The Atlanta constitution., 1896-09-14
The CITIES SAVED.
What DR.. Talmage Says Of Their Com
Ing Redemption.
BOYS AND GIRLS SAFE IN THE STREETS
As in Their Nursery When Our Cities
Are Revolutionized by the Cos
pei of the Son of God.


much that is depressing is said about the
wickedness Of the cities. it Will cheer us
to read what DIR. Talmage says in this
sermon about their coming redemption. The
text is Zechariah. viii, 3: "And the streets
of the city shall be fur OF boys and girls
playing in the streets thereof"
Glin'pses Of our cities redeemed Now,
boys and girls who play in the streets run
such risks that multitudes of them end
in ruin. But i'm the coming time spoken of
our cities win be so moral that lads and
lasses SHAH be as safe in the public thor
oUghfares as in the nursery.
Pulpit and printing press for the most
part in our day are busy in discussing the
condition of the cities at this time; but
would it not be healthfully encouraging to
all Christian workers, and to all who are
toiling TO make the world better, il we
should for Il little while look forward TO
the time when our cities shall be revolu-
tionized by the gospel of the Son OF God,
and all the darkness of sin and trouble
and crime and suffering shall be gone from
the world?
Every man has n pride in the city Of his
nativity or residence, if it be a city distin-
gulshed for any dignity or prowess. Caesar
boasted of his native Rome. Virgil OF
Mantua, Lycurgus of Sparta, Demosthenes
Of Athens. Archimedes Of Syracuse ana
Paul OF Tarsus. j should have suspicion
especial interest in the city Of his birth or
resldence-no exhiliration at the evidence
of it's prosperity or it's artistic embellish-
ments. or its intellectual advancement.
have noticed that a man never likes a
city where he has not behaved Well Peo-
pie who have had a free ride in the prison
van never like the city that furnishes the
vehicle. When l find Argos, aud Rhoaes,
and Smyrna trying to prove themselves
the birthplace of Homer I conclude at
haf yyai
them ana they liked him. We must not
war on laudable city pride. or with the
idea of building ourselves up, at any time
try to Tull down others. Boston must
continue TO point to its Faneuil hall and
10 It's Common. and TO its superior educa-
tiOnal advantages. Philadelphia must con-
tinue to point to it's Independence hall,
and its mUt. and its Girard college.
Washington must continue 10 point to its
wOudruus Capitoline buildings. IT | should
ma man coming from any city. having
no pride in that city. that city having been
the place OF his nativity, or now being
the place Of his residence, l would feel
Ike asking: What mean thtnE have
you done there? What dangerous thing
have you been guilty Of that you do not
l think we ought-and I take II for
granted YOU are interested in this great
work of cVangeliZng the cities and saving
the world-we ought 10 toll with the sun
light in our faces. We are not lighting in
a miserable Bull Run of defeat. We are
on our way to final victory. We are not
following the rider on the black horse, lead
ing us down to death and darkness and
doom, but the r:der on the white horse
with the moon under his feet and the stars
hail!
/ know there are sorrows, and there are
sins, and there are suIerngs all around
about us; but as i'm some bitter cold win
ter day, when we are threshing our arms
around rs 20 keep our thumbs from frecE-
Ing, we think of the warm spring day that
VIII after awhile come; or in the dark
winter night we lo0'; up and see the
afaHs#Nn nrHrIa
we look UP from the night Of suffering and
sorrow and wretchedness in our cities, and
we see lght streaming through from the
other side. and we know We are on the
way TO - morning without clouds"
] want you 70 understand, all YOU who
are toilrg for Christ. that the castles II
sin are all going TO he captured. The vic
tory for Christ in these great towns is go
earth. or an angel ia heaven. or devil in
he'll viii dispute il. How do I know? I
Know Just as certainly as God lives ana
that this is holy truth. The old Bible is
fun Of u. II tie nation ia 10 be saved. OF
course an the cities are 20 be saved. Il
makes great difference with You and with
me whetEet we are toing on toward
defeat, or toiiing on toward a victory
Now. IN this municipal elevation Of which
] speak, / have to remark there viii be
Efe@ler financial prosperity than our cities
nave ever seen Some people seem TO have
tiolnia tl ,de3 Of the millennium.
TO our cities and the world people will give
their time up to pSaim-singing and the
relating of their religious experience. and.
as all social life will be purified there will
he no hHarlty, and, as all business viii be
purited, there win be no enterprise There
Is no ground for such an absurd anticipa-
tion. In the time Of which / speak where
now ono fortune is made, there will DE 100
fortunes made. We all know business
prosperity depends upon confidence be-
tween man ana man. Now when that time
comes Of which ] speak. ana when all
double dealing an dishonesty. and an fraud
are gone out Of commercial circles. thor
ouSh confidence VIII be established and
there will be better business done and
larger fortunes gathered. and mightier sue
cess achieved.
The great business diasters Of this coun-
try have come from the work OF goddess
spectators and infamous stock gamblers
The great foe TO business is crime. Wnen
the right shall have hurled back the wrong.
and shalt have purified the commercial
code. and shall have thundered down
fraudulent establishments. and shall have
put into the hands Of honest men the keys
OF business, blessed time for the bargain
makers. ] am not talking an abstraction. /
am not making guess. / ana telling You
Gods eternal truth
In that day of which 7 speak. taxes will
be mere nothing. Now our business men
are taxed foC everything. City taxes,
taxes. stamp taxes, license taxes. manu-
featuring taycs-taXey. taxes, taXesi our
| business mer have TO make a small fortune
every year to pay their taxes. What
fastens on our great industries this awful
load? Crime. Individual and official. We
have to pay the board of the villains who
are incarceratcd in our prisons. We have
TO take care of the orphans of those who
plunged into their graves through sensual
mdulgenccs. We have TO support the
municipal governments, which are vast
and expensive Just in proportion as the
criminal proclivities are vast and tremenG-
GUS Who support the aimshouses and po-
lice stations and all the machinery OF
municipal government? The taxpayers.
But in the glorious time Of which l speak.
gricvous taxation VIII all have ceased.
There will De no need OF supporting crimi-
nails. there VIII be no criminals. Virtue
will have taken the place of vice. There
win be no orphan asylums, for parents
viii be able to leave a competency 70 their
children. There viii be no voting OF large
sums Of money for some municipal in-
proVcment. which moneys, before they get
TO the Improvements. drop into the pockets
of those who voted them. No over and
termincr kept up at vast expense 20 the
people No impanclng of luries To try
theft and arson and murder and Slander
and blackmail. Better factories. Grander
architecture. Finer equpages. Larger toF-
tunes. Richer opuleuce. Better chufchfS.
In that better time, also, COMING TO those
cities Christ's churches Will be more nut
merous, and they VIII he larger. and they
viii he moro devoted to the gospcl OF jesus
Christ and they viii accomplish greater
Influences for good. Now, it is often the
case that churches are cnvious OF each
other and even ministers of Christ some
times forget the bond or brotheFnood HHt