The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1900-04-25

fell back and back, down lower, down
lower, chasm below chasm, pit below pit,
until He seemed to strike the bottom Of OBJ
jurgation and scorn and torture. on, the
long, loud, jubiiant shout OF hell 'at-the de-
feat of the Lord God Almighty!
Lesson the second: The triumph OF the
wicked Is short. Did you ever see an army
in. q panic? There Is nothing 80 uncon-
tro!able. II you. had stood at Long Bridge,
Washington, during the opening OF our
sad Civil War, you would know what 1t ts
to see an army run. And when those men
of Al looked out and saw those men OF
Joshua In stampede they expected easy
work. They would scatter them as the
equinox the leaves. Oh, the gleeful and
jubilant descent Of the men OF Al upon the
men OF Joshua! But their ,exhil aration was
these quondam conquerors lett their miser-
able carcasses In the wilderness OF Betha.
ven. SO 1t always is. Thetrtumph OF the
wicked ia short. You make $40 900 at the
gambling tables Do you expect to keep 1T
You will die In the poorhouse. You make
fortune by yIniquitous traffic., Do you ex-
pect to keep 1t? Your money will scatter,
or it will stay long enough to curse your
children after you are dead. ~, = '.
Call over the roll OF bad men who pros
pered and see how short was their prosper
ity. For awhile, like :the smen OF All they
went from conquest to conquest, but after
they were divided into three parts. Mis-
fortune took their property, the grayetook
their body and the lost world took their
soul. am always Interested In the build
ing OF palaces OF dissipation. ] like to haye
them built OF the best granite and have the
rooms made large and to have the pillars
made very firm. God Is going to, conquer
them, and they will bs turned into asylums
and art galleries and churches. n,
How long will itstake your boys TO get
through your Ill gotten gains? The wicked
they Swagger and strut and make great
splash In tie newspapers, but after awhile
it all dwindles down linton brief paragraph
".Died suddenly, April 8, 1900, at thirty. five
years of,SXe. Relatives and friends OF the
family are:1nvlted to attend the funeral on
Wednesday at 2 o'clock from his late resi-
dence on madison square. 1nterment at
Greenwood or Oak Hill" Some Of them
jumped Of the docks. Some Of them took
prussic acid. Some Of them fell under the
snap OF a Derrlnger pistol. Some OF them
spent their days in "A -lunatic asylum.
Where are William Tweed and his asso.
ciates? Where are James Fisk. the liber.
tine, and all the other misdemennants?
The wicked do not live out half their days.
Dlsembogue, o world OF darkness! Come
up. Hildebrand and Henry II and Robes
pierre, and with blistsfinR tands blasphem'
ing and ashen lips, hlss o1t, The triumph
OF the wicked Is short.""
Lesson the third: How much may be ac'
complished by lying in ambush for oppor.
.unities. Are you hYperorltical OF Joshua's
maneuver? Do you say that It was cheat.
Ing for him to take that city byr ambus.
cade? Was 1t wrong for Washington to
kindle campfres on Jersey heights, giving
the impression to the opposing force that
q great army was encamped there wher
there was none ut all? I answer, II the
war was right, then Joshua was right II
his stratagem. He violated no flag o
truce. He broke no treaty, but by Lawful
lmbuscane captured the city OF Al.
Oh, that we I'LL knew how to lie In am
bush for opportunities to serve God! The
besf OF our opportunities do not lie on the
surface, but are secreted. By tact, By
stratageu, by Christian ambuscade, you
may take almost any castle OF sin 10:
Christ. Come up toward men with reg,
ular beslegement OF argument, and you
will be defeated, but just wait until the
door OF their hearts is set ajar, or they are
off their guard, or their. severe caution 1:
away from home, and then drop In on then
from Christian ambuscade. -
There has besn many man un to his
chin In scientific portfolios which proved
there was no Christ and f,no divine rsvela.
tIon, Ills pen a sclmeter flung into the
heart OF theological opponents, who never
tneless has been discomflted and captured
for God by some little three-year-old child
who has got up aud putsher snowy arms
around his slnewy neck and asked some
simple question about God.
Oh, make a flank movement! Steal 0
march on the devlll Cheat that man into
heavenl A SIS treatise that will stand al
the laws OF homiletics may fail to do that
which penny tract OF Christian eltreaty
may accomplish.
Oh, for more Christians In ambuscade-
not lying In idleness, but waiting for q
quick spring, waiting until just the right
time comes! Do not talk to man about
the vanity OF this world on the day when
he has bought something at '12" and 1s
going to sell 1t ut "15." But talk to him
about the vanity OF the world on the day
when he has bought something at "15" and
is compelled to sell 1t at $50"
Do not rub q mans disposition tha
wrong way; do not take the imperative
mood when the subjunctive mood will do
Just as we'll; do not talk 10 perfervid style
to phlegmatic nor try to tickle torrld
mperament with An icicle. You can take
auy man for Christ II you know how to get
as him. Do not send word to him that to
morrow at 10 o'clock you propose to open
your batteries upon him, but come on him
by a skilful, perseverlng, God directed
ambuscade.
Lesson the fourth: The importance OF
taking good aim. There il, Joshua, but
how are those people i'm ambush up yonder
to know when they arc to drop on the city,
and how are these men around j oshia to
know when they are to stop their fight
and advance? There must be ONE signal
"a signal to stop the one dtvl sion and tc
start the other. Joshua, with spear or
which were ordinarily hung the colors
battle, points toward the city. He stands
In such n consI icuous pos sition, and there
Is 80 much OF the morning light dripping
from the spear tip, that all around the
horizon they sea it. It was us much Us tc
say: "There Is the city. Take 1T"
God knows and we know TINT great
deal Of Christian attack nmounts to moth
ing simply because we do not take good
aim. Nobody knows aud we do not know
ourselves which point we want to take
when we ought to make up our minds what
God will have us to do and point our spear
in that direction and then hurl our body.
miud, soul, time, eternity at that one tar
get.
In our pulpits and -pews and Sunday
schools and prayer meetings We want to get
Il reputation for saying pretty things, and
80 we point our spe1r toward the flowers,
or We want reputation for saying sublime
things, and We point our speac toward the
stars, or We want to get o reputation for
historical knowledge, and We point our
spear toward the past, or we want to get
reputation for grent liberality, 50 we swing
our spear all around, while there. Is the
old world. proud, rebelious and armed
against all righteousness, and Instead OF
running, any further away from Its pursuit
We ought to turp around, plant our foot In
the strength OF the eternal God, lit the old
cross and point 1t In the direction OF the
worlds conquest till, the redeemed OF
earth, marcting up from one side and the
cxioriaad ni haaxan marching down from