The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1898-09-27

swim. of society IL they are wealthy.
TIE Bible all afiame with denunctation
against an impure life. but many OF
the American ministry utter1ng NOT
one point blank word against this
~Iniouit lest some old libertine throw
up his church pew. Machinery organ
ICED in all the cities Of the United
States and Canada by which to put
pearly in the grinding mill OF THIS
iniquity thousands of the unsuspects
ing Of the country farmhouses. n
~pruCuress confeSsing in the courts that
she had supplied the Internal market
with $50 victims in six months. oh.
for 500 newspapers in America TO
swing open the door OF this lazar house
Of social corruption, Exposure must
come before e~xtirpation.
THE CITY OF SIN.
While the city a carries the scum
OF this sin from the prison To the Do
lice court morning by morning IL Is
full time, IL we do not want high
American life TO become like tina OF
the court OF Louis Nv. to put million
aire Lotharios and the P~ompadours
OF your brownstone palaces into a a
OF popular Indignation and drive them
out OF respectable associations. What
prospect OF social publication can there
be as long as at summer watering
places IL is usual TO see a young wo-
man OF excellent rearing stand and
shipper n giggle and roll up her
eyes before one OF those first class
satyre OF fashionable life and on the
ballroom floor join him in the dance,
the maternal chaperon meanwhile
beaming from the windo on the
scene? Matches are made in heaven,
they say. Not such matches. for the
birthstone indicates the opposite re-
gion.
The evil is overshadowing all our
cities. BY some these immoralitics are
called ~peccadillos, ~gallantries, cccen-
tricities, and are r~elegated 10 the
realms of popularity. and few efforts
are being made against them. God
bless the White Cross" movement. as
ii is called-an organization making n
mighty assault on this evil, God for
ward the tracts on this subject dis
tributed by the religious tract socie-
ties OF the land! God help parents in
the great work they are doing in try
ing TO start their children with pure
principles. God help all Legislators in
their attempt 10 prohibit this crime.
THE DAY OF JUDGMENT.
But is this all? Then IL is only a
question Of time when the last Vestige
Of purity and home will vanish out Of
sight. Human arms. human pens, hui
AAAsAAa ''ANN'f NhAS 49, - 49,
sufficient. / begin to look up. l listen
for artillery rumbling down the sap
phire boulevards OF HEAVIER l watch
TO see if in the morning light there
be not the flash Of descending scimi-
tiers. oh. for God, Does il not seem
time for his appearance? Is ii not
time for all lands TO cry out. Let God
arise, and let his enemies be scat
tered
l got a letter asking me If | did not
think that the earthquake in one of
our cities was the Divine chastisement
on that city for it's sins. That letter /
answered by saying that If all our
American cities got all the punishment
they deserve for their horrible impu-
rites the earth would long ago have
cracked, opening crevices t~ransconti-
mental and taken down all our cities
so far under that the tip OF our church
spires would be 500 feet below the sur
face. 1t is Of the Lords mercies that
we have not been consumed.
Not only are the affairs OF this world
so a-twist a-jangle and racked that
there seems a need of the divine ap-
pearance, but there Is another reason.
Have you not noticed that in the his
tory OF this planet God turns a leaf
about every 1000 years? God turned
a,Ieaf, and this world was fitted for
human residence. About 1000 more
years passed along. and God turned
another leaf, and il was the deluge.
About 2,000more years passed on, and
1t was the Nativity. Almost 1000 more
years passed by, and he will probably
soon turn another leaf. What IL shall
be / cannot say. 1t may be the demol-
ltion OF all these monstrosities OF tur-
pitude and the establishment OF right
eousness in all the earth. He can do
1T, and he will do IL. / am as confident
as If it were already accomplished.
N q III IA A.
gests. 1t does not ask God to hurI a
great thunderbolt OF his power, but
just to rise from the throne on which
he sits. Only that will be necessary.
Let God arise"
REDEMPTION.
1t will be no exertion OF omnipo-
tence. 1t will be no bending or bracing
for a mighty lift. 1t will be no send
ing down the sky OF the white horse
cavalry Of heaven or rumbling war
chariots. He will only rise. Now he
Is sitting in the majesty and patience
of his reign. He is from his throne
watching the mastering of all the
forces of blasphemy and drunkenness
and impurity and fraud md Sabbath
breaking, and when they have done
their worst and are most surely or
ganized he will bestir himself and say:
My enemies have denied me long
ehouSn, anu tnelr cup or 1niquit Is
full. l have given them all opportunI-
" Tor repentance. This d"ispensation
OF patience is ended, and the faith OF
the good shall be tried no longer" And
now God begins to rise, and what
Mountains give way under his right
foot L know not; but, standing in the
full radiance n grandeur of his ma
ture, he looks this way and that, and
how his enemies are scattered, Bias
phemers, white and dumb, reel down
to their doom, n those who have
traficked in that which destroys the
bodies and souls Of men and families
will fly with cut foot on N down
grade of broken decanters, and the
polluters Of society that did their bad
work with large fortunes and high So
cial sphere will overtake in their de-
scent the degraded rabble OF under
ground city life as they tumble over
he eternal p~recipices, and the world