The Bossier banner., 1891-02-12
'IALMAGE IN DAMASCUS.
A Day Spent in the Most Ancient
City in the World.
Damascus of History and Damascus of
To-DaY-Its Memories of Absorb
ing Interest to the Mod.
ern Christian.

The eleventh discourse of the series
on the Holy Land was delivered by
Rev. I. Dewitt Talmage in Brooklyn
and New York City from the text:
As he iourneyed he came near Damascus
Acts tx, g.
In Palestine we spent last night in
mud hovel of one story, but camels and
sheep in the basement Yet never did
the most brilliant hotel on any conti-
nent seem SO attractive to me as that
structure. If we had been obliged to
stay in tent, as we expected to do that
night, we must have perished. A vio-
lent storm had opened upon US its
volleys of hail, and snow, and rain, and
wind, as if to let us know what the
Bible meant when prophet, and evan
gelist and Christ Himself spoke of the
fury of the elements. The atmospheric
wrath broke upon US about one o'clock
in the afternoon and we were until
night exposed to it. With hands and
feet benumbed, and our bodies chilled
to the bone, we made our slow way.
While high up on the rocks, and the
gale blowing the hardest, signal of
distress halted the party, for down in
the ravines ono of the horses had fallen
and his rider must not be left alone
amid that wildness of scenery
and horror OF storm. As the
night approached, the tempest
thickened, and blackened and strength
ened. Some of our attendants going
ahead had gained permission for US to
halt for the night in the mud hovel
speak Of. Our first duty on arrival was
the resuscitation OF the exhausted of
our party. My room was without win
dow, and an iron stove without any
top in the center of the room, the smoke
selecting my eyes in the absence of a
chimney. Through an opening in the
floor Arab faces were several times
thrust up to see how was progressing
But the tempest ceased during the
night, and before it was fully day we
were feeling for the stirrups of our sad
died horses. this being the day whose
long march will bring us to that city
whose name can not be pronounced in
the hearing of the intelligent or the
Christian without making the blood to
tingle and the nerves to thrill. and put
eting the best emotions OF the soul into
gitation-Damascusl
This is the very road, for it has been
the only road for thousands of years,
the road from Jerusalem to Damascus,
along which a cavalcade OF mounted Of
ticers went, about eighteen handred and
fhirtu-ClY in dot ~
them a fierce little man who made up
by magnitude of hatred for Christianity
for his diminutive stature, and was the
leading spirit and, though suffering
from chronic Inflammation of the eyes,
from those eyes flashed more indigna-
tion against Christ's followers than any
one of the horsed procession. This lit.
tie man, before his name was changed
to Paul, was called Saul. So many oil
the mightiest natures of all ages are
condensed into smallness of stature.
The Frenchman who was sometimes
called by his troops ''Old One Hun
dred Thousand, was often because oil
his abbreviated personal presence styled
Little Nap" Lord Nelson, with in
significant stature to start with, and
one eye put out at Calvi, and his right
arm taken off at Teneriffe. proves him.
self at Trafalgar the mightiest hero oi
the English navy. The greatest o.
American theologians, Archibald Al
exander, could stand under the elbow
of many of his contemporaries. Lool
out for little men when they start ou
for some especial mission of good o.
evil. The thund erbolt is only a con
densation of electricity.
Well, that galloping group of horse
men on the road to Damascus were
halted quicker than bombshell o.
cavalry charge ever halted regiment
Tho Syrian monday, because of the
clarity of the atmosphere, is the bright
est of all mondays, and the noonda,
sun in Syra is positively terrific fol
brilliancy. But suddenly that moor
there flashed from the heavens ligh'
which made that Syrian sun seem tame
as star in comparison. Itwas the fac,
of the slain and ascended Christ, look
ing from the heavens and under tht
dash of that overpowering light all tht
horses dropped with their riders
Human face and horses mane togethe
in the dust. And then two clap
of thunder followed uttering tn,
two words, the second word like tn,
first: ''Saul! Saul!' For three day
that fallen equestrian was totally blind
for excessive light will sometimes ex
tinguish the eye-sight And what cornej
and crystalline lens could endure
brightness greater than the noon-da,
Syrian sun? had read it hundred
times, but it never so impressed M
before, and probably win never impres
me again, as / took my Bible from tn
saddle-bags and read aloud to our com
rades in travel: 'As he journeyed h.
came near Damascus, and suddenl,
there shined around about him ligh
from Heaven, and he fell to the cart
and heard a voice saying unto him
Saul! Saul! Why persecutestt thou Me?
and he said: Who art Thou, Lordf
And the Lord said: I am Jesus, whom
thou persecutest'
Butwe can not stop longer on thi
road for we shall see this unhorse'
equestrian later in Damascus, towar