The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1889-04-24
could carry passenger and the ventilation
have been all risht. ~


So all the strange things in the Bible can
be explained if you wish to have them e1.
planned. And you can build them into
beautiful and heaihful fire for your hearth,
or you can with them put your immortal in
terests into confederation. But you had
better decide about the veracity Of the
Bible very soon. I want this morning to
caution you against putting off making up
your mind about. this book. Ever since
1772 there has been great discussion as to
who was the author OF Junius Letters.
those letters so full Of sarcasm and vituper-
alton and power. The whole English nation
stirred. up with it. More than hundred
volumes written to discuss that question,
"Who was Junius?' "Who wrote the let
ters of Juniusm Well it is an interesting
question to discuss, but still, after all, it
makes but little practical difference to you
and to me who Junius was, whether Sir
Philip Francis, or Lord Chatham, or John
Horne Tooke, or Horace Walpole, or Henry
Grattan, or any Of the forty-four men
who were seriously charged with the
authorship. But it is an absorbing question,
it is 4 practical question, it is an over
wheming question to you and to me, the
authorship Of this Holy Bib!e-whether the
Lord God Of heaven and earth, or pack
OF dupes, scoundrels or imposters. We can
not afford to adjourn that question week,
or day, or an hour, any more than sea
captain can afford to say: "Well, this is a
very dark night. have really lost my bear
iugs; there is light out there. l don't
know whether it is lighthouse or false
light on the shore, don't know what it is;
but I'll just 60 to sleep, and in the morning
I'll find out" In the morning the vessel
might be on the rocks and the beach strewn
with the white faces of the dead crew. The
time for that sea captain to find out about
the lighthouse is before he goes to sleep.
o, my friends, l want you to understand
that II our deliberations about this Bible
we are not at calm anchorage, but we are
rapidly coming toward the coast, coming
with all the furnaces ablaze, coming at the
rate of seventy heart-throbs minute. and
/ must know whether it is going to be har-
Dor or shipwreck.
was 50 glad to read in the papers OF the
fact that the steamship Edam had come
safely into harbor. A week before the Per-
sian Monarch, plowing its way toward the
Narrows, hundred mics out, saw signals
OF distress, bore down upon the vessel, and
found it was the steamship Edam. She had
lost her propeller. She had two hundred
passengers on board. The merciful captain
Of the Persian Monarch endeavoredt to bring
her in, but the tow line broke. He fastened
it again, but the sea was rough and the tow
line broke again Then the night came on
end the merciful captain Of the Persian
Monarch "lay to-" thinking in the morning
he could give rescue to the passengers.
The morning came, but during the night
the steamship Edam had disappeared,
and the captain of the Persian Monarch
brought his vessel into harbor, saying how
sad he felt because he could not give COM
plete rescue to that lost ship. am glad
that afterward another vessel saw her and
brought her into safety. But when saw
the story Of that steamship Edam drifting,
drifting, drifting, do not know where. but
with no ru6der, no lighthouse, no harbor,
no help, said: ''That is g skeptic, that is
an intidel, drifting, drifting, drifting. not
knowing where he drifts" And then,
when I thought of the Persian Mon
arch anchored in harbor, said: THAT
is Christian; that IS man who does
all he can on the way, crossing the
see to help others, coming perhaps
through very rough voyage into the bar
Dor. there safe and safe forever" Would to
God that there might be some one to day who
would so forth and bring in these souls that
are drifting. In this assemblage how manN
a score shall say. or hundred, or thou
sand?-not quite certain about the truth Of
the Bible, not certain about any thing.
Drifting drifting, drifting. O, how
would like to tow them in! throw
you this cable. Lay hold of that cable
Of the gospel. Lay hold Of it. invite
YOU all in. The harbor is wide enough,
large enough for all the shipping. Come in,
0, you wanderers on the deep. Drift no
more, drift no more Come into the harbor.
See the glorious lighthouse of the gospel,
peace on EARTH good will to men," Come
into the harbor. God grant that it may be
said Of all Of you who are now drifting in
your unbelief as it might have been said OF
the passengers of the steamship Edam, and
as it was said centuries ago Of the wrecked
corn ship of Alexandria, "1t came to pass
that they all escaped safe to land"