Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1897-06-18

yoltaic piles, and other magnifyin9
glasses, with which to storm the barred
castles Of the natural world until it
shall surrender its last secret. We thank
God for the geological curiosity Of Pro
fessor Hitchcock, and the mechanical
curiosity Of Liebig, and the geological
curiosity Of Cuvier, and the inventive
curiosity Of Edison, but we must admit
that unhealthful and irregular inquisi-
tiveness has rushed thousands and tens
of thousands into ruin.
Eve just tasted the fruit She was
curious to find out how it tasted, and
that curiosity blasted her and blasted
all nations. So there are clergymen in
this day, inspired by unhealthful in
uuisitiyeness, who have tried to lcok
through the keyhole Of Gods myster-
ies-mysteries that were barred and
bolted from all human inspection-and
they have wrenched their whole moral
nature cut Of joint by trying to pluck
fruit from branches beyond their reach,
or have come out on limbs Of the tree
from which they have tumbled into
ruin without remedy. A thousand trees
Of religious knowledge from which we
may eat and get advantage, but from
certain trees Of mystery how many
have plucked their ruin Election, free
agency, trinity, resurrection in the
discussion of these subjects hundreds
and thousands Of people ruin the soul.
There are men who actually have been
kept out Of the kingdom Of heaven be-
cause they could not understand who
Melchisedec was not.
Forbidden Fruit.
Oh, how many have been destroyed
By an unhealthful inquisitiyenessl 1t Is
seen in all directions. There are those
who stand with the eye stare and mouth
cape Of curiosity. They are the first to
hear a falsehood, build it another story
high and two wings to 1t. About other
peoples apparel, about other people 3
business, about other peoples financial
condition, about other peoples affairs,
they are overanxious. Every nice piece
of gossip stops at their door, and they
fatten and luxuriate in the endless
round Of the great world Of title tattle.
They invite and sumptuously entertain
/ at their house Colonel Twaddle and Es-
auire Chitchat and Governor Smalltalk.
Whoever hath an innuendo, whoever
hath a scandal, whoever hath valuable
secret, let him come and sacrifice it to
this goddess Of splutter. Thousands Of
Adams and Ewes do nothing but eat
fruit that does not belong to them. Men
quite well known as mathematicians
failing in this computation Of moral
algebra: Good sense plus good breeding,
minus curiosity, equals minding your
own affairs.
Then, how many young men through
curiosity 90 through the whole realm
of French novels, to see whether they
are really as bad as moralists have pro-
nounced them. They come near the
verge Of the precipice just TO look of.
They want to see how far it really Is
down, but they lose their balance while
they look and fall into remediless ruin,
or, catching themselves, chamber up,
bleeding and CHASTITY, on the rock, glib
bering with curses or groaning ineffec-
tual prayer. By all means encourage
healtbful inquisitiyeness, by all means
discourage i'll regulated curiosity.
This subject also impresses me with
the fact that fruits that are sweet to the
taste may afterward produce great ago
nv. Forbidden fruit for Eve was SO
pleasant she invited her husband also to
take Of it, but her Punishment from
paradise and 5000 years Of sorrow, and
wretchedness, and war, and woe paid
for that luxury. Sin may be very sweet
at the start, and it may induce great
wretchedness afterward. The cup Of sin
IS sparkling at the top, but there Is
death at the bottom. Intoxicaticn has
great exhilaration for awhile, and II
| films the blood, and it makes a man
see five stars where others can see only
one star, and it makes the poor mal
rich, and turns cheeks which are white
red as roses; but what about the dreams
that come after, when he seems falling
from great heights, or is Frustrated oy
other fancied disasters, and the perspi
ration stands on the foTehead-tb'
night dew Of everlasting daIkness-anC
he is ground under the horrible hcot q
Nightmares shrieklng with hIs thu"
crackle with all consuming torture
"Rejoice, O young man, IN thy youth
and let thy heart cheer thee ID tie Gay
of thy youth, but know thou that iol
all these things God Will liirg thee III
10 Judgment" Sweet at the start, hol
rible at the last. Go into that hall G
reyelry. where ungodly mirih staggoi
and blasphemes. Listen TO the sensel's
eabble. See the last trace Of mtelligenc
dashed out from faces made il God
own image. "Aha, ahal" says the rolst
eriug inebriate. This is joy for you
Fill high your cups, my boys. drinl
to my wife's misery and my children
rags and my Gods defiance. " And b
knows not that a fend stirs the goble
in his hand and that adders uncoi
from the dregs and thrust their iorke'
tongues Kissing through the froth ol
the rim. The Philistines 1eered an
laughed and shouted at Samson. On
they wanted Kim to make sport TO
them. and he made sport for them. HoN
bright and gay was the scene for 1T
tie while. After awhile the giant put
; one hand against this pillar and tn
other hand against that pillar and bow
himself, and 5000 merrymakers ar
,, mashed like grapes in a wine press
Sin rapturous at the start, awful at tn
last.
: A Great TransgresSion.
That one Edenic transgression dld nc
seem to be much, but it struck bioN
l which to this day makes the earth stag
GER. To find out the consequences
that one sin you would have to compe
, the world to throw open all its priso
doors and display the crime. and thro'
open all its hospitals and display IN
. disease. and throw open all the insan
. asylums and show the wretchednes'
) and open all the sepulchers and sho'
3 the dead, and open all the doors OF tf
n lost world and show the damned. Ihi