wmmL and
THE PULPIT.
SCHOLARLY SUNDAY SERMON BY
DEAN H0DGE3.
Theme: Defense of Hip Failli.
Cow peas I'or Cows.
Cowpas make an excellent foul
(or dairy cows wh"ti combined with
Jther grain ami fodder In proper pro
portion, but tin y are so highly con
jentiated ninl nitrogenous that thoy
ho'.'!U I)" fid In moderate quuntitiei
nd mixed with cut f -ed in bran.
V.'.-.lily Witness.
I'iistiirin Sheep.
or,: -,!"i!:l"iM a?.ks us how manv
Jli ! -a:i : p:i.--!'ir- .1 on eighty acrM
of I. .iily v. i-'il land In blue gt,ns.
l:i In this in-iuiry. It may b'
a M th;.t there is no hard ami fast
ill". I' ii-pcn-l.-i entirely on the li
3 : ::: i- of the pasture, the s-:i -on,
t' . 1'i.i'Mi al sheep men s.iy tlin--:o
fj 1 1 1 sV-op per acre are eiioiish.
r.d y- i, as already stated, this would
J"I i,i i,n tlu season, character of
:ho prtni-p, etc. Much in all thi-.-t"
pra':i a things must b- left to the
3'i':). inasnT. In ibid connection It
nay b - wild that on" g.o'.vlnj sheep
jho-ild have a few aires of rape to
(urn the sheep to from the pasture
K easioiially. Hap" is a rapid grower,
tnd is very valuable fur sheep, till
late in the fall season. Indiana Far
A Handy Hani,
Here are plans for a handy barn.
It will hold seven head of horses and
l!)Otit ten head of rows. A frill op
posite th" fe"ilway will hold about
COii bu.-iuis ol corn am.' an oats bin
.l joininc this will hold from lnon
lo 1 J no bushels of that grain. This
i av -s a space fifteen by eighteen for
Implements, hay or anything that the
fjrn.er may wUh t put in it. The
' -n mn r,
DCP if,?''
c:rn oat ma-thins '
C?18 f.H P90rj i J
?.J-J jE
"l
( f-!0R3i ..' STALLS i , I
uiu ua lu ' '
A Handy Tarn.
on the row shed ari wile
no -fill so you can drive through
them with a ivann or manure
Cii -.rler. The Iioijp stable has dou
b!': stalls ten feet wide and fifteen
fee; from inside of mallear to the
wall. This, together with the fart
that the doors are oUht feet wide,
pnable you to net out with your team
very easily. The si.o of the struc
t ire is thirty-five by thirty-eight feet,
with a hay mow over the lower Hour,
fh" eaves are six f""t. affording more
than usual prjtect.on to the outside
of the building. Th-. accompanying
plan, ays I he Journal of Agriculture,
will give the i ,il a b' tti r under
standing of the i::.eiior arrango-ni'i!'..
during the sensorf of service and It
will not be necessary to feed grain.
The samp will be true of a vigorous i
shearing ram running with a flock 1
of, say, twelve to twenty ewes. Hut
should the number of the ewes Iip in
creased beyond the limit named,
then the management should be up- ,
proximately us stated below.
Th" rains should be confined to a
stale or shed having at the same
time .I'css to a paddock. They
should be f"d i;ood hay and s'Uiie
u tl ';:'"en food such as rape or cab
la j". They should net In addition
from one to two pounds nrai:i per
d;iy, areordins lo the service exacted
of them, and an ample wnt"r snjeily. ;
Half the rain by bulk may li" com.
posed of bran, the oilier half beini; ;
almost any kind of main, but pre
ferably oats or wheal . '
The ewes should lie driven to a
yard, say in I he mornin g. The ram
turned in with ihein will soon single !
out the ewes In season. These
should be kept in till the next day.
After the season of service is over,
the Krain ration given to the ram
phould be gradually reduced, but It ,
Is usually not wise to withhold grain
altogether during thp winter. Itam
lambs want it to further development
and old rams to sustain yield. Pro
fessor Thomas Shaw.
Making l aiiiiiiu I'ay.
Secretary Wilson in a recent ai'i
flr.ss summarize J in a few sentences
the processes of a far:r,"r who sue
reeds In making fare. ;:!'; pay. This
successful farmer If thus describes:
"He rotates his i to; s.
"He has good pas:uis.
"H- lias a s;oo l aanleii.
"He tile-Jiains his l.i.i l.,
"He keeps up K.) d ! lies.
" He puts all manure promptly on
th" fields.
keeps dairy r-rvs or mutton
siirep. or boih.
"lie breeds drafi-ao: s. and doe
firu work with brood-mares and
ijr'j'ving colts.
' lie has a library witii periodicals
and standard work, and a musical
in tnimi'ii'.
"He keeps improved stock whi-h
respond to tli Mr k.-cping and put on
the greatest per cent, of meat on the
win ii she ir-e-ls ii. has a sprlns vehl
I'rini" ,r i- s.
"I!" i.. !ps Jt i.-, wife lu the hoilFe
rl frjr her to i'i.i i::. ar.d drives her
t.irhiiic'.' hlniiir" !i; ..burg Chris
tian Advo.-ate.
I'lowiif; l iuler Cirresi 'lips,
My ixpe:iee( e in .i.:.; i j iirprovo
land by plowing under green forage
crops leads m- t i believe that unless
we make a wise selection of crops to
in lurri-d under our work Is often
done hi a lo-s. Th be of value the
c.-op that is plowed under mist be
one that obtains a large percentage
of lis pl uit foo l from the atmosphere,
1 1 In p direr. ly or Indirectly, or else
one i bat lias a deep rjoting system
hnl brings up much of its plant food
from below the depths reached by
the plow.
Any plant that obtains all of Its
food from the top soil adds nothing
lo the fertility of tht land when
plowed under, except that It may In
tume land make the soil more pro
ductive by improving Its texture or
mechanical condition.
Kcd clover we have found espec
ially adapted for this purpose. It
and other members of the legume
family are, In my opinion, the only
plants we ran afford to use la the
work of improving our soils.
The rloverund legumes alone ran
not maintain soil fertility, but when
they are rotated with other farm
crops, and w here them crops are fed
to II vr stock and the manure saved
and returned to the field, they make
It possible to increaio the fertility of
the soil every year. KpltomUt.
Caring For tlio Ham,
The management that should be
given rams, young or old. before and
after service will depord largely on
tbe atze of the flock. If a strong,
well-grown ram lamb funs with a
flock ot eight or ten heep which
have an ample provision of variable
pasture tbe two may run together
Differences in Dairy Salt.
The lending brands seem to be,
none of them, wanting In the main
constituent chloride of sodium
for the chemical unnylses of ten
brands show that a variation of only
1.03 per cent, in the quantity of
salt present the difference between a
maximum of !)S.3J per cent, and a
minimum of !i".4" per cent. Surely
i here is enough clear salt in any of
these samples to make one as good as
another If there were no other in
gredients, and if there was nothing
in the grr.nular formation of one
brand to give it superiority over an
other. Some of the other substances,
even in the small quantities In which
they exisc. vary five per cent. The
most objectionable matter In salt Is
chloride of calcium, which is found
only In the Onondaga, and to the
presence of which may be attributed
the milky appearance of solutions of
that salt. Sulphate of lime, which 13
found more largely in foreign than
in domestic brands, Is obi dutiable.
If found In large quantities, but there
Is not enough found in any leading
brand to have any effect. To the
other ingredients separately no seri
ous objection is made in view of the
very small percentage in which they
exist. We must believe, however,
that in combination they all help to
produce certain chemical results,
which more or less affect the flavor
of butter. From all these facts I am
forced to conclude that there are es
sential differences lu dairy salts, and
that the actual superiority between
the best makes depends more upon
the character of the foreign sub
stances present, and upon the texture
and grain of the stilt and the process
by which that grain Is formed, than
it does upon the mere percentage of
chloride of sodiu.a in any given quan
tity, Weekly Witness,
T5e Otitic lo the Cow.
"The cow is an intelligent animal,'1
says Mrs. Howie, of Klk Grove, Wis.,
who, like Mrs. Durand, of Lake For
est, 111., is foremost in cow culture
She udds: "It. Is not good form
to he rude to t lie sensitive cow."
Mrs. Howie is assisting l'rofessot
Hoverstad, of the North Dakota Agri
cultural College, in his Institute work
In the State. She is Instructing thi
farmers in tiie temperament of the
cow, und she asserts that thu gentle
creature is lacteally responsive to con.
l iJerate treatm '.it.
At. Mrs. Howie's Jaiiy farm, seven
miles from Mllwuukee, each cow Ii
groutifd every day. The bovine i
brushed, washed and her hoofs and
horns polished. Some people nilghl
laugh at this," aays Mrs. Howie, "but
it has brought results."
The gentling Improves the tow's
self-lYHpect, and self-respect in cow
Is profitable to the owner that it
Mrs. Howie s proposition. The cow,
like the prima donna, Is possessed
of a temperament, which must br
consulted if maximum resuks are de
sired. The cow has a psychology
but, like the psychologies of evvry
other living thing, It yields to trjut
ment. .Mrs. Howie's prescription Ii
simple: "Good, common-sense prin
ciples, soap, fresh water and kind
ul-s-i."
What kindness will do for horses if
notorious. Why not for cows'.'
This agricultural business ever)
year becomes more interesting. It ii
getting fashionable, moreover. Thf
day of the "rube' Is about over. The
farmer Is becoming every day mon
the scientist. All he can know o
chemistry, of botany, of zoology, li
can pretty well apply. And now, lc
and behold! he Is lectured to by so
clety women, like Mrs. Durand am!
Mrs. Howie, who, having beconu
bored to death with stupid society
have turned to cow culture In ordei
to be Interested. Minneapolis Jour
oal.
Xever, Xevrr Land.
The "Never, Never Land," abor
which Mr. J. F. Ilogan writes It
"Notes and Queries," Is tbe name be
stowed on the vast plains of Northers
Queensland. Who actually Invented
tbe phrase Is not known, but the orlg
Inal germ or suggestion Is said to b
found In tbe writings of a Sydney hu
morist who likened this part of Aus
tralia to Shakespeare's "uodiscoverec
country from whose bourne no trav
eler returns." And many of the earl
adventurers Into this region of end
lesa distances never did return to civ
luxation. London Chronicle.
Brooklyn. X. Y. Sunday evening,
t Holy Trinity P. K. Church, the
t'ery Hev. Oeorge Hodg"S, dean of the
Cambridge Theological School, deliv
ered a lecture on the early church.
The subject wos "The Defense of the
Faith." Dean Hodges said:
The first antagonist of the faith
was prejudice, crowned In Ignorance,
growing up Into contempt and then
Into hatred, and resulting In preju
dice whereby the Christians were ac
cused of atheism and sedition, and of
immorality. Of atheism, because
ihey had no Images In their sanctit
iries and because they worshiped In
i fashion unknown among the relig
ious of their time; of sedition be
riuise thev refused to acknowledge
the divinity of the Human Kninire;
and of Immorality because ihey held
secret meetings, and not knowing
what took place at these meetings,
everybody might guess what h chose
and the mind of man Is s i consti
tuted that under such circumstance?
some people will guess very unnleas
ant things. So, by virtue of Ignor
ance, In almost entire absence of
facts, there grew up around the
Christians a thick atmosphere of prej
udice. It Is nstonlshing, remember
ing all that, afterward happened, that
Christianity should have existed for
one or 1wr centuries alnio;t unno
ticed, and thei only with derision nnd
antagonism. Ther.j was l.ucian the
satirist, who makes one of his char
acters, Perlgrinus I'rotens. profess
to bo a Christian, and when he Is put
In prison Is visited by prominent
Christians, who reverence him be
cause he Is in danger of martyrdom,
and then saya of them: "These mis
guided 'rreatures have so persuaded
themselves that I hev are going to live
forever that thev have lost all fear
of death:" and he says, again, that
"they have been taught by their
Master that they are all brothprs. and
thpy love one another In an amazing
manner." It is a friendly comment,
but mingled wllh contempt. There
w-as Celsus. the critic, who wrote a
long nnd substantial book against
the Christian religion. In which he
decried it first on the ground of his
tory. II" savs It Is not historical be
cause it 1? filled with accounts of mlr-n-les,
iu;d rilrarles onnof happen;
and so he begins with the virgin
birth and the resurrection, and dis
credits miracles, which he says
Christ was able to do by meals of
tricks He learned In Kgvpt. And,
second, if philosophy. He says the
ircarnafton is Impossible because
Lei Is Intangible, and unnecessary
b 'cause Cod Is good. It Is absurd, he
says, to thi.ik that God cares for any
little company of people and services
c:i this pU.net, and he praises the
Greeks, who put their trust in reason
over Egalnst the Christians, who put
their trust In faith.
Thera was Marcus Aurellus, em
peror, philosopher, moralist, the one
i;ii.i) in the pagan world wheni we
votild have said . beforehand would
have appreciated the Christian relig
ion and would have gone out to meet
it. He vlewa them with a far-off
rontempt and refers with some de
rision to tbe alacrity with which
Christians go to martyrdom. This
religion, which within a few centur
ies was to take possession of the
i.utiiati world, which was to be the
Ii.ost notable fact in the history of
the race, began in obscurity, an ob
scurity .mazing to us. When Chrls
t unity came to be a little known
theie came in Its defense against its
LiUagonists the Apologists, chief of
wfcotn was Justin Martyr. Born at
S.vchar, ic Palestine, of pagan par
entage, at an early age Justin devoted
himself to philosophy. la his desire
i learn the relation between God
ind tne world, he lu turn sought this
knowledge from the Stoics, the peri
patetics end the Pythagorians, and
filially turned to Christianity and died
martyr at. Home. From some writ
ings ot his v.o learn that in the mid
cMe cf the second century the Chris
tiana had no creed and no recitation
of the creed, and no formulation of
the truths of their religion. Justin
made some Inferences from the Bible
in the direction of faith. He laid
great stress upon the argument from
prophecy, and had much to say about
devils, with whom be Identifies the
gods of the Pagan world, and he be
lieved in a literal mlllenlum. There
was a lack or order and formality in
the church, but they took collections,
1 says, and describes a sarvlce at
which there was a reading of the
bible, a long prayer, a hymn and a
taoramental feast of bread and wine.
The second antagonist ot the
Christian faith was Heresy. The time
came when men of education and
b arnlng began to be attracted toward
tne Christian religion, and then was
a natu -al desire on the part of Chris
tian ter.chprs to prove the Christian
religion to those persons, to make it
reasonable to their cultivated minds,
and the result was sometimes heresy.
Heresy, 1 suppose, is almost always
the result of that kind of purpose.
These heretics were the Gnostics,
whose aim it was to make some kind
of a combination between Christian
truth and the other kinds of truths
floating about In tbe minds ot men.
(InoHtics found two great difficulties
in religion: One, the difficulty of re
conciling the New Testament with the
Old Testament, partly on the ground
of morality, which is taught from so
much higher a plane In tbe New
Testament than in the Old Testament,
the difficulty emphasized by the
teaching ot St. Paul, wherein he
seemed to set a new system of grace'
over against the old system of works.)
How to reconcile these discrepancies!
between tbe Old and New Testaments.
perplexed them. And the other per'
plexlty was, how to reconcile the bad
world with the good and mighty God.
These they met with a series of prop
ositions, i
They said there are two antagon-:
Istlc facts. "There Is matter which
is essentially evil, and there Is a spir
it which Is essentially divine." They,
also said, "There are two worlds:
the lower world. In which we live,
clothed In matter, and thereby hav
ing our spirit hindered 6y this envir
onment ot evil; and a higher world,
where Cod dwells, remotely distant
and having between Him and uc a
long series of spiritual being, ema
nations from Hlin, called aeons, and
at the end ot this long line ot aeons
reaching down Is tbe Demiurge,
pretty poor kind of aeon." The Dem-.
lurge was the maker ot the world,
and he was responsible for all this
evil matter, and the Demiurge was
the God of the Old Testament. Every
thing that takes place In the Old
Testament Is under tbe control of the
Demiurge, not of the Supreme God,
and we may deal with It with all ths
freedom we like . Tbe Supreme Aeon,
they said, was the Christ who cam
a redeem. !n l the, txranor ot
the Demiurge; anil Chrlstrdeotnod
man, not by the sacrifice of His death
upon the cross, because, matter being
evil, Christ, had no body. That was
only an appearance. There was no
Incarnation, no resurrection, or any
of the rest of It. He saves man, not
by the death of the cross, but by
Illumination, by the shining In of
Ills Spirit upon the spirit of man.
The third antagonist ot the faith
was Competition. There came- Into
existence two grent new religions, on
the one side the religion of Plato (a
revival of philosophy), and on the
other Bid the religion of Mithras (a
revival of r.i.-'-'"nl, These came
i In the way of a revo" the pro-
I sale religion of the Roman Empire.
: It had 'in it no emotion. It wai a
bare contract between man and God.
I wherein man said, 111 and down, "I
will give you a certain amount of
ritual If you will give me a corres
' ponding amount of protection." It
had in it no sense of mystery, It
i was Just as commonplace as the mor-
ality. Now, the world was longing
i for some appeal to emotion, for some
i satisfaction of its sense of mystery,
' and these tw'o religions came at the
' place to do that work. Xeoplaton
' Ism, n revival of phllnsonhy, found
; Its exponent In Plotlnus. From frag
i ments ot books be wrot we get some
Idea how he tried to bind together
all the truth there was Into one svs
tern, except the truth of Christianity.
And then opposed to Xeoplatonlsm
was an ideal, an ideal nnd not a per
son. Mlthralsm was the most for
midable competitor that Christianity
ever had. It seemed at one time as
If It were likely to become the rellg
Ion of Europe. It entered very little
Into literature, and scarcely anything
was known about it until men began
to study the ruins of Mlthralc shrines
and read the Inscriptions and gradu
; ally to find how far spread It was and
what It. meant. It came from Pprs'a
and Its supreme god was Mithras,
who was the representative of the in
vlsable and eternal deltv behind and
! the mediator between Him and us.
; He was sutiernalurally horn, and III?
first appearance was to shepherds.
He fought with a wild boar that was
ravaging the country which He killed
whose blood became a vine and whose
marrow sown In the earth became the
wheat. After Ills victorious battle
He dined with the sun. He was to
come again In a Becond advent, and
hold a general Judgment of all man
kind In whl'h the good went, one way
and the bad another Into heaven or
hell. TIipv had a baptism of blood
; and water for newness of life followed
: bv a sealing an anointing of confirm
ation, and after that a holy commun
: Ion of bread and wine. They had
' sanctuaries In which liturgies were
: chanted by vested priests ministering
at sltnr3 ndorned with lights.
This dav on which we meet Is
called Sunday because of Mithras.
When Constantino gave out his edict
In the days whpn the emolre became
Christian Iip dprreed that the first
day of the week should be kppt as a
dav of rest and thev called It by Its
Mlthralstlc name, the venerable dav
of the sun. Whv Is ChrlstmaB k"ot
on the twenty-fifth cf December? No
body knows when our Lord was born.
Evon the season of the year has to
tally deenrted from the memory of
man - TIip only Indications of thp
tlmp or ypar r.olnt to the summer
when the' shepherds were abiding In
the fields. CIrlstmas is kept on the
twentv-fifth of December because It
was Mithras' birthday.
That was Mithras' birthday kept as
a dr.v of reiolclng among the votnrle?
if thts religion scattered all over trom
'. the desert of Sahara to the glens of
Scotland, where shrines of Mlthr
; have been found. When Christianity
' becane victorious over this religion
she found It wIsp to say to the con
verts. "Keep on with your domestic
rejoicing on December 25, but do nil
. these joyful things In remembrance
of .7eru -"hrlst, our Saviour." The
essentia1 rtefort, however, in this re
ligion or Mlthra was that there was
no Mlthra: he was only a Mith. Nos
tlc'sm was founded on an Idea: not
a nerson. Mlthralsm was founded on
pllegorv. not a person. But. the hu
man soul cries out for some manlfes.
latlon of God In the form of actual,
hb'oric personality.
Thpre were the four men who de
fended the faith pre-eminently In the
second end fourth centuries: Justin,
the apologist: Irenaeus, the theolo
i "dsn: Clement, the Instructor, and
; Orlgen. the commentator. These
wer the men who defended the faith
: malnst the three agnostics preju
dice, heresy and competition.
THE CRUSADE AGAINST DRINK
APRIL FOURTH
ri;o(.itr:ss made hy riimrioxa
l lGllll.VO THK HUM DEMON.
lATEriXATIONAL LESSON com
ments von wnii 4.
A Prayer.
Our Heavenly Father and truest
Friend, who hast so loved and saved
' us, the thought ot Whom Is sweet and
always growing sweeter, come and
dwell In our huarts; then Thou wilt
. keep watch on our lips, our deeds,
1 and we shall not need to be anxlour.
either for our souls or our bodies,
i Give us charity, sweetest of a'.l gilts,
which knows no enemy. Give us in
our hearts pure love, born of Thy love
I to us, that we may love others as
Thou lovest. Loving Father of Jesus
I Christ, from Whom fioweth all love,
I let our hearts, frozen in sin, cold to
' Thee and cold to others, be warmed
' by this divine Ore. So help and bless
us through Christ, Thy Son.
The Lord's Maiiilutc.
"The White Man'a Burden" In Us
highest and noblest aspect is, surely,
the duty that our Lord has committed
to us of evangelizing the world. Tbe
time "the sut time" for doing this
lias come. Happy are they who can
dlscarn the times, and respond to the
call of God and man. Blessed are
they who sow beside all waters.
Hev. F. W. Macdonald.
,1 I
Condemnation of Sin.
Sin against the body must be con- ,
demned as severely as sin against the j
ioui.
A German physician, by means of
a Class cabinet with a partial vacuum,
has solved tbe problem of operating
on the lungs. , Ho probably has paved
the way to successful surgery In
cases ot Internal cancer, and possibly
ot consumption where tbe lung tis
sue Is affected. By tbe use ot his
cabinet the patient, it Is said, ran
breathe easily with the cheat cavity
0"en and without danger ot collapse
cf the limns, which has been the dan--
hitherto, owing to atmospheric
sure. After the surgeon and his
J iif iitnntt have taken their places In-
cldo this cabinet the subject is placed
upon the operating table and his bead
allowed to project through a tight
fitting rubber collar In the wall of
the cabinet. By means of a auction
pump the air Inside la then reduced
to negative pressure.
Subject: IVler nnd Cornelius, Act
10: 1-4H Gulden Text. Acts 10:
3." Commit Verses 13-13.
Commentary on Dny's Lesson.
TIME. A. D. 40. PLACES,
Caesarca and Joppa.
EXPOSITION. I. A Godly Sol.
tiler, 1-8. The central figure of this
lesson Is a captain In the Roman
army. The barracks at Caesarea
would seem to be a most unlikely
place to find the first Gentile convert
to Christianity, but there is where he
was found. Cornelius was a God
fearing man. He was one who did not
keep his piety to himself, but called
upon his whole household to share It
with him. He was a man of prayer
and a generous giver. He prayed for
light (cf. vs. 31, 32) and followed
the light when it was given. It was
because he asked for light that he
got It (cf. James 1:5). The alms he
gave to others had much to do with
God's giving the saving truth to him
(v. 4: cf. Luke C:3S; Prov. 21:13; 2
Cor. 9:fi-8). Cornelius does not
eem to have been a proselvte of the
Jewish faith (v. 28; cf. ch. 11:3) and
he certainly was not as yet a saved
man (ch. 11:13, 14). but he was on
the road that leads to salvation. He
became a saved man by believing on
Jesus Christ (v. 43; cf. ch. 16:7-9).
There are those who contend we
should never get a man to pray until
.1e Is definitely aaved, but It was in
answer to prayer that Cornelius got
-he light by which he was saved. Of
;ourse, if a man Is a deliberate rebel
against God. we should not get him
to pray; for the prayer of such a one
Is an abomination unto God (Prov
15:8; 28:9; Is. 69:1, 2). But a man
may be a sincere seeker after truth
like.CornelluB, though he has not yet
found the truth. There is nothing
better for him to do than to pray
(James 1:5). God will always lead
Into light all those who slncerelv de
sire It (John 7:17). It was while
Cornelius was praying that the first
leadings came to Cornelius. It Is
when we draw near unto God that
He draws near unto us (Jas. 4:8).
Cornelius was frightened by the ce
lestial visitor as sinful man alwavs is
by the approach of the supernatural
(cf. Dan. 10:11; Luke 1:12-19: 24:
6). But Cornelius while Mghtened
maintained his equilibrium and was
ready to obey; he was every inch a
Roman soldier. He was encouraged
by being told that God had noted and
remembered his prayers and alms
Ills prayers and alms did not Bave
him (ch. IT : 13, 14; 10:43). but they
had prepared the way for his salva
tion. God iakes note of sincere pray
er and of the alms that accompany
them. Praying and giving Bhould al
ways go hand In hand (1 John 316
22). Cornelius' faith was put to a
severe test; he was told to Bend to a
certain unknown man who would tell
him what he ought to do (cf. ch. 11:
14). The augel himself might have
told Cornelius this, but it is the plan
of God to have the way of life made
plain to man by. man (cf. ch. 9:6-17;
8:26). Cornelius proved his faith
by his prompt obedience. Cornelius'
piety was of the communicative sort;
for the soldier who waited upon him
continually was also a religious man
If. Peter Prepared to I 'reach the
Gospel to the Gentiles, 9-20. While
God prepares one man to hear the
Gospel, He also prepares another
man to preach It to him. It certainly
cannot be explained awav as empty
dreams or a fevered Imagination that
Cornelius at one end of the line saw
an angel who bade him send for
Peter, and that Peter at the other end
of the line should have a vision pre
paring him for the call Just before
the messengers arrived, and should
hear the voice of the Spirit bidding
hlra go. There is, beyond question, a
supernatural world and a possibility
of present contact between the super
natural world and human life. His
tory demonstrates this. One can be
an Atheist or a Deist or Agnostic only
by deliberately shutting his eyes to
caiiiuusiiea lacis or nistory. Note
how the supernatural and natural
play into one another In Bible his
tory: Peter'a hunger was natural, and
there Is nothing more natural than
that a hungry man dream of eating,
but God gave supernatural direction
to the dream that had a natural ori
gin. God knows how to time things
Just right. Just when Peter was in
a perplexity about the meaning ot
the vision of unclean beasts, the "un
clean" Gentiles are asking for him at
the gate. Tbe Spirit wbb very defi
nite in His words to Peter. He told
him Just how many men there were
at the gate asking for him (v. 18).
Peter had a very practical test as to
whether It was the Spirit of truth
that was speaking to him. How un
like the confused and uncertain (of
tentimes mistaken) voices that people
tell us are voices of tbe Spirit. When
the Spirit sands there is nothing left
to do but to go and that without
doubting, even though we do not un
derstand at all (v. 20). Peter'a faith
was equal to the occasion, he obeyed
orders. It was while Peter was In
prayer that the guidance came to him
(V. 9).
Ilreaks Ilia Bridge.
He that cannot forgive others
break tbe bridge over which be
must pass himself ; for every man has
need to be forgiven. Herbert.
Life Lessons for Me From the Boon
of Proverbs Prov. 8: 1-17.
The great lesson: wisdom. Prov 1:
1-9.
Obedience to God's Word. Prov 3-1-10.
Avoidance of evil. Prov. 4: 14-27.
Diligence, Prov. 6: I'll; 24: 33.
Value of rlghteousni ;;s. Prov 25:
8-15.
The value of silence. Prov, 25:
8-15.
A rich man Is Indeed poor If be Is
unwise, and a poor man Is Indeed
rich If he Is wise (v. 10).
Is not goodneBB more than wisdom?
No, for wisdom Is goodness. Knowl
edge Is not goodness, but wisdom Is,
for wisdom Is knowledge In action (v.
11).
Kings relgn In wlsdon. If they de
serve to be said lo re! 1 at all, and
any wise man is king i ;' :i wonderful
realm (v. 15).
The way to wisdom I 1 vp love of
study, of the Bible, of man and of
God (v. 17).
Proverb Hints.
Surely In vain Is the net spread In
the sight of uny bird, but not, alas!
in ihe sight of any ran (1: 17).
We are to carry nu i cy nnd truth
around with us, and l.ot leave them
at home on the center table 3).
Our own understanding is a rotten
reed, sure to break under us if we
lean upon It (3: 6).
Honor the Lord with your sub
stance, as He has honored you with
It. and will honor you for the right
use of It (3: 9).
God's correction Is a sign of His
love; why should we not love Him for
It? (3: 12.)
The path about the Just the world
around the Just Is made shining by
their presence (4: 18).
Don't let an insect beat a man (6:
C).
It Is a severe test of your wisdom,
but a sure one: Do you love those
that rebuke you? (9: 8.)
The fear of the Lord Is the begin
ning of wisdom, but the love of the
Lord Is the end of it (9: 10).
A young man or a young woman
can entertain no higher ambition
than to gladden a father or mother
(10: 1).
God's blessing Is the only kind of
wealth that can take out an Insurance
against sorrow (10: 22).
"Off Hip Wagon Again."
I drcnnied tlml I dwelt in an isle ot
cracked ice,
In the miilnt. of a lake nf rlmmpngiie.
Where Mourned the mint julep in meadow
; Kreen,
' Amid ulion ers nf lit bin ruin,
i I r"clincd fin a divnn nf lager beer foam,
With n pillow of liolli lor my head,
j While the npray from a fountain of spark.
! ling gin lir.
1 Descended like dew on my head.
From far away niniintiiins of crystalline
ice,
A aephyr, refreshing nnd cool.
Came wnfting the incense of sweet mils
i catel,
, .That "piirkled in mnnv n pnol.
My sensea were Boot lied bv the oft, purl
ing Hong
Of a brooklet nf pnusxe cafe.
That rippled along over pebble of snow
l'o a river of nlninthe iiiippc.
' Then, lulled by the iiiiikic m tinkling glass
irom the schooner that danced on the
deep,
I dreamily sipped n liixlilmli or two,
And languidly flouted to .pp.
And then I awoke on a bed of rocks,
With a bolster ns hard ns n brick,
A wrench in my back, n nick in my head,
And a stomach detestably s-'ek.
With sand in my eyes and .. grit in my
throat,
Where the taste of lu.t e cning still
clung,
And felt a bnthtowcl s! "'.V '. into my
mout h
Which 1 afterwards : and was my
tongue,
And I groped for the tlin.nl of the evening
before,
In a mystified maze of a brain.
Until a great light burst upon me at last,
"I'm off on the wagon again."
SUNDAY, APRIL 4.
Called to Serve Mark 1. 16-20; Luke
5. 1-11, 27-28.
In attaching these fir-H disciples to
h'linself .Jesus stuted claarly that It
was a call to larger responsibility
and mere exucting( service. Catch
ing fish had Its hardships, Its expos
ure, its routine of toll; but catching
men world Involve an expenditure
ot sacrifice, of patlnt and persistant
service, such as they had not dream
ed of. He did not cull men to ease
and Inactivity. That "Follow me"
meant going from one village to an
other lu ceaseless ministration,
thronged by the Jostling crowds, re
Hioiisive to every cry of need, always
open to Intrusii n und Insult, frequent
ly without a line to lay one's head,
lu labors abundant, in weariness and
painfull: .'so, t.ud sacrifice even unto
death.
The topic opens up at once the
whole problem of existence. Why
are we here, any way? What la the
significance of human life? What
relation do w.' sustain tp lllm who
called us here? Is the world a vast
playground where Gcd Is under obli
' gatlon lo entertain us? Or is it a
vineyard wherein every man must la
bor for the fruitage of the kingdom?
There are not wanting those who
i tell us that God Is under obligation
i to us. We are his guests here, they
say, and he ought lo entertain' us
right royally with a feast of fat
; things full of marow and wines upon
the lees. It Is quite evident, how
ever, thut the Christian Interpretation
i of life is very different. It is sum
med up In that word "service." That
life means other things happiness,
culture, achievements, and u thou
sand elements beyond our ken we
need not question, but over and above
all this Jesus teaches us that life
means preeminently an ever-widening
opportunity for sacrifice and serv
ice. The chief end of man Is to do
the will of God.
! To the Christian, then, the world
la not a garden among whose fruits
and flowers and playing fountains one
may lie at ease for long hours, stiv
, nlng himself in indolent delight. It
Is. rather, a vineyard, where there is
hard luck to do under the scorching
: sun, and to each of us God's call Is
' summed up In Dr. Babcock'a stirring
hymn.
WISE WORDS.
Sir James Crlchton-Browna said,
recently: 'The flght with the fly will
be a stiff one. One fly, It lias been
calculated, will lay 1000 eggs and
must, oo tbe snowball prlnolple, leave
IS, 000, 000 dascandanU in a season.
A Hud Plan.
Running another down la a poor
way of making the Christian race.
A TRIUMPH OF SCIENCE.
"I have been taking some moving
pictures ot life on your farm."
"Did you ketch the hired man in
notion?"
"I think o."
"Ah, science kin do anythlns these
days." Louisville Courier-Journal.
A Rare Exception.
. "1 see by a literary note some,
where," saya the man with the dis
couraged eyebrows, "that one ot tha
Indiana school ot novelists gets his
best Ideas while sh&rjng."
"Is that so?" .saya tbe man vith
tbe violin vest. "Most of them must
wear full NtarUi." Jud.
Like Shop Windows.
We are Ilk shop windows, where
in we are constantly arranging, hid
ing or exhibiting those supposed qual
ities which others attribute to us-
and all lo order to deceive ojtsslves.
Frledrtch NiuUsahe.
Character 13 what we make of life's
conditions.
.It takes more than 61 Jiving to
make the good life.
No day is long enough to waste
any of It In nursing enmity.
The holy life Is the one that If
healthy all the way through.
The unanswered prayer finds Its
fruitage In tbe disciplined heart.
The man who la going to heaven
never tries to take up all the road.
No man is as good as he might be
who does not try tq be better than he
can be. ,
No man needs our pity mere than
he who is Indifferent to the sorrows
ot others.
It's always sate to deny the au
thority of an opportunity that
thrusts itself in on a duty.
The steps downward are so many
and so small that men seldom 'recog
nize the grade.
There Is some moral disease pres
ent when the sight of another's hap
piness gives us pain.
It is often worth while to do an
apparently fruitless act for tbe sake
ot acquiring a helpful habit.
Idleness makes the hours wearily
long and the days woefully short.
He can never know any deep Joy
who can laugh at the sorrows of an
other. The proof of an education lies In
a wind so tilled that prejudices gain
no root. From "Sentence Sermons,"
In the Chicago Tribune.
Getting Away From Oneself.
David Grayson writes an interview
with a drunkard in the American
Magazine. The drunkard explains
why he sometimes wants liquor, and
' Mr. Grayson tells how men who nev
er touch liquor are sometimes Just
as much intoxicated.
The drunkard is speaking:
"Every day I work, work, work. I
have friends, but somehow I can't
get to them; I can't even get to my
wife. It seems as if a wall hemmed
me In, as If I were bound to a rock
, which I couldn't get away from. I
am also afraid. When I am sober I
know how to do great things, but I
can't do them. After a few glasses
I never take more I not only
know I can do great things, but I
feel as though I were really doing
them."
"'But you never do?"
"No, I never do, but I feel that I
can. All the bonds break and the
. wall falls down and I am free. I can
I really touch people. 1 feel friendly
' "and neighborly."
He was talking eagerly now, try
ing to explain for the first time in
his life, he said how it was that he
did what he did.
He told me how beautli'ul It made
the world, where before It was mis
erable and friendless, how he thought
I of great things and made great plans,
how his home seemed finer and bet
ter to him, and his work more noble.
The man had a real gift of imaglna
; Hon and spoke with an eagerness and
j eloquence that stirred me deeply. 1
, was almost on the point of asking
him where his magic liquor was to
be found! When he finally gave me
an opening, I said :
"I think I understand. Many men
I know are In some respects drunk
ards. They all want some way to es
cape themselves to be free of their
own limitations."
"That's it! That's it!" he ex
claimed, eagerly,
We sat for a time side by side, say
ing nothing. I could not help thlnk
. Ing of that line of Virgil referring to
quite another sort of intoxication:
"With voluntary dreams tlicy cheat their
niiiidH."
"Instead of that beautiful unity of
thought and action which marks tha
finest character, here was this poor
tragedy of the divided life. When
fate would destroy a man It first sep
arates his forces! It drives him to
think one way and act another: It en
courages him to seek through oiit
, ward stimulation whether drink or
i riches, or fame a deceptive and iin
' worthy satisfaction In place ot that
true contentment which comes from
unity within. No man can be two
men successfully.
"Most ot us." I raid finally, "are in
; some respects drunkards. We donT
give it so harsh a name, but we are
Just that. Drunkenness Is not a mere
matter of intoxicating liquors: it
goes deeoer far deeper. Drunken
ness is the failure of a man t) con
trol his mind."
A Little Sermon on Drink.
In -the first place, it. is Injurious
physically, mentally and morally.
In the second place. It deceives its
vicilnu to all kinds of perils.
Thirdly, It Invariably leads tc other
sins.
In the fourth place, tt exposes its
victims, and that wtthont exception.
Fifthly, there can bs no question
that it weakens the will. The one
who takes one glass is not as able
to refuse thp second as he was to re
fuse the first.
Sixthly, the only safety Is In total
abstinence.
Seventhly and lastly. In order to se
cure total abstinence for certain, the
prohibition of the manufacture and
i sale oT alcoholic beverages Is a necss
, aity.
The Battle In Illinois.
Th members of the Illinois State
Liquor Dealers' Association have
agreed to raise 1100,000 to defeat
any losal option bill that may be in
troduced in the Legislature.
Temperance Notes.
Wisconsin baa 050 towns where
liquor selling is prohibited.
It is tbe duty of every total ab
stainer to discourage drinking every
where, t
The clients of the bum factory
seem to supply more than their share
ot patrons for the bomb factory.
Here's what Is meanl by cause and
effect: "The county Jail in Macon.
Mo.. Is empty for the first time In
twenty years." Mayon County has
been "dry" since Jnly 1. Kansas
City Times.
The liquor laws are said by some
to be ahead of public sentiment.
"That," responds the Boston News,
"Is what's tbe matter with tbe Ten
Commandments, too."
It develops that the tax ot two
cents per barrel which the United
Brewers' Association recently decid
ed to place on beer la to create a
fund with which to fight prohibition.
So far-rtachlng is the saloon's evil
Influence that In some Instauces thef
law against the traffic had tailed, for 1
the ruason that tbe corrupting influ
ence ot the- dram shop at time
j-eachee the iner pvoclncts of Justice
and subverts all law.