Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1900-11-08
that you can commit is the crime of


III any department. Daniel Knew that
II he continued his adherence to the
religion Of the Lord he would be
hurled to the lions; but, having set his
compass we'll, he sailed right on. For
the lack of that element Of decision
OF character so eminent in Daniel
many men are ruined for this world
and ruined for the world to come. A
great many at 40 years of age are not
settled in any respect, because they
have not been able to make up their
minds. Perhaps they will go west.
perhaps they will go east; perhaps
they will not; perhaps they will so
north; perhaps they may go south:
perhaps they will so east: perhaps
may make that investment in real es-
tate or In railroads; perhaps they will
not. They are not like steamer
that should so out OF New York har-
Dor, starting for Glasgow, and the
next day should change for HAVE
de Grace, and the next for Charleston,
and the next for Boston, and the next
for Liverpool. These men on the sea
OF life everlastingly lacking ship and
making no Roadway! Or they are like
a man who starts to build a house In
the Corinthian style and changes 1t to
Doric, and then completes II in the
Ionic. the curse Of all styles Of archi-
lecture. Young man, start right, and
keep on. Have decision of character,
Character is like the goldhnch Of Ton
quin. 1t Is magnificent while stand
ing firm, but loses all its beauty in
flight. How much decision of chraac-
ter in order that these young men may
be Chrlstians Their old associates
make sarcastic filings at them. They
go on excursions, and they do not
invite them. They prophesy that he
will give out. They wonder IL he Is
not getting wings. AS he passes they
grimace and wink and chuckle and
say, There goes q saint" 0 young
man, have decision of character! You
can afford in this matter Of religion
to be laughed at. What do you care
for the SCOTS of these men, who are
affronted because you will not go to
ruin with them? When the grave
cracks open under their feet, and
grim messengers push them into 1t,
and eternity comes down hard upon
their spirit, and conscience stings, and
hopeless ruin lifts them up to hurl
them down, will they laugh then?
Christianity for Busy Men.
Again l learn from this subject that
a man may take religion into his poll
tics. Daniel had all the affairs OK
state on hand. yet servant OF God.
He could not have kept his elevated
position unless he had been thorough
politician, and yet all the thrusts of
officials and all the danger OF disgrace
did not make him yield one iota in his
high toned religious principle. He
stood before that age. he stands be-
fore all ages, specimen OF a godly
politician. So there have been In our
day and In the days of our fathers
men as eminent in the service of God
as they have been eminent In the SER
vice of the state. Such was Benjamin
f. Butler, attorney general OF New
York in the time Of your fathers. Such
was John Mclean OF the supreme court
of the United States. Such was George
Briggs of Massachusetts,. Such was
Theodore Frelinghuysen OF New Jer-
sey-men faithful to the state, at the
same time faithful to God. 1t is alb
surd to expect that men who have been
immersed in political wickedness for
thirty or forty years shall come to
reformation, and our hope Is In the
young men who are coming up. that
they have patriotic principle and
they come to the ballot box and cast
their first vote and that they swear
allegiance to the government Of hea-
ven as well as to the government of
the United States. We would have
Bunker Hill mean less to them than
Cavalry, and Lexington mean less to
them than Bethlehem, but because
there are bad men around the ballot
box is no reason why Christian men
should retreat from the arena. The
last time you ought to give UP your
child or forsake your child Is when 1t
~ w a company Va INV
taws, and the last time to surrender
the ballot box Is when 1t Is surrounded
by impurity and dishonesty and all
sorts of wickedness.
Religion In Politics.
Daniel stood on most unpopular
platform. He stood firmly, though
the demagogues OF the day Kissed at
him and tried to overthrow him. We
must carry our religion into our poll
tics. But there are great many men
who are in favor OF taking religion
into national politics, who do not see
the Importance of taking 1t into city
politics, as though a man were intelli-
gent about the welfare OF his neigh
borhood and had no concern about
his own home.
My subject also impresses me with
the fact that lions cannot hurt a good
man. No man ever got into worse
company than Daniel got into when
he was thrown into the den. What
rare morsel that fair young man
would have been for the hungry mon
sters! II they had plunged at him
he could not have climbed into
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