Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1898-06-25
GOOD AND BAD SPORT.
DR.. TALMAeE's SERMON ABOUT THE
ADJUSTMENTS OF THE HOUR.
when tho Elind old Giant Samson Was
Called Forth to Amuso tho Wicked of
GAIA Tho Chrlstian Who Recreates
wlsely-The Deadly "Good Time"


Wisely-The Deadly GOOD Time"
copyright. 1885, by American Press Asso-
clation.l
WASHINGTON, Juno 19.-From an un.
usual standpoint DR.. Talmage i'll this
discourse discusses nmusements and ap.
plies tests by which they may be known
us good or bad. The text is Judges xvi,
%, "And it came TO pass, when theii
hearts were merry, that they said, Cali
for Samson, that he may make US sport
And they called for Samson out of the
prison house, and he made them sport.
There were 5000 people assembled in
the temple of Dagon They had como
to make sport Of eyeless Samson. They
were all ready for the entertainment.
They began to clap and pound, impa-
ticnt for the amusement to begin, and
they cried Fetch him out! Fetch him
ontl' Yonder sec the blind old giant
coming, led by the hand Of a child into
the very midst of the temple. At his
first appearance there goes up Il shout Of
laughter and derision The blind old
giant prctcnds he is tired and wants to
rest himself against the pillars Of the
house, so he says to the lad who leads
him, Bring me where the main pillars
are The lad does so. Their tho strong
man puts his hands Oh one of the pill
lars, and, with the mightiest push that
mortal ever made, throws himself for
ward until the whole house comes down
in thunderous crash, grinding the audi
cncc like grapes in wine press. And
so it came to pass, when their hearts
wcro merry. that they said, Call for
Samson, that he may make us sport.
And they called for Samson out Of the
prison house, and he made them sport. "
In other words, there are amusements
that arc destructive and bring down dis
aster and death upon the heads Of those
who practice them While they laugh
and cheer they. die The 5000 who per
ishcd tlsat day in GAIA are nothing COM
pared with the tens of thousands who
havo been destroyed body, mind and
soul, By bad amuscments and by good
amusemcnts carried to excess.
In my sefmens you must have noticed
that l have no sympathy with ecclesias-
teal etrais jackets or with that whole
sale dcnunoieticn of amusements to
which many are pledged. believe the
church of God has made tremendous
mistake in trying to suppress the sport
fitness of youth and drive out from men
their love of amusement. If God ever
implanted anything in u.s. he implanted
this desire. But instead of providing
for this demand of our nature the church
of God has for the main part ignored it.
AS in riot tho mayor plants battery
Mt the crd'of tho street and has it fired
off, so that.crcrything H7tut down that
happens to s!:;:!d in the range, the good
as we'll as the bad, so there arc men i'll
the church who plant their batteries of
condemnation and fire away indiscrimi-
nately. Everything is condemned. They
talk as if they would like to have our
youth dress il blue uniform, like the
children of an orphan asylum, and
march down the path of life to the tune
Of tho dead march in Saul. " They
hate blue sash, or Il rosebud i'll the
hair, or tasseled gaitcr and think a
man almost ready for the lunatic asy-
lun who utters cOnundrum.
Young Mems Christian associations
of tho country are doing a glorious
work. They have fine reading rooms,
and all the influences are of the best
kind, and arc now adding gymnasiums
and bowling alleys where, without any
evil surroundings our young men may
get physical as we'll as spiritual I'M
provclnent. We arc dwindling away to
narrow chcstcd, weak armed, feeble
voiced race. when God calls us to a
work in which he wants physical as
well as spiritual athletes. would to
God that tho time might soon come
when il all Cur colleges and theological
Summaries, rs at Princeton, Il gymna-
stun shall be established. We spend
seven years CT hard study in preparation
for tho ministry and come out with
bronchitis and dyspepsia and liver com
plaint, and then crawl up into the pull
pit, and the people say, Doesn't he look
heavenly" because no looks sickly-
Let the church of God direct rather
than attempt to suppress the desire fol
amusement. The best men that the
world ever knew have had their sports.
William Wherefore trundlcd HOOP
with his children. Martin Luther helped
dress the Christmas tree. Ministers have
pitched qno:ts, philanthropists have
gone a-sl.ating, prime ministers have
played bail.
Our communities are filled with mel
and women who haze III their souls I'M
measured resources for sportfulness and
frolic. Show me man who never
lights up with sportfulness and has nc
sympathy with the recreations OF 9th
ers, and | will show you man who IL
stumbling block to the kingdom Of
God. Such men are caricatures OF rell'
gion. They lead young people to think
that man is good i'll proportion as he
croans and frowns and looks sallow,
and that the height of mans Chris
tian stature is in proportion to the
length of his face would trade of 5oC
such men for one bright faced, radiant
Christian on whose face are the words
"Rejoice evermorel" Every morning
by his cheerful face he breaches 90 ser
mons. will go further and say thai
l have no confidence in q man who
makes a religion of his gloomy looks
That kind of a man always turns GU
badly. l would not want him for TIT
treasurer of an orphan asylum The or
phans would suffer.
Among 40 people whom I received
into the church at one communion ther'
was only one applicant of whose plet!
was suspicious. He had the longes
story to tell, had seen the most vision
and gave an experience so wonderful
that all the other applicants were dis
eouraged. L was not surprised the yea1
after to learn that he had run off with
the funds Of the bank with which he
was connected Who is this black ange.
that you call religion-wings black