Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1894-06-23

gregatiopal song as an arehangel might
lead heaven. Glorious orgnni when
it died down into the ashes Of that fire,
perhaps its soul went up, where Handel
and Haydn began to play On it. The
most superb audience 1oo.a that | ever
gaaad on or eyer expect to eauntilI I enter
tbs temple of the sun. OH one memorial
wal of that building, a stone which /
had rolled down from Mount Calvary,
where our Lord died, aud two tables of
store that were sawed OF from Mount
Sinai and brought on casneIs across the
desert by my arrangement, and a part
of Paulss pulpit, which the queen of
Greece allowed me. from Mars hill.
Architecture SO chaste, so grand, so an
propriate. so suggestive. so stupendous,
One of the doxologies of heaven alight-
ed. Well. perhaps we thought too much
of ii. When we think too much Of our
children. the Lord takes them. and
when we think too much Of cur church
the Lord suunnarily it.
l suppose another reason for the de-
parture of that house was that it had
done its work Church buildings. like
individuals, accomplish what they were
built for and then 90. One perspn lives
90 wears. another 40 wears. another three
wears. and When God takes an indiyid-
nal. whether Mt 80 or 10 or g wears
his mission is ended. This last church
stood three wears. and any person who
knows what m~ultitudes have there as
sembled. ard what transactions for
eternity havo there taken place, will
admit that Il was well TO build il. even
If we had known at the start that il
would only last from 1891 to 1894.
Another reason why / think this last
church went down was 90 keep me
humble. The Lord had widened nv
work through Christeudom. ard with
two recentious She week before the con
~fiagration. the n a city r~eception pre-
sided over by our MAYOR, and the other
a national and international reception
presided over bv one of the chief men
of the nation, who had recently stepped
from the presidential cabinet, and the
occasion honored by addresses and let
ters and cablegrams from men of world
wide fame in church and state, and the
whole scene brilliant beyond descrip-
ton. and in commitment to myself, who
was brought up a farmers boy. there
was danger that | might become pulled
up and my soul be weakened for future
work. l did hot yet feel any STRINGS OF
that sort, and had only felt a humble
gratitude for what had been said and
done by friends transatlantic and cisat-
%lantic, but had ordered full reports Of
the meeting laid aside for future perusal,
and had engaged the f~eetest stenos-
rapher know Of to take down every
word, from the opening dozolosy OF the
first reception to the benedlctlon OF the
last reception, and some time, when
less busy, would take III all the eio-
quence and kindness and splendor OF
that memorable week. WHAT might have
been the result upon myself know not,
have seen upon others the wltherlng
effect OF human praise. A cold chill OF
the world neglect Is 10 more destruet-
I've Than the sunstroke from too much
heat OF popular approval lhe disaster
may haye been reeded, and 1t came so
close upon tie aduiaton that 1t acted as
an everlasting prevention In the night
OF that awful blaze OF that sabbath III
May, 1924, no elf sufiicleney could
stand q second.
Another reason for the fires, | think,
is that somehow, and in a way that
know not, my opportunities are to
widen. After each Ct the other fires new
doors were open. l rrayerfully expect
that such will be the sequence OF the last
conflaSratlon.
Will the Brooklyn Tabernacle be re-
built? | know not. What or when or
where shall be my work | cannot even
guess, nor have l the least anxiety. Moth
ing but an insured utterance of the
Bible could bear such repetition as !
have for the last IL days given to the
words OF the psalmist, ''The Lord reign
eth; let the earth rejoice"
l have safely arrived ON the Pacific
coast. A startling question was asked
me just before l reached here. | was in
deep slu1nber in a section of a sleeping
car when the curtain was pushed back,
and u venerable lady seized hold Of me
and shrieked, ''Who are you, and what
are you doing here?', 1t was Il sudden
calling of the roll of passengers, and l
did not feel like answering to my name.
The question was repeated in more
earnestness, with louder voice. / could
not at first understand why the interro-
CATION as to my identity, hut after gath
ering my senses together | mildly sug-
gested that perhaps she had mistaken
my place for her own. This wa no
doubt the case, and she made a &c ok
retreat. The fact is that the secti.ls
and berths of a sleeping car are . cry
much alike. The new mode of hs1g.
ing the Number of the berth in large
figures on the outside of the drapery of
the sleeping place is a great improve
ment, but midnight perambulation, even
under the best of circumstances is more
or less confusing. The mistake that the