Baxter Springs news. [volume] (Baxter Springs, Kan.) 1882-1919, 1891-05-09
True Religion Never sombrc.

subject OF DR.. Talmages lecture yester-
day morning was "lIumdrum Abol-
ished," and his text, II Chronicles, lX,
9: 'Of spices great abundance; neither
was there any such spice as the queen
OF Sheba gave King Solomon"
What is that building out yonder,
glittering in the sun? Have You not
heard? 1t is the house Of the forest OF
Lebanon. King Solomon has just taken
10 it his bride, the princess OF Egypt
You see the pillars of the portico, and Il
great tower, adorned with 1000 shields
OF gold, hung on the outside OF the
tower-500 OF the shields OF gold manu-
featured at Solomons order, 800 were
captured by David his father, in battle.
See how they blaze in the monday sun.
Solomon goes up the ivory stairs OF
his throne, between twelve lions in
statuary, and sits down on the back OF
the golden bull, the head OF the bronze
beast turned toward the people. The
family and attendantsof the king are SO
many that the caterers of the palace
have to provide every day 100 sheep
and thirteen oxen. besides the birds
and the venison. hear the stamping
and paving OF 1000 fine horses in the
royal stables. There were important
officials who had charge OF the work OF
gathering the straw and barley for
these horses. King Solomon was an
early riser, tradition says, and used TO
take q ride out at daybreak: and when,
in his white apparyl, behind the swift
est horses OF all the realm, and followed
by mounted archers in purple, as the
cavalcade dashed through the streets
OF Jerusalem, suppose it was worth
getting up at 5 o'clock in the morning
to look at.
Solomon was not like some OF the
kings OF the present day-cr0wned i'm
becility. All the splendor OF his palace
and retinue were collapsed BY this intel
lectual power. Why, he seemed to
know everything He was the first
great naturalist the world ever saw.
Peacocks from India strutted the basal :
ic walk, and apes chartered in the
trees, and deer stalked the parks, and
there were aquariums with foreign fish.
and aviaries with foreign birds: aid
tradition says these birds were so we'll
tanned that Solomon might walk clear
across the city under the shadow Of
their wings as they lowered and fitted
about him.
More than this. he had great repu-
tation for the conundrums and riddles
that he made and guessed. He and
King Hiram, his neighbor, used 10 sit
by the hour and ask riddles, each one
oaying in money II he could not an
over or guess the riddle. The Solo
paonic navy visited all the world, and
lad, sailors OF course talked about the
,'ealth~of their king and about the rid
dies and enigmas that he made and
solved: and the news spread until
Queen Balkis, away off south heard OF
it, and sent messengers with few
riddles that she would like to have
Solomon solve, and a few puzzles which
she would like to have him find out.
She sent among other things to King
Solomon diamond with q hole so
small that needle could not penetrate
it, asking him to thread that diamond.
And Solomon took worm and put il
at the opening in the diamond, and
the worm crawled through leav-
ing the thread in the diamond.
The queen also sent q goblet TO Solo
mon, asking him to fill it with water
that did not flow from the sky, and that
did not rush out from the earth; and
Immediately Solomon put a slave on
the back Of q swift horse and galloped
him around and around the park until
the horse was nigh exhausted, and from
the Precipitation OF the horse the goblet
was filled. She also sent King Solomon
five hundred boys in girls dress, and
five hundred girls in boys dress, won
dering il he would be acute enough to
find out the deception. Immediately
Solomon, when he saw them wash their
faces, knew from the way they applied
the water that it was cheat.
Queen Balkis was so pleased with the
acuteness OF Solomon that she said: "I'll
just go and see him for myself" Yon-
der it comes-the cavalca1 e-horses
and dromedaries, chariots and chariot
GERS, jingling harness and Gathering
hoofs, and blazing shields, and flying
ensigns, and clapping cymbals. The
palace Is saturated with the perfume.
She brings cinnamon, and saffron, and
calamus and frankincense, and all man
ner of sweet spices. AS the retinue
sweeps through the gate the armed |
guard inhale the aroma. ''Halt!'' cry
the charioteers, as the wheels grind the |
gravel in front of the pillared portico |
Of the king. Queen Balxis alights in an |
atmosphere bewitcheo with perfume.
AS the dromedaries are driven up to |
the kings storehOuses, and the bundles
Of camphor are unloaded, and the sacks
of cinnamon, and the boxes of spices
are opened, the purveyors of the place
discover what my text announces: ''Of
spices, great abundance; neither was
there any such spices as the Queen of
Sheba gave to King Solomon"
WE'LL my friends, you know that all
theologians agree in making Solomon q
type Of Christ, and making the queen
OF Sheba a type Of every truthseeker,
and Ishall take the responsibility OF
saying that all the spikenard and cassia
and raulrfuCapca uhioh the ot,aan of