Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1897-04-08

We did try it and no one objected.
We saw the famous lions which guard
the entrance to the chateau, and mi
nutely inspected the griffins aud other
tabled monsters which adorn every
corner aud angle of the building. We
traversed the esplanade in front and
beheld the works of art which adorn
and beautify the immediate surround
iugs. We viewed the glorious scenery
of mountain, valley and river from
various points of vantage, and saw in
the distance the fair city of Asheville
baskiug in the rays of the western sun.
Old Mt. Pisgah reared its lofty crest.
snow whitened, more than twenty
miles away, and the contour of The
Rat showed plain against the cerulean
blue. Looking out over such a spread
of grandeur and beauty, one loses sight
of the mightiest works of man, and he
forgets the things he came to see.
The palace grew from Mr.. Vandebilt's
millions, hut the glorious expans0 it
looks out upon is the work of God.
How small and vain is man!
In the town of Biltmore, adjoining
the estate, is the church of All-Souls.
erected and recently finished by Mr..
Vanderbilt and donated to the parish.
1t is a modest but very substantial
structure, built of stone and brick, and
plainly if richly finished within. An
electric pipe organ, built at at a cost
of over $4,000, is part OF the. equip
ment. I have not sufficient knowledge
OF architecture to fitly describe the
building, but l understand it is of the
Gothic order. A few weeks ago, at
the request of Mr.. Charles A. Ryder,
of New York, Mrs. A. and L accompa-
MED him to the church. He is an or
gan-builder. and was here to give the
final touches to the instrument in ques
ton.
Seating himself at the organ, Mr..
Ryder turned on the power and for
half an hour or more entertained no
less with the melody poured forth
than the wonderful and varied powers
of the instrument. Two banks of keys
for the fingers, dozen pedals, and
stops without number, bewildered the
uneducated looker-on; but under the
touch of the player fet loose floods of
various sounds in thunder tones or
softened to pianissimo the builded
harmony.
Anon arose the human voice in sweet
delight; then the mellifuous accents
of the oboe, mingled with the clear,
soft breathings of the flute. Now it
was the saddened murmur of the soli-
tary riVulet Of sound, and again it
arose into the rushing, roaring ocean
of storm-swept harmony. The edifice
was filed to overlooking with sweet
sounds atune, and one had but to clos e
his eyes to people the air with angels
and seraphim, or to steep his
brain in the delights of flashing colors
in harmonious blending. An eminent
composer, it is said, upon first hearing
in full concert the mass he had writ
ten, exclaimed: 'It is not of me, but
from God" We thought of him, and
wondered if there could be sweeter,
purer, more acceptable worship to
Him than through these concords of
sweet sounds drawn from the heaven
where all is perfect harmony!
1t is beyond me to attempt a descrip-
tion of the organ and its various parts.
l remember that it takes forty miles of
wire to make the connections between
the keys and the reeds, and that the
keyboard may be removed to any
part of the building, at the option of
the operator. Also, that by the cleo
trical device, the touch of the key is
light and soft as a summer breeze.
But, although Mr.. Ryder kindly un-
dertook to explain to me the method
of turning and the plan of the reeds
with their .'mouths, "lips" and ''ears''
i cannot reproduce the Information
thus dinned into the ear against the
stomach of my understanding. Should
these lines ever meet the eyes of that
gentleman, trust he will not take too
much amiss that my native stupidity
so far outweighs my desire. l owe
him kindness, and should he ever
meet me surrounded by The Old
Folks at Home.'' will take care that
he shall see that have not forgotten
the strains of the famous. classic
Southern song so sweetly rendered
when We both were '.far away"
AS our term OF expatriation draws
toward its limit, my impatience to
view the old home and to see the faces
of those I love and cherish grows be-
yond all bounds. I have formed some
very desirable and congenial acquain-
tances here; but there's no friend
like an old friend" and the memory
of companions known for many years
cannot be effaced by newer scenes and
surroundings. however pleasant and
acceptable. Z. ID. a.
/ -=B-8-anr