The Red Cloud chief., 1890-11-14
b WISE KING.
d.. Talmage Discoursee ON the
Wor1D Of Solomon.
Weadrous Reservoir md A~cqueducts Of
b Holy LAad-Achievements q the
Past Compared Wlth the Present.
The Saviour lBirth Pisee.

100 C0vtOOf0 01R60 RxDQD.
In his sixth sermon on THE Holy Land
Rev. 7. De Witt Talmage described the
gardens and public works of King Solo
mon His text was Ecclesiastes ii. 4-6:
% made me great works, I builded me
houses. I planted me vineyards, 1 made
me gardens and orchards and planted
trees in them Of all kinds of fruits: I
made me pools of water to water there.
with the wood that bringeth forth
trees" DR.. Talmage said:
A spring morning and before break.
fast at Jerusalem! A King with robes
snowy white in chariot decked with
gold, drawn BY eight horses, high met
tied, and housings as brilliant as il
scollopcd out OF that very sunrise, and
like the winds for speed. followed by a
regiment OF archers OF horseback with
hand on gilded bow and arrows with
steel points flashing in the sun, clad
from head to foot in Tyrian purple and
black hair sprinkled with gold dust, all
dashing down the road. the horses At
full run. the reins loose on their
necks. and the crack of whips
and the halloo OF the reckless cayal.
cade putting the miles at defiance. Who
is it and what is il? King Solomon
taking an outing before breakfast from
Jerusalem to his gardens and parks and
orchards and reservoirs, six miles down
the road towards Hebron. What a con-
trast between that and myself on that
very road one morning last December.
going afoot, for our plain vehicle turned
back for Photographic apparatus for
gotten. we on the way to find what is
called Solomon's pools. the ancient
waterworks of Jerusalem. and the gar.
dens OF a King nearly 3. 200 years ago.
We cross the a~cqueduct again and again
and here We are at the three great reser-
voirs, not ruins of reservoirs, but the
reservoirs themselves, that Solomon
built three milleniums ago for the pur-
pose of catching the mountain streams
and passing them to Jerusalem to slake
the thirst of the city, and also to irri-
gate the most glorious range of gardens
that ever bloomed with all colors, or
breathed with all redo!ence. for Solo
mon was the greatest horticu!turist the
greatest bOtanist, the greatest ornithol-
ogist the greatest capitalist and the
greatest scientist OF his century.
Come over the piles OF gray rock. and
here We are at the first of three reser-
voirs. which are on three great levels,
the base OF the top reservoir higher
than the top Of the second. the base OF
the second reservoir higher than the
top of the third, SO arranged that the
waters gather from several sources
ehc sediment Of the water deposited in
each OF the three. SO that by the time it
gets down to the %acqueduct which is to
a it to Jerusalem it has rad three
offerings, and is as pure as when the
clouds rained it. Wonderful specimens
OF masonry are these three reservoirs.
The white cement fastening the blocks
OF stone together is now just as when
the trOwels 5000 years ago smOOthed
the layers. The>highest reservoir $50
feet by 900; the second, 423 by 100; and
the lowest reservoir $50 feet by lG9. and
deep enough and wide enough, and
mighty enough to float an ocean
steamer.
On that December morning we saw
the waters rolling down from reservoir
{ O reservoir. and can we'll understand
how in this ncighborhood the imperial
gardens were one great blossom, and
the orchard m great basket OF fruit,
and that solomon in his palace. writing
the Song OF Songs and Ecclesiastes,
NAV have been drawing illustrat; Ons
from what he had seen that very morn
ing in the royal gardens when he allud-
ed to melons, and mandrakes, and april
cots, and grapes. and pomegranates. and
figs. and ~spikenard. and cinnamon. and
calamus, and campfire. and "apple
trees among the trees of the wood" and
the almond tree rs flourishing. and to
myrrh and frankincense. and repre-
scented Christ as gone down into His
gardens and the beds of spices to feed
in the gardens, and to gather lilies"
and to 'eyes like fish pools" and to the
voice OF the turtle dove as heard in the
land.
But all this splendor did not make
Solomon happy. One day. after getting
back from his morning ride and before
the horses had yet been cooled off and
IuOUSu NV"h oy ~ iVsot NIuStAN,
Solomon wrote the memorable words.
following my text. like n dirge played
after a grand march: behold all was
vanity and vexation Of spirit. and there
was no profit under the sun" In other
words. 1T doesn't pay" Would to God
that we might all learn the lesson that
this world can not produce happiness!
At Marseilles there is q castellated
house on high ground crowned with
all that grove and garden can do. and
the whole place looks out upon as en-
chanting a landscape rs the world holds,
water and hill clasping hands in q per-
feet bewitchment of scenery, but the
owner. of that place is totally blind. and
to him all this goes for nothing, illus
trating the truth that. whether n be
physically or morally blind brilliancy
of surrounding can not give salts
faction. But tradition says that when
1.-THE wise men OF the East" were being
guided by the star or the way to Beth
lehem. they, for q little while. lost
sight of that star, and in despair and
exhaustion came to q we'll to drink.
when looking down into the we'll they
saw the star reflected in the water. and
that cheered them, and they resumed
their journey, and l have the notion
that though grandeur and pomp OF sur
roundings may not afford peace. at the
we'll OF Gods consolation. close by, you
may find happiness. and the plainest
Gun at the we'll Of salvation may IL
the brightest star that ever shown from
the heavens.
Although these SolOmonic gardens are
in ruins there are now growing there
flowers that are to be found nowhere
else in the Holy Land. How do &C
count for thai? Solomon sent out his
ships and robbed the gardens OF the
whole earth for flowers and planted
these exotics here. and these particular
flowers are direct descendants OF the
fore gn plants he imported
The storms, the winters b great
midsummer heats Of Palestine. by |
crumbling up and dissolving the rocks