Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1906-09-10
Calnnase
Sermon
By Rev.
Frank De Witt Talmaae. d. d.


in this sermon, the text for which the
preacher takes from Isaiah iii, 8, "They
declare their sin as Sodom; theF hide
II not"
The study Of the lives of great men
has always been with me passion.
Next to reading the works of the great
authors and the speeches OF the great
orators have always had a longing to
know how these leaders of thought
looked and llyed and acted in their
public and private lives. Thus as a
young man when had the opportunity
of entertaining In our home DR.. Byron
SUNDERLAND. who was to preach in the
Brooklyn tabernacle a couple of Sun
days, 1 literally pumped the old man
dry Of all his "reminiscences. Great
was his well of information and per-
sonal experiences.
DIR. byron Sunderland for nearly
half century had been a resident of
Washington. He was not only known
as die pastor of presidents, but for
years he had been chaplain of the Unit
ed States senate. Webster and Clay
and Benton and Pierce and Lincoln
and Conkling and Blaine, all the
mi khty political giants north, south,
east and west, had been his intimate
friends or acquaintances. Hour after
hour would speed by as the old man
fnlked to me- i remember well the last
night we were together. 1t was nearly
Il o'clock in the morning when l said:
''Dr Sunderland, you have been de-
scribing to me many men. Tell me
the strongest personality you have ever
known" Then the old man said:
1.-THE scene was not in Washington; it
was in Salt Lake City. The man was
not Webster or Clay; he was Brigham
Young. Many years ago the Mormon
church challenged the gentiles to de
bate, and some of the leading ministers
of the east took up the challenge. Bish-
op John Z. Newman of the Methodist
church and myself were delegated to
meet the Mormon representatives. The
debate took place in the Mormon taber-
nacle, which holds some 10000 audi
tors. The debate had been going on
for some days, and we had come to the
closing night Bishop Newman was
summing up and making his perora-
ton. With the skill of an accomplished
orator he was wheeling his facts into
line, and he said substantially: There
fore, IL this is so and If that is so and
il the other,thing is so, then we are fore
ed to the conclusion that Mormonism
stands for nothing else besides licensed
Lbertinism and wholesale fraudp Ten
thousand angry men and women in
stantly leaped to their feet and began
to press down toward the platform.
The cry was taken up everywhere:
Lynch him! Lynch him! Kill him!
Stab the heretic's heart! Kill him!
Lynch him nowr
II sat beside Newman at the time, "
continued DR.. Sunderland. Il did not
see one avenue of escape. Suddenly
Brigham Young arose and stepped to
the front of the platform. He swung
his arm out over that cursing, swear
ing, angry mob and uttered just two
n words, sit down. They dropped into
their seats as the grain falls before the
MSS of the scythe. That was to me the
,noN marvellous scene | ever witnessed
as came under the leaders spell
realized that he was one of the creates
of men and one of the most dangerous
if not the most dangerous, to American
liberties who had ever trodden Ameri
can soil"
What Byron Sunderland said to m
over fifteen years ago was absolutel
true. Brigham Young was one of tn
greatest and one of the most corrur
men who ever lived on American sol
His evil influence is bringing forth II
baIeful harvest today.
h.iveAeen to Salt Lake City. Il hay
carefully r,hd many of the books wri
ten both fE the advocacy and for Il
condemnation of Mormonism, and fro
the mass of conglOmerate testimor
into which l have delved l can con
hut 10 one conclusion-that JOSEF
Smith was a crack Drained epilept
who. with Ills fits of hysteria, was ju
the man for little while to appeal
the ignorant and superstitious Peep
with whom he came in contact. b
Josepb Smith could never have create
the Mormon church. 1t needed mo
than ain epHeptic visionary TO do tia
No sooner was Joseph Smith dead (aI
he died some fifteen years after he hf
begun to proclaim himself prophe
than this monster manipulation, To
modern Blue Beard, this leprous Fran
enstein. this robber Of mems gold al
of women's morals, Brigham 1oun
stepped forward and gathered togeth
Smiths .crazed followers and mold'
them together into a social organis
of which he was to be the, chief bloc
letting vampire. And all that Brigha
Young stood for fifty years ago L
present head. of the Mormon chur'
stands for today. though the claw ms
have temporarily Sunk out of sight
the soft flesh Of the tigers paw.
stands the same Today.
To show thatsthe Mormon church
aav stands exactly where it did in Bri
ham Young's time ] would quote pa
of the interview which Irving Sayfo
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