Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1906-02-08
Caln1aQe
Sermon
ITO BE Continued
BY Rev.
Frank De Witt Talnsee, d, d.

Los Angeles, Cal, Feb. 4.-In this
sermon the prea shows that there is
a time for spiritual az well as physical
rest and recupcration and that we are
made all the stronger and ADLER for the
battle of life through the strength the
soul derives from such seasons of re-
tirement and contemplation. The text
is Galatians i, Il, But | went into
Ara bia'
What to you is the most wonderful
country in the world once asked an
old traveller. Without any doubt" he
said. lit is Egypt what, Egypt.
exclaimed. why Egypt was not to
me very absorbing Then" said my
friend. you have never sailed up the
river Nile. You may have stopped a
few days at Cairo and perfunctorly
visited the pyramids but you have new
er sailed up the river Nile and explored
the ruins Of Memphis and Assiout and
Abydos and Thebcs. went to Egypt
expecting to stay there only few
days. ] stayed three weeks. wish
might have stayed there three years.
And one of my lfes dreams is to 60
back 10 ~ - before die and do as
did Georg k,ber> when he wrote his
famous book. "Picturesqne Egypt" He
not only Travelled through the country,
but he lived there for months and
months. He fitted up one Of the 'tomhs
Of the kings for his study. He ate and
slept and breathcd there the atmos-
pbere OF Egypt's historic past by dwell
ing there as Tissot studied the life OF
Christ by going and dwelling for years
among the natives Of Palestine"
Then after my friend had wildly de-
scrIbed for me the Journey up the Nile
he gave me II description of a trip he
took into the Sahara desert. Mile after
mile he went unti there was nothing
before him or on either side Of him or
behind him but Il great sea Of sand
Along the valley of the river Nile there
were the most luXuriant harvest fields
of the warld. but rs soon as he turned
his back upon that river he found moth
ing but an apparently endless area of
sand. Not one spear of grass was
growing there Not one tree was rea CHI
ing out its strong branch and bcckon-
ing. Come, traveller. and lie under nv
shadow" Not one bird was cooling
his parched throat by some running
brook to sing another song. Not one
farmhouse or one village greeted his
vision. There We're mountains of sand,
valleys of sand, plateaus Of sand, roll
Ing prairies Of sand, great heaving tidal
waves of sand nothing was there but
sand. So completely devoid of all life
was this region of sand that not even
lizard or a jackal came In sight.
Not ny or a mosquito buzzed about
his eyes. Not a buzzard's wing was
seen atloat in the heavens of blue.
There was not the rustic of one leaf
or the swapping of one twig. The only
sound heard was the pattering of his
camels feet as they sank into the aw.
ful, the appalling, the endless sand.
Dreary Waste.
What the Sahara desert is to north.
ern Africa the Arabian desert is to
'SoNh VstVlh hoiu i.lht me Sunura.
with Its luXuriant valley of the river
Nile, Arabia has its Gases, its places
where vegetable life can grow. But
for the most part Arabia is a weary
waste OF sand II you would like a
full description of it read about Arabia
In Lew VILLAGES "Princc of India"
There is found as wonderful a piece of
word painting in reference TO its sands
and it's endless silence as the Indiana
author gave in his famous chariot race
OF Ben Hur. But not alone TO Lew
Wallace do we have TO 20 TO find a de-
scription of its loneliness. The Greeks
and Romans used to say, "All Arabia
Ia divided into three parts-Arabia Pc.
trae, or the stony part; Arabia Deserta,
or the desert part, aud Arabia Felix,
or the happy part" But where the
stony part ends aud the desert part
begins 10 very hard TO distinguish,
While the happy part is Of very small