The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1896-06-12
REV. DIR. TALMAGE.
THE NOTED DTviNRs SUNDAY
DISCOURSE.
= Subjects "naa Company"

some one else with him. "Mav it please the |
court. :" saida convicted criminal when asked
y he had anything 10 say before sentence Of
death was passed upon hlm-"may h please
the court. bad company has been my ruin
received The blessing Of good parents and in
return promised 30 avoid All evil assooia.
tiona. Had kept my promise should have
been saved this shame and been free from
the load of guilt that hangs around mo Ike
vulture; threatening 20 drag mo 10 Justice
Tor crimes yet unreyealei. I who once
moved I'M the first circles % society and have
been the guest OF distinguished public men
am lost, and al through bad company"
This Is but one Of the thousand proofs
that evil associations blast and destroy. II
IS the invariabla rule. There is q we'll man
In the wards OF a hospital where there are
hundred people sick with ship fever, and no
viii not be- 50 apt 10 take the disease as
good man would he apt TO bo smltten with
moral distemper 70 shut up with Ubiquitous
companions. In olden times prisoners wers
herded together In the same cell. but each
one learned the vices OF all the culprits. 80
that instead Of being reformed by incarcora-
uon tho day Of liberation turned them out
upon society beasts, not men.
We may. in our places Of business. be COM
PEELED 20 talk 20 and mingle with bad men,
but he who deliberately chooses 70 associate
himself with vicious people Is engaged IN
carrying on courtship with a Dellah
whose shears will clip of all the locks OF his
strength and he will be trlpped into perdi-
ton. Sin ~ catching, Is infectious, Is cpl
demtc. win let you look over the millions
Of people now inhablting the earth, and l
challenge You TO show ms a good man who
after one year has made choice and consOrted
with the wicked. A thousand dollars re-
ward for one such instance / care not how
strong your character may be. Go with
the corrupt and you will become corrupt.
Clan with burglars, and you will be-
come burglar. Go among the unelean,
and you viii become unelean. Many a
young man has been destroyed by not
approaching this He wakes up some
morning in the great 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 dis
euss him. The upright Young men Of the
| store wish him vel, but perhaps wait for a
/ formal Introduction. and even then have
some deieacy about inviting him into their
| associations. But the bad young men Of the
store at the first opportunity approach and
offer their services. They patronize MIN.
! They profess 10 know all about the town,
They will take him anywhere he wishes &c
/ Ro-ithe will pay the expenses. Forif good
young man and bad young man 20 &c
some place where they ought not, the good
young man has invariably TO pay the
charges. At the moment the ticket is paid
for. or the champagne settled for, the bad
! young man feels around in his pockets and
says, 81 have forgotten ray pocketbook."
In forty-eight hours after the young mau
has entered the store the bad fellows Of the
establishment slap him on the shoulder fa.
military, and, at his stupidity in taking GER
tain illusions. say, "A[y young friend. YOU
will have to be broken in" aud they imme.
diately proceed to break him in. Young man,
in the name of God I warn YOU to beware
how you let a bad man talk Familiarity With
you. III such one slap you on the shoulder
Familiarity turn round and give him with.
ering look until the wretch crouches in your
presence. There is no monstrosity of wick.
edness that can stand unabashed under the
glance Of purity and honor. God keeps the
lightnings of heaven in His own scabbard,
and no human arm can WELD them, but God
gives to every young man lightning that he
may use, and that is the lightning of an hon.
est eye. Those who have been close observ-
ers OF city life will not wonder why l give
warning to young men and say, "Beware Of
evil companions"
warn you TO shun the skeptic-the young
man who puts his fingers in his vest aud
laughs at your old fashioned religion, and
turns over to some mystery of the Bible, and
says, Explain that, my pious friend, ex-
plain that. Aud who says: "Nobody
shall scare me; l am not afraid OF the
future. I used to believe in such things
and 80 did my father and mother, but have
got over it," Yes, he has got over it, and II
you sit in his company little longer you will
get over 1t too Without presenting one
argument against the Christian religion
such men WILL by their ieers and SCOTS and
caricatures, destroy your respect for that re-
llgion which was the strength Of your father
in his declining years and tine pillow OF your
old mother when she lay a-dying.
Alas, time will come when this buster
ing young infdel will have to die, and the1
his diamond ring will flash no spendor in tn,
eyes OF Death as he stands over the couct
J waiting for his SOUL Those beautiful lock-
will be uncombed upon the pillow, and tn,
dying man will say II cannot die; [ cannO
, die" DEATH standing ready beside thu
couch, says: "You must die. You havt
only half minute to live. Let me have +
right away our SOUL" "No," saws thu
young inhdel "here are my gold rings an(
: these pictures. Take them all" ''No,
says Death. "What do / care for pictures
Your SOUL" "Stand back" says the dyin,
intdel. 81 will not stand back" say
Death, "for you have only ten seconds nov
to live. want your soul" The dying maj
says: Don't breathe that cold air into M
+ face. You crowd me too hard. tits gettin
AuA "A III lAl0 LOOuls. VI GOug AuSu, SN9
) Death. "You said there was no God.
"Pray for me" exclaims the expiring infde
! "Too late to pray" says Death. "But tire
more seconds to live. aud will count ther
off-one, two, threem He has gonel Where
: Where2 Garry him out and bury him besid
his father and mother, who died while holC
ing fast the Christian religion. They die
3 singing, but the young inhdel only sale
. "Dont breathe that cold air into my FAC
You crowd me too hard. 1t Is getting dur
s In the room"
Again, urge you to shun the companion
. ship of idlers. There are men hangi1
{ around every store and office and shop wi
have nothing 10 do, or act as if they had no
, They are apt to come in when the firm a
4 away and wish 10 engage you in convers
ton while you are engaged in your regu
D employment. Politely suggest to such pc
sons that you have no time 10 give the
during business hours. Nothing won
q please them so well as to have you renoun
: your occupation and associate with theI
Much of the time they lounge around Il
Y doors Of engine houses, or after the diniI