The Abbeville press and banner. (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, August 05, 1908, Image 6
| A FALLE
I vJAt/\l> vfAJ/vW/\!A1aW/ M/vJAV v! A?/vJ/\i/\) a!/ \t/ <
I By pkeder
i ytivlAl^^tKVw^iw'Uxt/wv
CHAPTER Xm. 14 j
Continued.
"Look here, Nebelsen, of course I
;know it's all bosh; but I won't have
any tricks played on me."
"If it is bosh it cannot affect you.
See now, I direct my will against
yours. I wish you to give me your
admission ticket."
"Nonsense!" said Babcock, in a
thick, sleepy tone. "Are you mad?
Give you that? Well, don't make a
fuss; I don't mind letting you have
it to look at; not to keep, mind. I'm
acting of my own free will?of my
own free? There, take the ticket!"
"And now," said Nebelsen, as he
took the card, and stood looking
steadfastly at the uneasy Babcock,
"go and sit down in that chair."
"See you first!" spluttered
;Babcock. "Well, why shouldn't I sit
down?" he added, as he obeyed, "it
happens to be a favorite chair of
mine. I was going there before you
spoke. Confound you, Nebelsen,
what are you doing to me? Take
those eyes of yours off; take them off,
I say!"
"You will not stir till it is twelf
o'clock."
And he sat motionless, his prominent
eyes fixed in a cataleptic stare;
however Nebelsen's power may have
!been assisted by the fact that his
subject had been recently dining, the
.weaker will of the two just then was
certainly Babcock's.
"A thousand thanks for your so
,kind gift of a ticket," said the Chela,
benignantly. "I tell Mees Elsvort
you are sleepy, and not able to come
yourself. Goot night!"
Babcock probably heard and understood,
but he made no answer,
and Nebelsen shut the door with a
igutteral laugh at the success of his
experiment.
That evening the rows of guests
.who line each side of the vestibule at
Academy soirees and lend such suggestions
of landing at Folkestone to
the ceremony of reception were much
entertained by the demeanor of a
spectacled loreigner, wnn a suon auu
spiky beard, -whose appearance, as
he bowed to the president, provoked
discreet but hearty merriment behind
the shrubs.
It is never very easy to find the
right person in a crush, nor are the
Academy rooms adapted to the pursuit.
Nebelsen made his way. painfully
from room to room, with a.tormenting
conviction that his object
was always a room ahead of him, and
then, just when he had given up in
despair, he saw her behind a marble
group in the Sculpture Gallery.
Sybil, too, had been scanning faces
with slowly waning hopes. Why did
not Ronald come? Surely nothing
would have kept him away that night,
if all were well.
So her face lighted up at the sight
rif that finppr-lnnlrinff fri'pnri nf his.
and he welcomed the greeting as a
favorable sign. "You have something
to say to me, haven't you?" she said,
taking advantage of the fact that her
aunt was too far away to hear. "I
think I should like an ice or something,
if you can take me out of this
crush. Mr. Perceval, will you tell my
aunt that I shall be back almost directly?"
And before Mrs. Stanisland,
who, on her side, was impatiently
expecting the twice defaulting Babcock,
could notice what was happening,
Nebelsen, with no very clear idea
where he was going, was mounting a
etaircase by Sybil's side.
Sybil seemed to him more enchanting
than ever that evening, and he
was beginning to expand with triumph
at the idea of having outwitted
Babcock, when her first words some;wbat
dashed his confidence.
"You do come from him, don't
you?" she said. "Ah! I knew it. No
?no ice, thank you" (they were passing
a buffet at the head of the stairs).
"Soo fhla lihrnrv lnnl-? rmif.t ATrkw
tell me?why isn't he here?"
"He was a leedle schleepy after his
dinner," he said; "he ask me to make
his ahology."
"Herr Nehelsen!" cried Sybil, "I
can't believe that?you are deceiving
me! something?some misfortune has
happened to him?please tell me all."
"No, no, ha is qute well?there has
noding happen, and ach! Mees Elsvort,
beleaf me, he is not vorthy for
you so moch to care!"
"You are against him, too! I
thought you were his friend."
"Not any longer?he has done it
himself. And I am afrait I shall
mako you angry, and yet?if you only
could tell me it is not lof you felt for
Mr. Babcock?"
Had any one else asked such a
question she would have been angrier,
but Nebelsen had a child's
naive unconsciousness of offending.
"You've no right to any answer when
you put such questions as that," she
said, "still, just this oncc I will satisfy
your curiosity. Mr. Babcock is
nothing to me?do you understand?
nothing!"
"Ach! how you make mo glad," he
exclaimed, with a deep sigh of relief,
which Sybil imagined was on Campion's
account.
"Then Ro?Mr. Campion has not
told you?" she said. "I thought you
came from him. You know we were
once engaged, and then it was broken
off; and I shall always be very, very
grateful to you because you first made
me suspect that there might be an excuse
for him I could never have
dreamed of. And now I am sure of
it, and?and we met this afternoon,
and everything is as it used to be."
The poor man's castle came rattling
- down about his ears. Perhaps it was
the dust it made that choked and
blinded him for a few moments.
' N'o," he said. "I did not know?I
did not know that."
"Yes. And, Herr Nebelsen," she
added anxiously, "he was to have
been here to-night, but it is so late,
and I can't help feeling uneasy, even
when he has got rid of the idol at |
Jast."
V "How got rid?" inquired Nebelsen;
v'/ vl> vj> \1> vl/iiy vt> iJy <*>VV>J/ vtAt>vJ>vi> I
.N IDOL. |
and Sybil told him what she had been
told herself.
"I tell you, nefer will he get rid of
it in such way; it will come back
efery time more and more angry," he
said, when he had heard her story.
"He will not understand what it
wants, and I myself, I can only
guess."
A great foreshadowing of evil had
come over her, and Ronald's failure
to keep his word seemed more and
moro significant; she was restless,
feverish with the dread of what
might even now be taking place, and
Nebelsen was the only person who
understood her terrors in the least.
"Will you go to Mr. Campion at
once and warn him of all you suspect?
If you wait till to-morrow you may
not be in time. Dear Herr Nebelsen,
tell me you will go to-night!"
"It is late now," he said, "past
twelf?but if it is your wish, I go."
CHAPTER XIV.
Antaeus the Second.
For some time after recognizing
the unpalatable fact that the idol possessed
a "homing instinct" far surpassing
that of the most domestic
cat, Campion sat and stared at it
with blank and intense disgust.
He wrapped the image in the piece
of drapery which had already been
spoiled in its service, and, providing
himself with a palette-knife as the
best implement at his disposal, he
went out into the weedy little plot of
ground in front of his house and began
his task.
. It was a close, airless night, with a
murky sky through which the very
moon looked hot and flushed. Campion
found it warmer and more difficult
work than he had imagined to
dig with such a substitute as he had
for a trowel. However, he scratched
ud the mold in little showers as well
as he could, and while thus engaged
he heard the heavy booted tramp of
a night constable ringing down the
flags of that quiet road.
Campion did not disturb himself.
There is no police regulation forbidding
a man to bury any of his household
gods in his garden; it may be
eccentric, but it is not unlawful. So
he hummed, like Juvenal's penniless
traveler.
The steps came nearer. Now and
then the constable stopped to try a
gate, or flash his bull's-eye through
a keyhole, or listen at areas, but at
last, just as Campion had constructed
a really handsome hole for the idol's
reception, the steps paused at his own
gate, and a patch of light from the
lantern danced over the garden and
up the house front.
"What are you doing of in there,
eh?" said a voice across the railings.
"Well," said Campion, "I don't suppose
you would ever guess."
"I guess you can't be up to any
good at this, time of night, if that's
what you mean."
"Why," cried Campion, with sudden
recognition, "I ought to know that
voice. Isn't your name Yarker?"
"Quite correct, sir, Mrs. Staniland's
man that was. And I reckonize you
now, Mr. Campion, sir. But without
wishing to make trouble, I don't
reckonize what business you can have
inside of another party's front garden."
"But it's my own garden?this is
my house! Have you forgotten that
in your new duties?"
"I can't say," said Yarker, loftily,
"that I ever give the subjick much
attention, beyond knowing you were
a artist. You see, when I was at
Sussex Place I always used to bear
a sort of prejudice like against you,
not for what you was, for I'm one
of them that draws no distinction in
that way. If a man feels he can't
get a living in any other way except
as a artist, let him be a artist, I say.
I don't blame him for it."
"Those are broad views, Yarker,"
nlieonr/irl Primninn
Vfvu vaui^ivii>
He had elaborated his hole and was
preparing to deposit the idol at the
bottom of it, when a horrible thing
happened; the thing moved?moved
under the wrappings in his hand.
He dropped it as if it had bitten
him. "As a matter of fact," he continued,
"without knowing what he
was saying, "I'm only doing what I
have a perfect right to do in my own
interests; every householder can?
abate a nuisance, I think you call it.
But I am keeping you."
"No, you are not keeping me, thank
you, sir," said Yarker, cheerfully.
"As I said, a little conversation is a
treat to me. Did you say you was
a-liamng sometning, sir, for a nuisance?a
trap. I take it?"
"Yes," said Campion, stealthily
putting out his hand to assure himself
by touch that his imagination had
deceived him,and that nothing stirred
inside the drapery.
"I suppose now," he continued,
not knowing how he was to get rid
of the official, and seeking desperately
for a safer topic?"I suppose
you have a good many opportunities
or studying?ah?astronomy on your
beat?"
"Oh, I've read in my time, mind
you, and it's wonderful how much
more a man finds he knows than he
thinks he did when he numbers off
like. But there, I get a-talking, and
all the time I never asked you what
it was you was trapping."
"Drains!" said Campion, wildly;
"my.garden's overrun with them!"
"You needn't answer me back like
that," said Yarker; "if I'm willing to
talk free anr' familiar, it isn't for you
to take advantage of it. I asked a
civil question, and if you're going to
talk flippant, it's time I left you to
yourself and went on with my
rounds."
To Campion's intense delight he
moved slowly away, obviously insulted.
"Good evening," said Campion, and
his heart leaped. It leaped as far as
his mouth the next moment, however,
for suddenly, just as the constable
was moving c?? for the last time there
arose a wild, muffled wail, as startling
as the night scream of a peacock.
"Hello!" said Yarker, stopping,
"where did that come from?"
As if to set the point beyond^ dispute
the horrible thing inside the
wrappings began to howl and roar
with renewed vigor, and Yarker
stepped back to the railings ana
turned hif; lantern full upon the bundle.
"What's those stains?" he said.
"Paint," said Ronald, for the stuff
still retained the color that had been
wiped from the idol's face.
"Ha!" cried Yarker, and he undid
the gate and stalked round to where
Campion sat helpless on the worn
turf, wondering if he was going mad.
"Now I'm not going to have any
more nonsense about this," he said,
with a complete change of manner?
the butler was merged into the constable
with a yearning for distinction
?an honorable indorsement on the
rharcre sheet and nromotion?"that's
blood, that is, and you know it. Open
that bundle, Mr. Campion."
With a grim anticipation of Yarker's
astonishment when he saw the
idol, Campion unfolded the drapery,
and, as he did so, rose to his feet
with a hoarse cry.
The rays of Yarker's lantern fell
directly upon the bundle, revealing a
sight at which Campion felt his brain
swim. The idol was alive?or rather,
in its place was a changeling which
in some grotesque fashion resembled
it. Ac Campion stared, fascinated,
into its smooth, yellowish face, the
eyelids slowly went up and two cold,
glassy eyes returned his gaze with a
steady malevolence, and then the
whole face worked, and the tiling
broke out anew into a sounding bellow.
"So that's what you were after,
eh?" said Yarker. "Oh, depravity,
depravity!"
"You can't be more surprised than
I am," said poor Campion; "I don't
know what makes it go on like this."
"Enough to make it, I should
think, when in another five minutes
it would have been all over with it.
Mr. Campion, I couldn't have believed
it of you?what harm did that pore
innocent ever do to you?"
Campion kept an obstinate silence;
he was the innocent one of the two,
but of what use would it be to tell a
policeman so? He began to realize
that, at last, the idol was roused?
that he was on the brink of a terrible
scrape.
"It's a mistake, I tell you?a mistake,"
he faltered.
"You're right," said Yarker. "You
see what comes of leading a nasty
idle life. There'd have been murder
done if I hadn't happened, by a lucky
Providence; to be passing?if you
haven't been jabbing at it with that
knife already, as it is. This is a bad
business, but I must do my duty. 1
arrest you on a charge of attempting
child-murder, and anything you may
say now is liable to be took down and
used against you. Now, sir, come
along with me quiet."
"Yarker, my good fellow," he protested,
"you're all wrong?do you
hear? It's not what you think?you
can't mean to get me locked up!"
"Now, am I to sound my whistle
and bring my mate from Marlborough
Road, or will you come pleasantly
like a gentleman, arm in arm along of
me?"
"Let me go in and leave a message
with my man," urged Campion.
"Not if I know it?you can send
messages to-morrow?once more, do
you want me to whistle?"
Campion had to submit. Escape
was jaadness, where he was known
and would be tracked at once; besides
escape would be an admission of his
guilt.
'Yarker," he said, impressively,
"I give you my word you will not be
defeating the ends of justice in any
way; you will not harm a living soul
if you let yourself be persuaded by
ma now to take a sovereign?I mean
a five-pound?or rather, a ten-pound
note?and?and go away and tLink
no more of this little incident."
"You were not quite so proficient
with your tips at Sussex Place," said
Yarker. "No, sir, there's things as
can't be squared not at no price. Excuse
me, while I make a note of what
you said; 'incident' was the term you
employed, I think? Thank you, sir.
Now I'm ready, and we'll be jogging
along."
"I'll come quietly," said Campion*
with a groan. "Spare me as much as
you can."
To be Continued.
Spotting the Invisible.
German military authorities are
experimenting with a device by which
the location of troops using smokeless
powder may be easily discovered.
By this device it is proposed to survey
the landscape through pale red
glasses. The flash of smokeless powder
appears strong in red light, while
ordinary objects are dimned. By
furnishing field glasses with the device
in question, which is provided
with screens of the proper tint, the
position of concealed marksmen can
be detected.?Pittsburg Dispatch.
Perverted Proverbs.
In onion there is strength.
Sweats are the juices of adversity.
Cosmetics cover a multitude of
sk i ns.
A soft director turneth away graft.
Hell hath no fury like a woman's
corn.
A wise boss maketh a glad party.
A fat rebate is rather to be chosen
than straight profits.
A wcran is known by the cooks
she cannot keep.
Fools invest where angels ^ail to
swim.?Saturday Night.
Great Canal Opened.
A great canal which drains the two
Italian provinces of Mantua and Reggio
and discharges into the River Po,
has just been opened. For five years
6000 men have been employed in digging
the big ditch.
The Rev. W. Arthur Noble, of Kor.->r?
ime one of the lamest districts
in Methodism. Recently he walked
300 miles, the churches in one section
of his district being near enough
for him to do this.
The thin paper on which the* Oxford
Bible :s printed is made after a
secret process by the Oxford University
Press. The secret is valued at
$1,250,000.
XTP II POFULAK \\ .'A
| ft 4 SCIENCE > ,f
A laboratory for the teaching of
electric science has been established
in Manila by the Jesuit Fathers.
According to Professor Berthold,
of Vienna, a man's intelligence, honesty
and good nature are in proportion
to his portliness. His brain expands
with his body, so that a stout
man is, as a rule, more intelligent
than a thin man.
A Kansas gas man who has spent
years in the business makes the statement
that natural gas is capricious
and that men who have studied it all
their lives give up in despair when
it comes to explaining the whys and
wherefores of some of its ways.
Shingles are now made under a
patented process from asbestos fibre
and Portland cement, uwmg to me
enormous pressure under which the
shingles are manufactured, it is said
that they absorb, when fresh, only
about five per cent, of their weight
of water; and when exposed to the
atmosphere for a year or two that
hydration and subsequent crystallization
make them absolutely impermeable.
A pint bottle, which seems to be
empty, in reality contains eleven
grains of air. The same bottle would
hold something more than 9000
grains of water, if water were poured
into it in place of air. Water is,
therefore S40 times heavier than air.
Instead of having fusible plugs in
the bottom of a boiler over the fire,
it is proposed by an English engineer
to place a small pipe inside the shell
having one end closed by being sealed
to the shell by a suitable fusible
metal. The other end passes through
the shell and is furnished with a
cock, or it may be led to an alarm
or to a feed pump. When the water
falls below the safety point the rise
of temperature in the boiler acts in
the usual way on the fusible metal,
but the pipe being protected from the
heat of the fire escapes injury, and
when the cock Is closed the boiler
*can be used for steam raising without
stoppage for insertion of a new plug.
The lower atmosphere and the upi
per atmosphere are believed by TroI
fessor J. Hann to be two very different
gaseous mixtures. At the earth's
' surface the composition is: Nitrogen,
78.03; oxygen, 20.99; argon, 0.94;
! carbonic acid, 0.03; hydrdgen, 0.01;
j neon, 0.0015; helium, 0.00015; kryp1
ton, 0.00010. At a height of twenty
kilometres (12.43 miles) he finds the
j nitrogen increased to 84.34 per cent.,
with 15.19 of oxygen. At 100 kilometres,
wjth a probable temperature
of eighty degrees below zero Cent.,
i the hydrogen seems increased to
! 99.45 per cent., with 0.453 of helium,
! and only 0.099 of nitrogen.
!ORANGE TREE MOVES NORTH.
I
j Botanists Attempting to Produce
Hardy Variety of Citrus.
j Botanists in the employ of the
United States Department of Agri"
culture hope to bring into being an
I orange tree which will be as sturdy
' as the apple tree; an orange tree that
; will not perish in the chill of northern
winter, which in December will
bear its wreath of snow and in May
its garlands of bloom, and when
summer comes will yield fruit as
good as that sweetened in the south
eun.
I This may seem to be an unnatu[
ral proposition, says the Technical
J World, but it only seems so. No
j violence upon the laws or nature nas
been or will be attempted. It is
| simply an effort to make the citrus
tree which bear3 the sweet table
! orange as hardy and insensible to
cold as the citrus tree which bears
the bitter, unedible orange. By
Crossing a citrus tree which grows
In the north and which bears an unj
sdible fruit with the citrus tree of
the south it is sought to beget a
j plant in which will be combined the
good traits of each.
1 Government botanists are confij
dent th;at the results of this citrus
marriage will be a scion that will
grow and fruit at a latitude midway
between the northern limits of the
--1J ~ TP
BWetl ctiiu cue uttLci uiauge. j.i
this should be there might be orange
! groves in Central Virginia, Middle
| Kentucky, .Southern Indiana, South!
ern Illinois, Central Missouri and
Central Kansas. Think of orange
groves around the homes of Richmond,
Louisville, Cincinnati, St.
Louis ahd Kansas City!
An Analogy.
In the lati? financial stringency a
clerk in one <!?f the New York banks
was trying to explain to a stolid old
j Dutchman why the bank could not
j pay cash to depositors as formerly,
j and was insisting that he be satisfied
! with Clearing riouse checks. But the
I old man could 'not grasp the situaI
tion, and finally the president of the
' bank was called upon to enlighten the
( dissatisfied custodier. After a de
j taiTed explanation or the financial
' situation the president concluded,
j "Now, ray good man;, you understand,
i don't you?" <
I "Yes," dubiously i replied the
' Dutchman, "I tinks I understand. It's
J just like this: ven mj/ baby vakes up
j in der night and criesifor milk, I give
I her am.Ik ticket."?Harper's Weekly.
An Unholy pjetition.
A very devout PresB/yterian clergyman
in the Middle Werft had just married
a couple, and, as was his custom,
offered a fervent prayejr, invoking the
divine blessing upon t^iem. As they
seemed to be worthy) folk and not
i overburdened with this world's goods
he prayed, among othier things, for
I material ni'ftsnflri t V anil beSOUCht. thfi
I Lord to greatly increase the man's
business, laying much (stress on this
point. \
In filling out the blanks it became
necessary to ask the mail his business,
and to the minister's harror he said,
i'l keep a saloon."?^Philadelphia
Ledger. J
J
| OUR LOSSES BY FIRE.
I Waste That Could Be Prevented by
Proper Construction.
Too many buildings burn dov/n in
this country. In 1898, the cost of
fire, including not only property de- |
{ atroyed, but insurance, the maintenance
of Are departments, etc., was
over $500,000,000. In the same
year the building operations of the
leading cities amounted to about
$650,000,000. On the face of it,
eighty per cent, of the new building
construction was offset by fire cost.
Herbert M. Wilson, of the National
Geological Survey, says on this
point:
"This fire tax exceeds the total
annual value of gold, silver and coal
production. The annual fire loss in
vthe United States is, according to
.the National Board of Underwriters,
$2.47 per capita, while the average
annual loss in six large European
countries is only $0.33 per capita,
or one-eighth that of the United
States. The greater part of this immense
waste could be prevented by
proper construction of houses, factories
and business buildings. Such
construction would not only cost
little more than the prevalent combustible
buildings in the first place,
but also would result in real economy
in the long run." .
The same excuse will be given for
this poor showing, as compared with
our neighbors abroad, that is given
for the fact that mining accidents,
railroad accidents and homicides are
several times more numerous per
capita in this country than in the
most enlightened countries of
Europe, and that our architecture is 1
less attractive?namely, that we are
a "young nation." But rdilroad
building began in this country at the i
same time that it did abroad; most
of the mines that are worked since
this country took the field; the
buildings that give European cities
their attractions are nearly all of j
modern erection?of later date than
the brownstones of Murray Hill?
and with more wealth collectively j
and Individually we have the means
to build well and safely.
Whether it is a young nation or
not, there are several respects in J
which this country is old enough to ;
know better.?New York Mail.
Effects of Perfumes.
A great deal has been said and
written about the use of perfumes
both in support of and against, but
the point always raised is merely
whether or not it is good taste. A
question seldom touched upon is tho
fact that perfumes have a certain
medicinal property or value.
The ancients recognized this medicinal
quality, and one of the Latin.]
I writers has put more than a hundred
different scents on record as remedies
for various diseases. Among
chese the violet is given a place higher
than any other flower. To possess
Ibis medicinal value it is, of course,
essential that the essence should be
pure and made from the flower. A
large percentage of the violet water
on the market is only a chemical imitation,
and most chemical compound
perfumes are irritating to the nerves,
if not positively harmful.
The idea which our grandmothers
had of scenting the sheets with lavender
was merely carrying out the
old idea that lavender soothes the
nerves, and is a great sleep-promoter.
Some refreshing perfumes are
stimulating, but lavender combines '
refreshment ana relaxation.
Another periume which has a distinct
medicinal value is jasmine. Old i
writers suggest it as a general tonic,
but add the- warning that, though
most beneficial when taken alone, it
is in most compounds injurious, producing
nerve exhaustion and profound
depression.
Chemists find many interestiilg ex- I
perimeuts in the compounding of
scents. Almost all perfumes have as
a basis ambergris of civet, and while
these ingredients are most essential
?reat care must be observed in their
use, as a grain too much will make >
the scent distressingly irritating to
the wearer, to say nothing of harm- (
less bystanders.
There are many persons who cannot
stand the scent of some partic-u- !
lar flower, which to people in general
is most agreeable. The most
striking illustration of the effect of a
Bcent is seen in the case of a person1
suffering from hay-fever or rosefever.
Another little-known characteristic
of scents is the quickness with
which they will awaken a soundly
sleeping person, even when repeated
calling or even shaking has failed
to do so. As a rule, a person who is
awakened by an agreeable scent, a
delicate perfume, will rise in a cheerful
mood.?Harper's Weekly.
County of Long Distances.
The election judges for the northeast
precincts in Butte County will
have a nice mileage claim to present
to that county for the delivery of the
ballot boxes. Judges from two of the
precincts in that county went through
this city with the boxes on their way
to Belle Fourche. Making the trip
by way of Aberdeen, Huron, Pierre
to Belle Fourche, it is a distance of
ahnnf Gfin miles
It was either a trip that way by
rail or one of 150 miles across country
by team, and they selected the
rail trip as the shortest, as heavy
rains have badly swollen the streams
which they would have been compelled
to cross by driving, with the
chances of waiting several days for
the streams to go down to allow them
to continue their journey. ? Pierre
Correspondence St. Paul Dispatch.
Not a Question oi' Locality.
The truth is that there is too much
talk about the women in one c.iy or j
State being better than the women in ;
some other city or State. Not but
they all deserve the highest praise
that can be bestowed upon them, but
because it sometimes is made to ap
pear uiau any American wire ians
short in some way of being good
enough for the man who gets her.
The goodness and the loveliness of
our women should not be made a local
question at all. Nor should tho
choice of a wife be permitted to degenerate
into a sectional question ?
Chicago Inter-Ocean.
Religious Reading
FOB THE QUIET ITOL.,.
SCATTKH FLOWERS AMOIv'G 1 .
LIVING.
Scatter flowers among the Jiving,
t-i 11 r?? *i.? a??a.
UO not HclVfJ till lui me uvavi,
They no longer need their fragrance,
Resting in their narrow bed;
They are with the blessed angels,
Where the flowers never fade;
Clothed in garments pure and spotless,
In the mansions God hath made.
Some are bent with heavy burdens,
As they journey on life"8 road;
May we not strew sweetest blossoms
If we carry half their load?
Then the God who watches o'er us,
He who knoweth every thought,
He will send us many blessings.
With the sweetest fragrance fraught.
May the sunshine on our faces
Shine upon some face that's sad!
It may help to banish sorrow,
It may help to make them glad
Give to them the choicest blossoms,
Some of kindness, some of love \
Help them feel there's hope remaining,
Point them to the home above.
?Mrs. D. L. French, in the Christian
Herald.
The Cost of Economy.
And King David said to Oman,
Nay; but I will buy it of thee for the
full price.?I. Chronicles 21:24.
Thus did' one man decline to take
advantage of what the world would
I mil a "hartrnin " refusal hnw.
ever, might be little better than qulx- |
otic. One needs a good reason when i
he persists in making things costly J
to himself. David evidently thought
he had such reason.
He had gone up to Ornan'B threshing
floor for the purpose of there
erecting an altar at his own expense.
The shame of his recent crime was
so keen that' he was willing to pay
any reasonable price for expiation.
Judge then his surprise to be offered
the property without cost to
himself. What a chance to economize!
But David knew a thing that we
sometimes forget. The soul's processes
can never be cheapened. To
shave the cost of one's altar is to
cheat oneself. Life has no real short
cuts to triumph. God appoints no
bargain days on which the shrewd
trader may enrich himself at the
expense of the Almighty. To attempt
the payment of one's spiritual debts
in the property of another, to offer
the "sacrifices of a contrite heart without
personal drain, is a specious
fraud.
What is the "spoiling" of a child?
What but the payment by parents o<
the price which the child ought to
pay? "My child does not know the
meaning of self-denial," said a mother
overfond. Pity such a child! Missing
the meaning of self-denial, he
will miss-all the real prizes of life.
I knew a young man who made a
"hit" at his first public venture. But
that first hit was his last; he has
never found the range since. Easy
success ruined him. The short cut
was a blind atyey. The sorriest thing
that ever happened to Coleridge was
when- his friends guaranteed him
against a rainy day. His muse sickened
with the absence of bracing airs.
Hardship had kept his soul awake,
but ease drugged him. Oh, the cheats
we practice against ourselves by our
economies!
The last place for a man to save
money Is on his gifts. Let him wear
the old overcoat another season, if
need be; let him reduce the length
of his bill of fare, let him not shave
the cost of those altars which love
j builds. The dearest economies we
ever practice are those which touch
n... A,.? 1
uui ucuciattiuii&. vur iis great*
er than that of the cause we refuse
to help. Charity can better stand raj.
withholding of help than I can stand
withholding it. To let another do
my giving is to let him have my
blessing. If Oman builds my altai
for me he also takes my joy.
That man who asks how much he
must give up in order to be a good
man has gotten hold of the wrong
end of the matter. The question is
rather how good he wants to be. A
disciple who finds that his path includes
no crosses may well pause to
j ask which master he is following
I Life's real altars represent the shed
ding of blood. To repeat, then, David's
great renunciation at Oman's
threshing floor, to hold bravely to
the sacrificial quality of human life
at its best, to refuse all ignoble lightening
of loads, to bleed that we may
bless?in spite of. all conmlacant
voices to the contrary?this Is one
of the rich truths of life.?George
Clarke Peck, St. Andrew's M. E.
Church, in the New York Sunday
Herald.
i
Character is Everything.
Saints are made by saints not do- j
Ing extraordinary or uncommon
things in an uncommon way, on uncommonly
high principles, in an uncommonly
self-sacrificing spirit. Be
sure that this is the only substantial
Ihing.
The bits of knowledge that we call }
our learning, the bits of property j
that we call our wealth, the moment?
j -1: ?1~ t tua yioll I
ary vanities 01 ueuguk. ua^ ??*?
the conquests of social life ? how
swiftly they hurry to their graves,
j or are lost in forgetl'ulness! Noth:
ing, nothing else but character surI
vives, and character is Christ formed
within. Character is a symmetrical
growth, having its roots in unseen
realities, and its conscious source in
the living God, and its perpetually
replenished supply by communion
with Him. There cannot be a developed
and healthy saint without a
constant putting forth of vitality and
vigor in a principled activity of use
and exercise of righteousness.?Huntington.
. !
j
Power.
Very few men have been able to
keep their balance when invested
with power. Power is dangerous?
j meu thirst for it; they perjure themI
selves for it; they will compromise
for it, and be destroyed by it at last.
?The Rev. C. F. Wimberly, Methodist,
Louisville.
Wealth.
Some of the best friends God ever |
had in this world were rich meu.? !
The Rev. S. B. Dexter. Aurora. 111. j
Oleo Regulations Stand.
Secretary of Agriculture Wilson, I
of Washington, D. C., after hearing !
representations of oleomargarine and j
dairy interests regarding the placing i
of the Government mark of inspection |
on oleomargarine, announced that the j
recent rjgulations requiring the
mark, as promulgated by the department,
would stand, the statute being
clear and admitting of but one construction.
I
Balloon Crosses Alps.
The Swiss Aero Club's balloon cog- .
aac succeeded in crossing the Alps. j
1 1
f I . V;
( . 1
?
t ? - - . m
I'' ' ~ SJit ' _ -I .
: &uRbau-?dK>'oT i
>|v _ 4. 1
I "
INTERNATIONAL LESSON COMMENTS
FOR AUGUST 9.
Subject: David and Goliath, 1 Samuel
17:1, 18:5?Golden Text, Ps.
11:1?Commit Verses 48, 49? i
Commentary.
TIME.?1063 B. C. PLACE.?
Vale of Elah.
EXPOSITION.?I. Goliath's Boasting,
38-44. The challenge of Goliath i
nad ailed the Hearts or the whom
army with dismay (vs.11,2 4,3 2),'but
young David had no fear. The eye^
of all the rest of Israel were upon
themselves. The eyes of David were
upon God (v. 37). This was the one
secret of David's courage, assurance
and victory. It is the secret of all
true courage and victory. Saul alsd
had been at one time a man of dauntless
courage, but the Spirit of God
had now departed from him and he
was as big a coward as any in Israel .
(cf. ch. 16:14). David, relying upon
Jehovah, proposed to go and fight the
mighty giant single-handed. To cool
common sense his proposition seeme^
the height of absurdity. There was
much about Goliath to fill David with
fear (vs. 4-8). David had taken all
these things into account, but he waff
not afraid; for Jehovah was his salva- ; ".
tion and his strength (cf. Ps. 27:1-3).
If we truly trust in the LORD we will
never be afraid,- no matter though
the odds against us seem to be overwhelming
(Isa. 12:2; Ro. 8:31).
Even Saul sought to dissuade htm.(v.
33). When God calls any one of us
to fight some Goliath some kindly in- >
tentioned Saul is sure to say, "Thou
art not able" (cf. Phil. 4:13). It was
a good argument that David brought
forward to answer the argument of
unbelief (vs. 34-37). We may wisely,
trust the God who has delivered us in
the past to also deliver us in the present
and the future (cf. Ro. 8:32).
David was confident, furthermore,
that Goliath was doomed to defeat
because he had defied the living God
(vs. 26, 36). Saul sought to help
David by clothing him with his own
apparel and armor. But the intended
help proved a real hindrance. It is
impossible to fight the battles and
win the victories of faith with Saul's
armor (2 Cor. 10:4). When David
tried Saul's armor he was forced to
say, "I cannot go with these." When ' X
the church tries the world's weapons
it is sure to find out that it Vcannot. v
go with these." When he .found that
he could not go with Saul's armor he
very wisely "put them off him." He .
took the weapons with which he was
familiar. When God calls a man He
Is very likely to use the weapons He
finds in the man's hands (cf. Ex. : .
4:2). David's preparation seemed
utterly insufficient to meet a giant
with. In reality David had four more
stones than he needed. God had
chosen the weak things of the world
to confound the nighty (1 Cor.
1:27). Saul's armor seemed a much
better preparation for such a fight
than David's sling, but David's sling
proved to be a better preparation than ''
Saul's armor. A few well chosen
stones from God's word are a much
better preparation to cope with thd
modern Goliaths of infidelity than
Saul's armor and sword of learning
and wit and eloquence. Saul's armor
is spoiling many a David in these
days. The Philistine regarded David
with utter disdain. That is the way
in which the Philistine usually regards
God's champion. But the
Philistine's disdain turned out very
badly for the Philistine himself. I
Goliath's disdain did not hurt David's
feelings very much, because David
knew who would win. The disdain, of
the world is a small thing to the in- g
telligent believer.
, II. David's Victory, 45-40. All S
Israel had been frightened by Goli- I
ath's boasis. Many a professed Chris- . I
tian in these days is terribly fright- 1
ened by the blatant boasts of infidel- 9
Ity, but the true man of faith is not at I
all disturbed by all this bluster.
David was not frightened simply be- fl
cause his whole trust was "in the I
name of the LORD of hosts." David's nj
answer is wvii worth studying. Our H
answer to the boasts of unbelief to- B
day ought to be the same. To the feye fl
of sense "a sword" and "a spear" and H
"a javelin" seemed like a better fl
equipment than "the name of the fl
Lord of hoses," but when any man fl
can truly say that he goes into battle fl
"in the name of the Lord of hosts" ' fl
his victory is sure. Jehovah is "the HE
God of the armies of Israel." David H
made a great deal of the fact that m
Goliath had defied the Lord (v. 45; fl
if. vs. 26, 36). Calmly but fearlessly -H
David declared to Goliath the sure H
outcome of the battle. He took .no fl
iredit to himself. He said, "The Lord H
will deliver thee into my hand."' , H
"""* ' J *t% K*f k
UclVlQ KI1CW Liiat uj iaitu oivut?
There was nothing for sense to build
upon (cf. Heb. 11:1). David would
smite Goliath not because of any
strength of his own, but only because
God had delivered, him into his hand.
David would do to Goliath and "the
host of the Philistines" just what
Goliath had boasted that he would do
to David (v. 46; cf. r. 44). God's
purpose in giving this great victory
to David was not merely to magnify
David, but "that all the earth may
know that there is a God in Israel."
David was not aiming at his own
honor but at Jehovah's, but he got
great honor for himself (ch. 18:6, 7).
noo/ioH tr? Iparn a Ipssnn as well
as the world {v. 47, R. V.). The H
cliurch needs to learn that lesson today.
The battle is the Lord's, it is In flS
His hands. O
Brand Stays on Olen. ME
The controversy between tha dairy
Interests and the manufacturers of Pjjj
oleomargarine has been settled by the
Secretary of Agriculture after a hear- H
ing of both sides. The decision is in H
favor of the dairy interests. The dispute
arose over the contention of the H|
oleomargarine producers that the
Government's inspection mark was BE
unnecessary. The Secretary recently
ordered that upon each wrapper con- BH
raining oleomargarine inspected at of- DB
ficial establishments there shall be
I placed the rccognized mark of inspec- H|
(ion, which shall include the number
of the official establishment in which W
the product is prepared. After a full KB
hearing Secretary Wilson has ordered KBl
that the original order shall stand un- MB
chanced. j^|
Welland Canal to Be Deeper. BHj
Thp dpnth of the Welland Canal is H
to be increased from fourteen to
twenty-five feet to compete with
America in wheat transportation to
Europe. flH
| Cost of Old Ago Pensions.
It is expected that the Australian
nlci acre pensions project will cost
?1,S00,000 yearly. _ H