Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1898-05-09
THE BRIDE OF MOSES.
HOW zIPPORAH DECIDED HER MATR,-
MONlAL DESTINY.

n Glorious Example and Inspiration For
Women of All Times = God Has Work
For Young and Old-Row We Are Call
ed to Special Labor.
ICopyright. 1888. by American Press Asso-
ciation.l
WASHINGTON, May S.-From q rustic
Bible scene DR.. Talmage in this SER
mon draws practical and inspiring les
sons for all classes of people The text
is Exodus iii, !, "Now Moses kept the
flock of Jethro his father-in law, the
priest of INDIAN
In the southeastern part of Arabia
man is sitting by well. 1t is an arid
country, and water is scarce, SO that a
well is of great value, and focks and
herds are driven vast distances to have
their thirst slaked. Jethro, Midianite
sheik and priest, was so fortunate as to
have seven daughters, and they are
practical girls, and yeader they come
driving the sheep 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 filed. Who is that man out there
sitting unconcerned and looking 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 f1ocks begun
to cool little in the trimming trough
of the we'll than some rough Bedouin
shepherds break in upon the scene and
with clubs and shouts drive back the
animals that were drinking and alright
these girls until they fly in retreat, and
the f1ocks of these i'll hammered shep-
herds are driven to the troughs, taking
the places of the other f1ocks. Now that
man sitting by the we'll begins to color
up, and his eye flashes with Indignation,
and all the gallantry of his nature is
aroused. 1t is Moses. who naturally had
a quick temper anyhow, as he demon
strated on one occasion when he saw an
Egyptian expressing an Israelite and
gave the Egyptian a sudden clip and
buried him in the sand and as he show
ed afterward when he broke all the Ten
Commandments at once by SCATTERING
the two granite slabs on which the law
was written. But the injustice of this
treatment of the seven girls sets him on
fire with wrath, and he takes this shep-
herd by the throat and pushes back an 4
other till he falls over the trough and
aims stunning blow between the eyes
of another as he cries, 'Begone, you
villainsp' and he boots and roars at the
sheep and cattle and camels of these in
yaders and drives them back, and hav
ing cleared the place of the desperadoes
he told the seven girls of this Midianite
Eheik to gather their flocks together and
bring them again to the watering.
Oh, you ought to see fight between
the shepherds at we'll in the orient as
I saw it in December, 1890 There were
here group of rough men who had
driven the cattle many miles. and here
another group who had driven their
cattle as many miles Who should have
precedence? Such clashing of buckets!
Such hooking of horns! Such kicking
of hoofs! Such vehemence in a language
fortunately could not understand
Now the sheep with peculiar mark
across their woolly backs were at the
trough and now the sheep of another
mark. 1t was one of the most exciting
scenes ever witnessed. An old book
describes one of these contentious at an
eastern well when it says: Zone day
the poor men, the widows and the or
phans met together and were driving
their camels and their focks to drink
and were all standing by the water side.
Dali came up and stopped them all and
took possession of the water for his
masters cattle. Just then an old woman
belonging to the tribe of Abs came up
and accosted him In a suppliant manner
saying; BE SO good, Master Dali, as to
let my cattle drink. They are all the
property possess and I live by their
milk. Pity my flock, have compassion
on me. Grant my request and let them
drink. Then came another old woman
and addressed him: oh, Master Dali, I
Time has dealt hardly with me. It has
aimed its arrows at me and it's daily
and nightly cafamities have destroyed
all my men. have lost my children
and my husband. and since then have
been in great distress. These sheep are
all that possess. Let them drink, for
I live on the milk that they produce.
Pity my forlorn state. have no one to
tend them. Therefore grant my suppl
cation and of thy kindness let them
drink But in this case the brutal
slave, SO far from granting this humble
request, smote the woman to the |
ground"
The Bride of Moses.
A like scrimmage has taken place at |
the well in the triangle of Arabia be- |
tween the Bedouin shepherds and Moses
the cause of the seven |
daughters who had driven their fathers |
hocks to the watering. One of these
girls, Zipporah, her name meaning
little Bird, was captured by this he
roic behavior of Moses; for however