The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1900-08-17
TALMAGE'S SERMON.

ity to practical helpfulness to the peo-
Pile now living. Text, Acts xiii, &c.:
David. after he had served his own
generation by the will of God, fell on
Sleep"
That is text which has for long
time been running through my mind.
Sermons have a time to be born as
we'll as time to die: cradle as well
as a grave. David, cowboy and stone
singer, and fighter, and dramatist,
and blank verse writer, and prophet,
did his best for the people of his time
and then went and laid down on the
southern hill of Jerusalem in that
sound sumber which nothing but an
archangelic blast can startle. David,
after he had served his own generation
by the will Of God, fell on Sleep" 1t
Was his own generation that he had
served; that is, the people living at the
time he lived. And have you ever
thought that our responsibilities are
chiefly with the people now walking
abreast Of US? There are about four
generations to century now, but in
olden time life was longer and there
was, perhaps, only one generation to
century. Taking these facts into
the calculation make a rough guess
and say that there might have been
at least 1870 generations of the human
family. With reference to them we
have no responsibility. We cannot
teach them. we cannot correct their
mistakes, we cannot soothe their sor-
rows, we cannot heal their wounds
Their sepulchers are deaf and dumb to
anything we might say to them. The
last regiment Of that great army has
passed out of sight. We might halloo
as loud as we could: not one of them
would avert his head to see what we
wanted.
IS A FORCED MARCH.
But the 1870 generations have passed
off. Passed up. Passed down. Gone
forever. Then there are generations
to come after our earthly existence
has ceased. We shall not see them; we
shall not hear any of their voices: we
shall take no part in their convoca-
tons. their elections. their revolutions,
their catastrophes. their triumphs. We
will in no wise affect the $50 genera
lions gone or the 100 generations to
come. except as from the galleries Of
heaven the former generations look
down and rejoice at our victories. or
as we may by our behavior, start in
f1uences, good or bad. that shall roll
on through the advancing ages. But
our business is. like David. to serve
our own generation, the people now
living, those whose lungs now breathe
and whose hearts now beat. And mark
you, it is not silent procession. but
moving. It is a forced march" at
twenty-four miles day, each hour be-
ing mile. Going with that celebrity.
it has got to be quick service on our
part or no service at all.
CIVILIZATION ASKEw.
Well. now. let us look around ear
nestly, prayerfully, in common sense
way. and see what we can do for our
own generation. First of all, let us
see to 1t that. as far as we can. they
have enough to eat. The human body
is so constituted that three times a
day the body needs food as much as
lamp needs oil. as much as locomo-
tive needs fuel. To meet this want God
has girdled the earth with apple or
chards, orange groves. wheat fields,
and oceans full of fish. and prarles full
Of cattle. And Notwithstanding this.
will undertake to say that the vast
majority Of the human family are now
suffering for the lack of food or the
right kind Of food. Our civilization
is all askew and God only can set II
right. Many Of the greatest estates
of today have been built out OF the
blood and bones of unrequited toll.
Don't sit down at your table with
i've or six courses Of abundant supply
and think nothing Of the family in the
next street who would take any one
Of those five courses between soup and
almond nuts and feel they were in
heaven. The lack Of the right kind
of food 10 the cause Of much Of the
drunkenness. After drinking what
many Of our grocers call coffee, sweet
ened with what many call sugar and
eating what many Of our butchers call
meat. and chewing what many Of our
bakers call bread. many Of the labor
Ing class feel 80 miserable that they
are tempted to put into nasty pipes
what the tobacconist calls tobacco. or
80 into the drinking saloons for what
the rum sellers call beer. Good coffee
would do much in driving out bad rum.
Seek out some family. who through
sickness or conjunction Of misfortunes
have not enough to eat. and do for
them what Christ did for the hungry
multitudes Of Asia Minor. multiplying
the loaves and fishes. ~
AWFUL HUNGER.
II - m awful thing to be hungry. II
= m easy thing Tor ~ TO be In good
humor with ~ The world when ~