The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1896-11-29
Now we see through a glass. dsrkly,
but then face 10 fscs."--I- Cor, xlii:l2.

Now we see through glass. dsrkiy,
but then face 10 fscs."--I Cor, xib:l2.
Had Paul lived In our day he could not
have written that sentence The English
word glass" ts faulty translation OF the
Greek word es0ptrcn, the correct render
INK being For now We see IL mirror
indssslnctly." In the apostles time MIR
rorx were merely polished surfaces OF
metals, and were generally made or brass
IN their most perfect state they were
but poor and uneven reflections Of light:
heace the duplicated image was wei de-
scrfhed as darby seen" To the NeEe- 3
tfans belongs the honor Of first insrodac-
fng mirrors Of glass, in the year 1900 They
were very rude substitutes for our mod
ern handsome contrivances OF plate glass
and quicksilver. and one OF them may be
sesn today by tia traveller In Hoiyrood
raIace Scotland. Toward the close or the
seventeenth century the manufacture OF
looking glasses or mirrors became firmly
established in England. and now Is one OF
TIE most important Industries TO such
perfection has tie industry been brought
that the deception OF the doable object IS
surprising. IL Is not no. seeing tnroasn
q glass carkiy-" TX Is rather seeing face
10 face" such, then, has been the pro-
gress Of thu art that today this sentences
II literally translated. "a t1s Revised YER
sion has s. can have no sikri1i-
eance. aad the Paul Of lsS must
hunt up another illustration OF DIS mean
lnx. But as4y back IN the year o. ohiy
twenty-five years after the death OK
Jesus, the reference was Beautifully al-
xroprsate. Ia tbs chapter the Apostle IS
Fsroaounc5ng his splendid s1icgy on tas
dfvinest attribute OF the soul. Charity or
love In his panegyrsc ne has scared
FROM climax 10 climax Of rhetorical power.
In the dYst three verses be begins with inc
tongue OF the orator, and moves males
ticsiIy forward until ne reaches the mar
syrGoua Of the Saint. Starting out again
with the patience OF charity as his theme.
he makes another grand sweep with tlie
bold wings OF his fancy. TIL ne com2asses
eternity and crowns this love with ifnmor-
tai honor. And then IL appears 10 him
that ths most formidable thought is pow
erless 20 take IL the theme OF love divine,
and he seems like an infant, with It's puny
faculties. trying TO grasp the nlmGta5se.
Even the ordinary knowledge OF life IS
Very imperfect. and though II Is a prog
ress from childhood upward. It's highest
achievements are 50 surrounded With
mystery that life II bat an enigma. rid
de. He stops bewldered. ard his aEnena-
ensls. who is taking down his sentences
from dlctsfion. also stops. perhaps pug
zled. n the Apostles pause. The eye OF
che inspired preacher suddenly brightens.
lie either sees or remembers one Of those
rude metallic mirrors ! have described.
All" he seems 20 say TO himself. what ID
our eiearesf view OF this divine attribute
% love. in fact Of all knowledge and all
existeneaT Il 10 very iudIStincf. II IS as
Tar removed from the fur truth as a re-
fsction OF myself Ia one OF these braZen
surfaces Is removed from a perfect repre-
ssnfatton of my face and form" And then.
with new Inspiration. he repeats the ia
NOUS words OF our text: '+Tor now We
zee through glass. darkiy; but then face
81
True OF All knowledge.
I remark first that this statement OF
tia text Ia true OF all knowledge. ''kpowf-
edge Is power" says the time-worn aphor-
Ism. but IN hes perfected state knowledge is
also love. IL is a microscope by which the
fnnnisesimai things Of life are brought 30
notice. IL II telescope beckoning nearer
the distant. 1t is light irradiatIng the be-
cloudad. IL Is color, making roseate the
cold gray surface of discovery. But IL
may also hs love worxhiping at the shrine
Of Its divine Author. With its nimbie nm
gers IL turns the pages OF the past and
with Is uprising pinions II brushes the
doorlatch Of heaven. The progress Of
knowiedge In the world may be illustrated
by the accumulation OF compound inter-
est During tho first periods I'm the his
tory OF cur race ~ was very slow. II was
a perception OF simple facts. the gratin-
cation OF simple wants, and the discovery
o. the FetAilons between taGfS and wants.
For instance corn Is a fact Running
water i a fact. The desire or want is that
the corn hs ground. Many a man might
think OF these three elements separately.
but never perceive the possible relations
among Them. BY and by some man who
has been poDdering over this subject ard
keeping in mind the corn and the grinding
walks along the hank of river. Sudden
IL be exclsims: why. here Is power
ard the results OF his discovery ara the
water wheel and the accompanying ma
chinsEy. Very rude at FIRST are All these
constructions. Soon in addition 10 the
primary want is added the desire 10 save
labor or 10 improvs the process; and SO
want begets waat. and Improvement sue-
sssts Improvement. and. Ike the accumu-
lai8nus 81 compound Interest knowledge
mnltpilss itself with avsr~increasing We
leelty. Ia the apostles day me sources 81
Knowledge we're exceedingly limited The
practical arts were bat ia their elementary
state, au3 the deductions OF philosophy
ana tse accomplishments OF science we're
rude snd rare. Why. almost All the no.
table discoveries have been 81 racenf date
Fer nearly 400 years Of the Adarnfs ne
yioa the sun had been radiAtinE its light
and heat and the neon and stars had
hepn trimming and burning their lamps in
the heavens. and our earth had swung AMI
rolled through space. before Pythagoras
discovered that there could be such an
arrangement as the solar system. and BAD
tae courage 80 teach il. But this thought
was csaly "a spark from the forge OF his
imagination. for y was soon lost sight of
s1a las buried under ths rubbish OF error
Ter 2yke years longer. until Coneruicus.
blowing Ii into fame again. placed before
The world IL lSgg the great astronomical
system which stu bears his name. the
system witch pisces he san az rest in the
eemter and makes the earth and other
planets TeVelve around A.. the system the
truth &C which was afteFward confirmed
ty kepier SIS lea aad placed beyond the
possibility - q denby BY sIr Isaac Nevytor,
81 fsss. And fhat was huf 80 vesrs asa
Ter WncpftrstaASa ages nzz this Subsr~
Ui6al n2aEnes. She earth. been aftv.setfas-
ena res@king between SIS opposite ualas
H7A t4e aurora horesIss has been eaeb-
irs 90 magnetic Glisniua ion IN ne north
ern heavens, ana see & },ss harn faft "a
s4ictefa t3Zz4es 60 aer8.d TIE achievements
~. ele0trte science Though Homer sang
81 Us attractive rover resray q fEfeasar7a
Years before the t'arfstssa era. ana ThaIes
81" Se4Fs later discovered sursle oF the
TFupsrEtss af electricity. fs was uof t,ntfl
tan ta-rseeAfA century thst che mariners
compass Became a. prs~ftsssl snvensfos,
e. untg "a aaia5Ie % sac s{xhrAarsl1 ,ssss
fas L@y1sea htr. tAe lasatisy OF sfcs,frfs3ts
va Eghtnins &19 ne wonders ~ ga
VANISH burst uposs The seiansia. vvaris "a
accomplished facts Tsaas stsrs.,sss nine
sasnta century has. however. .,r,,s,a,sss a
brilliant serles 81 sxntcIts % ,o-anarlssn
NttA NnNea al previous eTa-ts awspsfie
$50 tzssEatGc2ns,e- So Euulprrsv DAVIS
inefesfartlaz - saecfrtc Nzat ~ sSqa.
Xe~@S+s trfs Erauh IA tNsre Es.rs.aag -