The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1891-11-11

will, see when remind you that the
island Of Salamis produced Solon, and
that the island Of chios produced
Homer, and the island OF Samos
produced Pythagoras, and the island q
Coos produced Hippocrates rE y
But there Is one island that longed
10 see more than any other. can
afford to miss the princes among the
islands, but ! must see the king of the
Archipelago The one Ilonged to see
Is not so many miles in circumference
4 MS Cyprus or Crete or Paros or Naxos
or Scio or Mitylene, but had rather,
In this sail through the Grecian Archi-
pelago, see that than all the others, Tor
more Of tn 10 glories of Heaven landed
there than on all the islands and conti-
nents since the world stood. As we
come towards it I feel my pulse quicken.
'T, John, was in the island that is called
Patmos." 1t Is a pile Of rocks twenty
eight miles in circumference. A few
cypruses and inferior olives pump
living out Of the earth, and one
palm tree spreads its foliage. But
the baroness and gloom and loneli'
ness Of the island made it prison for
the banished evangelist Domitian
could not stand his ministry and one
day, under armed guard, the minister
of the Gospel stepped from tossing
boat to these dismal rocks, and walked
up TO the dismal cavern which was to
be his home, and the place where should
pass before him all the conflicts OF com
ing time and all the raptures Of COM
ing eternity. Is ii not remarkable that
nearly all the great revelations OF music
and poetry and religion have been made
| to men in observation-disclosures and Mil
ton banished into blindness; Beethoven
banished into deafness; Dante writing
his 'Divina Commedia" during the nine
teen years of Punishment from his
native land; Victor Hugo writing his
Lies Miserables" exiled from home and
country on the island of Guernsey and
the brightest visions of the future have
been given to these who by sick
ness or sorrow were exile d from the
outer world into rooms of suffering.
Only those who have been imprisoned
by very hard surroundings have had
great revela tions made to them So
Patmos, wild, chill and bleak and terri
BILE was the best island in all the archi.
pelago, the best island in all the world
for divine revelations Before pano.
rama can be successfully cen, the room
in whSch you sit must be darkened and
in the presence of ohm was 70
pass such a panorama rs no man
ever before saw or ever will see In
this world, and hence the gloom OF his
surroundings was help rather than
hindrance All the surroundings OF the
place affected St Johns imagery, when
he speaks of Heaven. st. John, hungry
from enforced abstinence, or having nc
food except that in which his appetite
revolted, thinks of Heaven; and as the
famished man is apt to dream od
bountiful tables covered with luxuries,
SO St John says of the inhabitants
of Heaven. "They shall hunger nc
more" Scarcity Of fresh water on Pat
mos and the hot tongue of St Johns
thirst leads him TO admire Heaven as he
says, They shall thirst no more" st
John hears the waves of the sea wildly
dashing against the rocks and each
wave has a voice and all the waves TO
gether make a chorus and they remind
him OF the multitudi nous anthems oi
Heaven, and he says They are lite the
voice OF many waters" One day, as he
looked off upon the sea, the waters
were very smooth, as il is to-day while
we sail them in the Minerva, and they
were like glass and the sunlight seemet
TO set them on fire and there was {
mingling of white light and intense
fame, and as St John looked out from
his cavern home upon that brilliant sea
he thought Of the splendors OF HEAVIER
and described them "As sea Of glasi
mingled with fire." Yes, seated in thu
, dark cavern OF Patmos, though home
sick and hungry and loaded will
Domitian's anathemas, St John wa
the most fortunate man on earth lie
cause of the panorama that passed be
! fore the mouth OF that cavern.
Turn down all the lights that we maj
better see IT, The panorama passes
and 10! the conquering Christ robed
girdled, armed, the flash Of golden can
dlesticlss and seven stars in His righ
hand, candlesticks and stars meania1
, light held up, and light scattered And
| there passes throne and Christ on 1t
and the seals broken, and the woei
sounded, and dragon slain, and sever
I last plaques swoop, and seven walls arr
5 poured out, and the vision vanishes
) And we halt moment to rest from thu
D exciting spectacle Again the panorami
. moves on before the cavern Of Patmos
? and John the exile sees a great cit,
8 representing all denominations, Babylon
. lowered, palaced, tempted, fountained
{ foliaged, sculptured, hanging gardens
Q suddenly going crash! crashl an'
| the pipes cease to pipe, and th'
8 trumpets cease 10 trumpet and th'
dust and the smoke and the hor
5 ror fill the canvas, while from abov
Q and beneath are voices announcing
. "Baylon is fallen, is fallen" And W
2 halt again to rest from the spectacle
d Again the panorama passes before tn
l cavern OF Patmos, and John the exil
5 sees mounted Christ on snow-whit
s charger leading forth the cavalry o
o Heaven, the long line Of white charger
s galloping through the scene, the clat
i tering Of hoofs, the clinlting Of bridl
Q bits, and the fash of spears, all tn
i earth's conquered and all Heaven i
+ doxology. And we halt again to res
s from the spectacle. Again the panoram