The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1899-07-31
The IVORY PALACES.
DR.. TAtMAoE ON THE aLoRiEs OF
THE WORLD TO CONE. r


The Attractiveaess of Christ, Who
Opens the Way For His Faithful
Followers - The Chsistian's GuiAe
to Heaven.
Copyright Louis Klopsch. 1891
WASHINGTON, July 30.-In this dis
course DR.. TaImage sets forth the glories
Of the world to come and the attractive
ness Of the Christ, who opens the way;
text, Psalms xiv, 8, "All thy garments
smell of myrrh and aloes and cassia out
Of the ivory palaces"
Among the grand adornments Of the
city Of Paris Ia the Church Of Notre
Dame, with its great towers and elabO-
rate rose windows and sculpturing of the
last judgment, with the trumpeting an
gels and rising dead; Its battlements Of
quatre foil; Its sacristy, with ribbed cell
ing and statues Of saints. But there was
nothing in all that building which more
wildly appealed to my plain republican
tastes than the costly vestments which
lay in oaken presses-robes that had
been embroidered with gold and been
worn by popes and archbishops on great
occasions. There was q robe that had
been worn by Plus VII at the browning
Of the first Napoleon. There was also
a yestment that had been worn, at the
baptism Of Napoleon II. As our guide
opened the oaken presses and brought
out these vestments Of fabulous cost and
lifted them up the fragrance Of the
pungent aromatics In which they had
been preserved filed the place with
sweetness that was almost oppressive.
Nothing that had been done in stone
more yividly impressed me than these
things that had been done in cloth and
embroidery and perfume. But today 1
open the drawer Of this text, and I look
upon the kingly robes Of Christ, and as
lift them, flashing with eternal jewels,
the whole house house Is filed with the
aroma Of these garments, which smell
of myrrh and aloes and cassia out Of the
ivory palaces"
In my text the King steps forth. His
robes rustic and blaze as he advances.
His pomp and power and glory overmas-
ter the spectator. More brilliant is he
than Queen Vashti, moving amid the
Persian princess; than Marie Antoinette
on the day when Louis XVI put upon
her the necklace Of 800 diamonds; than
Anne Boleyn the day when Henry VIII
welcomed her to his palace-all beauty
and all pomp forgotten while we stand
in the presence Of this imperial glory,
King Of Zion, King of earth, King of
heaven, King forever! His garments
not worn out, not dust bedraggled, but
radiant, and jeweled, and redolent. 1t
seems as if they must have been pressed
hundred years amid the flowers of
heaven. The wardrobes from which
they have been taken must have been
sweet with clusters Of campfire and
frankincense, and oil manner Of precious
wood. Do you not inhale the odors7
Ave, aye, "rhey smell Of myrrh and
aloes and caBsia out Of the ivory pal
aces"
Your first curiosity is to know why the
robes Of Christ are odorous with myrrh.
This was a bright leafed Abyssinian
plant. 1t was trifoiated. The Greeks,
Egyptians, Romans and Jews bought and
sold It at high price. The first present
that was ever given to Christ was
sprg of myrrh thrown on his infantile
bed in Bethlehem, and the last gift that
Christ ever had was myrrh pressed into
the cup of his crucifxion. The natives
would take stone and bruise the tree,
and then 1t would exude gum that
would saturate all the ground beneath.
This gum was used for purposes Of mer-
chandise. One piece of 1t no larger than
Ill, ,hr1,
with odors. 1t was put In closets, in
chests, In drawers, In rooms, and its per-
fume adhered almost interminably to
anything that was anywhere near It. 30
when in my text read that Christ's
garments smell of myrrh l Immediately
conclude the exquisite sweetness OF
Jesus.
know that to many he is only like
any historical person another John How
ard, another philanthropic Oberlin, nm
other Confucius, a grand subject for a
painting, heroic theme for n poem,
beautiful form for n statue, but to those
who have heard his voice and felt his
pardon and received his benediction he
is music and light and warmth and thrill
and eternal fragrance, sweet asa friend
sticking to you when all else betray, lift
Ing you up while others try to push you
down, not so much like morning glories
that bloom only when the sun is coming
up nor like -four o'clocks,' that bloom
only when the sun is going down, but
like myrrh, perpetually aromatic, the
same morning, noon and night, yester-
day, today, forever 1t seems as II
we cannot wear him out. We put on
him oil our burdens and alflict him with
all our griefs and set him foremost in all
our battles, and yet he is ready to lift
and to sympathize and to help. We have
so imposed upon him that one would
think in eternal affront he would Quit
our soul, and yet today he addresses us
with the sumo tenderness, dawns upon
us with the same smile, pities us with
the same compassion.
There is no name like his for us. 1t is
more imperial than Caesars, more mu-
steal than Beethoven's, more conQuering
than Charlemagnes, more eloquent than
Cicero's. 1t throbs with all life. 1t
weeps with ali pathos. 1t groans with
all pain. 1t stoops with all condescen-
sion. 1t breathes with all perfume Who
like Jesus to set a broken bone, to
pity a homeless orphan. to nurse
sick man, to take prodigal back
without any scolding, TO illumine GEM
etery all plowed with graves, to make
queen unto God out Of the lost woman,
to catch the tears of human sorrow in
lachrymatory that shall never be broken!
Who has such an eye to see our need,
such lip 10 kiss away our sorrow, such
hand to snatch us out Of the fire, such
foot to trample our enemies, such
heart to embrace all our necessities?
struggle for some metaphor with which
to express him-he is not like the
bursting forth of full orchestra; that is
too loud. He is not like the sea when
dashed to rage by the tempest; that is
too boisterous. He is not like the noun
tain, its brow wreathed with the light
nings; that is too solitary. Give us
softer type, gentler comparison. We
have seemed to see him with our eyes
and to hear him with our ears and to
touch him with our hands. Oh, that to-
day he might appear to some other one
of our FIVE senses! Aye, the nostrl shall
discover his presence. lie comes upon
us like spice gales from heaven. Yea,
hi, u,r,naptc cnal Of lactipu mud all