St. Tammany farmer., 1897-06-19

temple. Remember. o young man,
that while in after-life, and after years
Of dissipation, you may perhaps have
your heart changed, religion does not
change the liver. Trembling and stag
gering along these streets to-day arc
men. all bent. and decayed. and pre-
maturely old for the reason that they
are paying for leins they put upon
their physical estate before they were
80. BY early dissipation they put
on their body first mortgage,
and second mortgage, and .
third mortgage to the devil; AID
these mortgages are now being fore
closed. and all that remains of their
earthly estate the undertaken will soon
put out Of sight Many years ago, in
fulfllment Of my text . dart struck
through their liver, and il there yet
God forRives, but outraged physical
law never, never, never. That has .
Sinai, but no Calvary. Solomon, in my
text, knew what he was talking about,
and he rises up ON his throne Of world
| ly splendor to shrek out = warning to
all the centuries.
Stephan A. Douglas gave the name
of "squtter sovereignty" to those who
went out west and took possession OF
lands and held them by right of occu-
patton. Let flock of sins settle ON
your liver before you get to be IS years
of age, and they will in all proba bility
keep possession of it by an Internal
squatter sovereignty. Il promise to
pay at the bank $500 six months after
date" says the pr0missary note. II
promise to pay my life 80 years from
date ut the bank Of the grave" says
every infraction of the laws Of your
physical being.
What? Will mans body never com.
pletcly recover from early dissipation
in this world? Never. How about the
world to come? Perhaps God will FIX
it up in the resurrection body SO that
it will not have to 20 limping through
all eternity; but get the liver thor
oughly damaged and it will stay dam
aged rs long as you are here. Ply
sicians call it cirrhosis Of the liver. or
Inflammation of the liver, or fatty de-
generation of the liver, but Solomon
puts all these pangs into one figure and
says: Till dart strike through his
liver" -. al.
Hcsoid seemed to have some hint of
this when he represented Prometheus,
for his crimes, fastened to pillar and
an eagle feeding on his liver, which
was renewed again each night, SO that
the devouring went on until finally
Hercules slew the eagle and rescued
Prometheus. And q dissipated early
life assures ferocity peclxing away
and clawing away at the liver year in
and year out, and death is the only
Hercules who can break the power Of
its beak or unclench its claw. So. also.
others wrote fables about vultures
preying upon the liver; but there arc
those here with whom it is no fable,
but a terrible reality.
That young man smoking cigarettes
and smoking cigars has no idea that
he is getting for himself smoked .:.e-
That young man has no idea that he
has by early dissipation so depleted
his energies that he will 60 into the
battle only half armed. Here is an
other young man who. if he put all his
forces against the regiment of youthful
temptations, in the strength of God,
might drive them back, but he is allow
ing them to be REINFORCED by the
whole army of midlife temptations, and
what but immortal defeat can await
him?
Oh, my young brother, do not make
the mistake that thousands are max
ing, in opening the battle against sir
too late. for this world, too late. What
brings that express train from st. Louis
into Jersey City three hours late? They
lost Is minutes early on the route, and
that affected them all the way; and
they had to be switched OF here and
switched off there, and detained here
and detained there; and the man who
loses time and strength in the earlier |
part of the journey of life will suffer
for it all the way through-the first 20
years of life damaging the following 50 |
yearA
There is . kind of sickness that il
beautiful when it comes from overwork
for God, or ones country, or ones own
family. l have seen wounds that were
glorious. have seen an empty sleeve |
that was more beautiful than the most
muscular forearm. have seen green
shade over the eye, shot out in battle,
that was more beautiful than any
two eyes that had passed without i'm |
jury. l have seen an old missionary
worn out with the malaria of Africa |
jungles, who looked at me more radi- |
ant than rubicund gymnast. have |
seen q mother after six weeks watch |
ing over family of children down |
with scarlet fever, with 4 glory around |
her pale and wan face. that surpassed |
the angelic. 1t all depends on how
you got your sickness and in what bat
tie your wounds.
If we must, get sick and worn out,
let it oe in Gods service, and in the ef- |
fort to make the world good. Not in
the service of sin. No! No! One of the /
most pathetic scenes that I ever wit
ness, and often see it, is that of men or |
women converted in the ffties or six
ties or seventies wanting to be useful, |
but they SO served the world and
Satan in the earlier part of their life
that the1 have no physical energy left
for the service of God. They sacrificed
nerves, muscles, lungs heart and liver
ON the wrong altar. They fought ON
the wrong side, and NOW when their
sword is all hacked up aud their am
all gone, they enlist for Em-
When the high-mettled cav
airy horse, which that man spufred
into many .. cavalry charge with
chanpipg bit and flaming eye and
neck clothed with thunder, is worn out
and: spawned and .ring-boned and
spring-tlalt, he rides up TO-: the Rxcat
Captain of our salvation on the white,