Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1891-11-12

and women as that two and two
make four, as that an isosceles triangle
is one which has two of its sides eqaAl,
as that tho diameter of q circle u .
line drawn through the center and
terminated by the circumference, as
certain as any mathematical demon
stration.
Two great nations, Egypt and Greece.
diplomatized and almost came I'll,
battle for one book, q copy Of Kschy-
lus. Ptolemy the Egyptian king dis
covered that in the great library at
Alexandria there was no copy OF
Eschylus. The Egyptian king sent
up to Athens, Greece, to borrow the
book and make a copy of it. Athens
demanded a deposit Of SIT, 700 as
security. The Egyptian king received
the book, but refused to return that
which he had borrowed and so forfeit
ed the SIT, 100. The two nations rose
in contention concerning that one
book. Beautiful and mighty book in
deed! But it is a book OF horrors, the
dominant idea that we are the
victims of hereditary influences from
which there is no escape, and that fate
rules the world, and although the
author does tell of Prometheus who
was crucified on therocks ofsy mpathy
for mankind, a powerful suggestion of
the sacrifice of Christ in later years, it
is a very poor book compared with
that book which we hug to our hearts
because it contains our only guide in
life, our only comfort in death, and
our only hope for a blissful immortali-
ty., Ii two nations could afford to
struggle for one copy of Eschylus, how
much more can all nations afford to
struggle for athe possession, and tri-
umph of the Holy Scriptures?
But the dead cities strung along the
Nile not only demolish infidelity, but
thunder down the absurdity OF the
modern doctrine Of evolution which
says the world started with nothing
and then rose, and human nature be-
gan with nothing but
EVOLVED INTO SPLENDID MANHOOD
and :womanhood OF itself Nay; the
sculpture of the world was more Won
derful in the days of Memphis and
Thebes and Carthage than in the days
of Boston and New York. Those
blocks OF stone weighing 800 tons high.
up in the wall at Karnac imply ma
chinery equal to, if not surprising the
machinery of the 10Th century. How
was that statue OF Rameses, weighing
887 tons, transported from the
quarries 200 miles away and how
was it lifted? Tell us, modern ma
chinists. How were those galleries Of
rock, still standing at Thebes, filled
with paintings surpassed by no artists
pencil of the present day? Tell us,
artists OF the 10th century. The dead
cities OF Egypt, so far as they have
left enough pillars or statues or sepul-
chres or temple ruins to tell the
story-Memphis, Migdol, Hierapolis,
Zoan, Thebes, Goshen, Carthage-all
of them developing downward instead
of upward. They evoluted from
magniiicence into destruction. The
gospel OF Jesus Christ is the only
elevator of individual and social
national character. Let all the living
cities know that pomp and opulence
and temporal prosperity are no
security. Those ancient cities lacked
nothing but good morals. Dissipation
and sin slew them, and unless dissipa-
ton and sin are halted, they will
some day Stay our modern cities, and
| leave our palaces OF merchandise and
our galleries OF art and our city halls
as flat in the dust as we found Mem
phis on the afternoon ofthat Thanks
giving day.
notice the voice of those ancient
cities is hoarse from the exposure Of
40 centuries, and they accentuate
slowly with
LIPS THAT WE'RE PALSIED
For ages, but altogether those cities
along the Nile intone these words:
"Hear us for we are very old, and it
is hard for US to speak. We were
wise long before Athens learned her
first lesson. We sailed our ships while
yet navigation was unborn. These
obelisks, these pyramids, these fallen
pillars, these wrecked temples, These
colossi OF. black granite these wrecked
sarcophagi under the brow ofthe hills,
tell you OF what 1 was in grandeur,
and OF what am coming down to be.
We sinned and we fell. Our learning
could not save us. See those half-ob-
liberated hieroglyphics on yonder wall.
See the painted columns ofPhila, and
the shattered temple of Esneh Our
heroes could not save us: Witness
Menes, Diodorus, Rameses, and Ptol-
envy. Our gods Ammon and Osiris
could not save us. See their fallen
temples all along the 4,ca0 miles of
Nile. Oh, We modern cities get some
other God; God who can help, a God
who can pardon, God who can save.
Called up as we are for a little while
to give testimony. again the sands Of
the desert will bury us. Ashes to
ashes, dust to dust!" And as these
voices OF porphyry and granite ceased,
all the sarcophagi under the hills re-
sponded, "Ashes to ashes!' and the
capital OF a lofty column fell grinding
itself to powder among the rocks, and
responding, "Dust to dustI"
Pats Device.
The graceful hint succeeds best. If