Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1900-03-14
SERMONS Of THE DAY.

GRMU6 u It'll uhI.
Preached BY Rev. Dr.. Talmage.
Subject: Evil onpanioWs-KindSy Ad
vice to Young Men-Avstd HAD Com
Peny. Especially skeptics and ldier
.shun ThoAe Who Sock Oaly Pleasure
tCopyr,ght lsoo.l
WASHINGTON, D. C.-In this discours,
DR.. Talmnge speaks on a theme which al
men, young and olt, will be glad to se'
discussed, and the kindly warning will NJ
doubt In many cases be taken: text. Pro
verbs KILL, 20, "A companion Of fools shal
b destroyed
"May It please the court" said a con
vtcted criminal when asked by the judg,
what he had to say why sentence OF death
should not be pronounced upon him, "may
It please the court. bad company has beer
nv destruction. received tue blessing o
good parents and In return therefor prom
ised to avoid all evil associates. Had
kept my promise should have avoided
this shame and the burden of guilt which
like vulture, threatens to drag me tC
justice for my many crimes. Although
once moved In high circles and was enter
tanned by distinguished men, l am lost
Bad company did the work for me-" Only
one out OF u thousand illustrations was
TINT of the fact that "a companion Of fools
shall be destroyed" 1t is an invariabie
rule.
Here Is o hospital with hundred men
down with the ship fever. Here Is a health y
man who goes into It. He does not so Ger
sainly catch the disease as a good man will
.atcl moral distemper II he consents to be
-sal LII = Al rl~-.~ L.
In the prisons OF the olden time 1t was tie
custom to put prisoners in u cell together
and am sorry to say 1t Is the custom still
IN some OF our prisons; so that when the
day of liberation comes the men, instead
OF being reform ed, are turned out brutss,
no. men, each one having learned the vices
of all the rest.
We may In our worldly occupation be
obliged to talk to and commingle with bad
people, but he who voluntarily chooses
th4e>kind OF association is carrying on q
courtship with a Delilah which will shear
the locks OF his strength, and he will be
tripped into perdition. Look over all the
millions Of the race. and you cannot show
me q single instance where man volun-
tarily associated with the bad for one year
and maintained his Integrity. Sin Is catch.
ing; It Is Infectious; 1t is epidemic.
A young man wakes up In one OF oul
great cities knowing only the gentlemen
OF the firm into whose service he has en-
tered. In the morning lie enters the store
and all the clerks mark him, measure him
discuss him. The bad clerks Of that estab.
lisbment, the good clerks OF that estab.
lishm mt stand in some relation to him
The COOL clerks will wish him we'll, but
they will wait for IA formal Introduction
and even after they have had the intro.
duction they are very cautious as to
whether they shall call him into their asso.
citation before they know bim very we'll.
But the bad young men In that estab
lishment all gather around him. They
patronize him, they offer to show him
everything that there is in the city on one
conditIon-tfat he will pay the expenses
for 1t always happens so when good
young man and bad young man go to-
gether to place OF evil entertainment
the good young man always has to pay the
charges. just at the time the ticket is to
be paid for or the champagne bill is to be
settled the bad young man will effect en-
barrassment and feel around in his pockets
and say, "Well, we'll, really I have for
gotten my pocketbook''
In forty-eight hours after this innocent
young man has entered the store the bad
young men will gather around him, SLAP
him on the shoulder with familiarity, and
IL he g stupid in not being able to take
certain illusions, will say, "Ah. my young
friend, you will have to be broken in. >
And forthwith they go to work to "break
him in"
Oh, young man, let no fallen young man
slap you on the shoulder Familiarity! Turn
around and give a withering glance that
will make the wretch cover in your pres
ence. There is no monstrosity of wicked
ness that can stand before the glance oi
purity and honor. God keeps the light
nings Of heaven in His own scabbard, and
no human may reach them, but God gives
to every young man q lightning which he
may use, and that is the lightning OF an
honest eye. Anybody that understands the
temptations of our great cities knows the
use OF one sermon like this, in which I try
to enforce the thought that companion
Of fools shall be destroyed
And, first, charge You, avoid the skeptic
that Is, the young man who puts his
thumb In his vest aud swaggers about,
scoffing at your old fashioned religion.
then taking out the Bible and turning over
to some mysterious passage and saying:
Explain that, my friend, explain that.
used to think just as you do. My father and
mother used to think just AS you do. But
you can't scare me about the future.
used to believe In those things but I've got
over It." Yes, he has got over 1t, and you
will get over 1t II you stny In his cOmpan-
ionship much longer. For awhile he may
not bring one argument against cur holy
He Will ry SCOTS and jeers
religion which was the comfort of YOUR
father In his declining years and the pillow
on which your old mother lay a-dyinR.
That brilliant young skeptic will after
awhile have to die, and his diamond will
Hash no splendor into the eye Of death.
Death will come up, and this skeptic will
say to him: 81 cannot die. Icannot die. ."
Death will say: "You must die. You
have but ten seconds more to live. Your
soul-give II to me right away. Your soul!'
"Oh, moi" says the skeptic. "Do not
breathe that cold air into my face. You
crowd me too hard. 1t Is getting dark in
all the pictures in the room, but let me
Off.' NO" says Death, Your soul! Your
souli'' Then the dying skeptic begins to
say, 80 Goh!" Death says, lyon declared
there was no God" Then the dying skep-
tic says, Pray for me-" and Death says:
1t is too late to pray; you have only three
seconds more to live. and will count them
Where? Garry him out and lay him down
beside his old father and mother, who
died under the delusions OF the Christian
religion singing the songs o: victorv.
Again, avoid the idlers--that is, those
people who gather around the store or the
shop or the factory and try to seduce you
away from your regular calling aud In your
business hours try to seduce you away.
There is nothing that would please them
30 we'll as to have you give up your EN-
pioyment and consort with them.
These idiers you will find standing around
the engine houses or standing at MONDAY
or about noon on the steps OF some hotel
or fashionable restaurant. They have not
dined there. They never dined there. They
never will dine there. Before you invite u
young man into your association ask him
plainly, "what do you do for a living?" II
he says. Nothing; l am a gentleman, -
look out for him. I care not how soft his
hand or how elegant his apparel or how
high sounding his family name. his touch
Is death.
These people who have nothing to do
will come around you in your busy hours,
and they will ask Won to ride with them to
Chevy Chase or to Central Park, and they
will tell you OF some excursion that you
must make, OF some wine that you must
drink, of some beautiful dancer that you
must see. They will try to take you away
from your regular work. Associate with
these men. and. irst OF ali, you will be-
come ashamed Of your apparel; then you
will lose your place, then you will lose
4 H. Ill