The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1898-07-30

her husband; or of Ruth. who toiled
unde, tropical sun for poor, old,
helpless Naomi; or of Florence Night
ingalc, VINO went at midnight to stanch
the battle wounds of the Crimea; or of
Mrs. Adoniram Judson, who kindied
the lights of salvation amid the
darkness of Burma; or OF Mrs.
liemans who poured out her holy soul
in words which will forever be
associated with hunters horn,
and captive's chain, and bridal hour,
and lute's throb, and curfew's knell at
the dying day, and scores and hun
dreds of women unknown on earth
who have given water to the thirsty,
and bread to the hungry, and medicine
to the sick, and smiles to the discour-
aged their footsteps heard along dark
lane ami in government hospital and in
almshouse corridor and by prison gate?
There may be no royal robe. There
may be no palatial surroundings. She
does not need them, for ell charitable
men will unite with the cracking lips
of fever struck hospital and plague
bAObShCo ldLdIStbO III ETGCljAE IlCl ~
she passes: Hail Hail!Queen Vashti!"l
Again, l want you to consider wash
ii the yelled. Had she appeared before
Ahasuerus and his court on that day
with her face uncovered she would
have shocked all the delicacies of ori-
entail society, and the very men who in
their intoxication demanded that she
come in their sober moments would
have despised her. AS some flowers
seem to thrive best in the dark lane
and in the shadow and where the sun
does not seem to reach them, so God
appoints to most womanly natures a
retiring and unobtrusive spirit God
once in a while does call an Isabella
to throne, or a Miriam to strike
the timbrel at the front of a host,
or a Marie Antoinette to Gueii French
mob, or a Deborah to stand at the
front of an armed battalion, crying
out: up! Up! This is the day in
which the Lord will deliver Sisera into
thy hands" And when the women are
called to such outdoor work and to such
heroic positions God prepares them for
1t, and they have iron in their soul.
and lightnings in their eye, and whirl-
winds in their breath, and the Dor.
rowed strength of the Lord omnipo.
tent in their right arm. They walk
through furnaces as though they were
hedges of wildfowers and cross seas as
though they were shimmering sap.
phire, and all the harpies of hell down
to their dungeon at the stamp of woin-
anly indignation.
But these are exceptions. Generally
Dorcas would rather make garment
for the poor boy, Rebecca would rather
fill the trough of the camels, Hannah
the Hebrew maid would rather give a
prescription for Naaman's leprosy, the
woman of Sarepta would rather gather
few sticks to cook meal for fam
ished Elijah, Phebe would rather carry
q letter for the inspired apostle,
Mother Lois would rather educate
Timothy in the Scriptures. When l
see woman going about her daily
duty, with cheerful dignity at the
table, with kind and ge tie, but firm
discipline presiding in the nursery,
going out into the world without any
blast of trumpets, following the foot
steps of Him who went about doing
good, say, "This is Vashti with veil
on"
But when see woman of unblu ;h-
, ing holiness, loud voiced, with a tongue
of infinite Glitter clatter. with AFRO
CANT look, passing through the streets
with the step of walking beam. gayly'
arrayed in very hurricane of millin-
cry, l cry out: "Vashti has lost her
veil" When l see woman uggling
for political prefermcnt, trying to
| force her way up to conspicuity amid
the masculine demagogues, who stand
with swollen fists and bloodshot eyes
and pestiferous breath to guard the
2clls, wanting to go through the loaf.
nrism and detilement of popular sover-
eigns, who crawl up from the saloons
greasy and foul and vernin covered to
decide questions of justice and order
and civilization-when see a woman,
/ say, who wants to press through all
that horrible scum to get to public
place and power. say: "Ah, what a
! pity! vssshti has lost h;c viii"
When | Sc : wcc:: &C., vi com.ly fea.
lures and of adroitness of intellect and
endowed with all that the schools can
do for her and of high social position.
yet moving in society with supcrcil-
iousness and haut?ur, as though she
would have people know their place
AID with an uadefned combination
OF giggle and strut and rhodonont-
ade, endowed with allopathic quanti-
ties of talk, but only homeopathic in
finitesimals of sense, the terror of dry
goods clerks and railroad conductors,
discoveries of significant meanings in
plain conversation, prodigies of badin-
age and innuendo, I say, "Vashti has
! lost her veil"
Again, want you this morning to
consider Vashti the sacrifice. Who is
this that see coming out of that pal
ace gate of Slushan? 1t seems to me
that l have seen her before. She
comes homeless, houseless friendless,
trudging along with broken heart
Who is she? 1t is Vashti the sacrifice.
Oh. what change 1T was from regal
position to wayfarer's crust A little
while ago approved and sought for.
Now. none so poor as to acknowledge
her acquaintanceship. Vashti the sac.
rifice.
All, you and l have seen it many a
time Here is a home empalaced with
beauty. All that refinement and books
| Il IL. IL. L. L.