Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1905-10-07
Calnnage
Sermon
BY Rev.
Frank De Witt Talmade. ID. ID.

Los Angeles, Cal, Oct. LIN the sto-
ry of beautiful Queen Esther, whose
courage and patriotism saved her race
from destruction, the preacher finds
noble lesson for the women OF today.
The text is Esther iy, 16, "lf l PERISH
1 perish"
Have you ever read the blood curdling
story of the massacre Of st. Bartholo-
NEW? No. Then perhaps you have
seen copies of the great masterpieces
Of the Venetian artist, Tintoretto, anu
OF Peter Paul Rubens, entitled The
massacre of the InnOcents." From
these two thrilling pictures you gain
nm idea Of what that most awful trag-
edy In France, known as the massacre
OF St Bartholomew, must have been
ike. In those pictures you can see the
frantic eyes of the mothers watching
the murderors Of their children COM
ing nearer and nearer to their prey.
You can see some of these mothers on
their knees trying to shield their pa
bles with their arms. Or you can see
them with their hands clutching the
murderous blades to ward them OF
from their children, though the keen
edge cut their hands to the bone. Or
you can see some Of these mothers
running away in the distance with
their babies under their arms. In dra-
matte contrast to the pleading, praying,
frenzIed and helpless looks of these
aponized mothers you can see HerOd $
butchers driving in sword here, strlk-
ing down baby there, ripping open
the tender body Of beautiful infant
beyond. tossing up a child farther on
ae trickster might toss card and
catching It upon the edge Of a sharp
pointed knife. All these fiendish MUIR
ders were done as nonchalantly and
unconcernedly and with az much dia-
bolical abandon as was shown by the
agents of Mana Sahib, who entered the
Cawnpur slaughter house during the
Indian mutiny OF 1857 and with their
knives hacked into pieces the women
4 and children until the murderers liter
ally waded in blood.
The Crime of HerOd.
: Yes, the pictures Tintoretto and Ru
bens painted Of that massacre send q
shudder through every one who looks
at them. But, horrible as that tragedy
was. II has been eclipsed more thar
|, once in the worlds history. Far great
: er IN cruelty and in the number OF vic
tins was that tragedy conceived by
the queen mother Catherine de Medic
and carried out by the order of hel
royal son, King Charles IN. Of France
Herod. although he was an inhumal
monstec and capable Of any crime
slew only the male children Of TIVE
q wears and under living in and abou
Bethelehem Of Judaea, and the nuinbe
Y Of his victims must have been compar
D atiyely small. On the other hand, be
J tween twenty and thirty thousand Hu
euenots'in one night fell in the massa
ere Of st. Bartholomew. Old ant
young. rich and poor, unknown peasan
r and illustrious Admiral Coligny, suck
4 ling babes and gray haired men, we
tered In their life's blood on that awfu
b night. Then this slaughter was not re
e stricted In It's area to the French cap
mi. Its bloody work spread throug
the provinces. With one blow the Cati
olic dictator. Queen Catherine, tried
destroy all the enemies of the Catholl
obrrcb forever No wonder Kin
Charles on account of this crime dleC
as did King Richard, In the agonies
remorse.
What the st. Bartholomew slaughtC
D was to France the intended massaci
OF the Hebrews was to be to the Pe
:. sian kingdom of 474 b. c. A corrul
nremier of a corrupt king in order
. triumph over a Hebrew, MOrdecal l
l. name. plotted to extermlnate all u
:. Jews who did not return to the Ho
Land after the captivity was over Ill
when Nehemiah was allowed to retul
TO home to build the Jerusalem wall
es The day Of the massacre had Deeh st
81 The couriers of the king had gone
fhe provinces anu Nbii ~
the orders for the wholesale Dutcher
10 All the executioners' swords had De'
II sharnened. But Haman, the prime MI
10 lister. schemed without knowing III
~ the beloved queen of King Ahasuer
was a daughter Of the despised ID
breys. When Esther, the queen, hea
Of what the premier, Haman, was TO
nv the command of the king she sa
m her foster father, Mordecai: Il W
90 unto the king and plead for my p'
nile This. | know, is not according
III the law but will do all l can to sa
themn Then she uttered these a
matte words of my text, "lf l perish
VI perish"
A Woman's Courage.
-, Perhaps some Of you have listened
~ Handers wonderful oratorio, cal
Esther" Yon have marveled at
thrilling and plaintive notes OF one
the greatest Of all composers. But
touch of Handel can be more oV
70. whelming than the simple story Oh I
is, brave Persian queen as recordeu
es, the Bible. Let me draw for you
'ct plain, practical lessons from a p
of 1t.
This heroic resolution, in the Il
place, was made by woman 1
at NAV seem to some very insignlnc
statement to make. But want to
vou that IN the days Of King Ahas
rus any woman who dared form S
n resolution as Queen Esther m
was literally taking her life IN
- hands. w I one act she was defy
Y all the traditions of the centuries
NJ reference to the position OF won
The wife Of an eastern monarch
or. not suffered to be the companicn'