Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1906-07-26
Calnnage
Sermon
BY Rev.
frank De Witt Talmaae, d. D.

Los Angeles, Cal, July 22.-Thai
! diet influences character and thnt 4
man is largely what he eats IS illus.
trated in this sermon, the prcachc,
taking for his text Daniel i. -. prove
thy servants, | bcsccch thee, ten DAYS
what IS victory like?' said lady
friend to the Waterloo conoueror
1.-The greatest tragedy in the world
madam, except defeat" was the an.
swer We'll said, thou iron duke. None
could speak more authoritatvcly. The
world has supposed thy heart ALBANIAN.
tine But even the stones themselves
might almost weep when they arc
drenched with human carnage. The
cheers of triumph can never drown the
sobs Of anguish. The glttcring re.
wards of victory cannot blind our eyes
to the awful price at which that vic.
tory was purchased Lord Roberts,
upon his return from the Boer war,
was Huiitu III LhS iiHu us II conquer
ing chief. When he returned from
Africa to London the whole nation rose
TO do him honor. But while the Brit.
ish were acclaiming the mighty deeds
| Of Little Bobs,' Lord Roberts was
WEARING upon his uniform gricf's, sym
Dol, the black Grape. Lord Roberts
only boy had been shot among the AZ
rican hills. SO is it always with war
We praise the returning chieftans,
but we cannot forget the bloody fields
over which these heroes have waded
and the many grave trenches they saw
filled with the slain bodies of their
valiant comrades.
But If the battleiicldS OF the nine.
teenth century were tue scenes of aw.
full tragedies. what must have been
the horrors of the battlcdelds &C the
fifteenth, the twelfth ana the fifth cen.
turtles and tho hattlcDels OF a thou
sand years ago. In olden times the
conqucrors rarely took prisoners or
liberated their captiveS upon parole
as we do now. The general custom
was to Stay their prisoners or, what
was still more common, to sell them in
to perpetual servitude This practice
was almost universal. Thus many of
! the nations. like the phoeniclans and
the Etrurians and the Cretcs and the
Sicilians, made war for human cap
tives MS well as for gold and silver
These nations were known according
to an old historians definition as man
stealers.' They wanted human slaves
as oarslner to man their Galleys and
| laborers to work in their fields and
men and women 70 be their domestic
servants as we'll as men for chario-
teers. What was true of the great mar
thine states mentioned was also true
OF Egypt and lone and Greece and
Babylon. These mighty cities of clden
times all had their Euman auction
blocks. The greater the conluests of
their returning warriors the greater
number of slaves TO ne nut up and sold
ms common cattle in the market places
Thus, having made this explanation.
we can understand why Daniel and
the finest youths of the Hebrew nation
were carried to NebuchadneZZar'S cap
ltal after Jerusalem had been captured
and overthrown.
The Kings Nent.
No sooner was the Babylonish king
baCl; in his palace than he called one
OF his chief officers, Ashpcnaz by name
and said: "AshpcnaZ. | wish you would
go and look over those young Hebrews
whom | have brought back. Select
three or four Of the finest physical and
mental specimens that are there. Then
for the next three years take them and
educate them and feed them from my
own table. ! want to develop these
men for my own service | want to re-
enforce the Intelligence of my own
court with the best blood Of this Hebrew
nation" The result of this command:
Daniel and his three friends, lIananiah
and Mishacl and AZariah, We're selected.
All, this was high honor for Daniel and
his companions. 1t not only meant lib
Grafton from human slavery, but in
time it also meant membership in the
kings council. But, alas alas, it seems
as though Daniel is foolishly going to
upset all his political prospects. When
the food and the wine from the kings
table are placed before him, Daniel re-
fuses them because they are forbid
den dct-are unclcan according to
Jewish law. But" says the kings
chamberlain, you must eat this meat
and wine, for If you do not the king
will not only punish me, but also will
probably slay YOU. And he will surely
know this refusal by your starved
looks" Then Daniel spake the words
of my text: prove thy servants, be-
seech thee, ter days, and give us pulse
to eat and water 10 drink. Then let
our countenanccs be looked upon be-
fore thee and the countonances Of the
children thai eat of the portion Of the
kings meat, and rs thou seest deal
with thy servants SO the royal OH
Ger consented to them IN this matter
and proved them ten days. You all
know the result of this test. At the
end OF ten days the countenances Of
Daniel and his three friends We're
"fairer" and fatter in flesh than all the
children who did eat the portion Of
Che kings meat. Such today is the
simple story from which we will draw
our sermonic theme. And may our his
tory in life be like that of Daniel, who
refused to eat the kings meat.
I Of nc nou, lool; Dt O,Ir S,Ibinct n IF.