Connecticut western news., 1901-08-29

ksE ! WARRINGTON, Aug 25.-A Bible incl dent not often noticed is here used by pr. Talmage to Set forth practical and beautiful truth; text, II Corinthians xi, 33, Through a window in basket was let down by the wall"
 i Sermons on Paul in jail, Paul on Mars hill. Paul in the shipwreck, Paul before the sanhedrin, Paul before Fe- lix, are plentiful, but in my text we have Paul in a basket.
 Damascus Is Q city of white and glistening architecture, sometimes call ed "the eye of the east" sometimes called "a pearl surrounded by emer- alds," at one time distinguished for swords of the best material called Da- mascus blades and upholstery of rich est fabric called damask. A horseman of the name of Saul riding toward this city had been thrown from the saddle. The horse had dropped under flash from the sky which at the same time was so bright 1t 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 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, XII him, kill himw The city Is surrounded by 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. It was customary to lower baskets out of these balconies and pull up fruits and flowers from the gardens. To this day visitors at the monastery of 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 one place, now In another. He Is no coward, as 30 incidents In his life demonstrate, but he feels his work is not done yet, and so he evades assassination. 'Is that preacher herer' the foaming mob shout at one house door. 'Is that fanatic here?" the police shout at another house door. Some times on the street incognito he passes through clowd 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 wall. Here he is! Here he is" The voclferation and blasphemy and howl ing of the pursuers are at the front door. They break in. Fetch out that gospelizer and let us hang his head on the city gate. Where Is he" The emergency was terrible. Providentially there was good stout basket In the house. Paul's friends fasten rope to the basket. Paul steps into 1t. 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 in Paurs diary of travels: Through window in a basket was let down by the wall"
 Hanging by . Slender Rope.
 I observe first on what slender ten ure great results hang. The ropemak- CT who twisted that cord fastened to that lowering basket never knew how much would depend upon the strength of 1t. How if 1t had been broken and the apostles life had been dashed outi What would have become of the Chris tan church? All that magnificent mis- sionary work In Pamphylia, Cappado- cia, Galatia, Macedonia. would never have been accomplished. All his writ ings that make up so indispensable and enchanting part of the New Tes- lament would never have been written. The story of resurrection would never have been so gloriously told as he told 1t. That example of heroic and trium- phant endurance at Philippi, 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 tens crossing the sea have such an impor- tant passenger as had once boat of leaves from taffrail to stern only three or four feet, the vessel made water proof by a 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 1t? Vessels of war some times carry 40 guns looking through the porthOles. ready to open battle. But the tiny craft on the Nile seems to be armed with all the guns of thunder that bombarded Sinai at the lawgiving. On how fragile a craft sailed how much of historical importance!
 The parsonage at Epworth, England Is on fire in the night, and the father rushed through the hallway for the rescue OI HIS OeNth are out and safe on the ground, but one remains in the consuming building That one awakes and, finding his bed on fire and the building crumbling. comes to the window. and two peas ants make a ladder of their bodies, one peasant standing on the shoulder of the other. and down the human ladder the boy descends-John Wesley. If you would know how much depended op that ladder of peasants. ask the mil lions of Methodists on both sides of the sea. Ask their mission stations all around the world. Ask their hundreds of thousands already ascended to join their founder, who would have perish cd but for the living stairs of peasants shoulders.
 An Oasis of Light.
 An English ship stopped at Pitcairn AL -a-L-L A-A