Milford chronicle. [volume] (Milford, Del.) 1878-1974, 1902-09-26


sound advice are given TO worried,
harassed men and women in this SER
mon by Rev Frank De Witt Talmaee,
on the text Ecclesiastes xii, 3, The
grasshopper shall he a burden"
A unique text. capable of many diff
fcrent interpretations. Some suppose
the SolOmonic burden" of the grass
hopper, or, more strictly speaking, of
the eastern locust, refers to the nag
g1ng pains Of the chronic dyspeptic
The locusts. properly cooked, were cdi-
bic. They constituted one Of the most
delicate Of foods They were often
served to invalids and to those whose
weak stomachs We're unable to assimi-
late any other kind of diet. Thus
some commentators assert that the NJ,
ure Of the text is that of an old man
contOrted with pain because his diges-
tive organs have given out. The din
ner of lOcusts which he has eaten in
stead Of being transformed into blood
and bone and nerve and muscle is
lying like Il lump Of lead within him
Others assert that the text is the figure
of an aged man whose emaciated body,
with its shriyeed limbs and curved
backbone, has taken upon itself the
form Of lean grasshopper. Thus
TithOnus in bis old age was supposed
TO have been changed into this chirp-
ing insect because the Greek gods who
had promised him immortality upon
earth had refused to endow him with
eternal youth.
But, though many interpretations are
offered to explain the meaning Of my
text. there is one simple Interpretation
which, believe. viii appeal to the
common sense Of all Solomon used
the figure of the chirping grasshoppcr
to illustrate the fact that if we do
not have the grace of God in our hearts
there will come a time when the little
annoyapces Of life will tease and tanta-
lie and trouble Us, even as the buzzing
of an insect can destroy the slumbers
of a sleeping invalid or as the Slam
ming of door makes a nervOusly pros
trated patient start up in fright and
hedews his cold forehead with clammy
sweat. The wisest Of all men seems to
say to you and me, "The religion of the
Lord Jesus Christ is just as essential
for the little troubles MS for the big,
for the insectile trials az for the noun
famous Affections" The purpose OF
this sermon is to discuss some of the
little annoyances Of life and to state
how, by the grace of God, we may
combat them. / want to present this
theme to those whose physical and
mental frames have been prematurely
weakened by the strenuous, hardwork
ing lives they have been compelled &c
lead as well as to thoge whose once
strong bodies are bordering upon merry
GUS collapse on account of the natural
approach of old age.
Petty AnuOynnces,
The kitchen and bedroom and nurs
cry and parlOr of the average home re
veal many Of the so called petty an
noyances which can render morbid apG
unhappy the minds and the hearts OF
the inmates, especially Of the wives
and mothers 1t is the annoyance OF
trying to build fire early in the morn
ing, when the damper will not work
that eXemplifies how the grasshoppel
may become burden. 1t is the trou
/ bic of getting the children off to sohOo
ut the right time when the tired moth
er finds that her boy has worn Il hol,
in one Of his stockings and there il
not another clean pair to put on. 1t Il
the annoyance of hunting up pair o
scissors which your little girl lost whel
she took them to make dolls dresses
1t is the annoyance OF having tn
butcher and the grOceryman fail Il
bring home the vegetables and th
meats in time to be cooked for dinner
And then there is the annoyance TO tn
wife of having her husband complain
because his meals are not served Oh
time. il is the nagging annoyance tina
comes every little while to all goo,
hOusekeepers of having lot OF peOpl
drop in for dinner at the last momen
when y0n are not expecting them an,
when you have nothing suitable in th
harder to cook for them. 1t Is tn
same kind of annoyance that Martha
in the little village of Bethany. expert
enced when her brother Lazaru
brought Christ and some of the disc
pies to the home. Or it is the annoy
ance Of having company call when tn
children have been playing hide an
seek IN the parlor and have turned tn
furniture upside down as though a cy
clone had struck 1t, or the annOyanc
Of being seen on the stairs by som
particular friend when your hair
unkempt and your dress is disordere
from working in the storeroom or frOI
packing or from putting up lace GU
tains or from canning peaches or NAL
ing currant jellies for the next winter
supply.
The housekeeper's little annoyance
would not amount to much if thel
were only a few of them and if thes
annoyances came but seldom. But IL
trouble with the burden of the gras
, hOppers is that this insect always ira
els in multitudes. They advance /
gwarms by hundreds, by thousand
by millions They travel in such grei
numbers that they make the hul
monsters in the African forests tul
and flee in wild terror for their live
They will destroy every harvest
their tracks and eat bare every If,
y branch. Their advent is a curse, al
' their departure nearly always leav
g complete desolation. In the life of
. Thomas Graham, the great finance
e. who built the Royal Exchange Of 10
- don. we read that he was left fOun
s ling in 9 country field. His moth
i' was poor woman, who deserted hill
IS Sir Thomas. as baby, was discover,
Is in that field and his life was say,
through the chirping of a grasshopp'
II which attracted boy to the pla
where the child was lying. But that
L. the only instance in all history viii
- we remember where life WAS saw
by a grasshopper. AS a rule, the
l. 'usts travel in such swaTms that tn,
inissi seems to be to destroy life a
not to save it.
SOI9mOn's Advice.
T 1t is the accumulation of little ins'
{, Rnnoyances in the home that wreC
the nervous systems and mental hap
= ness Of our wives and mothers and S
tiers, not the individual annOyan,
tal which may only come once in we
a month or in a year. Many a WON
could bravely meet a great trouble
life. Many a woman could conte
TO. plate her execution as calmly and S