Hot Springs weekly star. (Hot Springs, S.D.) 1892-1917, 1893-07-07

Praise the Lord, beasts, and all cattle
creeping things and flying fowl" and
then turn over quietly to my text and
read, by them shall the fowls of the
heaven have their habitation. which
sing among the branches:'' or, IL under
the power of the bird voices. you are
transported, Us when DIR. Morgan play.
ed SO powerfully on the organ ut st.
Johns TINT Richard Cecil said he was +
In such blessed bewilderMent he could
not find in his Bible the first chapter OF
Isaiah, you shall he so overcome with
forest harmony that you can not find
the psalms of David, " mind. fol
God will speak to YOU SO nightly II
will make III difference whether You
hear his voice from the printed page
or the vibrating throat of IL Of his
plumed creatures.
While this summer more than usual
out of doors, let us have what my text
suggests, an Out-Of-dOOrs religion. What
business had David with all the advan-
tages of costly religious service and
smoking incense On the alter to lie
listening to the chantresses among the
tree branches? All! he wanted to
make himself and all who should come
after him more alert ana more wor.
shipful amid the sweet sounds and
beautiful sights of the natural world.
There il an old church that needs to
he redelicatetl. 1t is older than st.
I'auls OF st. Peters. or ST. Marks, Or
st. Soplias. or st. Isaacs. 1t is the
Cathedral of Nature. That is the
church in which the services of the
Millennium will he held. The build
ings fashioned out OF stone and brick
and mortar will not hold the people.
Again the Mount of Olives will be the
pulpit. Again the Jordan will he the
hnptistry. Again the mountains will
lie the galleries. Again the Sky will
be the blue ceiling. Again the sunrise
will be the front door and the sunset
the back door of that temple. Again
the clouds will he. the upholstery and
the morning mist the incense. Again
the trees will be the organ-loft where
'the fowls of heaven have their habita-
tfon which sing among the branches"
Saint Francis ii Assist preached Il seq
mon to birds and pronounced IL bene-
diction upon them, but all birds preach
to us, aud their benedictiOn is almost
supernal. While, this summer. amid
the works Of God, let lie learn rcspon-
%siveness. Surely IL we can not sing
we can hum u tune. and If we can
not hum n tune, we can whistle. If we
can mo- he an Oriole, we al be . quail.
In some way let us demonstrate our
gratitude to God. Let III not be beaten
by the chimney swallow and the hum
ming bird and the brOWn-threSher. Let
us try to set everything in II life to
music, and If we cannot give the carol
Of the song sparrow. take the paint of
the hermit thrush. Let our life be an
anthem of worship to the God who
created us and the Christ who ransom-
ed us, and the Holy Ghost who sancti-
tics us. And our last song! May it be
our best song! The swan was thought
by the ancients never to sing except
when dying. In the time of Edward
w. TIC IL was allowed to own II swan
except he We're Il kings son or had
considerable estate. Through 100 or
200 years of life that bird was said
never to utter anything like music, I'M
til its last moments We're cOme, and
then. lifting its crested beauty. it would
pour forth a song of almost matchless
thrill, Resembling through the groves.
And SO, although the struggles of life
find it hard to sing at all. when the
last hour comes to you and me may
there be n radiance from above and IL
glory settling round that shall enable
us to utter a song on the wings of
which we shall mount to where the
music never ceases and the raptures
never die.
"What is that, mothery:' 1.-THE swan,
my love;
He is floating down from his native
grove.
No loved one, no nesting nigh.
He is floating down by himself to die.
Death darkens his eye and unplumes
his wings.
Yet the sweetest song is the last he
sings.
Live so, my child, that when death
shall come.
Swan-like and sweet, it may Watt
thee home..'
A pooA-RAH.