Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1901-08-26

WASHINGTON, Aug. ga BIDle Incl
dent not often noticed is here used by
DR.. Talmage to set forth practical an(
beautiful truth; text, II Corinthians
xi, 33, Through a window in a basket
was L let down by the WALL
Sermons on Paul in Jail, Paul Oh
3-ars hill, Paul in the shipwreck, Pau
before the sanhedrin, Paul before Fee
lix, are plentiful, but in my text we
have Paul in a basket.
Damascus is a city of white and
glistening architecture, sometimes call
ed "the eye of the east" sometimes
called "a pearl surrounded by emer-
aids" at one time distinguished for
swords of the best material called Da-
mascus blades and upholstery Of rich
est fabric called damask. \ horseman
of the name of Saul riding toward this
city had been thrown from the saddle.
The horse had dropped under Il flash
from the sky which at the same time
was so bright it blinded the rider for
many days and, l think. so perma-
nently injured his eyesight that this
defect OF vision became the thorn in
the flesh he afterWard speaks Of. He
started for Damascus to butcher Chris
tians, but after that hard fall from his
horse he was q changed man and
preached Christ in Damascus till the
city was shaken to it's foundation.
The mayor gives authority for his ar
rest, and the popular cry is, XIII him,
kill him. Tie city IS surrounded h 4
high wall. and the gates are watched
by the police lest the Cilician preacher
escape Many Of the houses are built
on the wall, and their balconies pro-
jected clear over and lowered above
the gardens outside. 1t was customary
to lower baskets cut Of these balconies
anG pull up fruits and flowers from the
gardens. To this Gay visitors at the
monastery CT Mount Sinai are lifted
and let down in baskets. Detectives
prowled around from house to house
looking for Paul, but his friends hid
him now in enc place, now in another.
He is no coward, as 80 incidents in
his life demonstrate, but he feels his
work is not done yet, and so he evades
assassination. rs that preacher here"
the fOaming mob shout at one house
door. rs that fanatic here?" the police
shout at another house door. Some
times on the street incOgnitO he passes
through a c!Owd of clinched fists, and
sometimes he secretes himself on the
house top. At last the infuriate popu-
lace get on sure track OF him. They
have positive evidence that he is in the
house of one Of the Christians, the bal
cony of whose home reaches over the
T,O iS-f no i-''
yociferation and blasphemy and howl
Ing Of the pursuers are at the front
door They break in. 'Fetch out that
gospelizer ard let Us hang his head on
the city gate. Where is he:" The
emergency was terrible. ProvidentiaIly
there was a good stout basket in the
house. Paul's friends fasten q rope to
the basket. Paul steps into it. The bas-
ket is lifted to the edge Of the balcony
on the wall, and then while Paul holds
the rope with both hands his friends
lower away carefully and cautiously,
slowly but surely. farther down and
farther down. until the basket strikes
the earth and the apostle steps out and
afOot and alone starts on that famous
missionary tour the story Of which has
astonished earth and heaven. ApprOpri-
ate entry IL Pauls diary Of travels:
Through Il window in basket was
let down by the wall"
Hanging by Slender Rope.
1 observe first ca what 4 slender ten
ure great results hang. The ropemak-
er who twisted that cord fastened to
that lowering basket never knew how
much would depend upon the strength
of it How if it had been broken and
the apostles life had been dashed out?
What would have become of the Chris
tian church? All that magnificent mis-
sionary work in Pamphylia. CappadO-
cha, Galatia. Macedonia. would never
have been accomplished. All his writ
tngS that make up so Indispensable
and enchanting 4 part Of the New TeS-
lament would never have been written.
The story OF resurrection would never
have been so glOriOuSiy told as he told
it. That example Of heroic ana trium-
plant endurance at PhilipDi. in the
Mediterranean Euroclydon. under flag
citation and at his beheading would
not have kindled the courage of 10000
martyrdoms. But that rope holding
that basket, how much depended on it!
So again and again great results have
hung on slender circumstances.
Did ever ship of many thousand tons
crossing the sea have such an impOr-
tant passenger as had once q boat Of
leaves from taferail to stern only three
Or four feet, the vessel made water
proof by coat Of bitumen and floating
ON the Nile with the infant lawgiver Of
the Jews on board? What if some crOc-
Odile should crunch it? What if some
of the cattle wading in for a drink
should sink it? Vessels of war some