OLD TESTAMENT WEDDING Sunday Discourse by Dr. Chapman, thi Noted Pastor-Evangelist. The Love Romnce of Itaac and Rebekah Retold Teaches a Lesson of Divio Providence. The Her. 3. Wilbur Chapman, D. D ie' now the moat distinguished and beat: known evangelist in the country. He was second only to Dr. Talmage, but since tho death of that famous preacher Dr. Chap man haa the .undisputed possession of the Pulpit aa the preacher to influence the plain people. Hie aervices aa an evangel ist are in conatnnt demand. Uia aermona hare atirred the hearta of men and women to a degree unsnproached bjr anr latter day divine. J. Wilbur Chapman waa born in Richmond. Ind., June 17, 1839. He wae educated at Oberlin College and Lake For eat University, and graduated for the min istry from the Lane Theological Semin ary, Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1882. Hit aer mona are simple and direct, ao that their influence ia not ao much due to exciting' the emotions aa to winning the hearta and convincing the mind of tlioae who hear him. Dr. Chapman ia now in charge of the Fourth Presbyterian Church. New York City. i New VonK Citt. The Tier. Dr. J. Wil bur Chapman, the popular pastor-evangelist, who is now preaching to overflowing congregations in this city, haa furnished the following eloquent sermon to the press. It was preached from the text Genesis xxiv, 68: "Wilt thou go with this man? And he said, I will go. i This ia tho atory of an Old Testament wedding in which our text ia found, and naturally because it ia a marriage scene it is interesting. The sayfng that "all tho world loves a lover", is very true, and I suppose is not without meaning the wide world round, but there ia something about an Oriental wedding which ia especially interesting. Again and again in thia Book of Inspiration such scenes are recorded.' but of all the Old Testament stories I place this the first of its kind. I If I were an artist I should paint it, and if I were an artist worthy of my theme it would surpass the other masterpieces in the world s great gallery of art, notably that of the Russian wedding feast, which has had admiration everywhere. The heart of the picture is an old man; his hair is whitened with grief which in the past days has taken hold upon him, and the lines of his countenance have been Eeculiarly softened by the touch of the nger of sorrow, leaving an expression which can only come to those who have been obliged to bear great burdens and endure great afflictions. Abraham is practically alone in the world, for Sarah is gone. She who bad i'mirneyed with him to Bethel, down into Dgypt and back again to Hebron, the place of fellowship, is at rest, aud in the cave of Machpeluh she waits by his side to hear the summons given at the resur rection morning. Abraham was desolate. They had made so long a journey together that their lives were like one. i ' ''In the long years liker had they grown; Till at the lost she set herself to him . Like perfect music unto noble words." i ''Above him is God, who has kept Hia word with him when He said, "As I wae with Moses so I will be with thee;" about bim the angcla who keep watch over him all day and all the night in sleepless vigil; before him the trusted servant to whom he speaks, "And Abraham was old and well stricken in age; and the Lord had blessed Abraham in all things. And Abra ham said unto his eldest servant of his house, that ruled over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh, and I will make thee swear by the Lord, the Qod of heaven, and the God of earth, that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughter of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell. But thou shalt go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac. And the servant said unto him, Peradventuro the woman will not be willing to follow me unto thia land; must I needs bring thy son again unto the land from whence thou earnest? And Abraham said unto him, Beware thou, that tliou bring not my son thither again. The Lord God of heaven, .which took me from my father's house, and from the land of my kindred, and which spake unto me, and that sware unto me, saying. Unto thy seed will I give this land; He shall send His angel before thee; and thou shalt take a wife unto mv son from thence. And if the woman will not be willing to follow thee, then thou shalt be clear from this my oath; only bring not my son thither again. And the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham, his mastor, and sware to nim concerning that matter." Genesis 24: 1-9. i One of the incidents of the picture would be the setting forth of this servant. "And the servant took ten camels of the camels of his master, and departed; for all the goods of his master were in hia hand; and ne arose and went to Mesopotamia, unto the city of Nahor." Genesis 24: 10. One of the most picturesque sights of the East ia a camel train. With a peculiar swinging gait these strange animals of the desert push their way along on a most interest ing journey, but the picture can only be appreciated when looked upoa in the at mosphere of the Orient. I counted 100 one morning journeying toward the pyra mids beyond Cairo. The train of this old servant was made up of ten camels only, but they were the camels of a prince. Their trappings were gorgeous, and side by side with Abraham we watch them aa thev go until they are lest to view. The next incident is the approach to Na hor. It is the hour of sunset: the dy is dying out of the sky. There is' really noth ing that can be compared with that time in the East, when the day is far spent and the night is at hand. The birds hush their song, the cattle are still, all nature is at rest, the hills are transfigured and the rivers and the acas ara lilio most beautiful jewels. Ladencd with precious gifts the ten camels kneel just as the women are coming forth to dra7 water from the well. The old servant as they hnenl begins to pray. "And let it come to pass that the damsel to whom I shall say. Let down thy pitcher, I pray tljeo, that I nay drink; and ahe shall siy, Drink, and I will give thy cam els drink also; let the sane be she that Thou hast appointed for Thy servant Itaac; and thereby shall I know that Thou hast showed ki.nt.ness unto my master." Geuesii 24: 14, and the answer comes at once. "And it came to (.ass, before he bad done speaking, that beho'.d, Hebekah cane out, who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcaj, the wife of Nahor, Abraham's brother, with her pitcher upon her shoul der." Genesis 24: 15. Elastio of step, modest of manner, pure of heart, fair of face she stands in the presence of the servant of Abraham. As to parentage she was the daughter of .ut'iuuei; as 10 conumon sne was ot virgin jurity; ail to appearanco sue was lair to cok upon: as to education she was trained to domestic service. This is Rebekah, the urius ci ma picture. Ana me man won dering at her held his peace, to witness whether the Lord had made his journey prosperous or not. And it came to pass, as the camels had done drinking, that the man took a golden earring of half a shekel weight, and two bracelets for her hands of ten. shekels weight of gold; and said, Whose daughter art thou? tell me, I pray thee; is there room in thy father s house for us to lodge in? Aud she said unto him, I am the daughter of Bethuel, the eon of Milcah, which she bare unto Nahor. She said moreover unto him, We have both straw and provender enough ant room to lodge in. And the man bowed down bia bead aud worshiped the Lord.'l Genesis 21: 31 28. V , ) i The next incident is the wooing and the (departure. The old servant tells uia story, (makes his anneal, and the text ia anoken. ."Wilt thou go with this man? And she said, 1 will go. uenusia lit: 0. And the camel train is moving once more, the fam ily of Hebekah watching until the last Icamel is lost to view in the distance. The jouruay is uneventful, but the end of it is more than striking. "And Isaac wnt out to meditate in the field at eventide; and be lifted uu hia eyes, and saw, and, behold, Hhe camels were coming. And Rebekah mica up ner eyes, ana wneu sne saw Isaac she lighted off the camel. For she had said unto the servant, What man is this that walketh in the field to meet us! iAnd the servant had said, It is my mauter; 'therefore she took a veil and covered her eulf, jVad the surva.rj, fci'J lsaiii all iL'i:'K that ne'tiad ilftne.- rtmr tzzz (irongnt tin unto his mother Sarah's tent, and took Rcbekah, and she became his wife; and he loved her, and Isaac was comforted after bis mother's death." Genesis 24: 63-67. I. ! Here la a lesson of divine providence,' Hear Abraham when he says, ''The Lord God of heaven which took me from my father's house, and from the land of my kindred, and which spake unto me, and that aware unto me, saying, Unto thy seed will I give this land; lie shall send His angel before thee, and thou shalt take a wife unto my son from thence." Genesis, 24: 7. We think of this as Old Testament history eimply. We hear God saying, "As I wae with Moses I will be with thee," and we say certainly, but not with myself. Why it is we always think of God s care of the patriarchs as mira cles, without its counterpart is in our own lives, when God is our Father, everything in our life is precious to Him, and the very hairs of our head are numbered? He is the God of Abraham, Isaae and Jacob, and He is your God. The angel ot the Lord ia atill living. We have grown world ly wise and apeak ot impressions, convic tions, coincidences, impulses, when all the time it ia the angel or the Lord apeaking to us. Have you noticed that there were two servants, ono winged one in the air and the other in charge of the camels. It is always so. It is by this double ministry that providences are confirmed. All through life we see it; in the conversion of men, in things common and in things unusual. You say, "I feel a strong im pulse to do a certain thing." It is the an gel of the Lord troubling the stagnation of your heart. You say that I am impressed that I ought to do thus and so, when it is the finger of God writing His purpose on your soul. These are but the heavenly ministers of Jehovah, Look around you and you will find some opportunity for service fitting into your impulse or con viction, and that which yesterday you wondered at as a coincidence fills you with the spirit of worship to-day as you say, "The Lord was in this place and I -knew it not." "Life without a religious Interpretation is little less than a trag 'edy, while life thus viewed may have many twists and turns, but ends in heaven, 11. I find here a good picture of real service. When Eleazar woe leaving Abraham Tie said, "Peradventurfc, the woman will not be willing to follow me unto this land; must I needs bring thy son again unto the land from whence thou earnest?" And Abraham said unto him, "Beware, thou, that thou bring not my son thither again. The Lord God of heaven, which took me irom my father's house, and from the land of my kindred, and which spake unto me, and that sware unto me, saying, Unto thy seed will I give this land; He shall send His angel before thee, and thou shalt take a wife unto my son from thence. And if the woman will not be willing to follow thee then thou shalt be clear from this my oath; only bring not my son thithci again." Genesis 24: 6-8. ' ' It is the same figure that we have of the watchman upon the walls. Both of these appeal strongly to us. We are not free from responsibility until we have tried at least to win every soul over whom we have an influence for Christ. I cannot con vert even the smallest child, nor can you, but I can try to tell them what I have been commissioned to say, for I am my brother's keeper. Oh, for the intense de sire to do our Master's will that Eleazar had. His camels are cared for, he has entered the house of Bethuel. He is weary with his long journey, the savory meat prepared for hia feast appeals to his weakness, but hear him say, "And there was set meat before him to eat; but be said, I will not eat, until I have told mine errand. And he said, speak on." Genesis 24 : 33. Is not thia like" Paul on his missionary journey. "In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilder ness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; in weariness and painful ness, in watching often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness." 2 Corinthians 11: 26-27. And is it not like Jesus Himself, when He ia weary by the well aide, hungry with much fasting and sends His disciple to buv meat which He forgot to eat because I of the woman by His side. I am sure Kebekah saw in him the great love ot Isaacs heart. Ana when they saia, "Wilt thou go with this man? She said, I will go." III. j Yet there is more to the story than this, I am sure. I know it because I read that what was written afore time was written for our instruction. The great object and aim of the Bible is to illustrate the operations of divine grace, to show the works of Providence in the minute things of life, to show us that provision has been made for the fulfill ment of the great scheme of Redemption. God speaks in every way; by direct state ment, by parable, by picture, by types, by symbols, if by all means He may make known tho riches of His grace; and here is a whule ohapter, one ot the longest in the Pentateuch, taken up with a wedding story; there must be some reason. The spirit of Ood would not use an entire chapter to describe the journey of Abra ham to Mt. Moriah, and another to tell of the death of Sarah, and another to Live an account ot a wooing and a wed ding without meaning. I think it must be that it is all to illustrate the mystery of the church. In the 22d chapter of Genesis, the son is offered up as a sacri fice, at least Abraham is willing to offer him; in the 23d chapter of Genesis Sarah is laid aside in the tomb, while in the 24th chapter the servant is sent forth to win a bride for the son. It is at least a perfect illustration of that New Testa ment story where Christ was offered, the only begotten Son of God, where Israel was rejected because they would not come home. The Holy Spirit, aa a serv ant of God, js calling forth from the world a bride for the Son. This is the work of this generation. The Holy Spirit ia the one of whom Jesus spoke when lie aaid, "But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Esther, even the Spirit of Truth, which proceeded from the Father, He shall testi fy of Me." John 15: 20. Ohe day we shall meet the Bridegroom, our eyes shall set Him and the wedding feast shall be spread, end all Heaven shall resound with the musio of that glad day. ; IV. I wish in closing to take up the ap peal of the Holy Spirit, and change the text just a little bit and say to you all. "Wilt thou go with thia Man?" And I refer to Christ as this Man. He is the chiefost among ten thousand. I bid you come to Him who walked with men, ate with sinners, smiled with little children, wept with weary women aud died with sinful malfactora. "Wilt thou go with this .Man?" You who are Christians I ask you, Jthe question, for many of you have not! foue with Him, for "How can two walkl ogether except they are agreed?" And it you will go with Him it mint be in some better way than in other days. First: You must share His opinion oT men. He waa always excusing weakness, always helping the distressed and al ways rebuking unkind criticism. You may need to forgive the man who injured you yesterday, for He did, and if you would be like Him you must do the same. "Wilt thou go with this Man?" Second: He will lead you into the homes where distress is tarrying, reliev ing embarrassment as when lie made the water into wine. Driving the wolf from the door as when He fed the multitudes. You will need to give your money as well as your svmpathv. "Wilt thou go with this Man?" I think I see Him treading the streets of our own city where dis tress has sons before Him. There is a child with a heavy heart, and He stops , long enough to breathe a benediction of i peace. Yonder is a man upon the verge 1 of despair, and this matchless Savior of ours bids him come unto Him that he rauy I find rest. Theie is a woman whose child is riving, whose mother is on the brink of Eternity, and He who spoke as never I man spake tiuis ner listen as ne says, "I am the resurrection and the life." There is a celebrated picture which rep resents Jesus walking through the multi tude. Before Him all the people are dis eased, while back of Him lis he troils they are all perfectly well. This is His influence always, "Wilt thou go with this Man?" V. r put it to all those of you who are Tt. Christians, uii bid- sou- rsUetyh;r mat tt'is not an invitation to comero Christ simply but s command, and in His name, after the manner of Kleazar, I snv, "Deal kindly and truly with my Master." By His beautiful life, wilt thou go? By His agony in the Garden, wilt thou go? By His betraval and His trial of mockery, wilt thou go? Bv His shame ful death, I ask you once again, wilt thou go? His marred face and His bleeding back, His breaking heart. His cry of agony, wilt thou go with this Man? He hath trodden the wine press alone for you; He was a man of sorrows and ac quainted with grief for yoti. It is the moment of crisis in your life. "Wilt thou go with this Man?" Answer, and answer it now as dM Rebrkah. "I will go." Oh, say it; say it. and the Devil shall' hear it and tremble, the angels ehall hear it and shout for joy. Ood Him self shall hear it and shall rejoice with joy unspeakable. eking the Troth. , Nicodemus represents a large multitude ef men and women in the world to-day. He was seeking truth if not salvation for his restless soul. He was so interested that he did not wait until morning, but came to Jesus bv night. Some have sug gested that he did this not because of his anxiety, but because he did not have the moral courage to come to the unpopular teacher by daylight. If so the offense was not an unpardonable one, for Jesus did not even rebuke him. He welcomes the coming of the most timid, the most doubting, the most unworthy. Nicodemus, like nearly all the world who know any thing about Jesus, recognized His moral supremacy. They know He ia a teacher sent from God by the same test that Nicodemus applied. But that comnliment is immaterial to the Christ. That ac knowledgment has no saving value. "Ex cept a man be born again is the ever lasting sine qua non, the absolute and ir- Sevocable contlition for a heavenly career, low could Jesus have made plainer the (necessity of the "New Birth?" How is it itherefore that more than half the world, .more than half, perhaps, of nominal Chris tendom, are persistently searching for some other way. Why is it so? Tho world appropriates other common bless ings from (rod's hands without demur or question. His sunshine and sweet air are taken greedilv and counted good. Millions have tested His plan of life, His way of salvation, and rejoice in the experience. They give us their word that thev find joy and peace. And yet the world is slow to follow. Is it a sign of a perverse heart, or a constitutional incapacity to act in :one's own interest? Jesus was patient with the slow believing Nicodemus. But lie did not have nearly twenty centuries of Christian testimony to bear witness to the truth. That is why it will be 1cm tol erable in the judgment for us than for those of Tyre and Sidon and the genera tions that have gone to their reward and doom. Ram's Horn. Spear Points. Conscience is God's deputy in the soul. I Immortality is the glorious discovery of Christianity. , Christ reckons not by what is parted with, but what is kept. It is s weak religion that a man can hide from his household. , A conscience void of offense before God and man is an inheritance for eternity. There is no human life so poor and 'small as not to hold many a divine possi bility. Humility is the altar upon which God wishes that we should offer Him our sacri fices. The same spirit of faith that teaches a man to cry earnestly, teaches him to wait patiently. More dear in the sight of God and His angels than any other conquest ia the conquest of self. No true work linoe the world began was ever wasted; no true life since the world began haa ever failed. To love God is our happiness, to trust in Him is our repose, to surrender our selves entirely to His will is our strength. When God designates our work, He will give what is needed for its accomplish ment, if we keep in touch with Him. - "Purse-and-AU" Consecration. Many who count themselves wholly tho Lord's do not count all their possessions the Lord's. Yet either we and all that we have are Christ's, or we do not feel that we or anything that we have are Christ's. There is no half-way consecra tion in God's service, although many eeem to think that personal consecration only applies to those things that are specifically included. That was a very positive truth stated by Prebendary Fox at the Student Volunteer Convention in Toronto, when he said, "There are thou sands who will trust Christ with the sal vation of their souls who will not trust Him with the key of their cash-box." It has been well aaid that personal conse cration must be spelled "purse-and-all" consecration, or it practically amounts to nothing. The Dally Level. It ia the man who lives the well-regulated daily life who is lit to meet an emergency when it arises. Little bits of pure inspiration very seldom come to or are acted upon by slovens, self-indulgent or undisciplined people. Similarly, the Christian who lives ordinarily at a lower level of grace, whose Christian life is de pressed and feeble, is unable to seize on great opportunities of usefulness when they occur. Have Faith. T( you will look up you will walk stead ily. Do not iguore the danger, nor pre sumptuously forget your own weakness; but "when I said my foot slippeth, Thy mercy held me up." Recognize the slip pery ice aad the feeble foot and couple with them the other thought, "the Lord knoweth them that are His. Alexander McLaren. The Strongest Things. There are some good things in all men, no matter how low they may, have fallen, and every effort should be' exerted to make them the strongest things in the life of every individual. Rev. Dr. Scott F, Uershey, Boston, Mass. Willing to Be Remind id It la interesting to watch the effect ot humor upon different private citi zens from all over the country who are called to take an executive part in our National government. Some never change; others ao. The follow ing incident ia quite Interesting: Secretary Shaw, the new head of th; treasury department, was standing on tae White House stairway talking to a number ot newBpapor correspondents, when Secretary Root passed on his way to the cabinet meeting which Mr. Shaw was to attend when he had fin ished bis discourse on finance. The secretary ot war rubbed elbows rath er roughly with the secretary ot the treasury .glared at the carelessly dress ed men who had beet In hia way and rushed by without speaking. Mr. Shaw evidently saw soma humor In the situation. "Boya," ha aaid, aa he watched the rapidly moving form ot the war sec retary, "It I ever get In that fix after I have been secretary awhile Juat stick a pin Into me." The reather Oami, A small feather with a very little stem must be produced to play the feather game; also a tablecloth or small aheet. The feather Is placed upon thia, and the company atauda In a circle, holding the sheet. Some one glvea the feather a blow, and the object of the game I to pre vent It from touching any one, - Each oue gives the feather a puft whenever it cornea near blm, and over It goea to the other Bide aguln. The excitement produced Is very great, and it is always a moat aiuualng spectacle, the onlookers enjoying it, almost as much as the players themselves. THE SABBATH SCHOOL nfcrnatlonal Lesson Comments For May II. Suhject: Peter Delivered From Prlsoe, Acta' xlL, 1-19 Ooldea Text, Pea. xxxlv, 7 Memory Verses, S-7 -Commeatary oa (be Day's Lessor. 1. "About that time." About the time Saul end Barnabas came to Jerusalem. Chap. 11: 30. "Herod." This was Herod Agrippa I. He was grandson of Herod the Great who murdered the innocents (Matt. 2: 10); nephew of Herod Antipas who murdered John the Baptist (Matt. 14: 3-12), and father to Herod Agrippa II, before whom Paul preached. Acts 26: 1. "Stretched forth." A figurative expression denoting that he laid his hands on them, or that ne endeavored violently to oppress the church. "To vex." "To afflict.'' R. V. According to Josephus, Herod was anxious to be esteemed a devout Jew. 2. "Killed James." James waa one of the three apostles who had been especially favored by Jesus. "With the sword. By killing with the sword we are to un derstand beheading. Among the Jewe there wore four kinds of death stoning, burning, killing with the sword, or be heading, and strangling. 3. "Pleased." His object was to gain public favor. "Peter also." Peter wss very conspicuous. "Unleavened bread." The feast of the Passover which continued seven days. 4. "Apprehended." See R. V. "In prison." Intending to keep him until tho feast was over. During the solemnities of this religious festival it would have been deemed improper to have engaged in the trial of a supposed criminal. "Four quaternions." A quaternion was a com pany of four soldiers, hence there were sixteen in all. Escape was humanly im possible. Peter hnd once escaped from the prison of the Sanhedrin (S: 10) and they did not intend that he should get away again. "After Easter." "After the Passover." R. V. After the whole feast was over. The word Easter is an eccles iastical term of later date, and should have no place in the sacred text. "Bring him forth." This evidently means to put him to death provided "the people" the bloodthirsty Jews desired it. 5. "Prayer." The only weapon they could use. "Without ceasing." "Earnest ly." R. V. These prayers brought about hia deliverance. "Of the church." They no doubt met in private houses because of the persecution which would make public services dangerous. 6. "The same night." The night pre ceding the duy on which Herod intended to bring him forth for trial and execution. "Peter was sleeping." Peter had nothing to fear. He was ready to die for his Mas ter. 7. "Angel.... came." The deliverance was delayed until the last moment. This would test the faith of the church. "A light shined." The angel brought no lan tern, lamp or candle, yet he brought a "light." the beaming of his own person, Peter saw by it his prison, hia chains, his cloak, his sandals, and his emancipator. "In the prison." "In the cell." R. V. "Smote Peter." He struck him in just such a way as to awake him from his sleep, mony of the reality of the angelic appear and to leave in his recollection a testi ance. "Raised him up." "Awoke him." R. V. "Saying, Arise.'' The angel did not assist Peter to arise. "Chains fell off." The chains that bound him to the two eleeping soldiers. With what ease can God deliver His people from their enemies) 8. "Gird thyself." In order that he might sleep more comfortably, he had laid aside his belt, or girdle, his sandals, and his tunic. "Bind on thy sandals." Thia was a shoe made to cover only the sole of the foot. 9. "And he went out." Guided by the angel, he met no opposition in his way. He was led by the angel safely out of all danger. "And wist not." He knew not.' 10. "Ward." The terms ward and guard are but different forms of the same word. They were probably all asleep. "Iron gate." Although locked and barred it opened at their approach! "Departed." Supernatural aid was unnecessary. 11. "Come to himself." Recovered from the confusion of mind into which he had been thrown. "Now I know." He had had a similar experience before thia Chap. 6: 19. "The expectation." The Jews waiting anxiously for his execution. 12. "Considered." When he fully com prehended what had transpired, and bad weighed everything connected with the circumstances of his deliverance. "House of Mary." She wss the sister of Barna bas. Col. 4: 10. "Mother of John." John is his Hebrew name and Mark his Latin name. He attended Paul and Barnabas on their first missionary jour ney, and is the author of the gospel which bears his name. "Many.... praying." This waa probably the latter part of the night, and this large company had, no doubt, been praying all night. 13. "Door of the gate." The street gate at the entrance to the court in front of the house, which was fastened, probablyi "for fear of the Jews." "Came to barken." Came to answer." R. V. 14. "Know Peter's voice." Peter may be supposed to have announced his name, or to have given it in reply to her in quiry. "For gladness." She was so eager to inform, the others that she ran to in form them without taking time to open the door. 15. "Thou art mad." One of those ex clamations which one can hardly resist oa hearing what seems "far too good to bi true." "His angeL" His guardian angel, assuming his form and voice, a comraor. Jewish belief. 16. "They were astonished." This doef not indicate that they were unbelieving and had no expectation of an answer. Oui prayers are often answered in unexpected ways. 17. "Hold their peace." Their joy wal so loud in its expression that he was ob liged to motion to them to be quiet it order to secure an opportunity to inforu them of hia deliverance. "James." Noi James the son of Zebedee, who had beet slain. V. 2. Whether thia was James thi son of Alpheus, called also James the Less one of the apostles; or whether he wai James the Just, the brother of our Lord is a question. "Into another place.' Where we do not know. The peril o! death waa so imminent that he evident! J decided it to be hia duty to conceal him self. 18. "Waa day." Peter was not missel uutil sunrise about six o'clock. It was if the fourth watch, sometime between thre, and six o'clock, that the angel entered thi prison. 19. "Examined the keepers." Trie thejn for a breach of discipline. "He.' Herod. "And there abode." But not long for in less than a month he died in a hor rible manner. Vs. 21-23. Trap Imbedded la Tree. While felling a tree on Ell Marvin's farm near Jefferson, Ind., Oscar Wal ters, the tenant, made a ulngular dis covery. A large ateei trap waa found Imbedded In the tree, the wood bay ing grown over it to a thickness of three inches. Attached to the trap waa a long chain, thia being Imbedded about six Inches. On the spring of the trap waa stamped the name of George Emory. Mr. Emory reports that the trap has been missing for twenty-two yeara. The owner waa a famous trapper In those daya, and did a flourishing busi ness In 'coon hides, those animals be ing plentiful In the woods then. In making his rounds ohe day be found that one trap has disappeared. He thought that it had been atolen, but had no Idea that the thief was a four tooted one. When the trap waa fotd tn the tree It waa about forty feet from the ground. After being cut out It was returned to Mr. Emory, who re membered Its loss and Identified it,. He thinks that the trap was carried up Into the tree by a 'co!a, THE GREAT DESTROYER SOME STARTLING FACTS ABOUT THE VICE OF INTEMPERANCE. Posmi To Arms "Poor Tom" The Llqnar I ateresls Apparently Deeply Coneerned For the Comfort ot Hard-Working Clerks A Bint to Cruel Employers. To arms! against our nation's foe. The cause of wretchedness and woe; The author of the orphan's cry; The source of woman's misery. To arms! the friends of temperance cry; With courage to the conflict fly. Hay, shall the foe destroy our land? Or shall we join the temperance band? To arms! though wealth and power unite, Though strong the struggle sharp the . fiuht; The victory a sure, the curse shall cease; And temperance crown the land with peace. To arms! the scabbard's thrown aside; We 11 6ght till victory's on our side: And "temperance" shall employ our breath Until our lips are closed in death. English Temperance Hymn Book. Poor Tom's A-Cold. One of tho most intensely dramatic scenes pictured by Shakespeare in "King Lear" is that in which he describes the distracted king and the fugitive Prince Edgar grooping their way in the dark ness, while over their defences heads bursts the pitiless storm. The tempest in the king's mind surpasses that raging in the aky. but in the case of Edgar there is only a feigning of madness and extreme distress. Is the modern clerk in much the same plight, socially and economically as that of "Poor Tom?" According to the Liquoc Trades' Review he is, the editor using the following lan guage to set forth his lot: "The slaving clerk wields his weary pen six long, joyless days, and yearns for the right to be a man, with all a man's natural privileges, one day out of the week. Tho poor clerk labors all day long and when evening falls, staggers homeward, exhausted and faint." This is a serious statement, but com ing from such a source we suspect that it is overdone for some ulterior purpose, end indeed, this soon appears. The editor is incensed at flic action of Jus tice Hendricksen for delivering a charge to the Grand Army of Atlantic City ask ing for the enforcement of the Sunday closing law, and it is obviously to his purpose to paint in as vivid colors as possible the need of n wide open Sunday for the benefit of the clerk. To quote again: "If on the Sabbath day he is denied the right to momentarily forget that he is a beast of burden and that day is made well-nigh as joyless as its fellows, more will be done to recruit the ranks of an archy than all the vaporings of Most or the hysterical chatterings of Goldman could accomplish. If the rich will ponder upon this Sunday question but a little, they will be astonished to find that thev are vitally and directly concerned in it." Yes, indeed, the rich are concerned, but granting for the moment that the average employer is so cruel as to send his clerk home at night staggering from exhaustion (which he would indignantly deny), the proper remedy is not to make the public resort more enticing and there fore expensive to the clerk, but to make his working hours less a terror and more a pleasure to him, thus leaving him in the mood for a rationally kept Sabbath. The louder is the wrtier s lament, the weaker is his case. He sees no other fate for "Poor Tom" than that of the race horse which is first urged to utmost speed and then sponged off preparatory for another "heat." We forget, no, not for a mo ment, that the Sabbath was made for man, but so also were the week days. Stag gering from exhaustion naturally leads to staggering from another cause, while the Golden Rule in force six days in the week, leaves heart and brain receptive for the higher truths and joys appropriate to the seventh day. Union Signal. What the Liquor Man Hays. The saloon wants Sunday, wants by law what it has already seized contrary to law. The reason on which the demand is based is more insolent even than the de mand itself. Stripped to the bone it stands as follows: Says the liquor man: We don't believe in any provision of law that restrains our business, more particu larly the Sunday law. Wo have persist ently evaded and violated the law, and intend to do so in tho future. We will be perjurers and bribers if necessary. We will pay blackmail if necessary. We will elect a corrupt city government if neces sary. We will degrade our business to the level of immoral resorts if necessary. We will stop at nothing, for we intend at any cost to sell drinks on Sunday. Now, if you don't want to be .demoral ized by unenforced law, and if you want to get rid of the vile Raines law hotels, and if you want an honest government in the city of New York, and if you want to make us good, pious, law-abiding citi zens, give us Sunday by law. And to this proposition the whole people of the great State of New York are expected to bow. Alfred Manierre, in New York Journal, Wo Middle Ground For Physicians. The middle-of-the-road physicians who talk emphatically about the vice of in ebriety and the tood value of alcohol, and who express great fear of extravagant statements on this subject, are failing out of the ranks in the forward movement of science. There is no middle ground con cerning inebriety and alcohol; it is a physical disease, and alcohol cannot be a food and a poison at the same time. Theories of vice in inebriey and the food value of alcohol utterly fail to explain the obscure phenomena of inebriety, but rather deepen tho mystery and make the means of treatment more uncertuin. The as sumption that the moderate use of alcohol, as in the ''canteen," promotes sobriety and health, conies from profound ignor ance and inability to correctly interpret the fucts. The subject is greater than any theories or studies ot means or methods of cure, and beyond the tact of disease of inebriety and the poison of alcohol stretches a wide held yet to be explored. Journal of Inebriety. Kxpert Oplalon an Beer Drinking. Dr. Binz, professor in Bonn, Germany, says: "Flooding the stomach and brain with beer, as is the case among the studying youth, the regular drinking es pecially between meals and iu the morn ing, the continuul sipping daily and hourly as is the custom among the major ity of the lower and middle class in tier many, is, in my estimation, from the standpoint of health, social economy and intellectually a national evil." A Century mt Agitation. The modern temperance agitation may be said to have begun in England about a century ago, but it waa in this country that the movement tirat made great headway, and its influence on American society has been far more general and more powerful than on any other. Kvll Physical Effects. Unquestionably, one of the strongest in fluences in bringing about the greater temperance in the use of alcohol which now prevails so noticeably among intel ligent people has been ths spread of knowledge as to the evil physical effect of its abuse. A Goad Law. The Beal municipal local option bill haa flossed ths lower house of the Ohio legisl ature by the large vote of tftt to ID. As originally drawn it required but 23 per cent, of the registered voters to petition for aa election, but the house amended it by making it 40 per cent. This ia not so favorable as at tirst, but it is bet ter than the present law. . Christian Abstainers. Abstinence from intoxicating drink has j become the teaching of the religious com munions iu wiucu are luc.iuued lite ma jority of American Christian bulievers, and in some of them it ia enforced by drastUi discipline. CHRISTIAN ENDEAVOR TOPICS nay II "Jesni the Living Bread." Johi vL 22-35. 48M. It Is well to count the m 11 1 posts of a Journey now and then. It Is well enough to look backward occasionally If we are living forward. Some of the most Important lessons are learned In going over the book the second time. Personal examination Is a familiar process to the school students. The wise teacher calls them back occa sionally over the road they have trav ersed to see If any Jewels have been lost by the way. Once In a while the careful merchant will take an In ventory of his goods. He will see whether he has lost or gained. Paul suggests the need of personal exam ination. , He says, "Examine your selves." If we miss all other points we must not fall of this one. How can a man know that he Is lost? I am spir itually lost when my soul does not re spond to God. The fact of knowledge is one thing. The process of knowing is another. We may have a satisfy ing knowledge of a thing without an absolute and all-inclusive comprehen sion of It. The fact that we do not comprehend it all does not invalidate the other fact that we do know in part. No matter how small a part tt Is that we know, to know In part is to know. We know matter by the phenomena of matter. We know a stone by the properties of a stone. We know light from darkness ' by the difference in the results that attend them. Light reveals. Darkness conceals. We know mind by the results of mind. The building is proof of the builder. A speech reveals a speaker. The thinker precedes the thought. We know by spiritual phenomena. The fact that these phenomena are subjective Instead of objective does not Invalidate the fact that they are. Patience, peace, purity, Joy, love, mercy these are as actual as rocks and trees. Moral and spiritual forces mold us, and determine the value of life for us. We do not comprehend these forces, but we know them. We may know that we are saved from thraldom by the experience of free dom. Some people are In bondage all their lives through fear of death. The love and power of Christ can take that fear out of us. Christ can free us from the fear of man. The right eous must be "as bold as, a lion." Christ can save us from the love of sin. He purges the affectional nature and makes It pure. EPW0RTH LEAGUE MEETING. TOPICS May II Annual Review 2 Cor. 13; Num. I, 2, 3; Zecb. Iv, 6. Scripture Verses. John vl. 53-58; iv. 5 15; Ex. xvi. 15; Neh. ix. 13-15; 1 Cor. x. 1-4; John vl. 47-51; Matt. xxvl. 26-28; John vl. 23. Lesson Thoughts. The soul needs food as really as the body. Jesus Is the bread of life. He nourishes every faculty ot the soul, enlarging and strengthening them all, and makes us grow more and more into hia Image. The physical body that feels no hunger, no need of bread, Is either dead or eick and dying. So also ia that soul dead or dying which does not crave spiritual food. Through poverty or misfortune Ood .sometimes allows our bodily hunger to go unsatisfied; but we have his promise of blessing to those who hun ger and thirst after righteousness, for -they ehall be filled. Selections. The ancient Greeks represented their gods as living on ambrosia and nectar, food and drink ot divine flavor and delicacy, but not to be taken by mortals. But our Lord sends from heaven the food of the immortals, that all men may partake thereof and live forever. A perpetual feast of nectared sweets. Where no crude surfeit reigns. Whatever enlarges the soul, builds up the character. Increases faith, hope, love, knowledge and all the vir tues, makes the conscience more tec dor and true, cultures the will, per fects the judgment, and enables tho soul to work out a pure and holy life, and fits It for heaven, whatever does these things la soul food. The best and highest and happiest earthly condition is that which is full of desires, and asnlrnt.tnna anil inn c. Jng8, called hunger In the Beatitudes. Now Jesus can give satisfaction to every form of the soul's hunger. "They that seek the Lord shall not want any good thing." "For ho aatls fleth the longing eoul, and fllleth tho hungry soul with goodness." Suggested Hymns. As lives the flower within the seed. Fade, fade, each earthly Joy. In the heavenly pastures fair. Lord, I hear of showers of blessing. Oh Lord, my soul rejoices In thee. , More love to thee, O Christ. RAM'S HORN BLASTS H E modern Tower of Babel is built out of dollars. God a v e r gives His power t o feed our pride. The dove of promise comes tn response to pray er. God'a responsl b 1 1 1 1 y begins where man'a ability ends. Men reach God by realities and not by formalities. God's essentials may be htddentn our Incidentals. Qod never forgets the man who. can forget himself. The man who la willing to work Is not kept waiting. Nothing paralyzes the love of right like lust for riches. The bigoted hold no belief; they are held In bonda by them. Idleness and rlchea 'furnish time and tide for the devil's ships. Uncharitable thoughts will deface the most charitable actions. When Christians go out in obedi ence to Christ sinners will come in. Get on the other side ot a hind rance and you will sea It labelled "Help." The full snlvatloit ot tho aalnl do petids on what lio in doing for th aalvatlon uf the siuiior. , GOD'S MESSAGE TO MAKI PRECNANT THOUGHTS FROM THE! WORLD'S GREATEST PROPHETS. ' Poemi PreeHue Gift of Prayer We h t Olary Mot In What We Are Bat lath Hope of Deloagliig to Ood Be PeV f Tonr RellRloe., Sweet is the precious gift ef prayer- , To bow before a throne of grace , To leave our every burden there, And gain new strength to run our race To gird our heavenly armor on, Depending on the Lord alone. And sweet the whisper of His love. When co lscienco sinks beneath its load That bids our guilty fcara remove, i . And points to Christ's atocing bloodjV Oh then 'tis sweet indaed to know -God can be just, and gracious, tool ifv The Apologetic Christian. "And hope maketh not ashamed."- Romv 8: S. , The humblest follower of Jesus Christ, tho poorest nan jr woman who belongs to Kin, has honors, privileges and dignities such aa the German Prince whom wv have been worshiping and the King, whou we shall help to crown this sum mer do not know and cannot enjoy xJ cept they become also His humble mrr- ants. Such belong to the Koyal Family; of Heaven and their Brother ia the moot gbrious being who has ever Used, crowned by mankind as tlieir everlasting King and Savior. They are the heirs to the Kingdoma of this world nud to realms reaching far beyond our ken. And yet many of these royal people gr through life apologizing for their honor and aaking the pardon of the world for presuming to differ from it. They will fall in adulation before a man for a bit ( . of gold lace or a paltry decoration, snoT they will hide their own royal blood and lineage as though it were something to be ashamed of. They will themselves wear a badge or button marking them as mem bers of some secret society or honorable) fraternity; but they would no more think of proclaiming with pride, "I ami a Christian" than they would want to walk around clad in convict's garb. They! will strive for place and preferment in this poor world while their hearts never seem to think of the place they mighb have right by the King's side in that Koyal Palace. I Imagine the monarch of some greati territory crying to wear a policeman' badge or strut about in a schoolboy' paper helmet and wooden sword! Some would apologize for their honors) from a false sense of humility, lest thev should be accused of religious pride or ot pretending to be better than the averJ ' age. The best way to silence such ao-i cusations is to keep quiet and prove that! you really have something .worth being; proud of. The King's son can be for-' given for feeling that it is better to bai the King's son than the peasant's: the? unforgivable thing in the Christian would be for him to think that the merit and honor lay in himself. It would be wrong indeed to be proud of ourselves;' but still more wrong to be ashamed of out Father and King. i Our glory is not in what we are; foe that we often need to apologize; but ia. the hope of what we shall be and in they honor of belonging to God. If the hop of the eternal glory and perfection of tbor sons of God is in our hearta we shall not walk through the world as though we were not worthy of living in it, but we shall rather show the dignity, tha excellence of character of those of whom the world was not worthy. a, jvui icugiuH in ui iue type tuns yins feel you ought to apologize for it, it mast, be a very poor kind: if you feel that war about it what will the Judge, think of itt If Vn 11 Iff. naw..inA a V. n ... ' . a vocabulary of cant through life, it will not only disgrace you here; it will work, your doom both here and hereafter. It you really knew Cod you would not bo ashamed of Him nor think of apologia-, ing for Christ. But so long as the hopo that is in us produces nothing but fear; of the world the faith that is in as wilt fail to produce any faith that ii in us will' Henry F. Cope, in Kam's Horn. The Lesson From s Blacksmith. Rev. Samuel Chadwick, of EngUndi throws new light on the uses of sataa in? thie world by the following anecdote: i 'I have seen a blacksmith stand on one side of his anvil, while the striker witaf his sledge-hammer stood on the otherj The blacksmith would turn the iron over' and ver and touch it here and there with his little hammer, and the heavy blows) of the striker would mold and ehapa it to his will. But I could never see the ob ject of the littie hammer until I one dayi asked n blacksmith, and he told me that witli his small haror.icr he directed tber blows of the striker, touching the iron to show where tho blow was to fall. Godl uses tljo devil to hammer the saints into) shap;, and makes him sweat to perfect! tho taints for slorv. Instead of murmerJ ing and complaining at our trials and teuptations we should thank God foci t!lm f IT- tl,nir am 1 llA .1 11. nasvia 'or "our nrrfW-tiniy " 'or 'our perfecting." -tMi:sn Applied Truth. Have via ever seen a great, unsightM wart or knot on tho boughs of some grand o'd cak? It was caused probably a bun dred years s.n when the tree was a tinyf t. j.lijg, , y inc paiaoa of an insect's stiig. and has grown with its strengths Yo i have noticed that the foliage on tnas b-i::ih is less luxuriant and healthful than on its fellows. Why? Because thai knot strangles ic and prevents the fro fl-v of life-giving sap. So, after a tinjj injury, a slig.it, real or fancied, will if its! poiso i is ' smutted to rankle in a sous cause au ugly ileformity of a grudge Vm9 liinderj tie true spiritual growth, be- -causa it prevents the free flow of spiritual life frjr.1 Chriji to the branch. Cod's Flans. "N Cod hB His plans in providence anct gracr. They ripea by degrees. This does) li-t suit the human mind. Men call tot: tl'2 s ieet'ier prorewes. They become iis C3itraxed and doubting at seeming delay or slow l .ovcmeits. But this does not bt'.p uiatters. Our God takes His own ti.. !. 113 makes ni mistakes. He will l-t)t Uo forc-tl; neither will He force Mi i ;t..rc. lie will act deviato from Hut ordai-ied Tcration. H will not shorten ta? step jctween the beginning and tha ij iJ xlL purpose. - - ' -.."jk "llit Widow's Mite." Tt :i:eds vUchfulntss and faith to leep' from rowin clingy as one's income in creases. Com aonly, the more one has tho kii oru gives. There are beautiful ex c i. mt to this gneral rule, and these ex-' ce '..ons nro triu nphs of graoe. 8maII pitta may have Cod'i approval, yet not be t lusc they arc Bniall, but because they are th: nost that the giver has to give. Make Diligent Quest. ' It is well for us to maki diligent quest to ho ur that wo ahvays abandon tha r rong-doi ig which we de'.ilore, that w quit .'.ie evil course which we regret, that we turn sway from the sin which we coa- Fatlh That Bares. A good many people get only half tho gcrpel. They talk n great deal about be lievi'ig. but very little about repenting. It needs to be remembered that faitd which does not lead to a genuine ro tten tame is not a faith which saves. Iter. J. P Vil'r. lias I'ythoa for a Teh Mra. Arthur Cudogan, slater-ln law ot th viceroy of Ireland, la one of th very few lovers ot animals who havo ever made a pet ot a python. Tber have always been Individuals, es pecially members of the fair aex, who have exercised a curious fascination over snakes, perhaps oue secret ot thoir power being absolute fearlee-g-ness. Mrs. Cadogan'e python Is nlu feet long and, though showing grerg dislike to strangers. Is devoted to t' own uilst.re.a. The Loudon Pre; i r -lUlies photograph of the 1 'y Ij ( i eu. brace ot her b'g saxku, ,'
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers