The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-11-03
TALMAGE IN BIBLE LANDS
RE TELLS OF HORTICULTURE AND
RTDRAUlIcs IN PALESTINE.

isfAetion Only Emphasizes the Faot
That We Must Look Beyond This
World for Happiness.
SRooKLVN. Nov. 3-Dr. Talrnazs
preached the sixth sermon on his tour in
Palestine to-day. After a pastorate of
twenty-five years in this city il Is astonIsh-
Ing to see the crowds Of people who throng
the Academy Of Music every SUNDAY morn
ing 70 listen % his disoourSes No less re-
naarkahle are the audiences that New York
city furnishes az tae Christian RerliS sar
vices every Sunday night To-day's sermon
was on the gardens and public works OF
lsrsels magnificent king, and tbe text.
hcclesiastes ii. &C: II inside me great
works, | builded the houses. planted me
vineyards, / made me gardens and orchards.
and planted trees in them Of all kinds Of
fruits; made me pools Of water 10 water
Herewith the wood that hringeth Forth
trees" DR.. Talmage said.
A spring morning and bstore breakfast
81 jerusalem A king with robes snowy
white IN chartot decked With gold. drawn
by eight horses, high-mettled, aad housings
as brilliant ss II sc0iloped out of that very
sunrise, and hGe the winds for speed. foi-
lowed by a regiment of archers oa norso-
back with hand on gilded bow, and arrows
with steel points 6ashiaS in tie sun, Clad
from bead 10 foot in Tyrian parpls. and
black hair sprinkied with goNi dust all
dashing down the road, the rsas al fall
run, the retns loose on their necks, aad tie
crack Of whips, and the hAlloo
ot the reckless oavalcade put
ting the miles at defiance
VINO is 10 10, and what is iti King Soionoa
"a
Jerusalem 20 his gardeus, and parks, aad
orchards, and reservoirs, six miles down
tie road toward hebron- What q coatrast
between that and myself on that very road
one morning, last December, going afoot.
for our plain vehicle turned back Tor photo
graphic apparatus forgotten, We on tue way
20 nnd what Is called Soiomon's pools. the
ancieat water works Of Jerusalem, and the
gardens OF king nearly three thousand
years ago. We cross theaQueducs again ana
again, and here We are at the three great
reservoirs not ruins OF reservoirs but the
reservoirs themselves, that Solomon built
three mtlenniums ago for the purpose Of
catching the mountain streams and passing
them 20 Jerusalem % slake the thirst OF the
city, and also 10 irrigate the most glorious
range OF gardens that ever hloomed With all
colors or breathed with all redalence, for
Solomon was the greatest horticulturist, the
greatest botanist, the greatest ornithologist,
the greatest capitalist and the greatest
scientist Of his century.
Come over the piles Of gray rock, and
here we are at the frat Of the three reser-
voir, which are on three great levels, the
base u the top reservoir higher shan TIE
top OF the second, the base Of the second
reservoir higher than the tcp of the third,
80 arranged that the waters gathered from
several sources above shall descend from
basin to basin, tue sediment Of the water
deposited in each Of the three, so that by
the time 10 gets down TO the auueduct
which is 20 take it 20 Jrrusalem, IL has had
three offerings, aud is az 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 trowsls
three thousand years ago smoothed the
layers The highest reservoir $50 feet by
~ the second, 423 feet by 100; and the
lowest reservoir $50 feet by l6e; and deep
enough aud wide enough, and mighty
enough to float an ocean steamer
On that December morning, We saw the
waters rolling down from reservoir TO res
ervolr, and eau we'll understand how in this
neighborhood the imperial gardens were
one great blossom, and the orchard one
great basket of fruit, and that Solomon In
his palace, writing the song of songs, and
Ecclesiastes, may have been drawing illus-
tratlons from what he had seen that very
morning In the royal gardens when be
alluded to melons, and mandrakes, and
apricots and grapes, and pomegranatss, and
figs, and spikenard. and cinnamon. aud
and campfire, and "apple trees
among the trees of the wood, and the all
mond sree as fourishing, and TO myrrh and
frankincense, and represented Christ as
gone down into his gardens. and tho beds
Of spices to feed in the gardens, and
ar.A a. a o~A
pools" and to the voice Of the turtle owe
as heard in the land think it was when
was showing the Queen Of Sheba
through these gardens teat the Bible says OF
her: There remained no more spirit IN
her," She gave itup.
But all this splendor did not make Solo
man happy. One day, after getting back
from hiz morning ride and before the horses
had yet been cooled Off and rubbed down
BY the royal eqoerry, soloman wrote ths
words. following my text, like
\ dirge played after grand march, "Be-
,old all was vanity and vexetion Of spirit,
md there was no profit under the sun" In
otber words, "It don't payi" Would
Sod that we might all learn the lesson
hat this world cannot produce happiness,
At Marseilles there Is castellated house on
high ground crowned with ell that grove
md garden can do, and the whole place
The world holds, water and hill claspine
hands In perfect bewitchment of scenery.
but the owner of that place Ia totally blind,
md TO him ell this goes for nothing, illus
rating the truth, that whether one be ply.
sically or morally blind, brilhancy OF sur
.ounding cannot give satisfaction. But
tradition says that when the "wia
men Of the eastr we're being guidec
oy the star on the way TO Bethlehem, they,
'or little while, lost sight OF that star. aud
n despair aud exhaustion came to a we'll 10
lrink, when looking down into the well they
saw the star reflected in the water, and that
,heered them, and they resumed Their
ourney, and I have the notion that though
grandeur and pomp OF surroundings may
rot afford peace at the well of Gods conso-
alton, close by, you may find happiness,
md the plainest cup at the well OF salvation
nay hold the brightest star that ever shone
rom the heavens.
Although these Solomonic gardens are In
uins, there are now growing there flower
hat are to be found nowhere else In the
oly land How do l account for that
solomon sent out his ships and robbed The
ardens Of the whole earth for flowers and
lanted these exotics here, and these par
ocular flowers are direct descendants of the
oreign plants be imported. Mr.. Meshul
am, a christian Israelite, on the very
Ite of these royal gardens, hal
a our day, by putting In hi
wn spade, demonstrated that ths
round is only waiting for the right call t<
ield just as much luxuriance and splendoi
lghteen hundred years after Christ AS 1