Democratic Northwest and Henry County news. [volume] (Napoleon, O. [Ohio]) 1894-1905, 1897-03-18
THE FLAGS HOISTED.
REV. DR.. TALMAeE breaches A VIVID
AND APPROPRIATE SERMON.

he Says Tie Hates Gar-But He Admires
the Right Kind of Martial spirit-words
of Glowing aud Picturesque Exhorta-
tion.
WASHINGTON, March 14.-At this time,
when our national capital has for ten days
been ahlaze with our national flag, the
Imagery of this sermon Of DR.. Talmage
seems very vivid and appropriate. The text
Is Psalms Xxx, 8, "In the name Of God we
will set up our banners"
hate war. In my boyhood we may
have read the biography of Alexander or
Of some Revolutionary hero until our
young heart beat high and We wished we
had been born over 100 years ago, just for
the glory Of striking down Hessian. For
rusty swords hung up on tho rafters and
bullets cut out of log houses in which they
were lodged during the great strife we had
admiration, or on some public
day, clothed in our grandfather soldierly
nccouterments, we felt as brave MS Carl
baldi or Miltiades. We are wiser now, for
we make vast distinction between the
poetry and the prose of war. Tho roll OF
drums and the call of bugles and the
champing Of steeds foaming and paving
for the battle, 1o0,0 coo muskets glittering
among the dancing plulnes, "God Save the
King waving up from clarinets and
trumpets and rung back from deep defles
or the arches of PROSTATE city, distant
capitals of kingdoms illuminated at the
tidings, generals returning home under
flaming arches and showering amaranths
and the shout of empires--that is poetry.
Chilled and half blanketed, lying on the
wet earth; feet sore with the march and
bleeding at the slightest touch; hunger
pulling on every fiber of flesh or attempt
ing to satisfy itself with scanty and
spoiled ration; thirst licking up the dew
or drinking out of filthy and trampled
pool; thoughts of home and kindred far
away while just on the eve of deadly
strife, where death may leap on him from
any one of o hundred bayonets; the closing
in of two armies, now changed TO 100, 200
maniacs; the ground slippery with blood
and shattered flesh; fallen ones writhing
under the hoofs of unbridled chargers mad
dened with pain; the drcadfulness OF
night, that comes down when the strife Is
over; the struggle of the wounded ones
crawling out over the corpses; the long,
feverish agony of the crowded barrack and
hospital, from whose mattresses the frag-
ments Of men send up their groans, the
only music of carnage and butchery; desc
late homes, from which fathers and hus-
bands and brothers and sons went off;
without giving any dying message OF
seuding Kiss to the dear ones at homo
tumbled into the soldiers grave trench,
and houses in which few weeks before
unbroken family circles rejoiced, now
plunged in the great sorrows of widow
hood and orphanage. That is prose.
But there is now on the earth king
dom which has set itsolf up for conflicts
without number In its march it trample:
no grain1elds, it sacks no cities, it impov
erishcs no treasures, it fills no hospitals
it bcreaves DO families. The courage and
victory of Solfcrino and Magenta without
carnage. The kingdom of Christ against
the kingdom of satan. That is the strife
now raging We will offer no armistices
We will make no treaty. Until all the re
voltcd nations Of the earth shall submit
again to King Emmanuel in the name o.
God we will Set up our banners.
The Ensign.
Every army has its ensigns. Long be
fore the time when David wrote the tex
they were in use. The hosts of Israel dis
played them, the tribe of Benjamin carried
a flag with the inscription of wolf, tn,
tribe of Dan q Representations of cherubim
Judah q lion Wrought into the groundwork
of white, purple crimson and blue. Sucl
flags from their folds shook fire into tn,
hearts of such numbers as were in the fiell
when Abijah fought against .Jehoram, ant
there were 1,200, 900 soldiers, and NOR,
than 500, 900 were left dead on the field
These ensigns gave heroism to such mum
bers as were assembled when Asa tough
against Zerah and there were 1,5S0,00t
troops in the battle. The Athenians car
ried an inscription of the owl, which wa
their emblem of wisdom. The flags O
modern nations are familiar to you all, anl
many Of them SO inappropriate for tn,
character of the nations they represent i
would be impolitic to enumerate them
These ensigns arc streamers borne on tn,
point of o lance and on the top of woodeI
shafts. They are carried in the front ant
rear of armies. They unroll from the mail
top gallant masthead of an admiral's flag
ship to distinguish it among other ships o
the same squadron. Theyare the objects o
national pride The loss of them on tn
field is ignomirious.
The three banners of the Lords host
are the banner of proclamation, the banne
of recruit and the banner of victory. Whel
nation feels it's rights infringed or it
honor insulted, when its citizens have il
foreign climes been oppressed and no in
demnity has been offered to the inhabitan
of tho republic or kingdom, aproclamatioI
of war is uttered On the top of batterie
and arsenals and custom houses and reve
nue. offices flags are Immediately swuns
out. All who look upon them realize tn
fact that unoonlpromising war is declared
Thus it is that the church of Jesus Christ
jealous for the honor of it's sovereign ant
determined to get back those who hav
been carried off captive into the bondage o
satan and intent upon the destruction o
those mighty wrongs which have so lons
cursed the earth and bent upon the cxten
sion Of the Saviour's reign of mercy, in tn
namo Of God sets up its banner of procla
nation.
Tho church makes no assault upon tn
world. do not believe that God eve
made o better world than this. 1t is mag
niflcent in its ruins. Let Us stop talkin!
so much against the world. God pro
nounced it very good at the beginning
Though wandering child of God, | Sc
in it yet the great Fathers lineaments
Though tossed and driven by the storm
of 6,000 years, she sails brayely yet, ant
as at her launching in the beginning tn
morning stars sang together and all tn
sons of God shouted for joy, SO at last
when coming into the calm harbor o
Gods mercy, she shall be greeted by tn
huzzas Of glorifled Kingdoms. 1t is no
the world against which yve contend, bu
its transgressions Whatever is obstinat
IN the will, degrading in passion, harmful
in custom. false in friendshin hvnncritiai,