Telegram-herald. ([Grand Rapids, Mich.) 18??-1892, 1891-10-26

gallogkex OF rock. stu mAndang af 11eeo.,
aiisA Nth psints.xs s1rpassed BY ne
srsiss's peach sf the pssssst days Tell -,
arsists Of The AiHssssnsh century. fAs
dead cities ef EEyps. - Tar IS they have
lefs cough pillars or ssasuo ~ sspuiehsu
or temple rusns 70 tell the ssory-ks1eAiA
Nf~dei. Hia.psiis. zsaA. fhsAss, osshsa.
Onrthsre--all Of them developing dswn-
ward instead Of upward They have ers-
lussd from magninosnee int destruction.
The Gssrsl II Jesas Chriss y the enly
elevator Of individual and social national
character. Let al the living cities know
thai ponp AID spalsaas ed temporal presr
perity are no security.
III MORALITY 70 CONF. ALL Is Losr.
Those ancient cities lacked nothing but
good mcFais- Dissipation aal ain slew
them, and unless dissipation and sin are
halted, they will some day slxy our
modsrn cities. aud leave our palaces of
mercsansise and our galleries Of Art and
our city hall - Dat ia the dust Is We found
Memphis Ola the afternoon of that Thanks
giving day. And IL the ctt!es va down, the
nation viii go dowa- "Oh," yoa say, that
Is imposzible; we have stood - long-yea,
over hundred years N = nation" Why.
what 81 Ihats Thehss stood five hundred
years. Memphis stood Thousand years
God does net forget. One day with the
Lord il Is a thousand years and thousand
years - one DAY.
Ram and debauchery and bad politics
are more rapidly working the destruction
Of eur American cities thsn ain of any kind
and all kinds worked for tho destruction
OF tho cities Of Africa. once 20 mighty and
nsss h>sv sexx~
idels, and could do nothing except for de-
aud sent hh Son to redeem the nations
And oar cities win not 20 down, and our
nation viii not perish because the gospel
Is going 70 triumph. Forward! all schools
and colleges and churohesi Forward. all
reformatory and missionary organizations
Forward! all the Influences marshaled to
bless the world. Let orr modern European
and American c.tias listen to the voice OF
those ancient cities rssurrected, and by
hammer and chisel and crowbar b COM
PEELED TO speak.
notice the voice Of those ancient cities
is hcarso from the exposure Of forty can
turtles and they accentuate slowly with
lips that were palsied for ages. but all to-
gether those cities along the Nile intone
these words: Hear us. for we are very old.
and it Is hard Tor 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 OF tho hills. tell you Of what was
in grandeur and Of what am coming
down to be. We sinned and we fell.
Our learning could not save u.s. See
those half obliterated hieroglyphics On
yondsr wall. Our architecture could not
save US. See the painted columns OF
Phile. and the shattered temple Of Esneh.
Our heroes could not save us. Witness
Menes, Dioderus. Ramsses and Ptolemy.
Our Gods Anmon and Osiris could not
save rs. See their fallen temples all along
the four thousand miles OF Nile o.,
ye modern cities get some other God: a
God who car help, God who can pardon,
a God who can save. Called up as we are
for little while % give testimony, again
the sands Of the desert viii bury rs. Ashes
to ashes, dust to dustr' And az these
voices Of porphyry and granite ceased,
the sarcophagi under the hills respond ],
"Ashes to ashesi' aud the capital Of lof.y
column fell grinding itself to pow {
among the rocks. and responding, "Dust
to dustv