The Lexington dispatch. [volume] (Lexington, South Carolina) 1870-1917, 1896-01-08


the earnestness of his soul cries out for
God, he fnds him, and finds him right
away.
Oh, are there not in this house today
those who are postponinS until the last
hoQr Of living the attending to the
things Of the soul? l give it as my
opinion that ninety-nine out of the one
hundred deathhed repentances amount
to nothing. Of all the scores of persons
mentioned as dying in tho Bible, of how
many DO you read that they successfully
ro0ented in the last hour? Of so? No.
Of 90? No. Of 80? No Of 20? No. OF
10? No. OF 5? No. Of /? Only one,
barely one, as if to demonstrate the fact
that there is a bare possibility CT repent
ing in the last hour. But that is i'm
probable, awfully improbable, terri
ically improbable. One hundred to
one against the man. If, my brother,
my sister, you have ever seen a man
try to repent in the last hour, you
have seen something very sad. do not
know anything Oh Garth SO sad as to sec
man try to repent on deathbed.
There is not from the moment that life
begins TO breathe III Infancy to tho
last gasp such an uDfayorable, COM
pletely unfavorable, hour for repentance
as the death hour, the last hour. There
are tho doctors standing with the
medicines. There is the lawyer stand
ing with the half written will. There is
the family IN CONSERVATION as to what
is to become Of them. All the bells Of
eternity ringing the soul out Of tho
body All the past rising before us and
all tie future. Oh, that man is an inf
rito fool who pr0crastinates to the
deathbed his repentance!
This Mny Dc Your Last Chance.
Iiyjext does not answer the question,
It only asks it, with deep and importu-
late carnestneSs asks it, and according
to tho rules Of scrmonizing you would
say, "Adjourn that TO some other time,
but I dare not. What are the rules of
ser,noniziDs to me when l am after
souls: What other time could l have
wilra rorhaps this is the only time:
This might be my last time for preach
ing; this might be your last time for
hearing.
After my friend in Philadelphia died,
his children gave his church Bible to
lilo, and l read it, looked over it with
much interest. saw in the margin,
written il lead pencil, "Mr. Talmage
said this morning that the most useless
thing il Gods universe is that any sin
ncr should perish" did not remember
saying it, but it is true, and 1 say 1t
now whether I said it then or not-thc
most useless thing in all Gods universe
is that any sinner should perish. Twelve
gates wide open. Have you not heard
how Christ bore our sorrows, and how
sympathetic ho is with all our woes!
Have you not heard how that with all
the SORROWS of heart and all the agonics
of hell upon him, he cried, Father,
forgive them, they know not what they
do?' By his feet bliStercd of the noun
tain way, by lis back whipped until
the skin came off, by his death couch Of
four spikes, two for the hands and two
for the feet; by his sepulcher, in which
for the first time for 33 years the cruel
world let him alone, and by the heavens
from which he now bends in compass
sion, Offering pardon and peace and
life eternal to all your souls, beg Of
you put down your all at his feet.
saw one hanging on tree
II agony and blood,
Who fixed his languid eyes on mo
AS near his cross stood.
Oh, never till my latest breath
VII forget that lCCk.
It seemed to charge mo with his death,
Though not q word lie spoke.
Sir john Cochrane's Escape.
In the troubled times of Scotland Sir
John COchrane was condemned to death
by the king. The death warrant was on
the way. Sir John Cochrano was bid
ding farewell to his daughter Grizel at
the prison door. He said: Farewell,
MY darling child! I must die" His
daughter said, "No, father, you shall
not die. " But" he said, 1.-The king is
against me, and the law is after mo,
and the death warrant is GU its way,
and I must die; do not deceive your
self, my dear child" " The daughter
said, FEATHER, you shall not die" as
she left the prison gate. At night, on
the mocrs Of Scotland, a disguised way
farer stood waiting for the horseman
carrying the mailbags containing the
death warrant. The disguised way
farer, as the horse came by, clutched the
bride and shouted to the rider-to the
man who carried the mailbags, dis
mount" He felt fer his arms and was
about to shoot, but the wayfarer jerked
him from his saddle, and he fell flat
The wayfarer picked up the mailbags,
put them on his shoulder and vanished
in tho darkness, and II days were thus
gained for the prisoners life, during
which the father cOnfessOr was plead
ing for the pardon of Sir John Cochrane.
The secO] d time the death warrant is
on its way. The disguised wayfarer
comes along and asks for little bread
ard little Wine, starts on across the
moors, and they say: Poor man, to
have to go out on such a stormy night.
1t is dark and you viii lose yourself on
tho moors. "Oh, no, )" lie says, Il will
not. - He trudgcd Oh and stopped amid
the br&mblcs ana waited for the horse
man to come carrying the mailbags
containing the death warrant OF Sir
John Cochrane. The mail carrier spur
red Oh his stecd, for he was fearful be-
cause Of what had occurred on the for
mer journey, spurred Gu his steod, when
suddenly through the storm and through
the darkness there was flash of fire
arms and the horse became pumauage