The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1900-08-17

a Qefect IN ms wall OF cndrdc.er mat
may never De corrected.
One of the best friends L ever had
died of deliriam tremens at 80 years
Of age, though he a not since 81
years of age, before which he had been
dissipated, touched intoxicating liquor
until that particular carousa1 that took
him of. Not feeling well in the street
on a hot summer a he stepped into
a drug store, just as you n J would
have done. and asked or a dose OF
something TO make him feel better.
And there v.as alcohol in the dose, and
tina one dIop 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 a raving maniac. his wife and
daughters fleeing from his presence.
and at first he was AXE to the city
hospital to die. The combustible ma
terial of early habit had lain quiet
nearly 40 years, n that one spark
ignited IL.
FUN IS WHOLESOME.
Remember that the wall may be 100
feet high, and yet a detection one o
from the foundation affects the entire
structure. And If you live 100 years
n do right the last so years you may
nevertheless do something at 20 years
of age that will damage all your earth
~ GALS SUCS. AL yOu II hdsC O0All
houses for yourselves or for others, am
I not right in saying to these young
men, you cannot build a wall so high
as to be independent of the character
of it's foundation? A man before 80
years Of age may commit enough sin
to last him a lifetime. Now, John or
George or Henry or whatever be your
Christian name or rnam say here
and now: mo wild oats for me, no
cigars or cigarettes for me, 10 wine
or beer for me, no nasty stories for me,
no Sunday spreeS for me. 1 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 1
al be guided in building everything
from foundation to capstone. Lord
God, by the wounded han of Christ
throw me a plumb line"
But" you say, you h u us young
folks out from all fun" Oh, no.! ]
like fun. L believe in fun / have had
lots of it in my time. But / have moi
had to go into paths of sin to find it.
No credit TO me, but because of an e
traordinary parental example and in
fuence l was kept from trans
gressions, though my heart was bad
enough and desperately wicked.
have sworn one oath and never gam
bled for so much as the value of a pir
anu Hett e. SAW Tic lHSlue Ol d HduUI
of sin save as when many years ago
with a commissioner of police and {
detective and two elders of my church
1 explored New York and brooklyn by
midnight not out of curiosity, but that
l might in pulpit discourse set before
the people h poverty n the horror!
of underground city life. Yet, though
I was never intoxicated for an instan'
and never committed one act of disso.
lutenesS-restrained only by the grace
of God, without which restraint
would have gone headlong o\the bot
tom Of infamy-I have had so much
on the planet at the present time wht
has had more. Hear it, men and boys
women and girls, all the fun is on thu
side of right. Sin may seem attractive
but it Is beautiful and like the man
chineel, a tree whose Jews are poison
Gus. The only genuine happiness i!
in a Christian life.
HARMFUL PLEASURES.
There they go-two brothers. Th'
n was converted a e ago IN the
church one Sunday morning during
prayer or sermon or hymn. No on
knew it at the time. h persons or
either side of him suspected nothing
but in that young mans soul this pro.
cess went on: Lord, here / ann, &
young man amid the temptations OF
~ liIC, ollo L III d1ldIU ~ IlSh lkSII
alone; come and be my pardon an6
my help; save me from making the
mistake some of my comrades are
making n save me now" And
quicker than a flash God rolledl heaven
into his SOUL. He is just as jolly as he
used to be. Hecan strike a ball or catch
one as easily as before he was con.
verted. With gun or fishing rod in thi:
summer vacation. he is just as skillfu.
as before. The world is brighter to
him han ever. He appreciates pic
lures, music, innocent hilarity, social
life, good jokes and has plenty of fun
glorious fun. But his brother is 60
ing down hill. In the morning his head
aches from the champagne debauch
Everybody sees he is in rapid descent
What cares he for right or dencency
or the honor of his family name? Turn
ed out Of employment, depleted in
health, cast down in spirits, the ty-
phoid fever strikes him in the smallest
room on the foruth story of a fifth rate
boarding house, cursing God and call
ing for his mother n lighting back
demons from his dying pillow, which
is ~besweated and torn to rags. HI
plunges out of this world with the
shrek of a destroyed spirit. Alas fol
that kind of fun 1t is emorse II
is despair. 1t is ~blackness of darkness
It is woe amending and long reverber-
oIAAS LII IuSHllS DIS tIoUSH dbl LIE
mountains of all continents rolled on
him in one avalanche. My soul, stand
back from such fun. Young man
there is no fun in shipwrecking your
character, no fun in ~disgraceing your
ather name. There is no fun in
breaking your mothers heart. There
is no fun in the physical pangs of the
dissolute. There is no fur in the pro-
figate's deathbed. There is no fur
in an undone eternity. Paracelsus, Out
of the ashes Of a burnt rose, said he
could recreate the rose, but he failed
in the alchemic understanding, and
roseat life, once burned down in sin
a new again be made to blossom.
GODS PLUMB LINE.
Oh, this plumb line of the everlast.
ing right! God will throw. it over all
our lives to show us our moral de1ec-
tons. God will throw it over al
churches to show whether they are do
ing useful work or are instances OF
idleness n pretense. He will throw
that plumb line over all nations to de