The Washburn times. [volume] (Washburn, Wis.) 1896-1976, 1899-10-25
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- to bring out the helpfulness Of relig-
ion for all those in any kind of struggle.
The text is Isaiah XIV, II, He shau
spread forth his hands in the midst OF
them, as he that swimmeth spreadeth
forth his hands,"
In the summer season multltudes OF
people wade into the ponds and lakes anu
rivers and seas to dive or float or SWIM.
In a 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 Pewters in lSoO,
each stroke of that kind carrying the
swimmer distance of six feet, and some
of Won NAV use the overland stroke in
vented by Gardener, the expert who by
it won the 500 yard championship in
Manchester in 1862. the swimmer by that
stroke carrying his arm in the air for
more heightened reach, and some of you
may tread the water as though you mad
been made to walk the sea, but most of
you usually take what is called the breast
stroke placing the hands with the backs
upward, about five inches under the wat
er, the inside of the wrists touching the
breast, then pushing the arms forward
coincdent with the stroke Of the feet
struck out to the greatest width possible,
and you thus unconsciously illustrate 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 unfrequented
hooks. You stand all day on the bank OF
a river in the broiling sun and fling out
your line and catch nothing, While an
expert angler breaks through the jungle
and goes by the shadow of the solitary
rock and, in place where no fisherman
has been for ten years, throws out ms
line and comes home at night, his face
shining and his. basket full. Il 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 from. l
cannot understand the policy of the min
lister who in Blackfriars, London, Eng
land, every week for thirty years preach
ed from the Epist,e to the Hebrews. 1t
is an exhilaration to me- when | come
across a theme which I feel no one else
has treated; and my text is one Of that
kind. There are paths in Gods word
that are we'll beaten by Christian feet.
When men want to quote Scripture, they
quote the old passages that every one has
heard. When they want chapter read,
they read chapter that all the other
people have been reading, so that the
church to-day is ignorant of three-fourths
of the Bible.
Pushing Down Iniquity.
This text represents God as a strong
swimmer. striking out to push down in
EQUITY and save the souls of men. He
shall spread forth his hands in the midst
of them, as he that swimmeth spreadeth
forth his hands to SWIM" The figure is
bold and many sided. Most Of you know
how to swim Some of you learned it in
the city school, where this art is taught;
some of you in boyhood, in the river near
your fathers house; some of you since
you came to manhood or womanhood,
while summering on the beach of the
sea. 1t is a good thing to know how to
swim, not only for yourself, but because
you will after awhile perhaps have to
help others.
I do not know anything more stirring
or sublime than to see some men like
Norman Mckenzie leaping from the ship
Madras into the sea to save Charles
L uTueI, VIII IlStu UIOpDcQ l1OHl Tic 1Oy al
yard while trying to loosen the sail,
bringing him back to the deck amid the
huzzas Of the passengers and crew. If
a man has not enthusiasm enough to
cheer in such circumstances, lie deserves
himself to drop into the sea and have
no one help him. The Royal Humane
Society Of England was established in
1774, its object to applaud and reward
those who should pluck up life from the
deep. Any one who has performed such
deed Of daring has all the particulars
of that bravery recorded in public rec
ord and on his breast q medal done in
blue and gold and bronze, anchor and
monogram and inscription, telling to fu-
ture generations the bravery of the man
or woman who saved some one from
drowning. But if it is such worthy
thing to save body from the deep I
ask you eff it is not worthier thing to
save an immortal soul. And you shall
see this hour the Son Of God step forth
for this achievement. HE shall spread
forth his hands in the midst Of them, as
he that swimmeth spreadeth forth his
hands to SWIM
You sometimes hear people talking of
what they consider the most beautiful
words in our language. One man says it
is ''home," another man says it is the
word mother" another says it is the
word Jesus" but tell you the bitterest
word in all our language, the word most
angry and baleful, the word saturated
with the most trouble, the word that ac-
counts for all the loathsomeness and the
pang and the outrage and the narrowing,
and that word is "sin." You spell it
with three letters, and yet those three let
tiers describe the circumference and pierce
the diameter of everything bad in the
universe. Sin is a sibilants word. You
canot pronounce it without giving the siss
OF the flame or the, hiss of the serpent
Sin! And then if you add three letters
to that word it describes every one Of us
by nature-sinner. We have outraged the
law of God, not occasionally, or row and
then, but perpetually. The Bible de-
clares it. Hark! It thunders two claps:
The heart is deceitful above all things
and desperately wicked" 1.-THE soul that
sinneth, it shall die" What the Bible
says our own conscience affirms.
I After Judge Morgan had sentenced
Lady Jane Grey to death his conscience
troubled him SO much for thet deed that
he becanle insane, and all through his in