The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1898-05-19

Me aud one WILLING
\ - to b aed BY God
+ ~LE Tho taxi u Exodu,
DA III. l. '"Now Nosel
NN>N3 kept the flock oi
Jsthro. his father.
rin-law. the passt Of Nidian." ii' +
In the southeastern part OF Arabia q
man is sitting BY . well It 10 an arid
country and water il scarce, 90 that q
wsil 10 Of great value, and aocks and
herds are driven vast distances to have
their thirst slaked. Jethro, a Midianite
sheik and priest, was 80 fortunate q
to have seven daughters. and they are
practical girls. and yonder they come
driving the Esheep and cattle and
camels Of their father to the watering.
They lower the buckets and then pull
them up. the water FLASHING on the
stones and chilling their feet, and the
troughs are hllsd. VINO is that man
out there sitting unconcerned and look
Ing on! Why does he not come and
help the women In this hard work of
drawing water? But No sooner have the
dry lips and painting nostrils of the
focks begun b cool alltttle In the brim-
ming trough of the well than some
rough Bedouin Ahepherds break in up
'on the scene;:and with clubs and shouts
'drive back the animals that were
and alright these girls until
they fly in retreat. and the hocks OF
these III hammered shepherds are
driven, to the troushs, taking the
places of the other .fiocks. Now that
man sitHng by the we'll begins to color
up. and his eye flashes with indigna-
ton. and all the gallantry Of his ma
ture Is aroused 1t is Noses, who
had qlick temper anyhow,
as he demonstrated on one occasion
when he saw an Egyptian depressing
an Israelite and gave the Egyptian a
clip and buried him In the sand,
and rs he showed afterwara when he
broke all the Ten Commandments 1t
once by shattsrin9 the two granite
slabs on which they were written. But
the injustice of this treatment or the
seven girls sets him on fire win wrath,
and he takes this shepherd by the
Utmost and pushes back anothsr till he
fails over the trough and aims q stun
ming blow between the eyes of another
as he cries, "Begone. you villainsa'' and
he hoots and roars At the sheep and
cattle and camels Of these invaders
and drives them - back. and, having
cleared the place OF the desperadoes,
be told the seven girls Of this Midianfte
sheik to ssther their hocks together
and bring them again to the watering.
Ono OF these girls, ZippoTah,. her
name meaning little bird" was cap
tured b. this heroic behavior OF Moses.
for. however hmid woman herself may
be. she always admires courage in q
man. Zipporah became the bride OF
Noses. ons OF the mightest men Of all
the centuries. Zipporah little thought
that that morning as she helped drive
her fathers flocks to the well she was
splendidly deciding her own destiny.
The fact that 1t took the seven
daughters to drive the flocks To- the
we'll implies that they we're immense
fiocks and that her father was a man
Of wealth. What was the use Of Zip
porah's bemoaning herself with work
when she might have reclined on the
hillside near her fathers tent and
plucked buttercups and dreamed out
romances and sithed idly to the winds
and wspt over imaginary songs to the
brooks? No, she knew that work was
honorable and that every girl ought to
have something to do, and so she starts
with bieating and lowing and below
Ing and neighing droves to the well for
The watering.
Around every home there are fiocks
and droves Of cares and anxieties, and
every daughter OF the family, though
there be seven, ought to be doing her
part to take care OF tho focks. In
many households not only is Zipporah,
but all her sisters, without practical
and useful employments. Many Of them
are waiting for fortunate and prosper
ous matrimonial alliance. but some
ounger like themselves will come along
and after counting the large number of
Iather Jethro's sheep and camels will
make a proposal that will be accepted,
and neither Of them having done any
hing more practical than to chew
chocolate caramels the two nothings
will start on the road of life together.
every step more and more a failure.
That daughter OF the Midlanitish sheik
will never find her Moses. Girls of
initiate zipporah! Do some.
hing practical Do something help
'ul. Do something well. Many have
'athers with great hocks of absorbing
iuties. and such a father needs helm in
home or ONCE or field. Go out and
help him with the focks. ,..t
There are questions that every father
y -