Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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. KEY. DR. TALMAGE. / (THE BROOKLYN DIVINE'S SUNDAY SERMON. Subject: "Preeminent.1* Text: uHe that oometh from above is Mbove all."?John iiL, 81. i The most conspicuous character of history :0teps out upon* the platform. The flnzer which, diamonded with light, pointed down [to Him from the Bethlehem sky was only a iratification of the finger of prophecy, the i-a ? 1 i.L.j J -.u_ o luuger ui geneuiu^y, me uu^ci m v.u<uuuiu^^, jthe finder of events?ail five finders pointing Jin one direction. Christ is the overtopping |figure of ail time. He is the vox huroana in lall music, the gracefulest line in all sculp| tore, the most exquisite mingling of lights ,and shades in all [tainting, the acme of all climaxes, the dome of all cathedraled grandeur and the peroration of all splendid lan,guage. j The Greek alphabet is made up of twentyjfour letters, and when Christ compared i Himself to the first letter and the last letter, the a pba and the omega, He appropriated to Himself all the splendors that you can jspell out either with thosa two letters and ail letters between them. "I am the Alpha and the Ome^a, the beginning and the end, the first and the last." Or, if you prefer the Jwords of the text, "above all." It means, after you have piled up all Alpine and Himalayan altitudes, the glory of Christ would have to spread its wings and j descend a thousand leagues to touca those summits. I'elioo, a high mountain of Tnessaly; Ossa, a high mountain, and Olympus, a high mountain; but mythology tells us whon th? (Hants warred against the zods they piled up these three mountains, "and from the top of them proposed to scale the heavens; but the height was not great enough and there was a complete failure. And after all the giants?Isaiah and Paul, ?rophetic and apostolic giants; Raphael and [ichael Angelo, artistic giants; cherubim end seraphim and archangel, celestial giants?have failed to ciimb to the top of Christ's glory, they might ail well unite in the words ot the text and say, "He that cometh from above is above all." First, Christ must be above all else in our preacaing. There are so many books on homlietics scattered through the world that all laymen, as well as all clergymen, have made up theirminds what sermons ought to be. That sermon is most effectual which most pointedly puts forth Christ as the pardon of all sin and the correction of all evil, individnal, social, political. National. There is no reason why we should ring the endless changes on a few phrases. There are those who think that if an exhortation or a discourse have troquant mention of justification, sanctiflcatioD, covenant of works and covenant of grace, that therefore it must be profoundly evangelical, while they are suspicious ot a discourse which presents the same truth, but under different phraseology. INow, I say there is nothing in all the opulent realm of Anglo-Saxonism or all the word treasurers that we inherited from the Latin and the Greek and the Indo-European ttta hoi'a a -ricrhfc tn mnrahnl It in rfllic# ions discussion. Christ sets the exaccple. His illustrations were from the grass, the flowers, the spittle, the salve, the barnyard fowl, the crystals of salt, as well as from the was and the stars, and we do not propose in oar Sabbath-school teaching and in our pulpit address to be put on the limita. I know that there is a great deal said in j cmr day against words, as though they were ] nothing. They may be misused, but they j have an imperial power. They are the bridge between soul and sou!, between Al- j mighty God and the human race. What did God write upon the tables of stones? Words. What did Christ utter on Mount Olivet? Words. Out of what did Christ strike the spark for the illumination of the universe? Out of words. "Let there be light," and light was. Of course thought is the cargo and words are only the ship; but how fast would your cargo get on without the ship? What you need, my friends, in all your work, in your Sabbath school class, in your reformatory institutions, and what we all need is to enlarge our vocabulary when we come to speak about God and Christ and heaven. We ride a few old words to death when there is such illimitable resource. Shakespeare employed fifteen thousand different words for dramatic purposes. Milton employed eight thousand different words for poetic purposes, Rutus Choate employed ?i?? w+A AlPP*x9?t\n*. trnnrlQ IOP over eioveu iuuu?uu ui^ui uu. legal purposes, bat the most of as hare less than a thousand words that we can manage, less than five hundred, and that makes us so StUDia. Whtn we come to set forth the love of Christ we are going to take the tenderest phraseology wherever we find it, and if it has never been used in that direction before, all the more shall we use it. When we come to speak of tbe glory of Christ, the Conquer* or, we are going to draw our similes irom triumphal arch and oratorio and everything grand and stupendous. The French navy nave eighteen flags by which they give signal; but those eighteen flags they can put into sixty-six thousand different combinations. And I have to tell you that these standards of the cross may be lifted into combinations infinite and varieties everlasting. And let me say to young men who are after awhile going to preach Jesus Christ, you will have the largest liberty and unlimited resource. You only have to present Christ in your owu way. Jonathan Edwards preached Christ in the (Severest argument ever penned, and John tBunjan preached Christ in the sublimest Usgory evsr composed. Edward Payson, "tJr o'lmiAwI tonnarl tin ??imt thA >alde of the pulpit and weptout his discourse. 'While George Whitefleld, with the manner, and the voice, and the fctart of an actor, overwhelmed his auditory. It would have been a different thing if Jonathan Edwards .had tried to write and dream about the pil[grim's progress to the celestial city or John ,Banyan had attempted an essay on the human will. I Brighter than the light, fresher than the fountains, deeper than the seas are all these Gospel themes. Song has no melody, flowers have no sweetness, sunset sky has no color compared with these glorious themes. These Harvests of grace spring up quicker than we can sickle them. Kindling pulpits with their fire, and producing revolutions with their power, lighting up dying beds with their glory, they are the sweetest thought for the poet, and they are the most thrilling illustration for the orator, and they offer the most intense scene for the artist, and they are to the embassador of the sky all enthusiasm. Complete pardon for direct guilt. Sweetest comfort for ghastliest agony. Brightest hope for grimmest death, 1 4 ?<4a?*lrAo^ cantiUkor crranueai/ muu cubivu iwi uotaujv ^vi/u^u^i. Oh, what a gospel to preach! Christ over all m it. His birch, His suffering, His miracles, His parables. His sweat. His tears, His blood. His atonement, His intercession, what adonous themes? JDo we exereise faith? Christ is its object. Do we have love? It fastens on Jesus. Have we a fondness for the church? It Is because Christ died for it. Have we a hope of heaven? It is because Jeaus went ahead, ths herald and the forerunner. The royal robe of Demetriu3 was so costly, so beautiful, that after he had put it off no one ever dared put it on; but this robe of .Christ, richer than that, the poorest and the wane6t and the worst may wear. "Where gin abounded graca may much more abound." "Oh, my situ, my sins," said Martin Lather .to Staupit*^_ "my sms, my sioi." Ine fact is that the brawny German student found a Latin Bible that bad made him quake, and nothing else ever did make him quake; and when he found how, through Christ, he was pardoned and saved he wrote to a friend, saying: "Come over and join us great and awful sinners saved by the grace 01 LtCXJ. X OU BWLLI lu iro uuiv a slender sinner, and you don't much extoi the mercy of God; but we who have been such very awlul sinners praise His grace the more now that we have been redeemed." ; Can it be that you are so desperately egotistical that you feel yourself in first rate spiritual trim, and that from the root of the hair to the tip of the toa you are scarless and immaculate? WTiat you need is a looking-glass, and here it is in the Bible. Poor nnri wretched and miserable and blind, and naked from the crown of the head to the sole of the foot, full of wounds and putrefying sores. No health in us. And then take the fact that Christ gathered up ail the note* against us and paid them and then offered us the receipt And how much we need Him in our sor, row*! We are independent of circumstance* if we have His grace. Why, He made Paul sing in the dungeon, and undor that grace 6t? Jobn from, dwnlatn Patmos heard J the blast of the apocalyptic trumpets. Af- J ter all other candies hare been snuffed out, f this is the light that gets brighter and brighter unto the perfect day; and after, under the hard hoofs of calamity, all the pools of worldly enjoyment have been trampled into deep mire, at the foot of the eternal rock the Christian, from cup3 of granite, lily rimmed and vine covered, puta oat the thirst of his soul. Again, I remark that Christ is above all in dying alleviations. 1 have not any sympathy with the morbidity abroad about our demise. The Emperor of Constantinople arranged that on the day of his coronation | the stonemason should come and consult him about his tombstone that after awhile he would need. And there are men who are monomaniacal on the subject of departure from this life bv death, and the more they think of it the less they are prepared to go. This is an unmanliness not worthy of you, .not worthy of me. Saiadiu, tne greatest conqueror or nis day, while dying, ordered the tunic he had on him to be carried after his death on a spear at the head of his army, and tnen the soldier, ever and anon, should stop and say: "Behold, all that is left of Saladin, the Emperor and conqueror. Of all the States he conquered, of all the wealth be accumulated, nothing did he retain but this shroud." I have no sympathy with such behavior or such absurD demonstration or with much that we hear uttered in regard to departure from this life to the next. 1 uere is a commonsensical idea on this subject that you and I need to consider?that there are only two styles of departure. A thousand feet underground, by light of torch, toiling in a miner's shaft a ledge of rock may fall upon us, and we may die a miner's death. Far out to sea, falling from the slippery ratlines antf broken on the halyards, we may die a sailor's death. On mission of mercy in hospital, amid broken bones and reeking lepro3iet and raging fever, we may die a philanthrooist's death. On the field of battle, serving God and our country, the gun carriage may roll over us and we may die a patriot's death. But, after all, there are only two styles of departure; tha death of the righteous and the death of the wicked, and w? all want to die the former. God grant that when that hour comes you may be at home! You want the hand of your kindred in your hand. You want your children to surround you. You want the lifht on vniir niilow from eves that have long reflected your love. You want the room stilL You do not want any cnrious strangers standing around watching you. You want your kindred from afar to hear your la?t prayer. I think that is the wish of all of us. But is that all* Can earthly friends hold us when the billows of death come up to the girdle? Can human voice charm open heaven's gate? Can human hands pilot us through the narrows of death into heaven's harbor' Can an earthly friendship shield us from the arrows of death and in the hour when s&tan shall practice upon us his infernal archery? No, no, no, no! Alas! poor soul, if that is all. Better die in the wilderness, far from tree shadow and from fountain, alone, vultures circling through the air waiting for our body, unknown to men, and to have no burial, if only Christ could say through the solitudes, "I will never leave thee, I will never forsake thee." From that pillow of stone a ladder would scar heavenward, angels coming and going; and across the solitude and the barrenness would come the sweet notes of heavenly minstrelsy. Toward the last hour of our earthly residence we are speeding. When I see the sunset I say, "One day less to live." When I see the spring blossoms scattered I say, 4,Another season gone forever." When I close this Bible on Sabbath night I say, "Another (J?hK?fh rtanart.od " Whan T hllPlT * fpifinl I say. "Another earthly attraction gone forever." What nimble feet the years have! Thtroebucks and th9 lurhtninzs run not. so fast. From decade to "decade, from tfky to sky they go at a bound. There is a place for us, whether marked or not, where you and I will sleep the las; sleep, and the men are now living who will with solemn tread carry us to our resting place. Aye, it is known in heaven whether our departure will be a coronation or a banishment. Brighter than a banqueting hall tarough which the light feet of tae dancers go up and down to the sound of trumpeters will be the sepulchre through whose rifts the holy light of heaven streameth. God will watch you. He will send His angels to guard your slumbering ground until at Christ's behest they shall roll away the stone. So also Christ is above all in heaven. The Bible distinctly says that Christ is the chief theme of the celestial ascription, all the thrones facing His throne, all the palms waved before His face, all the crowns down at His feet. Cherubim to cherubim, seraphim to seraphim, redeemed spirit to redeemed spirit shall recite the Saviour's earthly sacrifice. Stand on some high hill of heaven and in all the radiant sweep the most glorious object will be Jesus. Myriads gazing on the scars of His suffering, in silence first, afterward breaking fortn into acclamation. I rn*- -? ?all rka rvnrar fnr fha flamA I 1UO IIUUbYl^ CM* VUO PUAV4 *V? *MV through which they passed, will say, "This is Jesus, for whom we died." The apostles, all the happier for the shipwreck and the scourging through which they went, will say. ' This is the Jesus whom we preached at .Corinth, and at Cappadocia, and at Antioch, and at Jerusalem." Little children clad in white will say, "This is the Jesus who took us in His arms and blessed us, and when the storms of the world were too cold and loud brought us into this beautiful place." Toe multitudes of the bereft will say, 4tThis is the Jesus who comforted us when our hearts broke." Many wno had wandered clear off from God and plunged into vagabondism, but saved by grace, will say: "Tais is the Jesus who pardoned us. We were guilty and He made us white as snow." Mercy boundless, grace unparalleled. And then, after each one has recited his peculiar deliverances and peculiar mercies, recited them as by solo, all the voices will come togetber in a great chorus, which shall make the arcnes echo and re-echo with the eternal reverberation of gladness and peaca and tri- 1 umpu. Edward I was so anxious to go to the Holy Land that when he was about to expire he bequeathed $160,000 to have his heart, after his decease, taken to the Holy Land in Asia Minor, and his request was complied with. But there are huadreds today whose hearts are already in the holy land of heaven. Where your treasures are there are your hearts also. John Buuyan, of whom I spoke at the opening of the discourse, caught a glimpse of that place, and in his quaint way he said: "And 1 beard in my dreaui, and lo! the bells of the city rang agaiu for joy; and as they opened the gates to let in the men Hooked in after them, and lo! the city shone like tue sua, and there were streets of gold, and men walked on them, harps in their hands, to slug praises with all, and after that they shut up the gates, which when I had seen X wishci myself amouz them!" Burial Alive for Indian Lepers. Surgeon General Sir William Moore does not think that the terrible disease leprosy is more prevalent in India notv thai) it was in former years, in spite of j the impression to the contrary which led I to the appointment of the commission now investigating this subject. RiiU ' ways, it is observed, have enabled lepers to flock to the large centres, where they find better opportunities of living ou i alms. The only reason which may have increased the number of lepers is, he believes, the suppression by the British i Government of what is called U3umajh," j or the burial alive of lepers, which was formerly a common practice. This horrible remedy for the leper's f sufferings was, we are told, always adopted with the consent of the leper himself, who, frequently declaring to his relatives and friends that he was tired of life, would ask them to perform "sumajh." Then a hole was dug, and the leper escorted to the grave with flags, drums, "tom-toms," and other native musical instruments. The leper was simply placed i& the hole in a sitting posture, and the earth filled in.?London News. ferdn?a2td Ward was reckless as a financier, but he ia a very discreet released convict. He avoids all notoriety and will submit to no interviews. Mr. Ward learned wisdom at Sing Sin?. ? SABBATH SCHOOL. INTERNATIONAL LESSON FOE AUGUST 21. Lesson Text: "The Apostles Persecuted," Acts v., 25-41?Golden Text: Acts v., 29?Com mentary. 23. "Then came one and told them saying, Behold the men whom ye put in prison are standing in the temple and teaching the people." The account of the arrest, imprisonment and deliverance is found in verses 17-20. When released on a former occasion and forbidden to speak in the name of JeBus, their reply was to the effect that they must speak waatthey bad seen and heard (chap* ter iv., 18-20). 26. "Then went the captain with the officers and brought them without violence, for they feared the people lest they should have been stoned.'1 The people were benefited by the apostles' preaching and miracles and heard them gladly (verses 14-16), just as the common people heard Jesus gladly (ilark xii.,37). It was the religious rulers who did the persecuting and tried to hinder this blessing to the people. 27. "And when they had brought them they set them before the council" Jesus had told them that ic would be even so (Mathu x., 16, 17; John xv., 20;, and the | same thing is true to-day, for if a man will preach the whole truth, according to the plain, obvious sense of God's Word in the power of the Holy Spirit, he will soon find opposition from some religious rulers and worldlv minded Drefessors. 28. "Ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and intend to bring this man's blood upon us." Thus the council accused the apostles, reminding them also of tbe re- , strictions which had been placed upon them. It was good testimony to the earnest work of the apostles that they had already filled the city with their teaching. 29. "Then Peter and the apostles auswarad and said, We ou^ht to obey God rather than men." If we please men rather than God we are not servants of Christ; and He Himself taught us that we cannot serve God and mammon. The friendship of the world is enmity with God, and to love the world is to forsake God (Gal. i., 10; Luke xvi., 13; Jas. I iv., 4; II Tim. iv., 10). :;0. "i'he God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom ye slew and hanged on a tree." To their faca they again fearlessly accuse them of being guilty of His blood, b ut they testify that God has raised Him up. Compare ii., 32; iii., 15; iv., 10, 33; x., 40., xiii., 33. and see what a prominent topic the resurrection was in the preaching of the apostles. 31. "Him bath God exalted with His right { hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, tor to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins." Exalted to be a Saviour to the very men who crucified Him if they would only turn to Him in true penitence; ready to give them eveu repentance as well as full forgiveness. See Isa. i., 13; xxxviiL, 17; xliii., 25; Acts xiii., 38, 39. 32. "And we are His witnesses of these things, and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey Him." Their bold and fearless testimony was that of the Holy Spirit speaking through them as Jesus had said. See Acts L, 8, and compare iv., 31. The same Spirit is in everv true believer as He was in the apostles bsfore Pentecostr (John xx., 22), but oar need ia to be filled'with the Spirit. 33. "When they heard that they were cut to the Heart, ana took counsel to siay cnem. Not only was the blood of Jesus upon them, but they were ready to bring upon them also the blood of the apostles. So likewise did they desire to do to Lazarus, whom Jesus | raised from the dead (John xii.. 10). Tne truth of God when cot meekly received, makes manifest chat the carnal mind is enmity against God (Rom. vlli., 7j. 34, 35. "Ye men of Israel, take heed to yourselves what ye intend, to do at touching these men." The apostles having been sent out of the council for a little while, Gamaliel, a learned and honorable member, at whose feet Saul of Tarsus had been educated (chapter xxli., 3) thus begins to address his bretnren. He seems to have had something of the spirit of Joseph and Nicodemus who also were at one time members of the council (Mark xv., 43; John viL, 50). Wedonot know that he ever received Jesus as the Christ, but from the wisdom and spirit of this address we may almost hope tnat he did. 36, 37. "For before these days rose up Theudas, boasting himself to be somebody." He quotes two cases of deceivers who for a time had quite a following, but in each case the leaders perished and their followers were dispersed. The mark of a deceiver is that "he boasts himself to be somebody," while a true follower of the Lord seeks oniy to glorify God. Jesus sought neither His own will nor Hfeown glory (John yi., 33; viii., 50j, and Paul determined to know nothing but "Jesus Christ and Him crucilled," hts mottoes being, "Not I, but Chrut," ,4Not I, but the Grace of God" tf Cor. il., a; xv., 10: Gal, il., 20). If an? man, be he preacher or professor, 1). v. or Lib. u., oo&sis aimauii mj De somebody, he is very evidently cot true I to Jesus Ctirut. 88. "And now I say unto you. Refrain 1 from those men and let them alone; for if [ this counsel or this work be of. men, it will ppqw to nought," He probably thought of tyoh words as these, "The Lord bringeth the counsel of the heathen to nought; He maketh the devices of the people or no effect (Ps. x<xiii., 10), See also Isa. viii., 0, 10, for very strong words in this connection. It is a great qomFort for the true believer to know chat no weapon formed against Him can prosper (Isa. liv., 1*0. 39. "But if it be of God ye cannot overthrow it, lest haplv ye he found even to flight against God." The counsel of the Lord standetn forever, the thoughts of His heart to all generations (Ps. zrxiii., 11). My counsel shall stand and I will do all my pleasure (Isa. xlvi., 10). I know that whatsoever God doeth it shall be forever (Eccl. iii., 14). We hope that Gamaliel really believed in his heart that this Work was the work of God. 40. "And to him they agreed?and when thev had called the apostles and beaten them they commanded that they should not speak i in the name of Jesus, and let them go." Why beat them if they were innocent of any crime? But Jesus had said that it would bo so (Math x., 17i, and they were walking in His footsteps. Ponder, I Peter ii., 19, 20; iv., 12-16, and may the spirit cause us to esteem it a great honor to suffer for the truth. 41, 42. "Rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ" Scourged and bleeding backs, full of pain physically, full of joy inwardly. What a glorious reality is Jesus, who can enable men to take such treatment, not only without resentment, but even joyfully. See II Cor. xii., 10. How much of this spirit have we? How much can we bear cheerfully for His sake? How much do we desire His power to rest upon us? His srrace is sufficient. Let us be loyal to Him.?Lesson Helper. J' Brlgham Yonn? Equal to the Occasion. Judgre John Smith takes much pleas -n I ure in repeating a story which Judge Stephen P. Twiss told him of life in Utah. Judge Twiss was appoiated Territorial Judge of Utah some years >>go, by President Hayes, I believe. Judge Twiss was talking wjth Brigham Young one day when a good Mormon came in carrying with him the stump of a leg that once was. He prayed the good Brigham to renew unto him his leg, bis lost limb. Brijjham looked wise, and said: "Why, certainly, my good follower, but do you understand the whole inwardness of this thing? I'll give you your choice of two things. Now, I have power, but it is slightly limited. If I give you back your leg you will be all right here on earth, but when you reach heaven you will have the two legs you were born with in addition to the one I shall now give you. Would you not prefer to suffer on these few remaining days on earth to living a few million years in heaven with three legs?" The believer thought he would prefer to suffer on awhile. And Brigham's power was not brought to a teat that time. Kansas City Timea. RELIGIOUS READING. A UTILE PARABLE. I made the cross myself, .whose weight Was later laid on me. Tins thought adds anguish as I toil Up life's steep Calvary. To thiuk mine own hands drove the nails! I sang a merry song. And chose th<> heaviest wood I had To build it firm and strong. If I had guessed?itlhad dreamed Its weight was meant for me. I should have built a lighter cross To hpnr nn fliilvarv! ?Annie Iteeve Aldricb, in August (Fiction Number) Scribner. MADE NO MISTAKE. The Lord m:ide no mistake in pnttins man fnto this world, and He makes no mi.-take in keeping biru here- There is an idea, upon tbe part or some, that they could be saved if they were only once safe in heaven. But do you know, heaven is a place prepared for those who have fought tbe battle and won tbe victory here on earth. God made no mistake when he prepared a salvation which was intended to save here. Of course men are lost because of the deeds committed on earth, and God proposes to save ? man right on tbe ground where he is lost. Jesus Christ is gioritied more here through victories won. than through final rest enjoyed in heaven. Did I say gioritied more Dere? I think I may say He is only glorified here through the irrace which he bestows. He is certainly not much glorified by it in heaven. Jesus did not pray that His disciples might be taken out of the world but that they might be kept from the evil which is in tbe world. Ah! friends, God proposes to arm you with sufficient grace, and then ' have you fixht the battles which are neces sary to be fought; and so lie savs, "Countit all joy when ye fall into divers temptations." Tbe veiv thing that causes you trou'n'e, is that which ouxht to cause you joy. There will never he any victories till there have been some battles; aud. brethren, vou will never know tbe grace of Cod in its fulness, till you have met temptation iu its every form. You will never develop the bone, and muscle, and sinew, that belongs to every son of God. till you hive utterly routed the old man. I beiieve God proposes to raise a band of men and women in this world who shall be gloriously triumphant through all the afflictions that life may bring to them. A certain person once said in my hearing, "When I see a great trial coming "I begin to rejoice, for I anticipate a grand victory." It is one thing for a person to get up and say, "I love the Lord," but it is quite another thing to have this love demonstrated in your life. It is all very well to go into battle with a grand liuzza, but it is Letter still to come nut a victor, and covered with the smoke of war. '-If any of you lack wisdom, let bim ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbr8idetb not; and it shall be givon to bim." ? [Rev. John Short. TO YOUNG 02IRl3TtA.r?9. Afore than fifty years ago the late Dr. Bacon closed a sermon to young Christians with the following appeal, the spirit of which was grandly illustrated in his after life: "Would to God I could make you know what results are depending upon you; what interests of the church and of a dying world are involved in your future character and efforts. When I look at the young Christians of this aw aud reflect that they are soon to sustain the ancient glories of the church of God?when I look abroad ou the earth and see the crisis that is at hand?when I listen to the cries that come from every quarter of the world summoning the people j of God to new effort aud more splendid exhibitions of piety?I seem to see the boary generations that are past rising up from their repose to watch over the young followers of Christ; I seem to hear the voices of blessed spirits from above cheering them on in the career of piety; I seem to see a world in misery, turning its Imploring bands to them anil brseeching them to be worthy of their nnme, worthy of their privileges, of their noble destiny: I seem to hear, I do hear, God himnelt speaking from the heavens, "Ye bare chosen the better part; be faithful unto death, and I will give you a crown or life." tite cuucia.l question'. If on? could get the ear of modern enterprise and progress, what question would he want to ask or this wonderful giant that is couquering the^earth? What but this: '"Dost thou believe in the Son of God?" Ask it of the business tbat fills our streets, of the science that discovers, of the philosophy that thinks, of the labor that creates, of tbe invention tbat devises. Ask it of education, which is tbe atmosphere, aud politics, which is tbe electricity, and home life, which is the sunshine of the days men iive. Ask it of art, ask it of philanthropy; ask it at tbe doors of schools and counting-rooms and state houses and city halls ana museums and homes. "Dost thou believe in the Son of Gdd?" Have you faith in a spiritual purpose behind, under, through and through a!l tbat you are doing? the soul by which it lives? Do you believe Band are you inspired by a pure, clear faith God's love and in man's destiny as all I gathered and summed up in the redemption of the God-Mau, Jesus Christ? "Dost thou believe in the Son of God?" A strange question ior sucn places, duu u mey couiu answer it what a new life would be in them all !?(Phillips Brooks. SERIOUSNESS AND FRIVOLITY. History shows that the disposition to make I light of things has been often attendant upon national degeneracy, and the subject is worthy the attention of Americans. We would by no mean's advocate the taking of life hard; we believe that pleasantry and humor have proper and valuable uses, but it will be a sau day when earnestness of purpose fails to arouse respect, and when frivolity takes the place 01 that intentness of purpose and conviction which has always baen at the bottom of real progress and ifrj velosment.?[Episcopal Recorded Relieion is not a mere sentimentality; It is a practical, life-giving, healthful fruitnot posies, but apples. "Oh," says somebody, "I don't see what your garden of church has yielded." Where did your asylums come from? and your hospitals? and your institutions of 'mercy? Christ planted every one of them; he planted them iu bis garden. When Christ sight to BartlmeuH, be laid the corner stone of every blind asylum that has ever been built. When Christ soothed the demoniac of Galilee, be laid the corner of every lunatic asjlum that has ever been established. A\ hen Christ said to the sick man. -Take up tby bed ana walK,' ue miu toe corner stone of every hospital the world has ever seen. When Christ said, "I was in prison and you visited me," He laid the corner stone of every prison-reform association that has ever" been organized. The church of Christ is a glorious garden, and is full of fruit.? [Selected. Send a aweet breeze from thy sea, 0 Lord, From thy deep, deep sea of love; Tiiough it lift not the veil from the cloudy height, Let the brow grow cool, and the footstep light, A? it comes with holy and soothing might, Like the wing of snowy dove ? [Frances Ridley Havergal fo l>c full of goodness, full of cheerfulness, full of sympathy, full of helpful hope, causes a man to carry blessings of which he is himself as unconscious as a lamp is of its own shiniuz.? ,rII. \V. Beccber. | Almost One-Foorth Live 'oVest. According to the census of 1890, there are 15,000,000 people living in the States and Territories lying west of the Mississippi River, almost onefourth of the entire population of the States^ Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways and be wise; which, having no guide, overseer, or ruler, provldeth her meat in the sommer, and gathereth her food la the har eat - - ? I A SACRED CITY. BENARES AND ITS NUMHfCCUS I TEMPLES. Strange Religious Rites and Cere monies?ine Use oi water in Worshiping the Gods?Buddha and His Followers. ENARE3, says the A r ) San Francisco \\ J Chronicle, bears the i same relation to Hin, v i -p_ dooism that Bethle-^?s I ^em an(^ (^oes to tS^J p Christendom," that .jj ' jw Jerusalem did to the Templars,that Rome <^oes t0 Catholicism an(* t^ia' Mecca does / to Mohammedanism. :' It is a most renowned city, the It> f-t If ' holiest spot on earth l:P v to the Hindoo. The name Benares is derived from two small rivers, Vcrana and Asi-Veranasi, called by the Hindoos Kasi, the Splendid. Benares ha3 been the religious center nf all India since countless venerations before Christ. Indeed, the origiu is said to be coeval with the creation of the world. It was occupied by hundreds of thousands of people over six centuries before our Christian era and was the birthplace of Hindoo mythology. The first authentic history of the city dates back to 638 B. C., for Sakya Muni? Buddha?the great Hindoo Christ, flourished from that time till 543 B. C., and lived here for many years. It was in Benares that Buddha taught and established the greatest religion, numerically, on earth, and to show how successful he was and how prosperous his religion has been (although, like Christendom, Bethlehem and Jerusalem contain fewer Christians than any other. religious sect, so does Benares contain fewer Buddhists than Hindoos and Mohammedans), there aie 500,000,000 people that bow to the Buddhist faith?worshiping as devoutly as ever Christian worshiped Christ. From the time of the Buddha little is known of Benares until the great Mohammedan ccnquest in 1191 A. D. The Mohammedans destroyed over 1000 Hindoo temples and built mosques in their stead. Now that the British rule in India tolerates all religious views, Benares has become almost exclusively a Hindoo city. Indeed, it is this very wise policy ) oi iree reugious mougut, ?pewu auu action that enables Great Britain to govern India, for the Hindoos would willingly unite with England to drive out the Mo llffll!! M,?-M,a?..ui*"wi i??' - ssgssaagsSsass -r? JvtrS: J..* ? . ^ -? " THE MOJTKE hammedans, and the Mohammedans, on the other hand, ate eager to driveput the Hindoos. Should the two great parties ever combine against England there will be a much worse scene enacted in India than the terrible mutiny of 1857. Benares, the holy city of these hundreds of millions of souls, is beautifully situated on the left bank ot the sacred Ganges, a mighty river, whose copious ever-flowing stream stretches from half a mile to a mile in width, and whose precious wttUTH? preciuus iu ujuiu ui buc children of the Great Father of us all than any other waters on the globe? purify and wash away all taint of sin by the merest touch. Here in Benares are the holy ghats that lead down tc Ihe sanctifying Ganges. Here is the most holy well where pilgrims by the hundreds of thousands come wearily each year to purify themselves before they cleave the Ganges flood. Here are the sacred cows and bulls, monkeys, peacock9, doves and serpents, the well of knowledge, the temple of gold and silver. Here, indeed, are the sacred footprints of the sainted Buddha, aiid eveD those of God Vishnu ! Of course we scoff at all these sacred and wonderful things and call them pagan superstitions, claiming that other waters, other forms of ablution alone can absolve us from sinful ways; still tts years roil on, still roll on the ages, and I yet tne Ganges faith is bright within the I oimrU am,lanf nlmrMt rnuntless millions. Thousands of millions have purified their bodies in this wondrous stream and gone away happy. Millions and millions of KALI, WIFE OF VISHNU, DURGA TEMPLE- 1 . bodies have been burned oa its water's ' edge and have bad their ashes strewn t upon its placid wave in hope of rest j eternal, and still the stream gathers its < forces and devotees annually in ever in- I creasing numbers and may do so in all I the countless ages that are to come. Modern Benares has a permanent 1 population of about a quarter of a < million and an annual pilgrimage of ( over one hundred thousand. It has over i one thcussnd temples, thousands of < priests, to say nothing of the sacred < ,Tr cows and bulla and monkeys and snakes whose spirits have been > on ' earth centuries before. The Christiana hold the cock sacred because it gave timely warning to St. Peter, though he heeded it not, and the dove because the Holy Ghost assumed that shape at one time; so that it is not at all remarkable that the simple-minded Hindoos should have sacred animals, more especially as theii /tfllllii WINDING SILK. religion is largely pantheistic, teaching that the Great God Spirit is in every living being. The streets of Benares are almost as crooked as those of Boston or London. The largest of them within the city are barely wide enough for an ox cart to pass, and one most crawl into the huts or doorways to allow one to go by. Everywhere the people throng the streets with their tyiskets and bundles on their heads and babies on their hips. One of the great temples out of the thousand at Beuares is the Durga or "Monkey" Temple. Durga is the terrific form of Shira's wife Kali, who is said to delight in destruction. The trinity of the Hindoo faith, as is well known, consists of Brahma, the creator, Vishnu, the presever, and Shira or Sira, the destroyer. It seems that Shira's w;fe, with her four hands, armed with sword and spear and riding on a Bengal tiger, was even more bloodthirsty than the god himself. To appease the goddess this elegant and costly temple was erected, and daily sacrifices of human life were made until quite recently, when the Government interfered. Even to this day lambs and goats are sacrificed to appease the divine wrath, and the poor animals' blood is sprinkled about to sanctify the temple. The Durga is called the monkey temple because there are hundreds of these sacred animals about, filling the trees and buildings. They are allowed to go and come and do as they please, for their ancestors were human aitd their spirits ' i ft jj 7 TEMPLE. have come back on earth to work out their nerwana. They have also sacred bulls, whose spirits lived within human frames once upon a time. All these bulls and monkeys are painted different colon and worshiped several times a day with imposing ceremony. Even flowers and shrubs are worshiped and prayed to, foi does not the essence of divine influence pervade ail nature! The Monkey Temple is a beautiful oriental structure composed of several shrines elaborately carved and decorated with gold, silver and precious gems. Id the centre of the building rise up the towers called sikras or vimarahs, so universal in Hindoo temples. They are built of carved red sandstone or marble, and often covered with solid plates ot gold. The origin of their peculiar shape is unknown, as they existed long before history, but it is supposed they represent flames of fire. The whole is surrounded by a huge wall, having compartments for the priests or Hindoo monks and longghats leading down to the Ganges. Talk not of worshiping until you have seen the devout Hindoo performing his devotions in one of these great temples in Benares. Hither pilgrims flock by the thousands from all parts of India. The temples are so crowded that admission cannut be gained for days at a time, and then the crowds are so dense that the jostling and squeezing, the constant noise of tbe huge bells, the chanting of the prayers and tbe throwing of holy water makes a terrific pandemonium, and yet to see the people lying prostrate before these images, praying devoutly for their future state, is very touching. One often sees the devotees crawling on all fours to the foot of some grand image, imploring its protection and blessing. One sees tears streaming down the suppliant's cheeks, or perhaps his head will be buried in the dirt and mud to show his humiliation. Where else on earth does one see humanity so humbled, so sincerely devout! They fast for days, go without speaking one word for years, stand on one foot or keep one arm elevated ubove their heads for weeks, months and years, until their limb becomes ankylosed and as stiff as a poker. A inforoafinrF tomnlo nn tVlA AUVbUWi tukb tvui^iv v? - ?? Ganges is at the Chanki Ghat, where serpents are worshiped. The priests of the Temple ef the Moon in Beoares cure1 ?very disease on earth by prayer and holy water. Close to this one is the itatue of the mother of JSscuIapius. This is worshiped and cures diseases. Another one is that of 8itla or "Smallpox," a temple presided over by a Hindoo goddess. Hither small pox patients iock to be cured. It is needless to say ;hat not many travelers visit this temple. The temple of the planet Saturn has a arge image in the shape of a round silver disk, from which hangs an apron or :lotb, which prevents one remarking ;hat it is a head without a body. A garland hangs from, each ear aud a canjpy it sptead above. ?^p There is alao a temple of food?tin . Aunapurna?presided over by a g oddest She has express orders from Bisheshwai ' to feed the inhabitants of Benares. The temple of Shukareshwar or plane! Venus is filled by foen and women praying for handsome offspring. Near th? ; temple of Venus is the curious image ol Qanesh. It stands twenty feet high and 1 has solid silver hands, feet and ears, and a huge elephant's truck Jor a nose. Benares is a quaint old city, so full ol all forms of worship from oulls to snakes and idols to things that cannot be mentioned. But Benares is noted for othet things, the Hindoo woven silk and gleaming gold and silver. The hut in which it is mads is dirty, without windows or doors. The loom is worth, with all its wood and knotted strings and ttappings, say one or two rupees, thirty to sixty cents, and yet within that unclean hut, squatted upon the earth floor, sits the -nearer, facing his cheap, simple trap and weaves such costly, priceless fabrics, silks that stand on edge, 60 stifl they are with golden threads. Silken goods and embroidery in such wondrous patterns that king3 and princes stop to buy; goods that put to shame the richest products of Western civilization, all made by the clevei slender fingers and the deft Indias hand and foot upon this cheap claptrap of a loom. In gold and silver and brass tableware the people ol Benares excel. In fact the brass work is not equaled in any part of the world. They draw designs without patterns, and inlay gold and silver thread into the brass in most exquisite forms. Tney sit on the door and hold the cup or brass plate -with their feet and toes and work j-l il.:. 1 j_ ttliU wuu bueir uauu3. The burning ghats at Benares are the lost curious in the world. When a Hindoo becomcs ill he seeks Benares if it is possible, for is it not the holiest -j i spot on earth? - Is not the well of knowledge there, and will not one drink y H of its putrid water impart all that can be known? Are not all the holiest healing temples in Beoares and is not the sacred Ganges there? Nothing more can i be desired. Many and many a sick man *? walks to the holy priest, who takes hitn i to the sacred river, bathes him in its purifying waters, fills his eyes, ears, > nose and mouth with its sacred sand. If i the poor fellow happens to survive this ' treatment, then he is possessed of an i evil spirit and becomes an outcast?loses his cast and is forever lost. But ninetynine in a hundred die, as they should, i and are then burned with appropriate 1 ceremonials. The body is wrapped la [ pure white linen and solemnly carried to the burning ghat on the edge of i the Qanges. Here the body is placed ? on a funeral pyre constructed at the waters edge of logs of wood. The feet dip into the sacred water, and the eldest son of the deceased applies the torch to the head and to the feet on each side successively as he walks with the priests in solemn procession three times around the corpse. Not to have a son to perform the last luneral rites to his father Drecludes the possibility of s high class funeral service', hence the Hindoos keep marrying wives until a soa is born. After the body is consumed by the flames the spirit is seen soaring heavenward in the smoke, the ashes are carefully gathered up and strewn on the placid waters of the sacred Ganges. Thus the earth is not polluted, the spirit is seen going to heaven j and all the earthly remains are carried on the sacred water to the bo3om of the ocean. With the very poor and with those who die without male issue the funeral ceremony is imperfectly performed. The body is not burned to ashes, in fact it is bat scorched and allowed to slide into the 1 <5 Ganges, and may often be seen floating off. As the river abounds in crocodiles the body seldom goes very far before it is consumed by these maiie&ters. ouch is one of the many scenes witnessed GOING TO BATHE. every morning at sunrise along the shores I of the sacred Ganges. , A Stimulant For Prolonged Exertion. Some new pastille?, the invention of a chemist named Zorilneau, are claimed to take the place of both food and drink to soldiers on long marches. In a test ol their efficacy a company of Roumanian soldiers made a marph of seventy-five miles in 27? hours. The men at first received a pastille every half hour, and lates -! ?1-31 every twenty mmuies; wane uic officers' horses were served with on? in a bucket of water every two hours. All com-pleted the journey without fatigue. The pastilles, which are said to contain a large quantity of caffeine, seemed to have a remarkable effect in this case, but are to be subjected to further trials.? Trenton (N. J.) American. The Old aud the New. the old fashioned the modxbk WUXT. coquette. | a doseo, I love another, Will think of 70a M Will think of you as a ocwsia. brother. ?Puck.