Fisherman & farmer. [volume] (Edenton, N.C.) 1887-19??, 1894-01-05

diving words of poetic Lord Byron were, II
must sleep now" The dying words vf
affeetionate Lord Nelson were, KISS me,
Hardy" The dying words of Voltaire were,
rs he saw one whom he supposed to be
Jesus in the room, "Crusn that wretch. /"
But [ have noticed that the dying words of
Christians always mean peace. Generally
the pain Is all gone, and there IL great
qdie through the room. As enc OF
these brothers told me OF his mother IN the
last moment: "She looked up and said.
pointing to come supernatural teIng that
seemed to be in the room, Look at that
bright form. Why they have come for me
now
The lattice is turned 50 that the light is
very pleasant. II is peace all around. You
ask yourself why. can this lie dying
room? It is so different from anything
ever expected" And you walk the floor,
and you look out of he window, and you
come back and look Al your watch. and you
look at the face of the patient again. and
there is no change, except that the face is
becoming more radiant, moro illuminated.
The wave of death seems coming up higher
and higher until IL has touched the ankle,
then it comes on up until it touches the
knee, and then it comes on UP until
it reaches The girdie, and then il comes
on up until it reaches the lip,
and the soul is about TO be foated away into
glory, and you roll back the patients sleeve,
and YOU put your finger on the pulse, and il
is getting weaker and weaker. and the pulse
stops. and you hardly know whether the life
has gone or not. Indeed, you cannot tell
when she goes away, she goes away 50 calm
ly. Perhaps it is 4 o'clock in the morning,
and you have the bed wheeled around to
the window, and the dying one looks out
into the night sky. and she sees something
that attracts her attention. and you wonder
what It is.
Why, it is a star. Il is star that out OF
its silver rim is pouring supernatural light
int fhnG
what is it that you are looking at?' She
says, "It is star" You say, "What star is
it that seems 50 well to please your "Oh,
she says, ''that is the morning star-Jesus y
l would like to have my death bed undet
that evangelistic start would like 10 have
my eye on that star so | could be assured of
the morning. Then the dash of the surf OF
the sea of death would only be the billowing
up of the promise, ''When thou pHssest
through the waters, I will be with thee. and
the rivers. they shall not overflow thee"
All other lights will fail-the light that falls
from the scroll of fame the light that flashes
from the gem in the beautiful apparel, the
light that flames from the burning lamps OF
a banquet--but this light burns on and burns
on. Paul kept his eye on that morning star,
until he could say: ~ am now ready to be
offered, and the time of my departure is al
hand. / have fought the good fight. I have
finished my course. have kept the faith
Edward Payson kept his eye on that stat
until he could say. THE hreezPs of heaven
fan me-" DIR. Goodwin kept his eye on that
evangelistic star until he could say. II am
swallowed up in God" John Tenant kept
his eye on that evancelistic star until he
could say "WelcOme. sweet Lord Jesus
welcome, eternity" No other star ever
pointed mariner into 50 safe a harbOr. No
other star ever sunk its silVered anchor into
the waters. No other star ever pierced such
accumulated cloud or beckoned with such
holy ulster.
With lanterns and torches and a guide, we
went down in the Mammoth cave of Ken
lucky. You may walk fourteen miles and see
no sunlight. 1t is a stupendous place. Some
places the roof of the cave a hundred feet
high. The SrottoeS filed with weird echoes
cascades falling from invisible height to in
visible depth. Stalagmites rising W from
the floor of the Care-stalactites descending
from the roof of the cave. JOINING, each
other. and making pillars Of the Almightys
sculpturing. There are rosettes OF amethyst
in halls of gypsum. AS the guide carries his
lantern ahead of you, the shadows have an
appearance supernatural and spectral. The
darkness is fearful. Two people, getting
lost from their guide only for few hours
years ago, were demented. and for years sat
IN their insanity. You feel like hOldin;
your breath as you walk across the bridges
that seem to span the bOttomless
abyss. The guide throws his calcium light
down into the caverns, and the light rolls
anu LOSSES from TOCh 10 IOch anu lIpul ucpth
to depth making at every plunge new rev.
elatiOn of the awful power that could have
made such place as that.
4 sense Of suffOcatiOn comes upon you as
YOU think that you are $50 feet in a straight
line from the sIunit surface of the earth The
guide after awhile takes you into what is
called the "Star Chamber" and then he
says to YOU, est here" and then he takes
the lantern and goes down under the rocks,
and it gets darker and darker, until the night
=, al 4I,,&@ In, ol, Al,D
eye is UNDESIRABLE. And then, by kindling
one of the lanterns and placing it in cleft
OF the rock, there is a reflection cast on the
dome of the cave, and there are stars COM
ing out in constellations-a brilliant night
heavens-and you involuntarily exclaim
beautiful beautiful !" Then he takes the
lantern down in other depths of the cavern.
and wanderS on, and wanders off, until he
comes up from behind the rocks gradually.
and if seems like the dawn of the morning,
and it gets brighter and brighter. The guide
is skilled ventriloquist and he initiates the
voices of the morning, and soon the gloom
Is all gone, and you stand congratulating
yourself over the wonderful spectacle. Well.
there are great many people who look down
into the grave as great cavern. They think
1t is thousand miles suhtPrraneous, and all
echoes seem to be the voices of despair, and
the cascades seem to be the falling tears that
always fall and the G loom of earth seems com
ing up in stalagmite. and the gloom of the
eternal world seems descending in the stalac
tite, making pillars Of indescribable ForrOr
The grave is no such place at that to me-
thank God.
Our Divine Guide takes IN down into the
great caverns. and we have tho lamp to our
feet and the light to our path, and all the
echoes in the riftt Of tho rock are anthems,
and all the falling waters are fountains of
salvation. and after awhile we look up and,
behold thu cavern Of the tomb has become
kings star chamber. And while we are
looking at the pomp of it an everlasting
morning begins to rise, and all the tears of
earth crystalline into stalagmite, rising up
ia Il pillar on the one side, and all the glo-
ries of heaven seem to be descending in
stalactite, making a pillar on the
other side. and you push against
the gate that swings between
the two pillars, and as the gate flashes open
you find il is one ofthe twelve gates which
are twelve pearls. Blessed be God that
through this gospel the mammoth cave of
the sepulchre has become the illumined Star
Chamber of the King
l would God that If my sermon to-day
does not lead you to Christ, that before
mor1ing. looking out of the window, the
astronomy of the night heavens might lead
you to the feet of Jesus.
Hark! Hark! To God the chorus breaks
From every host, from every gem;
But alone, the Savior speaks
Is the Star Of Bethlehem.