MODERN SERMONS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2287, 30 December 1897, Page 53

MODERN SERMONS.

No. 4. "This is the house that J.ick built."

That is the first portion of my text, dear fiieuds, co you see thai for a start we have Domethiiig definite ; we are not simply told that this is the hcu'e, but that it is " the house that Jack built." Now, if Jack was anything, he was sv far-se«iug mau, for do we not read that " This is the malt that lay in the house that Jack built." Anticipating a rise in the price of barley, and wishii'g to profit by that rise. Jack bought up all tbe mslb that he could get. But;, like many other men, he bad an enemy. Thia was a rat, and of him it is said that

"This is the rat that ate the malt."

Now I do net wish to impute any greedy or sc-lilih motives to this rat. Probably he waa well aware thai; ifc was through malt that many men make bc-a*ts of themselves. "Beasts," said the lat to himself, "are alreidy too numerous. If their number is increased the struggle for cxistenca will become fiercer ; so it amounts to this, if I do not, by eattug this mal*-, save men from becoming beastp, we shall have to eat our • brothers and our sisters, our cousins and our aunts ' I will either prevent such a catastrophe or perish iv the attempt." He porished in the attempt, for we are introduced to his destroyer in the following words. •

" This is the cat that killed the rat.'

As I dealt generously with the rat, even so will I deal with the cat. There is every reason for supposing that he wa? a friend of pub'icans and sinners. Here him speak for himseU : "If this rat cits all tho malt the publicans must cither miss tic price cf beer or they must s-.ipply Ihpir customers with an inferior article. This shf.ll not be." Having spoken these words he pounced on tbe robber, and, intoxicated with succ-sss, vdry imprudently shook the fruits of his vic-ory in the face of one of whom it is written :

" This is the dog that woiried ths cat."

Having dealt charitably with the rat and the c^, Lt us not be]liar?h with the dog. He may bave been very hurgry, aud have worried the cat because he wished to eat the rat. It v?as hunger that caused B<au t j sell his birthright ; a>>d surely if a man will part with euch a treasure eiruply becau'e he is hungry we ought not to dea\ hari-lily with a dog who only worried a cat for the same cause. Alas ! lhat such sentiments were nob mo;e prevalent iv the "days of this unfortunate d<jg. Thty were not, or I thould be spared the paiu I feel whenever 1 come aero -6 these words :

" This is the cow, with t' c crumpled horn, That tossed the dog."

Imagine, dear friends, the smile of satisfaction which s":ole over the features of the cow as ehe watched tho behaviour of the dog to the cat. "Ha.! ha! my fine fellow," we fancy we hear her say, "every dog has its day; only wait till you come this way and you shall speiid a portion of one day a little nearer the skies than you are now." The dog toon after crossed the p-ith of the cow. She ran ab him, aud fixing her horns in his side, totsed him into the air as though she were a boy and the dog a brass button. But enough of these scenes of slrife. Let us now, dear friendc, learn a few lessons from "scenes more in accordance with the traditious of Arcadia. Look yonder: there- is the cow lhat tcsstd the dog ; but who is she that stands beside the animal ? " This is the maiden all forlorn, That milived the cow with the crumpled horn." This maiden, being forlorn, claims our pity ; bub what can we say of " The man all tattered and torn, Who ku&ed the maiden all forlorn."

Wby, dear friend,, this is what we can say, thftt. had he lived in our days, and done this thing on Tooting Common, he would have been fintd 40 sh'llings, even though the maiden had not resented his careese3. Be careful to entertain strangers, my friends. This poor girl had nothing to give the man, so- she let him take a kiss. Iv return for that kiss, he gave Ler his heart; and, to her great surprise, the found out that the man ell Uttered and torn was Jack ; who, like many wealthy men, often went about disguised, in order that he might the better see the true natuie of bis fellow creatures.

la closing this discourse, I'^ould briefly call your attention to "The priest all shaven and shorn, Who married the man all tattered and torn, Who kit.sed the maiden all forlorn."

Wavy of you, dear frieuda, ridicule the oriesls for tlius divesting themselves of their

hirsute appendages. It would be well just now, were we of the male sex, io follow their example ; the effect of such behaviour on our parts would be an increased demand for the articles used in tousorial establishments. Were I to como here next Sunday and sec you all thus shaven and shorn, it would convince me that you "wished to bring about a revival of trcde, one result; of which, I trust, would be an increase in the amount derived from the letting of pews iv this place. As half of that amount is given to the occupant of this pulpifc, you will prove that you have my welfa.e at heart by presenting yourjelvea here nexb Sunday all shaven aud shorn. Tho last character spoken of in this history is "The cock that crowed in the morn, That waktd the priest all shaven and shorn." Now, as regards the behaviour of this cock in particular, and cocke in general, there can bs but two opinions : those who are early riters, no doubt, hail with gladness the first notes of " bright chanticleer " ; but those who burn the " midnight oil," and so fir.dit necessary to sleep long after tho aurora of morn has appeared, bear the cromDgs of these birds with a feeling almost akin to tlat which the condemued in Newgate experience when the bell of St. Sepulchre wSiriis them that their time has come. — Mons. (Author of " Ja<k aud Jill.")