up the cry ut is the
| aid of God p AS the cloud of dust WINS blown
aside the banners OF reinforcing armies
| marched in to help kSaiilEt AttiIa; the
Scourge of God. The most unimportant oc-
currences he used as supernatural re-
source, and after three months of failure 10
capture the city of Aguileia, and his army
had given up tho siege the flight of stork
and her young from the, tower OF the city
was taken by him as a sign that he was to
capture the city, and his army, inspired by
the same occurrence, resumed the siege and
took the walls ut point from which the
stork had emerged. So brilliant was the
conquerer in attire that his enemies could
not look at him, but shaded their eyes or
| turned their heads.
Slain on the evening Of his marriage by his
bride, Ildico; who was hired for the aSsas-
sination; hts followers bewailed him, 4ot
with tears; but with bloodj cutting the IN
selves with knives and lances. He was put
into three collins, the first ofiron, the second
OF silver and the third Of gold. He was buried
| by night, and into his grave were poured the
most valuable coin and precious stones,
amounting to the wealth Of a kingdom. The
i gravedtggers and all those who assisted at
the burial were mRssacred SO that it would
knever be known Where so much wealth was
entombed. The Roman empire conquered
the world, but AttilR conquered the Roman
empire. He wis right iii calling himself a
scourge, but instead of being the Scourge of
| God he was the scourge of hell. Because of
| his briilianco and bitterness the commenta-
tors were right in believing him to be the
! star NORWOOD. As the regions he devas-
tated were parts most opulent with fouh-
| taths and streams and rivers, you see how
| graphic Is this References Id Revelation:
"There fell great star from heaven, burn
| Ing as 1t were lamp, and 1t fell upon the
| third
| tains of waters, and tho name of the star Is
| called Norwood"
Have you ever thought how many imbit-
| tered lives there are all about us, misanthro-
| pic, morbid, acrid, saturnint? The Euro
! pean plant from which NORWOOD is eX:
tracted, Artemisia absinthium, is perennial
| pllnt, and all the year round 1t Is ready to
| exude its oil. And Ia many HUMAN lives
there Is d perennial distillation of acrid ex-
| periences. Yea; there are some whose whole
| work is to shed a baleful influence on others.
| There are Attilas of the home, or Attflas of
| the social circle; or Attilas of the church, or
| Attilas of tho state; and one-thtrd of the
waters of all the world, If not two-thirds the
| waters, are poisoned by the falliD2. of the
star Norwood. It is not complimentary to
human nature that most men. as soon as
| they get greater power, become overbearing.
The moro power men have the better If their
power be used for good. The less power
men have the better If they use it for evil.
Birds circle round and round anil round
before they Gwoop upon that which they are
aiming for. And IL my discourse 30 far has
been swinging round and round this mo-
ment 1t drops straight on your heart and
asks the question, Is your life benediction
| to others or an imbitterment, a blessing or a
curse, q balsam or WormWoodY
Some of you know are morning stars,
and you are making the dawning life of
your children bright with gracious in
fuences, and you are beaming upon all the
opening enterprises of philanthropic and
Christian endeavor, and you are heralds of
that day of gospellzation which will yet food
all the mountains and valleys of our sin
cursed earth. Hail, morning star! Keep on
shining with encouragement and Christian
hope!
Some OF you are evening stars, and yeu
are cheering the last days of old people, and
though cloud sometimes comes over you
through the querulousness or unreasonable
ness of your old father and mother It is only
for moment, and the star soon comes out
clear again aud is seen from all the balco-
MES of the neighborhood. The old people
will forgive your occasional shortcomings,
for they themselves several times lost their
patience whtn you were young and slapped
you when you did not deserve il. Hail,
evening starl Hang on the darkening sky
your diamond coronet!
But are any of you the star Wormwood2 Do
ron scold and groWl from the thrones pa
ternal or maternal? Are your children eyer-
lastingly pecked at? Are you always crying
t'Hush!" to the merry voices and swift feet,
and their laughter. WhiAR occasionally
trickles through at the wroAg times and is
suppressed by them until they can hold II
no longer, and all the barriers burst into un-
SA.-1~ 1wr