The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1897-06-18

makes to you is a lie. Over that un-
godly banquet the keen sword Of DDS
Judgment hangs. and there are omin-
Gus handwritings on the walls.
Observe also in this subject how re-
pelling sin is when appended to great
attractiveness. Since Ewes death there
has been no such perfection of woman
hood. You could not suggest an attract
iveness to the body or suggest any re-
finemeGt to the amer. You could add
no eracefulness to the gait. no luster to
the eye, no sweetness to the voice. A
perfect God made her a perfect woman,
TO be the companion of a perfect man
in a perfect home, and her entire IA
ture vibrated in accord with the beauty
and song Of Paradise. But she rebelled
against Gods government. and with
the same hand with which she plucked
the fruit she launched upon the world
the crimes. the wars. the tumults that
| have set the universe awaiting.
FATAL ATTRACTIONS.
A terrible Offset to all her attractive
ness. We are not surprised when we
find men and women naturally vulgar
going into trangsression. We Expect
that people who live in the ditch shall
| have the manners of the ditch, but how
shocking when we find sin appended
to superior education and to the refine
ments of social life. The accomplish
ments of Mary, queen Of Scots. make
her patronage of Darnley, the profigate.
the more appalling.T The genius of Cath
! crime IL of Russia only sets forth in
! more powerful contrast her unappeasa-
| BILE ambition. The TRANSACTIONS from
the Greek and the Latin by Elizabeth,
and her wonderful qualifications for a
queen. make the more disgusting her
c-apricioUsness of affection and her hot
| ness of temper. The greatness of By
ron's mind makes the more alarming
ByrOn'S senSuality.
Let no one think that refinement Of
manner or eSquisiteness of taste or SUI
periOrity of education can in any wise
apologize for i'll temper. for an Oppres-
sive spirit. for u~nkindness. for any kind
of sin. DisobeGience and
transgression can give no ex-
cuse. Accomplishment heaven high
is no apology for vice hell deep.
My subject also impresses me with
the regal influence of woman. When |
see Eve with this powerful influence
over Adam and over the generations
that have followed, it suggests to me
the great power all women have for
good or for evil 1 have no sympathy,
nor lave you, with the hollow batteries
shOWered upon woman from the plat
form and the stage. They mean moth
ing; they are accepted as nothing.
Woman's nobility consists in the exer-
else of a Christian influence, and when
/ see the powerful influence of Eve up
on her husband and upon the whole hu-
man race 1 make up my mind that the
frail arm of woman can strike a blow
which will resOund through all eternity
down among the dungeons or up among
the thrones.
SWEET HOME.
Of course 1 am not speaking of rep
resentative WOmen-Of Eve. who ruined
n race by one fruit picking; of Jael,
who drove a spike through the head of
Sisera, the WARRIOR; of Esther who
Overcame royalty; of Abigail, who stop
ped a host by her own beautiful Prov
ess; Of Mary, who nursed the worlds
Saviour; of Grandmother Lois, immor-
talized in her grandson Timothy: of
Charlotte Corday, who drove the lag
ger through the heart of the assassin of
her lover, or OfMarie AntOinette. who
by one look from the balcony of her
castle Quieted a mob, her w scaffold
the throne of forgiveness and wOmanly
courage. L speak not of these e%xtraOr-
binary persons, but of those who, I'M
ambitious for political power, as wives
and mothers and sisters and daughters,
attend to the thousand sweet offics of
home.
When at last we come to calculate
the forces that decided the destiny of
nations, it will be found hat the
mightiest and %grandest influence came
from home, where the wife cheered up
dependency and fatigue and sorrow
by her w sympathy, and the mother
trained her child for heaven, starting
the little feet on the path to the celes-
tial city, and the sisters by their gen.
tleneSS refined the manner of the
brother, and the daughters were dill
gent in their kindness to the aged,
throwing Wreaths of blessing on the rOad
that led father and mother down the
step of years. God bless our homes.
And may the home on earth be the YES
tibule of our home in heaven. in which
place we may all meet-father. mother,
son, daughter, brother, sister, grand
father and grandmother and grand
child, and the entire group of precious
OneS, of whom we must say, in the
words of transporting Charles Wesley:
One family. We dwell in him;
One church above, beneath.
Though now divided by the stream
The narrow stream Of death
One army of the living God.
To his command we bow.
Part of the host have crossed the flood,
And part are crossing now.