Capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1893-1895, 1894-01-02

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in an abbreviated earthly existencein the
fact that it puts one sooner in the center
of things. All astronomers, infidel as
well as Christian, agree in believing that
the universe swings around some great
center. Any one who has studied the
earth and studied the heavens knows that
Gods favorite figure in geometry is a
circle. When God put forth his hand
to create the universe, he did not strike
that hand at right angles, but he waved
1t in a circle and kept on waving it in a
circle until systems and consultations
and galaxies and all worlds took that
motion. Our planet swinging around
the sun, other planets swinging around
other suns, but somewhere q great hub
around which the great wheel of the uni
verse turns. Now, that center is heaven.
That is the capital of the universe. %hat
is the great metropolis of immensity.
KNOWLEDGE AT FIRST HANDS.
Now, does not our common sense teach
us that in matters of study it is better
for us to move out from the center to-
ward the circumference rather than to
be on the circumference, where our world
now is? We are like those who study
the American continent while standing
on the Atlantic beach. The way to study
the continent is to cross it or go to the
heart of it. Our standpoint in this world
is defective. We are at the wrong end
of the telescope. The best way to study
a piece of machinery Is not to stand on
the doorstep and try to look in, but to
go in with the engineer and take our
place right amid the saws and the cyl
inders. We wear our eyes out and our
brain out from the fact that we are
studying under such great disadvantage.
Millions of dollars for observatories to
study things about the moon, about the
sun, about the rings of Saturn, about
transits and occultations and eclipses,
simply because our studio, our observa-
tory, is poorly situated. We are down
in the cellar trying to study the palace
of the universe, while our departed
Christian friends have gone up stairs
amid the skylights to study.
Now, when one can sooner get to the
center of things, is he not to be congrat-
ulated? Who wants to be always in the
freshman class? We study God in this
world by the Biblical photograph Of him,
but we all know we can in five minutes
of interview with a friend get more ac-
curate idea of him than we can by study
ing him 30 years through pictures of
words. The little child that died last
night today knows more of God than all
Andover. and all Princeton, and all New
Brunswick, and all Edinburgh, and all
the theological institutions in Christen.
dom. Is it not better to go up to the
very headquarters of knowledge?
Does not our common sense teach US
that it is better to be at the center than
to be clear out on the rim of the wheel,
holding nervously fast to the tire lest we
be suddenly hurled into light and eter-
nal felicity? Through all kinds of optic
al instruments trying to peer in through
the cracks and the keyholes Of heaven
afraid that both doors of the celestial
mansion will be swung wide open before
our entranced vision-rushing about
among the apothecary shops of this
world, wondering if this is good for rheu-
matism, and that is good for neuralgia
and something else is good for bad
cough, lest we be suddenly ushered into
a land of everlasting health, where the
inhabitant never says. Il am sick"
What fools we all are to prefer the cir
conference to the centeri What a dread
full thing it would be if we should be
suddenly ushered from this wintry world
into the Maytime orchards of heaven,
and if our pauperism of sin and sorrow
should be suddenly broken up by pres
entation Of an emperor's castle, sur
rounded by parks with springing foun-
tains and paths up and down which an
gels of God walk two and two!
We stick to the world as though we
preferred cold drizzle to warm habita-
ton, discord to cantata, sackoloth to
royal purple-as though we preferred
piano with four or five keys out of tune
to an instrument fully attuned - as
though earth and heaven had exchanged
apparel and earth had taken on bridal
array and heaven had gone into deep
mourning, all its waters stagnant, all its
harps broken, all chalices cracked at the
dry wells, all the lawns sloping to the
piOWOo WAOh 6AoNOos WIN aCod
angels under the furrow. Oh, want to
break up my own infatuation, and /
want to break up your infatuation for
this world. tell you If we are ready,
and if our work is done, the sooner we
go the better, and if there are blessings
in longevity, want you TO know right
well there are also blessings in an abbre-
waited earthly existence.
FORTUNATE ESCAPE.
If the spirit of this sermon is true. how
consoled you ought to feel about mem
bers of your families that went early.
Taken from the evil to come" this book
says. What fortunate escape they hadl
How glad we ought to feel that they will
never have to go through the struggles
which we have had TO go through. They
had just time enough TO get ont OF the
cradle and run mp the springtime hills Of
this world and see how 1t looked, and
then they started for better stopping
place. They were like ships that put In
ct st. Helena, staying there long enough
to let passengers 60 mp and see the bar
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