The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1901-08-07

and sunnliea and salaries are in his hands.
Now. that ia a trust. That is as sacred
trust as God can give man: 1t Is tne
concentration of confidence. NOW, WneH
that man takes that money-the money VI
others-and goes to specializing with Il iGs
his own purposes, he Is guilty OF tneiS.
falsehood and perjury, ana IN n,;snrs.mt sns mos
There are families to-day-widows AND
orphans-with nothing between them and
starvation, but sewing machine, or KePt
ont ~ the vortex by the thread OF needle
red with the blood. pf, their hearts, VINO
were by father OF husband lett compe-
'' Won read the story in the newspaper OF
those who have lost by bank detalcatlon,
and it is only one line. the name OF Q
woman you never heard OF, and JUST one or
two figures telling the amount o! STOCK
she had, the number OF shareSt hrt i; = y is q
very short line in o newspaper, put IL s
line of agony as long as time. 1t Is story
long as eternity.
nation thrown around libertinism. 80.
ciety Is very severe upon the impurity thae
turks around the alleys and low haunts
of the town. The law pursues it,, smltes
it, incarcerates it, tries to destroy it;
You know as we'll as that society Pc
comes lenient in proportion as lmpuTlty
becomes afluent or Is in elevated circles,
and finally society 'is .sllent or oisposeo
Where is the Judge: the jury, the police
officer that dare arraigp the wealthy hoer-
tine? He walks the streets; he rides the
parks; he haunts his iniquty In the eyes
of the pure. .'. ..." :.
were going back to the state Of morals OF
Herculaneum, when it sculptured its vile
ness on pillars and temple wall and moth
ing but the lava of burning mountain
could hide the immensity Of crime: At
what time God will rise up and extlrpate
these evils upon society I know, not nor
whether He will do it by fire or hurricane
or earthquake, but o holy God, do not
think, will stand it much longer. be-
lieye the thunderbolts are Kissing hot,
and that when God comes to chastlse the
community for these sins, against Whlch
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 cur modern society,
which knew better; :bpt did worse.
We want about !O,oG ;pulplts IN amer
lea to thunder, "All ednHerers and who're;
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 Columbus
Heights or Fifth avenue or Beacon Hill u
as damnable in the sight of God as it Il
in the slums. -, -,
Whether it has canopied couch or elder.
down or dwells amid the putridity OF .
low tenement house, God is after 1t in His
vengeance. Yet the pulpit OF the Chris
tan church has been. so cowed down on
this subject that it hardly dares speak,
and men are almost apologetio when they
read the Ten Commandments:
Then look at the fascinations thrown
around assassination. There are in NIL
Communities men who have taken the
lives of others unlawfully, 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
of the law, who is His: messenger. But
when a man assumes that divine preroga-
tive he touches the lowest depth of crime.
Society is alert for certain kinds Of muir
der. If citizen going along the road at
night is waylaid and slain by q robber,
we all want the villain arrested and exc
cuted. For all garroting, for oil beating
out of life by club or an axe or sfung-
shot, the law has quick spring and heavy
stroke, but you know that when men get
afluent and high position and they avenge
great sympathy is excited. Lawyers plead.
ladies weep, judge halts, jury is bribed,
and the man goes free. If the verdict
happen to be against hirr 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 mue'
derer goes free.
Now, if capital punishment be right I
say let, the life of the, polished murderer
Let US have no partiality Of gallows, no
aristocracy of electrocution chair. Do
not let us float back to barbarism, when
every man was his own Judge, jury and
executioner, and that man had the su.
premacs who had the sharpest knife and
the strongest arm and the quickest step
and the stealthiest revenge. He who. will
fully and in hatred takes the life of an
other is a murderer, care not what the
provocation OF the circumstances.
He may be cleared by an enthusiastic
ernment Of the United States as Minister
to some foreign court or modern literature
may polish the crime until it looks like
heroism, but in the sight OF God murder
is murder, and the judgment day will SO
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 lnde-
pendent of all such influences. Put your
confidence in the Lord God. He will be
your strength, "Vengeanee Is mine.
will repay, saith the Lord, m.
book is full Of it. Old fashioned honesty
S sSsh famous ss wss sEpse spSsse Of p no fos
he was descended from the Highlanders:
DR.. Livingstone said that one day one of
the cid Highlanders called his children
around him and said: Now, my lads,
have looked all through our family line:
I 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"
have good blood. Shall I'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 been experimenting to see how accur-
ate all imitation you could make ofyourr
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 I stand in pulpits looking over au-
diences sometimes my heart fails me.
There are so many tragedies present, 50
many who have sacrificed their integrity,
SO many far away from God. Why, my
brother, there have .:e1too many prayers
offered for you to have'you go overheard.
And there are those venturing down into
sin, and my heart aches to call them back.
have seen men 70 down into the surf to