The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-07-26
TALMAGE ON PROSPERITY.
HIS TEXT. "WHEREFORE DOTH 4
LIVING MAN COMPLAIN"

the Waters and II VIII Return to
Thee After Many DaYs"-The Way
for Christians 10 Regard the Com
mercfnI and Financial Stringency.
Washington, July 25.-Thls discourse of
DR.. Talmage shows how all may help in
the restoration of good times. and is most
appropriate. Text: Lamentations 8:S9:
.0Wherefore doth living man complain?
A cheerful interrogatory in the most
melancholy book of the Biblel Jeremiah
wrote so many sad things that we have
a word named after him, and when any
thing is surcharged with grief and COM
plant, we call IT a jercmiad. But IN my
text, jeremiah as by sudden jolt, wax
ems us to a thankful spirit
our blessings are so much more numer-
Gus than our deserts that he is surprised
that anybody should ever fnd fault.
Having life, and with it a thousand bless
ings, 1t ought to hush into perpetual 81
Ience everything like criticism Of the deal
ings of God. Wherefore doth living
man complaint"
While everything in our national finances
is Frightening, for the last few years the'
land has been set to the tune of Naomi
There has been here and there cheerful
soloist, but the grand chorus has been
one of lamentation, accompanied by dlrges
over Frustrated commerce. silent manufac-
tories unemployed mechanism, and an
those disorders described by the two short
words. hard times" The fact Is that we
have been paying for the bloody luxury oil
war, more than thirty years ago. There
were great national differences, and we
had not enough Christian character 10
settle them by arbitration and treaty, ana
so we went into battle, eXpending lie ana
treasure. and we'll nigh swapping the ma
tional finances; and north and south east
and west have ever since been paying Tor
those four years indulgence in barbarism.
But the time has come when this depres-
sion ought to end-yea, when II Will end
If the people are willing to do two or
three things by way of financial medca-
ment, for the people as well as congress
must Join in the work of recuperatlon.
The best political economists tell us that
there is no good reason for continued pros
tration Plenty of money awaiting invest
ment. The national health with never so
strong an arm or so clear brain. Yet
we go on grooming grooming, groaning, as
though God had put this nation upon
Cruel and allowed us but one decent
breakfast In six months. The lact as the
habit of complaining has become chrome
IN TINS country anu AAt'i al NAAN' 9yN'N-'
of Whimper and wailing and obJurgaton,
we are under such momentum OF snlVel
that we cannot stop.
There are three prescriptions by Whlch
7 believe that our individual and nauonal
finances may be cured of their present de-
preston The first is cheerful converse
tion and behavior. l have noticed that
the people who are most vociferous against
the day in which we live are those who are
in comfortable circumstances. l have
made inquiry of those persons VINO are
violent in their jeremiads against these
times, and have asked them: NOW, al
ter all are you not making living
After some hesitation and coughing and
clearing their throat three or four times,
they say, stammeringly: Yes" SO that
with great multitude Of people II is not
question of getting a livelihood, but they
are dissatisfied because they cannot make
as much money as they would like to
make They have only two thousand dol
lars in the bank, where they would Ike
to have four thousand. They can clear in
a year only five thousand dollars, when
they would like to clear ten thousand, or
things come out just even. Or in their
trade they get three dollars a day when
they wish they could make four or five.
"Ohr says some one, ''are you not aware
of the fact that there is a great popula-
ton out of employment. and there are
hundreds of the good families OF this
country who are at their wits end, not
knowing which wav to turn?" Yes. l know
1t better than any man in private life
can know that sad fact, for II comes con
stantly to my eye and ear. But who is
responsible for this state of things?"
Much of that responsibility l put upon
men in comfortable circumstances, who,
by an everlasting growing. keep public
confidence depressed and new enterprises
from starting out and new houses from
being built. You know very well that one
respondent man can talk fifty men into
dependency, while one cheerful physician
can wake up into eNhilaration a whole
asylum of hypochondriacs. 1t is no kind
ness to the poor or the unemployed for
you to join in this deploration. Ii you
have not the wit and the common sense
TO think Of something cheerful 20 say
then keep silent There is no man that
can be Independent Of depressed conVersa-
ton. The medical journals are ever Illus
trating IL. / was reading Of five men who
resolved that they would make an expert
ment and see what they could do in the
way Of depressing a stout, healthy man,
and they resolved to meet him at differ
ent points in his journey, and as he STEP
ped out from his house In the morning in
robust health one Of the five men met him
and said: why, you look very sick to-
day. What Is the matter?" He said: Il
am In excellent health; there is nothing
the matter" But passing down the street,
he began to examine his symptoms. and
the second OF the FIVE men met him and
said why how bad you do look. -"
Well he replied 81 don't feel very
wel! After awhile the third man met
him, and the fourth man met him. ana
the nth man came up and said. "Why.
you look as If you had had the typhoid
fever for six weeks. What is the matter
with your And the man against whom
the stratagem had been laid went home
and died. And " you meet a man with
perpetual talk about hard times ana bank
ruptcy and dreadful winters that are to
come, You break down his courage A
few autumns ago. as the winter was COM
ing on, people said I'VE shall have "a ter
rible winter The poor will be frozen out
this winter" There was something len the
large store of acorns that the squirrels
had gathered, ana something In the
phases of the moon. and something IN
other portents, that made you certain we
were going 90 have "a hard winter. Winter
came IL was the mildest one within my
memory and within yours. All thar win
ter long do not think there was an icicle
that hung through the day from the caves
OF the house. 50 you prophcsiod falsely.
Last winter was coming. ana che peopla
taid; we shall have unparalleled sur