St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1900-09-15

inc tangled foam, sprthkhnB tho
cracked cliffs with baptism Of whifi-
wind and tempest, is the best place to
study God, but in the rushing, swarm
ing, raving street il the best place to
study man.
Going. down to. your place of biii-
ness and coming home again charge
you look about; see these signs Of
poverty, of wretchedness, of hunger,
Of sin, of bereavement, and as you go
through the streets and come back
through the streets gather up in the
arms Of your prayer all the sorrow, all
the losses, all the sufferings, all the
bereavements Of those whom toti pass
and present them in prayer before an
all sympathetic God. In the great day
Of eternity there will be thousands Of
persons with whom you in this world
never exchanged one word will rise up
ami call you blessed; and there will
be a thousand fingers pointed at you
III Heaven, saying: THAT is the man,
that is the woman who helped me
when was hungry and sick and wan
deringand lost and heartbroken. That
is the man, that is the woman" and
the blessing will come down upon you
as Christ shall EHys Il was hungry
and We fed me, was naked and We
clothed me, was sick and iii prison
and ye visited me, inasinhch as We did
1t to these poor waits Of the streets
We did it unto me"
Again, in all cities / am impressed
with the fact that all classes and con.
ditfons of society must commingle.
We sometimes cultivate a wicked ex-
clusiveness. Intellect despises ig-
norance. Refinement Will have hoth-
ing to do with boorishness. Gloves
hate the sunburned hand, and the
high forehead despises the fiat head.
and the trim hedgerow will have moth
ing to do with the wild copsewood,
and Athens hates Nazareth. This
ought not so to be. I like this demo.
cratic principle Of the Gospel OF Jesus
Christ which recognizes the fact that
we stand before God on one and the
same platform. Do not take on any
airs. Whatever position you have
gained in society, you are nothing but
a man, born of the same parent, re.
generated by the same spirit, cleansed
in the same blood, to lie down in the
same dust, to get up in the same res
direction. 1t is high time that we all
acknowledged not only the fatherhood
Of God. but the brotherhood Of man.
Again, in all cities am impressed
with the fact that it is a very hard
thing for a man to keep his heart
right and to get to Heaven. Infinite
temptations spring upon W from
places of public concourse. Amid SO
much affiuence, how much temptation
to covetousness and to be discomfort
ed with our humble lot! Amid 50
many opportunities for overreaching.
what temptation to extortion! Amid
so much display, what temptation to
vanity! Amid so many saloons OF
strong drink, what allurement to dis
sipation! In the maelstroms and hell
gates Of the street, how many make
quick and eternal shipwreck! If .
man-of-war comes back from a battle
and is lowed into the navy yard, we
go down to look at the splintered
spars and count the bullet holes and
look with patriotic admira ton on the
flag that floated in victory from the
masthead. But that man is more of a
curiosity who has gone through 30
years of the sharpshooting of bust
ness life and yet sails on, victor over
the temptations of the street. oh,
low many have gone down under the
pressure, leaving not SO much as =
patch Of canvas to tell where they
persisted! They never had any peace.
Their dishonesties kept tolling in
their ears. If had an AK and could
split open the beams Of that fine house
perhaps / would find in the very heart
OF it skeleton. In his very best wine
there is smack Of poor mans sweat.
Oh, is it strange that when a. man has
devoured widows houses he is dis
turbed with indigestion! All the
forces of nature are against him. The
floods are ready to drown him, and
the earthquake to swallow him, and
the fires to consume him, and the
lightning to smite him. Aye, the
angels of God are on the street, and in
the day when the crowns of Heaven
are distributed some of the brightest
of them will be given to those men
who were faithful to God and faith
full to the souls Of others amid the
marts OF business. proving themselves
the heroes of the street. Mighty were
their temptations, mighty was their
and mighty shall be their
triumph.
Again, in all these cities 1 am inn
pressed with the fact that life is full
of pretension and sham. What subter-
fuge. what double dealing. what two
facedness! Do all people who wish
you good morning really hope for you
a happy day? Do all the people who
shake hands love each other? Are all
those anxious about your health who
inquire concerning it? Do all want to
see you who ask you to caN? Does all
the world know half as much as it pre-
teHuS 10 hHO". - tAoAC AOt Ai&uy
stock Of goods with bril-
liant store window? Passing up and
down the streets to your business and
your work. are you not impressed with
the fact that society is hollow and
that there are subterfuges and preten-
sions? Oh, how many there are who
swagger and strut and how few peo-
pie who are natural and walk! While
tops shipper and fools smoker and sim
pletons giggle, how few people are
and laugh! say these things
not to create in you incredulity or
nor do forget there are
thousands of people a great deal bet
ter than they seem. but do not think
any man is prepared for the conflict
Of this life until he knows this par
peril. Ehud comes pretending
to pay his tax to King Eglon, and,
while he stands in front of the king,
slabs him through with dagger un-
til the haft went in after the blade.
Judas Iscariot kissed Christ.
One Of the mightiest temptations in
life in all cities to-day il
in the fact that many professed Chris
tan men are not square in their bar
gains. Such men are in Baptist