Connecticut western news., 1899-03-16
THETYPE OF ATTILA
DR. TAtMAGE'S THEME THE STAR woAMWoop IN REVELATION.

The Kfng of the Huns Like Worm
 wood Because He Imbittered. Ev-
 erythiAg He Touched = Lessons
 From the Life of the Barbarian.
 [Copyright, 1899. by American Press Asso-
 ciation.l
 WASHINGTON, March 12.-The con tract between a life of selfshness and life of kindness is set forth by Dr. Tal- mage while discoursing upon the baleful character of conqueror of olden time; text, Revelation viii, 10, II, "There fell great star from heaven. burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters and the name of the star is called Wormwood.
 Patrick and sLowth, Thomas Scott Matthew Henry, Albert Barnes and some other commentators say that the star Wormwood of my text was type of Attila, king of the Huns. He was 60 called because he was brilliant as a star, and. like wormwood, he imbitter- cd everything he touched We have studied the Star of Bethlehem, and the Morning Star of Revelation and the Star of Peace, but my subject calls us to gaze at the star Wormwood, and my theme might be called Brilliant Bitterness '
 A more extraordinary character his tory does not furnish than this man At tila, the king of the Huns. The story Qoes that one day wounded heifer came hmping along through the fields, and . herdsman followed its bloody track on the grass to see where the heit9was wounded, and went on back, farther and farther. until he came to a sword fast in. the earth, the point down. ward as though it had dropped from the heavens, and against the edges of this sword tho heifer had, been cut. The herdsman pulled up that sword and presented 1t to Attila- Attila said that sword must have dropped from the heavens from the grasp of the god Mars, and its being given to him meant that Attila sshould conquer and govern the whole earth Other mighty men have been delighted at being called lib eGators or the Merciful or the Good, but Attila called himsalf and demanded that others call him ''the. Scourge of God"
 At tho head of TOO. 900 troops, mount cd on Cappadooian horses, he swept ev- erything, from the Adriatic to the Black sea. He put his iron heel on Macedonia and Grsscs and Thrace. He made Milan and Pavia and Padua and Verona beg for mercy, which he bestowed not. The Byzantine castles, to meet his ruinous lsvy. put up at auction massive silver tah1ess and vases of solid gold. When 8 ci&N was captured by him, the inhabit- su1sa wsre brought out land put into three claases The first class, those who could bear arms, must immediately en- list under Attils or be butchered; the second class, the beautiful women, were made captives to the Huns; the third clan, the aged men and women, were robbed of everything and let go back to the caty to pay heavy tax.
 4 Blight to the Earth.
 It wass common saying that the grass never grew where the hoof of At tils's hofse had trod. His armies red dened the waters of the Seine and the MossIle and the Rhine with carnage and fought on the Catalonian plains the nercsst battle since the world stood 900. 900 dead left on the field On and on until all those who could not oppose him with arms lay prostrate on their faces in prayer; then a cloud of dust was seen in the distance. and bishop cried. ssIt ia the aid of God.' and all the people took up the cry. 'sIt is the aid of God" As the cloud of dust was blown aside the banners of re-enforcing armies marched in to help against At tila. s'the Scourge of God !" The most unimportans occurrences he used as supernatural resource. After three months of failure to capture the city of Aquileia, when his army had given up the dege. the flight of a stork and her young from the tower of the city was taken by him as . sign that he was to capture the city, and his army, inspired with the same occurrence, resumed the dege and took the walls at point from which, the stork had emerged. So brill liant was the conqusror in attire that his enemies could not look at him. but shaded their eyes or turned their heads.
 6lain on the evening of his marriage by bis bride, ndico. who was hired for tho assassination, his followers bewailed him, not with tears. but with blood. cutting themselves with knives and lances He was put into three cofRns, the inst of iron. the second. of silver and the third of gold. He was buried by night. and into his grave were poured the most valuable coins, and precious stones. amounting to tho wealth of kingdom. The gravediggers and all thoee who assistsd at the burial were maasaered. 70 that 1t would never be kuown where % much wealth was en- tombod.
 The Roman empire conquered the world. but Attils conquered the Roman empire. He was right in calling him self . scourge. but instead of being "the scourge of God he was the scourge of he'll
 Because of his brilliancy and bitter ness, the commentators might we'll have supposed him to be the star Wormwood of ths tsxk AS the regions he devas- taHad were parts most opulent with fountains and streams and rivers. you sec how graphic my text is: 'There fell a great star from heaven. burning as it wers.a lamp, and 1t fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the foun- tains of waters, and the name of the star is called Wormwood.,"
 IAhittsreA Lives About Us.
 Have you ever thought how many imbittered lives there are all about us, misanthropic. morbid, acrid, saturnine The European plant from which worm- wood Is extracted, Artemisia absinthi- um,' is perennial plant. and all the year round 1t is ready to exude its oil And in many human lives there is per ennial distillation of acrid experiences Yea, there are some whose whole work Is sto shed baleful influence on others There are Attilas of the home, Attilas of the social circle, Attilas of the church. Attilas of the state, and one third of the waters of all the world, if n~k k-v 4~I~ A1