The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1899-03-08
Dr.. TaIn1age's Sermon Recalls
Scenes of Youth.
PARENTS WRITING HISTORY.
He Draws a Vivid Picture OF TWO
Contrasting Homes. A Mans
True Character Comes Out
at the Fireside.

ington last Sunday, and scenes OF boy
hood and girlhood days will be lived
over again; text, l Timothy ', I. Let
them learn first to show piety at home. "
During the summer months the ten
dency is to the fields; to visitation, to
foreign travel and the watering places,
and the ocean steamers are thronged.
but in the winter it is rather to gather
in domestic circles, and during these
months We spend many Of the hours
within doors, and the apostle comes to
US and says that We ought to exercise
Christian behavior amid all such cir
cumstances. LET them learn first to
show piety.
There are great many people long
ing for some grand sphere IN which 10
serve God. They admire Luther at
the diet Of Worms and only wish that
they had some such great opportunity
in which to display their Christian pro
wess. They admire Paul making Felix
tremble. and they only wish that they
had some such grand occasion in which
to preach righteousness temperance and
Judgment to come. All they want is
an opportunity to exhibit their Chris
tian heroism. Now, the apostle practi-
cally says: I will show you place
where you can exhibit all that is grand
and beautiful and glorious in Christian
character, and that is the domestic cir
Gle. Let them learn first to show piety
at home" If one is not faithful in an
insignificant sphere, he will not be faith
full in a resounding sphere. If Peter
will not help the cripple at the gate OF
the temple, he will never be able to
preach 5000 into the kingdom ct the
Pentecost. If Paul will not take pains
to instruct in the way of salvation the
jailer of the Philippian dungeon, he
will never make Felix tremble. He
who is not faithful in skirmish would
not be faithful in an Armageddon. The
fact is, we are placed in just the posi-
ton in which we can most grandly serve
God, and We ought not to be chiefly
thoughtful about some sphere Of useful
ness which we may after awhile gain,
but the all absorbing question with you
and with me ought to be, Lord, what
wilt thou have me now and here to DO
There is one word in St. Pauls ad-
Duration around which the most Of our
thoughts will revolve. That word is
home" Ask ten different men the
meaning of that word, and they will
give you ten different definitions. To
one it means love at the hearth, plenty
at the table, industry at the workstand,
intelligence at the books, devotion at
the altar. In that household discord
nevlr sounds it's warHhoop and decep-
ton never tricks with its false face.
To him it means greeting at the door
and smile at the chair, peace hover
ing like wings, JOY clappiDg its hands
with laughter. Life is tranquil lake.
Pillowed on the ripples sleep the sha
doWs. Ask another man what home is,
and he will tell you it is want looking
out of a chcerless FIRE CRATE, kneading
hunger in an empty bread tray. The
damp air shivering with curses. No
Bible on the shelf. Children robbers
aDd murderers in :bryo. Obscene
songs their lula Every face pic
ture of ruin. W. in the background
and sin staring from the front. No
Sabbath wave rolling over that doorsill.
Vestibule Of the pit. Shadow Of in
fernal walls. Furnace for forging ever
lasting chains Fagots for an unend-
ing funeral pile. Awful word. 1t is
spelled with curses, it weeps with ruin,
it chokes with woe, it swears with the
death agony Of despair. The word
''home" in the one case means every
thing bright The word ''home" in
the other case means everything terrific.
| shall speak now Of home as test
Of character, home as refuge, home as
political safeguard, home as school
and home as type of heaven. And in
the 1rst place home is a powerful test
Of character. The disposition in pub
lie may be in gay costume, while in
private it is dishabille. As play actors
may eppear in one way on the stage and
may appear in another way bnd the
scezes, so private character may be very
different from public character. Pri
7ate character is often public character
turned wrong side out A nan may re
ceive you into his parlor as though he
were distillation Of smiles, and yet
his heart may be swamp of mettles.
There are business men who all day
long are mild and courteous and genial
and good natured in commercial life,
damuing back their irritability and
their petulance and their discomfort,
but at nightfall the dam breaks and
scolding pours forth in foods and fresh
IS.
Reputation is onl; the shadow of
character, and very small house some
times will cast very long shadow. I he
lips may seem to drop with myrrh and
cassia and the disposition to bea
bright and war4 IS sheath of sun
beams, and 4 they may only be
magnificent show window for a wretch
ed stock Of goods. There IS many
man who IS a6aoie in public life and
amid commercial spheres who III a
coWardly way takes his anger and his
petulance home and drops them in lne
domestic circle. The reason men do
not display their bad temper in public
is because they do not want to be
knocked down. There are men who
hide their petulance and their irrita-
bility just for the s4,De reason that
they do not let tne:t -otes go to protest
it does not pay-or for the same rea-
son that they do not want man in
their stock company to sell his stock
below par lest it depreciatc the value.
As at sunset sometimes the wind
rises, so after sunshiny day there may
be . tempestuous night. There are
people who in public act the philan
thropist who at home act the Mere with
respect 10 their slippers and their