The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1898-02-15
A FAITHFUL SISTER
DIR. TALMAGE TELLS AGAIN THE
STORY OF MIRIAM

Influenced for God
In this sermon of DR.. Talmage the
character of a wise, sympathetic and
self denying sister is set forth as an
example, and the story will set hun
dreds of men to thinking over old
times; text, Exodus ii, 4, And his sis
ter stood afar off to witness what
would be done to him."
Princess Thermutis, daughte- of
Pharaoh, looking out through the lat
tice of her bathing house, on the banks
of the Nile, saw a curious Dat III the
river. 1t had neither oar nor helm,
and they would have been useless any
how. There was only one passenger,
and that a baby boy. But the May
flower, that brought the Pilgrim faith
ers to America, carried not SO precious
a load. The boat was made Of the
broad leaves of papyrus, frightened to-
gether by bitumen. Boats were some
times made of hat material, as We
learn from Pliny and Herodotus and
LICCI1i oOtuC. AL oil LIZ 1CDAOW
children born" had been Pharoah's
order. To save her boy, J%ochebed, the
mother of little Moses, had put him
in that queer boat and launched him.
His sister Miriam stood on the bank
watching that precious craft. She was
far enough off not to draw attention
to the boat, but near enough to offer
protection. There she stands on the
bank-Miriam the poetess, Miriam the
quick witted, Miriam the faithful,
though very human, for in after time
she demonstrated it.
SHE HAD HER FAULTS.
Miriam was a splendid sister, but
had her faults like all the rest of US.
How carefully she watched the boat
containing her brother! A strong
wind might upset it. The buffaloes
often found there might in a sudden
plunge of thirst sink it. Some raven
Gus waterfowl might sWoop and pick
his eyes out with iron beak. Some
crocodile or hippopotamus crawling
through the rushes might crunch the
babe. Miriam watched and watched
until Princess Thermutis, a maiden on
each side of her holding palm leaves
over her head to shelter her from the
sun, came Down and entered her bath
ing house. When from the lattice she
saw that boat she ordered it brought,
and when the leaves were pulled back
from the face of the child and the boy
looked up he cried aloud, for he was
hungry and frightened and would not
even let the princess take i N The
infant would rather stay hungry than
acknowledge any one OF the cOurt as
mother. Now Miriam, the sister, in
cOgnitO, no one suspecting her rela-
ton to the child, leaps from the bank
and rushes down and offers to get a
nurse to pacify the child. Consent is
given, and she brings Jochebed, the
baby's mother, i%ncognito, none of the
court knowing that she was the moth
er, and when Jochebed arrived the
child stopped crying, for it's fright
was Gained and it's hunger appeased.
You may admire Jochebed, the moth
er, and all the ages may admire Moses,
but | clap my hands in applause at the
behavior of Miriam, the faithful, bril-
liant and strategic sister.
Go home" some one might have
said to Miriam. Why risk yourself
out there alone on the banks of the
Nile, breathing the miasma and in
danger of being attacked of wild beast
or ruffian? Go hOme!" No; Miriam,
the sister, more lovingly watched and
bravely defended Moses, the brother.
Is he worthy her care and courage?
oh, yes; the 60 centuries Of the worlds
history have never had so much in
volved in the arrival of any ship at
any port as in the landing of that
papyrus bOa calked with bitumen! Its
one passenger was to be a nOnsuch in
history-lawyer, statesman, politician,
legislator, organizer, ~cOnQuerOr de-
liverer. He had such remarkable
beauty in childhood that, Josephus
says, when he was carried along the
road people stopped to gaze at him,
and wOrkmen would leave their work
to admire him. When the king play
fully put his crown upon this boy, he
threw it off Indignantly Int put his
foot on it.
The king, fearing that this might
be a sign that the child might yet
take down his crown, applied another
test. According to the Jewish legend,
the king ordered two bowls to be put
before the child, n containing rubies
and the other burning Goals, and if he
took the Goals he was to live and if he
took the rubies he was to die. For
some reason the child took one of the
Goals and put it in his mouth, so that
his life was spared, although it burned
the tongue till he was indistinct of ut
terance ever after. Having come tC
manhood, he spread open the palms OF
his hands in prayer, and the Red sea
parted to let $4,000 people escape
n he put the palms of his hands
together in prayer, and the red sea
closed on a s~trangulated host.
GRAND IN LIFE AND IN DEATH.
His life SO unutterably grand, his
burial must be on the same scale. Goo
would let neither man nor saint mol
nrnh col have ANYTHING II do Will