Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1890-10-24

peru OF otcltSltallCloll. anu tudl bOpI I'D
marian had more religion in five minutes
than that minister and that LevIte had in a
lifetime, and the most accused thing on
earth is national prejudice, aud l bless God
that live in America. where Gentle and
Jew. Protestant and Catholic can live to-
gether without quarrel and where in the
great national crucible the differences Of sect
and tribe and people are being nodded into a
great brotherhood. and that the question
which the lawyer flung at Christ, and which
brought forth this incident OF the good Sa-
maritan-'Who is my neighbour is bringing
forth the answer, Ny neighbor is the first
man / meet in trouble, and wound close at
hand calls louder than a temple seventeen
miles off, though it covered nineteen acres"
saw in London the vast procession which
one day last January moved to st. Paurs
Cathedral at the burial of that Christian
hero Lord Napier. The day after at Hawar-
den, in conversation on various themes. l
asked Mr.. Gladstone if he did not think that
many who were under the shadow OF false
religions might not nevertheless be at heart
really Christian. Mr.. Gladstone repled:
"Yes: my old friend Lord Napier, who was
Yesterday buried after he returned from his
Abyssinlan campaign, visited us here at
Hawarden, and walking in this park where
we are now walking ne told me very beau
tiul incident he Salus AILeI lue war IN
Africa was over we were on the march, and
we had a soldier with a broien leg
who was not strong enough to go along
with US and we did not dare to leave
him te be taken care Of by savages but we
found we were compelled 10 leave him, and
we went into the house of woman who was
said 10 be a very kind woman, though Of the
race Of savaees, and we said, Here is
a sick man, and if you will take care
Of him till he gets well we will pay
YOU very largely" and then we offered
her five times that which would ordi-
narily he offered, hoping by the excess of
pay TO secure for him great kindness. The
woman replied: IL will not take care OF him
for the money you offer. do not want your
money. But leave him here. and will take
care of him for the sake of the love Of
Cod" Mr.. Gladstone turned to me and
said. DIR. Talmage, don't you think that
though she belonged to a race Of savages that
was pure religion And | answered, lido;
| do Ma God multiply all the world over
the number Of good Samaritans.
In Philadelphia young woman was dying.
She was a wreck. Sunken into the depths
of depravity, there was no lower depth for
her to reach Word came TO the midnight
mission that she was dying in haunt Of
iniquity near by. Who would 90 TO tell her
of the Christ OF Mary Magdaleni This one
refused and that one refused, saying II
dare not go there" a Christian woman,
~ white locks typical Of her purity Of soul.
said, Il will 90, and I will 60 now" She
went and sat down by the dying girl and told
Of Christ who came 70 seek aud save that
which was lost. First to the forlorn one
came the tears of repentance, and
then the smile, as though she had
81 H.,
who came 10 save TO the uttermOst. Then
just before she breathed her last she said 10
the angel of mercy bending over her pillow.
would you kiss megn ~ will said the
Christian woman. as she put upon her cheek
the last salutatiOn before, in the heavenly
world, think. God gave her the welcoming
kiss. That was religion Yes, that was re-
ligon. Good SamaTitans along every street
and along every road as well as this one on
the road to Jericho
But our procession of sightseers is again
in line, and here we pass through a deep
rayine, AMI cry 10 the dragoman: David,
what place do you call this| and he re-
piled: This is the Brook Cherith, where
Elijah was fed by the ravens" And in
that answer he overthrow my life long
notions Of the place where Elijah was waited
on by the black servants Of the sky. n
~ VDA " iilt utl lutdUb u AlHlt TIC III r1oiDu
Of ground and stream forbade, and per-
haps fifteen feet wide. But here was a chasm
that an earthquake must have scoOped out
with its biggest shovel or split with its
mightiest battle Ak. Six hundred feet
deep is it. and the brook Cherith is river
which. when in full force, is a silver wedge
splitting the mountains into precipices. The
feathered desceniants Of Elijah ravens still
wing their way across this ravine, but are
not like the crows we supposed them 10 be.
They are RS large as eagles. AMI one OF then
could carry in its beak and clincha1 claw at
once enough food for n half dozen Eliiahs.
No thanks 70 the ravens: they are carniv-
erous and would rather have pickle out the
eyes OF Elijah, whom they found at the
mouth Of the cave on the side Of Ch-rith
waiting FOR his breakfast, having drunk his
morning beverage from the rushing stream
beneath, than have been his buffers and
purveyors.
But God compelled them, as He always has
compelled and always will compel black AMI
cruel AMI overshadowing prOvidences to
carry help TO His children IL they only have
faitl enough 10 catch the blessing as 1t drops
from the seeming adversely, the greatest
blessing always coming not with white wings
but black wings. Black wings of convic-
ton. bringing pardon to the sinner. Black
Wings o. cruciiXiOn over Calvary, bringing
re iempiion for the world. Black wings OF
American revolution, bringing free institu-
tons t. a 'utinent. Black wings or
American cil war bringing uniica-
Ion and solidarity to the republic
Black WINS Of the judgment day
brin ging resurrection 10 an entombed
human race. And in the last day, when all
your life AMI mine VIII be summed up, we
will fin1 that the greatest blessing we ever
received came on the wings Of the black
ravens OF disaster. Bless God for troublel
Bless God for sickness, Bless God for perse-
cution, Bless God for poverty You never
hearl OF any man or woman OF great use to
the world VINO had not had lots OF trouble.
The diamond must be cut; the wheat must
be threshold the black ravens must fly Who
are these nearest the throne. These are
they who come out of great tribulation, and
had their robes WASHED and made white in
he blood Of the Lamb"
But look Look what at 4 o'clock in the
afternoon bursts upon our vision-the PLAIN
of Jericho and the valley Of Jordan, and the
Dead Sea We have come to a place where
the horses not so much walk as slide up on
their baunches, aud we all dismount, for the
steep descent is simply terrific, though a
Princess Of Wallachia who fell here and was
dangerously injured, after recovery spent
large amount money in trying 10 make the
road passable. Down and down till we saw
the white tents pitched for US by our mule
teers amid the ruins Of ancient Jericho, which
fell at the sound OF poor music played on
'.ram's horn that ancient instrument
which. taken from the head of the leader or
the flock of sheep, is perforated and pre-
pared TO be fingered by the musical per
former. and blown upon when pressed to the
lips As in another sermon | have fully de
scribed that scene, W. II only say that every
day for seven DAYS the ministers OF religion
went round the city of Jericho blowing upon
those rams horns, and on the seventh day,
without the roll of war chariot or tho
stroke of a catapult, or the swing Of bal
lista, crash crash crash went the walls or
that magnificent capital
On the evening of December 6 we walked
amid the brick and mortar Of that shat
tered city, and l said TO myself; All
this done by poor music blest Of God, for
It was not harp, or a flute or clapping
cymbal, or an organ played, at the sound
Of which the city surrendered to destruc-
tion, but a rude instrument making rude
music blest Of God, TO the demolition OF
that wicked place which, had for centuries
iefed the Almighty. And | said, If all
this was by the blessing OF God on poor
music what mightier things could be oone
by the blessing OF God on good music, skill
full music, gospel music. II all the good
that has already been done by music were