The Calhoun chronicle. [volume] (Grantsville, W. Va.) 1883-1984, 1901-07-02

country residence 20 city residence will do
well to be on guard and let no one induce
them to places of improper amusement 1t
Is nightly alluring when n young man,
long citizen, offers to show newcomer
all around.
Still further, those amusements are
wrong, which lead you into expenditure
beyond your means. Money spent i'm rec
reation is not thrown away Ii is all folly
for us to come from a place of amusement
feeling that we have wasted our money
and time. You may by it have made an
investment worth more than the transac-
ton that yielded you hundreds or thous.
ands OF dollars. But how many properties
have been riddled by costly amusements.
How brightly the path of unrestrained
amusement opensl The young man says:
Now l am off for a good time. Never
mind economy. I'll get money somehow
What fine road What beautiful day
for ride Crack the whip, and over the
turnpike! Come, boys. fiji high your
glasses Drink! Long life, health. plenty
of rides juss like thisl" Hard working men
hear the clatter of the hoofs and look up
and say: why, 1 wonder where those
fellows get their money from? We have to
toll and drudge. They do nothing" To
these gay men life is a thrill and an ex-
cltement. They stare at other people and
IN turn are stared at The watch chain
Jingles; the cup foams; midnight hears
their outlaw they swagger; they jostle de-
cent men off the sidewalk they take the
name OF God in vain; they parody the
hymn they learned at their mothers knee,
and to all pictures OF coming disaster they
cry out, WHO cares" and TO the counsel
OF some Christian friend. "Who are you|
L go further and say that all those
amusements are wrong which lead into bad
company. II you go to any place where
you have to associate with the intemper-
ate, with the unclean, with the abandoned,
however well they may be dressed, in the
n I'M Of MfNI
your nature.
l had friend in the West - a rare
friend. He was one of the first TO well
come ne to my new home To fine per-
sonal appearance he added a generosity,
frankness and ardor OF nature that made
me love him like a brother. But ] saw
evil people gathering around him. They
came up from the saloons, from the
gambling hells. They piled him with a
thousand arts. They seized upon his So
cial nature, and he could not stand the
charm. They drove him on the rocks, like
a ship, full winged, shivering on the break
ers. l used to admonish him. l would
say, Now, l wish you would quit those
bad habits and become a Christian"
oh he would reply Il would like to,
| would like to, but l have gone so far
L don't think there is any way back" In
his moments of repentance he would 60
home and take his little girl of eight
years and embrace her convulsively, and
cover her with adornments, and strew
around her pictures and toys and every
thing that could make her happy, and
then, as though bounded by an evil spirit,
he would go out to the inhaming cup and
the house of shame like q fool to the cor
rection of the stocks.
1 was summoned TO his deathbed; I
fastened; / entered the ROOM l found
him, to my surprise, lying in full every
day dress on the top OF the couch. 1 put
out my. hand. He grasped it excitedly
and said "Sit down, Mr.. Talmage; right
there" 1 sat down. He said: Last
night saw my mother, who has been dead
twenty years, and she sat just where you
SIT now. 1t was no dream, / was wide
awake. There was no delusiOn in the
matter. saw her just as plainly as
see you. Wife. wish you would take
these strings off me. There are strings
spun all around my body. l wish you
would take them off me-" I saw it was
delirium. "Oh," replied his wife. my
dear, there is nothing there; there is
nothing there!" He went on and said:
Just where you sit. Mr.. Talmage, my
mother sat. She sale to nc, Henry, I
do wish you would do better l got. out
or bed put my arms around her and
sold: Mother, / want to do better. /
have been trying TO do better Won't you
help me to do better? You used to help
me? No mistake about it; no delusion. I
saw here-the cap and the apron and the
spectacles-just as she used to look TWEEN
ty years ago But 1 do wish you would
so / can hardly talk. Won't you take
them away" l knelt down and prayed,
conscious OF the fact that he did not
realize what j was saying. / got up. I
said: "Goocby! / hope you will be better
soon" He said, "Goodby. goodbvn
That night his soul went up to the God
who gave it. Arrangements were made
for the obsequies. Some said Don't
bring him III the church He was too
dissolute." "Oh," l said, bring him. He
was a good friend of mine while he was
alive, and L shall stand by him now that
he is dead. Bring him to the church"
As / sat in the pulpit and saw his
body coming up through the aisle | felt
as If L could weep tears Of blood. told
the people that day: This man had his
had his faults and a good many Of them.
But If there is any man in this audience
who is without sin let him cast the first
stone at this coffin lid" One one side
OF the pulpit sat that little child, rosy,
sweet faced. as beautiful as any little
ing, l warrant you. She looked up visit
fully, not knowing the full sorrows of
an orphan child
This destroyed man was a Samson in
physical strength, but Delilah sheared him.
and the Phihstines Of evil companionship
Jug MS eyes out ana threw MN INTO the
prison of evil habits But in the hour
Of his death he rose up and took hold
OF the two pillared curses Of God against
drunkenness and uncleanness and threw
himself forward until down upon him
and his companions there came the thun-
der5 Of an eternal catastrophe.
Again, any amusement chat gives you
distaste for domestic life is bad How
many bright domestic circles have been
broken up by sinful amusemonts! The
father went off, the mother went of the
child v~ept oW frh.v. go ~ H.. f.--