Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1891-01-09

other holiday congratulations By long
established custom we exhort each other TO
healthful merriment By gift, by Christmas
trees which blossom and fruit in one night,
by early morning surprise by clusters OF
lighted candles, by childrens professions, by
sound Of instruments sometimes more blatant
than musical, we wake up the night and pro-
hong the day wish you all, in the grandest
noblest and best sense, a merry Christmas
The event commemorated is the gladdest OF
the centuries. Christs cradle was as won
derful as His cross Persuade me Of the first
and am not surprised at the last. The door
by which He entered was as tremendous US
the door by which he went out.
| was last winter at the houss where Jesus
lived while He was in Africa. 1t was IN
Cairo, Egypt, the terminus Of that terrible
Journey on foot which He took when Joseph
and Mary fled with Him from Bethlehem to
Egypt TO escape the massacre of Herod. All
tradition, as well as all history, points out
this house in Cairo as the one III which these
three fugitives lived while in Africa The
room is nine steps down from the level of
the street. measured the room and found
it twenty feet long and seven and n half feet
high. There are three shelyipgs of rock, one
of which think was the cradle of our Lord
There was no window, and all the light
must have come from lantern or cradle Tho
three arrived here from Bethlehem, having
crossed the awful desert.
On the Mediterranean steamer going from
Athens to Alexandria l met the eminent
scholar and theologian, DR.. Lansing, who for
thirty-iive years has been resident of Cairo,
and he told me that he had been all over the
road that the three fugitives took from
Bethlehem to Egypt. He says 1t is a desert
way, and that the forced journey of the n-
FAINT Christ must have been terrible Jour-
ney. Going up from Egypt DR.. Lansing
met people from Bethlehem, their Tongues
swollen and hanging out from Inflammation
of thirst, and although his party had but one
goatskiu of water lett, and that was import-
ant for themselves, he was 50 moved with
the spectacle of thirst in these poor pilgrims
that though 1t excited the Indignation of
his fellow travellers, he gave water TO the
strangers Over this dreadful route Jo-
seph and Mary started for this land Of
Egypt. No time to make much preparation.
Herod was after them, and what were these
peasants before an irate king?
Joseph, the husband and father one night
spraug up from his mattress in great alarm
the beads Of sweat on his forehead and his
whole frame quakng. He had dreamed of
maSsacres of his wife and babe. They must
be OFF. that night, right away. Mary put up
a few things hastily, and Joseph brought to
the door the beast of burden. and helped his
wife and child to mount. Why, those loaves
of bread are not enough, those bottles of
water will not last for such long way But
r.
and on Good-by to the dear no nc they ex-
pect never again to see. Th air hearts break.
1t does not need that ours be n big house in
order to make US sorry to leave it.
Over the hills and down through the deep
gorge they urge their way. by Hebron, by
GAIA, through hot sand, under bStering
SUM- the babe crying, the mo'he" faint, the
father exhausted How slowly the days and
weeks pass! viii the weary three ever reach
the banks Of the Nile' VIII they ever see
CairoS Will the desert ever end? When at
last they cross the limo beyond which old
Herod has no right to pursue their Joy is I'M
bounded. Free at last! Let them dismount
and Test. Now they resume their way with
less anxiety. They Will find place some
where for shelter and the earning of their
bread Here they are at Cairo, Egynt.
They wind through the crooked streets,
which are about ten feet wide, and enter tho
humble house where have been to-day But
the terminus of the journey of thee three
fugitives was not as humble as their starting
point at Bethlehem. II that journey across
the desert ended in n cellar It started from
barn. EVERYTHING humble around that barn,
but everything glorious overhead ChrIsts
advent was in the hosiery called tho house
of Chin Ham; the night with dianonded
finger pointing down to the place; the door
of heaven set wide open to look out; from
orchestral batons Of light dripping the ora
torios of the Messiah; on lowest doorstep of
heaven the minstres of God discoursing of
glory and good will Soon after the white
bearded PSYCHOLOGISTS kneel and from leathorn
Douch chink the shel;els and from omen sacks
exhale the frankincense and rustic out the
bundles of myrrh. The loosened star; the
escaped doxology of celestials; the chill De-
cember night aflush with Nav morn: our
world lost star. aud another star rushing
down the sky that night to beckon the wan
derer home again, shall vet make Il = ltions
keep Christmas
Are there no new lessons from the story
not vet hackneyed by oft epeatalP Oh yesI
Know in the first place il was side real an
pearance that led the wav. Why not bIacl,
cloud in the shane OF n hand or finger noint-
ing down to the sacred birth-plac A cloud
means trouble and the world had had trouble
enough. WHY not shaft of lightning uuiy.
ering and flashing and striking down TO the
sacred birthplace Lightning means destruc.
ton. a shattering and consuming uower. and
the world wanted no more destruction.
But il was n star and that means ioy. that
means hone that means good cheer that
means ascendency, A star That means
creative power. for did not the nornfnc
stars sing together when the portfolio Of tn,
worlds was opepedI A starr That means do
Tense. for did not the stars flphfein their
courses against Sisera and for the Lord,
people, A star That means brilliant con
tinuance, for are not the righteous to shine
as the stars forever and everf A star! Thai
means the opening of eternal Joy. The daj
star In the heart. The morning star Of thu
fsedeemer.
The unusual appearance that night maj
have been strange conjunction OF worlds. A!
the transit Of Venus in our tire was foretolC
many years ago by astronomers, and astron
omers can tell what will be the conjunction
ofworlds Thousand years from now, so they
can calculate backward; and even intidel as
tronomers have been compelled to testify
that about the year there was u very un
usual appearance in the heavens. The Chi