The Penn's Grove record., 1901-01-04

ttopyrlgnt lNl.
WASHINGTON, d. Gin this discourse
Dr. Talmage shows an open door for any
one who desires to be useful, and illus
trates how little thing may decide ones
destiny. The text is Proverbs XIV, IL ire
vised version), "a word ftly spoken is
like apples of gold in baskets of silver"
A filigree basket loaded with fruit is put
before us in the text. What is ordinarily
translated pictures" ought to be "bas-
kets." Here is a silver network basket
containing ripe and golden apples, pip
pins or rennets You know how sueh ap-
pies glow through the openings OF bas-
ket of silver network You have seen
such a basket of fruit on many table.
1t whets the appetite as well as regaless
tie vision. Solomon was evidently fend
Of apples, because he SO often speaks of
them While he writes in glowing terms
of pomegranates and figs and grapes and
mandrakes, he seems to find solace as well
as lusciousness in apples, calling out for a
supply Of them when he says in another
place, Comfort me with apples" Now
you see the meaning of my text, "A word
ftly spoken is like apples of gold in bas-
kets of silver"
You see, the wise man eulogizes just one
word Plenty of recognition has there
been for great orations-Ciceros arraign-
ment of Catiline, the philippics OF De
mosthenes, the FIVE days argument of Ed
mund Burke against Warren Hastings,
Edward Irving's discourses on the Bible
and libraries full of prolonged utterance--
but my text extols the power of one word
when it refers to "a word fifty spoken"
This may mean a single word or small
collection of words-something you can
utter in one breath, something that you
,rAo IA
fitly spoken" an encouraging word,
kind word, timely word, sympathetic
word, an appropriate word. | can pass
right down the aisle of any church and
find betw cen pulpit and front door men
whose temporal and eternal destinies have
been decided by word.
/ tell you what is a great crisis in every
mans history. 1t is the time when he is
entering an occupation or profession. He
is opposed by men in middle life because
they do not want any more rivals, and
by some Of the aged because they fear
being crowded off and their places being
taken by younger men. Hear the often
severe and unfair examinations of young
lawyers by old lawyers, of young doctors
by old doct ,rs, of young ministers by OLD
ministers. Hear some of the old mer-
chants talk about the young merchants.
Trowels and hammers and scales often are
Jealous of new trowels and new hammers
and new scales. Then it is so difficult to
get introduced. Ho.- long a time has
many a physician had his sign out before
he got call for his services and the attor-
ney before he got case! Who wants to
risk the life of his family to young ply
sician who got his diploma only last spring
and who may not know measles from
scarlatina, or to risk the obtaining OF
verdict for $4,000 to an attorney who
only three years ago read the first page of
Blackstone?
How is the young merchant to compete
with his next door bargain maker, who
can afford to undersell some things be-
cause he can more than make it up by the
profit on other things or has failed three
times and had more money after each
failure? How is that mechanic to make
n livelihood when there are twice as many
men in that trade as can in hard times ind
occupation? There are this very moment
thousands Of men who are Just starting
life for themselves, and they need encour
igement--not long harangue, not quota
tion from profound book, not page, not
a paragraph, but word, one word, fifty
spoken.
Why does not that old merchant, who
has been forty years in business, go into
"Courage?" He needs only that one word,
although, of course, you will illustrate it
by telling your own experience and how
long you waited for customers, and how
the first two years you lost money, and
how the next year, though you did better,
illness in your household swamped the
surplus with doctors bills. Why does not
that old lawyer go into that young law
yer's office Just after he has broken down
in making his first plea before a jury and
say that word with only two syllables,
"Courage?" He needs only that one word,
although, of course, you will illustrate it
by telling him how you broke down in
one Of your first cases, and got laughed at
by court and bar and Jury, and how Dis
raeh broke down at the start, and how
hundreds of the most successful lawyers
at the start broke down. Why do not the
successful men go right away and tell those
who are starting what they went through.
and how their notes got protested and
what unfortunate purchases they made,
and how they were swindled, but kept
right on until they reached the golden
milestone? Even some who pretend to
favor the new beginner and say they wish
him well put obstacles in his way.
There are so many men who have all
the elements of usefulness and power ex
cept one-courage. Ii you can only under
God give them that, you give them every
thing. In illustrating that one word show
them that every man that ever amounted
to anything had terrific struggle. Show
him what ships Decatur had to fight, and
what a mountain Hannibal had to climb,
and what lame foot Walter Scott had to
walk with, and that the greatest poet
who ever -Milton-was blind, that
one OF the grandest musicians of all the
ages-Beethoyen-was deaf, and that
Stewart, in some respects the greatest
merchant that America ever saw, began
in his small store, dining on bread and
cheese behind the counter in a snatched
interregnum between customers, he open
ing the store and closing it, sweeping it
out with his own broom and being his own
errand boy. Show them that within ten
minutes walk there are stores, shops and
factories and homes where as brave deeds
have been done as those of Leonidas at
Thermopylae, as that of Horatius at the
bridge, as that of Colin Campbell at Bala-
klava. Tell them what Napoleon said to
his staff officer when that officer declared
a certain military attempt to be impossi-
Bile. 'Impossible!" said the great com
mander. Impossible is the adjective of
foolsl"
Show them also that what is true in
worldly directions is more true in spiritual
direetioas Call the roll of prophets, apos-
ties and martyrs and private Christians
from the time the world began and ask
them to mention one man or woman
greatly good or useful who was not depre-
ciated and failed and made a laughing
stock Racks and prisons and whips and
shpwrecks and axes of beheadment did
their worst, yet the heroes were more
than eonqueror. With such things yon
will illustrate that word Courage" and
they will go out from your presence to
start anew and right, challenging all earth
and hell to the combat
Tht word courage" fitly spoken with
lips and stout grip of the hand
and an intelligent fash of the eye-well,
the finest apples that ever thumped on the
ground in an autumnal orchard and were
placed in the most beautiful basket Of sill
yer network before keen appetites conld
not be more attractive.
Furthermore, comforting word ftly
spoken is beautiful thing. No one but
God could give the inventory of sick beds
and bereft homes and broken hearts. We
ought not to let day pass without a
visit, or letter. or message, or prayer
consolatory. You could call five minutes
on your way to the factory; you could
leave half hour earlier in the afternoon
and fill mission OF solaee; you could
brighten sick room with one chrysanthe-
mum; you could put postscript to a let
ter that would bring the joys OF heaven to
soul; you could send your carriage and
give an afternoon airing to an invalid on