The Progress., 1898-09-17
DIR. TALMAGES SERMON.
BRIEF SYNOPSIS OF TIL? DiVINE'S SUN
DAY DISCOURSE.

TEXT: "Ihey that will be rich fall into 4
temptation and snare, and Into many
foolish and hurtiul lasts, which drown men
III destruction and perultion. u Timothy
Vi, o.
That is The Niagara Falls Oyc"which rush
multitude of souls, namely, the deter
minatiOn to have the money anyhCE, right
Or wrong. Tell me how Il man gets his
money and what he does with it, and | will
tell you his character, and what viii be has
destiny in shis world and the next. 0ro-
pose to speak to-day about tho rGincu5
modes OF getting money.
In all our city, state and national cleo
tions largo sums of money are Ls5d i" brib-
cry. Politics, from being the Silence II
good government, has often been b.
draggled into the syn oEym for truculency
and turpitudc. monster sin, plausible,
potent, pestiferoUs, has gone forth to do
its dreadful work in all ages. rs tw"
hands are rotten With leprDsy. 1t keeps
its right hand hidden in deep pocket.
The left hand is clcncheG, and with its
ichorous Enuckle it taps at the door 0. the
courtroom, the Legislative hall, the con-
gress and the parliament. The door swings
open and the monster enters, and gl,des
through the aisle OF the council chamber
as softly as q slippered page, and then it
takes Its right hand from its deep pocket,
and offers 1t in salutation to Judge or
legislator. If that hand be taken, and the
palm OF the intruder cross the palm Of the
official, the lepro5y crosses from palm to
palm in a round blotch, round as q gold
eagle, and the virus spreads, and tho doom
Is fixed, and the victim perishes. Let
bribery, aceursed Of God and man, stand
up for trial.
The Bible arraigns 1t again and again.
Samuel says of his two sons, who became
judges, "They took brides and perverted
Judgment" DaviG says OF some of his
pursuers, "Their right hand is full OF
bribes." Amos says OF some men in his
day; "They take {. bride, and turn aside
the poor in the gate" Eliphaz fortels the
crushing blows of Gods indignation, de-
clarng, Fire shall consume the taber-
nac!e of bribery"
II is no light temptation. TIE mightiest
have fallen under it. Lord Bacon, Lord
Chancellor Of England, founder Of our
modern science, author OF "Novum
Orsanum," and q whole library OF books,
the leading thinker OF MS century, so
precocious that when little child he was
asked BY Queen Elizabeth, "How old ara
younger than your Maajest happy
wrote. 'The fear of every man that heard
him vas lest he should make an end" hav-
Ing an income which you would suppose
would have put him beyond the temptation
of brlbery-thirty-six thousand dollars @
year, AMI Twickenham Court u yift, and
princeiy estates in Observation-Disclosures
under this temptation to bribery, falling
fiat into ruin, and on his confession OF
taking brides, giving as excuse that all his
predecessors took them; he was fined twa
hundred thousand dollars-or what CORE
spends with our two hundred thousand
dollars-and imprisoned in London Tower
Even heathenism and the Dark Ages have
furnished specimens Of incorruptibillty. A
cadi of Smyrna had case brought before
him on trial. A man gave him FIVE hundred
dueats In bribery. The case camo on. The
briber had many witnesses. The poor man
on the other side had no witnesses. A. the
close OF the case the cadi said: "This poor
man has no witnesses, he thinks; shall
produce in his behalf five hundred witress-
es against the other side" Then pulling
o1t the bag Of dueats from under tho otto
man, he dashed 1t down at the feet Of tho
briber, saying: 81 give my decision against
YOU" Epaminondas offered bride, said
81 will do this thing II it be right, and IL 1t
be wrong, all your goods cannot persuade
me-"
The President OF the Am erican Congress
during the American Revolution, General
Reed. was offered ten thousand guineas By
foreign commissioners If ne would betray
this country. He replied: Gentlemen, I
am very poor man, but tell your king he
Is not rich enough to buy me-" But why
so so far, when you or l. II We move in
honorable society," know men and women
no hxrO tha ~ nuNk1 and all
could not BIZ bribed They would no mora
be bribed than you would think OF tempt
Ing an angel Of light to exchange Heaven
for the pit. To ofHor bribe Is villiany, but
1t Is very poor compliment to the man to
whom 1t is offered.
My charge is to you, in all departments
OF lie. steer clear OF bribery, all Of you.
Every man and woman will at some timo
be tempted to do wrong for compensation.
The bride may not be offered in money. 1t
may be offered in social position. Let us
remember that there is day coming
when the most secret transaction OF pri-
vate life, and OF public life, will coma up
for public apprehension.
We cannot bride death, We cannot bride
sickness, we cannot bride the grave, we
cannot bride the judgment OF that God
who thunders against this sin. "Fie!'
shAe O"Au'hot DSouiotts uCl Jul \ uodtu
be bribed3 Is money nothing? Must
die, and so rich? II the owning of the
whole realm would save mo could get 1t
by policy or by purchase-by money"
No, death would not be brlbsd then; he
will not be bribed now. Men OF the world
often regret that they have 10 leave their
money here when they 60 away from the
world. You can tell from what they say
In their last hours that one OF their chief
sorrows is that they have to Leave their
money. break that delusion. tell tina.
bribe.taker that he will take his money
with him. God will wrap It up In your
shroud, or put 1t in the palm Of your hand
In resurrection, and there 1t will lie, not
the COOL lright, shining gold as 1t was on
the day when you sold your vote and your
moral principle, but there 1t will lie, hot
metal, burning AID consuming your hand
forever. Or, II there be enough OF 1t t2r a
chain, then 1t will fall over tho wrist. clank-
ing letters OF an eternal captivity. The