Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1891-12-10

great revelations of music and poetry and
religion have been made to men in Danish
ment-- Homer and Milton banished into
blindness: Beethoven banished into deaf
ness; Dante writing his 'Divina Com
media during the nineteen years of ban
ishment from his native land; Victor Hugo
writing his LES Miserabes" exiled from
home and country on the island OF Guern-
sey, and the brightest visions of the future
have been given TO those who by sick ness
or sorrow were exiled from the ouper world
into rooms of suffering Only those who
have been imprisoned by very hard sur
Toundings have had great revelations made
to them.
So Patmos, wild. chill and bleak and ter
rible was the best island in all the archi-
pelago, the best place in all the earth for
divine revelations. Before "A panorama
can be successfully seen, the room ia which
| you sit must be darkened, and in the pres
ence of John was to pass such "a panorama
as no man ever before saw or ever will see
! in this world, and hence the gloom Of his
surroundings was a 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 no food
except that at which his appetite revolted,
thinks of heaven; and as the famished man
is apt to dream of bountiful tables covered
with Injuries, so ST. John says of the in
habitants of heaven "They shall hunger
no 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 Wild
I l. a az Al.
wave has voice, and all the waves to-
gether make a chorus, and they remind
him of the multitudinous anthems of
heaven, and he says, "They are like the
voice Of many waters.n One day, as he
looked of upon the sea. the waters were
very smooth, as it is to-day while we sail
them in the Minerva, and they were like
glass, and the sunlight seemed TO set them
on fire, and there was mingling Of white
| light and intense flame, and as st. John
looked out from his cavern home upon that
brilliant sea he thought Of the splendors of
heaven and describes them AS a sea of
glass mingled with fire. Yes, seated in
the dark cavern OF Patmos, though home
sick and hungry and loaded with Do
mitians anathemas, St. John was the most
fortunate man on earth because of the
panorama that passed before the mouth of
that cavern
THE PANORAMA PASSES.
Turn down all the lights that we may
better see il. The panorama passes. and
lol The conquering Christ, robed, girdled
armed. the flash of golden candlesticks and
seven stars in his right hand, candlesticks
and stars meaning light held up and light
scattered And there passes a Il rome and
Christ on It, and the seals broken, and the
woes sounded, aud dragon slain, and
seven last plaques swoop, and seven Walls
are poured out, aud the vision yanishes.
And we halt a moment to rest from the ex
citing spectacle. Again the panorama
moves on before the cavern of Patmos, and
John the exile sees great city represent
ing all denominations, Babylon lowered,
palaced. tempted, CONTAINED. foliaged,
sculptured, hanging gardens, suddenly go
ing crashl crash and the pipers cease to
pipe, and the trumpets cease to trumpet,
and the dust, and the smoke. and the hor
ror fill the canvas, while from above and
beneath are voices announcing, Babylon
is fallen, is fallenr' And we halt again to
rest from the spectacle.
Again the panorama passes before the
cavern Of Patmos, and John the exile sees
mounted Christ on snow white charger
leading forth the cavalry of heaven, the
long line of white chargers galloping
through the scene, the Gathering OF hoofs,
the climbing of bride bits, and the flash of
spears. all the earth conquered and all
heaven in DoXology And we halt again
TO rest from the spectacle. Again the
panorama passes before the cavern OF
Patmos, and John the exile sees great
thrones lifted, thrones of martyrs, thrones
of apostles, thrones Of prophets, thrones of
patriarchs, and throne higher than all on
which Jesus sits, and ponderous books are
opened, their leaves turned over, reveal
ing the names Of all that have ever lived,
the good aud the bad, the renowned and
the humble, the mighty and the weak, and
at the turn OF every leaf the universe is in
rapture or fright, and the sea empties its
sarcophagus Of all the dead of the sunken
shipping anu the earth gives way, and the
heavens vanish. Again we rest "A moment
from the spectacle.
The panorama moves on before the cav
ern of Patm0s, and John the exile beholds
city of gold, and river more beautiful
than the Rhine or the Hudson rolls
through it, and fruit trees bend their bur
dens on either bank, and all is surrounded
by walls in which the upholstery of au-
tumnal forests, and the sunrises and sun
sets of all the ages, and the glory of burn
ing worlds seem to be commingled. And
the inhabitants never breathe a sigh, or
utter groan, or discuss a difference, or
frown dislike, or weep tear. The fash
ion they wear is pure white, and their fore
heads are encircied by gariands, and they
who were sick are well, and they who were
old are young, and they who were bereft
are reunited Aud as the last figure OF
that panorama rolled out of sight think
that John must have fallen back into his
cavern nerveless and exhausted. Too
much was il for naked eye to look at.
Too much was it for human strength to
experience.
LAST WORDS OF HAPPY CHRISTIANS.
My friends, | would not wonder If you
should have very similar vision after
awhile You will be through with this |
world, its cares and fatigues and struggles. |
and if Won have earvpd the ord and have