The Farmville herald. [volume] (Farmville, Va.) 1890-1934, 1903-09-04
SIN OF SELF MURDER
Suicide the Theme of the Rev.
Or. Talmage's Sermon.
The Eminent Divine Charges Nthe-
ism With the Respon~ibiiiS For
This Awful Crime-t hri~t
H. the Remedy.

copyright. 1913 by Louis K'opschl
CHICAGO. July - ln view OF the
startling increase in the crime of self
destruction. as shown boy the latest
statistics. the subject chosen by Dr.
Talmage for his discourse today is a
most timely one His text is Job 80. o.
Curse Cod and die"
Two Indictments desperate fierce.
definite outrageous. The one urges
the broken hearted father the financial
bankrupt. the physically tormcnted
man. 10 grit his teeth and. with flash
ing eyes and uplfted hand. hurl fu-
tile mulcdiction at the Almighty. 10
curse God with an eternal blasphcmy.
What shocking, appalling suggestion
Enough to make all heaven stand
aghast IN horror and 10 render even the
demon infested caverns Of a hopeless
inferno silent with fear and 10 turn
the flushed cheeks afame with the fires
Of eternal woe white with terror
Curse God. Who could do that hut
human being crazed and desperate ana
reckless under intolerablc angui>ht
The second incitement puts 100 the
hands OF the sufferer the suicides
knife. the hangmans moose or the vial
Deadly Poison" TO how many in
every age has that inSidious temptation
Gomez In the United States alone
more than 10000 persons have yielded
10 il during the past four years. In
Chicago alone l.294 persons passed ont
OF life by the suicides gate in three
years nine victims on "a single sab
bath. In two months Of the present
year scventy-hve lives have ended in
self immolation. How long viii the
human race listen 10 that hidcous voice
which babe Job seek in death escape
from his misery? That tempter's voice
IS sounding louder and louder every
dav Shall the crime OF self murder
be allowed longer TO spread the per
nicious doctrine that with one stroke
OF the razor across the jugular vein
or with one plunge i'm front of dying
/ locomotive or with one leap from high
building or lofty palisade the would be
suicide can find rest. eternal rest God
given. blissful Oblivion for all who are
weary Of life and peace for souls sick
Of the results Of sin?
The increasing suicidal epidemic Of
/ the present generation should be halted
I'm its onward march Of destruction. ]
/ Hft my voice today i'm warning against
| this evil II cannot be stayed 10y up
braiding a mangled corpse or by call
| ing a dead man coward. ] would
prayerfully aud earnestly try. 10 indi-
,Y~,,rng hest ah~w T." '---'''ose p
cate some or the causes which prOduc
it. Then. in guarding you against th
incipient evils. | might perhaps by th
grace Of God keep some from ever tot
tering and swaying on the verge Of tn.
precipice or tumbllng into a suicidel
grave The gunpOwder magazine car
be- exploded by a spark We woul,
deal this morning with primal causes
rather than with resultant conflagra
tiOns
First. / charge atheism with the chief
responsibility for the crime Self mur
der is the hideous black yisagcd cx
ecutiOner Of the merciless monster we
call atheism, agnOsticism, iniidelity. II
is the old, slimy serpent coilcd up nm
der the oyershadowing branches Of the
gnarled and worm eaten tree of unbe.
lief. at the foot Of which sits the grin
ming. blear eyed hag misery grooming q
dirge for a lullaby II is the death rat-
tie of human being whose parched
lips have been set 10 the rim Of the
challce filled with the scorching. poi
sOnOus concOction Of basphcmy and
| falsehOOd compounded by a Noltaire. a
Rousseau. Thomas Paine or Robert
I G.. IngersOll. II is the milestone. wet
with human blood. upon which the
moral Sensibilitles can be- bluntcd aud
st the same time the suicides knife
sharpened. FOR IL teaches immortal man
that there is no hereafter and that he
Is responsible for his life's actions 10
no Divine Maker and King.
No suicidal razor was ever honcd
upon the leaves of the opened Bible
Though the morning newspapers al
most every day are blackened with
the awful obituary tragedies Of men
and women who have deliberately
taken their lives by the bloody hand
OF self murder. you cannot find among
those who perished. in the full posses
sion Of reason single consecrated
Christian church member. You can.
not find one person among them all
who realized that he was beloved
child Of God and that lac expected 10
20 10 meet loving Heavenly Father
unless the person killed himself dur
ing a tit Of temporary insanity. as did /
Hugh Miller the great Scotch scientist. /
who blew out his brains during men /
tai arrangement. or TINT eminent New |
York clergyman who. I'm delirium. /
leaped from a window. Why? The /
Bible distinctly aud emphatically de.
clares that no man has a right 10 COM
init self murder II warns men that
they must answer FOR this terrible
crime before the Judgment seat Of
Christ. and il holds out 10 them no !
hope Of pardon during all eternity.
The whole tendency Of the gospel Of
Jesus Christ is opposed 10 this suicidal
epidemic; the whole tendency Of unbc-
lief is TO promote and increase 10. TO \,
the atheist life is a single span. one d
ibutment Of which IS the cradle and ]
he other the grave. at which he meets
TO such a man there is
no better principle Of life than TO eat.
wink aud hc merry. FOR tomorrow be- !
lies H. would make life comedy
or al md death great finale. {
'i'"I'n ' ".r 100 the gospel says: III q
here is hell II IS to be found this side
ud not the other side Of the grave j
When things 20 wrong the best way q