The Cairo bulletin., 1904-08-21


ployer. He says to himself: Il must
win. l will borrow So and pay 1t back
very soon" Ilc plays again and loses !,
again. and loses. What is the result?
The next day he dare not confess, SO
he doctors his accounts. He keeps
on using other peoples money until at
last one night in order 10 conceal his
past sins he FORCES. Then all the In
fernai regions clap their hands for JOY
At last they have new victim. The
law places its heavy hand upon that
young mans shoulder. striped suit
and pententiary cell and a broken
hearted mother are the results Of the
sinner trying to conceal his sin behind
a bulwark of many sins.
f But why invent a parable to illus
trate my thought? We can. If we
would, find conspicuous illustration
In the history Of our own country by
following the downward path of one
whose name might have been among
the most honored in American history.
All intelligent men. women and chill
dren In this audience have spoken the
name of Benedict Arnold with execra
ton and contempt. Living or dead,
the sentence which this imbittered ex
lie spoke to the fugitive Charles Maui
rice Talleyrand, who was asking him
for letters of Introduction to friends in
America is tne: II am the only man
born IN America, who fought In the
American war for liberty, who has not
q friend in all America. am Bene-
dict Arnold, the traitor
But today do not see alone Arnold
the traitor. | do not see merely the
betrayer Of West Point. | see, first,
Benedict Arnold the hero of Ticonder-
oga. see Benedict Arnold the hero
and commander of the wonderful ex-
petition against Quebec, which in ltIo
In midwinter marched through the
Maine woods. / see Benedict Arnold
wounded before the walls where Wore
fell and where Montcalm breatied his
last | see Benedict Arnold Of Lake
Champlain and the conqueror at Ridge
field Conn. | see Benedict Arnold
who fought in the first battle of Sara
toga and Benedict Arnold. the Phil
Sheridan of the second battle of Sara
toga. who turned the ebbing tides of
defeat into the flood tides of victory
that submerged Burgoyne and his
troops even as Pharaoh and his hosts
were drowned in the Red sea. Then
at 4 -
mold. wounded the second time at Sara
toga. being appointed to the command
of the city of Philadelphia, to rest there
until his wounds healed. Then ! see
the aristocracy of the American capital
making a pet, social lion, of this hero
of heroes. Then | see Benedict Arnold
running into debt to pay the expenses
of his social triumphs and not knowing
how to extricate himself. Then | see
him led on by sin to conceal sin until
at last he had to do something TO save
himself from financial as well as social
disgrace. Then | see him. as last re-
sort to conceal sin trying To barter
away the citadel of American indie
pendence, West Point. All, my friends.
when Benedict Arnold started on his
downward path of extravaganza he
never intended to be n traitor. His
attempt to betray West Point was
merely the culminatiop of long series
of attempts to conceal sin. Beware OF
the first glass. the first lie, the first
taste of the fruit of the forbidden
tree. Oh. yes But. more than that,
beware OF the internal folly of trying
to conceal sin with sin.
But as we push our way through the
flower gardens and the hedges of par
adise and see our guilty ancestors
standing before God | feel that they
are not willing to leave their hiding
places of sin even after the uncovered
roofs and the curtains OF leaves have
been torn aside. and the guilty pair are
compelled TO confess that the fruit OF
the forbidden tree has been placed
against their lips. Even now they are
both trying To conceal sin within sin.
What is the man trying TO do? Why,
he is trying TO throw all the blame Of
his sin upon his wife. What is the
woman trying to doy She is no bet
ter They are both tarred with the
same black pitch of meanness. Why,
she is trying 10 throw the blame Of
her sin upon the serpent. The man
said. The woman whom thou gavest
to me. she gave me of the tree. and |
did eat" The woman said, THE ser
pent beguled me. aud | did eat" The
young Adam of the present day says,
Il believe all my evil desires were in
herited from my ancestors. and they
are 10 blame. and not myself The
young Eve of modern times. lifting the
glass of wine To her lips just before
her doom. says: Il am not 10 blame.
Other people drink. Every one of my
friends drink: therefore they set me
an example | must follow. They are
10 blame. not myself" The Young
Ilrunkard blames the saloon keeper for
selling him the whisky. The saloon
keeper Justiies himself by pleading
that the voter approves Of his having n
license to stand behind the bar.
The Responsibility of sin.
I believe in many cases the RESPONSE
bility Of sin may be placed upon other