Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1894-01-05

morning star, until he could say: Il
am now ready to be offered. and the
time of my departure is al hand. ! have
fought the good fight. | have finished
my course. l have kept the faith
Edward Payson kept his eye on that
star until he could say, The breezes of
Heaven fan me-" DIR. Goodwin kept
his eye on that evangelistic star until
he could say, Il am swallowed up in
God" John Tenant kept his eye on
that evangelistic star until he could
say, welcome. sweet Lord Jesus
welcome, eternity" No other star
ever pointed a mariner into SO safe
harbor. No other star ever sunk it's
silvered anchor into the waters. No
other star ever pierced such accumu-
lated cloud. or beckoned with such a
holy luster.
With lanterns and torches and
guide, we went down in the Mann
moth cave of Kentucky. You may
walk fourteen miles and see no sun
light 1t is stupendous place. Some
places the roof Of the cave a hundred
feet high. The grottoes filed with
Wlerd echoes, cascades falling from in
visible height to invisible depth. Stall
agmites rising up from the floor of the
cave-stalactites descending from the
roof of the cave, joining each other,
and making pillars of the Almighty's
sculpturng. 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 dark
c.,1
lost from their guide only for a few
hours, years ago We're demented and
for years sat IN their insanity. You
feel like holding Your breath as Won
walk across the bridges that seem to
span the bottonless abyss The guide
throws his calcium light down into the
cavernS, and the light rolls and losses
from rock to rock and from depth 20
depth, making at every plunge new
revelation OF the awful power that
could have made such a place as thai.
a sense Of suffocation comes upon
you as You think that you are two hu:i-
dred and fifty feet in straight line
from the sunlit surface of the earth
. The guide after awhile takes you into
what is called the star Chamber and
then he says to You. "Sit here" and
then he takes the lantern and goes
down under the rocks. and it gets
darker and darker. until the night is 50
thick that the hand an inch from the
eye is undesirable. And then, t,,
kindling one Of the lanterns and
placing it in q cleft of the rock
there is reflection cast on the
dome Of the cave. and there are stars
coming out in consultations bril-
liant night heavens--and you invOlrin-
tarily eNc.aiIn: 'l;eautiful. beautiful.''
Then he takes the lantern down in
other depths Of the cavern, and wan
ders on. and wanders off, until
he CORES up from behind the
rocks gradually. and it seems
like the dawn OF the morning, and it
gets brighter ANA brighter. The guide
IL a skilled ventrilCquist, and he I'M.
tates the voices of the morning and
soon the gloom is all gone, and YOU
stand concentrating yourself over the
wonderful spectacle. Well there are d
great many people who look down into
the grave rs a great cavern. They
think it is a thousand miles subterra ne
Gus, and all the echoes seem to be the
voices of despair. and the cascades
seem to be the falling tears that always
fall, and the gloom of earth seems COM
ING up IN stalagmlte. ana the gloom "i
| 'lle eternal "orlo seems descending IN
stalactlte' making plliarS OF lndescfI1-
ape horror ne grave IS no such
place DIS 'aaC 10 me 'lahh "oa.
A. Va 80 - : 80 :"
eile great caEeflS' ana we nave INC
lamp to our feet ANA the light to orr
path and all the arl,oaS in tine Pitts ~:
rock a ~ l.