The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1897-05-13

Aducu WIN urtulstuIts HAS sditcu iFoiu
San Francisco for India. Our senate
and house of representatives in a bin
signed by u sympathetic president,
have authorized the secretary of the
navy to charter Il vessel to carry food
to the famine sufferers, and you may
help fill that ship, We want to send
at least soc, 900 bushels of corn. That
wall save the lives of ut least 600,-
600 people. Many will respond in con-
tributions of money, and the
barns and corn cribs OF the entire
United States will pour forth their
treasures of food. When that ship is
laden till it can carry no more, we will
ask Him who holds the wind in His fist
and plants His triumphant foot on
stormy ave to let nothing but good
happen to the ship till it anchors in
Bengal or Arabian waters, They who
help by contributions of money or
breadstutfs toward filling that relief
ship will flavor their own food for their
lifetime with appetizing qualities, and
insure their own welfare through the
promise of Him who sale; blessed is
he that ~considereth the poor; the Lord
will deliver him in time Of trouble"
And now l bethink myself of some
thing | never thought of before. | had
noticed hat the circle is Gods favorite
figure, and upon that subject | adj
dressed you some time ago. but it did
not occur to me until now that the
Gospel seems to be moving in a circle.
1t started in Asia, Bethlehem. an
Asiatic village; Jordan, an Asiatic
river; Calvary, an Asiatic mountain.
Then this Gospel moved on to Eu-
rope; witness the chapels and
churches and cathedrals and Chris
tian universities of that continent.
Then it crossed to America. 1t has
prayed and preached and sung It's way
across ~ continent. 1t has crossed to
Asia, taking the Sandwich islands in
its way, and now in all the great cities
on the coast of China people are sing
ing Rock of Ages and There Is a
Fountain Filled with Blood" for You
must know that not only have the
Scriptures been translated into those
Asiatic tongues. but also the evangel-
zeal hymns, My missionary brother,
John, translated some of them into
Chinese. and Mr.. Gladstone gave
me a copy of the hymn, "Jesus
Lover of My Soul" which he had him
self translated into GIeek. The Chaist
who, it seems spent l6 or Is years Of
His life in India, is there now in spirit,
converting and saving the people by
the hundreds of thousands, and the
Gospel will move right on through
Asia until the glory of tine Saviour's
birth will anew be made known in
bethlehem, and the story of a Saviour's
sacrifice be told anew on and around
Mount Calvary, and the story of a
Saviour's ascension be told anew
on the shoulder of Mount Olivet.
And then do you not see the
circle will be complete? The
glorious circle, the circles Of the earth!
This old planet, gashcd with earth
quake, and scorched with co%ntlagra-
ton, and torn with revolutions, will be
girdled with churches, with schools,
a SiNiNSi WIN hiiIlNihihl iNS~
t~ivities. How cheering and how in
spring the thoughttha we are. wheth-
er giving temporal or spiritual relief,
working on the segment of such a cir
Gle! And that the Chr.stly mission
which started in Asia will keep on its
way until it goes clear around to
the place where it started! Then
the earth will have demonstrates that
for which it was created. and as soon
as a world has completed its mission it
dies. Part of the heavens is a ccme-
terry of dead worlds. Our world built
to demonstrate to the worlds which
have been loyal to God the awful re-
suits of disloyalty, so that M of them
may ever attempt til say our world.
having finished its mission, may
then go out of existence. The central
fires of the world which are burning
out rapidly toward the crust may have
reached the surface by that time and
the Bible prophecy be fulfilled, which
declares that the earth and all things
that are therein shall be burned up.
The ransomcd huran race at that
time on earth will start unhurt in
those chariots of fire for the great ne
tropolis of the universe, The Heaven,
where the redeemed Of the Lord shall
talk over the famines and the plaques
and the wars which the earth suffered
and against which we struggled and
prayed as long as there was my
breath in us. Glorious consummation!
May 10. 1869, was a memorable day, for
then was laid the last tie that con-
nected the two rail tracks which united
the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The
Central Pacific railroad was built
from California eastward. The Union
Pacific railroad was built west
ward. They were within arms reach Of
meeting, only one more piece of the
rail track to put down. A great au-
dience assembled, mid-centinent, to see
the last tie laid. The locomotives of
the eastern and western trains stood
painting on the tracks close by. Ora
ton explained the occasion, and prayer
solemnized it, and music enchanted it.
The tie was made Of polished laurel
WOOu Douuu WIN sil'eF odhus, duu
three spikes were used-a gold spike,
presented by California; a silver
spike, presented by Nevada, and an
iron spike, presented by Arizona.
When, all heads uncovered and all
hearts thrilling with emotion, the ham,
mcr struck the last spike into its place,
the cannon doomed it amid the re.
sounding mountain echoes, and the
Geographic instruments clicked TO all
nations that the deed was done. My
friends, if the laying of the last tie
that bound the east and the west of
one continent together was such a re-
sounding occasion, what will it be
when the last Ge OF the track of
Gospel influences, reaching clear
arnunJ tha ,yorll shall ha laid amid