The Abbeville press and banner. (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, July 29, 1896, Image 7
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REOK, TALMA.GE.
SUNDAY'S DISCOURSE BY THK
NOTED DIVINE.
Subject: "Kindness for Another's
Salfc."
?
Textj^ "Is there yet any that Is left of the
l house oi Saul, that I may show him kindness
for Jonathan's sake?" * * So Mephibosheth
dwelt in Jerusalem, for he did eat
continually at the kind's table and was lame
on both his feet."?II Samuel ix., 1 and 13.
Was there ever anything more romantic
and chivalrous than the love of David and
Jonathan? At one time Jonathan was up
and David was down. Now David is up and
Jonathan's fumllv ie rinnn Ac vnn have
often heard of two soldiers beforegoing into
I battle making a covenant that if one is shot
the survivor will take charge of the body,
the watch, the momentos and perhaps of the
bereft family of the one that dies, so David
and Jonathan had made a covenant, and
now that Jonathan is dead David is inquiring
about bis family, that he may show kindness
unto them for their father Jonathan's
sake.
Careful search is made, and a son of Jonathan
by the exceedingly homely name of
Mephib'osheth is found. His nurse, in his infancy,
had let him fall, and the fall had put
both his ankles out of place, and they had
never been set. This decrepit, poor man Is
brought into the palace of King David.
David gazes upon him with melting tenderness,
no doubt seeing In his face a resemblance
to his old friend, the deceased Jonathan.
The whole bearing of King David
toward him seems to say: "How glad I am
to see you, Mephibosheth! How you remind
me of your father, my old friend and benefactor!
I made h bargain with your father a
good many years ago, and I am going to
keep it with you. What can I do for you,
Mephibosheth? I am resolved what to do?
I will make you a rich man. I will restore to
you the confiscated property of your grandfather
Saul, and you shall be ague^t of mine
as Ions as you live, and you shall be seated
at my table among the princes." It was too
much for Mephibosheth, and he cried out
against it, calling himself a dead dog. "Bo
I still," says David; "I don't do this on your
' account; I do this for your father Jonathan's
sake. I can never forget his kindness. I
remember when I was hounded from place
> to place bow he befriended me. Can I ever
forget how ho stripped himself of his
' courtier apparel aud gave it to me instead
of my shepherd's coat, and how he took of!
his own sword and belt and gave them to
me instead of my sling? Ob, I can never
forget him! I feel as if couldn't do enough
for you, his son. I don't do it for your
sake; I do it for your father Jonathan's
sake." So Mephibosheth dwelt in JerusaIlem,
for be did eat continually at the king's
i table and was lame on both his feet"
There is so much gospel In this quaint incident
that I am embarrassed to know where
to begin. Whom do Mephibosheth and
David and Jonathan make you think of?
Mephibosheth, in the first place, stands for
the disabled human souL Lord Byron describes
sin as a charming recklessness, as a
i gallantry, as a Don Juan; George Sand describes
sin as triumphant In many intricate
I plots; Gavarni, with his engraver's knife,
f always shows sin as a great jocularity; but
I the Bible presents it as a Mephibosheth, lame ,
on both feet. Sin, like the nurse in the context,
attempted to carry us and let us fall,
and we have been disabled, and in our whole
moral nature we are decrepit Sometimes
theologians haggle about a technicality.
They use th? words ''total depravity," and
some people believe in the doctrine, and
some reject it. What do you mean by
total depravity? Do you mean that every
mac is as low as he can be? Then, I do
not believe it either. But do you mean
that sin has let us fall; that it has scarified
and wounded and crippled our entire
moral nature until we cannot walk
straight and are lame in both feet?
Then I admit your proposition. There is
not so much difference in on African jungle
?with barking, howling, hissing, nghing
/ quadruped aud reptile, and paradise, with
Its animals coming before Adam, when he
patted them and stroked them and gave
them name^, so that the panther was as
tame as the cow and the condor as tame as
the dove?as there is between the human soul
disabled and that soul as God originally constructed
it. I do not care what the sentimentalis's
or the poets say in regard to sin.
In the name ol God I declare to you to-day
that sin is disorganization, disintegration,
ghastly disfiguration, hobbling deformity.
Your modern theologian tells you that
man is a little out of sortR; be sometimes
thinks wrong; he sometimes acts wrong; indeed,
his nature needs a little moral surgery,
t an outside splint, a slight compress, a little
rectification. Religion is a good thing to
have; it might some day come into use. Man
is partially wrong, not all wrong. He is
lame in one foot. Bring the salve of divine
grace and the ointment and the pain extras
tor, and we will have his one foot cured.
Man is only half wrong, not altogether
wrong. In what is man's nature right? In
his will, his affeotions, his judgment? No.
There is an old book that says: "The whole
head is sick and the whole heart faint."
Mephibosheth lame in both feet. Our belief
of the fact that sin has scarified and deformed
I our souls increases as we go on in years.
i When you started life you thought that man
was a little marred by sin and he was about
one tenth wrong. By the time you had gone
through the early experience of your
trade or occupation or profession you believe
i that man was about half wrong. By
the time you came to midlife you believed
that man was three-fourths wrong. But
within these past few years, sinoe you have
been so lied about and swindled and cheated,
you have come to the conclusion that man
* Is altogether wrong, and now you can say
with the prayer book and the Bible, "Thereis
no health in us." Now you believe with
the prophet. "The heart is deoeitful, above
all things, and desperately wicked." Whatever
you may have believed before, now you
believe that Mephibosheth is lame on both
feet.
Again. Mephibosheth in the text stands for
the disabled human sou. humbled and restored.
When this invalid of my text got a
command to come to King David's palace he
trembled. The fact whs that the grandfa:her
of Mephibosheth had treated David most
shockingly, and now Mephibosneth says to
himself: "What does the king want of me?
Isn't it enough that I am lame? Is he going
to destroy my life? Is he going to wreak on
me the vengeance which ho holds toward my
grandfather, Saul? It's too bad." But go
to the palace Mephibosneth must, since tne
king has commanded it. With staff and
crutches and helped by his friends. I
see Mephibosheth going up the stairs of
the palace. I hear his staff and crutches
rattling on the tessellated floor of the
throneroom. No sooner have these two
nersons confronted each other?Meohib
Iosheth and David, the kins?than Mephibosheth
throws himself flat on his face before
the king and styles himself a dead dog.
In the east when a man styles himself a dog
he utters the utmost term of self-abnegation.
It is not a term so strong in this country,
where, if a dog has a fair chance, he sometimes
shows more nobility of character than
some human specimens that we wot of, but
the mungy curs of the oriental cities, as I
know by my own observation, are utterly
detestable. Mephibosheth gives the utmost
term of self-loathing when he compares himself
to a dog. and dead at that.
Consider the analogy. When the command
is given ffom the palac? of heaven to
the human soul io come, the soul begins to
tremblo. It says: "What is God going to
do with me now? Is He going to destroy me?
Is He ROing to wreck His vengeance upon
me?" There is more than one Mephibosheth
trembling now because God ha% summoned
him to the palace of divine grace. What are
you trembling about? God has no pleasure
In the death of a sinner. He does not send
for you to hurt you. He sends for you to do
you good. A Scotch preacher had the following
circumstances brought under his observation:
There whs a poor woman in the
parish who was about to be turned out be
I cause sne coum noi pay ner rem. woo ui^ui
she heard a loud knocking at the door, and
bhe made no answer and hid herself. The
rapping continued louder, louder, louder,
but she made no answer and continued to
hide herself. She was almost frightened un10
death. She said, "That's the officer of
the law come to throw me out of my home."
| A few days after a Christian philanthropist
met har in the street and said: "My poor
woman, where were you the other night? I
game round to your house to pay your rent,
why didn't you let me in? Were you at
tome?" "Why," she replied, "was that you?"
I'Yes. that was me. I came to pay your
ent." '"Why," she said. "If I had had any
dea it was you I would have let you In. I
bought it was an offloeroometo cast me out
r.s. .v j'I.
:i-<-?f v - ' r
?> ?
of my home." 0 soul, that loud knocking
at the gate to-day is not the sheriff come to
put you in jail: it is the best friend you ever
Md come to be your security. You shiver
with terror because you thinlc it is wrath. It
is mercy. Why, then, tremble before the
Kiusroi heaven ami earth calls you to His
palace? Stop trembling and start right
away. "Oh," you sav, "I can't start. I
have been so lamea oy sin mm su mujci uj
evil habit I can't start. I am lume in both
feet." My friend, we come out with our
prayers and sympathies to help you up to
the palace. " If you want to get to the
Ealnce. you may set there. Start now. The
[olv Spirit will help you. All you have to
do is just to throw yourself on your face at
the feet of the Kim?, as Mepbibosheth did.
Mephibosheth's caninlal comparison eeems
extravagant to the world, but when a man
has seen himself as he really is and seen
how he has been treating the Lord, there
is no term vehement enough to express his
self condemnation. The dead dog of
Mephibosheth's comparison fails to describe
[ the man's utter loathing of himself.
Mephibosheth's posturing does not seem too
prostrate. When a soul is convicted, first
he prays upright. Then the muscles of his
neck relax, and he is able to bow his hea<l.
After awhile, by au almost superhuman effort,
he kneels down to pray. After awhile,
when he has seen God and seen nimself, he
throws himself flat on his face at the feet of
the King, just like Mephibosheth. The fact
is, if we could see ourselves as God see3 us,
we would perish at the spectacle. You
WUUIU UftVO IIU ULUU I\J VVCIUUUI Uiuvt
pie. Your cry would be, "God be merciful
to me, a sinner."
And again, Mephibosheth in my text
stands for the disabled human soul saved
for the sake of another. Mephibosheth would
never have *ot into the palace on his own
account. Why did David ransack the realm
to find that poor man nnd then bestow upon
him a great foitune and command a farmer
of the name of Ziba to culture the estate and
give to this invalid Mephibosheth half the 1
proceeds every year? Why did Kins? David
make such a mighty stir about a poor fellow
who would never be of any use to the throne ]
of Israel? It was for Jonathan's sake. It
was what Robert Burns calls for "auld lang :
syne." David could not forget what Jonathan
had done for him in other days. Three *
times this chapter has it that all this 1
kindness on the part of David to Mephib- !
osheth was for his father Jonathan's sake.
The most important part ot every prayer '
is the last three or four words of it, "For
Christ's sake." Do not rattle off those words
as though they were merely the finishing j
stroke of the prayer. They are the most '
important part of the prayer. When in
earnestness you go before God and say,
"For Christ's sake," it rolls in, as it were,
upon God's mind all the memories of
Bethlehem and Gennesaret and Golgotha.
When you say before God. "For Christ's
sake." you hold before God's mind every
eroan, 6very tear, every crimson drop of
His only begotten Son. If there is anything
in all the universe that will move God to an
act of royul benefaction, it is to say,
"For Christ's sake." God is omnipotent,
but He is not strong enough to resist
that cry, "For Christ's sake." If a
little child should kneel behind God's
throne and should say, "For Christ's sake,"
the great Jehovah would turn around on
His throne to look at her and listen. No
prayer ever gets to heaven but for Christ's
sake. No soul is ever comforted but for
Christ's sake. The world will never be redeemed
but for Christ's sake. Our name,
however illustrious it may be among men,
before God stands only for inconsistency
and sin, but there is a name, a potent
name, a blessed name, a glorious name, an
everlasting name, that we may put upon
our lips as a sacrament and upon our
forehead as a crown, and that is the
name of Jesus, our divine Jonathan,
who stripped Himself of His robe and put
on our rags and gave us His sword and took
our broken reed, eo that now, whether we
are well or sick, whether we are living or
?' ? " " iUni r?? wi A 14 m AWUfl
UViUJ5, IX WO o^coa. ILiaw uauu 11, Uiv?w
heaven 4o the center, and God says: "Let o
the poor soal oome in. Garry him up into ti
the throneroom of the palace. Though he ?
may have been in exile, though sin may have a
crippled him on this side, and sorrow may tl
have crippled him on the other side, and he n
is lame in both bis feet, bring him up into
the palace, for I want to show him everlast- tl
ing kindness, for Jonathan's sake." C
Again, Hephlbosheth in my text stands 5
for the disabled human soul lifted to the b
King's table. It was mote difficult in those t
times even than 1t is now for oomtnon men
to get into a royal dining room. The sub- d
jects might have come around the rail of the tl
palace, and might have seen the lights kin- u
alert, and might have heard the clash of the 1
knives and the rattle of the golden goblets,
but not get in. Stout men with stout feet 3
could not get in once in all their lives to one n
banquet, yet poor Mepbibosheth goes in, e
lives there, and is every day at the table, c
Oh, what a getting up in the world it was g
for poor Mephibosheth! Well, though you b
and I-may be woefully lamed with sin, for t
our divine Jonathan's sake I hope we will n
all eet in to dine with the King. c
Before dining we must be introduced. If ii
you are invited to a company of persons v
where there are distinguished people pres- ii
ent, you are introduced: "This Is the Senator."
"This is the Governor." "This is the k
President." Before we sit down at the King's t
table in heaven I think we will want to be
introduced. Oh, What a time that will be,
when you and I, by the grace of God, get into
heaven, and are introduced to the mighty
spirits there, and some one will say: "This is
Joshua." "This is Paul." This is Moses."
"This is John Knox." "This is John Milton."
"This is Martin Luther." "This is
George Whitefleld." Oil, shall we have any
strength left after such a round of celestial
introduction; Yea, wo shall be
potentates ourselves. Then we shall sit down
at the King's table with the son3 and daughters
of God, and one will whisper across the
table to us and say, "Behold what manner ol
love the Father hath bestowed upon us that
we should be called the sons of God!" Anil
some one at the table will say. "How lon?
will it last? All other banquets at which I
sat ended. How long will this last?" and
Paul will answer, "Forever!" and Joshua
will say, "Forever;" andJohn Knox will say
"Forever!" and George WhiteQeld will say,
"Forever!"
And the wine at that banquet will be old
wine. It will be very old wine. It will be
the oldest wine of heaven. It will be the
wine that was trodden out from the red
clusters on the day when Jesus trod the wine
press alone. Wine already more than eighteen
nenturies old. And no one will deride
us as to what we wore in this world. No
one will bring up our imperfections here,
our sins here. All our earthly imperfecrinna
enm flrtVfirrtd nn and hid
ilen. Mephibosheth's feet under the t
table. Kingly fare. Kingly vesture. King- i
ly companionship. \Ye shall reign for- i
ever and ever. I think that banquet will ]
mean more to those who had It bard In
this world than to thise who had It
easy. That banquet in David's palace
meant more to Mephibosheth than to any
one else, because he had been poor and crippled
and despised and rejected. And that
man who in this world Is blind will better 1
appreciate the light of heaven than we who
in this world had good eyesight. And that
man who in this world was deaf will better
aDpreciate the music of heaven than we who
in this world had good hearing. And those
will have a higher appreciation of the easy
locomotion of that land who in this world
were Mephibosheths.
I f 0 my soul, what a magnificent gospel: It
takes a man so low down and raises him so
high! What a goapel! Come now, who
wants to be banqueted and im placed? As
V. ITT:ll 1 . ~
wueu rr uuenurue was iryiug iu mo
"emancipation bill" through the British
parliament and all the British isles were
anxious to hoar of the passage of that
' emancipation bill," when a vessel was coming
into port and the cuptain of the vessel
knew that the people were so anxious to
get the tidings, he stepped out on the prow
of the ship and shouted to the people long
before he got up to the dock, "Free!" and
they cried it, and they shouted it, anrl they
sang it all through the land, "Free, free!"
80 to-day I would like to souod the news of
vuui jjic.icui .vuu ,>uur ciuiudi caiHutiyauvu
until the angels of God novering in the air,
and watchmen on the battlements, and bellmen
in the town cry it, shout it, sing it, ring
it, "Free, free!" 1 come out now as the
messenger of the palace to invite Mephibosheth
to come up. I am here to-day to tell you
that God has a wealth of kindness to be9:ow
upon you for His Son's sake. The doors of
tne palace are open to receive you. The
cupbearers have already put the chalices on
the table, and the great, loving, tender, sympathetic
heart of God bends over >ou this
moment, saying, "Is there any that is yet
left of the house of Saul, that I may show
him kindness for Jonathan's sake?"
Several well developed cases of leprosy
have been discovered in the Kanaka settlement
of Joaepha. Tooele County. Utah.
SABBATH SCHOOL.
INTERNATIONAL LESSON FOR
AUGUST 2.
Lesson Text* "David's Kindness,"
II Samuel ix., 1-1(1?Goldea
Text: Rom. xll. 10?
Commentary.
1. "That I may show him kindness for
Jonathan's sake." David is at rest in hia
kingdom, reigning over all Israel and executing
judgment and justice unto all his people
(II Sain, vii., 1; viii.. 15). Read in Jet. xxiii.,
5, 6, of it king who. on David's throne, shall
reign find prosper and execute judgment and
justice in the earth--Jehovah-tsidkenu.
David had sworn to Jonathan that he would
show the kindness of the Lord to his house
forever (I Sam. xx., 14-17), aud he would
now keep his word. What a wonderful word
is this, "the kindness of God" (see also verse
8). It is the same word oft times translated
"mercy," and aiso "loving kindness," as in
Pa. xxiii., 6; xxv., 6; Ixlii., 8, etc. The honor
of being a channel through which the loving
kindness of God may be shown to others is
given to every believer. See II Cor. vi.f 6:
Col. iii., 12.
2, 3. "Jonathan hath yet a son which is
lame on his feet" When the news came of
his father's death he was a little boy five
years old. His nurse took him up to flee
with him. and in her haste she let nim fall,
thus causing him to be crippled for life (II
Sam. lv., 4). This story of the king's kindness
to Mephibosheth for Jonathan's 6ake Is
very suggestive all through of the love of
God to sinners. The man wns lame through
110 IftUll or Qis own, auu u? was iuluc uu uuiu
feet?could not walk at all. All are sinners
through. Adam, and such sinners that in our
flesh there dwelleth no good thing (Rom. v.,
12; vll., 18). If his name signifies, as some
think, "shame proceeding from the mouth,"
It is very suggestive of Rom. ii., 13; Math,
rv., 18.
4. "He is in the house of Machir, the son
of Ammiel in Lo-debar." The name of this
place may signify "no pasture" and makes
as think of the prodigal sOn, who, when he
had wasted all his living, would fain have
satenthe swines' food (Lukexv., 16). Every
sinner who stays away from God and seeks
:o bless himself in this world of no food for
tte soul is somewhat like Mephibosheth in
Lo-debar.
5. "King David sent and fetched him."
Be did not send him word to come and see
lim because he had good news for him, but
le took means to bring him right into his
presence. Our David, blessed Lord Jesus,
ioes not tell us to make ourselves fit to come
ofiim, but knowing our Incurable lameness
3e comes right to us with His love and grace,
ind we helpless creatures have only to x6:eive
Him and all His love (John L, 12).
6. "He fell on his lace ana did reverence,
ind David said, Mephibosheth. and he anwered,
Rehold thy servant." A sinner on
lis face before God is a hopeful sight, as
lonviction of sin is an essential to oonverion,
and nothing work? conviction like the
ovihg kindness of God. See Luke v., 9: isa.
L, 5; Job xlil., 5, 6; Aots iz., 5,6. David
ailing him by name makes us think ol John ,
:x., 16, "Jesus salth unto her, Mary."
7. "Fear not, for I will surely show thee
Jndnesjs for Jonathan thy father's sake."
lee the comfort, the restoration and the
utare provision contained in the words of
his verse. The perfect love of God casts
iut all fear and enables us to sing Isa. xli.,
L We have restored in the grace of God in
'hrist more than we lost in Adam, and He
eho spared not His own Son, but delivered
lim up for us all, will wiih Him also freely
rive us all things.
8. "What Is thy servant that thou
houldst look upon such a dead dog as I am?"
lS we 8ee and believe the love of God to ua
re become increasingly filled with a sense
f our own unworthiness. A decreasing esLma:e
of self is good growth in grace, as
rhen Paul saw himself to be the lea?t of the
postles, then less than the least of nil saints,
aen chief of sinners. As Christ Increases
re decrease.
9. "I have given unto thy master's son all
fiat pertained to Paul and ro all his house."
t was all of grace for all had been forfeited,
o with the sinner we lost all in Adam's sin,
ut God commendeth His love toward us in
bat while we were yet sinners Christ died
Dr us. He loved us even when we were
,ead in sins (Rom. v.. 8; Eph. iL, 4.5). All
bat we receive in Christ is God's free gilt to
3 in grace (Rom. vi., 23; ill., 24; I Jonnv.,
10. "Mephlbosheth, thy master's sod,
hall eat bread always at my table." Ho
light have been forgiven and had the proprty
restored without being made a member
>f the king's family, but s?e the "exceeding
Teat riches of his grace" in taking him to
lis own table. To be forgiven is very great,
o be justified or accounted as if we had
iever sinnea is greater, out 10 we mauu u
hild of God and joint heir with Jesus Christ
3 greater still (I John li., 12; Rom. ill., 24;
1; Acts xill., 38,39; Rom. vili., 16; I John
U., 2).
11. "According to all that my lord the
:lng hath commanded His servant, so shall
hy sen-ant do." These wore the words of
hat Ziba who afterward slandered his maser
and sought to turn away the heart of
)avid froraiim (II Sam. xvl., 8: six., 27).
f we are children of God, we must expect to
e slandered by some one. and if the
landerers are those of our own household
re must not think it strange, but rather acept
it as fellowship with Christ and count
t a privilege.
12. "All that dwelt In the house of Ziba
eere servants unto Mephibosheth." Every
rue child of God by faith in Christ Jesus
las all things working together for his good'
Rom. viii., 28), so that all things may truly
>e said to serve him. As in Ezek. 1., 19-21,
he wheels and the living creatures move toother
controlled by the same spirit, so all
he events in life are controlled by the Spirit
?f God for the highest good of every believir.
All the love and power of God combine
o make all things work for God's glory and
>ur good.
13. "So Mephibosheth dwelt in Jerusalem,
or he did eat continually at the king's ta>le
and was lame on both his feet." Here is
t beautiful picture of that which every
Christian may be and do. Jerusalem signiles
"city of peace," in which every believer
nay dwell. The king's table is the word of
>od, at which we may constantly dine,
ivoiding all the tempting delicacies of the
vorld's tables, with their light reading, so
sailed, or even the more learned works which '
irn not according to ScriDture. while, as to '
;ur corrupt natural man, we must be con;ent
to own that It Is still within us, though
t may be persistently reckoned dead. Christ
done is our peace, ovjc life, our joy.?Lesson
Salper.
ENLISTMENTS IN THE ARMY.
Decrease In the Number, But Quality
Is Better.
There has been a slight decrease In arm1?
Bnlistmonts of late, and the present strength
of the army Is about 600 less than its maximum
forae of 25,000 men. Officers of th?
A-djutant-Gftneral's office at the War Depart
ment are authority for the statement thai
the quality of .the recruits is much bettei
than for many years, and that connection
with the Hie of the army no longer carrle*
with it the social degradation, which formerly
attached to It. The improved condition
is stated to be due In part to the new oystea
of recrulilni;, which allows a regiment to flli
all vacancies from its immediate neighborhood.
It is also due in a great measure to
the stringent rules now governing admissions
to the ranks of tho army. Greater care is
nnw titlron In thn f.h.irnltop of the recruits
than heretofore, aac the candidate must produce
satisfactory proof on that point to insure
his enlistment.
According to one of the officers at the Wat
Department toe conditions ot the soldier are
much better than they were even ten years
ago. The better class of soldiers has made
the service more agreeable, and there is a
more congenial relationship existing between
oflicers and mea, although, of course,
there cau never be an absolute commingling
of the commissioned and enlisted branches.
The posts now have their libraries; there is
a gymnasium at every station, where, also,
there is a recreation room and exchnnge.
For the soldier who remains in the army
there is increasing pay with length of service,
and, after thirty years, retirement on
three-fourths pay and allowances of clothing
andjood.
"me army is Dy no means rue cusroputable
organization it was onco charged with
being," said an army officer. "It is really
agreeable, and I should say preferable, in
every way for a man who Is doomed to
manual labor ail his life, with nothing to
ibow for It at the end, and very ltttto relaxation
as he goes alone." -
RELIGIOUS READING.~
LOYALTY THE TEST OF LI11EBTY.
With the growing disposition in the church
to break away from old llxed codes of be- j
lief and conduct, and to regulate personal
thought and practical ethics entirely by the
dictates of the individual conscience, the
question has inevitably risen in earnest and
devout minds: "What is now the test of
Christian fidelity? Are wo not all adrift, so
far as a definite standard of religious belief
and conduct is concerned ? Who shall determine
whether this man belongs in the
church or out of it? Yea, am I a Christian
or not?" To all such troubled questionings
there seems to be but
one adequate and convincing reply.
Since authority is no longer the tribunal to
which the belief and conduct of each and
every Christian may be referred, we must
nfiaorvo thf* life of the individual itself, and
judge belief and conduct according to their
effects upon Christian character. Loyalty to
Christ is the crucial thing. If the newlyfound
liberty of the believer of today shall
seem to impair in any degreo his fidelity
to his Master, that has the now dispensation,
so far as this believer is concerned, 1
been proven inferior to the old. If there 1
is less earnestness, Jess moral stamiua, !
less unselfishness and devotedness in any J
Christian life, because of the greater i
freedom of thought and action which has ,J
recently come into the church, then it were
well if wo could return to the old crecds and j
moral statutes at once. But if, on the other j
hand, the liberty of today does stand the
test of loyalty ; if Christians in general are '
~ 1 or\A oalf.cflftrifln
]U3l as pure?, uuu cuiut-ai, uuvt
ing, and devoted as they ever were?nay,
an; more Christlike In these respects than
formerly?then, we say. all this so-called '
"new departure" in religion, this broadening
of horizon and loosening of
restraints, is a step, and a grand
stej\ forward toward the millennium.
How, then, does modernized religious liberty,
in the church itself, seem to stand the
test of loyalty to Christ ? Is the church
doing less for the Master than she used to
do ? Look at the grand expansion of missions,
of charities, of organizations for benevolence
and for Christian culture, which
has gone hand in hnnd with the great liberalizing
movement in the modern church.
Look at the magnificent, the astounding acr
cession of enthusiastic young people to the
working force of the^ church. Look at the
practical devotement of time, talent.energy.
resource, to work among the poor ana
uneducated. Look at the present esprit
de corps of the whole religious republic.
Look at the new, Christlike love and
fellowship springing up between the denominations,
which are all, as we now see,
children of one mother, whose only affront
to each other is that they have, one by one.
gone out from the paternal roof and raised
and sheltered a family of their own. Truly,
there is no more reason for sects quarreling
than for married brothers and sisters ; and
the more Christlike Christianity of today is
beginning to see it. So as the testimony
of a general outlook goes,
there is yet no falling-off in loyalty
to Christ * because of the liberty
which has come into the church as the result
of aggressive modern thought. But
tust as soon as devotion to Christ is seen to
le falling off in the least degree among j
Christians, it will be time to question the ,
healthfulness of the religious atmosphere?
to ask, "Is not too much liberty weakening i
the moral fibre and leading to indifference
?" Loyalty the test of liberty?that (
is the principle which we must apply. .
True to Christ, true to oneself, and true to
*;he church.
i
LOVE OUT OF A PUBE HEABT. j
In Jesus Christ the end of the command- i
| ment is love out of a pure heart, and a good '
conscience, and faith unfeigned. Nothing i
can exceed the absolute plainness, the reit- <
erated simplicity,of Christ's teaching. A 1
I child, a wayfaring man, a fool, can under- 1
stand it. ''If ye love Me," He says?what ? 1
go into the desert ? shut yourself up in a i
monastery ? spend your days in the vain '
repetition of formal prayers ? No ! but
--"If you love Me, keep My command- '
? nrtmmnnnlAPM''1 Vftll wi ll
LUrilbS. ?? . ,,
say; ''how elementary! how extremely ordinary.
Why, I learned all that years ago
by my mother's knee; I have got quite be- |
yond all that." Ah ! but have you ? Like )
the Pharisee, you may not be an extortioner, <
unjust, an adulterer; but have you, even in |
man's judgment, kept, in all their divine ;
breadth, the law of kindness, the law of
purity, the law of honesty, the law of truth, ]
the law of contentment V Have you loved i
God witn all the heart? Have you loved ]
your neighbor as yourself??CannonFarrar. j
We cannot all find the same things in 1
nature. She is all things to all men. She j
is like the manna that came down from 1
heaven. "He made manna to descend for <
them,in which were all manner of tastes:
and every Israelite found it what his i
palate was chiefly pleased with. If he de- 1
sired fat in it, he had it. In it the young 1
men tasted bread ; the old men. honey ; and I
the children, oil." But all found it in sub- 1
stance and strength. So with nature. In ]
her are all manner of tastes"?science, art,
poetry, utility, and good in all. The botanist
has one pleusure in her, the ornithologist
another, the explorer another ; what all may ,
have are the refreshment and exhilaration |
which come from a loving and intelligent |
scrutiny of her munifold works.?John Burroughs."
COMMUNION WITH OOD.
Communion with God i3 a great comfort 1
in times of loneliness. We may be separated
from our dearest earthly friends, but we can j
never be separated from our best Friend;
His sweet assurance comes, "Lo, I am with 1
you alway." But communion means something
more than presence. . It implies a
confiding interchange of thought aud feel
ing between our Lord and ourselves,
a heart to heart conference together, in
which we have a part. We listen to
' hear what God the Lord will speak," and,
in turn, he waits for our words. If there is
no response from us there can be no communion.
God said to Moses, "I will come
down and talk with thee." And the record i
stands, "The Lord spake with Moses face to
face as a man speaketh with his friend."
What could be more personal than this?
Just as truly, we may speak with the Lord
a9 we would with the most intimate friend,
and he will hear the very words we utter.
We may breathe iuto his ear our deepest
longings and desires, our love and praises,
our complaints even, and he will answer us
in tho joy of our heart.?Mrs. C. L. C.
BITTER MUST BE ACCEPTED.
We are continually coming to points at
which we hesltute. ''In all but this, dear
Lord," we say. "I can take Thy way and do
Thy will." Still the answer comes, "In all
ways, my child." There must be no reserve,
no withholding, no exception. The
loved sin must be given up, though it seem
only a little one. though giving it up be like
cutting off a right hand or plucking out a
right eye. The hard path must be taken,
though it lead among thorns that pierce the
feet, over sharp stones, through Are and
flood. The painful duty must bo done,
though it cost place, ease, position, though
it lead to want, suffering, homelessness.
The bitter grief must be accepted, though
it seem to take all and leave nothing, and
must be accepted sweetly, lovingly, cheerfully,
with unquestioning faith.
Condescension is an excellent thing, bn|
it is astonishing how one-sided the pleasure
of it is 1 He who goes fishing among the
Scotch peasantry with condescension for a
bait will have an empty basket by evening.
?Robert Louis Stevenson.
You picture to yourself the beauty of
hmvflrv nml fastness. And then some
little, wretched, disagreeable duty comes,
which is your martyrdom,the lamp"for your
oil; and if you do not do it, how your oil is
spilt!?.Phillij.ii Brooke.
Abandoning Tobacco Culture,
The splendid farms in Pennsylvania, near
near Marietta, belonging to the estate oi
tho late Colonel James Duffy, and containing
over 600 acres, have been noted for the
past twenty-five years for their great yields
of tobacco?among the largest In Pennsylvania.
This year not a tobacco plant will be
raised, the profits from tobacco farming being
too small to offset the risk of a failure of
the crop. Not three-fourths of the usual
acreage will be put out In tobacco in Lancaster
County this season. A few years a<jo
is.ooo acres were devoted to this crop alone.
Newfoundland'* R?venne.
The customs revenue of Neflrfoundlnnd for
the quarter ending June 30 was 1402,000.
TEMPERANCE
TO A JVQ OF RI75L
This "Address to a .Tug of Rum" was first
rablished in 1815. It Is as applicable now us
yhen it first appeared:
"Here, only by a cork control'd,
And blender walls of earthon mould,
In all the pomp of death, repose
The seeds of many a bloody nose;
The chattering tongue, the horrid oath;
The fist for fighting nothing loath;
Th" passion which no word can tame,
That bursts like sulphur into flame;
The nose carbunoled, glowing red;
The bloated eye, the broken head;
The tree that bears the deadly fruit
Of murdei*. maiming and dispute.
Assaults that Innocence assails;
The images of gloomy jails:
The giddy thought ou mischief boat;
The midnight hour in riot spent;
All these within this jug appear.
And Jack, the hangman, In the rear."
A 8TRANOE TEMPERANCE WAR.
Probablv one ol the most remarkable tem
perance crusades ever recorded was that
ivhich took place in a village of Madagascar,
jailed Lohnrano (The Well), lying half way
between Antananarivo, the capital, and Am?
soaitra. There 19 a resident missionary at
Loharano. The people of Loharano soma
time since made an agreement among thenjelves
that no I'um or strong drink should be
Introduced into their market, and for some
time nonn was introduced. At length, howaver,
somo rumsellors, taking counsel together,
resolved to force an opening for
:helr trad?. Accordingly, they combined to
:he number of neventy, concealed their short
tnives under their lambas, aud one day took
ip a position in tho market place with their
rum beforo thom. Their idea was that the
people would make an attempt to drive them
snt, and then, "the worao for the people."
But their expectations were not realized. By
jome means the folk of Loharano got to
know of the hidden weapons. They went to
;he missionary for advice, and then out their
beads together and concooted a plan. All
that day the purveyors of the ? oroidden
liquor stood in the glare of the sun in the
market place, waiting for the thirsty customers
to come and buy. But all day long
ihe Loharano men left thom severely alone,
find passed and repassed before the eyes of
the rumsellers with aggravating stolidity.
When evening came on, the disgusted
merchants loaded their donkeys again and
tvent off to encamp for the night. But they
were not to be daunted by mere laok of encouragement,
and the next morning found
tViam oonin nil ^Av?ntv. dulv nested on the
market place. Presently the townsfolk be?an
to appear, and their numbers increased
till the whole male population was crowded
iround the rumsellers, who beheld with
trepidation the gleam of the sunshine on
naked knives and gun barrels, Then a man
stepped out from the crowd and made emphatic
representations, advising the intruders
to go away. The rumsellers, seeing
themselves outnumbered, had no alternative
but to take up their demijohns and depart.?
Christian Herald.
A SHARP BEJOINDEE.
8ome years ago Rev. E. Klumph, now of
Elm, Wayne County, Mich., while seated in
a village etcre, accosted a saloon keeper
with the remark;
"Come over to the church to-night and
bear me lecture on temperance."
The reply was: "I won't; you said whisky
sellers were robbers." N
I didn't" repnea air. iuumpo.
"What did you say?"
"I said you were worse than a robber. I
said yon took my Innocent boy, and sent
me home a maudlin tool. I said you took
in intelligent man, and sent a lunatic to the
isylum. I said you took a respected citizen,
ind sent a criminal to prison. I said you
took a father and sent a fiend to throw bis
Family Into the street. I said you took a
loving husband, and sent a demon to kick
bits wife. I sala you took the Immortal soul
md sent It to heli. I said you were worse
:ban a robber."
Sharp and yet terribly true.?National
Temperance Advocate.
"HABMLXSS CIDEB."
A few months ago two boys rode to a counrry
store. One of them bought and drank
tour glasses of "harmless older." They then
ivent to a country church, disturbed the congregation,
who were holding a social, and,
rtartlng home, overtook others.
The boy, only nineteen years old, who
aad drank th? cider, began a quarrel with
mother young man, and before the others
realized what was taking place, had killed
tiim; end he was the son of a widow. The
Knw nniv ninfiteflii veara old. was sentenoed
to the penitentiary for twenty years. So two
homes are made desolate by four glasses of
jlder.
Not until the anguish of that widowed
mother's heart, as she sat listening for the
bounding step of her boy and heard instead
the tread of those who bore her the lifeless
form of her boy, can be estimated can we
know the cost of four glasses of cider.?
Illinois Watch Tower.
ONE MAN'S REASONS.
An eminent Englishman said on one occasion:
'About ten years ago or more I first
became a total abstainer becnuse I was easily
convinced that the use of alcohol was not a
necessity, and a great deal turns upon that. I
law, for instance, that whole Naticns had
not only lived without it, but had flourished
without it. I saw the remarkable fact that
there was some 20,000 persons in England
who, though many of them had made themselves
mere funnels for drink, though they
had been acoustomed to drink from their
nMiHhnnH thnnch most of tbem had been
brought to prison, either directly or indirectly,
through drink, yet th'o very day that
they entered the gates of a prison all drink
was entirely taken from them, and yet there
was not a single instance on record in which
any of them had suffere I in consequence."
A HINDEREB OF WOBK.
Sir Andrew Clark said: "I call perfect
health the loveliest thing in this world, and
alcohol even in small doses will take the
bloom off, will injure the perfection of loveliness
of health, both mental and moral; I
go still further and say, alcohol is not only
no helper of work, but a hinderer of work,
and every man that comes to the front of a
procession in London is marked by this one
characteristic, that the more busy ho gets
the less in the shape of alcohol ho tn kes,
and his excuse is 'I ain very sorry, but I can
not take it and do my work.'"
DEOBADING IN EVEBY WAY.
A writer in one of the French macazines
says that the manufacture and consumption
of alcohol in that country is degrading the
people mentally, morally and physically, refilling
the hospitals, asylums and Drisons.
These physical wrecks bring into the world
miserable offsprings which inherit a weak
body and soon show the tastes of their parents.
The great danger seems to be in the
consumption of liquors matte from essences,
and especially absinthe, which is said to be
as fascinating as it is harmful.
AN EXPLODED THKOBY.
The theory that whisky is necessary in the
treatment of pneumonia has received a blow
from Dr. Bull, of New York City, who discovers
that in the New York hospitals sixtyfive
per cent. of the pneumonia patients die
with alcoholio treatment, while In London,
at the Object Lesson Temperance Hospital,
only Ave per cent, die.?Scientific American.
TEMPERANCE NEWS AND M0TE9.
Every moderate drinker is leading an army
of boys toward the pit.
Appetite for drink is the devil's Iron chain
on the drunkard's neck.
When a man gets up early in the morning
to drink, he is apt to spend the day in doing
nothing else.
In 1893 one in seventeen deaths whioh occurred
in Switzerland were ascribed to drinking
habits (including women and children).
The easiest time to let drink alone, is before
the first drink is takeD.
In Glaszow, Scotland, fifty-nine out of
sixty-two criminals tried at one session of a
court testified that drinking had led to their
crimes.
The Board of Excise of Ithaca, the seat of
Cornell University, has refused all applications
for renewal of licenses to sell liquor In
that town.
According to the Scranton (Penn.) Index,
the sentiment In favor of organizing women's
total abstinence societies Is growing steadily
every day.
When the Queen of Madagascar shut up
the saloons in her kingdom, and their owners
asked for compensation, she replied, "Compensate
those you have wronged, and I will
pay tb.e balanoe.", . < - _ __ .
v. ' f -JA:-' ' . . -
AGRICULTURAL If
TOPICSj OF INTEREST RELATIVE t
r TO FARM AND GARDEN. c
t
MTLK FBOM STRIPPER COWS. j
When a cow has been long milliing ?
and is not in calf the quality of the i
milk changes, and at times it is impos- s
sible to get butter from the cream, t
This is so pronounced a characteristic
of such milk that one cow in a herd of
Ihis kind will be apt to cause trouble
in the churning. The most satisfactory
way to manage a herd is to have
at least half of the cows within not .
more than two months of their calving,
or at most four months; then the
effect of the long milking of the others
is not apt to have any ill effect on the
hfillftvinr of t.hft Arpnm in tVia />Kn>n
A HOMEMADE GARDEN ROLLER.
The illustration herewith shows a
handy garden contrivance that oan be
made in a few moment. A section is
sawed from a round log and its surface
smoothed. Two round bits of iron
rod are driven into the centre of each
end, and the roller is ready to take
HOMEMADE ROLLER.
the place of the wheel in the wheelbarrow,
the latter being unshipped for
this purpose. The special value of
this arrangement is that no new frame
nor handles are needed for the roller,
and that the barrow can be weighted 1
to give just the pressure desired.?
New England Homestead.
RULES FOR THIS XING FRUIT.
First?No tree should have more
fruit on it than it oan hold up well and
mature in perfection?that is to say,
that the trees should be not so loaded
as to require their being propped, or
so much that the blanches bend very
severely. This checks the growth of
the fruit to such an extent as to injure
the quality.
Second?Every time a tree has too
much fruit it weakens its vitality to
suon an extent as to require two or
three years to recover, or so ohecks its
growth that it begins to decline, and
is permanently injured.
Third?In the production of an
overcrop it costs the tree more to
ripen the seeds than to make the fruit.
Fourth?If from a tree heavily loaded
there is taken one-half or even
three-fourths of the fruit, there will
be more bushels of fruit than there
would be if all was left on the trees.
Fifth?By this. practice there will
be less poor fruit put upon the market,
and the goqd will bring better
prices and give infinitely better satisfaction
.
Sixth?Thinning makes the fruit of
much better quality, makes it keep
longer and produces finer, handsomer,
more attractive and much more desirable
and salable fruit.
Sttrpnt.Vi?WTi?n nni? nrnhardiffta
shall look upon thinning as important
as cultivation, pruning, care and attention,
they will succeed in supplying
our markets with perfeot fruit and
of the very best quality, and thus increase
the demand, enhance the value
and give vastly more satisfaction to
both the producer and the consumer.
?Coleman's Rural World.
A3?OCT COLD STORAGE.
The cold storage business is taking
on inynense proportions, Its development
in the principal cities of the
country has been nothing less than
phenomenal of late years. And now
cold storage warehouses are being
erected at oountry shipping points.
In some cases they are put up by the
farmers themselves, who organize cooperative
stock companies and conduct
the business on the same general
principle that is applied so successfu
y in co-operative creameries. Most
of these cold storage plants in both
city and country use chemical refrigeration
or other artificial means
nf nrAotinir Anri mainhninina ft low
temperature. We understand that
recent progress in this line makes it
possible to build and equip a cold
storage plant at comparatively reasonable
cost. Of course, where the ice
crop is assured, no expensive refrigerating
machinery is required, and
in such localities cold storage can be
provided in connection with a neighborhood
ice house. The fact that cold
storage is coming into such extensive
use in the cities is the best possible
evidence that it generally pays to thus
hold perishable products until they
can be marked to the best advantage.
Now, if this is such a good thing for
marketmon, cold storage oan be
equally useful to farmers, especially
as they can utilize its advantages by
the co-operative method. Almost any
farmer can have a fruit retarding
house built on a side hill, which does
not require ice, and a small cold storage
room should be a feature of every
farm or home ice-house. ?Orange Judd
Farmer.
A FOE TO POTATO BUGS.
There's a cure for everything, arid
at last a cure has been found for the
potato bug.
Thnt red, persistent and gregarious
creature has for yearn and years shortened
the lives and the potato crops of 1
farmers all over the country.
Paris green, in powder and in solution,
scattered with a blower, or
filinwpr(>H frnm anrinklinc uot. had I '
not been able to prevail against him.
He has kept right on eating the tope f
off the crops, and, in some years, has
raised the price of potatoes to an almost
prohibitive notch.
But now, in the State of Indiana, at 1
the smart town of Johnstown, has 1
been found another bug, who^e bright
particular business in life is to smite
the ring-streaked and pestiferous '
potato bug, hip and thigh, and never
leavo him nor forsake him until he is
dead.
It ia a green bug, diamond-shaped,
and equipped with a long and fabulously
sharp beak, with which he pene
trates tlae marts 01 iuu puiaiu uug uu
eight. He does not do this because be
wants all the potatoes himself. As jet
he has shown no iuclination to do
damage to crops of any kind. His
" >'.v W;;
* ? i / l't # *'
ivorite diet is the blood of the potato
^ and on that he thrives.
Hoosiers all over Indiana State have
hronged to Johnstown to secure these
ommendable bugs, and transfer them
o long suffering potato patches.
Already the benefits of this bug-eatng
bug's eSorts have been made maniest.
The potato bugs seem to know
ntuitively of the presence of their
mall, but active enemy, and when
hese long-billed diamond-backs put
1
THE POTATO BUG AND ITS ENEMY.
in an appearance in a potato patch,
the potato bugs, in a body rise up and
migrate to some other garden, with all
the agitation and headlong haste that
deadly terror can inspire.?New York
Journal.
GRADES OF FUSE BRED HOGS.
Observing farmers, when they con*
mat. sornVi afnr>t unfli crraAaa aaa fit
once a vast improvement, and continning
their investigation further, >
find the pure bred animal still much
superior to even the high grade. It
then becomes a question as to whioh
will be the most profitable, saorifioe
the present females and invest in pure
bred animals exclusively, or retain the
females and trust to a pure bred male
to raise, the .quality of the herd. Oa
this subject George 0. Newton writes:
"I would be pleased if you would
give me a little information in regard
to breeding up my present stock of
hogs. I have a good average stock of
U*. 11 1 L i.
uugn. ?y uuiu lb pay ueat iu procure a
thoroughbred boar, or would it be
beat to get a thoroughbred sow and .
breed her to the best I can obtain in
this country? Please tell me whioh
you consider the best and quickest way >,, '
to do. I am much pleased with your
paper in every way."
If the intention is to raise hogs and
dispose of them for breeding pur*
poses there is but one answer to the
foregoing, and that is to procure one
or more pure bred sows and mate them
with the best pure bred boar obtainable.
Competition among breeders is
now keen and it would be folly for ft
beginner to start in the business with
any but the best stock that money
could buy. But on the other hand,
if the intention is to raise hogs to be
u it. - _i._i j__ n
buiu oil mitr&ob iuf puin., wo wuuiu
not advise sacrificing the present
sows, if they are good breeders, bat
would purchase a pure bred male, as
good as our pocket book would allow.
By continuing this method for several
years, invariably selecting the best of
the young sows for breeders, it would
require but a short time to secure an
excellent herd.
The great object among swine breeders
bas been to produoe an animal as
near as possible in confirmation. to a
rectangular box, with four legs set
squarely below for support. And now
when they have succeeded the packers
and butchers unite in telling us that
such hogs are no longer desired.
The hog now in demand is somewhat
thin and spare with the sides well
streaked with lean, and this being the
case the chances are that the sows of
oar correspondent would be equally
as well adapted for raising pigs to be
fattened for slaughter as would some
of the pure bred. If desired a pore
bred sow, one or more might be puxchased
as means will allow, and by
keeping the progeny separate a few
years at most would suffice to have all
pure bred sows necessary for breeding
purposes.
But as regards the boar, we have
decided opinions on that subjeot, and
would earnestly urge every reader to
be satisfied with nothing short of a
pure bred animal of individual merit.
For a farmer in moderate circumstances,
and with present prices prevailing
for hogs, we oould not advise
the sacrifice of good average sows and
the investment of the proceeds in pure
bred stook, when the progeny is to be
sold for slaughter.?Iowa Homestead.
FOB POULTRY BAISEBS.
Always carefully look over you*
flock once a day, and if you see any
birds mopey or drooping their wings,
remove them then and there, as one
ill bird may effect all the rest.
Always keep some Epsom salts and
sweet oil by you, as you may want
them at any moment.
Always give just enough food at one
time, that it will all be eaten up; none
should be left lyiDg round.
Always give as great a variety of
food as possible; constant change of
diet is the way to get the chickens on.
Always give your birds a little hemp
seed and cooked meat when moulting.
Always keep the floors of the houses
and coops well covered with sand or
ashes.
Always rake the droppings off every
morning. Cleanliness is a great preventive
to sickness.
Always keep a sharp lookoat for vermin,
and eradicate them as quiokly aa
possible.
Always do little odd jobs that want
doing at once. "Procrastination is
the thief of time," and often a nail
here or a tack there will save an hoar's
work.
Always buy your food in as large
quantity as possible, as you will then
generally be able to get it at a cheaper
rate.
Always keep a strict acoount of all
you buy or sell. By treating your
liobby in a thoroughly business way,
you will derive greater pleasure by
seeing exactly how much profit you
have earned.
Always De particular wnen writing ?
description of what you have to sell to
an intending purchaser; this often
saves a lot of unpleasantness.
Always remember that promptness
in replying to letters is the' way to
secure customers.
Always hear in mind that by continually
advertising you bring your
name before the public, and thereby
build up a substantial business.
Mr. Hamo Thornevcroft has been
five years in executing a statue of
Queen Victoria. It is now complete
and will be erected in the interior
conrt of the Koyal Exchange in London,
which she opened in 1811, .;