The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-01-01
DIR. TALMAGE'S SERMON.


i along dragging by the bridle beast of
 burden, which, with the characteristic
 stubbornness of its kind, is holding back
 merely because the owner jerks the head
 and wants to hurry along. The village
 is long and narrow Most of the houses
 line the one principal street. Crowds of
 men stand upon the street corners or
 gathers in large numbers and with vehe-
 ment gestures whisper curses among
 themselves against Herod who was
 building a heather temple in honor of the Roman emperor The door of the inn
 is blocked with rustics who are trying to find lodgings. The owner of the hotel
 is insulting the people because they will
 not stop bothering him. It does not take
 hotel clerk long to get ugly If he has
 more customers than rooms. Joseph
 stops and asks some bystanders where he
 can find lodgings They all shake their
 heads and shrug their shoulders. Some
 ridicule him for asking such Q question,
 when he can see for himself the crowds clamoring to get into the village hotel. Joseph turns and looks at his young wife seated upon the beast of burden
 which he Is leading She has a heauti- ful face, a sweet face, a loving face,
 pure face She is Mary, the Virgin. Fin ally some man, more sympathetic than the rest, seeing Josephs troubles, points him to khan or public stable, and says, Perhaps you may find room there Mary's strength has almost given out when they enter the low archway. Joseph tenderly lifts her down from the beast | of burden. Some one kicks the oxen to make them arise because they are talk | ing too much room. Even here space is at | a premium. After the kind hearted | hostlers have thrown some straw into the stone crypt or manager Mary Is placed in | the humble couch among the bleatng of ha ha nf 10 Ia | and the neighing of the horses whinnying l for their oats.
 l This is the most important of all nights. | It is awfully solemn. All history will | hereafter date itself from or toward this l scene-A. D. and B. c. Upon the Judaean hilsides the affrighted sheep are running | hither and thither, looking for their shep- | herds. Animals intuitively know when | something unnatural is about to happen. | The cattle can smell the blood long be- | fore they are driven into the slaughter | houses to be killed. When the South Car | olina earthquake shook Charleston few years ago the dogs crouched at their mas | ters' feet, and the birds hovered around, 1 uttering shrill cries of fear, as though | human beings alone could protect them. | The horrible picture of Dore's flood | where a lioness with her whelps trembles | upon rock by the side of an affrighted | woman holding in her arms a babe is not d. ZOOlOBlCdl dDSbiuily <aitihdiS HI bAiS' of danger naturally seek the protection of man. There is a strange silence brood ing. The shepherd anxiously grip Yheir slaves and prepare for an unseen battle,
 which they feel sure Is about to come
 First Christmas Morn.
 Suddenly a star breaks from Its fas- tenings and begins to tumble through space On and on 1t comes like a me- teor. With frightful velocity 1t heads toward this planet, ready to plunge into 1t, as the human foot might crush an insect an ocean liner might run down a fishing smack or a large express engine crash into a hand car. The terror-strick- en astrologers see it flying toward the earth. Suddenly 1t stops and seems to be watching something that is happening in the little village of Bethlehem. The angel who once stood at the garden of Edens entrance now unsheathes his sword and cuts the curtain of the night in twain. The waves of light rush down and push the darkness to the right and to the left. Great multitudes of angels begin to sing. As the glory of God shines around the prostrate shepherds there sounds forth the voice of an angelic messenger, saying, Fear not. for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great Joy!'' Such
 was the advent of the angelic messenger. Such was the message which he brought to the shepherds on the first Christmas