The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1882-01-02
aoop NEw YEAR,s nEApING,
Something that People Don't Generally
Know, or If They Know seldom Think

] GOOD NEW YEARS READING.
Something that People Don't Generally
Know, OF If They Know seldom Think
OF
Cincinnati Gazette
Another year has passed away. All over
Christendom the great event that was sung
into air by Gabriel and his band has been
celebrated by 4O0OO0OOO Of people. The
gloria in erceisS once came down from the
sky to earth; now it ascends from the
earth to the sky. We are apt to think
we are Of considerable importance in the
universal scheme OF things; and so We are.
Whether other planets are inhabited or
not makes no difference; ours is, and an
alogy would teach us That others may
be also. What perplexes us is that the
mystery Of our greatness is so blended
with the facts OF our littleness. II the uni
verse is an effect whose cause Is God,
then the wonder is Just what occurred to
David once in devout meditation, as he
looked ut the armament by night, all bla-
zing with millions OF worlds, for anything
we know just US important as our own.
"What is man that Thou art mindful Of
him, or the son Of man that Thou yisitest
htmY It is wonder to everybody. In-
significance and greatness meet in the
same subject. il orr liitleness hnmiliates
us, the antidote to that is found in our
greatness as objects OF divine care and
special consideration. If our pride in
tlates us, then the wholesome 0ntidote to
that is our utter insignifcInce in the wise
scheme Of things
We arc apt to judge Of things from our
own standpoint, and our opinion is that
"Brother Jonathan" is about the biggest
thing divine eyes can rest upon. Nothing
is more common than 10 ventilate from
pulpit and press our own majesty, and tell
mankind what we Gre going to do. We are
the best part OF the planet, and we are GO
ing to convert all the rest Of the world, and
claim the first rink, in the good time COM
ing, for services rendered in this.
The case is an interesting one. II We
lust get off this earth for the present, and
launch out into open space, 200 or 800
miles distant, standing above the planet,
and look down upon it, aud take sort OF
celestial observation OF it, what shall we
see2 A ball suspended in space, hung on
nothing, and whirling far away with a
double motion--one diurnal motion on
its axis, making the day; the other an an.
nuat motion in its orbit, making the SEA.
sons and the year. Some one whispers
that ball Is thr9e-fourths water and one.
fourth land, and OF that one.tourth land
only three.tenths are inhabited and seven,
tenths uninhabited, and it looks 80 las it
moves rolling through space) away in
the distance, or that three-tenths
five large patches appear. Men call them
continents-Europe, Asia, Africa, North
and South America. Five large shining
surfaces CLEAN successfully rs the ball
wheels round. Men call them oCeans-At-
lantic, Pacific, Indian, Arctic, Antarctic.
The little dots are islands. The little bright
spots are seas. An inquiry brings the an
swer that the whole population on that
planet is 100000, 600 Of human beings, di-
Vidcd up into various empires, kingdoms,
states, and modes Of government, all fight
ing each other for the supreme. control.
They talk $50 different languages. They
have eight different book religions, the
three chief ones now competing for the
possession Of tho planet being the Bud
dhist, Mohammedan, and Christian, not to
mention the countless seCts in which they
are all divided. OF the 1,40O,0O0,O0O
OF human beings, S0O,000,000 are yet
nom Christian and Pagan, although
nearly nineteen hundred years have passed
away since the first Christmas was sung in
the air over that spot down there called
Bethlehem. Then in what they call Christ
mas itself there is more unbelief of their
own creed than there is true faith, and
hundreds oil thousands are open infidels,
and crime is boundless. The struggle has
been going on from the start. Look there
at those patches Just now turning up rs the
planet wheels round the end OF its orbit.
They were all Christian once, but not SO
now--all that patch OF Asia, including even
the Holy Land, all the region OF Upper
Africa whose shore is washed by the Medi-
terrancan. Look! all that the Turk has
held for four hundred years past,
the most beautiful part OF Europe and Asia,
was Christian. Look ut China there. Only
10000 men protesting the true faith, while
the rest OF the 400,0O0,000 know nothing
about the true religion. Then see the mil.
lions on millions Of Buddhists. Then see
where the true religion is professed. Look,
there are 100000 Of men enrolled for
battle, and all the rest are taxed to pay for
armies and navies and means OF defense
and dcstruction-all among Christians.
Just look at it, think Of the time passed
since "Grory to God III the highest, and on
earth peace, good will toward men" was
first sang, and say how long it will be at
this rate before the planet gets rest, and the
nations hail the Golden Age What will
the future be2
They say that, one day, He who came
l,SOO years ago will come again, sailing
down on white cloud from above and
surrounded by cohorts OF angels, and will
sit poised in the air and hold Judgment
over that planet, and raise from their
graves all that have died, and open q new
age, better than this. They say, too, that
the destiny Of the planet is peace and per
lection without end. Yonder people over
there, called "brother Jonathan" feel
large" but they are small in the scheme
| OF things. II all the world were Just like
ChFistendom to-day, it would be simply
ripe for judgment.
That rolling ball thinksit is an important
affair. 1t is, But how Insignificant after
ALL Look up, and around, and below; count
those wheeling wortdsif you can. The earth
is only fly spcck, II belongs to one Of u
million Of solar systems greater than its
own, all revolving around common cen
tire, over there where you see no stars-the
'dome" Of the universe. Men call it heaven.
Astronomers down below used to say the
great centre Of things was over there in
Sirius, or the nose OF the dog star; others
said It was in 81 of the Swan; Others said it
was in the PleiadCs All that is exploded
now, II is over there in that wide space OF
luminous ether, rare and pure, and
around that all the systems YOU see
revolve, with their millions OF suns,
moons and stars It takes $4,000
OF human years to make one revolution OF
all the systems round that center. That
little system over there, called "the solar
system" Is itself only one OF many more
!. that revolve around another center, and SO
J on, until all the complicated maze Of sys.
J tens reYolye mound tho one rrant Center