Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1898-09-14
SERMONS OF THE DAY

Honesty Observation-Disclosures Modes of
Getting Money-Why Politics Has Be
come q Synonym For Truculency and
Turpitude-The Morals of the GOspel.
TEXT: "They that will be rich fall into a
temptation and a snare, and into many
foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men
in destruction and perdition. IL Timothy
vi, 8.
That is the Niagara Falls over which rush
q multitude of souls, namely, the deter
minatlon to have the money anyhow. right
or wrong. Tell me how a man gets his
money and what he does with it. and will
tell you his character, and what will be his
destiny in this world aud the next. pro-
pose to speak to-day about the ruinous
modes OF getting money.
In all our city, state and national cleo
tions large sums of money are used in brib-
cry. Politics, from being the science of
good government, has often been be-
draggled into the synonym for truculency
and turpitude. A monster sin, plausible,
potent. pestiferous, has gone forth to do
its dreadful work in all ages. Its two
hands are rotten with leprOsy. 1t keeps
The left hand is clenched, and with It's
knuckle 1t taps at the door Of the
courtroom, the legislative hall, the con-
gress and the parliament. The door swings
open and the monster enters, and glides
through the aisle OF the council chamber
as softly as slippered page, and then 1t
takes its right hand from its deep pocket,
and offers it in salutation to judge or
legislator. If that hand be taken, and the
palm of the intruder cross the palm Of the
official, the leprosy crosses from palm to
palm in a round blotch, round as gold
eagle, and the virus spreads, and the doom
Is fixed, and the victim perishes. Let
bribery, accursed 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 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 fortells the
crushing blows Of Gods indignation, de-
claring, Fire shall consume the taber-
nacle Of bribery
1t is no light temptation. The mightiest
Chancellor of England, founder of our
modern science, author Of "Novum
Organum," and whole library Of books,
the leading thinker of his century, so
precocious that when a little child he was
asked by Queen Elizabeth, "How old are
you! hc TtSpOuutu, u" Two years
younger than your Maajesty's happy
reigu;" of whose oratory Ben Jonson
wrote, "The fear Of every man that heard
him was lest he should make an end;" hav-
ing an income which you would suppose
would have put him beyond the temptation
OF bribery-thirty-six thousand dollars a
year, and Twickenham Court, gift, and
princely estates in Hertfordshire-yet
under this temptation to bribery, falling
nat into ruin, and on his confession OF
taking bribes, giving as excuse that all his
predecessors took them; he was fined two
hundred thousand dollars-or what corre-
spends with our two hundred thousand
dollars-and imprisoned In Londoa tser
: Even heathenism and the Dark Aged have
furnished specimens OF inecrruptibiliS A
cadi OF Smyrna had case brougE fefore
hin On trisl. A mrn gast eiE.l-' = ssssss.s
auctts In bribery The Vase came ON rhss
briber had many witnesses, The poo1 man
on the other side hadno witnesses. At the
close of the case the cadi said: ..ra,s poor
man has no witnesses, he thinks; shall
produce in his behalf five hundred Witness
es against the other side" Then pulling
out the bag Of ducats from under the otto
man, he dashed it down at the feet of the
briber, saying: 81 give my decision against
you" Epaminondas offered a bribe, said:
81 will do this thing If it be right, and II it
be wrong, all your goods cannot persuade
me-"
The President of the American Congress
during the American Revolution, General
Reed, was offered ten thousand guineas by
foreign commissioners II he would betray
this country. He replied: Gentlemen,
am n very poor man, but tell your king he
Is not rich enough to buy me-" But why
go so far, when you or l, II We move In
honorable society. know men and women
who by all the forces Of earth and He'll
could not be bribed. They would no more
be bribed than you would think of tempt
Ing an angel of light to exchange Heaven
for the pit. To offer bribe is villiany, but
1t Is a very poor compliment to the man to
whom 1t is offered.
My charge is to you, in all departments
Of life. steer clear Of bribery, all of you.
Every man and woman will at some time
be tempted to do wrong for compensation.
The bribe may not be offered in money. 1t
may be offered in social position. Let us
that there Is day coming
when the most secret transaction Of pri-
rate life, and Of public life, will come up
'or public apprehension.
We cannot bribe death, we cannot bribe
sickness, we cannot bribe the grave, we
,annot bribe the judgment Of that God
who thunders against this sin. ''Fiel"
'aid Cardinal Beaufort, "fie! Can't death
,e bribed? Is money nothing2 Must l
whole realm would save me I could get 1t
,y policy or by purchase-by money"
So, death would not be bribed then; he |
will not be bribed now. Men Of the world |
,ften regret that they have to leave their
money here when they go away from the
n their last hours that one OF their chief |
orrows is that they have to leave their |
money. break that delusion. l tell that |
,ribe-taker that he will take his money !
With him. God will wrap it up in your
hroud, or put it in the palm of your hand |
yx-fl lin
he cool, bright, shining gold as 1t was on |
he day when you sold your vote and your |
moral principle, but there it will lie. hot
METAL, burning and consuming your hand
orever. Or, II there be enough Of 1t for a
hahn, then 1t will fall over the wrist clank-
ng fetters OF an eternal captivity. The
ribe is an everlasting possession. You
AXE 1t for time, you take 1t for eternity.
ome day in the next world. when you are
onging for sympathy, you will feel on
our cheek O kiss. Looking up, you will |
md 1t to be Judas, who took thirty pieces
4 silver rs bribe, and finished the bar
ain by putting an infamous kiss on the
ure cheek of his divine Master.
Another wrong use of money is seen in
he abuse of trust funds. Nearly every
nan during the course of his life, on a
arge or smaller scale, has the property of
thers committed to his keeping. He is,
o far, a safety deposit, he is an admins
anu III Hduu the luttttSl
4 the family of a deceased friend. Or he
an attorney, and through his custody
oes the payment from debtor to creditor,
r he is the collector of a business house,
7hich compensates him for the responsi-
ility; or he is treasurer for charitable
and he holds aims contributed
or the suffering; or he is an official Of the
ity or the State or the nation, and taxes
nd subsidies and salaries and supplies
re in his keeping.
Another remark needs to be made, and
hat is that people ought not to go into
laces, into business, or into positions
here the temptation is mightier than
heir character. If there be large sums OF
loney to be handled, and the man is not
ure OF his own integrity, you have no
light to run an unseaworthy craft in a
urricane. A man can tell by the sense OF
'eakness or strength in the presence of a
ad opportunity whether he is In safe
lace How MANY Darents make an owfuI