Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1874-12-02
THE SEVEN SLEEPERS.
The Legend ExpIained-WhO They Were,
IL What They Did, and How They Slept

Rev G. u Wenner in the Luthern Home Monthly
For more than !, 900 years the legend
of the Seven Sleepers has been told in
pious song and story. Who were these
Seven Sleepers? Is it only a monkish
legend an invention of the "dark
ages ?" Or is the story true, or has it
at least got al historical basis? r. ocf.
1t was IL the year of our Lord $50
that Decius, the most inhuman of all
the Roman emperors in his persecution
of the christians, in making tour
through his Provinces, arrived at Ephe-
sus, in Asia Minor. Christianity had
already obtained foothold there, al
though the great majority of the people
still adhered to the heather religion.
Upon his arrival, the Emperor ordered
a sacrifcial festival to be held in honor
of Jupiter, Apollo, and Diana. In this
festival every one was commanded to
take part, under the penalty of mourning
the Imperial displeasure in case of re-
fusal Among the christians Of the city
were seven youths, descendent of noble
families. The names of six of them
were Macmillan, Malcus, Dionysius,
Joannes, Scrapio and Convsius. These
determined to die rather than to obey
the mandate. AS soon as Decius heard
of ti.eir determination he commanded
them TO pe brought before him. &C.,"
said he, "and procure incense that you
may offer to the highest powers. j"
The Highest Power" they replied,
has His throne i'll the heavens, and is
the living and Almighty God, who hath
created heaven and earth. Him we
worship, Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
and we can never again bow down to
dumb idols that are nothing
With terrible glance the Emperor
measures the youthful confessor Then
suddenly changing his manner, he en-
deavors to win them by his promises and
his arguments. For he knew well that
martyrdom would pour oil on flames he
was trying to quench Failing to attain
his object by threats and promises, he
,ells them that he will graciouslyaccord
them time to consider their resolution
until he should again return to Ephe-
sus, and informs them of the terrible
consequences if they should still con-
tinue their stubborn resistance.
With a calm courage the young men
departed from the presence of the En-.
peror. By the citizens of Ephesus they
were prescribed; by many, however,
secretly admired, Determined not to
renounce their faith, they, however, de-
cided to avoid the monster as much as
possible. With this object they betook
themselves to a range of mountains in
the neighborhood of Ephesus. There
they discovered cave, the entrance to
which was concealed by thick foliage.
In this cave they hid themseh es, and
one of their number, Malchius, the one
least known in the city, was appointed
to supply them with food.
The day of the Emperor's return an
rived. One of the first questions was
concerning " the stubborn youths J"
"They have escaped" was the reply.
But their concealment had been discov-
cred. Spies had followed them, and
purchased the Emperor's favor by re-
vealing the place of concealment. De-
cius, knowing well that he could not
hope to change the purpose of the
youths, gave command to close the
mouth of the cave with wall, and thus
close them i'll a living tomb. Nosooner
said than done
There was one man, however, who,
though still a heather, had heard the
Gospel, and was not far from the King
dom of God. Desiring that further
generations might know whose bones
rested there, he took roll of parch-
ment and, writing on it the names of
the youths and an account of their
courageous bearing, inclosed it in an
iron casket, and unobserved by the
workmen, slipped it into the cave, and
then quietly withdrew.
Many a SOOTHING ''good night was
called after them by the brutal popu-
lace that evening in the streets of Eph-
esus. Many tender "good night"
did the Christians send after them in
their prayers And He who preserved
David in the cave of Adulham, and res
cued Daniel from the den of lions,
heard their prayer. The light of day
had for them faded away. But they
remembered, "He giveth His beloved
Sleep They lay themselves down and
sleep. Soft is their slumber, and no
danger is nigh. It is as though holy
angels had encamped round about them
We will leave them to their sleep, and
write over them on the dark rock the
words of David: CHOW excellent is
thy loving kindness, O God therefore
the childred Of men put their trust un-
der the shadow of thy wings
Time passes on swift wings. Genera
tions come and go like phantom spirits.
About 1877 years later we are again in
Ephesus. But how changed is the
scene Decius, the tyrant, is moulder-
ing in his grave. The world is COM
pletely changed.
A wealthy landowner desires to make
some improvement in his estate. In
searching for suitable building material
be finds an old wall with large square
stones. The blocks are easily removed,
and the mouth of a cave is revealed. It
is the cave Of the Seven Sleepers, whose
history had long since passed into obliv-
ion. The rays of light entering for the
first time after SO many years awakened
the youths. They thanked God that
deliverance had come so soon. For they
but single night had passed