Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1906-08-31

mind one fact-this Is the first time
for fifty years man has ever been able
to look upon Chinatown and call II
morally pure and clean" Friend. you
have been having n hard time OF late.
Your troubles have been coming thick
and fast. My, how quickly your
money went. Your baby! 1t seemed
she left you in the twinkling OF an
| eye. You are still pale and weak from
that last dangerous illness. You are
like Chinatown. The walls may seem
to be broken and blackened, but they
are clean walls. God has been purify
Ing you by his hot fires Of trouble. He
has been smelling the dross OF sin
out of your sinful heart In the hot,
kissing, seething furnaces OF trouble
he has been making you like unto him
self and Is cneompassing you by his
arms Of love. Hear ye not his SEN
tence, II am come TO send fire upon
| the earthY
| But Gods fires do not aiiude only to
| the flames of creation and OF purifica-
| ton. without doubt they aIluoe to the
hres or battle aud carnage as well. If
a human being will not be purified by
the hot furnaces OF trouble, then he
must fight God and fight him to the
death. In the book OF Ecclesiastes we
read, There is time to rend and a
time to sew, time to keep silence and
time to speak, a time to love and a
time to hate, n time OF war and a time
of peace" Yes, there is a time for
gospel carnage. And Christ further
more said, He that is not with me is
< a o. inst mo nj hn> fhot -
with me scattereth abroad" In other
words, you and I must be mustered
under Christ's standard and warm our
selves by the campfires or else we
must be enrolled among the cohorts of
his enemies and have different counter
signs and different purposes for which
we fight. These fires of my text are
| the CONGREGATIONS OF an invading army
upon the march. as well as the signal
| flames which shall announce to the
world a universal peace.
Curse or a Blessinx.
Now, war may be n curse or It may
| be blessing. 1t depends upon the
| purposes or causes for which we fight
And when speak thus have well in
| mind the awful cost. "Give me the
money that has been spent In war;"
said noted speaker, land will pur-
chase every foot of land upon the
globe. will clothe every man, woman
and child I'm an attire OF which kings
and queens would be proud will
build schoslhouse on every hillside
and In every valley" That eulogy OF
the power OF peace was most beau
| tifully said, but, though past wars
may have shed rivers of blood. do
| not believe the awful gashes of the
soldiers grave trenches were too deep
or too wide for the blessings which
many OF them brought to this suffering
| world.
Were not the blessings which came
to mankind from the overthrow of the
feudai system worth their sacrifices
| of human life? What was the intrinsic
value OF a few thousand or even a few
million lives in comparison to the
freedom OF the home and sanctity of
| our loved ones and the independence
OF mans life. whereby he could put
his arm about his daughter and say to
petty king who claimed to be his
master: Hands OF. She is my child.
She Is miner Were not all the sac
rifices for religious freedom well
made? Would you put out the fires
which burned TO death the mortal life
OF Ridley, Latimer, Huss, Savonarola.
IL In order to do IL we had TO go back
| and grope about amid the superstitions
aud the tyrannies OF the dark ages1 II
Is said when Gustavus Adolphus, the
great king OF Sweden. was fighting his
last battle at Lutzen that amid the
roar and crash OF carnage a little
frightened bird knew not where TO 60.
so he alighted upon the shoulder of
the mighty warrior. Gustavus reached
up and took the little fiuttering heart
In bis hand. Then he spoke a few
soothing words to the bird and hid IL
away for protection inside OF his own
armor. After Gustavus was slain ana
the loving soldiers reverently gathered
about the bleeding corpse 1t is said
that this little bird few out OF the
cloak OF the dead warrior, and no SOON
er did he start to hy away than he be-
gan to sing.
bsrat Up ~ Fire.
Havethere been no blessings born of
that awful period OF fire and blood In
our own nations history? That was q
nre that desoiated homes, north and
south. that destroyed property, bereft
families. broke many hearts But was
1t all loss? Is 1t nothing that the curse
OF slavery was burnt up In that fire?
Has not the brotherhood that now
binds north and south been cemented
In that fire? Has 1t not made civil war
henceforth thing hateful and impos-
SIDE In our borders? Now. God has