The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1909-05-11

~ ono TO go to church with an
earnest. praying heart. in a reflective
mood, who did not get something out
of the rmo even if the style, de-
livery and thought was iull OF IauitS
and dull as ditch-Water.
Writing Of bring to mind a
notice / read several years ago OF q
new and rich Asst advertised as
.The Sermon Bible IN eight volumes,
each one containing more than tive
undred outlines OF sermons ana NOV
sands OF special references. L nave
never seer the work or my special ref
erence to its since. But it struck me
as a rich review for some fOIkS. IN
england it is common for preachers,
as / have heard it mentioned. to use
freely the productions of others; ana
it is not regarded as u~nbecon1ng, I'M
moral or dishonest. My Old frlend,
the late Rev. DR.. Thomas G. skinner
Of Raleigh, who spent some twenty
months in England during the great
war told me that sermons were print
ed in proper shape for special use by
purchasers. Some of the preachers
buy enough Autographed sermons to
last them every Sunday during the en-
tire year. A few gifted. able men
produce for the others. This of course
makes the ability of the average pui-
pit strong but not original. The
preachers, who use the rmo must
have but little ability of their own, II
endowed with extreme lazlnesS. l nave
come across a reference to the work
referred to that appeared in the Lit.
Churchman" but I do not know where
It was published. It said Of this new
new candidate, SO cheap and service
able, the price being but $3.50, for the
eight volumes, but others to come
when this notice was Written:
1--WE do not hesitate to pronounce
this the most practically, useful
work of its kind at present extant.
1t is not a commentary, but a ines
aurus of on texts arranged
consecutiVely, chapter after chapter,
and book after book
In addition to this work there are
thousands of sermons to be found IN
outline or quite complete, in pulpit
Helps Encyclopedias and other sim
liar works. It is easy for a man TO
preach a life time and never make a
ermon Probably this is often done.
The grandest arena in all the world for
real genius or great intellectual power
or high and ennObling elOquence is the
pulpit. But for the poVerty-smltten,
commonplace, uniformed mine it is
the best hiding place in the world ana
the easiest to be fairly Well occupied.
/ may add that the greatest sermons
| have ever heard were of good
length, say from forty minutes to an
hour. AS I have said the greatest ser
mon of all l ever heard was one an
hour in length. 1t is singular how i'm
patient most hearers Of the Gospel
are. They weary and complain if a
sermon be a half hour in length. They
can go to a theatrical entertainment
and sit contented for an three hours,
and like Oliver Twist ask for more
They can go to a political gathering
and drink in all that is said if it lasts
for hours. But a sermon. however
superb in diction or thought, is to be
complained of it it teaches three-quar-
terS OF an hour. Any one really hun
CRY for the Gospel of the Son Of God
can not weary if the feast of reason
and flow of sOul' really extends to
fifty minutes or an hour. Pray more
before YOU go to church and be sure
not to read secular newspapers as a
preparatiVe for the ermon to be
heard.