Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1897-04-09
A PLEA FOR COURAGE.
REV. DR.. TALMAeE ON RUIN AND RES
TORATlON.


There Must BE Exploration Before Re-
observation-disclosures Of the Triumph
Of sadness-words Of Hope and Cheer
For the Discouraged.
WASHINGTON, April 4.-From the
weird and midnight experiences Of one
of ancient times DIR. Talmage in his SER
mon draws lessons startlingly appropri-
ate. His text was Nehemiah ii, 10,
"Then went up in the night by the
brook and viewed the wall, and turned
back, and entered by the gate of the val
ley, and so returned"
A dead city is more suggestive than
living city-past Rome than present
Rome-ruins rather than newly frescoed
cathedral But the best time to visit q
ruin is by moonlight The Coliseum Is
far more fascinating to the trAyeler after
sundown than before. You may stand
by daylight amid the monastic ruins OF
Melrose abbey, and study shafted oriel
and rosetted stone and mullion, but they
throw their strongest witchery by moon.
light. Some of you remember what the
enchanter of Scotland said in the LAY
of the Last Minstrel"
Wouldst thou view fair Melrose arighti
Go visit it by the pale moonlight.
Jerusalem In Ruins.
Washington Irving describes the An
dalusian moonlight upon the Alhambra
ruins as amounting to an enchantment.
Ny text presents you Jerusalem in
ruins The tower down. The gates
down. The walls down. Everything
down. Nehemiah on horseback, by
moonlight looking upon the ruins. While
he rides there are some friends on foot
going with him, for they do not want
the many horses TO disturb the suspicion:
of the people These people do not know
the secret Of Nehemiah s heart, but they
are going as a sort Of bodyguard.
hear the clicking hoofs Of the horse
on which Nehemiah rides, as be guides
it this way and that, into this gate and
out Of that, winding through that gate
amid the debris Of once great Jerusa
lem. Now the horse comes to dead halt
at the tumbled r:4asonry where he can
not pass. Now he SHES off at the charreC
timbers. Now he comes along where the
water under the moonlight flashes from
the mouth of the brazen dragon after
which the gate was named Heavy
hearted Nehemiah, riding in and out
now by his old home desOlated, now by
the defaced temple, now amid the scars
Of the city that had gone down under
battering ram and confagrationl The
escorting party knows not what Nehe
miah means. Is he getting crazy? Have
his own personal sorrows, added to the
sorrows Of the nation, unbalanced his
intellect? Still the midnight explora
ton goes on. Nehemiah ON horseback
rides through the fish gate, by the towel
of the furnaces, by the kings pool, by
the dragon well, in and out, in and out
until the midnight ride is completed
and Nehemiah dismounts from hi
horse, and TO the amazed and confound
ed and incredulous bodyguard, declares
the dead secret of his heart when h
says, Come, now, let US build Jerusa
lem. "What, Nehemiah, have yoI
any money! mo" "Have you any
kingly authority" NO" Have yol
any eloquence?'' M" Yet that mid
night, moonlight ride Of Nehemiah re
suited in the glorious rebuilding of tn
city Of Jerusalem. The people knew no
how the thing was to be done, but wit
great enthusiasm they cried out, lie
US rise up now and build the city.
Some people laughed and said it coul'
not be done. Some people were infuriat
and offered physical violence, saying tn
thing should not be done But the work
men went right on, standing on tn
wall, trowel in one hand, sword in tn
other, until the work was gloriousl,
completed. At that very time in Greece
Xenophon was writing a history, AM
Plato was making philosophy, and De
mosthenes was rattling his rhetorical
thunder. But all Of them together di
not do so much for the world as thu
midnight, moonlight ride Of praying
courageous, homesick, close mouthe'
Nehemiah.
Church Affection.
Nv subject first impresses me with tn
idea what an intense thing is church al
fection. Seize the bride of that hors
and stop, Nehemiah. Why are You risk
ing your life here in the night? You
horse will stumble over these ruins am
fall on you Stop this useless exposur
of your life. No; Nehemiah will nc
stop. He at last tells US the whole story
He lets US know he was an exile in
far distant land, and he was servant
a cupbearer in the palace of Artaxerxe
Lonigmanus, and one day, while he wa
handing the cup Of wine to the king
the king said to him: "What is the mai
ter with you? You are not sick. L kno'
YOU must have some great trouble
What is the matter with you9" Then b
told the king how that beloved Jerus'
lem was broken down, how that his II
theirs tomb had been desecrated, ho'
: that the temple had been dishonored an
defaced, how that the walls were sea
tered and broken. We'll, says Kin
Artaxerxes, "what do you want!
WELL" said the cupbearer, Nehemial
az want to go home / want to fix u
the grave Of my father. l want to n
store the beauty of the temple | wal
to rebuild the masonry of the city wal
Besides, Iwant passports SO that sha
not be hindered in my journey, and b
\ sides that" as you will find in the col
text, "I want an order on the man WI
keeps your forest for just so much tin
Der as may need for the rebuilding
the city," "How long shall you
Qone?" said the king. The time OF al
, Sence is arranged. In hot haste tn
seeming adventurer comes to Jerusalem
and in my text we find him on hors
back. in the midnight, riding arour
the ruins. 1t is through the spectacles
this scene that we discover the ardei
attachment Of Nehemiah for sacred Jerl
/. salem. which in all ages has been Il
type of the church Of God, our Jerus
! lem, which we love just as much