The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1899-10-27
A STRONG SWIMMER.
From Him DR.. Talmage Draws a
Noble Lesson.
The Always Ready Helpfuiness of
Religion for Those who struE-
gle Against Adverse Ctr
cumstnnces.
Copyright, Louis Klopsch, 1897
Washington Oct %

ploys a very bold figure of the Bible to
bring out the helpfulness of religion for
an those in any kind of struggle. The
text is Isaiah 25:11: "He shall spread
forth His hands in the midst of them, as
he that swimmeth spreadeth forth his
hands"
In the summer season multitudes of
people wade into the ponds and lakes
and rivers and seas to dive or float or
swim. In world the most of which is
water all men and women should learn
to swim. Some of you have learned the
side stroke introduced by George Pew
tiers in 1850, each stroke of that kind
carrying the swimmer a distance of six
feet, and some of you may use the over
hand stroke invented by Gardener, the
expert who by it won the 500 yard cham
pionship in Manchester in 1862, the
swimmer by that stroke carrying his
arm in the air for n more heightened
reach, and some of you may tread the
water as though you had been made to
walk the sea, but most of you usually
take what is called the breast stroke,
placing the hands with the backs up
ward, about five inches under the water,
the inside of the wrists touching the
breast, then pushing the arms forward
coincident with the stroke of the feet
struck out TO the greatest width posi-
BILE, and you thus unconsciously illus
trate the meaning of my text: HE shall
spread forth His hands in the midst of
them, as he that swimmeth spreadeth
forth his hands to swim"
The fisherman seeks out unfrequent-
ed hooks. You stand to-day on the
bank of river in the broiling sun and
fling out your line and catch nothing,
while an expert angler breaks through
,he jungle and goes 10y the shadow of
the solitary rock and, in a place where
no fisherman has been for ten years,
! throws out his line and comes home at
might, his face shining and his basket
| full. / do not know why we ministers
| of the Gospel need always be fishing in
The same stream and preaching from
the same texts that other people preach
rom. / cannot understand the policy
u the minister who. in Blacldriars,
London, England, every week for 80
.,urs preached from the Epist.e 30 the
.i,mcWs. IT is am c>hilaratiou TO me
.,ucn | come across a theme which /
,cct $50 one else has treated. and my
.oNt is one of that kind. There are
paths in Gods Word that are well beat
IA - Christian feet. When men want
To quote scripture, they quote the old
! passages that everyone has heard.
When they want % chapter read, they
read chapter that all the other rco-
pie have been reading, so that the
church to-day is ignorant OF three
tourths Of the Bible.
You go into the Louvre, AT Paris. You
contine yourself TO one corridor of that
opulent gallery of paintings. As you
come ont your friend says TO You; Did
you see that Rcmbrandt?" NO" did
you see that Reuhens?' NO Did
YOU see that Titiun?" NO Did you
zee that RaphaeI' NO.. Nell,
aaNs your TREND 'theh you dio not see
the Louvre Now my friends thlnk
we are TOO much apt TO conhne ourselves
TO one OF the great corridors OF scrip
ture TRUTH ana so much so mat there is
not one person out OF million who has
ever noilced the all suggestive ana pow
trlul picture III the words OF my text
The text represents God as II strong
swimmer striking out TO push down in
Equity and save the souls of men. lie
shall spread forth Ills hands in the
midst of them, rs he that swimmeth
spreadeth forth his hands to swim. II
The figure is bold and many sided
Most Of you know how to swim. Some
Of you learned ii in the city school
where this art is taught; some of you
in boyhood, in the river near youI
fathers house; some of you since yor
came to manhood or womanhood, while
summering on the beach of,the sea. 1t Is
a good thingt 10 know how to swim, not
only for yourself, but because you will
after awhile perhaps have to help 9th
ers.
| do not know anything more stirring
or sublime than TO see some man like
! w.. Nf.r--..,- i....i.- F.. A..