The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1898-08-14
TALMAGE'S SERMON.
"HONEsTY"THE SUBJECT MAT
TER LAST SUNDAY.
FroEa the Text, Il. Timothy, VIZ, o: They
That win BE Rich FAN Into n Temp
tatIOn and n Snare, and Into Many
Foolish aud HurtfuI Lusts-"

determination TO nave the money any
how, right or wrong. Tell me how
man gets his money AID what he does
with it, and will tell you his character
and what will be his destiny in this
world and the next. l propose to speak
today about the ruinous modes OF get
ting money.
In all our city, state and national
elections large sums of money are USED
in bribery. Politics, from being the
science of good government, has often
been draggled into the synonym Tor
truculency and turpitude. A monster
sin, plausible, potent, pestiferous' mas
gone forth to do its dreadful work In
all ages. Its two hands are rotten with
leprosy. 1t keeps It's right hand hidden
in a deep pocket. The left hano is
clenched, and with its ichorous knuckle
1t taps at the door of the courtroom,
the legislative hall, the congress and
the parliament. The door swings open
and the monster enters and glloes
through the aisle of the council cham
Der as softly as q slippered page, and
then it takes it's right hand from ITS
deep pocket and offers 1t in salutatlon
to judge or legislator. If that hand DC
taken and the palm of the intruder
cross the palm of the official the leprosy
crosses from palm to palm in rouno
blotch, round as a gold eagle, and the
virus spreads and the doom is fixed and
the victim perishes. Let bribery, ac-
cursed Of God and man, stand up for
trial.
The Bible arraigns it again and
again. Samuel says of his two sons
who became judges, "They took bribes
and perverted judgment" David says
of some Of his pursuers, Their right
hand is full of bribes." Amos says OF
some men in his day. They take
bribe and turn aside the poor in the
gate" Eliphaz foretells the crushing
blows of Gods indignation, declaring,
Fires shall consume the tabernacles
Of bribery"
1t is no light temptation. The might
| lest have fallen under it. Lord Bacon,
Lord Chancellor of England, founder
OF our modern science, author OF
"Novum Organum," and a whole Ii
brary of books, the leading thinker OF
his century, so precocious that when a
little child he was asked by Queen Eliz-
abeth, How old are your" he respond
ed, II am two years younger than your
Majesty's happy reign" of whose ora
tory Ben Jonson wrote, 1.-THE fear OF
every man that heard him was lest he
should make an end;" having an in
come which you would suppose would
have put him beyond the temptation
of bribery-thirty-s thousand dollars
a year, and Twickenham Court, gift,
and princely estates in Hertfordshire-
| yet under the temptation to bribery,
| falling fiat into ruin, and on his con-
fession of taking bribes, as excuse that
all his predecessors took them; he was
fined two hundred thousand dollars-or
what corresponds with our two hun
dred thousand dollars-and impris-
oned in London Tower.
The black chapter in English, Irish,
French and American politics is the
chapter of bribery. Some of you re-
member the Pacific mail subsidies.
Most of you remember the awful trag-
edy of the Credit Mobilier. Under the
temptation to bribery Benedict Arnold
| sold the fort in the Highlands for $751;
SIS. For this sin Gorgey betrayed
Hungary, Ahithopel forsook David and
| Judas kissed Christ. When l see sc
many of the illustrious going down un-
der this temptation it makes me think
Of the red dragon spoken of in Reve-
lation, with seven heads and ten horns
and seven crowns, drawing a third part
of the stars of heaven down after him
The lobbies of the Legislatures oi
this country control the country. The
land is drunk with bribery! oh" says
some one, there's no need of talking
against bribery by promise or by dol
lars, because every man has his price
do not believe it. Even heathenism
and the Dark Ages have furnished
specimens Of incorruptibility. A cad
of Smyrna had a case brought before
him on trial. A man gave him five hun
dred ducats in bribery. The case came
on. The briber had many witnesses
The poor man on the other side
had no witnesses. At the Close
of the case the cadi said
This poor man has no witnesses, ht
thinks; l shall produce in his behal
FIVE hundred witnesses against thu
other side" Then pulling out the bal
of ducats from under the ottoman, h,
dashed 1t down at the feet OF the briber
saying, 81 give my decision agains
you" Epaminondas offered a bribe
said, II will do this thing il it be right
and II it be wrong, all your goods can
not persuade me-
The President Of the American Con
gress during the American Revolution
General Reed, was offered ten thou
sand guineas by foreign commissioner.
II he would betray his country. He re
piled: Gentlemen, l am a very poo
: man. but tell your King he is not ricl
: enough to buy me-" But why go so far