The free press. (Poplarville, Miss.) 1890-19??, 1901-05-30


mind economy. I'll get money somehow.
What a fine road What beautifully Clay
for ridei Crack the whip, and over the
turnpike! Come, boys, fill high your
gasses Drink Long life, health, plenty
of rides just like this" Hard working men
hear the clatter Of the hoofs and look up
and say: "Why, | wonder where those
fellows get their money from? We have to
toll and drudge. They do nothing" 10
these gay men life is a thrill and an ex..
citement. 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"
/ go further and say that all those
amusements are wrong which lead into bad
company. If 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
name of God quit it. They will despoil
your nature.
| had friend in the West rare
friend. He was one of the first to well
come me to my new home To fine per-
sonal appearance he added generosity,
frankness and ardor of nature that made
me love him like brother. But / saw
evil people gathering around him. They
came up from the saloons, from the
gambling hels. 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 | used to admonish him. l would
say, Nov, l wish you would quit those
80,
"Oh,' he would reply, Il would like to,
l would like to, but have gone so far
| don't think there is any way back. In
his moments of repentance he would go
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 infaming cup and
the house of shame like fool to the cor
rection of the stocks.
/ was summoned to his deathbed; |
FASTENED; | entered the room; | found
him, to my surprise, lying in full every
day dress on the top of the couch. | put
out my hand. He grasped it excitedly
and said: "Sit down, Mr.. Talmage; right
there" I sat down. He said: Last
night 7 saw my mother, who has been dead
twenty years, and she sat just where you
sit now It was no dream, J. was WIDE
awake There was no delusion in the
matter. | saw her just as plainly as L
see you. Wife, 1 wish you would take
these strings off me. There are strings
spun all around my body. wish you
delirium. ooh" replied his wife, "my
dear. there is nothing there; there is
nothing there!" He went on and said
Gust where you sit, Mr.. Talmage, my
mother sat. She said to me. Henry, l
do wish you would do better got out
| of bed, put my arms around her and
| said: Mother, want to do better. l
have been trying to do better. Won't you
help me to do better? You used to help
mes' No mistake about it; no delusion. l
saw here-the cap and the apron and the
spectacles-iust as she used to look TWEEN,
| ty years ago. But l do wish you would
| take these strings away. They annoy me
so | can hardly talk. Won't you take
them away?" | knelt down and prayed,
conscious of the fact that he did not
realize what / was saying. got up; l
soon" He said, @Goodby, goodby!"
| That night his soul went up to the God
| who gave it. Arrangements were made
| for the obsequies- Some said: Don't
bring him in the church. He was too
dissolute." "Oh," 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 I felt
as if I could weep tears of blood. l told
| the people that day: '"This man had his
| virtues and good many of them, He
| 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
| child that sat at your table this morn
ing, | warrant you. She looked up wist..
| fully, not knowing the full sorrows OF
an orphan child.
This destroyed man was Samson In
physical strength, but Delilah sheared him,
and the Philistines OF evil companionship
dug his eyes out and threw him 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'
ders of an eternal catastrophe.
Again, any amusement that gives you
| a distaste for domestic life is bad. How
many bright domestic circles have been
| broken up by sinful amusements! The
father went off, the mother went off. the
child went off There are to-day frag'
ments before me of blasted households;
Oh, if you have wandered away, | would
like to charm you back to the sound of
that one word home"
| saw a hayward husband standing at
the deathbed of his Christian wife, and
l saw her point to a ring on her finger
and heard her say to her husband: DO
you see that ring?" He replied: eyes, l
see it." well" said she, do you re,
memner VINO put it there?" Yes" said
he, Il put it there" And all the past
seemed to rush upon him. By the mem
DRY of that day when, in the presence
of men and angels, you promised to be
faithful in joy and sorrow and in sick:
ness and in health; by the memory of
those pleasant hours when you sat to-
gether in your new home talking of a
bright future; by the cradle and the joyful
hour when one life was spared and an
other given; by that sickbed, when the
little one lifted up the hands and called
for help, and you knew he must die, and
he put one arm around each of your
necks and brought you very near together
in that dying kiss; by the little grave in
the cemetery that you never think OF
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