The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1893-01-04

encouraging thought is that the main
drift of the centuries has been toward
betterment, with only here and there
stout reversal Grecian civilization
was vast Improvement on Egyptian
civilization, and Roman civilization
vast Improvement on Grecian civiliza-
ton, and Christian civilization is vast
Improvement on Roman civilization
What was the boasted age of Pericles
compared with the age OF LongieiloW
and Tennyson? What was Queen
Elizabeth as specimen OF moral wom-
anhood compared with Queen Victoria!
What were the cruel warriors OF olden
times compared with the most distin-
guished warriors Of the last half CEN
tury, all OF them as much distinguished
for kindness and good morals as Tor
prowess-the two military leaders OF
our civil war ON northern and southern
side communicant members OF Christian
churches, and their home life as pure as
their public life?
Nothing impresses me in this chrome
logical review more than the fact that
the regiments Of years are better and
better regiments as the troops move on.
1 thank God that you and Iwere not
born any sooner than we were born
How could we have endured the disas-
ter of being born in the eighteenth or
seventeenth or sixteenteenth century?
Glad am that we are in the regiment
now passing the reviewing stand, and
that our children will pass the stand in
still better regiment. God did not
build this world for a slaughter house
or den Of infamy.
A good deal Of cleaning house will be
necessary before this world becomes as
clean and sweet as'it ought TO be, but
the brooms and the scrubbing brushes,
and the upholsterers and plumbers are
already busy, and when the world gets
fixed up, as it will be, il Adam and Eve
ever visit 1t, as expect they will, they
will say to each other: "Well, this
beats paradise when we lived there,
and the pears and the plums are better
than we plucked from the first trees.
and wardrobes are more complete, and
the climate is better.
Since settled in my own mind tho
fact that God was stronger than the
devil l have never lost faith in the
emparadisation of this planet With the
exception Of a retrogression in the Dark
Ages, the movement of the world has
been on and on, and up and up, and
have two jubilant hosannas -one for
the closing year and the other for the
new year. ...,3 ~......
But the other thought coming out of
this subject is that Biblical chronology,
and indeed all chronology, is urging the
world to more punctuality and immedi-
ateness What an unsatisfactory and in
definite thing 1t must have been for two
business men in the time of Ahaz Ia
make an appointment, saying; "We will
settle that business matter tomorrow
when the shadow on the dial Of Ahal
reaches the tenth step from the top" OF
, II will meet you in the street called
: Straight in Damascus in the time Of the
new moon,p or when asked in court
room what time an occurrence tool
3 place should answer, 'It was during
: the time Of the latter rain" or at wa
. at the time Of the third growing o
a the barnyardW
0 You and remember when minister
OF the gospel in the country, giving ou
: notice Of an evening service, insteat
a of saying att or or o'clock, woulc
: say, 1.-THE service will begin at early
r candle light" Thank God for chron
! illogical achievements which hay
ushered in calendars and almauacs an,
y clocks and watches, and at SO cheap
o rate all may possess theml Chronology
beginning by appreciating the value o
y years and the value of days, has KEEP
on until 1t cries out Man, immortal
u woman, immortal; look out for tina
y minute; look out for that second"
q But do not let us get an impressio
d from chronology that because the year
u OF time have been so long in processio
N they are TO go on forever. Matter is nc
g eternal No, moi II you watch half
y day, or whole day, or two days, as
ID once did, TO see military processio
you remember the last brigade, an
10 the last regiment and the last con
n. pany finally passed on, and us we ros
I'd to go we said TO each other. ut Is a
y over"
lg SO this mighty procession of earthl
SO years will terminate. just when hay
I'd no power TO prognosticate, but scienC
n confirms the Bible prophecy that Il
ne earth can not always last. Indeed thei
n has been fatality of worlds II
nc moon is merely the corpse OF what
IN once was, and scientists have agai
ne and again gone up in their observat
ries TO attend the deathbed OF dyin
I'D worlds and have seen them cremate,
r. so am certain, both from the Word I
r. God and science, that the worlds chr
~ nology will sooner or later come TO
~ last chapter.
or The final century will arrive andpa
" on, and then will come the final decad
IN and then the final year, and the fin
IS month, and the final day. The la
81. spring will swing its censor Of app
n blossoms and the last winter bank |
% snowA The last sunset will burn Ill
% Moscow and the last morning radia
w the hills The clocks win strike the
last hour, and the watches will tick the
last second No incendiaries will
er needed to run hither and yon VII
he torches TO set the world on FIRE
~ Chemistry teaches us that there is
IL very infammable element in waite
~ While oxygen makes up part OF 81
% water, the otherpart of the water is b
n drogen, and that is very combustibl
N The oxvoen drawn ont from the vyaff