Milford chronicle., 1903-10-23
Z, -


Chicago, Oct, 1s.-In this sermon
the preacher scathlns!y exposes and
d6aounces the national evil of gam
bling. which has spread to al classes
and conditions Of men. He utters
wholesome and timely protest against
these forms Of the mania which are
our social and business life.
Tie text Is Genesis i'll. 10, I'm the
sv3sat Of ting face shalt thou eat
bRad."
s6me years ago I was walking in
beautiful Fairmount park, Philadel-
phia, with my father lie suddenly
turned and said to me: "lrahk, next
week l am going to write sermon
upon the question is life worth livlAg:
am going TO show that the solution
of that question is conditional Wheth-
or life is or Is moi worth living de-
pends upon how you live it. II man
lives in this world with the idea that
he is only to receive and not 10 give
if he is cursed with the enervating
conviction that he must be carried
around on a litter and if lie does not
want to be a worker. n labOEer Il doer
for mankind, then life is not w0rth
living. The sooner that man IS dead
the better. But if man goes through
this world realizing the glorious op-
Dortunities of Christian usefulness 9nd
if he is willing to spend and be speut
for others. then life is worth living.
Then the longer we live on earth the
happier we shall be and the more we
shall make others happy
But. though at the Edenic expulsion
the divine command was given, by
the sweat Of thy face shalt thou eat
bread" yet from time immemorial
there have been thousands upon thou
sands of men and women who have
tried to shirk the obligations Of labor
which God has placed ut every hearth
stone. They have been seeking means
whereby through the opened door OF
the Roman temple erected to Fortuna
the goddess of chance. they could pcs
sess a fortune without working for it or
without contributing anything To the
world in return for it. They would be
wreckers pure and simple. They
would become vampires upon the social
organism. sucking out the life's blood
of others. as the Australian bats fasten
themselves upon the backs of the
horses. cattle and sheep until they have
drunk their ill, or as the European
cuckoo lays her eggs in the nests OF
other. birds. or like a pamsitical plant
which absorbs the nourishment OF
OTHER plants. They would drink, YET
never themselves become fountains OF
water at whose sparkling springs 9th
ers might quench their parching thirst
Worshipers of a Blind Goddess.
In every age there have been thou
sands upon thousands Of devotees a
Fortuna's shrine. They are blind wor
shippers of a blind goddess. The an
cient Romans showed their wisdom il
picturing her with eyes shut and large
wings on her feet. She sees Eothin:
of the sacrifices Of her wOrshiperS an(
she cares nothing for the heaItbreak o
those who have given Lcr their all
She cares not whose fortune sh
snatches away. When she gathers n
the gold in her arms those wings ol
her feet can mako her and her treas
urcd burden disappear as quickly as
roulette wheel can whirl, as quickly a
mans deed for his house can chang
hands ut the turning OF Il card, "a
quickly as a race horse can travc
about the track of derly. The goC
dess of chance can fly away so quick.
that in an instant Il man can be RUNE
for time and for rtcEnity.
NY theme is defiant gambling Dc
fant. yeal The gambler defes Go
and in utter rec cklessuess stakes hi
fortune in this world and Lis hopes O
the next. This accursed evil is Il vic
lation Of Gods laws as well as mans
Defaut because when the winning
ard losings Of a gamblers lifetime ar
!9nced it will inevitably be fOun
that 6, a demon Fortuna las robbed he
victim 10Th of is soul and his pocke
book The smile Of this evil genius
more 10 be dreaded than her frowl
The smile aliuree but it hides th
seowl which might warn the devote
of the ruthlessness Witb which she II
tends completely and sternally TO d
stroy him. The Lungma0s suavitit
do not make the ropes grip less fata
Deitberdld the politeness and 6eferen'
with which the Partisan eXecution'
welcomed Louis XVI to tho guiiJotin
,blunt the keen edge of the descenGin
knife.
Gambling Is Robbery,
Gambling is robbery. II takes weali
and gives nothing in return II pui
rot one copper into the worlds frea
n.ry. II plants no seed. 1t digs no gol
frnm thesniiRe. 1t grows no wool upo
the sheo4j's back. II builds no stear
ship lines. 1t panufactures no good
and it ret0ils no finished products.
does ulothi,.lg for national or social d d
welpno> Mt. It had no more to do VII VI,
ieie marvellous development OF u
~ sntieth century than the vast ,i rlcn'
Of the .ratical buccaneers OF o"i ~, n%o s,,,
do with creating the wealth OF ine .a, Tow
,sSfh and the fifteenth ana slA''r,, 81,
centuries. Its mission is always ~, ru'