Connecticut western news., 1897-02-25
FOR THE SKEPTICAL.
REV. pR. TALMAae BREACHES ON "A
 SHATTERED FAITH"

SHATTERED FAITH"
 An old Missionary In Command of the
 ship-Theological Theories and Common
 Sense Facts-seixing on the First Thing
 That Oners In Time of Peril.
 DE FUNIAK SPRINGS, Fla, Feb. 21.- After many years of invitation Dr. Tal- mage breaches today at this great Chau- tauqua From all parts of the south the people are assembled. The sermon is nightly helpful for those who find it hard to believe everything Dr. Tal- mage returns this week to Washington. The subject of this sermon is "A Shat tered Faith" and the text Acts xvii, A, And some on broken pieces of the ship"
 Never of Goodwin sands or the Sker- ries or Cape Hatteras was a ship in worse predicament than, in the Mediter- fanean hurricane. was the grain ship on which 276 passengers were driven on the coast of, Malta, five miles from the metropolis of that. island, called Citta Vecchia After two weeks tempest, when the ship was entirely disabled and captain and crew had become complete ly demoralized, an old missionary took command of the vessel He was small, crooked backed and sore eyed, accord ing to tradition. It was Paul, the only unscared man aboard. He was no more afraid of Euroclydon tossing the Med iterranean sea, now up to the gates of heaven and now sinking it to the gates of he'll, than he was afraid of kitten playing with string. He ordered them all down to take their rations, first ask ing for them a blessing. Then he insur- ed all their lives. telling them they would be rescued, and, so far from los ing their heads, they would not lose so much of their hair as you could cut off with one click of the scissors-nay, not thread of it, whether it were gray with age or golden with youth. ''There shall not hair fall from the head of any of you. {"
 Paul In Command.
 Knowing that they can never get to the desired port, they make the sea on the fourteenth night black with over thrown cargo, so that when the ship strikes it will not strike so heavily. At daybreak they saw creek and in their edgency resolved to make for it. And 60 they cut the cables, took in the two paddles they had on those old boats and hoisted the mainsail so that they might come with such force as to be driven high up on the beach by some fortunate pillow. There she goes, tumbling to- ward the rocks, now prow foremost, now stern foremost, now rolling over to the starboard, now over to the lar board now @ wave dashes clear over the deck, and it seems as if the old craft has gone forever. But up she comes again. Paul's arms around mast, he cries: "An is we'll God has given me all those that sail with me" Crash went the prov, with such force that it broke of the mast. Crash went the timbers till the seas rushed through from side to side of the vessel She parts amidships, and into thousand fragments the vessel goes, and into the waves 278 immortals are precipitated Some of them had been brought up on the seashore and had learned to swim, and with their chins just above the waves and by the strokes of both arms and propulsion of both feet they put out for the beach and reached it. But alas for those othersl They have never learned to swim, or they were wounded by the falling of the mast, or the nerv- ous shock was too great for them. And others had been weakened by long sea- sickness
 Oh, what will become of themp ''Take that piece of a rudder, says Paul to one. 'Take that fragment of spar," says Paul to another. "Take that image of Castor and Pollux." "Take that plank from the hfeboat. " 'Take anything and head for the beach," What struggle for life in the breakersi Oh, the merciless waters, how they sweep over the heads of men, women and childreni Hold on therel Almost ashore. Keep up your courage. Remember what Paul told you. There the receding wave on the beach leaves in the sand whole family. There crawls up out of the surf the centurion. There another plank comes in, with life clinging fast to it. There another piece of the shattered vessel, with its freightage of an immortal soul They must by this time all be saved Yes; there comes in last of all, for he had been overseeing the rest, the old mis- sionary, who wrings the water from his gray beard and cries out, "Thank God, all are herer'
 How They Escaped.
 Gather around a fire and call the roll. Paul builds a fire, and when the bundle of sticks begin to crackle, and, standing and sitting around the blaze, the passengers begin to recover from their chill, and the wet clothes begin to dry, and warmth begins to come into all the shivering passengers, let the purser of the vessel go round and see if any of the poor creatures are missing. Not one of the crowd that were plunged into the sea. How it relieves our anxiety as we read: "Some on broken pieces of the ship. And so it came to pass that they escaped all safe to land"
 Having on previous occasions looked at the other passengers, I confine myself today to an examination of those who came ill on broken pieces of the ship. There is something about them that ex- cites in me an intense interest. I am not SO much interested in those that could swim. They got ashore, as I ex- pected. A mile of water is not very great undertaking for strong swim mer, or even two miles are not. But I cannot stop thinking about those on broken pieces of the ship.
 The great gospel ship is the finest of the universe and can carry more pas sengers than any craft ever constructed, and you could no more wreck it than you could wreck the throne of God AL mighty. wish all the people would come aboard of her. I could not promise . smooth voyage, for ofttimes it will be tempestuous or chopped sea, but could promise safe arrival for all who