The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-01

Los Angeles, November 24.-While our people at this Thanksgiving season are gratefully recalling their material mercies, the preacher in this sermon points to the priceless blessing of wa ter as one which contributes most largely to our national happiness and prosperity. The text is l Corinthians x, 4, For they drank of that spiritual rock that followed them."
 Among the wonders of Yellowstone park there is not one more marvellous than it's Roaring mountain. It Is mountain about 300 feet high and about 1500 feet at it's base. It looks when not in action like q big sand dune in the midst of q barren desert There Is not a spear of grass growing upon it. There is not tree lifting it's branches upon it's sides to be kissed by the rising sun. There Is not bird liN- ing near it, nor rabbit nor a ground squirrel making it's home amid it's cav erns and rocks. Its sides are great barren waste. It seems to be a place forsaken of God and of man. But sud denly the guide says, Now look at wonder hill" And there before the tourists eyes is a most wonderful spec tacle. From out of the sides or tnls barren sand dune from the bare rocks and the dark caverns, there come leap ing forth innumerable geysers' My riads of fountains are in full play. There is hardly a bare spot to be seen. If seems as though an infinite power had driven upward from a great ocean in the depths of the earth a vast force of living water and made the barren mountain a fountain of innumerable rivulets.
 Well. I never think of the Roaring mountain in Yellowstone park m 1ull play. but I think of the mount of Ho- f,, ba Of desert of Sinai. There it has stood for ages Y ithout a tree or spear or grass growing upon it. As the lsraehtes, with parched tongues and cracked lips, stood looking at its sandy and rocky sides they could no more expect to get q drop of water out Of 1t than you could expect to find fountain spring ing up at the foot of the pyramids. But suddenly Moses smites those rocks. Then a great stream of water leaps out of those hillsides as the myriads or geysers spring up from the sides or Roaring mountain when 1t IS Tn Iuil play. These waters rush down the mountain side and form themselves into a great river. This river flows on fo the Red sea. And the 1sraelites during all their sojourn in the desert camp by the waters of thls river mus the great miracle of the ages was per formed when God gave drink 10 the wandering 1sraelitish tribes durlng their forty years journey in the VII derness. ,
 God gave water to the Israelites in the wilderness. and Christ has given water blessed water, to us as people III the new world As many Thanksgiving ser mons are being preached this week apoul the blessings of wheat and corn ana oats and homes and air and nauonai pros perity I will make water, naturai anu
 ,,l.ta .Nf1 1aaU sermon. I want to show you the m numerable blessings God has given to America in it's water supply. When you Eo home on Thanksgiving day to pam ouet rich in mercies, I want you to thank God for the pure water whlch ne mas provided in such abundance for you.
 In the first place, on this Thanksglving Sunday thank God for drinking water-for water which you can put to the parched lips to auench the recurring thirst; Tor water to fill the arteries with plood' TOT water without which in very lew days man would die a miserable death; Tor water the lack of which will turn man in a short time into raVins Iils.liis'c ad :, for water, which composes nearly 3o per cent of the human body.
 The Spiritual Water.
 Thank God for the drinking water which our civil engineers bring to us from the lakes and the rivers and the mountain snows, miles upon miles away; for the great reservoirs which at all times of the year furnish us with water enough to drink. In 1906 the officials Of Phila- delphia decided to lay huge water pipes through Chestnut street. When they dug down they found lying there great wooden oak logs, with a bore running through them ranging from six to F inches which had been placed there Ill 1799 to supply the city with water Thus for years upon years the municipal au- thorities of our cities have been going far away to bring down the drinking water to the people as King Solomon brought down water from the mountains for the inhabitants of Jerusalem. Each