Fisherman & farmer. [volume] (Edenton, N.C.) 1887-19??, 1891-10-09
Tell it to all the blind AMI they at least

DeTeIL nOuSeHOlQs, tell 1t among CDe graves
And here around Him gather the deaf,
and the dumb, and the sick, and at His
word they turn on their couches and blush
from awful pallow of helpless illness TO
rubicund health. and the swollen foot OF
the dropsicaI sufferer becomes feet as q roe
on the mountains The music Of the grove
and household wakens the deaf ear. and
lunatic and maniac return into bright in
telligence, and the lepers breath becomes
sweet as the breath OF a child, AMI the
flesh as roseate. Tell it to all the sick,
through all the homes. through all the hos
pitfalls Tell it at twelve O'Clock at night;
tell it at two o'clock in the morning; tell it
at half-past three, and in the last watch OF
the night, that Jesus walks the tempest.
Still we follow our Chieftain until the
government that gave Him no protection in
sists that He pay tax, and, too poor to raise
the requisite two dollars and seventy-ive
cents, He orders Peter TO catch f1sh that has
in its mouth Roman state which is
bright coin land you know that fish naturally
bite at anything bright. but it was miracle
that Peter should have caught it a 3 the first
haul
Now we follow our Cheftafn until for
the paltry sum of fifteen dollars judas
sells Him TO his pursuers. Tell it to all the
betrayed! If for ten thousand dollars, or
for five hundred dollars or for one hun
dred dollars your interests were sold out,
consider for now much cheaper a sum the
Lord Of earth and heaven was surrendered
to humiliation AMI death. But here, while
following Him on spring night between
eleven and twelve o'clock, we saw the flash
of torches and lanterns and we hear the cry
OF a mob of nihilists. They are breathing in
on the quietude Of GethSemane with clubs
like mob with sticks chasing mad dog.
1t is herd Of Jerusalem ''rougns' led on
by Judas to arrest Christ and punish Him
for being the loveliest and best being that
ever lived. But rioters are liable to assail
the wrong man. How were they to be sure
which one was Jesus? II will kiss Him."
says Judas" ''and by that signal you will
know on whom to lay your hands of ar
rest" So the kiss which throughout the
human race and for all time God intended
as the most sacred demonstration of affec-
ton, for Paul writes to the Romans and
the Corinthians, and the Thessalonans
concerning the holy kiss" and Peter
celebrates the kiss of charity, and with
that conjunction Of lips Laban met Jacob,
and joseph met his brethren, and Aaron
met Moses, and Samuel met Saul, and Jona-
than met David, and Orpah parted from
at Ephesus, and the father in the
parable greeted the returning prodigal,
and when the millennium shall come
are told righteousness and peace will kiss
each other, and all the world is invited to
kiss Christ as inspiration cries out 'Kiss
the Son, lest He be angry and ye perish
from the way"-that the most sacred demon
stration Of reunion and affection was desc
Grated the filthy lips of Judas touched
the pure cheek of Christ, and the horrid
smack Of that kiss has its echo in the treach-
cry and debasement and hypocrisy Of all
ages.
AS in December 1899, walked on the way
from Bethany, and at the foot OF Mount
Olivet, half mile from the wall of Jerus-
alem, through the Garden of Gethsemane
and under the eight venerable olive trees
now standing. their genealogical ancestors
having been witnesses Of the occurrences
spoken Of, the scene of horror and of crime
came back to me- until | shuddered with the
historical Renaissance.
In further following our great Chieftain's
march through the centuries, l find myself
in crowd in front Of Hero1's palace in
Jerusalem, and on a movable platform
placed uDon a rasselated pavement, Pontius
Plate sits. And as once year condemned
criminal is pardoned, Plate let's the peo-
pie choose whether it shall be as
sassin or our Chieftian, and they all cry
out for the liberation of the assassin,
thus declaring they prefer a murderer to the
salvation of the world. Plate took basin
of water in front Of these people and tried
his hands, but he could not They are still
lifted, and l see them looming up through
all the ages, eight fingers and two thumbs
standing out red with the carnage.
Still following our Chieftain, l ascend the
hill which General Gordon, the great Eng
lish explorer and arbiter. made clay model
of. It is hard climbing for our Chieftaiu,
for He has not only two heavy timbers to
carry on His back, the upright aud horizon
tai pieces of the cross, but He is suffering
from exhaustion caused by lack of food,
mountain chiIIs, desert heats. whippings with
elmwood rods and years of maltreatment
1t took our party in 1889 only fifteen
minutes to climb to the top Of the hill and
reach that limestone rock in yOnde1 wall,
which rolled down from the apex of Mount
"a INT Ehiofta7
have taken a long time for the ascent, for
He had all earth and all heaven and all hell
on His back as He climbed from base to
summit and there endured what William
Cowper and John Milton and Charles
Wesley and Isaac Watts and James Mont
gomery and all the other sacreI poets have
attempted to put in verse, and Angelo and
Raphael and Titan and Leonardo da Vinci
and all the great Italian and German and
Spanish end French artists have attempted
to paint, and Bossuet and MaSillon and
George Whitefeld and Thomas Chalmers
have attempted to preach.
Something of its overwhelming awful
ness you may estimate from the fact that
the sun which shines in the heavens could
not endure it; the sun which unf1inchingIy
world. which without blinking looked upon
the ruins of earthquakes which swallowed
Lisbon and Caracas, and has looked I'M
blanched on the battlefelds of Arbela, Blen-
helm, Meglddo AMI Es1raelon, and all the
scenes of carnage that have ever scalded
and drenched the earth with human gore
that sun could not look upon the scene. The
sun dropped over its face veil of cloud. It
withdrew. It hid itself. It said to the mid
night, II resign to thee this spectacle upon
which l have no strength to gaza; thou art
blind, 0 Midnight and for that reason com.
NIT to thee this tragedyr' Then the night
hawk and the bat few by, and the jackal
howled in the ravines.