Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1890-10-17

Ter scott refers IN his immortal "TaltSnlap,
where Saladin, with one stroke Of the sword,
strikes the head from an enemy who stands
IN Saladin's tent with a cup in his hand and
before he has time to put IL to his lip, and
does IL so suddenly that the body Of his en-
emy, beheaded, stands for q moment after
the beheading, with the cup still In his right
hand. After the cup had been appsi It
would have been impossible, according to the
laws Of the oriental hospitality, to give the
fatal blow.
The only lands where IL is safe to travel
unarmed are Christian lands. Human life is
more highly valued and personal rights are
better respected, and am glad to believe
that iu our country, from the Atlantic ocean
to the Pacific ocean, there is not a place to-
dny where mau is not safer without pistol
than with one. But all through our journeys
In Palestine we required firearms While the
only weapon had on my person was n New
Testament we went through the region where
[ said TO the dragoman: David, are YOU
armedr' fnd he said "Yes, and said: "Ars
those fifteen or twenty muleteers and bag
gage men and attendants armedF" and he
said eyes" and felt safer.
On We roll through tho plain OF Sharon.
Here grew the roSo after which Christ was
named, Rose o. Sharon, celebrated in all
Christendom and throughout all ages.
There has been controversy aS to what flow
er it was. Some say it was a marshmallow
that thriveS here aud soma claim this honor
for the narcissus, and some for the blue iris,
and some for the scarlet ansmone, for you
must know that this plain of Sharon is roll
ing ocean OF color when the spring breeZss
move Gcrossit But leaving tho botanis.s in
controversy as to what II is, | would take the
most aromatic and beautiful OF them all uu1
twist them into n garland for tho name
| which is above every name"
Yonder, little to the north as we move
on, is the plain OF Ono The Bible mentions
It again and again The village standing on
this plain OF Ono Is mud village. Two
great basins Of rock catch the rains for the
people. or more Importance IN olden tims
than in modern time was this plain Of Ono.
But as the dragoman announced II and in the
Bible Tread OF It was reminded Of tho vast
multitude OF people who now dwell in tho
plain Of Ono. They are by their nervous
constitution or by their lack OF faith in God
always in the negative. VIII you help to
build a church, oh, no! viii you start out
In some new Christian enteTpriscf Oh, mol
Do you mink the world is getting any bet
ter? Oh, no! They lie down in The path OF
all good movements, sanitary, political and
religious. They harness their horses with no
traces TO pull ahead, but only breschiug
straps to hold back. For all Christian work
| would not give for thousand Of them tho
| price Vi u CHppsu Ten CcuJ piete. lucy arc
in the plain OF Oh, no! MAY the Lord multi
ply the numbers OF those who when anything
good Is undertaken are found TO live in the
plain OF Oh, yes! viii you support this new
charity, Oh yesl Do you think that this
victim OF evil habit can b. reformeii Oh,
yes! Are you willing 10 do anything,
whether-obscurc or reSounding, for TIE well
fare Of the church AMI the salvation OF a
world' Oh. yes! But au sorry to say
that the most populous plain in all the earth
to-day Is tn" pla'- IF Ono.
Here now y, - where stood the fields
into which G..Ason fired the foxes. The
foxes are no rarity in this land. | counted
ut one time twenty or thirty OF them in one
group, and the cry all along the line was
Foxes! Look at the foxes" and at night
they sometimes bark until all attempts TO
sleep are an absurdity. Those | saw and
heard in Palestine might have been descend
ants OF the very foxes that Samson employed
for an appalling incendiarism. The wealth
Of that land was in the harvests, and 1t was
harvest time and the straw was dry. Three
hundred foxes are caught and tied in couples
= by some wire or incombustibls cord which
the flames cannot divide, and frobrands are
fastened to those couples Of foxes, anil the
affrighted creatures arc let loose and run
svery whittier among the harvests and In
the awful blaZs down go the earn shocks, and
the valleys aud over the hills and among the
villages is heard the cry OF "Firer Aud in
the burnt pathway walk hunger aud want
and desolation.
All this for spite And some theologians
learn one thing aud some another. But |
learn from it that great man may some
times stoop TO a very mean piece OF business,
and that II men would use as much ingenu-
lty in trying to bless as they do in trying to
| lactrnv thu vrnrlA Ill tho 1nWn WOuli
be in better condition. Yet the fire OF the
foxes lindled that night in Palestine has not
gone out, but has leaped the seas, and the sly
tcxcs, the human foxes, are now still run
ming every whittier, kindling political fires,
fires of religious controversy, fires Of hate,
world wide fires and the whole harvest OF
righteousness perish. 1t took the hard WORK
Of multitudes on these plains Of Palestine for
months and months to rear the vine and raise
the corn, but it took only three hundred
worthless foxes one night TO blaze all into
-sheS
Brace up your nerves now, that you may
look while point them out. Yonder is kir-
jath-Jear where the ark of God staid I'M
til David took 1t 10 Jerusalem. Yonder John
the Baptist was born. Yonder is Emmaus,
where Christ walked with his disciples at
eventide. Here are men plowing, only ons
handle to the plow, showing the accuracy OF
Christ's allusion. When we plow in America
or England there are two hands on two
handles, but in Palestine only one handle
And SO Christ used the singular saying, mo
r1an having put his hand to the plow and
looking back Is fit for the kingdom" The OK
Is urgei on by wooden stick pointed with
sharp iron, and the OK knows enough not to
kick, for he would only hurt himself instead
of breaking the goad. Aud the Bible refers
to that when II says to Saul, ut is hard for
thee TO kick against the goads."
Here is the valley of Ajalon, famous for
Joshua's pursuit Of tho Ave kings AMI the
lunar arrest And in Imagination | ses tbs
moon in daytime halt. Who has not some.
times seen the moon dispute the throne with
the sum- But when the king Of day and the
queen o. night, who never before Joshua!
time nor since then stopped moment in
their march, halted at Joshua's command il
was q scene, enough to make tho universe
shiver: moon, stand thou still in the valley
Of Ajalonm At another time we will see th;
sun stop above Gideon. but now we have only
to do with the moon, and you must remem
ber it was more Of an orb than 1t Is now. ]
is burnt ont world now, q dead world now
an extinct world now, u corpse laid out II
state in the heavens, waiting for the judg
ment day to bury ii. But on the day o.
which speak the moon was probably liv
ing world, yet IL halted at tho wave of Josh
uas finger, "Stand thou stillr' Donot budg,
an inch until Joshua finishes those five kings
who are there tumbling over the rocks, swort
of man slashing them, hailstones out Of th
sky pelting them.
And there Is the cavern of Makkedah
where they fed for safety, and where theI
wero afterward locked in, and from whicl
, they were taken out to be slain, and in whicl
! they were atterward buried and you d.
well to examine that cavern for within
fov,, hnuro n hap1ma thraa thinos which n
other cave ever was-fortress prison
sepulcher.
Now we pass the place where once live
! one Of the greatest robbers of the country
Abou Gosh by name. From this point yo
{ see he could loaS over the surrounding couu
{ try, and long before tue travellers came up t
a!t, The plan for taking Of their money o