Connecticut western news., 1901-08-08

wAsHINGToS, Aug. An this dis course Dr. Talmage corrects some of the false notions about religion and represents 1t as being joy inspiring in- stead of dolorous: text, II Chronicles K, 9, 'Of spices great abundance; nei- ther was there any such spice as the queen of Sheba gave King Solomon"
 What Is that building out wonder, glittering in the sun? Have you not heard? It Is the house of the forest of Lebanon. King Solomon has just talk en to 1t his bride. the princess of Egypt. You see the pillars of the DOT tico and great tower. adorned with 1000 shields of gold. hung on the out side of the tower 500 of the shields of gold manufactured at Solomon's order; 800 were captured by David. his fa- ther. in battle. See how they blaze in the monday sun!
 Solomon goes up the ivory stairs of his throne. between 12 lions in Statu- ary. and sits down on the back of the golden bull the head of the huge beast turned toward the people. The fam fly and the attendants of the king are so many that the caterers of the palace have to provide every day 100 sheep and 13 oxen, besides the birds and the yenison hear the stamping and paw ing of 1000 fine horses in the royal sta bles. There were important officials who had charge of the work of gather ing the straw and the barley for these horses. King Solomon was an early riser. tradition says, and used to take ride out at daybreak. and when in his white apparel behind the swiftest horses of all the realm and followed by mounted archers in purple. as the cav alcade dashed through the streets of Jerusalem 1 suppose it was something worth getting up at o'clock in the morning to look at.
 Solomon was not like some of the kings of the present day-crowned i'm becility. All the splendors of his pal ace and retinue were eclipsed by his intellectual power. Why. he seemed to know everything. He was the first great naturalist the world ever saw. Peacocks from India struttcd the ba- saltic walk. and apes chattered in the trees, and deer stalked the parks. and there were aquariums with foreign fish and aviaries with foreign birds, and tradition says these birds were so well tanned that Solomon might walk clear across the city under the shadow of their wings as they lowered and fitted about him.
 Solomon's Wisdom.
 More than this, he had great repu- tation for the eonundrums and riddles that he made and guessed. He and Efny hiS nQi&rhhnr usp1 n cit by the hour and ask riddles. each one paying in money if he could not an- swer or guess the riddle. The Solomon ic navy visited all the world. and the sailors. of course. talked about the wealth of their king and about the rid dies and enigmas that he made and solved, and the news spread until Queen Balkis. away of south. heard of 1t and sent messengers with few rid dies that she would like to have Solo mon solve and few puzzles that she would like to have him find out. She sent, among other things, to King Sol omon a diamond with a hole so small that a needle could not penetrate 1t. asking him to thread that diamond. And Solomon took a worm and put 1t at the opening In the diamond. and the worm crawled through, leaving the thread fin the diamond. The queen also sent a goblet to Solomon, asking him to fill 1t with water that did not pour from the sky and that did not rush out from the earth. and immedi- ately Solomon put slave on the back of a swift horse and galloped him around and around the park until the horse was nigh exhausted. and from the precipitation of the horse the gob- let was filled. She also sent to King Solomon 500 boys in girls dress and 500 girls In boys dress. wondering If he would be acute enough to find out the deception. Immediately Solomon, when he saw them wash their faces, knew from the way they applied the water that 1t was all a cheat.
 Queen Balkis was so pleased with the acuteness of Solomon that she said, .I'll just go and see him for myself" Yonder it comes-the calvacade-horses and dromedaries, chariots and chariot eers, jingling harness and clattering hoofs and blazing shields and flying en- signs and clapping cymbals. The place Is saturated with the perfume. She brings cinnamon and saffron and cala- mus and frankincense and all manner of sweet spices. AS the retinue sweeps through the gate the armed guard in- hales the aroma. Halt" cry the char ioteers as the wheels grind the gravel in front of the pillared portico of the king. Queen Balkis alights In an at mosphere bewitched with perfume. AS the dromedaries are driven up to the kings storehouses and the bundles of camphor are unloaded and the sacks of cinnamon and the boxes of spices are opened the purveyors of the palace dis cover what my text announces: "Of spices, great abundance. Neither was there any such spice as the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon"
 Sweet Spices of Religion.
 Well. my friends, you know that all theologians agree In making Solomon a type of Christ and in making the queen of Sheba type of every truth seeker and l will take the responsibility of saying that all the spikenard and cas- sia and frankincense which the queen of Sheba brought to King Solomon is nightly suggestive of the sweet spices of our holy religion. Christianity is not a collsctior of sharp teehnicalities
 . - and angular facts and chronological tables and dry statistics. Our religion is compared ts frankincense and to cassia, but never to nightshade. It Is bundle of myrrh. It Is a dash of holy light. It is sparkle of cool foun- tains. It is an opening of opaline gates It is collection of spices. Would God that we were as wise in taking sRces to our divine King as Queen Balkis was wise In taking the spices to the earthly Solomon.
 The fact is that the duties and care: of this life, coming to us from time tC time, are stupid often and inane ant 1,tnlaro hlo uoro ara mon who hay,