Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1899-05-10
SERMONS Of THE DAY.
Preached by Rev. DR.. Talmage.

Subject: ''Ths Plague Of AIcohol"-Ths
Drunkarti's Woe Depicted in Strong,
Colors-Rum's Mission Ia to Destroy
All Good-A Call to Christians.
throughout all the land Of Egypt."-Ex-
odus xf., 6.
This was the worst OF the ten plaques
The destroying angel at midnight tapped
his wing over the land, and there was one
dead in each house. Lamentation and
mourning and woe through all Egypt.
That destroying angel has fed the earth,
but far worse has come. He sweeps
through these cities. 1t Is the destroying
angel OF strong drink. Far worse devasta-
tion wrought by this second than by the
first. The calamity in America worse than
the calamity in Egypt. Thousands Of the
slain, millions Of the slain. No arithmetic
can calculate their number.
Once upon a time four flends met in the
lost world. They resolved that the people
OF our earth were too happy, and these
four Intervals came forth to our earth on
embassy Of mischief. The one fiend said,
''I'll take charge OF the vineyards" An
other said. "Ill take charge Of the grain
fields" Another said. "I'll take charge OF
the dairy" Another said, "I'll take charge
Of the music" The four f1ends met In the
great Sahara desert. with skeleton fingers
clutehed each other In handshake OF fidel-
ity, kissed each other goodby with lip Of
blue flame and parted on their mission.
The fend Of the vineyard came In one
bright morning amid the grapes and sat
down on a root Of twisted grapevine in
sheer discourG.ement. The flcnd knew
not how to damage the vineyard, or,
through 1t, how to damage the world.
The grapes were SO ripe and beautiful
and luscious. They bewitched the air with
their sweetness. There seemed to be so
much health in every bunch, and while
the fiend sas there in utter indignation
and disappointment he clutched a cluster
and squeezed It In perfect spite. and. lol
vineyard. and the fiend said: "That re-
minds me Of the blood OF broken hearts.
I'll strip the vineyard and I'll squeeze out
nll the juice OF the grapes, and I'll allow
the juices OF the grapes to stand until they
lot. and I'll call the process fermenta-
tion." And there was great vat pre-
pared, and people came with their cups
and their pitchers, and they dipped up the
blood VI the grapes, and they drank and
drank and went away drinking, and they
drank until they fell In long lines of death
so that when the fiend Of the vineyard
he stepped from carcass to carcass and
walked down amid a great causeway OF
the dead.
Then the second flend came into the
&ralnuetO. he Waueu cnln deep amid the
barley and the rye. He heard all the grain
talking about bread and prosperous hus.
bandry and thrifty homes. He thrust his
long arms into the grainfleld, and he pulled
up the grain and threw It into the water
and he made beneath 1t great f1res-Nres
lighted with spark from his own heart
and there were q grinding and a mashinp
and stencil. and the people came with theil
bottles. and they dipped up the fiery liquid
and they drank. and they blasphemed, and
they staggered, and they fought, and they
rioted, and they murdered, and the fiend Of
the pit, the fiend OF the grainfeld, was sc
pleased with their behavior that he changed
his residence from the pit to a whisky bar
rel, and there he sat by the door of the
bunghole laughing In nigh merriment Al
the thought that out of anything SO harm
less as the grain Of the field he might turn
this world into q seeming pandemonium.
The fiend OF the dairy saw the cows COM
ing home from the pasture field, full nd
dered, and as the maid milked he said, "Il
soon spoil all that mess, I'll add to II
brandy, sugar and nutmeg. and I'll stir II
into a milk punch, and children will drinE
1t and some Of the temperance people vii
drink 1t, and II can do them more harm
I'll give them headache, and then III
hand them over to the more vigorous f1ends
Of the satanic delegation" And then the
fiend of the dairy leaped upon the shel.
and danced until the long row Of shining
milkpans almost quaked.
The fend Of the music entered grog.
shop, and there were but few customers.
Finding few customers, he swept the cir.
cult Of the city, and he gathered up the
marshaled band. and the trombones
blew and the cymbals clapped and the
drums beat and the bugles called and the
people crowded in, and they swung around
In merry dance, each one with a wiDeglass
In his hand, and the dance became wilder
and md pnnDhar n ,ff ha
shook and the glasses cracked and the flooI
broke and the crowd dropped into hell.
Then the four flends-the flend Of the
vineyard and of the grainfleld and of the
dairy and Of the music hall-went back &c
their home. and they held high carnival
because their work had been SO well done
and satan rose from his throne and an.
nounced that there was no danger of the
earth's redemption SO long as these -four
fends could pay such tax to the diabolic.
And then all the demons and all the sprites
and all the fends filled their glasses and
clicked them and cried: LET us drink
drink to the everlasting prosperity OF the
liquor traff1c! Here's to woe and darkness
and murder and death! Drink Drinkl'
But whether by allegory or by appalling
statistic this subject is presented you know
ae we'll as that II Is impossible to eXag.
gerate the evils of strong drink. A plague!
4 plagued In the first place the inebriate
suffers from the loss Of q good name. God
has 80 arranged 1t that no man loses his
reputation except by his own act. The
world may assault o man. and all the
powers OF darkness may assault him-they
cannot capture him SO long as his heart is
pure and his life Is pure. All the powers
Of earth and hell cannot take that Gibral-
tar. IfA man is right, all the lombard
ment Of the world for 5. 10, 20. 40 years
30 that all you have to do is to keep
yourself right. Never mind the world. Let
1t say what 1t will. 1t can do you no
damage. But as soon rs 1t is Whispered,
HE drinks" and 1t can be proved, he
begins to go down. What clerk can get a
store wants him? What church of God
wants him for a member? What dying man
wants him for an executor? "He drinks!''
stand before hundreds OF young men
and say It not in fattery- splendid young
,, men who have their reputation as their
education, or as good an education as he
could afford to give you. He started you
In city life. He could furnish you no
means, but he has surrounded you with
Christian influences and good memory OF
the past. Now, young man, under God you
are with your own right arm to achieve
your fortune, and as your reputation is
your only capital do not bring upon 1t sus-
i picion by going in and out Of liquor estab-
lishments or by an odor Of your breath or
by any glare OF your eye or by any unnat-
| ural flush on your cheeks. You lose your
reputation and you lose your capital.
The inebriate suffers also in the fact that
he loses his self respect, and when you de-
stroy mans self respect there is not much
| left Of him. Then man will do things he
would not do otherwise, Lee will say things
he would not say otherwise. The fact l.,
that man cannot stop or he would stop
| now. He is bound hand and foot by the
Philistines, and they have shorn his locks
and put his eyes out and made him grind
In the mills OF great horror. After he is
\ three-fourths gone In this slavery the firsr
| thing he will be anxious to impress you with
ls that he can stop any time he wants to.
/, His family become alarmed in regard to
him, and ttey say: Now. do stop this.
After awhile 1t will get the mastery of you. ~
| "Oh, mol" he says. II eau stop at any
time. lean stop now. can stop to-mor-
ow." His most confidential friend says;
] sWhv I'm arraid YOU are losing your