The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-01-01

Los Angeles, December 25.-In this ser mon the Christmas theme is presented with a new and picturesque setting, and the preacher finds in 1t an application 70 the universal needs of our modern life. The text is Luke H. 1O T bring you good tidings of great joy"
 Blessed, thrice blessed, is the advent of the messenger bringing tidings of great icy! Benjamin Disraen was welcomed back to England's capital by surging sea of happy faces, which blocked the streets about the lord mayors official res- idence as far as the eye could see, when he returned from the most famous of European conclaves of the representa- tives of many nations. Why? He came back with the memorable sentence upon his lips, T bring back to you peace with honor" No wonder the English multi tudes applauded their premier wherever he went Had Disrael not brought back peace and honor Europe would have been convulsed with an awful interna- tional war.
 When the treaty of Ghent' was signed by the Engfilish and American commls- sioners on December "A, 1874, the people of two nations were expecting that the war of 1872 would soon be terminated. The ship which bore the news, feace' peace, with honor," sailed into New 4ork harbor covered with bunting, It was welcomed with the shouts of cheering people and the booming of war guns. which were now to become the guns or peace. Of course many tear was sheo because Andrew Jackson had fought ms battle of New Orleans fifteen days after the signing of that treaty, but those tears did not prevent the glorious news wnich the ship brought from joyfully flying over the country with the wings or the morning. Everywhere the message met with glad acclaim, Peace, peace, peace with honorr' But, though there have been many messengers of glad tidings welcomed with joyful hosannas, no mes senger of good tidngs was ever so much needed as he who appeared on the first Christmas dawn of the worlds history. That was the Christmas morn when Jesus lay sleeping, little babe In the manager of Bethlehem of Judea.
 Let me describe the events which pre- ceded the advent of this angelic messen- ger. First. the topographic position or this angelic messenger. We are standing upon the Judaean hills overlooking the little village of Bethlehem. This Is sacred
  not be comforted. Here Benjamin was born and Rachael died. Here Boaz watched Ruth as she gleaned after the reapers. Here Samuel came to the home of Jesse to anoint David king of Israel. On the night of the nativity the Bethie- hemites could almost see the lights Of Jerusalem, only six miles away and all most hear the chanting in the temple and the music In the palace of Herod the Great were it not for the height of wonder mountain, which obliterated those lights and stopped the echoing sounds.
 Taking the Census.
 On that first Christmas eve the citiea and towns were crowded with men and women. The fiat had gone forth that a know how many soldiers he could de- pend upon in the provinces and how much taxes ought to be paid Rome was then the mistress and the queen of the world. The Jewish census was to be taken by families. Thus Joseph, the descendant of the great psalmist, David headed toward the little village of Bethlehem, where once the future warrior as a shep- herd boy tended his sheep, played upon his harp and practiced with his sling at a mark until he could take that deadly aim which was to say the mighty Philis- tine.
 Joseph is now climbing the lime rocks upon which is built the town of Bethle- hem. Footsore. weary and sad his face IS drawn and anxious. He Is hastening