The Sussex Republican., 1906-01-06
Calrnase
Sermon
By Rev.
Frank De Witt Taimaae. D. d.

'@Vo oh6cieSf Sat.f DcN. ol--lh Lille
sermon at the close of the old year
the preacher deals with the discomfort
In the human heart, which often In.
spires the wish that we might live life
over again. The text is Job II, A, "All
that a man hath will he give for his
life.1
This question naturally arises on
this last Sunday of the year: Would
we like to live our lives over again 2
Would we like to have the year of
1905 again greet us In the swaddling
clothes of newborn babe? Would
we like to make the plea of the old
poet when in rhyme he sang these
now familiar lines:
Backward, turn backward. oh. time in
your flight
Make meIr child again Just for tonight.
Some of us frankly admit that we
would like to live our past years over
again. Others Just as frankly state
that they do not so desire. Benjamin
Franklin belonged to the first group.
In one of his letters to his son he wrote
thus: Il should have no objection to
repetition of my life from its begin
ming, only asking the advantages au-
thors have in second edition to cor
rect some faults of the first. So I
might, besides correcting the faults.
change some sinister accidents and
svents of 1t for others more favorable.
But, though this were denied, should
still accept the offer" But perhaps
Benjamin Franklin would not have
written thus IL he had taken all the
possibilities into account. l would
like to show you In this sermon that
Gods way of giving only one earthly
life to one man is the best way. May
God help us today as we. on this last
Sunday of the year. take a. retrospect
of the years that are gone.
No man, in the first place, could take
the journey of life over again unless
he took with 1t the dangers that he
escaped In his first experience, which
might be fatal to him in his second,
nor could he be sure of achieving again
the successes that he had before.
have been told that when gold was
discovered In California every boat in
New York harbor that could be
brought or seiItls ,drefted into
the service to caTl@e the wesiea4
shores those who were possessed by
the gold fever. So anxious were men
to dig In California hills that they
were ready to risk their lives in any
old hulk. Some three or four hundred
crazy crafts in the year 1850 rounded
Cape Horn. Some of these tubs were
not fit to sail across Lake Michigan on
a summer day. One, have been told,
was nothing but ferryboat. But,
strange to say, all those cranky boats
reached California In safety. Not one
was wrecked that year. Many an Iron
boat with screw propeller has since
been destroyed upon the dangerous
rocks of South America. But during
the first year of the California gold
fever not one boat was lost on the
voyage. So with. us In the journey of
life. We know not how we have
weathered the financial and the do
nestle storms, but we have. We know
only TOO well how fierce the cyclones
have blown OFF our Cape Horns. But,
having weathered them once and real
Ized what the dangers were, we have
grave doubts whether we should ever
be able to weather them again.
And this fact is especially empha-
sized by the awful failures that some
Of our friends have made in life who
were great deal smarter than we and
who were in every way better equipped
for the struggle. 1t Is such little
thing that will turn the scales of sue
cess up or down. That little thing |
always seemed to be on the wrong side |
Of the scales for some of our friends.
Did you ever know how Hannibal |
damlin was first defeated for the |
United States senate? Mr.. Hamlin was |
4 great joke lover. Away back in the |
early forties Mr.. Hamlin was speaker |
,f the lower house of the Maine legis-
ature. There was at that time a MEM
Der of the house whose hair was very |
hin. This member was very sensitive |
about his bald head. In Joke Mr. |
Hamlin leaned over his desk one day |
Ind said: "AIr. So-and-so, you have
made mistake in parting your hair.
You have got two more hairs on one |
iide than you have on the other, ,=That |
vas a harmless joke, was it not2 Yet |
hat man through that joke became
,Ir. Hamlin's bitter enemy. He said,
Mr.. Hamlin has insulted me-" A few
rears later Hannibal Hamlin was the
candidate of his party for the United
states senate. All members of the
daine legislature who were of his par
y voted for him, with the exception of
his one member who had scarcity |
If hair, about which Hamlin once
made a harmless Joke. But the cast
ng of that one vote was the means of
Ieeplng Hannibal Hamlin out of the
enate for six years. That one vote
vas necessary to his election. Thus we
ind that scores and scores of our
rlends have failed In life, as 1t were,
~ the turning of a hair Further
more, as we look back we can see our
uccesses have seemed to come to us
" the turning of hair. Almost were
We hung, not once or twice or thrice,
nut many times were we almost ruin
d forever.
Dangers Escaped.
Do you not remember that awful
truggle val had to get established in
usiness? Night after night you used
o walk the floor. Then, when you
ust got foothold and thiEgs seemed
to be coming your way, do you not
remember those years of panic and
hard times? Would you like to live
hose years over agaln7 Your busi-
less partner broke down at that time
With nervous prostration. He died In
In insane asylum. Your own brain
vas almost crazed. Your hair is white
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