Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1902-01-04
1COpyrlght. Louis Klopsch. 1901


how the evening Of life may be bright
ened. The text is l. Kings Xxx, IL, LET
not him that girdeth ON his harness boast
himself as he that putteth it OFF,"
Harness is the obsolete word for armor.
1t means harness for the man. not haI-
ness for the beast harness for battle, not
harness for the plow. The ancient armor
consisted Of helmet for the head, breast
plate and shicl1 for the heart, greayes
for the feet. The text makes complri-
son between man enlisting for some
war and veteran returning. the one
putting on the armor and the other put
ting it off.
Bcphadad, the king of Syria, thought
he could easily overcome the king CT
Israel Indeed, the Syrian was so sure
of the victory tina! ne spread an antebel-
lum banquet. With thirty-two kings he
was celebrating what they were going 10
do. There were in all thrity-thrcc kings
at the carousal, and their condition is de-
sceibed in the Bible not rs convivial or
| stimulated eXaltaton, but drunk. Their
glltled and hammered payilions We're sur
rounded by high melted horses. neighng
and champing, and hitched to chariots
such as kings rode in Benhadad sends
officers over TO the king of Israel demand
| ing the surrender of the city. saying,
Thou shalt deliver me thy silver and
thy gold and thy wives and thy children"
and afterward sends o'ncr officers, say
| ing that the palace of the king will be
searched and everything Benhadad wants
he will take without asking. Then the
king OF Israel called a council Of war.
and word is sent back to Benhadad that
his unreasonable demand will be resisted.
Then Benhadad sends another message
| to the king of Israel, a message full of
| arrogance and bravadO, practically say
ing: We will destroy You utterly l
viii grind Samaria into the dust, but
there will not be dust enough to make a
handful for each one of my troops" Then
| the king Of Israel replied to Benhadad,
| practically saying: Let me see you do
what YOU say. You royal braggart, you
might better have postponed your ban
| Quet until after the battle instead of
| spreading 1t before the battle. You huzza
| too soon. Let not him that girdeth on
his harness boast himself as he that put
| teth it off 4"
An avalanche of courage and righteous
| ness, the Israeltish army came down on
| Benhadad and his host. 1t was hand to
hapa fight, each lsraelite hewing down a
! Syrian. Benhadad, on horseback gets
away with some of the cavalry, but is
only saved for a worse defeat, in which
| 100000 Syrian infantry were slaughter
cd in one day. Now we see the sarcasm
and the epigrammatic power OF the mes
sage of my text sent by the king of ls
| rael to Benhadad, Let not him that
girdeth on his harness boast himself as
he that putteth it off,
Pride Goeth Before Il Fall.
All up and down history we see such
| too early boasting. Soult, the marshal of
France, was SO certain chat he would
conquer that lie had proclamation print
ed announcing himself king of Portugal
and had a grand feast prepared for /
o'clock that afternoon, but before that
hour he fed in ignominious defeat, and
Wellington of the conquering host sat
down at o clock at the very banquet the
marshal Of France had ordered for him
self. Charles V. invaded France and was
so sure of conquest that he requested
Paul Jeyins, the historian, to gather to-
gether large amount of paper on which
20 write the story of his many victories,
but disease and famine seized upon his
troopers, and he retreated in dismay. SO
Benhadad's behavior has been copied in
all ages Of the world. IT will he my OBJ
ject, among other lessons, TO show that
he who puts off the armor, having finish
ed the battle, is more TO be congratulated
than he who begins.
First, had encouragement in this sub
ject for the aged who have got through
the work and struggle of earthly life My
venerable friends, if you had at twenty
Eve years of age full appreciation of
what you would have to go through in
the thirties and the forties and the tfties
Of your lifetime yoH would have been APP
palled. Fortunately the bereavements,
the temptations, the prosecutions, the
hHrdsbipS were cnrtained from your
Hgnt. With more or less fortitude you
passed through the crises Of pain and
sadness and disappointment and fatigue
and still live TO recount the divine help
that sustained you. At twenty or thirty
years Of your age at the tap of the drum
you put on the harness. Now, at sixty
or seventy or eighty, you are peacefully
putting it off. You would not want TO
try the battle OF life over again. so
many Of just your temperament and with
as good starting and as fine a parent
age and seemingly With as much equi-
poise OF character as you had have made
complete shipwreck that you would not
want again to run the risks. Though
you can look back and see many mis-
takes, the next time You might make
worse mistakes. Instead Of being de-
pressed over the fact that you are being
counted out or omitted in the great I'M
dertakings OF the church and the world.
rejoice that you have right to hang mp
your helmet and sheathe your sword and
free your hands from the gauntlcts and
your feet from the boots If mail.
Glad TO BE at Peace.
At the Soldiers Home in the suburbs
Of this city ] often admire the peaceful
and conteDted looks OF the venerable he
roes as they sit under the trees or 90 in
and ont the fine abode that our govern
ment has appropriately provided for
them. They are not longing for other
Chapultepecs. They DO not want 10 I'M
dertake another South Mountain. Their
foot does not ache to ges into the stirrup