Evening capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1888-1893, 1892-02-08

}
Jesus Christ. praise the Lord for the
preservation Of your reason.
THE DEGRADATION BY AropYrFs.
How many fine intellects are being
destroyed by splodynes and anmsthet,
les, which were given by providence
for occasional use in -alleviation of
pain or insomnia, but by being en-
ployed continuously after awhile cap
ture and destroy. Chloral. cocaine,
bromide Of potassium, opium and
whole shelves of seductive etceteras
that help turn Nebuchadnezzars into
imbecility or madness. Do not trifle
with opiates that benu1nb the brain.
II ycu cannot live without the per
petual and enslaving use of them,
you had better die. Better die a sane
man than live 8 fool. What right
have you to kill your brain and put
in wild jangle your nervous system
But rum IL the cause of more insanity
than anything else. There is moth
log like rum to put man. like Nebu-
chadnezzar, down on all fours.
Again, learn how quickly tu1ns the
wheel of fortune. from how high up
TO how far down went Nebuchadnez-
zar. Those now in places Of position
and power, even though they should
live, will in few years he disre-
| garded. while some. who This day
are obscure and poverty stricken,
will ride up on the shoulders of the
people TO take their turn at aflmira-
ton and the spoils of Office. Oh.
how quickly the wheel turnsi Ballot
boxes are the steps ON which men
come down as often as they 20 up
Of those who were few years ago
successful in the accumulation of
property how few have not met with
reyerses of fortune, while many Of
those who then were straitened in
circumstances now hold the bonds
and the bank keys of the n9tion and
win the most bows on the exchange.
OF all tickle people in the world
Fortune is the most fickle Every
day she changes her mind, anl woe
TO that man who puts any confidence
IN what she promises or proposes.
She cheers when you go up and she
laughs when you come down. Oh,
trust not moment your hearts af-
fectiOns 10 this changeable world.
Anchor your soul in God. From
Christ's love gather your joy. Then
come sorrow or gladness. success or
defeat. riches or poverty. honor or
disgrace, health or sickness. life or
death, time or eternity, all are yours
and we are Christ's and Christ is
Gods.
Learn also from my subject the
comforting truth that Affections are
arrested as soon as they have accom-
pliShed their mission. For seven
years did Nebuchadnezzar dwell
among the beasts of the field, but at
the expiration of that time his rea-
son returned, and as soon as with
proper humility he acknowledged the
God Of heaven he was brought back
TO his palace and reinstate,i in his
former af1iuence and power Now
it does seem that when heavy trials
come upon us it is az though they
had no limit. We exclaim, "All thy
waves and thy billows have gone
over me, " but forget that the depth
of that sea and the power of that
billow are definitely determined.
God sees how much our pride is
and he sends just enough adversely
to humble it. He sees just how
worldly minded we are and pulls us
Just hard enough to detach us from
our follies He sees how hard our
heart is and smites just hard enough
TO break it. He sees how our eyes
have been blinded and he cuts only
just enough To remove the scales
from our spiritual vision. As soon
Us Abraham's faith is sufficiently
tried the lamb is provided Az soon
az Pharaoh consents to let the chill
dren of Israel depart the plague
pauses. As soon as the Israelites
have been sufficiently disciplined by
their wanderings they find their way
into Canaan. But to some the limit
is not set in this life Their whole
pilgrimage is through the wilderness
and the world is TO them q valley of
tears
But perhaps God has special
throne in heaven that no ordinary
saint can occupy, and by extraor
binary trials he has prepared that
Christian soul for extraordinary
glory. God will not keep you in the
furnace one moment too long. Just
as soon as Paul had met with enough
Imprisonment and scourgings he
reached up and plucked his eternal
crown. God will keep us no longer
under the hammer and ON the stocks
than is necessary TO fit us for en-
trance into the haven of eternal rest.
Glory be to the divine grace that, as
soon as our Affections have accom-
plished their mission, they are ar
rested.
DEFEAT OFTEN DIVINE GUIDE.
The defeats and SORROWS of life
have sometimes been the greatest
advantage. IL was because Dante
failed rs a statesman that he gave up
politics and wrote his immortal "Di-
vinia Commedia." II was a violent
thunderstorm that first set Martin
Luther seriously thinking. and the
thunder Of this worlds disaster has
started many a reformation, James
" Simpson went from a surgeons
operating table 10 experiment and
see If he could not find something
that would alleviate human pain.
and he kept on until he had discov
erred chloroform as an anasthetic.
and the story Of distress has almost