The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-08-19
T. Q. KING, 1916 First Ave.

club house rented for the purpose of
caring for reformed drunkards. One
night there staggered Into that house a
man who was appallingly drunk. do
you know what place this is?' the SUI
perintendent said This is not a saloon.
This is a teetotalers' club Il know ii"
said the man, land | am a teetotaler."
you a teetotaler? Why, you are beastly
drunk" 81 know that" said the man.
II know ! am awfully drunk, but am
a teetotaler just the same. | signed the
pledge an hour ago, and have not
touched a drop since. 1 have come here
for safety l want to keep the pledge,
but l know I cannot keep it in my own
strength, so 1 have come here to have
you help me keep It," All, the man was
right. Not in his own strength could
he keep the pledge. Not in our own
strength can we keep from shining. Let
us sign the pledge. Let us resolve not to
sin But let us run to Christ to have
him help us to keep that pledge. In our
own strength we are helpless. Let us
be like the cirrus clouds living high up
in the heavens and not like the morning
clouds living near the soil and of the
earth, smelling earthly.
Protected BY the Air.
But the morning clouds, in addition to
all their short lived beauty, are cap
able of producing the most marvellous
optical illusions. The atmosphere is an
elastic invisible fluid which surrounds our
old planet It's height has never been de-
termined any more than the depths Of
some parts of the ocean have been faith
omed. The atmospheric area may be miles
high; 1t may be hundreds of miles high.
But, no matter how high 1t is one fact
is certain-the atmosphere, among its
many duties, acts as protector to the
earth. 1t cools off the heat of the sun
before the sun rays reach the earth's
surface. 1t acts as a sunshade. If 1T were
not for the cooling process of the atmos-
phere and the suns rays were allowed
to strike directly upon the face of the
earth the sun would burn up this old
earth as quickly as a splinter would be
consumed in Nebuchadnezzar's fur
mace. But in passing through its atmos-
phere the suns rays may de DETECTED
when they meet the morning clouds. The
morning clouds may act In the same way
as does a looking glass in the hands of
a schoolboy. These rays are not so much
concentrated by the morning clouds into
one great ball of fire as they are some
times scattered to produce the strangest
pictures and the most enhancing delu-
sions.
The mirages seen at sea and those which
have lured to death the lost traveller look
ing for OSaSeS In the desert may ne
caused by the reflections of the morning
clouds. Monge, the noted savant, who ac-
companied Napoleon Bonaparte on his
African journey, tells how the french
army one day saw a beautiful mirage
when on an Egyptian march. The SOL
diers had been for hours without water,
No sooner did the aerial delusion APP
pear than before their eyes they saw
beautiful woodland. Out of this woodland
was flowing a clear stream Upon the
banks of this stream the cattle were COM
ing down to drink. Not only one man saw
this mirage but the whole army saw 1t.
At once the soldiers and war charges
broke ranks and ran on toward the sup
posed river bank, where they expected
to ouench their thirst. They ran on and
on until they dropped from exhaustion.
Napoleon nearly met his Waterloo on that
awful day Had the future conqueror
been destroyed then 1t would not nave
been by the hand of wellington, but
by the destroying finger of the morn
ing clouds.