The Banner-Democrat. [volume] (Lake Providence, East Carroll Parish, La.) 1892-current, 1894-04-07

sofas are stuffed with case and quietude.
The roclxing.chairs roll backward and
forward on lullabys. The pillows are ex
quisitely embroidered. All the appoint
ments of the room are peroration *
q successful commercial or professional
life. But the man has no religion;
never has had. and never professed t.
have. There is not Bible or one re-
ligious book in the room. The depart
ing man feels that his earthly career
is ended, and nothing opens beyond.
Where he will land stepping off from
this life Is a mystery, or whether he
will land at all, for it may be ami
hilation. He has no prayer to offer,
and he does not know how to pray. Nc
hope of meeting again in another state
of existence. He is through with this
life, and is sure of no other. The ruby
on the mantel and the ruby on the
wasted finger Of the departing one say
nothing of the ransoming blood which
they SO nightly typify. So far rs Civ
ing solace or illumination to a depart.
ing spirit, they are dead failure.
Midnight of utter hopelessness drops
on all the scene.
Another room of mortal exit Re-
ligion and no rubies. She never had
money enough to buy one OF these ex.
quisites. Sometimes she stopped at a
jewelers. show window and saw row
of them in carnadining the velvet.
She had keen taste enough to appre-
ciate those gems, but she never owned
one of them. She was not jealous or
unhappy because others had rubies
while she had none. But she had rich
er treasure, and that was the grace Of
God that had comforted her along the
way amid bereavements. and tempta'
tions. and prosecutions, and sicknesses,
and privations. and trials OF all sorts.
Now she is going out of life. The
room is bright, not with pictures OF
statues, not with upholstery. not
with any of the gems of mountain or
of sea, but there is strange and
vivid glow in the room; not the
light of chandelier, or star, or noon
day sun. but sometimes that out
shines all of them. 1t must be the
presence of supernaturals. From hci
illumined face / think she must heal
sweet voices Yea, she does heal
sweet voices-voices of departed kin
dred; voices apostolic and prophetic
and evangelic, but all OF them over
powered by the voice of Christ, saying
Come, ycs blessed of my Father. in
herit the kingdom" From hel
illumined face, ] think she must
hear rapturous music. Yea. she
does hear rapturous music, now
soft as solos, now thunderous as or
chestras; now sanity voice alone, nov
the one hundred and forty and foul
thousand in concert. From her il
lumined face | think she must breathe
redolencc. Yea, she does inhale aroma
from off the gardens whose flowers
never wither, and from the blossoms
of orchards every tree of which bear
twelve manner of fruit. From her il
lumined face, think she must see 1
glorious sight. Yes, she sees the wal
that has jasper at the base, and anne
thyst at the top, and blood-red rubie
between
Good-by, sweet soul! Why should yol
longer stay? Your work all done; you
burdens all carried; your tears al
wept, Forward into the light. Up int,
the Joy. Out into the grandeurs! Ant
after you have salutcd Christ, and you
kindred, search out him of the palace
of Lebanon cedar, and tell him tina
- 81 FL - fys,p.
what thousands of years ago he assert
ed in this mornings text: Wisdom i
better than rubies."
In those FURNISHED palaces of our Go
NAV we all meet. For confess to yOl
that my chief desire for Heaven is no
the radiance, or to take the suggestion
of the text, not the rubescence of tn
scene. My one idea of Heaven is TIL
place to meet old friends, God, our bes
friend, and our earthly friends al
| ready transported. Aye! to NEE
the millions whom l have neve
seen, but to whom have admins
tered in the Gospel week by weel
through journalism on both sides o
| the sea, and throughout Christendon
and through many lands yet scmi-bal
barrie. For the last twenty-three year
every blast of injustice against me ha
multiplied my readers all the worl
over, and the present malignanc
printed and uttered because on
church is in financial struggl
after having two great structure
destroyed by fire, and we con-
peeled to build three large churches
say the present outrageous injustic
in some quarters, will multiply my AT
dience in all lands il / can keep i
1 good humor and not fight back. A ger
tleman tapped me on the shoulde
summer before last on a street of Edil
burgh, Scotland. and said: II live i
the Shetland island, and read you
sermons every Sabbath to an audienc
of neighbors, and my brother lives !
| Cape Town, South Africa, and he read
them every Sabbath to an 'audienc
of his neighbors.
And i here and now say TO the fort
millions of the earth to whose eye
these words will come. that one of m
dearest anticipations is to meet thcl
in Heaven. All! that will be bette
than rubies. Coming up from differer
continents, from different hemisphere
from opposite sides of the earth
/ greet each other in holy love in tn
presence of the glorious Chri.
who made it possible for us
ret there. Our sins all pardone'
our sorrows all banished, never to wee
never to part, never to die! te
you that will be better than rubie