i
Tilt l)AiLY IiEltALi), iXATrSMOuiiri, iic.-unAoiwA, M()klAV. MAItCII 19, 188S.
iAGEIX THE WEST
.UUENT SERMON ON "THE
.ORATION OF THE SOUL."
Iralile of the I'roJIal Kon It'
Matters Not How Poor AV Aro If XV m
but Wear on Our I!ail tlie Ring of
Chrlat'a Adoption.
Foet Scott, Kan., March 18. The
Rev. T. Do Witt Talinage, D. D., of the
Brooklyn Tabernacle, prcacbel licro this
evening to a crowded conKrcjcation. lie
took for hvi Kuliject "TJie Di'coratioii of
tho Soul," ami hi tea.t wa Luke xv, 22:
'Put a rin; on liis hand." lie saiu:
I will not rchearao tlio familiar btory
of tho fast young man of tho par;ibl
You know wbat u sj!cnil home he left.
Yoi know what a hard timo he had.
Anj you renieiiilx-r how, after that season
of Vagabondage and prodigality, he ro
Bolved to gi and weep out hi sorrows on
tho bosom of parental forgiveneas. Well,
thero i great excitement one day in
front of the door of tho old form Iidum.
Tho ftervantj couio rushing up and mv:
"What' tho matter? What i i tho mat
ter?" lnt lief on they quite arrive the
o!d man rri"sout: "I'm a ring on his
liand." What a seeming nlurdity!
What can such a wrcU.'Iunl mc inlirant as
this fellow that is tramping on toward
the houso want with a ring? Oh, he ij
the prodigal son. No more tending of
tho swine trough. No more longing for
tho puds of tho caroh tree. No moro
blistered feet. OH with the rags! On
with the robe! Out with the ring! Even
bo does God receive every one of us when
we come bk. There aro gold rings,
and pearl rii and cornelian rings, and
diamond ringVbut the richest ring that
ever flashed on the vision is that which
our Father puts ujion a forgiven soul.
I know that the impression is abroad
among some eople that religion liemeana
and belittles a man; tliat it takes all tho
sparkle out of his soul; that he has to ex
change a roystering independence for an
ecclesiastical straight jacket. Not bo.
When a man becomes a Christian ho
does fcot go down, he starts upward.
Religion multiplies one by 10,000. Nay,
the multiplier is in infinity. It is not a
blotting out it is a polisbing, it is an
orboresceiice, it is an efflorescence, it is
an irradiation. When a man comes into
the kingdom of God ho is not sent into a
menial service, but tho Lord God .Al
mighty from the palaces of heaven calls
upon the messenger angels that wait upon
the throne to Uy and "put a ring on his
hand." In Christ are tho largest lib
erty, and brightest joy, and highest
honor, anil richest adornment. "Put a
ring on his hand."
I remark, in tho first place, that when
Christ receives a soul into his lovo he
puts upon him the ring of adoption. In
my church in Philadelphia there came
tho representative of a benevolent society
in New York. lie brought with him
eight or ten children of tho street that ho
""dad picked up, aud ho was trying to find
for them Christian homes ; and as the little
ones stood on the pulpit and sung our
hearts melted within us. At tho close of
ine services c;it jiciii i-.it vi canny man
came up and said: "I'll take this little
bright eyed girl and I'll adopt her as one
of my own children;" and he took her
by tho hand, lifted her into his carriage
and went away.
The next day, while wo were in tho
church gathering up garments for tho
poor of New York, this little child came
back with a bundle under her arm, and
she said: "There's my old dress; per
haps some of the poor children would
like to have it." while tho herself wa3
in bright and beautiful array, and those
who more immediately examined her
said that 6he had a ring on her hand. It
was a ring of adoption.
There are a great many jiersons who
pride themselves on their ancestry, and
they glory over tho royal blood thnt
pours through their arteries. In their
lino thero was a lord or a duko or a
prime minister or a king. 15ut when the
Lord, our Father, puts upon us tho ring
of his adoption we bocomethe children
f the ruler of all nations. "IVholl
what manner of love the Father hath
bestowed u;ioa tw. t'sat we should be
-.lt l ,1... t.t llr. tt tiv.tl, Tint-
lillCU 141V Vk V . V " . . ...... .v - . -.
how poor our garments may be in this
wwld, or how scant our bread, cr how
mean tlio hut-we live in, if we have that
ring of Christ's adoption upon otfr hand
we arc assured of eternal defenses.
Adopt I Why. then, wo aro brother?
and sisters to all the good of earth ar.
. heaven. Wo have the family name, tb:
family dress, the family keys, the family
wardrobe. The father looks after us,
robes tu, defends us, bkvsses us. V.V
have royal blood in cat veins, and thero
are crowns in our line. If we are hs
Children, then princes and princesses. It
is only a question of time when we get
our coronet, Adrteu! Then we have th
family secrets. "The s?cTet of the Lord
is with them that fear him." Adopted '.
Then wo have the family inheritance,
nnd in the day when our father shali
divide tho riches of heaven we sliall take
our eharo of tho mansions and palaces
and temple. Henceforth let us boast no
.more of an earthly ancestry. Tho in
fugnia of eternal glory is our coat of
arms. This ring of adoption puts upon
us all honor and all privilege. Now wo
can tako the won!s cf Charles V.'ey,
-.that prince of hymn makers, and sing:
- v Come, let U3 join our f rieiuls above,
-yjio have obtained tho i;-ir.
And on tha eagle wioipj o lovo
fo joy cee-jia! rise.
j-t nil tlio saioU tcrrestrirJ siH
With those to K'.ory gour:
For all tho serv ants of our Linjt,
Ja Jeven and earth, are ono.
I have Lean told that when any of the
members of any of tlio great secret so
cieties of this country are in a distant
,i r i-;n1 tf frraibfo. and
City aiiu urj m . ,
are set upon by enemies, they have only
to give a certain signal and the members
of that organization will flock around for
defense. And when any man belongs to
this great Christian brotherhood, if he
gets in trouble, in trial, in persecution, in
temptation, he has only to show this ring
cf Christ's adoption, and all the armed
cohorts of heaven will come to Us rescue.
Still further, when Christ takes a soul
Into bis love be puts upon it a marriage
tins. Now. tliat la not a whim of mine;
And I will betroth tb-s unto mo for
rrj I rH 1-"-" f-"i r-o in
tho wedding altar tho bridegroom puts a
ring upon tho hand of tho bride, signify
ing lovo aud faithfulness. Trouble may
come upon tho household, and tho carpets
may go, and tho pictures may go,
tho piano may go, everything c-Uo
may go tho Last thing that goea
i:j tho marriage ring, for it is
considered sacred. In the burial hour
it is withdrawn from the hand and
kept in a casket, and sometimes tho xx.
is ojened on an anniversary day, and ns
you look at this ring yc-u eeo under its
arch a long procession of precious mem
ories. Within the golden circle of tha-
ring thero is room for a thousand sweet
i recollections to revolve, and you think of
the great contrast In.! ween the hour
when, at tho closo of the "Wedding
March," under the flashing lights and
amid tho aroma of orange blossoms, you
set that ring on tho round finger of tho
plump hand, and that other hour when
at tho close, of tho exhaustive watching,
when you knew that the soul had lied,
you took from tho hand, which gave
hack no rcrinsive cbisp, from that
emaciated finger, the ring that she had
worn so long and worn so well.
On some anniversary day you tako up
that ring, and you repolish it until all
the old luster comes b:ick, and you can
we in it the Hash of eyes that long ago
ceased to weep. Oh, it is not an un
meaning thing when I tell you that when
Christ rec ive3 a soul into his keeping ho
puts on it a marriage ring. He endows
you from that moment with all his
wealth. You are one Christ and tho
soid one in sympathy, one in affection,
ono in hope.
There is no jxnvcr in earth or hell to
effect a divorcement after Christ anil the
soul aro united. Other kingj have
turnod out their companions when they
got weary of them, and 6cnt them adrift
frm the palace gate. Ahasuerus ban
ished Yashti, Napoleon forsook Josephine,
but Chri.-t is the husband that is true for
ever. Having loved you once, ho loves
you to the ciul. Iid they not try to di
vorce Jlnrgaret, the Scotch girl, from
Jesus? They eaid: "You must give up
your religion." She said: "I can't give
tip my religion." And so they took her
down to tho beach of tho sea, and they
drove in a stake at low water mark, and
they fastened her to it, expecting that as
the tide came up her faith would fail.
The tido legan to rise, and camo up
higher and higher, and to tho girdle, and
to the lip, and in the last moment, just
as the wave was washing her soul into
glory, she shouted the praises of Jesus.
Oh, no, you cannot separate a soul
from Christ. It is an everlasting mar
riage. Uatllo and storm and darkness
cannot do it. It is too much exultation
for a man, who is but dust and ashes,
like niyself. to cry out today: "I am
xrsuadcd that neither height, nor depth,
nor principalities, nor powers, nor things
present, nor things to come, nor any
other creature, shall separate me front
the love of God which is in Christ Jesus,
1113' IiOrd!" Glory bo to God that when
Christ and the soul are married they aro
Ijound by a chain, a golden chain if I
might say so a chain with one link, and
that one link tlio golden ring of God's
everlasting love.
I go a step further, and tell you that
when Christ receives a soul into ITis love
ho puts on him the ring of festivity.
You know that it has been the custom
in all ages to lestov rings on very happy
occasions. Thero is nothing! more ap
propriate for a birthday gift than a ring.
You delight to bestow such a gift upon
your children at such a time. It means
joy, hilarity, festivity. Well, when this
old man of the text wanted to tell how
glad he was that his boy had got back,
he expressed it in this way. Actually,
liefore he ordered sandals to bo put on
his bare feet; before he ordered the
fatteil calf to bo killed to appease the
boy's hunger, he commanded: "Put a
rhig on his hand."
Oh, it is a merry time when Christ
and tlio soul aro united ! Joy of forgive
ness! What a splendid thing it is to
feel that all is right between mo and
God. What a glorious thing it is Co
have God just tako up all tho sins of my
hfo and put them in one bundle, and then
fling them Into the depths of the sea,
never to rise again, never to be talked of
nain. . Pollution all gone. Darkness all
illuminated. God reconciled. The prodi
gal home. "Put a ring on hi3 hand."
Every day I find happy Christian"
Ieople. I iind Eome of them with no
second coat, some of them in huts and
tenement houses, not ono earthly com
fort afforded them; and yet they are as
happy as happy can lx?. They ting
"Rock of Ages" an no other people jn the
world sing it. They never wore any
jewelry in their lifo but one gold ring,
and that was tho ring of God's undying
aficction. Oh, how happy religion makes
us! Did it mako you gloomy and
sad? Did you go with your head cast
down? I do not think you got religion,
my brother. That is not the effect of
rel gion. True? religion is joy. "Iler
ways aro ways of pleasantness, and all
her paths are peace."
Why religion lihtons all our burdens.
It smooths all our way. It interprets all
our sorrows. It changes tho jar of
earthly discord for tho peal of festrd
bell?. In front of the flaming furnace
of trial it sets tho forge on which scepters
aro luxmmcred out. Would you not like
today to como up from the swine feeding
and try this religion? All the joys of
heaven would come out and meet you,
and God would cry from tho throne:
"Put a ring on his hand."
You are not happy. I see it. Thero
is no peace, and sometimes jou laugh
when you feel a great deal more like cry
ing, The world is a cheat. It first
wears you down TCjth its follies, then it
kicks you out info darkness. It coine3
back from the massacre of a million souls
to attemnt the destruction of your soul
today. No peace out of God, but here is
the fountain thai; ean slake tho thirst.
Here is the harbor where you can drop
safe anchorage.
Would you not like, I ask you not
: perfunctorily, but as ono brother might
talk to another would you not like to
have a pillow of rest to put your head
on? And would you not like, when you
retire at night, to feel that all is well,
' whether you wako up tomorrow morn
ing at C o'clock, or sleep the sleep that
knows no waking? Would you net like
to exchange this awful uncertainty about
t!e future, for a glorious assurance of
heave-.? Accent cf t! -t J "3 t-y-
and dash your lifo out, it would not hurt
you. You would rise up immediately.
You would staud in the celestial ttreets.
You would Ixs amid tho great throng
that forever worship and aro forever
happy. If this day some sudden disease
should como upon you, it would not
frighten you. If you knew you were
going ycu could give a calm farewell to
j our beautiful home on earth, and know
that you arc going right into the com
panionship of those who have already
got loyond tho toiling and tho weeping.
You feel on Saturday night different
from tho way you feel any other night of
tho week. You come homo from tho
bank, or the store, or tho shop, and j-ou
say: "Well, now my week's work is
done, and to-morrow is Sunday." It is
a pleasant thought. There is refresh
ment and reconstruction in tho very
idea. Oh, how pleasant it will be, if,
when wo get through tho day of our life,
and wo go and lie down in our bed of
dust, wo can realize: "Well, now the
work i3 all done, and to-morrow is Sun
day an everlasting Sunday,"
Oh, when, thou city of Ciol,
KliaU 1 t!iy court: aso-nd?
Yheij coc.ire;ratioii neVr break up.
And Sallxitha lia.e no end.
There aro people in this house today
who aro very near the e ternal world.
If you are Christians, I bid you Ixs of
good cheer. Dear with you our con
gratulations to the bright city. Aged
men. who will soon he gone, tako with
you our lovo for our kindred in the bet
ter land, and when you see them tell
tiicm that we aro soon coming. Only a
few moro ccrmons to preach and hear.
Only a few moro heart aches. Only a
few moro toils. Only a few moro tears.
And then what an entrancing spectacle
will open before us!
TVautiful hcavea where all b light,
lJoautiful anReLi colthed in white.
Beautiful strains that never tire,
lautiful harps through all the choir;
There shall I join tho chorus S'.veet.
Worshipping at tho Saviour's feet.
I approach you now with a general in
vitation, not picking out here and thero
a man, or hero and there a woman, or
hero and thero a child, but giving j-ou
an unlimited invitation, sxij ing, "Come,
for all things are now ready." We invito
you to tho warm heart of Christ and tho
inclosuro of the Christian church. I
know a great many think that the church
does not amount to much ; that it is ob
solete; that it did its work and is gone
now, so far as all usefulness is concerned.
It is tho happiest place I have ever been
in, except my own home.
I know there are some people who say
they are Christians who seem to get along
without any help from others, and who
culture solitary piety. They do not want
any ordinances. I do not belong to that
class. I cannot get along without them.
Thero are so many things in this world
that take my attention from God. and
Christ, and heaven, that I want all tho
helps of all the symbols and of all tho
Christian associations; and I want around
about mo a solid phalanx of men who
lovo God and keep his commandments.
Aro thero any here who would like to
enter into that association? Then by a
simple, child like faith, apply for admis
sion into the visible church, and you will
be received. No questions asked about
your past history or present surround
ings. Only one test do you lovo Jesus?
13aptism does not amount to anything,
say a great many people, but the Lord
Jesus declared: "Ho that believeth and
is baptized shall bo saved," putting bap
tism and faith side by side. And an
apostle declares: "Repent and Ixj bap
tized, every ono of you." I do not
stickle for any particular mode of bap
tism, but I put great emphasis on tho
fact that you ought to bo baptized. Yet
no moro emphasis than the Lord Jesus
Christ, the great -head of tho church
puts upon it.
The world i3 going to, after a while,
lose a great many of its votaries. Thero
aro to be revivals of religion that will
shake the earth. We give you warning.
There is a great host coming in to stand
under tho banner of the Lord Jesus
Christ. Will you bo among them 1 Will
you be among the gathered sheaves?
Some of you have been thinking on
this subject year after year. You have
found out that this world is a poor por
tion. You want to be Christians. You
have come almost into tho kingdom of
God; but there you stop, forgetful of tho
fact that to be almost saved is not to be
saved at all. Oh, my brother, after hav
ing come so r.mr to the door of mercy, if
you turn lack, you wiil never come at
all. After you have heard of the good
ness of God, if you turn away and die, it
will not bo because you did not have a
good offer.
God's spirit ivill not alwaya strive
With hardened, self-destroying man;
Ye who persist his lova to grievo
May otver h6ar 1:1s voico again.
May God Almighty this hour move
upon your soul and bring you back from
tho husks of tho wilderness to tho
father's house, aud set you at the banquet
and "put a ring on your hand."
The Prince Consort's Kcsling Flap.
The old Whippingham church, wluch,
in the early days, wa3 an abbey, was re
modeled in the most elegant and exjen
tive manner by the queen, out of her
own funds, in 1801, and is now one of
tho most beautiful houses, of worship in
tho world. All the jxoplo of the parish
attend here, as well as the queen's house
hold, but the latter have their own pri
vate entrance, and are separated from
the common herd by an artistic screen.
Tho royal pew, on the south side of the
chancel, is a square affair, very hand
somely upholstered, and contains a monu
mental tablet to tho menory of tho late
prince consort, with thia inscription:
iTp the beloved memory pf Francis
Albert Charles Augustus Emanuel, prince
consort, who departed this life Dec. 14,
1SC1, in his 43d year. Be thou faithful
unto death, and will give thee a prown
of life. Revelations ii, 10. This monu
ment is placed in this church, which was
erected under his direction, by lus
broken hearted and demoted widow,
Queen Victoria, .1864." Philadelphia
Times, -,
. j . j : ..
Width ot the AniaxotJ
The River Amazon at its narrowest
part J3 nearly a mile wide during tho
period of high water, with an average :
depth of 225 feet, running with a veloc- I
ity of nearly live miles an hour, and clis- j
charging 245,875 cubic yards of water I
pr r-c"?id, or eigbt tim it's t Airy i
EDITED DY THE SCISSORS.
The only true refuge from doubt is the
light of ampler truth.
lvery man on tho Kansas City police
force is a church member.
Phosphates in almost unlimited quan
tities have been found in Florida.
Frenchmen aro beginning to talk a!out
the forbidding of children in circu;-aud
theatres.
Copies of tho "National Anthems of Ah"
Nations" aro to lx provided for all Eng
land's regimental bands.
Baltimore boasts of having a wealthy
society young man who can bako bread
and cook a delicious meal.
Tho number of patents issued in thij
country during 1887 for electrical devices
of various kinds was 1,21H.
All Europe seems impressed with tho
Ixlief that peace can best be maintained
by having everything put on a war foot
ing. The revenues of the Church of England
have declined enormously. The living of
Rochdale, that used to bo worth $.30,000
or 00.000, is now worth only $20,000.
Three physicians havo left Paris for
Australia, taking with them germs cf
clncken cholera. Tho Australians aro
about to adopt Pasteur's plan of destroy
ing their rabbits, in the face of very
strong ojposition.
Millions of jack rabbits migrated from
Oregon to Idaho during the cold spell in
the far northwest. They crossed tho
frozen waters of the Svnl-Hr'-r :i '
ana presenteu u. wuiiuci-.li .,;i;c.a n; iu
the people who saw them.
Tho Bank of New York has a check
yellowed by fire which was drawn by
Aaron Burr Aug. 14, 1781, and also
another check drawn by Talleyrand and
Gulian Verplanck. It is now nearly 101
years since tho bank was'established.
There are 18 different missions in tho
Mexican republic, 11 different denomina
tions, 123 foreign workers, 12,133 com
municants, adherents about 30,000; thero
have been 59 martyrs; thero are 88 or
dained native preachers and G3 unor
dained. The autographs belonging to the collec
tion of the late Ben : Perley Poore havo
been sold at auction, and netted about
$0,500. Tho highest price paid for any
one autograph was $90, for a letter writ
ten bv Edgar Allan Poe upon the subject
of "The Raven."
The barb wire industry is in a fair
way of being overcome. According to
Tho Iron Age there aro forty -four manu
facturers in this country who own 2,lfil
machines. It is estimated that in 2C0
working days, running single turns, they
will make 300,000 tons of barb v. ire
while tho consumption ranges from 130,
000 to 150,000 tons a year.
Some of the society men of Paris are
advocating the adoption of a moro suit
able stylo of evening dress. The costumo
proposed consists of buckle shoes, silk
stockings, knee breeches, velvet coat
(curtailed), laco ruffles, etc. The pro
moters aro anxious to avoid the dress
which causes, sometimes, mistaking re
semblance between guest and waiter.
When the mercury was 22 degs. be
low zero at Virginia City, Nov,, a big
black dog walked to tho mouth of the
Utah shaft of the Comstock mines anci
jumped down. Some asserted that ho
had committed suicide. It is more likely
that he felt the hot air rushing up from
below and wanted moro of it. lie fell
250 feet, and hadn't a whole bone left.
Curious Iir:;o in KI:iiiie.
A curious mirage has been seen at
Gray, Me.: "Tho thermometer stood at
about 20 degs. below, the sun was ob
scured by a light cloud, a slight, misty
haze pervaded the lowlands, but the sky
was otherwise almost cloudless. Sud
denly along the horizon, from north (to
east, tho whole outline underwent a
change as if by magic. Huge pbi-?s,
never seen before, stood out against tho
sky for a radius of ten miles. Further
to tho left npjeartd trees with tho tops
slightly flattened and joined together,
looking like massive columns supporting
a colossal bridge, tho top appearing per
fectly straight and even ; in the center n
ridge of land, covered with .beautiful
elms and maples, was visible, and a hiil
several miles beyond the natural horizon,
wit! i a strip of timber on. it, and a per
spective beyond as far as tho eye could
reach, V-Brooklyn Eagle,
Two Portrait of Toe.
Only two original portraits of Edgar
Allan Poo aro to bo found in this city.
That one of them which hangs in the gi:l
lery of the Historical society is an oil
pointing, and represents him as he looked
in his better days, before the knell of
"Nevermore" liad entered his brain. Tho
other portrait, which is in water, colors
and of 6mall size, belongs to a gentleman
who last week set it on an easel amid a
group of Poo'a admirers. It represents
him in his later years, near the end of
his life, when both body and mind wcro
nearly wrecked. He is. seated on a
chair, over the back of which his right
arm is thrown, and his listless attitude
and vacuous expression are melancholy
reminders of the fall of the magical poet.
One of the party who eaw the old por
trait, aud who had known Poe at that
period of his life, was 6tartled by its real
ism. It was the work of a Philadelphia
artist named Smith. New York Sun.
A Insurance Idea.
A new commercial idea consists cf a
combination of insurance with the ordi
nary commercial agency. A canvass, of
the wholesale dry goods trad in Nev
York city V"3 made nearly a year ago,
and tbe" encouragement obtained was
sufficient not only to warrant the pro
jectors of the enterprise to go ahead, but
also to start upon a second concern of
the same kind. Their plan is to insure
the payment of debts by retail merchants
throughout tha country to New York
wholesalers, jobbers and manufacturers
from whom they buy goods. Thisseem
at first like a wildly reckless undertak
ing. Nevertheless, the two companies
have been sufUciently capitalized to begin
operations on a considerable scale. Pub
lic Opinion.
If, in f?-9 i
"rt, rrorderera cannct ,
FURNITURE
Parlor Sets,
wi Air
FINE :-: FURNITURE
-
Parlors, IScclrooms, Oining-rooms.
Kitchens, Hallways, Ofliccs,
(U) TO
Where a magnificent
J'riccs
HNOFn ft'NG AND
CORNER MAIN AND SIXTH
aitsmou
e
Is enjoying a
& Aft
EDITION S.
Will be one during -which the subjects of
national interest and importance will be
strongly agitated and the election of a
President will take place, 'ihe people of
Cass County who would like tu learn of
Political, Commercial
and Social Transactions
of this year and wor.ld keep apace with
the times should
SITBSO HIBB
FOP. riTIIER THE
Daily or Weekly Herald.
Now while we have the subject before the
people we will venture to tpcak of our
Which is first-class in all respects and
from which our job printers are turning
out much satisfactory work.
PL ATTS3I0UTH.
EMPORIUM.
Bedroom Sets.
r ,i L'Ci'o t'v
VQll -
CD ZEE-! d2 ZEh k2
stock of Goody ami Fair
abotuul.
ALliilNG A SPECIALTY
PLATTSMOUTH, NKIIRAHCA.
era d
Boom in both, it
s
VV J3&&,
NEBRASKA.
rhaps thev-
