Republican news item. [volume] (Laport, Pa.) 1896-19??, 1901-08-08


at the funeral procession of the dead cheat
as it goes by wall have more money than
that man who one week previous boasted
that he controlled the money market.
So there has been a great deal of fasci-
| nation thrown around libertinism. So
ciety is very severe upon the impurity that
turks ar@und the alleys and low haunts
| of the town. The law pursues it, smites
| it, incarcerates it, tries to destroy it.
| You know as well as | that society be-
| comes lenient in proportion as impurity
| becomes affiuent or is in elevated circles,
and finally society is silent or disposed
| to palliate.
| Where is the judge. the jury, the police
| officer that dare arraign the wealthy liber-
| tine? He walks the streets; he rides the
parks; he faunts his iniquity in the eyes
| of the pure.
Sometimes it seems to me as if society
were going back to the state of morals of
| Hercuaneum, when it sculptured its vile
ness on pillars and temple wall and moth
| ing but the lava of a burning mountain
| could hide the immensity of crime. At
| what time God will rise up and extirpate
| these evils upon society / know not nor
whether He will do it by fire or hurricane
| or earthonake, but a holy God, l do not
! think will stand it much longer / be-
| Heve the thunderbolts are kissing hot,
| and that when God comes to chastise the
community for these sins, against which
He has uttered Himself more bitterly than
| against any other, the fate of Sodom and
Gomorrah will be. tolerable as compared
| with the fate of our modern society,
| which knew better, but did worse.
We want about 10000 pulpts in Amer
| lea to thunder "All adulterers and whore
mongers shall have their place in the hell
| that burneth with fire and birthstone,
which is the second DEATH It is hell on
| earth and hell forever. We have got to
| understand that iniquity on Columbia
| Heights or Fifth avenue or Beacon Hill is
as damnable in the sight of God as it is
| in the slums.
Whether it has canopied couch or elder
down or dwells amid the putridity of
vengeance. Yet the pulpit of the Chris
tian church has been so cowed down on
this subject that it hardly dares speak,
and men are almost apologetic when they
| read the Ten Commandments.
| Then look at the fascinations thrown
around assassination. There are in all
communities men who have taken the
| lives of others unlawfullv, not as execu-
| TONERS of the law, and they go scot free.
You say that they had their provocations.
God gave life, and He alone has right
! to take it, and He may take it by vista
ton of Providence or by an executioner
| of the law, who is His messenger. But
| when a man assumes thai divine preroga-
tive he touches the lowest depth of crime.
Society is alert for certain kinds OF mur
der. Ii a citizen going along the road at
night is waylaid and slain by robber,
we all wanS the villain arrested and exc
cuted. For all garroting, for all beating
| out of life by club or an axe or slung
shot, the law has quick spring and heavy
stroke, but you know that when men get
affinent and high position, and they. ayenge
their wrongs by taking the lives of others
great sympathy is excited. Lawyers plead,
ladies weep, judge haits, jury is bribec,
! and the man goes free. If the verdict
happen to be against him new trial is
called on through some technicality, and
they adjourn. for witnesses that never
| come and adjourn and adjourn until the
| community has forgotten all about it, and
then the prison door opens and the muir
| derer goes free.
Now. if capital punishment be right I
| say let the life of the polished murderer
Let us have no partlalitv of gallows, no
| aristooracy of electrocution chair Do
not let us float back to barharism. when
| every man was his own judge, jury and
exeeutioner, and that man had the SUI.
premacy who had the sharpest knife and
| the strongest arm and the quickest step
and the stealthiest revenge. He who viii.
| fully and in hatred takes the life of ans
| other is a murderer, | care not what the
| provocation or the circumstances.
He may be cleared by an enthusiastic
| courtroom. he may be sent by the Gov
|
to some foreign court or modern literature
| may polish the crime until it looks like
herosm, but in the sight of God murder
is murder, and the judgment day will so
| reveal it.
Now, do not be fascinated by the gla-
| NOR thrown over crime of whatever sort.
| Because others have habits that seem bril-
liant, but yet at the same time are wicked.
| do not choose such faults. Stand inde-
pendent of all such influences. Put your
confidence in the Lord God. He will be
your strength. Vengeance is mine. I
will repay, saith the Lord
book is full of it. Old fashioned honesty
such as was spoken of by Dr. Livingstone,
| the famous explorer. You may not know
he was descended from the Hghlanders.
| DR.. Livingstone said that one day one Of
around him and said: Now, my lads,
have looked all through our family line.
| | have gone back as far as l can, and |
| find that all our ancestors were honest
people. There doesn't seem to be one
rogue among them, and you have good
| blood. Now, my lads, be honest"
There are hundreds of young men who
have good blood. Shall | ask three or four
| plain questions? Are your habits as good
| as when you left your fathers house?
Have you a good ticket in your pocket?
Have you fraudulent document? Have
| you peeA " see HOW dCCul-
| ate an imitation you could make of your
employers signature? Oh, you have good
blood. Remember your fathers prayers
Remember your mothers example. Turn
not in an evil way. Have you been going
astray? Come back. Have you ventured
| out too far?
As stand in pulpits looking over au-
diences sometimes my heart fails me.
| There are so many tragedies present, so
many who have sacrificed their integrity,
SO. many far away from God. Why, my
brother there have been too many prayers
offered for you to have you so overheard.
| And there are those venturing down into
sin, and my heart aches to call them back.
At Brighton Beach or Long Branch you
have seen men go down into the surf to
bathe, and they waded out farther and
| farther, and you got anxious about them.
You said, Il wonder if they can swim?"
| And you then stood and shouted: Come
back! Come back. You will be drowned"
They waved their hand back, saying:
No danger" They kept on wading deep
er down and farther out from shore until
after awhile a great wave with strong
undertow took them out, their corpses
| the next day washed on the beach So 7