The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1899-1900, 1899-05-31

home missionaries of the west, mar
tyr band of whom the world is not
worthy, toiling amid fatigues and ma
laria and starvation. "No, not If we
can help it. By what we and our chill
dren have suffered we forbid the banns
of that marriagel" "Nol" say all patri-
otic voices. "0ur institutions were
bought at too dear price and were de-
Tended at too great a sacrifice to be so
cheaply surrendered" "No!" says the
God of Bunker Hill and Independence
hall and Gettysburg. 81 did not start
this nation for such a farce" mol"
cry 10000 voices. ITO infdelity this
land shall not be married."
But there is another suitor that pre-
sents his claim for the hand of this re-
public. He is mentioned in the verse
following my text where 1t says: "As
the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride,
so shall thy God rejoice over thee 1t
is not my figure. 1t is the figure of the
Bible. Christ is so desirous to have this
world love Him that He stops at no hui
initiation of simile. He compares His
grace to spittle on the eyes of the blind
man. He compares Himself to hen
gathering the chickens, and in my text
He compares Himself to a suitor beg
ging hand in marriage. Does this
Christ, the King, deserve this land? Be-,
hold Pilates hall and the insulting eX-
pectoration on the face of Christ. Be-
hold the Calvarean massacre and the
awful hemorrhage of five wounds. ia
cob served IA years for Rachel, but
Christ, my Lord, the King, suffered in
torture 80 years to win the love Of this
world. AS often princesses at their very
birth are pledged in treaty of marriage
to princes or kings of earth, so this ma
ton at its birth was pledged to Christ
for Divine marriage.
Before Columbus and his 120 men en-
barked on the Santa Maria, the Pinta
and the Nina for their wonderful voy-
age, what was the last thing they did !?
They sat down and took the holy sac
rament of the Lord Jesus Christ After
they caught the first sight of this coun-
try and the gun of one ship had an-
nounced it to the other vessels that land
had been discovered, what was the song
that went up from all the three decks? ?
Gloria in EXcelsis." After Columbus
and his 100 men had stepped from the
ships deck to the solid ground, what
did they do? They all knelt and con-
secrated the new world to God. What
did the Huguenots do after they landed
in the Carolinas? What did the Hol-
land refugees do after they landed in
New York? What did the pilgrim
fathers do after they landed in New
England? With bended knee and up
lifted face and Heaven besieging prayer,
they took possession of this continent
for God. How was the first American
congress opened? BY prayer, in the
name Of Jesus Christ. From its birth
this nation was pledged for holy mar
riage with Christ.
And then see how good God has been
N u.s. Just open the map of the con-
tinent and see how it is shaped for inn
measurable prosperities. Navigable
rivers, more in number and greater
than any other land, rolling down on
all sides into the sea, prophesying large
manufactures and easy commerce.
Look at the great ranges of mountains
timbered with wealth on the top and
sides, metaled with wealth underneath.
One hundred and eighty thousand
square miles of coal One hundred and
eighty thousand square miles of iron.
The land so contoured that extreme
weather hardly ever lasts more than
three days-eXtreme heat or extreme
cold. Climate for the most part brac-
ing and favorable for Drawn and brain.
All fruits, all minerals, all haryests.
Scenery displaying an autumnal pa
geantry that no land on earth pretends
to rival. No South American earth
quakes. No Scotch mists. No London
fogs. No Egyptian plaques. No Ger
manic divisions. The people of the
United States are happier than any peo-
pie on earth. 1t is the testimony of
every man that has Travelled abroad.
For the poor, more sympathy; for the
industries, more opportunity. Oh, how
good he has been TO us and to our chill
dren. To Him-blessed be His mighty
name-to Him of cross and triumph, to
Him who still remembers the prayer of
the Huguenots and Holland refugees
and the pilgrim fathers-to Him shall
this land be married. oh, you Christian
patriots, by your contributions and
your prayers, hasten on the fulfillment
Of the text.
While some people may stand back
at the gates of the city saying: "Stay
back!" to foreign populations, l press
out as far beyond those gates as | can
press out beyond them and beckon to
foreign nations, saying: Come, come,
all we people who are honest and in
dustrious and God loving!" But say
you: ~ am so afraid that they will
bring their prejudices for foreign gov
ernments and plant them here" Alb
surd. They are sick of the governments
that have oppressed them, and they
want free America! Give them the
great gospel of welcome. Throw
around them all Christian hospitalities.
They will add their industry and hard
earned wages to this country, and then
we will dedicate all to Christ and "thy
land shall be married." But where
shall the marriage altar be? Let it be
the Rocky mountains, when, through
artificial and mighty irrigation, all
their tops shall be covered, as they will
be, with vineyards and orchards and
grain fields. Then let the Bostons and
the New Yorks and the Charlestons of
the Pacific coast come to the marriage
altar on one side, and then let the Bos-
tons and the New Yorks and the
Charlestons on, the Atlantic coast come
to the marriage altar on the other side,
and there between them let this bride
nf nations knepl and then ~ fha nrunn