The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1900-08-10

and sparkling and beautiful and orb.
ocular, and in so small space | never
saw more splendor concentrated But
she blew once too often, and all the
glory vanished into suds. Then
turned and took a glass of water and
was refreshed. And so far as soul
thirst is concerned l put against all
the blowing. glittering soap bubbles
of worldly reform and human specula-
ton one draft from the fountain
from under the throne of God clear
as crystal. Glory be to God for the
religion that drops from above. not
coming up from beneath! And the
Lord said unto me, Amos, what seest
thou? And | said A plumb line"
want you to notice this fact, that
when man gives up the straight up
and down religion of the Bible for
any new tangled religion, 1t is gener-
ally to suit. his sins. You first hear
of his change of religion, and then you
hear of some swindle he has practiced
in n special mining stock. telling some
one if he will put in $4,000 he can
take out Sl00,OO0; or he has sacrificed
his integrity or plunged into IRENE
diable worldliness. His SINS are so
broad he has to broaden his religion,
and he becomes as broad as tempta-
ton. as broad as the souls darkness,
as broad as hell. They want reli-
gion that will allow them to keep
their sins and then at death say to
them: "Well done. good and faithful
servant" and that tells them: "All
is well. for there is no he'll" What
glorious Heaven they hold before us
Come. let us 90 i'm and see it, There
are Hcrod and all the babes he mas
sacred. There are Charles Guitcau
and Robespierre, the feeder of the
French guillotine. and all the liars,
thieves, house burners. garroters,
pickpoclets and libertines of all the
centuries. They have AL got crowns
and thrones and harps ard scepters,
and when they chant they sing!
Thanksgiving and honor and glory
and power to the broad religion that
let's us all into Heaven without re-
pentance and without faith in those
humiliating dogmas of ecclesiastical
old fogyism."
My text gives me grand opportun-
ity ofsaying a useful word to all young
men who are now forming habits for
lifetime. OF what use to a stonema-
son or a bricklayer is plumb line?
Why not build the wall by the unaided
eye and hand? Because they are in
sufficient, because if there be a de-
| Election in the wall il cannot further
on be corrected Because by the law
of gravitation a wall must be straight
in order to be symmetrical and safe
A young man is in danger of getting
a defect in his wall of character that
may never be corrected.
One of the best friends ever had
died of delirium tremens at co years
of age, though he had not since 81
years of age, before which he had
been dissipated, touched intoxicating
liquor until that particular carousal
that took him off. Not Keeling we'll in
the street on hot summer day he
stepped into drug store, just as you
and | would have done, and asked for
a dose of something to make him feel
better. And there was alcohol in the
dose and that one drop aroused the
old appetite, and he entered the first
| liquor store and staid there until
| thoroughly under the power OF rum.
| He entered his home raving maniac,
| his wife and daughters fleeing from
his presence. and at first he was taken
TO the city hospital to die.
Remember that the wall may be 100
feet high, and yet n DETECTION one foot
from the foundation affects the entire
structure. And if You Tive 100 yea.
and do right the last 50 years YOU may
nevertheless do something al ~ years
of age that will damage all your earth
ly existence. All you who have built
| houses for yourselves or for others,
am not right in saying to these young
men, you cannot build a wall so high
as to be Independent of the character
| Of its foundation? A man before 30
years of age may commit enough sin
TO last him lifetime. Now, John or
! George or Henry, or whatever be your
! Christian name or surname, say here
and now: mo wild oats for me, no
cigars or cigarettes for me. no wine
or beer for me, no nasty stories for me,
no Sunday sprees for me. am going
to start right and keep on right. God
! help me. for am very weak. From the
throne of eternal Righteousness let
down TO me the principles by which |
can be guided in building everything
from foundation TO capStone Lord
God, by the wounded hand of Christ
throw me a plumb line
But" you say, you shut us young
folks out from all fun" Oh, no! | like
fun. believe in fun. have had lots
of il in my time. But l have not had
to go into paths of sin to find it. No
credit to me, but because of an eNtraor-
idnary parental example and influence
| was kept from outward transgres-
sions, though my heart was bad enough
and desperately wicked. l have had
fun illimitable, though I never swore
one oath and never gambled for so
] ..