Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1903-09-19

them live high, and the high -llying
softened the muscles of steel, weakened
the mighty moral fibre. destroyed the
splendid self-respect and self-conf-
dence and the man who had fought
his way to victory times without num-
Der could fight no morel According to
history. The soldiers. finding their
armor too heavy, first obtained leave
OF the emperor to abandon the culrass,
and afterward the helmet, so that, ex-
posed without protection to the strokes
Of the enemy their only thought was
flight"
The Roman manhood went with the
age OF poverty and simplicity. And
with the departure Of manhood entered
the demagogue. Says the author;
Ambitious mon began systematically
to corrupt the suffrage and TO debauch
Naned OF civic virtue AS the
great B0ssuet has observed, the senate
was filed with barbarians the Roman
blood became lntermixcd: the love Of
country by which Rome had made
herself great, was not natural TO those
citizens who came from abroad; di-
visions increased with this prodigous
increase of new citizens, and turbulent
spirits found therein new means for
the promotion OF disorder and for the
prosecution Of their ambitious plans.
THE demagogues had nothing to
lose; the piebald rabhle did not care
who won, so long as the winner, who
ever he might be, treated them well
and IN such miserable way did AL
mighty Rome come to her end.
"The mighty empire fell In obedience
to the law which, from the beginning
OF time, has never swerved a hairs
breadth from It's path, the law that Is
set forth in the terrible words.
" "rhe wicked shall be turned into
he'll, and all the nations that forget
Cod"
All this IL true, and should be well
considered in our time OF rivalry be-
tween empires and republics, for world
power But there is one special feature
OF Roman history that should be espec-
tally remembered. Rome, in the proyi-
dence OF God, was made a world power
In order that through its influence, the
church Of Christ should become a world
institution Under no previous rule
could that church have spread, as It
did under Rome. Rome had, to some
extent, united the world politically
under one scepter and religlously In
one Pantheon. Through Romes con-
quests one who spoke two or three Ian
guages could make himself understood
everywhere. A Roman citizen could
travel safely all over the known world.
Roman power was great preparation
for the missionary work that was Civ
EN- TO the church at that time.
But Rome refused to accept the truth.
She rejected the light for which her
power was made the bearer She be-
came prosecutor, and a slayer of the
followers OF the Nazarene. The Chris
tians prayed for her preservation, but
gradually she drowned In torrents of
blood those whose knees were constant
ly bent in prayer for her rulers and
institutions, and finally her downfall
came, when the voice OF supplcaton
was no longer heard within her bor-
ders-1when the church was driven out
into the wilderness, to escape the wa
ters OF error that flowed from the
mouth OF the drasoass 'The rejection of
the true light sealed the fate OF Rome
II was so with ancient Judah. Her
sins and shortcomings we're many, but
her doom came when her rulers forgot
themselves so far as to lncarcerate the
Prophet OF the Lord, jeremiah, because
he spoke to them the word OF the Lord
1t viii be the same with every coun-
try that has been given the light OF
truth, but wilfully rejects it. For that
is the condemnation, that the light has
come. but darkness was preferred, to
the divine rays.