Savannah courier. (Savannah, Tenn.) 1885-1979, 1898-08-19
CRlME on SUICIDES.
An Appropriate Sermon by hev, 4,
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Here ID u would, hu hUiolde nrroalod
IN his deadly attempt llownAn sheriff.
ana, nopordlug 10 the lIomnn law. n
hH'l'll hlmaelf must Auilor the puniah.
ment duo IN eh0npod prisoner, aud II
the prleoner broal,ing Jail VIVA sen.
fenced 60 be- ondungconed for three or
Tour years, then tho shcrin must bc
cndnngeoncd for three or four ycnrs,
ana " the prisoner breaking jail was
to have suffered capital punishment,
lhcn the sheriff must sullor capital
punishment, The shcriIl Ind received
special charge TO keep sharp lookout
for Paul and Silns. The government
had not much confidence In bolts and
bars to keep safe these two clcr.
gymen, about whom there seemed to
be something strange and supernutur.
A. Sure enough, by miraculous pow
en- they are free, and the sheriff, walk
ing out OF n sound sleep, and suppos'
ing these ministers have run away
and Knowing that they were to die
for preaching Christ, and realizing
that he must therefore die, rather than
go under the cXecutioncrs aX on the
morrow and suffer public disgrace, re-
solves to precipitatc his own disease.
But before the sharp, keen, glittering
dagger of the sheriff could strike his
heart, one of the dnloosened prisoners
arrest the blade by the comment: "Dc
myself no harm.
In oldcn times, and where Chris.
tianity had not interforcd with it, sui.
eide was considered honorable and a
sign of courage. Demosthenes poisoned
himself when told that Alexander's
ambassador had demanded the surren,
der of the Athenian orators. Isocrates
killed himself rather than surrender tc
Philip of Maccdon. Cato, rather than
submit to Julius Caesar, took his own
life, and three times after his wounds
had been dressed tore them open. and
persisted. Mithridates killed himself
rather than submit to Pompcy, the con,
queror. Hannibal destroyed his life
10y poison from his ring, considering
life unbearablc. Lycurgus IL suicide
Brutus Il suicide. After the disaster oil
Moscow Napoleon always carried with
him a preparation of poison, and one
night his servant heard the eX-emperol
arise, and put something in glass and
drink it, and soon after the groans
aroused all the attendants, and it was
only through utmost medical skill that
he was resuscitated.
Times have changed, and yet tn,
American conscience needs to be toned
up on The subject of suicide. Have you
seen paper in the last month that die
not announce the passage out of lif,
| by ones own behest? Defaulters
alarmed at the idea of exposure, quit
life precipitately. Men losing large
| fortunes go out of the world because
they can not endure earthly existence
Frustrated affection, domestic infe
licity, dyspcptic impatiencc, aiSsor, nc
morse envy, jealousy, restitution, mis-
unthropy, are considered sufficient
causes for abscondiug from this life 10y
paris green, by laudanum, by bella
donna, by Othello's dagger, by halter
| by leap from the abutment of Il bridge
by fire arms. More cases of felo dc 81
in the last two years than any tive
wears of the worlds existence, anC
more in the last month than in any
twelve months. The evil is more anC
more spreading.
a pulpit not long ago expressed some
! doubt rs TO whether there was reall,
ANYTHING wrong about quitting this
| life when it became disagreenblc, anC
there are found in respectable circle
people npolo2etic for the crim
which Paul in the text arrest
cd. shall show You befor
! get through that suicide is tn
worst of all crimes, and | shall lift {
warning unmstaltable But in tn
early part OF this sermon | wish to ad
nit that some of the best Christian
that have ever lived have COMMITTEES
self-destruction, but always in demen
tia and not responsible. ! have n,
more doubt about their eternal felicity
than have of the Christian who die
In his bed in the delirium OF typhoid
fever. While the shock of the cataS
trophc is very great, | charge all thos
who have had Christian friends unde
cerebral alteration step off the boun
diaries of this life to have no doub
about their happiness The dear Ior
took them right out of their dazed an
frcpzicd state into perfect safety
How Christ feels toward the insa
Won may know from the way He treat
ed the demoniac Of Gadara and th
child lunatic, and the potency wit
which He hushed tempests either G
sea or brain.
Scotland, the land prolific OF il
tcllectual giants, has none create
than Hugh Miller. Great for scienC
and great for God. He was an elder !
ST. Johns Presbyterian church. II
came of the best Highland blood an
was - descendant Of Donald Ray,
man eminent for piety and the raj
gift Of second sight. His attainment
climbing up as he did from the quar-
and the wall of the stone-mason, DIRE
forth the astonished admiration
auckland and Murchison, the scen
lists, and DR.. Chalmers, the theological
and held universities spellbound viii
he told them the story of what he bc
seen of God in the Old Red San
stone. That man did more than al
other being that ever lived to sho
, that the God of the hills is Il
/, God of the Bible, and he struck Ii
, tuning.forli on the rocks OF Cromar
+, until he brought geology and theolot
, accordant in divine worship. His "
, books, entitled Footprints of u
>. Creator" and THE Testimony of Il
!, Rocks" proclaimed the banns Of &
: everlasting marriage between genuil
, science and revelation. On this latt
, book he toiled day and nigl
: through love of nature and love
!, God. until he could not SLEEP al