The Hickman courier. [volume] (Hickman, Ky.) 1859-current, 1899-05-26
IN GODS BALANCES.
Human Lives and Actions Weighed
In the Divine Scales.
M. Tsimsse breaches On Personal
Responsibility. Taking His Test
from the Hspdw ritins o.
the Wall st Bsbyios.
Copyright. 1899. by Louis Klopsch)

tuis IpoinhSu stftnoh W Ut. luinhge on
personal responsibility before God will
be read with deep and solemn inter
est. Text, Daniel 1924: Thou art
weighed In the balances and art found
wanting"
Babylon was the paradise OF archi-
lecture. and driven out from hence the
grandest buildings of modern times are
only the evidence OF her fall The site
having been selected for the city. 2.O0O.-
600 men were employed In the rearing
of her walls and the building of her
works IL was a city 60 miles in crcum-
ference. There was n trench all around
the city, from which material for the
building of the city had been digged.
There were IS gates on each side of the
city, between every two gates tower
OF defense springing into the skies,
from each gate on the one side a street
= running straight through 10 the CORE
spending gate on the other side. so that
<here were 80 streets IS miles long.
through the city ran "a branch of the
N yer Euphratcs. This river sometimes
! fverfiowcd It's banks. and 90 keep IL
From running the city a lake was con
n structed into which the surplus water
Of the river would run during the time
of freshets. and the water was kept In
this artificial lake until time Of drought.
and then this water would stream down
over the city. ~ either end OF the
bridge spanning this Euphrates there
was palace the one palace mile and
half around. the other palace 7h
miles around.
The wife of Ncbuchadnezzer had been
born and brough, up in the country and
in a mountainous region, and she could
not bear this Hat district of Babylon,
and so. 10 please his wife. Nebuchndncz-
zar built in the midst of the city a
mountain 900 feet high. This mountain
WAS built out into terraces supported on
arches. On the top of these arches n
layer of fiat stones. on the top OF that
a layer OF reeds and bitumcn, ON the top
of that two layers of bricks closely &c.
mented. on the top of that n heavy sheet
of lead and on the top Of that She soil
placed the soil so deep that Lebanon
cedar had room 10 anchor It's roots.
There were pumps worked by mighty
machinery fetching ~ the water from
. the fr'phratcs 20 this hanging garden.
Zen called. 40 that there were foun-
outing into the sky. Standing
Shnd looking up, II must have
ftremed as II the clouds were In bios
}soTu or as though the Sky leaned ON
the shonid~r of y cedar. All this Nsb-
uchadnczzar did 10 please his wife.
Well. she ought Ca hove been pleased.
y suppose she was pleased. II that
.sVould not please her. nothing would.
There MAS IN that city also the temple
81 Blcux with towcrs--one tower the
eighth Of mile high. in which there
was an observatory where astronomers
talked To the stars There was in that
temple an image, just one image. which
would cost what would be our S52,-
o00. 900.
oh, what city! The earth never saw
anything like u. never will see any
thing like IL. And yet have Ca tell you
that II Is going 20 he destroyed. The
king and his princes are nj feast.
They are all intoxicated. Pour out the
rich wine into the chniiccs, Drink TO
the health of the king! Drink to the
glory OF Babylon! Drink to a great fu-
turcl n thousand lords reel intoNi-
Gated. The king seated upon n chair.
with vacant look. ns intoxicated men
will-with vacant look stared Mt the
wall. But soon that vacant look takes
on Intensity. aud IL Is nm nnrighted
look, and all the princes begin TO look
al x.sLwt - tha ma
they look az the same pcin. an the wall.
And then there drops n darkness into
the room that puts out the blaze Of
the golden plate, and out OF the sleeve
OF the darkness there comes finger
finger of fiery terror. circling around
and circling around as though II would
write. and then il comes up, and with
sharp tip OF fame IL inscribes on the
plastcring of the wall the doom of the
!, king; weighed in the balances and
found wanting
The bang of heavy fists against the
gates OF the palace is followed by the
breaking in OF the doors. a thousand
cleaning knives strike into thousand
quivering hearts. Now death is king.
and he is seated upon throne Of
corpses. In that hall there Is balance
lifted. God swung IL. On one side of
the balance are put Belshazlar's oppor-
tunities; on the other side of the bal
ance are put Bclshazzar's sins. The sins
come down. His opportunities go up.
Weighed in the balances-founa want
ing.
There has been n great deal of cheat
Ing in our country with false weights
and measures and balances, and the
government. TO change that state of
things. appointed commissioners whose
business it was TO stamp weights and
measures and balances, and great deal
of the wrong has been corrected. But
,tll, after all, there is no such thing as
a perfect balance on earth. The chain
may break, or some of the metal may
be clipped. or in some way the equi-
poise may he disturbed. You cannot al
ways depend upon earthly balances.
4 pound is not always n pound. and you
may pay for one thing and get another
but I'm the balance which is suspended
20 the throne of &c a pound Is II pound.
and right Is right, and wrong Is wrong,
aud soul Is q soul. and eternity is eter-
a.at.s hatg N.nt m "A