Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1898-07-15

| copyright. 1898. by American Press Asso-
! citation.
WASHINGTON, July 10.-This sermon
Of DR.. Talmage which we send out to-
day seems startlingly appropriate to
this theme when so many are leaving
this life by their own hand, an evil
about which all reasonable people are
agreed; text, Acts xvi, 2S, do thyself
no harm.
Here is a would be suicide arrested
in his deadly attempt. He was a sheriff
and, according to the Roman law, a
bailiff himself must suffer the punish
ment due an escaped prisoner and if
the prisoner breaking Jail was sentenced
to be endungeoned for three or four
years then the sheriff must be endun-
geoned for three or four years, and if
the prisoner breaking Jail was to have
suffered capital punishment then the
sheriff must suffer capital punishment.
The sheriff had received especial charge
to keep sharp lookout for Paul and
Silas. The government had not much
confidence in bolts and bars TO keep safe
these two clergymen, about whom there
seemed to be something strange and su-
pernatural. Sure enough, by miraculous
power they are free, and the sheriff,
waking out of a sound sleep and sup
posing these ministers have run away
and knowing that they were to die for
preaching Christ and realizing that he
must therefore die, rather than 90 un-
der the executioner's AK on the morrow
and suffer public disgrace resolves to
precipitate his own decease. But before
the sharp, keen, glittering dagger of
the sheriff could strike his heart one of
the unloosened prisoners arrests the
blade by the commend, "Do thyself no
harm.
In olden times and where Christianity
had not interfered with it suicide was
considered honorable and sign of cour-
age Demosthenes poisoned himself
when told that Alexander's ambassador
had demanded the surrender of the
self rather than surrender to Philip of
Macedon. Cato, rather than submit TO
julius Caesar, took his own life, and
three times after his wounds had been
dressed tore them open and perished.
Mithridates killed himself rather than
submit to Pompey, the conquerOr. Han
nibal destroyed his life by poison from
his ring, considering life unbearable.
Lycurgus, a suicide, Brutus a suicide.
After the disaster Of Moscow Napoleon
always carried with him a preparation
of poison. and one night his servant
heard the ex-emperor arise, put some-
thing in glass and drink it, and soon
after the groans aroused all the attend
ants, and it was only through utmost
medical skill that he was resuscitated.
Times have changed, and yet the Amer
lean conscience needs to be toned up on
the subject Of suicide. Have you seen
paper in the last month that did not an
nOunce the passage out Of life by ones
own behest? Defaulters alarmed at the
idea Of exposure, quit life precipitately.
Men losing large fortunes 90 out Of the
world because they cannot endure earth
" existence. Frustrated affection, do
mestic infelicity, dyspeptic impatience,
anger, remorse, envy, jealousy, destitu-
tion, misanthropy, are considered suti
cient causes for absconding from this
life by paris green, by laudanum, by
belladonna, by Othello's dagger by
halter by leap from the abutment of a
bridge, by firearms More cases of felo
de Sc in the last two years than any two
years of the world existence and more
in the last month than in any ~
months. The evil is more and more
spreading.
Worst of All Grimes.
\ pulpit not long ago expressed some
doubt cs to whether there was really
anything wrong about quitting this life
when it became disagreoable, and there
are found in respectable circles people
apologetic for the crime which Paul in
the text arrested | shall show you be-
fore | get through that suicide is the
worst of all crimes and | shall lift a
warning unmistalSable. But in the early
part of this sermon Iwish to admit that
some Of the best Christians that have
ever lived have committed self destruc-
tion, but always in dementia and not
responsible. have no more doubt about
their eternal felicity than | have Of the
Christian who dies in his bed in the de-
lirium of typhoid fever. While the
shock of the catastrophe is very great. |
charge all those who have had Christian
friends under cerebral alteration step
off the boundaries Of this life TO have
no doubt about their happiness. The
dear Lord took them right out of their
dazed and frenzied state into perfect
safety. How Christ feels toward the in
sane you may know from the way he
treated the demOniac of Gadara and the
child lunatic and the potency with
which he hushed tempests either of sea
or brain.
Scotland. the land prolific Of intel
lectual giants, had none grander than
Hugn MllleT, BItdO lOl cCicHOC dhN
great for God. He was an elder in st.
Johns Presbyterian church. He came /
of the best highland blood and was a
descendant Of Donald Roy, a man emf
nent for piety and the rare gift of Sec
md sight His attainments, climbing !
up as he did from the quarry and the !
wall of the stonemason. drew forth the
astonished admiration of Buckland and |
Murchison, the scientists, and DIR. /
Chalmers, the theologian, and held uni |
versities speilbound while he told them
the story of what he had seen Of God IN /
1.-The Old Red Sandstone. " That man /
did more than any other being that ever
lived TO show that the God of the hills
is the God of the Bible, and he struck |
his tuning fork on the rocks Of Gro
marty until he brought geology and
theology accordant in divine worship.
Ills two books, entitled Footprints Of
the Creator" and 1.-THE Testimony OF
the Rocks, proclaimed the banns Of an
everlasting marriage between genuine