The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-11-03

OF re ilelce- was { IL must not e
there at inst season, told so Def re
started, I Ia So in Egypt: the roks told
mt so; all travellers Il at / consul ed about
it told me so. But was d termiu ei TO sea
Bethlehem the same month in which Jesus
arrived, and nothing uld dissuade me.
" as | not right in wanting 10 knlw n "
the holy land loo ked wien Jesus ca ne 10 il.
He did not land amid flowers aud
song. When the angels chanted on
the famous birtnnight all the fields
Of Palestine were silent. The glow
ing skies were a swered by gray
rocks. As Bethlehem stood agai st a bleak
wintry sky. climbed up q il, as through q
bic TX wintry sky. Jesus descended upon it.
I His way down was from warm TO chill, from
I bloom TO barrenness, from everlasting
! June to a sterile December. II was going
/ to Palestine as DO anist, and TO study the
/ fora of the land, | would go IN March, bat
/ l went as a minister Of CIrist q study
Jesus, aud s. I went in December. | wa tie
/ 70 see how the worlds front door looked
when the heavenly stranger en- cred it.
The town Of Bethlehem to my surprise is
in the shape of a h1rseshoe, the houses ex-
| tending clear into the pr ngs Of the horse
shoe. The whole scene m re rough aud
/ rude than can be i imagined. Verify. Christ
/ did not cholss a soft, genial Dlacs il which
/ 70 be- born. The gate through which our
! Lord tered this 40 ID wa a gate of rock,
a hard, cold gate, and the gate through
which he departed was a swing gate of
sharpened spears. We en- e a gloomy
chu ca built by Constantine over the place
/ In which Jesus was born. Fifteen lamps
burning day and night aud from century
TO century, light our way to q spot wh ch
all authorities, Christian and Jew and Mo
hammedan, agres upon as bel & the place
of our Savior's birth, and covered by
marble slao, marked by silver star sent
from Vienna. and the words "Here Jesus
Christ was born of the Virgin Mary"
But standing there. | thought, though
this is the place of the nativity, how differ
ent the surroundings of the wintry night in
which Jesus camel At that time it was
khan or a cattle-pen. | visited one of these
khans now standing and looking just as in
Christ's time. Wa rode in under tue arched
entrance and di mounted. We found the
building of stone and around an open
square without roof The building is more
than two thousand years old. 1t is two
stories high. In the center are camels.
horses and mules. Caravans halt here for the
night or during long storm. The open
square is large enough t. accommodate q
whole herd OF cattle, a flock of sheep or
caravan of camels. The neigh boring
Bedouins here fad market for their hay,
straw and meats. Off from this center
there are twelve rooms for human haiti a
L
went into one of these rooms and found
WON n cooking the evening meal. There
were SIX COWS In the same room. On liCI lie
elevation there was some straw where the
people sat and slept when they wished to
rest. 1t was in room similar to that our
Lord was born.
This was the cradle :of king. and yet
what cradle ever held so muchl Civiliza-
| ton! Liberty Redemption Your par
don and minel Your peace and minel
Your heaven and minel Cradle of a uni
versel Cradle Of Godl The gardens of
| Solomon We visited this morning we're only
| a type of what all the world will be whom
this lllustrious parsonage now born shall
have compile ed his mission. The horses OF
| finest limb, and gavest champ of bit, and
subllmest arch of neck that ever brought
| Solomon down to these adjoining gardens
was but poor type of the horse upon
which this colQuerer, born In the barn,
| shall ride, when, according to the apoca-
| lyptic vision, all the "armies of heaven
shall follow Him on white horses" The
waters that rush down these hills into yon-
| der three great reservoirs of rock, and
then pour in marvellous aqueduct into Jeru.
salon till the brazsn sea is full, and the
| baths are full, and Sloan is full, are only
an imperfect type of the rivers of
delight which, as the result of this great
| ones coming, shall roll on for the shaking OF
the thirst Of all nations. The palace of Leb-
anon, cedar from which the imperial caval-
cade passed out in the early morning, and
to which it returned with glowing cheek,
and juggling harness, and laChered sides, ia
| feeble OF architecture compared with the
House Of Many Mansions into which this
one born this winter month on these bleak
nights shall conduct us when our sins are all
pardoned, our battles all fought, our tears
all wept, our work all done.
Standing here at Bethlehem, do you not
see that the most honored thing in all the
earth is the cradlei To what else did loos-
ened star ever point? to what else did
heaven lower balconies Of light filed with
chanting immor 5alsl The way the cradle
rocks. the world rocks. Gcd bless the
mothers all the world over! The cradles
decide the destiries of nations. In II. 900 of
them are, at this moment, the hands that
will yet give benediction of mercy or burl
bolts of doom, the feet that will mount the
sleeps toward God or descend the blastedway
the lips that will pray OF olasDheme. Ga the
cradle. 1t is more tremendous than the grave
Where are most of the leaders OF tbs
twentieth century, soon to dawn upon us
Are they on thrones? No. In chariots
No. In pulpits? No. In forumsG No. Ii
senatorial hallsl No. In countlng-houses
No. They are in the cradle The mos
tremendous thing in the universe and mex
to God, Is & b5 moth r. Lord Snaftes
bury said GIVE me a generation of Chris
tan mothers and l will change the Who'll,
phase of society in twelve months" On
the cradle! Forget not the one in which
you we're roc ed Though old and wors
out. that cradle may be standing In attic OF
barn. forget not the foot that swayed it
the lips that sang over i, the to rs thai
, dropped upon it. The faith in God tha'
made way for it. The boy Walter Scot
did well when he spent the frs 5-guines
piece he ever earned as a present for hi:
mother.
Dishonor not the cradle, though it may.
like the one my sermon celebrates have
been cradle in barn, for l think it was q
christian cradle That was a great cradle
in which Martin Luther lay, for from it
came forth the reformation of the sixteenth
century. That was great cradle in which
| Daniel OConnell lay, for from it ca ne
| forth an eloquence that will bs inspiring
while men have eyes to read, or ears to
| hear. That was Il great cradle in which
| Washington lay, for from it came forth the
happy deiiverance of a nation. That was a
| great cradle in which John Howard
lay, for from it came forth a mercy
that will not cease until the las
dungeon gets the Bible, aud light, and
fresh ali. Great cradles il which the joan
Wesleys, and the John Knoxes, and the
John Masons lay, for from them ca ne
forth an all-conqIering evangelization.
But the greatest cradle in which child ever
slept, or woke, laughed, or cried, was the