The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1890-12-24


aims. General Naaman had great and patri-
otic pride in these two rivers Of his own coun-
try, and when Elisha the prophet told him
that If he wanted to get rid of his leprosy
he must 60 and wash in the Jordan, ne felt
as we who live on the magnificent Hudson
would feel if told that we must go and wash
in the muddy Thames or as if those who live
on the transparent Rhine were told that they
must go and wash in the muddy Tiber.
So General Naaman cried out with voice
as loud az ever he had used in commanding
his troops, uttering those memorable words
which every minister Of the Gospel sooner or
later takes for his text: "Are not ALBANIA and
Pharpar, rivers Of Damascus, better than the
waters Of Israel? May not wash in them
and be clean9' Thank God, we live in land
with plenty Of rivers, and that they bless all
our Atlantic coast and all our Pacific coast.
and reticulate all the continent between the
coasts. Only those who have trayelediu the
deserts Of Syria, or Egypt, or have u the
oriental cities heard the tinkling of the bell
Of those who sell water can realize what 1t Is
to have this divine beverage in abundance.
Water rumbling over the rocks, turning the
mill wheel, saturating the roots Of the
corn, dripping from the buckets, filling the
pitchers Of the household, rolling through the
fonts or baptistries of holy ordinance, filling
the reservoirs of cities, inviting the cattle to
come down and slake their thirst and the
birds Of heaven to dip their wing, ascending
in robe of mist and falling again in benedic.
tion of shower-water, living water, God
given waterl
We are awakened in the morning in Da-
mascus by the song Of those who have
different styles of food to sell. It is not a
street cry as in London or New York, but
weird and long drawn out solo, com
n h,11o ia
It makes you inopportunely waken, and
will not let you sleep again. But to those
who understand the exact meaning OF the
song it becomes quite tolerable, for they
sing: "God is the nourisher, buy my Bread"
God is the nourisher, buy my milk" "God
is the nourisher, buy my fruit" As you
look out Of the window you see the Moham-
nledans, who are i'll large majority in the
city, at prayer. And If it were put to vote
who should be king Of all the earth, fftesn
thousand in that city would say Christ, but
Mohammed. Looking from the window, you
see on the housetops and on the streets Mo-
hammedans at worship. The muezzin, or the
officers Of religion who announce the time OF
worship, appear high up on the different
minarets or tall towers, and walk around the
minaret, inclosed by q railing and cry in
,ad and mumbling way: 'God IS great. !
bear witness that there is no God but God.
bear witness that Mohammed Is the
apostle Of God. Come 70 prayers! Come to
salvation! God is great. There is no other
but God. Prayers are better than Sleep"
Five times day must the Mohammedan
engage in worship. As he begins he turns
his face toward the city Of Mecca, and un-
rolls upon the ground a rug which he almost
ALWAYS carries. With his thumbs touching
the 1obes Of his ears, and holding his face
between his hands, he cries: "God is great"
Then folding his hands across his girdle, he
looks down and says: "Holiness to Thee,O
God. and praise be to Thee. Great
is Thy name. Great Is Thy great;
ness, There is no deity but Thee"
Then the worshiper sits upon his heels, then
he touches his nose to the rug, and then his
with the cry, 'sGreat is God" Then, raising
the forefnger Of his right hand toward
heaven, he says: II testify there is no deity
but God, and T testify that Mohammed is
the servant of God, and the messenger Of
God" The prayers close by the worshiper
holding his hands opened upward as If to
take the divine blessing, and then his hands
are rubbed over his face as if to convey the
blessing to his entire body.
things about Mohammedanisn,. One is that
its disciples wash before every act of prayer,
and that is five times day, and there Is
gospel in cleanliness. Another commend
able thing is they don't care who is looking
and nothing can stop them in their prayer.
Another thing is that by the order Of Mo
manned, and an order obeyed Tor
thirteen hundred years, no Moham-
meuan touches strong drink: But the
polygamy, the many wifehood Of Mohomme-
danism, has made that religion the unutter.
able and everlasting curse of woman, and
when woman sinks the ce sinks. Inc
proposition recently made in high ecclesl-
astical places for the reformation OF Moham-
mechanism instead of its obliteration. is like
an attempt to improve plague or educatea
leprosy. There is only one thing that Will
ever reform Mohammedanism, and that IS
its extirpation from the face OF the earth by
the poger Of the Gospel Of the Son OF God,
which makes not only man, but woman, Tree
for this life and free for the life to come:
The spirit Of the horrible religion which
prevades the city Of Damascus, along whose
streets we walk and out Of whose bazars we
make purchases, and in whose mosques we
study the wood carvings and bedizements,
were demonstrated as lats as 1850, wnen in
this city it put to death 5000 Christians in
forty-eight hours and put to the torch 30Oo
Christian homes, and those streets we walk
to-day were red with the carnage and the
shrieIs and grcans Of the dying and dishon.
ored men and women made this place hell
on earth. This went on until q Mohamme-
dan. better than his religion Abd-el.Kader
bv name a great soldier, who in one
war had with $500 troops beaten 6O,OO
of the enemy, now protested against
this massacre and gathered the Chris,
tians Of Damascus into castles and
private houses and filed his own home
With the affrighted sufferers. After a while
the mob came to his door and demanded the
WChristian dogs' whom hs was sheltering:
And Abd-el-Kaier mounted horse and
jrew his sword, and with few OF his OLD
soldiers around him charged on the mob and
cried: "Wretches! Is this the way you honor
the prophet? May his curses be upon you!
Shame on you! Shame! You will yet live
to repent. You think you may do as you
please with the Christians, but the day OF
retribution will come. The Franks Will yet
turn your mosques into churches. NOT
Christian will / give up. They are my
: Others Stand back or will give my men
the order to fire." =,
Then by the might of one great soul under
God the wave Of assassination rolled back.
Huzza for Abd-el-Kader! Although now we
Americans and foreigners pass through the
streets of Damascus unhindered, there is In
many parts of the city the subdued Kissing OF
a hatred for Christianity that if it dared
would put to death every man, woman and
child in Damascus who does not declare al
legiance to Mohammed. But am glad to
saw that wide, hard splendid turnpike
road has within a few years been con-
structed from Beyrout, on the shore OF the
Mediterranean, to this city Of Damascus, ana
il ever again the wholesale assassination Is
attempted French troops and English troops
would, with jingling bits and lightning
hoofs, dash up the hills and down this Da-
mascus plain and leave the Mohammedan
murderers dead on the floor of their mosques
and seraglios. 1t is too late in the history or
tho world for governments to allow Such