Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1893-02-11

their Eneralds have had much
TO do with the destiny Of Mexico. Five OF
them were presented by Cortez to his bride,
one Of them cut into the shape of q rose, an
other into the shape OF a trumpet. another
into the shape OF a bell, with tongue OK
pearl, and this presentation aroused the 1cai-
otialv of the throne AMI CAUSED tho conse-
quent fall Of Cortez. But the depths OF the
sea were decorated with those emeralfs, Tor
in a shipwreck they went down of the coast
Of Barbarv. Napoleon wore an etneraii 1t
AusteriiiZ.
IN the krenin museum at Moscow there
are crowEs anisceIters and outspread mira
cies Of emerald. Ireland is cailei the
Emerald Isle not because OF its vardure. but
because i. was presented TO Henry IL OF
England with an emerald ring. Nero had a
magnitying glass Of emerald through which
ne looked at the gladiatorial contests at
Rome. But here are 800 miles Of emerald
sweeping around the heavenly city IN one
laycr.
But upwari still and you put your foot on
q stratum Of sarlonyx. white and. rel. a
seeming conniuglnz Of snow aud fire, the
snow cooling the fire. the fra melting the
suOw.
Another climb and you reach tue sardius,
nanei after the city Of Sardlus. Another
climb and you reach the chrysolite. A
specimen OF this. belonging to Eplphanus. IN
the Fourth Century, was said TO be so
lTllIAHlJ LliL W IAt@SFt "d> pun oVc " COu-
cal IL was shone through, aud the emperor
OF China has 4 specimen that is described as
having sucn penetrating radiance that 1t
makes the night as bright as the day.
A higher climb AMI you reach the
beryl. Two thousand years ago thu GREEKS
used this precious stone for engraving pur
poses. 1t was accounte among the royal
treasures Of Tyre. The hut of Murat's
sword was adorn-f with 1t. It CLOVIS IN the
imperial crown Of Great Britain. Luther
thought the beryls Of toe heavenly wall was
turquoise. kallsch thought 1t was chryso-
lite. Josephus thought 1t a golden coloret
jewel. The wheels o. Ezekiers vision famed
with beryI aud were a revolving fire.
The beryl appears IN six sided prisms. and
i set in seals and lnta,lios, IN necklaces and
coronets. 1t WAS the Joy Or ancient 1ewelry.
1t ornauaented the ~atfluent with eardro -.
Chariemagne presented it to his favorlte.
Beautiful beryl! ExquisitsIy shaped beryl.
D!vlneiy colored berry, 1t seems like con-
gealei color. 1t looks like frozen fire. 3
But stop not here. Climb higher and you
come to topaz, a bewildernfenr OF beauty
and named after an Island OF the Red Sea-
CllmD higher ana you come to chrysop-
rasus, OF greenish golden hue and hard, as
flint.
Climb higher and you reach the jacinth.
named after the flower hyacihth and OF red
dish blue.
Take one more step and you reach the
top, not of the wall, but the top of the
foundation OF the wall, and st. John cries
out, The twelfth an amethyst" This pre-
cious stone when found in Australia or In
dia or Europe stands in columns and pyra-
mids. For color it is a violet blooming In
stone. For its play Of ligat, for its deep
mysteries of color. for its unseen Egyptians,
in Etruscan. III Roman art it has been hon.
ored. The Greeks thought this stone q pre-
ventive OF drunkenness. The Hebrews
thought it a source of pleasant dreams.
For all lovers of gems it is a subject of ad-
miration and suggestiveness. Yes, tie
word amethyst means a prevention of
drunkenness. Long before the New Testa-
ment made reference to the amethyst in the
wall Of heaven the Persians thought that
cups made out Of amethyst would hinder
any kind Of liquor contained therein from
becoming Intoxicating. But OF all the anne.
ethystine cups from which the ancients
drank not one had any such result of pre-.
~vention.
For thousands of years the world has been
looking in vain for such a preventive anne.
thystine cup. Staggering Noah could not
find it. Convivial Ahasuerus driving Vashti
from the gates could not find it. Nabal
breaking the heart of beautiful Abigail
could not find it. Belshazzar, the kingly
reveler, on the night that the Chaldeans
took Babylon could not find it. Not one of
the millions of inebriates whose skulls pave
the continents and pave the depths OF the
sea COulu ma IL. mere Is no Sucn cup.
Strong drink from followed amethyst i'm.
brutes the same as strong drink from pew
ter mug. 1t is not the style Of cup we drink
out of, but that which the cup contains,
which decides the helpful or damning result
of the beverage.
All around the world last night and to-
day. out of cups qostlier than amethyst, men
and women have been drinking their own
doom and the doomof their children for this
life and the next. Alb. it is the amethystine
cups that do the widest and worst slaugh-
ter! The smash Of the filthy goblets of the
rummeries would long ago have taken place
Dy law, but the amethystine chaliccs pre-
ent-the challces out of which legislatures,
congresses drink before and after they make
the laws. Amethystine chalices have been
the friends of intoxication instead of its
foes. Over the fiery lips Of the amethystine
chalices is thrust the tongue of that which
biteth like a serpent and stingeth like an
adder.
Drunkenness is a combination of apoplexv
and demehtia. The 400. 600. 600 victims Of
opium come out to meet the $50, 600, 600 vic
tins of alcohol, and the two agents take the
contract for tumbling the human race into
perdition. but whether they will succeed in
fulfilling the contract depends on the action
Of the amethystine cups, the amethystine
demijohus. the nmethystine ale pitchers the
am1hystine flagons, the amethystine wine
cellars Oh, Persians, Oh Assyriansl Oh,
"Ecohs! I'll, ESyptiaus! you were wrong
in thinking that a cup Of amethyst would
prevent inebriation.
But standing on the top Of this amethys.
tine layer of the foundation of the wall OF
heaven l bethink myself of the mistake that
many of the ancient Hebrews made when
they thought that the amethyst was a pro-
ducer OF pleasant dreams. Just wear a piece
Of amethyst over your heart or put it under
your pillow. and you would have your dreams
filled with everything beautiful and entranc.
ing. No, no The style Of pillow will not
decide the character of the dream. The only
recipe for pleasant dreams is to do right and
think right when you are wide awake. Con.
ditions Of physical disease may give a good
man nightmare, but q man physically well,
II he behave himself Alright, will not be
troubled with bad dreams.
Nebuchadnezzar, with eagles down under
his head and Tyrian purple over it: struggled
with a bad dream that made him shrek out
for the soothsayers and astroloyers to come
and interpret it. Pharaoh. amid the marble
palaces OF Memphis, was confoundei BY a
cream In which lean COWS ate up the fat
cow and the small ears OF corn devoured
the seven large ears. and awful famine was
prehgured. Pilates wife, amid. clouds Of