Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1904-11-10
Calnnase
Sermon
BY Rev.
Frank De Witt Talmaee, D. D.

autumnal frosts. the stripping of for
est yerdure and the woods now car
peted with the falling leaves the
preacher in this sermon draws n lesson
on the shortncss Of human life. The
text is Isaiah XIV. 6. I'VE all do fade
as n leaf"
Is there any time in all the year
more delightful for vacation In the
country than the Indian summer
OF course 10 the lover OF nature the
valleys and the mountains have their
fascinations at all seasons. Winter
cold, bleak, growing. freezing winter
has her months OF glory. Then the
trees, with their long. outstretched
branches, are like the vcstal virgins of
old robcd In spotless white Then the
stars, through the keen. biting January
nights, CLEAN brighter than any other
time Of the year. Then the country
roads are cchoing with the merrymak-
ings Of the sleighbells, and the lights
from the farmhouse are the beacons
to signal friends to enter the home
where welcome" g written over
every door.
Sprlngtime in the country also has
her months OF glory. That Is the time
we hear the wooings OF bird mating
with bird. That is the time when the
winds are tossing tho white blossoms
every whittier. That IS the time Of
the seed paintings and Of the plowings.
the time when the brooks are rippled
with the trouts' fms, vs. nile summer has
her glory OF the haymakers and the
harvestlngs and the ,!ncyards and the
orchards in which W. all have reveled
year by year when ~ for the August
vacations. But, thou winter, spring
and summer may come 20 US, each with
special forms Of enjoyment, the most
rapturous time Of all the year in which
to spend a few weeks IN the country
Is during the autumn, for then the
glory of October's pride Is the fading
leaf Never in artists studio were so
many gorgeous color mixed together
as God pictures on hl' canvases of the
autumn foliage
Here the trees look ike mighty
"river Of blood" as though their ar
teries had been opened by the Mosaic
rod which incarnadinei the river of
Egypt The leaves have blushed n
deep crimson, as did thc water at the
wedding feast at Cana when. at our
Lords word. II W. borne as new
made wine 20 the Governor at the
feast Under yonder trees it seems as
though aged Jacobs sons we're feast
Ing and had hung up Joseph's coat Of
many colors upon re tree branches
while they were waiting for the lsh-
maelite nomads to coile and take their
younger brother w1Y. There the green
and the yellow, d, red and the pur-
pie, the blue and al the colors OF the
rainbow. nre found blending upon the
same hillside '0nder field looks like
a prairie fire We can almost hear the
flames crackllne amid the underbrush;
We can almost ''el the hot air touch
ing our check Ne look at the strange
and wonderful sRht OF the long grass
es and brushes banged within few
weeks to n ligh; red, and we wonder
not as we see a. birds flying away to-
ward the sum- south, for as they tiy
we can almost sre the pictures Of the
prairie fires OF our youth, when the
birds and the boasts and the serpents
fed in wild terror before the onward
rush Of the con ming conhagration.
The Leaves 81 Indian Summer.
Oh. the beauty Of the autumnal TO-
liage. The fading leaves OF the Indian
summer fasciuate the eye and WOO
plauditory EXCAVATIONS from all lips.
AS we so forih today TO catalogue
some OF them vo find that there are
big leaves and snail leaves, long leaves
and narrow leayes. rough leaves and
smooth leaves nick leaves and thin
leaves. There arr leaves that are vel
low, and red, an brown, and crimson,
and green. am saffron. There are
leaves like those which the tired trav-
elers twist into ups and dip into the
cool waters and lift to their parched
lips. There are caves like the fresh
emerald ones which the picnickers use
for platters whom the nerrymakers
are banuueting N the woods and
leaves like those he field laborers wet
when they place them in their straw
hats to cool their aching brows. There
are leaves which the little children
gather and press straight between the
schoolbook pages. There are leaves
which the maideus collect to fill the
Jars and vases and TO decorate tho
halls pariors and bedrooms Of the
home There are leaves which the
florist cuts to give an added beauty to
the flowers he "a clustering together
for assemblages II Joy and also for
assemblages OF sorrow There are
leaves which have hidden the nests of
the birds while they We're rearing their
young-leaves upon the tree branches,
leaves In the flower gardens. leaves
which have been tossed by the winds
into the dusty road. leaves overhead,
leaves under foot. There are hundred
and and forty and four thousand va
rieties OF them and thousands upon
thousands. Lo, this autumn day there
is a host of falling leaves which no
man can number. They have lived
their short lives, they have faded beau
tifulIy and at last have fallen of and
huttered silently TO the ground. The
ancient Hebrew prophet watching
them as they fell, saw In them sym
Dol OF the failing Of human lives. Az
the leaves fall and die, SO man falls