The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1901-05-15
DIR. TALMAGE'S SERMON
SUNDAYS DISCOURSE BY THE NOTED
DIVINE.
Subject: Lessons Drawn From the Natu-
raj World - The Ant as Teacher -
God Regulates the Ant Hill rs Well
as the Human Habitatlon.

as the Human Habitatlon.
Copyright 1eo1.l
WASHINGTON, d. C.-In this discourse
DR.. Talmage draws his illustrations from 4
realm seldom utilized for moral and relig-
ious purposes; text, Proverbs vi, G-S: go
to the ant, thou sluggard. Consider her
WAYS and be wise, which, having no guide,
overseer or ruler, provideth her meat in
the summer and gathereth her food IN the
harvest"
The most of Solomon's writings have
perished They have gone out of exist.
ence as thoroughly as the twenty books t IS, OF
and Euripides and Varro and Quintilian.
Solomon's Song and Ecclesiastes and
Proverbs, preserved by inspiration, are
small part of his voluminous productions.
He was great scientist. One verse in the
Bible suggests that he was botanist, a
zoologist, an ornithlologist, an ichthyolo-
gist and knew ali about reptilia. / Kings
iv, SO, He spake of trees, from the cedar
tree that is in Lebanon even unto the
hyssop that springeth out of the wall; he
spake also of beasts and of fowl and of
creeping things and of fishes" Besides all
these scientific works he composed 5000
proverbs and l005 songs.
Although Solomon lived long before the
microscope was constructed he was also
an insectologist, and watched and de-
scribes the spider build its suspension
bridge of silk from tree to tree, calling it
the spiders web, and he notices its skilful
foothold in climbing the smooth wall of
the throneroom in Jerusalem, saying,
''The spider taketh hold with her hands
and is in kings palaces" But he. is espe-
cially interested in the ant, and recon-
mends its habits as worthy of study and
imitation, saying, go to the ant, thou
sluggard, consider her ways and be wise,
which, having no guide, overseer or ruler,
provideth her meat in the summer and
gathereth her food in the harvest"
But it was not until about 800 years ago,
when Jan Swammerdam, the son of an
apothecary at Amsterdam, Holland, began
the study of the ant under powerful lens,
that the full force of Solomon's injunction
was understood. The great Dutch scien-
tist in his examination of the insect in my
text discovered as great display of the
wisdom of God in its anatomy as astrono-
mers discover in the heavens, and was so
absorbed and wrought upon by the won
ders he discovered in the ant and other
insects that body and mind gave way, and
he expired at forty-three years of age, a
martyr of the great science of insectology..
No one but God could have fashioned
the insect spoken of in the text or given
it such genius of instinct-its wisdom for
harvesting at the right time, its wonders
of antennae, by which it gathers food, and
of mandibles, which, instead Of the mo-
tion of the human jaw up and down in
mastication, move from side to side; its
nervous system, its enlarging doors in hot
weather for more sweep of breeze, its
mode of attack and defense, closing the
gate at night against bandit invaders; its
publication of the earth for human resi-
dence, its social life, its republican gov
erned, its natural fidelities, the habit OF
these creatures of gathering now and then
under the dome of the ant hillocl SEEM
ingy in consultation and then departing
to execute their different missions.
But Solomon would not commend all the
habits of the ant, for some of them are as
bad as some of the habits of the human
race Some of these small creatures are
desperadoes and murderers. Now and
then they marshal themselves into hosts
and march in straight line and come upon
an encampment OF their own race and de-
stroy its occupants, except the young,
whom they carry into captivity, and if the
army come back without any such cap
tives they are not permitted to enter, but
are sent forth to make more successful con-
quest. Solomon gives no commendatlon
to such sanguinary behavior among insects
any more than he would have commended
sanguinary behavior among men.
But what are the habits which Solomon
would enjoin when he says, consider her
ways and he WISE" First OF all, provi-
.ience, forethought, anticipation OF coming
necessities. I am sorry to say these quail
ties are not characteristic OF all the ants.
These creatures of God are divided into
granivorous and carnivorous. The latter
are not frugal, but the former are frugal.
While the air is warm and moving about
is not hindered by ice or snowbank, they
import their cargoes of food. They bring
in their caravan of provision; they haul in
their long train of wheat or corn or oats,
The farmers are not more busy IN July
and August in reaping their harvest. They
stack them away, they pile them up. They
question when they have enough. They
aggregate a sufficient amount to last them
until the next warm season. When winter
opens they are ready.
Blow ye wintry blasts! Hang your icicles
from the tree branchesl Imbed all the
highways under snowdrifts! Enough for
all the denizens of the hills. Hunger shut
out. and plenty sits within. God, who
feedeth every living thing, has blessed the
ant hill.
In contrast with that insectile behavior
what do you think of that large number Of
prosperous men and women who live up
to every dollar that they NAL Ike, raising
their families in luxurious habits and at
death expecting some kind friend to give
their daughters employment as music
teachers or typewriters or Government
employees? Such parents have no right to
children. Every neighborhood has speci-
mems of such improvidence. The two
words that most strike me in the text are
Summer" and winter" Some people
have no summer in their lives. From the
rocking cradle to the still grave it is relent-
less January. Invalid infancy followed by
some crippling accident or dimness of Eye
sight or dullness of hearing or privation or
disaster or unfortunate environment makes
life perpetual winter. But in mcst lives
there is a period OF summer, although it
may be short summer, and that is the
time to provide for the future.
One of the best ways of insuring the fu-
tpre is to put aside all you can for CHART.
able provision. You put crumbling stone
do not in your plans regard the sufferings
that you may alleviate. You will have the
pledge of the high heavens for your tenn
poral welfare when you help the helpless,
for the promise s blessed is ne that con-
sidereth the poor; the Lord will deliver
him in time of troubl e."
Then there is another way of providing
for the future. If you have $1,000 year
income, save SlOO; or $4,000 year, save
$500; or $4,000, save $1,000: Do you say
such economy is meanness? I say it is a
vaster/ /meanncss for you to make no pro-
vision for the future and compel your
friends or the world to take care OF you
or yours in case of bereavement or caiam-
Gy.
!, There are women who at the first IN
crease of their husbands resources wreck
all on an eXtravagant wardrobe. There
prosperity build houses they will never be