Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1905-09-22

I
under shepherds. lie takes his stan
ana climbs up the mountain side
Higher and higher he goes until bis
parched lips call. Drink. drink: give
me drink" lie reaches MP and pulls
OF leaf from an overhanging branch
He twists II into a more beautiful
chalice than was ever handed forth nv
the Egyptian cup bearers at Pharaoh's
court. Then he stoops down and lifts
up the water out or the gushing spring
The rocks seem 10 close I'm about him
He seems to be I'm a temple. and the
waters at his feet seem 10 be holy
waters" holy because they have been
touched by the finger or God. Then
he stretches bis tired limbs upon a
couch OF moss. Then the same bird
that called him from his herd now
brings to him his companions. and they
begin TO sing. A gentle eyed deer
pokes forth her head from the thIcke,
and seems TO say: "Who art thou-a
friend or an enemy? Dare trust INV
little fawn in thy sight while I ouench
my thirsty" Then the leaves begin 10
sway and sigh. That peace OF the
woods comes over the happy prophet
as he says: Yes. God has made the
mountains. God has made the gold
Cod has made the silver and the
precious stones buried here. He has
made the woods OF the mountains, the
trees and the moss. the birds and the
flowers and the brightly colored leaves.
He has made the brooks to sing as well
as his featbered songsters. Truly God
is the God Of peace, the God OF Joy. the
God Of happiness. II man Is unhappy.
then it is because as sinner he is out
OF touch with God" Do you feel that
in the symbols OF the gold. the silver.
the precious stones and the moist. fra.
grant leaves OF the woods Amos is
speaking today?
The God OF Forgiveness.
The God OF peace of the mountains
is also the God of forgiveness and par
don. We see the strong limbed hunter
start forth for the chase There arc
health and vigor in every swing. Or
we see the Alpine climber 90 forth not
to conquer beast. but glacier and elf
and to win exhilaration from unscaled
heights. The prime OF manhood Is
when its eye looks into the open jaws
OF death is there also. Or ! see the
sngler wading up and down the trout
streams. But, rs 1 see the sportsman
and the man of health hunting or fish,
ing or climbing In the mountains. I
also see the poor invalid crawling there
or being carried there or lying hack
listlessly in an armchair. His eyes
have an unnatural luster; his cheeks
are flushed; he coughs much: he has
the awful pain in his chest. Then see
him under the powerful tonic Of the
ozone OF the Adirondacks or the Alps.
growing stronger and stronger. The
cough grows less and less and fnally
dies away. The tOttering gait is chang
ed for the heelthful stride. The in
valid who was carried to the woods
goes forth well and physically renovat-
ed. oh, why cannot the God OF the
hills be today the God OF health? Can
not he, will not he cure that old chronic
disease Of sin which has been cursIng
us for many years? Cannot, will not he
do this. II we only climb up 10 him on
the Mount OF TRANSPORTATION and
throw ourselves at his feet as we cry.
Jesus. my Savicar. my Lordf"
But I must not stop here, even IL
would. The love OF God Is found In the
strength OF the hills, but Gods limit OF
forgiveness and pardon are found there
also. Though God is ready to receive
us II we come TO him now. the figure
OF my text distinctly proves that there
will come a time when he will say:
Not unto all who call Lord. Lord.
unto me will ! open unto them, for
unto many In that day / will say. 1
know you not" The future destrue-
ton OF the hills symbollzes It.
There is n limit TO Gods patience.
Did you ever stop 20 think that as hills
have time I'm which they were created
they shall also have n time in which
they shall dieG Indeed, many OF the
hills OF the past have died already.
Once. says the legend. a continent
ridged with the highest of mountain
chains stretched itself between the old
world and TIE new. The Azores and
the Canary islands are claimed to have
been the tops OF these very mountains.
The Mayas, the original inhabitants OF
fucatan ut the time OF the conquest OF
Peru by Pizarro. were supposed 10
have been related TO the ancient in
habitants OF this sunken continent.
which was called Atlantis. Among
the Mayas the historian finds almost
the same kind or worship which was
practieed amoAg the inhabitants OF the
Nile. fucatan architecture is very
similar to the Egyptian architecture.
Every student knows how characters
Tic Egyptian architecture was and IL
today. Some OF the ancient writer's
make mention OF this strange island
continent Sir Thomas More founded
his Utopia there. Yet the student OF
deep sea soundlngs finds that the leg
endary continent OF Atlantis. with ali
Its mighty hills. was at last sunk In
the mighty deep.
Opportunity May he Lost.
In Java. few years ago, the great
hrakatoa volcano. after erupting for a
few days. suddenly exploded. The is-
iand or Java was literally split fn
twain. Sixty thousand corpses fioate6
upon the surface OF the sea. A great
tidal wave forty feet high arose and
swept on and lifted n German man-of-
war and carried 1t twenty miles inland
and there left It stranded. Java IS
today over 200 miles from India. There
are many reasons to believe that this
Island was once connected with the
mainland. The inhabitants of India
and Java have the same customs. They
speak almost the same language They
worship the same gods. In their for
ests they hunt the same kinds of wild
beasts as are found in India. Yer
all or that connecting belt of 900
miles OF land with It's mountains has
entirely disappeared As the God OF
the hills is some day going to destroy
Nils mountains. some day he is going
TO destroy our rejected opportunities
for salvation. Thus. my friends. as we
look on unto the hills, as did the
psalmist, from whence cometh o,y