The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1897-05-19
head to foot, and horror and despair and
insanity fako .full Doccecaiop

| INSTABILITY lake pOSSeSSlOu.
One handful OF wheat or corn or nee per
day would keep life going, but they cannot
get handful. The crops failed, and the
millions are dying. Oh, 1t is hard to be
hungry in world where there are enough
grain and fruit and meat to fill all the hun
CRY mouths on the planet; but, alas, that
the sufferer and the supply cannot be
brought together. There stands India to-
dayl Look at herI Her face dusky from
turban such achings Of brow as only dy-
Ing nation feels; her eyes hollow with un-
utterable woe; the tears rolling down her
sunken cheek; her back bent with more
agonies than she knows how to carry; her
ovens containing nothing but ashes. Gaunt,
ghastly, wasted, the dew Of death upon
her forehead and pallor such as the last
hour brings, she stretches forth her trem-
bling hand toward US, and with hoarse
whisper she says: "I am dying! Give me
bread! That is what want! Breadl Give
it to me quick. Give 1t to me now-breadl
bread! breadp' America has heard the
| cry. Many thousands Of dollars have al
ready been contributed. One ship laden
with breadstuffs has sailed from San
Francisco for India. Our senate and
house OF representatives, in bill signed by
our sympathetic president, have author
lied the secretary Of the navyto charter
vessel to carry food to the famine sufferers,
and you may help fill that ship. We want
to send at least 100000 bushels Of corn.
Oh, what q relief ship that will be! It
shall not turn screw nor hoist sail until
we have had something to do with its car
so. Just seventeen years ago from these,
Easter times ship on similar errand went!
out from New York harbor-the old wal,
frigate Constellation. It had once carried
guns Of deaths, but there was famine in,
Ireland, and the Constellation was loadedI
with 500 tons Of food. That ship, once
covered with smoke OF battle, then coyeredj
with Easter hosannas; that ship, con-
structed to battle England, going forth.
over the waters to carry relief to some OF
her starving subjects. Better than sword
into plowshare, better than spear into
| pruning hook Twas that old war frigate,
turned into white winged angel Of resur-
.rection, to roll away the stone from the
| mouth Of Ireland's sepulchre. On like er-
rand five years ago the ship Leo put out
with many tons Of food for famine struck
Russia. One Saturday afternoon on the
deck Of that steamer, as she lay at Brook
| lyn wharf, a wondrous scene took place.
A committee Of the Kings Daughters had
decorated the ship with streamers and
bunting, American and Russian flags inter
twining. Thousands Of people on the
! wharves and on the decks join US In invok-
ing Gods blessing on the cargo, and the
long meter Doxology in "Old Hundred"
sounded grandly up amid the masts and
ratlines. Having had the Joy of seeing that
ship thus consecrated, we had the sdd1-
tional Joy Of standing on the docks Of st.
Petersburg when the planks OF the relief
ship were thrown out and the representa-
tives Of the municipality and Of royalty
went aboard her, the long freight train at
the same time rolling down to take the food
to the starving, and on alternate cars OF
that train American and Russian flags float
ing. But now the Hunger In India Is
mightier than any that Ireland or Russia
ever suffered. Quicker ought to be the re-
sponse, and on 80 vast q scale that the one
ship would become whole fotilla-NeW
York sending one, Boston another, Phila-
delphia another, Charleston another, New:
Orleans another. Then let them all meet IN
some harbor of India. What perorationi
Of mercy for the nineteenth century! l.
would like to stand on the wharf at CAL
cutta or Bombay and see such feet come
In. With what Joy it would be welcomedlI
The emaciated would lift their heads on
shriveled hands and elbows, and with thin
hands ask, "Is it coming-something to
eat?"
Christian people of America, call your
attention to the fact that we may now, as
never before, by one magnificent stroke
open the widest door for the CHARACTERIZATION
OF Asia. A stupendous obstacle IN the way
Christianizing Asia has been the difference
OF language, but all those people under
stand the gospel Of bread. Another obsta-
Gle has been the law Of caste, but IN what
better way can we teach them the
brotherhood Of man2 Another huge dill
flculty in the way Of Christianizing
Asia has been that those people thought
the religion we would have them take was
no better than their Hindooism or Moham-
mechanism, but they will now see by this
crusade for the relief Of people Il 600 miles
away that the Christian religion is OF
higher, better and grander type than any
other religion, for when did the followers
of Brahma or Vishnu or Buddha or Con-
fucius or Mohammed ever demonstrate like
interest in people on opposite sides OF tne
world? Having taken the bread OF this lie
from our hands, they will be more apt 70
take from US the bread Of eternal life. The
missionaries of different denominations IN
India at forty-six stations are already dis
tributing relief sent through the Christian
Herald Is it not plain that those mission
aries, after, feeding the hunger OF the BODY,
will be at better advantage to feed the
hunger of the soul? When Christ, pe1ore
preaching to the 5000 in the wilderness,
broke for them the miraculous loaves, he
indicated that the best way to prepare the
world for spiritul and eternal considera-
tions Is first to look after temporal inter-
ests. Oh, church of God in America and
Europe!
And now bethink myself of something
never thought Of before. / had noticed
that the circle is Gods favorite figure, and
| upon that subject I addressed 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 Asiat1c rlver;
| Calvary, an Asiatic mountain. Then TINS
gospel moved on to Europe. Witness the
chapels and churches and cathedrais and
Christian universities of that continent.
Then it crossed to America. 1t has prayed
and preached and sung it's way across
our continent. It has crossed to Asia,
taking the Sandwich Islands in its
way, and now in oil the great
cities on the coast OF China people are
singing "Rock Of Ages" and "There Is
Fountain Filled With Blood" for you must
know that not only have the Scriptures
been translated into those Asiatic tongues,
but also the evangelical hymns. My mis-:
sionary brother, John, translated some OF
them into Chinese, and Mr.. Gladstone gave
me q copy Of the hymn, Jesus, Lover OF
NV Soul" which he had himself translated
into Greek. The Christ who 1t seems spent
sixteen or eighteen years OF His life IN IN.
dia is there now in spirit, converting and
saving the people by hundreds OF tnou-
through Asia until the story OF the Sav-
iour's birth will anew be made known in
Bethlehem, and the story OF Saviour's
| sacrifice be told anew on and around
Mount Calvary, and the story OF a Savlour's
ascension be told anew on the shoulder OF
Mount Olivet. And then 90 you not see the
circle will be complete? The glorious cir
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