Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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CUJKE H" THE 1 i ?\% ?\1 %! %! %% til !% 11 By Prof. Wm. Henry P< I l Author of the MT?> Stone-Cutt n 5 of Lisbon," Etc. CHAPTER XIX. i Continued. "Do you think she suspects?" "I cannot say as to that, Luke. She ifloes not 6eem to notice me when I go about her; but once or twice I have detected her eyeing me slyly, witi a glance that has more in it than I like." "Ha! If she does that, she suspects. .We must attend to her ere long." "Attend to her?what do you mean?" "Nonsense; don't stare at me, Nancy. If it comes to a point where Luke Hammond must swine by his neck, or old Fan die quickly in her bed?well, we shall see'." "Yon would do it, Luke," said Nancy, trembling. "So -would you, Nancy,. Don't put on the squeamish with me. An enemy is an enemy, and you know it. But time enough to think of Fan's case after other and more important things I wonder how it is with our gallant young friend, James Greene?" A tapping at the door startled him. "Who can that be?" he said, and cautiously opened the door. Old^Fan, ghastly and shaking, stood before him. "I want to go away," said Fan, creeping in and looking over her shoulder into the dark behind her. "Go away I Go where?" cried Hammond. "Anywhere?anywhere out of this house!" whined the old creature' sitting down bv the blazinsr srrate. and drawing: herself into a heap. "I can't get warm. I'm cold?cold! and such noises." "Noises! you old fool?" said Luke. "Yes?noises! I'm old, Luke Hammond, hut I ain't deaf nor blind. Something amazing awful is going to happen in this house. Down in my room I hear the Evil One at work, pounding and hammering and thumping. I know he's coming for you, or Mrs. Harker or me. Then I see James Greene, all muddy and bloody, running all over the house. He's after me. I can't get warm." "Last night, Fan," said Luke, "you fainted with fright, and called out that Nicholas Dunn was your husband." saia ran, ana uammonu turned his back to avoid her terrible glance. "Yes, Fan, you said that," continued Luke, with a paper before his face. {Now I knew a man named Roland Dunn?he was hanged twenty years Ago for murder." "Was he!" screamed old Fan, all alive with glee. "Ha! he was hanged? ?hanged for murder! Thank God for It! I feel better now! I feel warm all over. He was hanged! Good! I wish I had been there to see it. And yet," she continued, in a mournful voice, "he must have been my boy?a very bad son?he murdered his father?same thing. Put me in a mad-house.- So he's hanged. Good. Now if I could hear what became of the girl?my girl ?Roland Dunn's sister?she ran away with John Marks?wild John Marks, that robbed his father." "She was drowned at sea?I heard the dying confession of Roland Dunn," aaid Luke, turning and speaking to Nancy, as if old Fan was absent. "Roland Dunn 6aid he drowned liis aister Ellen, Nancy." "Did he! Good!" cried Fan, In perfect ecstasy. "I knew they'd come to a bad end" "But they were your children, old woman," said Hammond, while Nancy pretended to be absorbed in a newspaper. "My children! Were they? I wonder if they were." moaned old Fan, ahal^ing her shattered brain to and fro with a melancholy motion. "If they were my children I ought to cry and feel bad about it," said she vacantly. Then fiercely?"No! they were not my children, Luke Hammond. They were a pair of imps. I know it?I know it? don't say no?for old Fan knows it! And if they weren't dead, and I should meet them?what do you think I'd dor "Tell me; I'd like to know," said Hammond, carelessly. Fan put her hand In her bosom and drew out a great, broad-bladed knife, long, and curving to a point. "I'd cut their throats!" she cried, flourishing the knife. "I would. If it hanged me! For they murdered my husband, my Nicholas?whelps! whelps! I've carried this knife for it for years? for years!" Luke and Nancy exchanged glances. "Fan," said Luke, "you are crazy." "I know it?I know it!" moaned Fhn. hiding her knife. "I wish I wasn't, or Wish I was stark ravins mad?then I could not feel my misery. I'll go back to the kitchen now. I feel better since I've heard such good news. They're ilead and I feel better." . "Well, give me the knife. Fan. You will not need it now," said Luke, very coaxingly. "No?I want the knife?the knife," aid Fan, fiercely. "I saw Daniel creeping about last night?he wants to rob me. My gold is here now?my birdies!" She showed the little sack tied around her wrinkled throat. "To rob me they must cut my throat first?ha! let them come?I can lighttight haTd now?for my yellow Wrdies." She hobbled away and Hammond locked the door after her. When he turned, Nancy Harker was weeping bitterly. "What's that absurdity for?" he said, with a coarse laugh. "Oh, Roland, she la our mother!" ex claimed Nancy. "Take cara! Call me not by any other name than Luke Hammond," wild lie, grasping her by the arm. i Sf-v. . f-ifiBfr''"' rrif sssrn msir a I 3Ck, I Copyright 1896, | & ^ I by Bob??t Boski*'b Sosi. 8 jtt I (An right* reserved.) J ra "Woman, you are growing weak, foolish, dangerous." "Dangerous!" she repeated, drying her tears instantly. "Aye, dangerous, Nancy. Dangerous to me. So look sharp, and call me no strange and forgotten names. I am a man to meet and destroy danger?not to be crushed by a cry-baby." "Enough, Luke," said Nancy. "I'll be weak no more." "The better for you, Nancy," 6aid Luke, resorting to his brandy. "Keep quiet The madness, grief and age of the old woman is killing her. Let this matter rest, and wait?watch and wait. So Daniel left his charge last night s 11 ana went pruwuiig aiu;r guiu< "No," said Nancy; "Fan imagined It. She Is ahvays accusing some one of wishing to steal her gold. Daniel is true to his post." "He had best be, for I'd end his business very suddenly if he tried any tricks," said Luke, grinding his teeth together. Then seeing Nancy retreating until her back touched the wall, and staring wildy at vacancy, be cried out: "What Is the' matter with you now?" "See! There! Near your "What? I see nothing," said Hammond, looking about him and drawing a pistoL "I see it?I see it?oh. Heaven!" groaned Nancy. "What/ speaK, woman:"The 6hape?the shape that haunts our dreams," said Nancy, wildly. "Our father's face in inky clouds! His lips move?he speaks! Listen!" Despite his Iron nature, Luke trem-) hied like a leaf in a gale, and with staring eyes gazed about him. "I see and hear nothing," said he,! at length. "Gone?gone at last!" murmured Nancy, sinking into a chair. "You are putting on, Nancy Harker; you know you are." "I saw it?I swear I eaw it. I heard it," cried Naticy, angrily. "Bah! Imagination! You are going mad like Fan. If you heard it, what did it say?" " 'Beware of Harriet Fossl When she shall meet ye, and ye shall know each other, ye die!'" said Nancy. "Nonsense!" said Hammond. "You've dreamed that so often that at last you think you hear it I tell you, my good woman, to be carefuL Yon are growing quite dangerous. I expect to hear from John Marks every instant I am astonished that he or Stephen have not returned. The bark Gleaner must be in port. Come, we must have no more of this nonsense, Nancy." Nancy made no reply, but drew a chair to the fire and sat down. Luke looked at her in 6ilence for some time, and then thought: "She Is failing fast This won't do. I may have to take care of her at last." The gate bell clattered loudly, and he started to niB ieet. "There! We will have news now, I hope. Do you go to the white and gold. I will admit this person." "I beg you not to do It, Luke," said Nancy. "I tremble every instant to hear of your aeath, and of course mine will follow sharp after." "But the gate must be opened. Hark .to the dogs!" "I will send. Daniel to the gate. Neither Stephen nor Marks will return hither from the street" "True, I forgot that" exclaimed Luke; "send Daniel up to me." Nancy left the library, and Daniel soon came up. "Daniel," said Hammond, "go to the sate. Admit no one. If you find Stephen or the gentleman you admitted night before last, say that he must enter by the private door in the rear. If any one inquires for me or Miss Elgin, say that we are in Boston, and will not return for several days. It is after 10 o'clock?a late hour for any one to call." Daniel went on his mission, and after several moments returned with a letter, which Hammond eagerly opened and read as follows: "Metropolitan Hotel, N, Y., "March 11th, 9 p. m. "I have warned Charles. We are certainly watched. Harriet Foss was at the wharf when we landed. She was disguised, but I knew her. We will be with you at midnight. "JOHN MARKS." \A/ Kn rrn ro ttam f hf? oclra^ T.iilra "A nan?don't know him?never saw him before, sir," replied Daniel. "He gave me the note and hurried away." "Very well. Now return to your post," said Hammond, and as Daniel departed, he continued: "But why this delay! Strange that Stephen has not returned. Ah!" he exclaimed with a sudden thought. "They will come by the private entrance, and Stephen remains to guide them. John Marks says, 'We will be with you.' He must mean himself, my son and Stephen. Patience! I must wait." We left him, many hours before, digging under the wall that surrounded the well. A frame less powerful than his, or a heart less bold, would have given up in despair before the numberless obstacles he met and overcame. At length, after many hours of labor, he was able to crawl through the trench and to come Tin nn tho nti\on oi/io of the wall. "And now." said James Greene, stretching himself out at full length. "I must rest awhile and think. First, how long is it since I was trapped? I was trapped on the tenth, at about half past 11. I wound up my watch at 8 o'clock. My watch runs thirtygix hours at a stretch. Let me see If it still runs." | I He drew his watch from his fab, and j held It to his ear. "It still runs," said he. "Therefore J I am confident that I have not been a prisoner thirty-six hours, though how j long I remained hanging senseless in j the well I cannot tell. It is altogether Impossible for me to see in this horrible darkness nor can I tell what time it is by raising the crystal and feeling I the position of the hands upon the dial. I I might guess twelve hours too little 1 or twelve hours too much. But it is i very important to me to know hw I long I have been without food and drink. I do not feel the want of it now, for my excitement Checks hunger but not thirst. I can work a certain number of hours without food, but must grade my strength that it may hold out as long as possible. I must know what time it is. To wind up my watch requires six turnings of the key ?that is, my watch runs six hours foi every turn. I will wind It now and make a guess of how many hours of the thirty-six are gone." He searched for his key, found it, and wound up his watch. The key turned four times exactly, and stopped. "Good!" said James Greene. "Four times?six hours to every turn?twenty-four hours. I have been trapped twenty-four hours. It. is, then, now about 8 o'clock at night, on the lltb of March. What may not have happened to Kate Elgin during all thai time!" He rested for some time, and then | rose to his feet. The place in which he | stood allowed him to stand fully erect I "Water! anything for water!" said I he; "I shall faint without water. My j tongue feels like a piece of leather, j But let me find what sort of a place i I am in now." Clinging close to the wall for fear of pits, Greene began his blind examination. Ten minutes sufficed to inform him, and he paused. "I am in a passage built of brick, fifty feet long and ten feet wide. Possibly once a cellar, or maybe an enclosed space between the foundation walls?probably the last Now how high is it?" He reached up his hand. "Say seven feet. I dare not cut my way through the floor. Wood makes a terrible noise. I shall have to dig [ through or under another wall. This j passage is so long, that I think I had better work at the end. If I dig through at the sides I may lose labor and enter another cellar. But first lei us look for water." He began to feel the floor above him, walking to and fro, and sweeping his hands about him. He was seeking for water pipes. Suddenly he almost shouted with Joy. His hand grasped a slender tube,! running from the ground upward. He was about to cleave it with hie wedge, when he paused, saying: "It may be a gas pipe! If I cut j it asunder I shall be suffocated! I do j not think God has permitted me to es- \ cape from the well to be smothered 1 with gaa I will trust in Him and j strike!". He struck bravely, and a jet of Ice cold water deluged his face and hands. "Hurrah!" said Greene, quenching hie thirst "Now, If the leak is discovered, plumbers must seek for the cause, and i I shall soon make myself known. But j the cutting off of the water may not be 1 noticed for days, weeks or months, j The pipe may have been used to supply j a room now unoccupied. I mu6t go to i work again." Selecting a spot, he began to loosen j the bricks. Four hours' hard labor j made a breach through which he; crawled. "Dark yet" said he. "I have not i reached safety yet. And now let's see | where we are." He was not long in ! exploring the place. * "I am in a small j stone room," said he, "fifteen feet i square. I cannot reach the ceiling.! I have found a place where once was a ; door, but a wall has been built on j the other side, and the door is closed j witn solid stone, xnis must De a very i old house, or this room has been left j as a foundation for a new one. I find ; a large fire-place. The fire-place has been bricked up, but I think I may j make an opening, enter and go up the ' chimney?if It is large enough. I will begin." When Greene began at the fire-! place it "was midnight on the 11th of j XfnwnVi nn/1 Via woo Pat* KolAWT V?tlf 4m_ . *.TJUXI \_1I, UUU litr WrtD Ittl ucivu, uu v i<xtmediately uiider the crimson cham-! ber. While James Greene labors at mid-' night of the 11th of March, let ns re- j turn to Luke Hammond,whom we left; impatient for that hour to arrive. To be continued. -? Weather in Arizona. "From the expressions I hear from ' people In Washington, I Imagine that j you well-favored citizens of the Na- j tional capital have been having a bit j of warm weather," said Mr. A. B. i Hamilton, at the St. James. "But if you think this is warm, you ought to be out in Arizona, where I live. i "There the thermometer runs up to ' 100 and 102 degrees almost every day i In the summer, and yet one never hears > of a person suffering from a beat [ stroke. I went there and settled on a j ranch nearly eighteen years ago, ex- ! pecting that I would be shipped to my home in Massachusetts in a pine box In about six months. Everybody said that I had consumption, and that the | only thing that would prolong my life j for perhaps a few years was the Ari- ! zona climate. "I didn't have a great deal of hope j myself, but I determined to make a : fight for life. I weighed 119 pounds ' then, and yesterday, when I stepped on j the scales in Xew York, I tipped the j lic.im tn 1S6. and I haven't seen a sick ! day for years; but I staged on tliac Arizona ranch until I got in good condition. For five years I Aever saw a drop of rain. Then I took a trip to Denver, and while I was there I had the delightful pleasure of once again witnessing a good, old-fashioned rainstorm, and I felt like going out and standing in it and getting drenched to the skin.?Washington Times. "Your son will be a comfort to you in your old age," remarked the Visitor. "If that boy turns out as he premises." said the father, "I won't have anr old age."?Detroit Free Press. A SEEMON FOR SUNDAY ; A LEARNED DISCOURSE ENTITLED I ? GOSPEL OF THE RESURRECTION * / Christ Arioen Frim the Tomb" it Marie j the Subject of a Powerful Address by ] the Ilev. Henry C. Sxrentzel-He Ke- < view* the Miracle From Every Point, ' New York Citt? Dr. Henry C. Swent- , rel. rector of St. Luke's Church, prcachcd , S'.indaymorningon"TheGospeloi "the Eee- | urrection." He took his'test from Acts xvii: 18: "He preached unto them Jesus | and the resurrection." Dr. Swentzel said: With what noble confidence did the apostolic church set out to serve its world-wide mission. It had a new religion to proclaim, a glorious message from God for all the races of mankind. It was not provincial, but catholic. It began in Jerusalem, but it looied forward to compassing the whole earth. Wherever it went it encountered beliefs and rites which were venerable, impressive and upheld by the prestige of wealth, rank and culture, but it was none the less devoted to its huge work. What a hopeless task it seemed to be to concert the human family to the gospel of Jesus Christ. The Master of this latest cult was a Jew. He had been disgraced by crucifixion, and there was now scarcely more than a handful of disciples to tell the story of His career. When we consider the overwhelming odds against which these men struggled as they proceeded to evangelize the multitudes, we are all the more profoundly impressed with the confidence with which they took up the more than herculean labor. The magnitude of the effort to which tfley were called did not deter them, persecution could not affright them, the oppositions or in'difference of the bettor classes could not discourage them. On thev went, from city to city, from country to country, preaching the religion of which ] they were gladly the earthly champions. Not always bad they been of this temper, i The mightiest among them, the rook-man ( himself, had utterly collapsed in the high j priest's palace, and after the fateful dav of j the cross they all accepted the plight i of those who had eerved a lost cause. But i now all this is changed. The cowards are ] the bravnst of the brave, and each of the apostles is ready to face every peril and to ] meet death for the message of love and sal- i vation which burned upon his lips. Nor is the reason for this radical change i difficult to account for. Those timid and j blundering men had rec:ived a divine af* i flatus?they had been revolutionized in mind and heart and soul by the Lord's res- j urrection from the dead. To the gifts of the Holy Ghost which they received was , added the indomitable assurance of the i triumph of their divine Master over death and the pave. The Lord's resurrection i was the dominant doctrinal note in their i thinking and their teaching, and wherever i they went they bore the witness of eye- i witnesses to the fact which they so boldly j declared. Although they had known .Testis and had companied with Him as intimate ] associates for several years, their spiritual i perceptions were dull until the last, and i they understood not His oft repeated say- j ing that He would rise from the dead. But i as soon as they are satisfied of His resur- < rection they all come to the front, ready for the fray, eager for the honor of repre- . senting Him in every land and willing to i endure every hardship for His cause. St. Paul on Mars Hill is an illustration of the temper of the Apostolic Church. He ! is thoroughly 'imbued with the certainty of ] the Easter story, and hesitates not to preach it throughout the missionary jour- 1 neys when he so r->lendidiy served his office i as the apostle to the Gentiles. As we think ] of him in the Grecian capital, we can only < wonder at the calmness and courage with ( which he met the ordeal which he nad de- ( liberately sought. What a striking picture \ he is as ne stands on Areopagus, facing the chief intellects of the classic metropolis and j speaking with undaunted boldness of the j risen Jesus. The sun-browned traveler, a | stranger in a strange land, he knows that ) ts is in the centre of the very best paean- \ ism, and he is as fearless of its prejudices i and subtleties and ridicule as- he had been ] nf +hp nmorm? nf Svria TTio froin Jnrr ViifVi. j erto had prepared him to appreciate the l eights on which he gazed. In nim the civil- ( izations of Jews, Romans and Greeks met, i and he had appropriated the finest things j of each. His attainments enabled him to j see the difficulties all the -more < plainly. \ Evidently a Hebrew, his nationality would j make ?t harder for him to win the .respect > of his hearers. Conscious of this handicap, he would feel the weight also of the queries and the bias which his words would surely evoke. It was probably his first visit to this seat of enlightenment. Its farfamed glories which ne had long since desired to see were now before his eyes in all their bewildering splendor. He had mastered its language and literature, and now he walked on its streets, looked upon its population, gazed upon objects made rare in interest and celebrated in epic or in song, visited its sanctuaries and its Bchools, met its thinkers and artists, and realized the beauty and the power of its life and thought. From the time that he disembarked at the pier his attention was constantly arrested by the monuments and shrines of Athens, and all the tokens of \ its genius and culture. 1 ne i:_: i VI HJC UCW ICU^IUll UHS .ycir J had scarcely one. It was still in the dnvs of its poverty. Churches and cathedrals and endowments were matters of the future. What could St. Paul expect in response to his pronouncement? The ambassador of Christ understood that he had cotne hither as the legate trom the courts of heaven to the seers and scholars of thi3 seat of learning to declare the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. He was face to face witli the clever scions of the highest intellectual culture known to antiquity; hard by were the temples of Eumenide6 and Theseus, the Propylaeum of the Acropolis, the temple of victory, and. towering above all from its lofty pedestal, was the bronze colossus of Minerva. Well might he assume that Stoics and Epicureans and other thinkers would attempt his overthrow, but he did not flinch while he announced a religion as yet without influence or art or literature, with scarcely a comfortable resting place for its Scriptures and its sacraments. In his manner, however, there are no indications that he was conscious of any special advantages. It could not be otherwise, for he had himself se?-n the risen Jesus and he could, therefore, not be more certain of the hhiniu,? sun than he was of the truth of the Gospel which he preached. It was this unalterable convic tiun \viiiuii eumaiiiL'u iiiui even ?.?ii luaia j Hill while he discoursed cf the redemption ^ accomplished by Him who died and rose ^ again. He was not splitcing hairs nor tell- i ing fables nor playing with metaphysics. He upheld the risen Christ to challenge at- e tention and support his truths and win the ' souls of his distinguished audience. The basis of St. Paul's confidence as an apostle of Christ is the only basis of eonfi- c deuce in believing. The first Christians were Easter enthusiasts. Their untV.ilin^ i belief in the resurrection of Jesu9 had much to do in making them worthy of veneration as the best *?mong God's family of jaints. All that had been written concerning the ^on cf Man they pondered with Eious devotion, but they never forgot that [e camc forth ?!ive a^air. from the .jrave. They would think of Him as the Son of Mary; they would lie*r of His childhood years; they would sr.iciv His sayings and His works; they would contemplate His sufferings and death, but always would they include His victory and coronation. "With great power ^ave" the apostles witness of the resurrection of the J-nrd Jesus and great grace was upon them all." The apostolic cburch is a model, not only in matters of polity and usage and doctrine, but also in the religious type of its spirit and faith. It was nre-eminentlv an Easter corporation. Filled with the Holy Ghost, it bore abundant fruits and did abundant labors and achieved abundant results because in all its idpas and plans it stood upon the platform that God r.vsed up His Son Jesus Christ from '.he dead The same i. J 1- . I 1 J... .1 cause, we cannot uuuui, wouiu iu-ua> pruduce the same effect. All This is of solemn, practical moment to our own times. Although the preacher 8 is not smong those who jelieve that the cause of religion is waning, li? is hound with all thoughtful people to recognize the peculiar 'lifficiltirs which beset the F church of the twentieth century. Our only ^ hope is to hold fast to the ideas and Ideals s of the church of the first ientury. The -* weakness of Christendom to-day is the retirement from its conspicuous position of u the all-prevailing truth which was so pow- J! erful in the beginning. There is entirely t too much uncertainty even amo.ffc Chris- a tians concerning the resurrection of .lesus a Christ. How many there are who would a rather not be pressed too stromr.v hv its c ?;' ' ? v: rrv; i ._. JiscuBsion, who would prefer to have it H ;liminated from distinctively Christian leaching, who would award it no further lignity than to allow it to be placed among ;he matters of secondary importance to tvhich little or no reference need he made hist here there has unquestionably been a lecline of certitude, and the hour arrived !ong ago when the issue should be strongly i3 made and honestly met. If it is at all uncertain that the divine Redeemer came forth from the grave, it is just as well for us to know it and to fashion our belief and make our calculations accordingly. If the old faith is in peril, or even if it should I be iie;d 111 abeyance, as lovers 01 tne irum iv we should be ready and willing to accept c the rebult with the utmost candor and con- g sistency. There has been entirely too mucb * reticcnco aid hedging; there has been a e disposition to dodge the real question, 0 though perhaps with a charitable pxtfpose & that thereby the conscience and hopes cf ** others might not be shocked; there has P been a sentiment that seems to advise that b the jess this matter is emphasized the bet- 81 ter for the church. Let the church throw ' down the gauntlet; let it have this matter nut once for all with those who dispute it J] Dr who hesitate to accept it ex animo. If the case is not settled let us settle it and c Fettle it right. Let ua insist upon the facts ? whatever they are. iJ Christians may well hide their heads in " shame if they feel constrained in behalf of u their religion to ask any quarter, to accept ' any favors of those who do not stand by 5 the faith once delivered to the saints, or to take advantage of any technicalities. Better ten thousand times a controversy than K to have this imDortant part of the gospel a continue where it now is in the estimation v of so many good people. We may well af- Cl ford to seek all the light that is available, P and we need not be afraid to accept th? * consequences. There are those, thank 5 God. who feel that the authority of the church is sufficient warrant for "the doc- ? trines of the church, but that authority is ?' not universally recognized, and it surely * will he no mortal sin if people amid their J* nfirmities respecting religion demand other ? considerations in support of belief in the risen Christ. Are other considerations Forthcoming? Are there reasons which jus- J* tify timidity on our part? Is there a sus- * picion that somehow if we could fully know of this matter our creed would be ? worsted? Such questions may seem to be primary to those whose faith is sure, and t they may appear to be hardlv justifiable at r this late day, but people will think, even though they think wrongly, and if they t ire the victims of a mistake or a misunderstanding it is a human kindness to lead * them to a knowledge of the truth. What v is the case of the resurrection of Jesus? * Of course the disciples believed that He l rarely died, a conviction which is now shared by everybody; the Hebrew peoole themselves not excepted. If one is dis- j Dosed to quibble over the story of the Sav- j iour's passion and to suggest that perhaps e the Son of Man did not die, he should be c referred to medical experts, who will tell * him that if Jesus died of heart fracture it a was only natural that the water and blood j, Bowed from His side when the soldier'" a spear pierced the pericardium. It is now, g simply preposterous to impeach the genu- <] ineness of the Lord's death. The outcome c of the cross was not a trance. The Re- u ieemer "tasted death for every man." 8 If the Lord reallv died, is it a fact that j( tie rose again? Medical experts can pronounce upon the 6tory of His decease, so j legal experts will Dass upon the story of 0 His resurrection. The testimony is all in. j. Shall it be nermitted to stand? Christians t need not hesitate to allow the matter, ? which is so supremely sacred to them, to ? be dealt with in this fashion. If they <3 choose, they can go reverently to the Su- q areme Court that will review the testimony t j{ the Easter witnesses. All that they sught to ask is that the tribunal *hall be r absolutely fair and honest in the applica' r tion of the laws of evidence. Who are the E witnesses and what is their "reputation a for truth and veracity?" Inasmuch as c :heir narrative is extraordinary in its char- e icter they must expect to submit to the f most rigid examination. They will stand i the test. The apostles and their followers t were people who for integrity and religion t lave never been surpassed. Not only were r they the incarnation of honor and piety, 5ut they are entirely trustworthy on every 2 iccount. They investigated the matter g with the utmost care. Although excellent c folk may be deceived by others and even t by themselves, it is impossible to suppose j] that these men were the victims of either t :orm of deception. If the Master had ap- t peared to them all on only a single occa- ? rion. there might be place for a suspicion s >f their absolute accuracy, but they saw J Jesus many times after the resurrection, 11 thev talked with Him, thgv ate and drank t with Him, they even nut their fingers into ' the print of the nails. The list of wit- n lesses does not consist of two or three / j iames: but includes at least 500 persons. | n Ine ctiurcn is stui anotner witness, ner i organization, her beliefs, her sacramenta, a ler unfailing testimony from the beginning x ind to every generation that the Founder 1 >f the Christian religion came forth from s the dead is worthy of the utmost consideration. The results of this Easter creed t should be reckoned with, for the doctrine 1 jf the Lord's resurrection has produced t i race of men, women and children who are s the very flower of the human race. It has f Drought forth all that is best and worthiest c n every Christian country, E What is the reasonable response to all this testimony? It cannot well be ruled s >ut. It cannot be discredited. It deserves b something better than the Scotch verdict? t 'not proven." Although we do not rely f upon the force of argument for arouning ( nterest and changing opinions, it is worth c while to show that the church's creed is p supported by ample and adequate reasons, e ind thar faith in the resurrection of Jesus f s not blind credulity, but the acceptance a )f an historical fact which is duly verified r jy the canons of historical certitude. p This whole case of the Lord's resurrec- j :ion merits far greater prominence than it t :ommonly receives, ana it should be al- F owed to resume the position which it field o n apostolic times. In this way the mod- a >rn church would have in larger measure e ;he confidence whica' marked those holy r jeople who were instrumental in carrying j the gospel throughout the then known t ivorla. With what courage and power Christians would deal with the religious ( ikepticism and misapprehensions of the ^ ige. If Jesus Christ has risen from the F lead, the gospel has the most infallible t irnnf nf ito ahcnllltp tpilfllfllln^SO Whpn t )ne comes back from the light of the nest c vorld and reaffirms every jot and tittle of c His teachings, there is scarcely place for s ;he shadow of a doubt. Our religion has I his high credential. Christianity is sane- v .ioned, and seaied by a voice from heaven. ? Misgivings should cease and confidence ihould return, and the Saviour's disciples ? ihould rally as never before to the support 11 >f His cause and kingdom. Their crecd v ;hould be accepted as infallibly true he- e ause it has been brought so evidently t rom the skies. Human nature does not change essen:ia)ly. The needs of to-day are not very lifferent from those of 2000 years ago. The gospel which St. Paul preached in y Athens he would preach this day in Great- / ir New York if he were here. "'Jesus and a ;he resurrection" is the blessed and tri- ], imphant theme. How grievously that c vord of God is needed not only for the up- ? lolding of faith, but for cherishing and ^ itrengthening hope for an eternity ot felic- y ty and bliss. Of arrant infidelity there is c low comparatively little, but there is most c inquestionably at least a partial failure to f >e quite sure of the soul's immortalitv. The ? irospect of everlasting life is not denied, t is simply not realized. Many a heait is aying. '^Vou'.d that I might be certain of t all. It is impossible to suppose that he multitudes who are not actively asso.1 ?. n.i: _* i_i Tl tiatea wiui tne caurcn uencve 111 unuuiiai* , ty. If they look forward to an endless ca- 11 eer bej-onil the hills of time they would ? needily change their attitude toward holy v nings. And if th<; whole company of * Christ's disciples were to lay hold as they ^ ught of the gospel of "Jesus and the resirrection," there would he another p^iite- n ost and the kingdom ot God's dear Son ? vould come indeed in all its power an<' ? ;lory. ' A* a Little Child. A little child gave a most exquisite ex- tl ilanatior. of walking with God. She went p lome from Sunday-school and the mother c( aid: "Tell me what vou learned at school." w Vnd she said: "Don't you know, mother, p( re have been hearing about a man who ised to go for walks with God. His name ?is Enoch. He used to 20 for walks with ?od. And, mother, one day they went foi n extra long walk, and they wakled on nd on, until God said to Enoch, "You are pi long way from home; you had better just B< orne in and stav.' " 4 m SUNDAY SCHOOL 1 SITERNATIONAL LESSON COMMENTS j p FOR 'JUNE 14, object: Paul at Rome, Acts xxvlll., 10-21, [ 30, 31?Golden Text, Rom. 10?Mem* ory Verse*, 23, 24? Study Verse|, 10-31 ?Commentary on the Day's Ler?ou. Paul enters Rome (v. 16). 16. "Came to Lome." Rome is reached at last and the >ng journey is at an end. At this time the ity of Rome was a4, the height of its > lory. It held sway over nearly the entire nown world. Within a circuit of little lore than twelve miles more than 2,000,000 f inhabitants were crowded, of whom bout 1,000,000 were slaves. "But Paul." fero, the emperor to whom Paul had apealea, was too much engaged in his deaucheries and pleasures to care much for nch a man as Paul or such accusations as rere made against him by the Jews. "By imself." This lenity was probably due to tie commendation of the centurion Julius. With a soldier." The custom was to hain the prisoner by one hand to the uard. To this chain the apostle frequent7 makes allusion in the epistles to the Iphesians, Philippians and Coloesians and 1 i his fnendly note to Philemon, all of j rhich were written during this imprison- c lent. See Eph. 3:1; 4: 1; Phil. 1: 13, 16; c !ol. 4: 18; Philem. 1: 0, 10. V The first interview with the Jews (vs. c 7-22). 17. "After three days." Three \ ays after Paul's arrival at Kome he in- I ited those who presided over the Jewish r ommunity to visit him. His first steps on e aaring beyond the narrow circle of those t Iready converts were' directed, in accord- 0 *'? ? i ll' L-J1 *_1. A. J nee witn ms esiaDiisaea principle, wwara c Brael. And as his circumstances did not i llow him to seek the Jews, as he had done \ i other places, he requested the represen- 1( itives of the Jewish congregation to come 3 his lodging. "Men and brethren." This a ddress to the assembled Jews is of a per- -v onal nature, and is intended to counteract o ertain prejudices which the Roman Jewa c light entertain. "Delivered prisoner." In t s mild terms as possible he recounts his g ncalled for accusation by the Jews in Je- p usalem, who delivered him into the handj B f the Romans. 1 18,19. "Let me go." He narrates briefly g he events given in chapters 21 to 28. The a toman officials repeatedly failed to find " auee of offense in him. "To appeal." t >aul declared that his appeal to the em- B eror had become indispensably necessary, t lecause the Jews opposed his acquittal to j rhich the Roman authorities judged him t o be entitled. He states that it had not j een his intention to bring any accusation s gainst his people before the emperor. . a 20. "Hope of Israel." The hope of , srael is the general expectation of the , rkssiah. In Jesus Paul believed that the { xpected Saviour had appeared, and for ( 'reaching this he had been attacked and s aade a prisoner. He held the Bame faith t s all the Jews, only going in this matter ^ urcner inan tney, m inar ne oeueveu inc B ncient promise was now fulfilled. We can ee from the reply of the Jews that he unlerstood their position exactly. "This hain." Roman chains, like our nandcuffs, aually indicated crime, but Paul's chains tand for patriotism and the loftiest religaus conception. 21. ' "Neither received letters." Why he Jews in Judea had not forwarded the ccusation against Paul to their brethren a Rome, that they might continue the irosecution before the emperor, is not mown. It is probable that they regarded heir cause as hopeless, and chose to aban* Ion the prosecution. Paul had been ac[uitted successively by Lysias, Felix, Fe9us and Agrippa. 22. "Desire to hear of thee." They imilied that they had heard of him by their equest to know what he thought of this lew sect. That they spoke eo cautiously, nd subsequently made no demonstration if hostility against Paul is readily accountid for. The apostle was held in special avor by the chief officer of Nero's houseiold, and the Jews of the synagogue were hemselves subject to persecution so that hey were powerless to persecute the disciiles of Christ. The second interview with the Jews (vs. 3-29). 23. "Came many." They came in Teat numbers. Many accompanied the 8 hief Jews. "Expounded," c-tc. Paul r nl-po no Viio thpmp flint Hrw>trm?? r>f the l kingdom of God which was the central ruth of the Old Testament and the New, hat great disclosure of tBe'prophets which ras still, as it had been for centuries, the upreme thought and hope of the whole rewish people. Again Paul follows the ery line of his risen Lord'6 .exposition to he two disciples on the road to Emmaua. 'Moses?prophets." Beginning at Moses nd all tne prophets he showed that the iredicted kingdom is not limited to one lation, but co-extensive with the world, le showed them that in Jesus of Nazareth .11 the conditions of the expected Messiah rerc fulfilled. "Morning until evening." ["his shows the effort Paul put forth to ave the Jews. 24. "Some believed." A few were won o faith in the Christ, but the many disbeieved the teachings of their own Scripurea, and rejectea the Buffering Messiah, o plainly disclosed. The 6eed of the word ell here, in some cases, by the wayside; in ithers upon stony places, or among thorns; levertbeiess, some fell into good ground. 25-29. "Spoken one word." With these olemn words of the Holy Ghost, spoken >y Isaiah. Christ had opened His teachings >y parables (Matt. 13: 14, 15), and had inafly closed His minstry among the Jews John 12: 40). And now Paul, as if himself ommissioned by the Holy Ghost as a pro>het of the New Testament, sadly redelivrs the same message, enforced by the awul emphasis of the Master's double utterm ?a TUnn 4-Via artAaflo nn^or ^ itnnn /1i. >IUX? XIX UO kUC OJJUabaV, UllU?t U1 Y lu ection, formally and finally seals up the ;ospel offer to God's disobedient and reecting people. In this fearful process here are three distinguishable agencies exiresaiy described: The ministerial agency if the prophet; the judicial agency of God, nd the suicidal agency of the people themelves. "Unto tne Gentiles." Paul was lever discouraged. If the gospel -was reected by one class of people he was ready o offer it to another. Paul's residence and ministry in Rome vs. 30, 31). 30. "Two whole years." Vhy he was not prosecuted before the eraieror during this time is not known. As here was no prosecution Paul was suffered o live in quietness and safety. Nothing ert&inly is known on the subject. It is vident, from 2 Tim. 4: 16, that he was at ome time arraigned before the emperor, tut when, or what was the decision, or t*hy he was at last set at liberty, are all inolved in impenetrable obscurity. 31. "Preaching ? and teaching." Paul lid a great work during these two years d Rome: 1. He preached the gospel to all rho came to him. 2. He wrote several pistles which were by far the most imporant part of his prison activity. ConminptlYe C'on?n!? Disliked, A wail reached the State Department at Washington from a representative of the Lmerican colonv at Durango. Mexico, who sked that the Consulate in that city be no Dnger made the hospital for some politiian in the last stages of consumption. The 'onsul there died recently after having ieen seriously ill with the disease lor two ears, and it was understood that another cnaumptive was to be appointed to sue- ? eed him. A Consul who has no apparent t race of consumption has been assigned to t )uranzo. ? c t c New Aabeitoa Mine*. a Asbestos, one ot nature's unique pi\xJ- v c*ts, is not found very extensively in dif- t erent parts of the world, anil when it does t ccur it is usually in th2 form of narrow r eins or seams. Consequently the discov- r ry of rich mines in the Irkursk district, in ] Russia, near amnle water power ?nd cheap <3 ransportation facilities, is very welcome ews. This deposit is ^a:d to be equal in uality to the Canadian and superior to the wiss. a Fatal Accidents In Frnmla. Cl According to a report iust published lere occurred 12,116 fatal accidents in 0, russia last year. Of these sixtv-two per ' or*/I fVio rocf. ?IH. Ul tIJC JVII1CU nut iiiwj, liiiu ihv omen and children. Most of the children 8j :rished by drowning. '? ai Gladstone'* Statne in Abb*?. ETock's statue of Gladstone has been aced in Westminster Abbey, near that of saconsfield. _ B1 / f-Wmm EE RELIGIONS LIFE | ,'EADINC FOR THE QUITI^HOUH 1 WHEN THE SOUL INVITES ITS^F.' j 'oem: Seetclng Failure?There is No Soeh^^ Thins U Beinjf Manly Without Faith -How to Tilnujph Over Every Spiff* ',^5 itoal, Physical and Moral Evil. "0 wave upon^he strand! What urges thee in vain . To lift the baffled hand In suppliance again? " ^%Jgl "The passion that impeb The tidal energies In every 1>ud that swells, In every soul that sighs; m "The Carrie that on the cross Sustained the dying Chri*t, When love for seeming loss ^0^9 Alone was sacrificed." -John B. Tabb, in Sunday^>dua|flrapH2H mbowiac cou^^HnKHm|^B9h^k Courage is eBsendHBB?H9SHBRfl^N| mess is essential oung or old. ir to manliness; f^HD|^HHM899EflH^H9 lo his duty, or to competent for tj^nSHsmMB^HH^U onflicts and struggI^EEHH|fl^HH^H| without strength or 'aith is confidence HMHRomNHH Qere man?strong very enemy, every j|H^nHBESS5bHMH hat can oppose r old. Therefore oUrage and faith life career, ronld be a man,flEgMBMM3?9|^HH^S| ess than a man^BH?3j^HM|MgH9n|nfl There is no s^0HHMH||H9RKHHKflE[ nd courageous witS^HH^^^MflBHHH rho have neither belnHXMRHHDHBjEH ur God, the one true GrlH^vHraBHSH annot of themselves bat opposes them, hence :ods, or trust in supposed uns^B| icrhuman powers, for aid, and thiB^^9M8| ubstitute for faith. When the idoMHwB| >hilistines of old, worshiper! of Da^^RH ave battle to Israel, they cried oat to o3HM .nother, anxiously ana encouragingly: 'Woe unto us! who shall deliver as out of ^ he hand of these mighty gods? these (the | trength of Israel) are the gods that smote JB he Egyptians with all manner of plagues ?U n the wilderness. Be strong, and <rai& H oureelves like men, O ye Philistines, that fl re be not servants unto the. Hebrewi, is thev have been to you; quit your elves like men and fight." And then it B vas that the PblHstinea fought asd Israel vas smitten. The Israelites in that co^ II lict had not faith in their God, the liv^ttv Jod, but their confidence was in the eatiw irk, and that confidence failed them, and ^ 1 he ark was captured and thev themselves s i vere vanquished, while the Philistine wor* -a] hipers of Dagon were triumphant. Long after this the prophet called on he Israelites to have faith in the living x Tod in their conflicts and be strong in fin trength. "Strengthen ye the weak hands, ind confirm the feeble knees," he said. J 'Say to them that are of a fearful heart. 3e strong fear not; behold, vour God w3l :ome with vengeance, with tne refcompenttilH ?f God; He will come and save you," And S be Apostle says to Christian believert ; * 'Watch ye, stand fast in the faith{ quit on like men, be strong." The call u the 9 a me in the olden time and. in the. new, jn or the need and the duty of tho?e who 3 vould show themselves men are ever the. lame. We must realize this if we would'^^Bj ill' our place and do our work./ The apostle sounds his call In view of the. jH ife we have to live and Of the law we have H o fight: "Finally, be strong in the Lord^^l ind in the strength of His might. Put 6a 3H he whole armor of God, that ye mav be M| ible to stand against the wiles ot the aevi&Sn ror our wrestling is not against flesh andJBE >lood, but against the principalities MM igainst the powers, against the world-ntftrBe! Ts of this darkness, against the spiritusiSS losts of wickedness in the heavenly placed. therefore take up the whole armor of SS Sod that ye may be able to withstand he evil aay, and, having done all, t#Wm tand." In our own strength we can do lothing: in God's strength we can do att .* hings that we have to do or ought to do. >y w It is a sad thing for a voung-man to havq 11 the physical and spiritual enemies in tto*%3 iniverse to face and combat unaided- It? ;j.t L tomfftrt fnr a milnu ttioti ta ife* t iiaAfcn iae on his side, ready at hia call to give > j rim protection and assistance, all the limit- I ess and infinite spiritual forces of the nm^ I 'erse, capable of triumphing over every I )hysical, moral and 8pintuaT;evi]. Every - 1 'oung man has the choice between these I wo conditions. \ V Soon after onr Civil War, while General 1 ^rant was still at Washington in-com- I nand of the armies of the United State, a | oung officer on enlisting duty was 91^ * ioned in one of the northern cities. roung officer was not only a soldier of the^| irmy of his Government, but he was a sol* $ lier of the Great Captain of his salvation, % ind he was active in winning recruits for lis spiritual Commander. He sought oat roung men in places of evil-doing and of v' noral danger in order to win them from m heir evil ways. Hearing of a-vile den of pecial peril, where young men wera led ; istray, and where it was difficult for an lonest man, even a policeman, to obtain ;' * intrance, because it was so closely watched ' md guarded, he set himself to find access o toe place and its endangered young , ' nen. At length he obtained entrance, ana le was quicklv recognized as .the only well- - } ioer in the place, and as there for the ex* >ress purpose of aiding to break up the rile business of the establishment. As he was describing to a friend his efnrta tn nhtain an pnr.rflhna +? A am ind his experiences among those desperate tvil-doers, his friend asked him: "Were you not afraid, 'all by yourself?" i, "Afraid!" replied the young officer. rWhy should I oe afraid? Suppose I had medal orders from General Grant to do f his work, should I feel afraid? Why, if iny one attempted to stoD me, I should :lap my hand on my onfers and say to lim, 'iou'd better not interfere with me. ienera] Grant and the whole United States Vrmy are back of me, ready to give me lupport. You'd understand that then I'd eel strong and confident. But Fw more han that support back, of me now. AD he spiritual powers of the universe are eady to give me aid. I've no right to feel ^ ifraid while in God's service, doing Hit vork for those whom He loves." S That is the way for a young man to feel, 1 while he is where he ought to be, doing I vhat he ought to do. In God's service we I lave no right to fear or fly. We are to ' f itand courageously, having boldness in I aith, whoever is our enemy, or whatever -1 orces our enemy brings against us. There. .-9 ire only two great powers in the universe. B Sod and the devil. Beine with God, God vill be with us, and all other foes or forces ire a9 naught to us. "Be subject therefore H into God, but resist the devil, and he will J lee from you. Draw nieh to God and He |$ rill draw nigh to you." \ear to God, there s our safety; there is strength:, there is H he olace to have courage through faith. _ Ha is Oar Strength. The Rev. Alexander Maclaren says: ' AH cork now done in fellowship with God ends to become either too heavy to be acklc-d successfully, or too trivial to call mt our best energies, and in either case o become a grind or a plod. But if He i* H mr strength, nothing will be too formid* Kjg ible to undertake, nor too small to be H i-orth effort. Nothing will be unwelcome: H he rough places will be made plain and S he crooked thiigs straight, and wc shall H un and .not be weary when there come H nomcnts requiring special energy, and -H valk and not faint through the else te? lioiu hours of coinmonulace duty." V A Railroad Tie Derlce. A. E. Snyder has patented a device for j railroad tie. If the invention proves sue- n essful it -will revolutionize the present R lethod of railway track laying. There is Jjj nbedded in the ballast a tie much likd- the Jh nes now in use. The wooden part act*jis Ba cushion for a steel plate, which may tiled the tie proper. The plate is about^H s inches wide and as long as the tie. his plate is placed upon the wooden tie Hi ~a l'.. ju. jyi a\~ nv.au y CUtCia lb. Qlil Flower-Seller* in Dlifavor. flfi Glasgow is pursuing a crusade agaioaliiflg rl flower se'.iers ia the street. . .j ' PS i . Hi