The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1900-03-08

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WASHINGTON, ID. C.--In this discourse
DR.. TalmHgo speaks on theme which all
men, young and oil \, will be glad to see
discussed, and the kindly warning Will no
doubt In many cases be taken: text, Pro.
verbs kill, 20, ~ companion OF fools shall
be destroyed"
"Mny 1t plense the court" said o con-
victed criminal when asked by the judge
what he had to say why sentence oil death
should not be pronounced upon HIN, may
It plense tho court, bad company has been
nv destruction. received the blessing OF
good parents and IN return therefor prom.
lsed to avoid all evil associates. Had |
kept my promise / should have avoided
this shame and the burden OF guilt which,
like u vulture, threntens to drag me TO
lustlce for INV many crimos. Although J.
once moved In high circles and was enter
tatned by distinguished men, / am lost.
Bad company did the work for mo- only
one out OF % thousand Illustrations was
that OF the fact that "a companion OF fools
shall be destroyed" II Is an invariable
rule.
Hero is n hospltal yith hundred mon
down with the ship fevor. Here is q healthy
mNn who goes into it. ie docs not so Ger.
tainly catch tho disease as good mnn Will
catch moral dlstemper IL he consents to bo
shutup with the Vicious and tho abandoned.
In tic pflHoDS Oh lub Olutu Altllb IL WIS bIt
custom to put prisoners In u cell together,
and l am sorry to say It is the custom still
in some OF our prisons: so that whom the
day OF liberation comes the men, instend
OF being reformed, are turned out brutes,
not men, each one having learned the Vices
of all the rest.
We inny in our worldly occupation be-
obliged to talk to onnd commingle with bud
people, but he who voluntarily chooses
that kind OF association Is carrying on n
courtshlp with Il Delilah which will shear
the locks OF bis strength, and he will be
trlpped into perditlon. Look over all the
millions OF the rnco and you cannot show
rna u single instance where n man volun.
tarlly associated with the bad for one ycni
and maintained his integrity. Sin Is catch.
ing; 1t Is Infectious; 1t is epidemic.
young man wakes up In one OF our
great cities knowing only the gentlemen
OF tho firm into whose service he has on.
tered. In the morning he enters the store
and all the claclis mark him, measure him ,
discuss him. The bud clerks OF that estab.
lshment, tho good clerks of that estab.
lishm mt stand IN some relation to him.
Tho good clerks will Wish him well, but
they will wait for a formal Introduction,
and even after they have had the intro
duction they are very cautious us to
whether they shalt call him into their asso-
citation before they know him very woll.
But the bad young men In that cstab-
lshmont all gather around him. They
patroni2e him, they oftor to show him
everything that there Is In the city on ono
conditlop-ttat 40 will pay tho expenses
!or 1t always happens 80 whom u good
young man and II bad young man go to-
gother TO place OF evil entertainment--
the good young man always has to pay the
charges. just at the time the ticket Is to
bo paid for or the cham pagne bill Is to bo
settled the bad young man will effect en-
foo t,, l,ga 80
and say, "Weli, we'll, really l have for
COTTON my pocketbook."
In forty-elght hours after this Innocent
young man has entered the store tho bad
young men will gather around him, slap
him ON tho shoulder with familiarity, and, |,
II he Is stupid in not being able to take
certain illusions, will sny, "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 givo withering glance that
will make tho wretch cover in your pres
once. There Is no tnonstrosity of wicked
ness Tint can stand before tho glance OF
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 u lightning which he
may use, and TINT Is tho lightning OF an
uOnost c9e. AHyDOuy tHlt unucTsluulS tue
temptations OF our great cities knows the
use OF one sermon like this, In which l try
to enforce the thought that u companion
OF fools shall be destroyed
And, first, chargeyou, avoid the skeptlo
that Is, the young man who puts his
thumb In his vest aud swaggers about,
scof1inR at your old fashioned religion,
thon taking out the Bible and turning over
to some mysterious passage and suylug:
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 tho future. ]
used to believe In those things but I've got
over 1t" Yes, he has got over 1t, and you
will get over it II you stay in his compan-
ionshlp much longer. For awhile he may
not bring one argument against cur holy
Christianity. He will ey SCOTS and jeers
and carlcatures destroy your faith In that
religion which Was tho comfort OF your
father in his declining years and the pillow
on which your old mother lay n-dylng
That brilliant young skeptic will after
awhile have to die, and his diamond will
flash no splendor into the eye OF DEATH
His hair will lie uncombed on the pillow.
DentE will come up, and this skeptic viii
say to him; ~ cannot die. Icannot die. ."
Death will say: "You must die. You
have but ton seconds more to live. Your
sonl-givo 1t to me right AWAY. Your soul"
"Oh, nor says tho skeptic. "Do not
breathe that cold air into my face. You
crowd mo too hard. 1t Is getting dark In
the room. Here take my rings and tako
all the pictures in the room, but let me
on" "No," says Death, Your soull Your
souli" Then the dying skeptic begins TO
say, 80 Godi" Death says, "You declared
there was no God" rhon 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
on-one, two, three. Gonev' Wheref
Where1 Garry him out and lay him down
beside his old father ana mother, whd
died under the delusions OF the Christian
religion singing the songs OF victory.
Again, avoid the idlers s-that IL, those
people who gather around the store or the
shop or the factory and try TO seduce you
away from your regular calling and In yout
business hours try to seduce you awny
There Is nothing that would please them
80 we'll as to have you give up your en-
ployment md consort with them.
These idlers 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 tksre. They never dined there. Thoy
mover Will dine there. Before you invite u
young man into Your association ask him
plainly, "Whnt do you do fora lIving?" II
no says, Nothing; l am gentleman" /"
look out for him. i care not how soft his
hand or how elegant his apparel or how
high 'ounding his fNmlIy nAWe. his touch
.s 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 Ia