Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1902-05-10
TALMAGE
SERMON
BY Rev.
FRANK DE WITT TALMAGE. DID,.
Pastor Of Jefferson Park Presby-
teriaS Church, Chicago

Chicago. Nay lin this sermon
preached by She Rev. Frank De witt
Talmage In Jefferson Park Presbytc
rian church. the supreme folly of bar
tcring away ones eternal welfare III
exchange for wealth. ambition ana
pleasure or whatever else the world
can give is conylnciugly shown. The
text is Mark viii. SO, What shall II
profit a man II Ike shall gain the whole
world and lose his own sOuly'
Almost magnificent text especially easy
Of Interpretation at the present time.
This is prc-cminently a commercial age.
Everywhere man is struggling after the
mighty dollar. Capital strives to beat
down every obstacle, that its rivers OF
gold may grow into oceans. Prove To
a man who has money that by cor
tain investment he can make more
money. and there is no trouble to per
suade him to invest. Why docs real
estate speculator buy land? To make
money. When examining a piece "f
property. he says 10 himself; III buy
Shall 1 be able To sell at an advanced
price? l. this suburban. region going io
be built up: viii the electric cars come
out here? Shall the future residents
have easy access To the city? Sh'' Z
be able to make enough out Of my u'I.
gain to warrant the output OF cutting
this farm up into streets and building
lots-enough to pay my taxes I'D the
meantimeT The mcrchantmans chieI
thought is TO decrease his expenses ANA
thereby increase his profits. To have
the maximum OF returns for the min-
mum of output he sends his buyers TO
Europe. There they can buy the cheap
est. He has wires strung round the
store so he can dispense with his cash
girls. He pays promptly for his goods
to avail himself OK The discount. To
woo more trade he has his delivery
wagons stationed in the neighborlng
towns. His customers are thus ac'
commodatcd. They. do not have to
carry their bundles hone.
To increase the profits and decrease
expenses the large corporations are be-
ing formed. There are the steel trust.
the oil trust. the tin can trust. the sJ--
ar trust. the tobacco trust. rAt coa
trust. the -four trust. Tie meat trust
A trust is primarily formed TO regulate
the selling prices; but. secomlaIiiy'
trust is formed to lessen the cost OF
production.
A Community of interests.
Thirty or forty men In the same line
of business come together. They say
TO each other: what is the good OF
trying to financially cut each others
throats? Why not have a community
of interests? Instead Of having many
different offices we can have one big
central Office. Instead Of having thirty
or forty different presidents and Secre-
taries and treasurers and cashiers and
and general managers
we can have each department under n
single head. If we are in the brick
business, we can have the brickyard
which is nearest to the site OF the pro
posed building make the bricks and
thus save expense Of carriage" The
tie which binds the leaders Of great
is not one Of sentiment
but one Of profit. Christ, in my
text, talks to his auditors as though
they were collection Of business men.
He practically says: Before you settle
the question Of your eternal destiny |
want you to enter into some gospel
| want you to put down
upon q piece Of paper all the riches OF
the world. Place there the value of the
gold of countless mines and Of the cat
tie on a thousand hills. Place there
the value Of the palaces OF kings
and queens. The value OF the great
commercial interests Of the world. Put
all these values down. Add the figures
up. Then from that aggregation OF
numbers subtract the value Of your
immortal soul and behold what you
have left"
Mathematics cannot lie. Two and
two always make four Ten times ten
make 100. Twelve divided by four
always gives three. Five from five
leaves nothing. Come. let US try to
solve the greatest of all problems
what shall it profit a man if hc shall
gain the whole world and lose his own
sOulW
He who solves this gospel problem
must realize that he can only get
life interest in the world and not g
title deed in perpetuity. Every would
be purchaser Of n home is very careful
about the title deed When a man is
nbout to buy n house. he has bis Own
lawyer 90 to the county building and
look I'D The records. The attorney
traces the history Of that land from
owner back to owner until hc comes
to the original settler who bought til"
land from the government or tue IL
dams. If there Is any flaw in any
deed, the would be ouyer refuses 10
purchase. He says TO himself: Il am
afraid that ! might be involved In fu-
ture litgations. My children may have
this property taken from them after
am dead will not buy. The title
Is not perfect" Within short dis.
tance Of my Old Brooklyn home there
was a tract Of land which was called
Jackson's hollow II Was IN the very
center Of the city. Well paved streets
ran through IT. The drainage pipes
were all there. The city grew. Tie
houses were built up for miles and
miles beyond this location. Jackson's
hollow was uninhabited for fifty years.
except by few poor families, who
had erected shanties. These poor fam
lilies were squatters. We boys would
play ball In those vacant lots. Jack
eoD,o hollOU I'm ffC status pviStp1 hp.