St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1896-07-11
TALMAGE's SERMON.
Discourse Upon tho Folly Of Keep
ing Bad Company.



PIeasure-Seekefs and Those Who
Possess the spirit Of Gsn-
bling In the Category.
Rev. T. Dewitt Talmage chose .'Bad
Company for the subject of . recent
sermon to his Washington congrcga.
ton taking for his text:
Walk not thou In the way with them-Pro-
verbs l., IS.
Hardly any young man goes to :
place of dissipation alone. Each one
is accompanied No man gees to ruin
alone. He always takes some one else
with him. MAY it please tho court. "
said convicted criminal, when asked
II he had anything to say before sen
tence Of death was passed upon him
may it please the court, bad company
has been my ruin. received the
blessing Of good parents, and, in re-
turn. promised to avoid all evil asso-
ciationk Had / kept my promise, !
should have been saved this shame.
and been free from the load Of guilt
that hangs around me like . vulture,
threatening to drag me to justice for
crimes yet unrevealed. ], who once
moved in the first circles of society,
have been the guest of distinguished
public men, am lost, and all through
bad company.
This is but one of the thousand
proofs that evil associations blast and
destroy. 1t is the invariable rule.
There is a well man in the wards of .
hospital, where there are 100 people
sick with ship fever, and he will not be
so apt to take the disease rs . good
man would be apt to be smitten with
moral distemper II shut up with in
iquitous companions. In olden times
prisoners were herded together in the
same cell, but each learned the vices
of all the culprits, so that, instead OF
being reformed by Incarceration. the
day OF liberation turned them out
upon society, beasts, not men.
We may, in our places Of business,
be compelled to talk to and mingle
with bad men; but he who deliberately
chooses to associate himself with
vicious people is engaged in carrying
on a courtship with a Delilah whose
shears will clip OF all the locks of his
strength. and he will be trippei into
perdition. Sin is catching, is infec-
tious, is epidemic. will let you look
over the millions of people now inhab-
iting the earth. and challenge you to
show me good man who. after one
year, has made choice and consorted
with the wicked. A Thousand dollars
reward for one such instance. care
not how strong your character may be-
60 with the corrupt and you will be-
come corrupt Clan with burglars.
md you will become . burglar. Go
among the unclean, and you will be-
come unclean- Many young man
has been destroyed by not appreciat-
ng this. He wakes up some morning
n the great city, and knows no one |
except the persons into whose employ |
ae has entered As he goes into the |
store all the clerks mark him, measure |
him and discuss him. The upright |
young men of the store wish him well,
but perhaps wait for . formal intro
and even then have some deli |
:acy about inviting him into their
But the bad young men
If the store ut the first 0ppor-
unity approach and offer their serv-
ces- They patronize him. They pro-
Tess to know all about the town.
They will take him anywhere he |
wishes to go-if he will pay the ex-
penses. For If good young man
ind q bad young man 20 to
'ome place where they ought not. the
rood young man has invariably to pay
he charge. At the moment the ticket
$ paid for, or the champagne settled
'or. the bad young man feels around
n his pockets and says: Il have for
rotten my pocket-book." In 4s hours
lfter the young man has entered the
tore the bad fellows Of the esta blish-
ncnt slap him ON the shoulder famili-
lrly and, at his stupidity in taking
,ertain allusions, say, My young
riend, you will have to be broken in;-
nd they Immediately proceed to
'-eak him in. Yonng man, in the
lame of God, l warn you to beware
low you let . bad man talk famil-
arly with you. IF such An one slap
rou on the shoulder Familiarity, turn
round and give him q whitening look,
Until the wretch crouch in your pres
nee. There is no mopstrocity OF
that can stand abashed
ndcr the glance Of purity and honor.
rod keeps the lightnings Of Heaven in
lis own scat bard, and no human srm
an WELD them; but God gives to
very young man . lightning that he
lay use, and that Is the lightning Of
a honest eye. Those who have been
lose observers of city life will not
'onder why give warning to young
ZEN, and say: Beware OF evil COM
/ warn you to shun the skeptic-the
Dung man who puts his fingers in his
est and laughs ut your old-fashioned
eligion, and turns over to some mys-
.ry Of the Bible and says: Explain
Int. my pious friend; explain that"
nd who says: Nobody shall scare
e; am not afraid Of the future;
sed to believe in such things, and %
d my father and mother, but l have
ot over it" Yes, he has got over It;
i'd if you sit in his company = little
niger you will get over it, too. With
lr presenting one argument against
le Christian religion, such men will,
! their jeers and SCOTS and carica-
res, destroy your respect for that re
yion which was the strength Of your
lther in his declining years and the
How Of your old mother when she
y a-dying. e
Alas! = time win come when this :
young in6del win have 70 .
e, and then his diamond ring will 7
ash no splendor in the eyes Of Death, =
he stands over the couch, waiting .
r his soul Those beautiful locks 8
III be uncombed upon the pillow; and :
e dying man will say: Il can not die Il
can not die" Death standing ready
side the couch, says: You must die; 9
)u have only = ha1f ruSrrx> - "a. a