FUJI JOSEPH CANNON.
BIMETALLIST DEFINES "CHEAP"
MONEY FOR HIM.
m that He ver CoalU See That
"I'hrap" Money Mean '"Dear" Prices
fur the Protlncts of the Farmer and
the -Mechanic.
Hon. H. F. Bartine In National Bl
nietallist: The above named gentleman
is u good fellow personally but he lis a
republican politician at all times and
bove all things. If the idea that the
republican party can do any wrong
ov make any mistakes ever found its
way into his head, it became a fast pris
inei upon reaching there. Mr. Can
non has just been interviewed by an
Inter-Ocean reporter, and takes occa
sion fo eneer at "cheap money" men of
-ill parties. This is to be regretted be
cause Mr. Cannon has bestowed some
thought upon the money question, and
Lia certainly many times expressed a
fjire to have silver restored. True,
lie opposes every measure looking to
rhxi end. but still he claims that he
vants it done. Why? How will the
restoration of silver have any effect
'ipon business? In just one way. By
I-sseii;ne the demand for gold. If that
will not make gold "cheaper," then
there is nothing in the law of supply
tad demand. But Mr. Cannon does not
like "cheap" money. He despises it
Then we ask again why does he want
silwr restored?
Whether silver be restored by inter
national agreement or by the action of
tii-? I'nited States alone, the effect must
:- to make eold cheaoer. That means
rise of prices. We are scarcely pre
pared to believe Mr. Cannon is ignorant
enough to think that prices can be
riisVi without making money cheaper,
although there are people who assert
raat claim. Mr. Cannon is strongly op
rosed to the retirement of the green
backs. But why? What harm will it
!:? Certainly the presence of all this
mass of paper in our currency tends to
make money "cheap," that is, cheaper
than it would be without it. He seems
to be afraid that if the greenbacks be
retired, it may make money ju6t a lit
V.e too "dear" to be good. Then the
questions arise what in his judgment is
";heap" money, what is "dear" money,
lad what is money that is neither
"cheap" nor "dear," but just "sound?"
He surely must know that the true test
af either "cheapness" or "dearness" in
money is its purchasing power. If so,
perhaps he will kindly vouchsafe to in
form us what quantity of products of
my kind he chooses to name, it will
take to buy a "cheap" dollar, what
quantity a "dear dollar"and what quan
tity a "sound" dollar.
People who have so much to say
about "cheap" money ought certainly
to be able to give 6ome definite idea
of what they mean by the term "cheap"
applied to money. If by "sound"
money Mr. Cannon means gold, he
ought in all consistency to favor the
retirement of the greenbacks, because
:aat would bring us just so much nearer
to the true value of gold. If it was a
good thing to destroy silver as stand
ard money and make things cheaper,
vhy will it not be a good thing to de
stroy the greenbacks and cheapen
things still more? "Ah. Joseph, Jo
seph! Have a care or you will never
! a bishop."
ALL ARE ONE.
A maleauiatetl Salver Force Pushing on
to Victory In Noceinber.
Tne friends of silver restoration will
be pleased to learn that the three prin
cipal silver organizations of the United
States have been practically consoli
iated for work. The details have been
substantially agreed upon by represen
tatives of The American Bimetallic
League, The National Bimetallic Union,
and The National Silver Committee.
Nothing remains but for the different
organizations to ratify, and this will no
loubt be done with promptness. By the
ferms of the consolidation General A. J.
Warner, of Ohio, will be president, Hon.
R. C. Chambers, of Utah, first vice-pres-i
lent, and Judge Henry G. Miller, of
Illinois, second vice-president. The
vork will go on as heretofore, except
that it will be more vigorously pressed.
The principal office and general head
quarters will be at 134 Monroe Street
(Rooms 509-510-311, Fort Dearborn
Building) Chicago, 111., with Mr. E. B.
Light as general business manager.
The skies are brightening, the silver
sentiment is rapidly crystalizing, and
Wall street is losing its grip.
Let the bimetallists press the cam
paign all along the line, working in the
ranks of all parties, and building up a
-entiraent in favor of a true American
financial policy everywhere.
The overshadowing importance of the
money question is daily becoming clear
er. Even the manufacturers are begin
ning to see that they cannot prosper on
the gold basis, with the competition of
silver using nations destroying the
American farmer, and with oriental
competition now directly threatening to
sap the foundations of the entire manu
facturing system of the United States.
Courage and determination, coupled
with intelligent and harmonious action
will win the battle for silver restoration
ia 1896. Are you an American?
WILL VETO IT.
Cleveland Ae'nit AH Measures In Favor
of the J'eapie.
The president appeals to congress for
help in sustaining the finances of the.
jountry on a "sound basis." It is next
'o certain that congress will not re
spond in accordance with his desires.
In the first place Mr. Cleveland takes
it upon himself to determine what is a
"sound basis," and in the second place
he assumes to dictate the legislation
necessary to preserve it. Such being
the case, the question naturally arises:
U'hat has congress to do with the legis
lation of the country anyway. Mr.
! Cleveland seems to e under the im-
pression that he is the government,
I and that the only function of congress
is to come together and register his de
crees. A mere matter of form of
course. His second election, coupled
with his success in forcing the repeal
of the "Sherman law," appears to have
completely turned his head. It is more
than likely that he will veto any meas
ure that is sent to him. So far as the
merits of the tariff bill are concerned
it Is a matter of indifference to us what
he does with it. As a party measure
it is neither fish nor flesh, and its mer
its are doubtless fairly open to dispute.
But in our judgment any president
makes a mistake who vetoes a bill
merely because he does not approve of
its details. The veto power is an ex
traordinary one and should only be ex
ercised on extraordinary occasions.
Unless a measure contravenes public
policy, or violates the constitution, the
president should not set up his judg
ment against the combined wisdom of
both houses of congress. In the pres
ent juncture nothing will satisfy Mr.
Cleveland but legislation that will fas
ten the golden shackles upon the limbs
of his countrymen for al! time. Can
dor forces us to admit, though, that
there are large numbers of republicans
in congress who would be very glad to
help him. Some of them may actually
do so. But some will not. Others
dare not. We do not believe that there
will be any legislation that will tend to
sustain the gold standard. Without
such legislation that standard cannot
be maintained for any considerable
length of time. With a war, under
existing conditions, that premium is
bound to come a little later, and then
good bye to the gold standard with all
of its oppression, extortion and wrong.
THE GOLD LUNATICS.
Sample of the Legislation with 'Which
They Have Destroyed the Country.
"A Banker," writing to the New York
Sun concerning the president's project
for bringing financial peace to the coun
try by retiring the greenbacks, pre
sents the following inquiries, which
might be profitably considered by some
of the bankers who are giving their
approval to the scheme:
"When the greenbacks have been re
tired, what then? What kind of lawful
money will be available for the 25 per
cent reserve fund of the banks? Gold!
"In what kind of legal tender money
shall the national bank notes be re
deemable? Gold!
"Where will the gold come from to
settle the international 'balance of
trade? From the banks!
"Then what will become of the gold I
reserve of the banks? And what then
will become of the banks when their
'gold reserve' Is exhausted? And how
will the suspension of specie payments
by the banks affect the public mind?
"There is now about $200,000,000
gold in the country available for the
2'j per cent lawful reserve, and more
than $400,000,000 is needed. Where
shall the banks get all this gold from?
"These are pertinent questions which
our Don Quixote and his faithful Squire
have not grappled with."
To relieve the treasury from the
obligation to pay out gold would be, in
evitably, to transfer to the banks the
whole of the demand for gold. In the
first place, such a transfer could not
possibly inspire the public mind with
greater confidence in the certainty of
gold payments, because, in the second
place, it would not add another ounce
to the available stock of gold. In the
absence of enough gold to meet the ur
gent demand for the metal, the prob
able result would be to force the banks.
within a brief period, to suspend specie
payments. This would be the culmi
nating catastrophe of an attempt to
maintain gold monometalism which, if
Mr. Cleveland should have his way,
would have added nearly $700,000,000
to the Indebtedness of the American
people. The effort to sustain this false
system has filled the world with loss
and misery, and the craziest schemes
are now devised to avoid the only con
clusion that is possible if safety is to
be attained, which is to supplement
standard gold with full standard silver.
The Manufacturer.
Think.
Currency on a sound basis! Great
earth!! Did not these goldbugs jrom
ise, in 1893, that when the existing sil
ver law was repealed and the currency
was put on a "sound basis" ihat the
land would flow with milk and non-iy?
And what has been the outcome of
those promises? The land has flovvd
with blood of broken hearts and reeked
with discouragement, misery and nope
lessness. Yet the gold bugs are doing
everything they can to increase the ter
rible power of the gold standard. Cleve
land wants five hundred millions more
of gold bonds. The republican house of
representatives has tried to comply
with his demands by providing for
bonds. And at this date there is a tacit
threat that more bonds will be issued
whether Congress consents or not.
National Bimetallism
Victory in Sight.
The friends of bimetallism have
every reason to feel encouraged, for the
outlook is most cheering. The gold
standard, with its burden of oppression,
is tottering and evidently nearing its
end. The people of this country will
neither submit to endless taxation nor
to a further fall of prices in order to
sustain it. In no other way can it be
upheld. We must either go on borrow
ing gold indefinitely, or a large part of
our paper currency must be drawn in
and retired, which means of course still
lower, prices for what we have to sell.
The Senate is standing like a rock
against any contraction of the currency,
and if the people be but true to them
selves the battle will be won in 1896.
As speaking tubes are found not to
work on the English war ships owing to
the rattling of the machinery, the ad
miralty has determined to try telephones.
TALMAGE'S SERMON.
THB GLORIOUS HERITAQB
EVERY CHRISTIAN.
OP
Goldea Text I "Pat Ym Im the Slokle, fo
the Harvest Is JUpe" Joel, HI, IS
Prayer and Song the Bulwarks of the
Christian Religion.
HE sword has been
poetized and the
world has celebrat
ed the sword of
Bolivar, the sword
of Cortez, and the
sword of Lafayette.
The pen has been
properly eulogized,
and the world has
celebrated the pen
of Addison, the pen
of Southey, and the pen of Irving. The
painters' pencil has been honored, and
the world has celebrated the pencil of
Murillo, the pencil of Rubens, and the
pencil of Bierstadt. The sculptor's
chisel has come in for high encomium.
and the world has celebrated Chantrey's
chisel, and Crawford's chisel, and
Greenough's chisel. But there is one
Instrument about which I sing the first
canto that was ever sung the sickle,
the sickle of the Bible, the sickle that
has reaped the harvest of many cen
turies. Sharp and bent into a semi
circle, and glittering, this reaping hook,
no longer than your arm, has furnished
the bread for thousands of years. Its
success has produced the wealth of na
tions. It has had more to do with the
world's progress than sword, and pen,
and pencil, and chisel, all put together.
Christ puts the sickle into exquisite
sermonic simile, and you see that In
strument flash all up and down the
Apocalypse as St. John swings it, while
through Joel in my text God commands
the people, as through his servants now
he commands them "Put ye in the
sickle, for the harvest is ripe." i
Last November there was great re
joicing all over the land. With trum
pet and cornet and organ and thousand
voiced psalm we praised the Lord for
the temporal harvests. We praised
God for the wheat, the rye, the oats,
the cotton, the rice, all the fruits of the
orchard and all the grains of the field;
and the nation never does a better thing
than when in autumn It gathers to
festivity and thanks God for the great
ness of the harvest. But I come to-day
to speak to you of richer harvests, even
the spiritual. How shall we estimate
the value of a man? We say he is
worth anv ... nr . -rnlAirA1,
. . . !t. . v ,
such and such a position; but we know
ver- well there are some men at the
top of the ladder who ought to.be at
the bottom, and some at the bottom
' who ought to be at the top, and the only
way to estimate a man is by the soul.
We all know that we shall live forever.
Death cannot kill us. Othen crafts may
be drawn into the whirlpool or shiv
ered on the rocks, but this life within
us will weather all storms and drop no
anchor, and ten million years after
death will shake out signals on the high
seas of eternity. You put the mendi
cant off your doorstep and say he Is
only a beggar; but he is worth all the
gold of the mountains, worth all the
pearls of the sea, worth the solid earth,
worth sun, moon and stars, worth the
entire material universe. Take all the
paper that ever came from the paper
mills and put it side by side and sheet
by sheet, and let man with fleetest pens
make figures on that paper for 10,000
years, and they will only have begun to
express the value of the soul. Sup
pose I owned Colorado and Nevada and
Australia, of how much value would
they be to me one moment after I de
parted this life? How much of Phil
adelphia does Stephen Girard own to
day? How much of Boston property
does Abbott Lawrence own to-day?
The man who to-day hath a dollar in
his pocket hath more worldly estate
than the millionaire who died last year.
How do you suppose I feel, standing
here surrounded by a multitude of
sculs. each one worth more than the
material universe? Oh, was I not
rignt in saying, this spiritual harvest is
richer than the temporal harvest? I
must tighten the girdle, I must sharpen
the sickle, I must be careful how I
swing the instrument for gathering the
grain, lest one stalk be lost. One of
the most powerful sickles for reaping
this spiritual harvest is the preaching
oi the Gospel. If the sickle have a rose
wood handle, and it be adorned with
precious stones, and yet it cannot bring
down the grain, it is not much of a
sickle, and preaching amounts to noth
ing unless it harvests souls for God.
Shall we preach philosophy? The
Ralph Waldo Emersons could beat us
at that. Shall we preach science? The
Agassizes could beat us at that. The
minister of Jesus Christ with weakest
arm going forth in earnest prayer, and
wielding this sickle of the Gospel, shall
find the harvest all around him waiting
for the angel sheaf-binders. Oh, this
harvest of sou is! I notice in the fields
that the farmer did not stand upright
when he gathered the grain. I noticed
he had to stoop to his work, and I no
ticed that in order to bind the sheaves
the better he had to put his knee upon
them. And as we go forth in this work
for God we cannot stand upright in our
rhetoric and metaphysics and our eru
dition. We have to stoop to our work.
Ay, we have to put our knee to it or
we will never gather sheaves for the
Lord's garner. Peter swung that sicklo
on the day of Pentecost, and three thou
sand sheaves came in. Richard Baxter
swung that sickle at Kidderminster,
and McCheyneat Dundee, and vast mul
titudes came into the kingdom of our
God.
Oh. this is mlehtv Gosnel! It cap
tured not only John the lamb, but Paul j
the lion. Men may gnash their teeth
A , . , - . ... . ... m i
at It, and clinch their fists, but it is the ,
power of God and the wisdom of God
unto salvation. But alas, if it Is only
preached in pulpits and on Sabbath
days! We must go forth into our stores,
our shops, our banking-houses, our fac
tories, and the streets, and everywhere
preach Christ. We stand in our pulpits
for two hours on the Sabbath and com
mend Christ to the people; but there are
168 hours in the week, and what are the
two hours on the Sabbath against the
166? Oh, there comes down the ordi
nation of God this day upon all the peo
ple, men who toll with head and hand
and foot the ordination comes upon all
I merchants, upon all mechanics, upon
. all toilers, and God says to you as he
saya to me: "Go, teach all nations. He
that believeth and is baptized shall be
saved, and he that believeth not shall be
damned." Mighty Gospel, let the whole
earth hear it! The story of Christ is
to regenerate the nations, it is to eradi
cate all wrong, it is to turn the earth
into a paradise. An old artist painted
the Lord's Supper, and he wanted the
chief attention directed to the face of
Christ. When he invited his friends in
to criticise the picture, they admired
the chalices more than they did the
face, and the old artist said: "This
picture is a failure," and he dashed out
the picture of the cups, and said: "I
shall have nothing to detract from the
face of the Lord; Christ is the all of this
picture."
Another powerful sickle for the reap
ing of this harvest is Christian song.
I know in many churches the whole
work is delegated to a few people stand
ing in the organ-loft. But, my friends,
as others cannot repent for us and
others cannot die for us. we cannot
delegate to others the work of singing
for us. WThlle a few drilled artists
shall take the chants and execute the
more skillful music, when the hymn is
given out let there be hundreds and
thousands of voices uniting in the ac
clamation. On the way to grandeurs
that never cease and glories that never
die, let us sing. At the battle of Lut
zen, a general came to the king and
said: "Those soldiers are singing as
they are going into battle. Shall I
stop them?" "No." said the king, "men
that can sing like that can fight." Oh.
the power of Christian song! When I
argue here you may argue back. The
argument you make against religion
may be more skillful than the argument
I make in behalf of religion. But who
can stand before the pathos of some
uplifted song like that which we some
times sing:
Show pity. Lord, O Lord, forgive!
Let a repenting rebel live!
Are not thy mercies large and free?
May not a sinner trust in thee?
Another mighty sickle for the reap
ing of the Gospel harvest is prayer.
What does God do with our prayers?
Does he go on the battlements of heav
en and throw them off? No. What
do you do with gifts given you by thoso
who love you very much? You keep
them with great sacredness. And do
you suppose God will take our prayers,
offered in the sincerity and love of our
hearts, and scatter them to the winds?
Oh, no! He will answer them all in
some way. Oh, what a mighty thing
prayer Is! It is not a long rlgamarole
of "ohs," and "ahs," and "for ever and
ever. Amen." It is a breathing of the
heart Into the heart of God. Oh, what
a mighty thing prayer is! Elijah with
It reached up to the clouds and shook
down the showers. With it John Knox
shook Scotland. With it Martin Luther
shook the earth. And when Phlllpp
Melanchthon lay sick unto death, as
many supposed, Martin Luther came in
and said: "Philipp. we can't spare you!"
"Oh," said he, "Martin, you must let
me go; I am tired of persecution and
tired of life. I want to go to be with my
God." "No," said Martin Luther, "you
shall not go; you must take this food
and then I will pray for you." "No,
Martin," said Melanchthon, "you must
let me go." Martin Luther said: "You
take this food, or I will ex-communicate
you." He took the food and Mar
tin Luther knelt down and prayed a3
only he could pray, and convalescence
came and Martin Luther went back and
said to his friends: "God has saved the
life of Philipp Melanchthon in direct
answer to my prayer." Oh, the power
of prayer! Have you tested it?
I invite any one the most Infidel, any
one the most atheistic, I invite him into
the kingdom of God with just as much
heartiness as those who have for fifty
years been under the teaching of the
Gospel and believed it all. When I was
living in Philadelphia a gentleman told
me of a scene in which he was a par
ticipant. In Callowhill street, Phila
delphia, there had been a powerful
meeting going on for some time and
many were converted, and among oth
ers one of the prominent members of
the worst club-house in that city. The
next night the leader of that club
house, the president of it, resolved that
he would endeavor to get his comrade
away. He came to the door, and before
he entered he heard a Christian song,
and under its power his soul was agi
tated. He went in and asked for pray
er. Before he came out he was a sub
ject of converting mercy. The next
night another comrade went to reclaim
the two who had been lost to their sin
ful circle. He went, and under the
power of the Holy Ghost became a
changed man, and the work went on
until they were all saved and the in
famous club-house disbanded. Oh, it
Is a mighty Gospel! Though you came
here a child of sin you can go away a
child of grace; you can go away singing:
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me;
I once was lost, but now am found
Was blind, but now I see.
Oh, give up your sins! Most of your
life is already gone. Your children
are going on the same wrong road.
Why do yoo not stop? "This day is sal- ,
vation come to thy house." Why not
this moment look up into the face of -
Christ and say:
Just as I am without one le
But that thy blood was shed for me,
And that thou bl(Jat me ,ome to thte
o Lamb of God, I come, I come.
Cod 1 going to eave you. You a5fc
going to be among the shining occ&
After the toils of life are over, you are
going up to the everlasting rest, you are
going up to Join your loved ones, de
parted parents and departed children
"O, my God," says some man, "how can
I come to thee? I am so far off. Who
will help me. I am so weak? It seems
such a great undertaking." Oh, my
brother, it is a-srreat undertaking! It
is so great you cannot accomplish It,
but Christ can do the work. He will
correct your heart and he will correct
your life. "Oh," you say, "I will stop
profanity." That will not save you.
"Oh," you say, "I will stop Sabbath
breaking." That will not save you.
There is only one door into the king
dom of God, and that is faith; only one
ship that sails for heaven, and that is
faith. Faith the first step, the second
t step, the hundredth step, the thou
sandth step, the last step. By faith we
enter the kingdom. By faith we keep
In. By faith we die. Heaven a reward
of faith. The earthquake shook down
the Philippian dungeon. The jailor
said: "What shall I do?" Some of you
would say: "Better get out of the
place before the walls crush you."
What did the Apostle say? "Believe
on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt
be saved." "Ah." you say, "there's the
rub." What is faith? Suppose you were
thirsty and I offered you this glass of
water, and you believed I meant to give
it to you. and you came up and took it.
You exercise faith. You believe I mean
to keep my promise. Christ offers you
the water of everlasting life. You take
it. That is faith.
Enter into the kingdom of God. En
ter now. The door of life is set wide
open. I plead with you by the blood
sweat of Gethsemane and the death
groan of Golgotha, by cross and crown.
by Pilate s court-room and Joseph's
sepulchre, by harps and chains, by
kingdoms of light and realms of dark
ness, by the trumpet of the archangel
that shall wake the dead, and by the
throne of the Lord God Almighty and
the Lamb, that you attend now to the
things of eternity. Oh, what a sad
thing it will be if, having come so near
heaven, we miss it! Oh, to have come
within sight of the shining pinnacles
of the city and not have entered! Oh,
to have been so near we have seen the
mighty throng enter, and we not Join
ing them! Angels of God, fly this way!
Gcod news for you, tell the story
among the redeemed on high! If there
bo one there especially longing for
our salvation, let that one know it now.
Wo put down our sorrows. Glory be to
God for such a hope, for such a pardon,
for such a joy. for such a heaven, for
such a Christ!
Speak Oat Tear Love.
A French Journal gives one excellent
way by which we may advance Christ's
kingdom, as follows:
Let your friends know that you love
them. Do not keep alabaster boxes of
your love and tenderness sealed up
until your friends are dead. Fill your
lives with sweetness; speak kind, ap
proving words while their hearts can
hear them. The things you mean to
say when they are gone say before they
go.The flowers you mean to send for
their coffin send to brighten their
homes before they leave them.
If my friends have alabaster boxes
full of perfumes of sympathy and affec
tion, which they intend to break over
my dead body, I would rather they
would bring them out in my weary days
and open them that I may be refreshed
and cheered by them while I need them.
I would rather have a bare coffin
without a flower, and funeral with
out an eulogy, than life with
out the sweetness of love and
sympathy. Let us learn to anoint
our friends beforehand for burial.
Post-mortem kindnesses do not cheer
the burdened spirit. Flowers on the
coffin cast no fragrance over the weary
days of our lives.
PROVERBIAL.
A maiden should never be married in
colors if she wishes to be happy, the
most unfortunate colors being yellow
and green.
Widows who re-marry ought not to
be dressed in white. Wednesday Is the
most fortunate day for marriages, Sat
urday the most unlucky.
The thirteenth of the month is unfor
tunate for all purposes.
Birds In flocks are lucky, and the
sun to shine upon a bride is most pro
pitious, denoting success In all matters
and mutual ove.
If a green-pea pod containing nine
peas is put by a maiden over the hall
door, she will be married if the first
stranger who enters happens to be a
bachelor.
Daniel Webster was lofty and digni
fied. His abstraction sometimes creat
ed the impression of incivility where no
discourtesy was intended.
Gladstone Is polite to everybody. At
his country home he knows everyone
In the vicinity, and has a kindly word
for even the poorest farm laborer.
William Penn's formal but kindly
politeness impressed even the Indians
with whom he dealt. One of the
names given him by them was "The
Good Big Chief."
Madison made it a point to touch his
hat to everyone who bowed to him, and
the front part of his hat brim was al
ways worn threatbare in consequence
of this punctiliousness.
Henry Clay was said to make the
most engaging bow of any gentleman
of his time.
Haydn was the personification of
courtesy. He once said: "It does not
pay to be Impolite, even to a dog."
The Duke of Marlborough said that
he owed his success as much to his ele
gant deportment as to his talents.
Chesterfield was so graceful that one
of his contemporaries said it was worth
a journey across England to see him
bow.
Andrew Jackson was rough in his
manners, but he could be polite when
he pleased. He was always courteous
to ladles.
THE'SUNDAY SCHOOL.
LESSON IX, MARCH 1 JESUS
THE MESSIAH LUKE 9:18-27.
Golden Text: "This Is My IleloveU Ron,
Hear Ye Him" Luke lx:3S The
Grand Triumph of the Havlor of Man
kind. O-DAY we come to
another milestone of
progress. Jesus be
gins to unfold more
clearly to ' his dis
ciples his true nature
as the Messiah. He
must make atone
ment by his death.
Thus only can he
found the new king
dom and fulfil his
mission as the Mes
siah. Lest this
strange and incom
Drehensible view of
the Messiah should stagger their faith, his
true, transcendent nature was revealed in
the transfiguration and proved by many
miracles of grace and power. We see thus
how much was needed that the faith of the
disciples should be encouraged, as in our
last lessen. The chapter selected should
be searched for those facts and truths
which reveal to us the true nature and
work of the Messiah, and the lesson taught
with reference to this one purpose.
The full text for to-day is as follows:
18. Ami it namo in nnss. as he WSS alone
praying, his disciples were with him; and
he asked them, saying. Whom say me
people that I am?
19. They answering said, John the Bap
tist; but some say Klias; and others say,
that one of the old prophets is risen again.
20. He said unto them. But whom say
ye that I am? Peter answering said. The
Christ of (Jod.
21. And he straltly charged them, and
commanded them to tell no man that
thing;
22. Saying. The Son of man must suffer
many things, and be rejected of the elders
and chief priests and scribes, and be slain,
and be raised the third day. .
23. And he said to them all. If any man
will come after me, let him deny himself,
and take up his cross daily, and follow me.
24. For whosoever will save his life shall
lose it; but whosoever will lose his life for
my sake, the same shall save It.
Zo. For what is man advantaged, if he
gain the whole world, and lose himself,
or be cast away?
26. For whosover shall be ashamed of
me and of my words, of him shall the Son
of man be ashamed, when he shall come
In his own glory, and in his Father's and
of the holy angels.
27. But I tell you of a truth, there be
some standing here, which shall not taste
of death, till they see the kingdom of God.
Some explanations to the text are as
follows:
Note that there can be no high and noble
character without daily self-denial. Who
soever makes self first Is necessarily mean
and low. Hence God has made life full of
opportunities to deny self for others.
"Take up his cross daily," not merely on
special occasions. (1) The cross is the
symbol of doing our duty, even at the cost
of the most painful death. It is the em
blem, not of mere suffering, but of suffer
ing for the sake of Christand his gospel.
(2) Kach one must take up his own cross.
(3) He must take it up voluntarily, accept
It. not merely endure what Is laid upon
him. This is what changes the cross into
a glory. ."The cross for me cross, never;
but the cross for the Lord, always." (1)
The cross is a test. It is the Ithuriel's
spear, which tests whether we are dis
ciples in de:?d and in truth, or only seekers
after the loaves and fishes. "And follow
me." To follow Christ is to take him for
our master, our teacher, our example; to
believe his doctrines, to uphold" his cause,
to obey his precepts, and to do it thougl
it !ea&s to heaven by the way of the cross
It is not merely to do right, but to do righi
for his sake, under his leadership, and ac
cording to his teaching. An old mystic
once said a true word: "Never run after
a cross, and.never run away from one."
23. For what is a umn advantaged?
What profit does he gain? Some have said
that this regarding of profit and reward is
only another form of selfishness. But
selfishness is the seeking our own good at
the expense or injury of others. To seek
what is profitable is not selfishness, but
wisdom. It Is simply folly to throw away
life, or pleasure, or wealth, for no good,
whatever. The wise man wants to know
what good will come of it to himself or
others. Only a fool will have no regard
to profit. If, an "If" that is never realized,
but even if he gain the whole world, al!
the pleasure, the wealth, the sources of
enjoyment, the honors, the blessings this
world can give, and lose himself, his life,
his health, his power of enjoyment, if he
is racked with pain, or tormented with
remorse, if he loses his character, his in
tegrity, his love of God, and after a short
enjoyment there is nothing left but eternal
misery. In the process of gaining he has
lost the power to enjoy his gains. Or be
cast away, rather, forfeit himself, forfeit
his soul, which is given up for the sake of
worldly gain. There is no compensation
for the loss of the soul. All other losses
may be repaired. The loss of the soul is
without remedy and without hope.
Illustration. There is a Russian legend
of one who entered a diamond mine in
search of great riches. He filled his pock
ets with great gems, and then threw them
away to make room for larger ones. At
length he became very thirsty, but there
was no water there. He sought to find
the way out, but was hopelessly lost in
the Intricate mazes. He heard the flow
of rivers, but they were rivers of gems;
and he hastened forward at the sound of a
waterfall, but it was a cascade of Jewels.
He was very rich in precious stones, but
he was dying of thirst, and his riches were
worse than useless. He had lost himself,
and perished amid his treasures.
26. Whosover shall be ashamed of me,
one reason why men would refuse, to take
up their cross. And of my words, the
truths I teach, the claims I make, the
hopes I hold forth, the commands I give.
There was great danger of this shame.
For Jesus and his cause would be unpopu
lar. The fashions, the wealth, the drift
of thought in the world would be directly
opposed to the kingdom which Jesus set
up. He himself was to be crucified as a
malefactor; his glory invisible. Ills king
dom was small, with followers few and
poor; and its glory was in the future; it
principles spiritual. Persecution, re
proaches, sneers would press hard upon
the disciples; only a mighty faith could
keep them from being ashamed. Of him
shall the son of man be ashamed, because
their character and conduct are wholly
unlike his. They do not belong In his com
pany; they have acted in a manner en
tirely unworthy of his disciples.
MARVELS OF THE MOUTH.
The teeth of fish, like teeth of most
animals, are not fastened to the bone,
but are held in sockets.
The tongue of the toad and frog is
prehensile. By means of it these ani
mals seize and hold their prey.
The treatise of John Hunter In 1771
is considered the foundation of the
science of dentistry in England.
Ovid, Martial and Horace all refer in
their poems to the use of artificial teetn
as common in their time.
