The commonwealth. (Scotland Neck, N.C.) 1896-1929, 1907-01-03
SATURDAY
NIGHT TALKS.
BY F. e. DAWSON, RUTLAND VT.
THE WORLD WE LIVE IN.
Jan. 6. '07-(Gen. 1:1-25.)
BY F. e. DAWSON,
RUTLAND VT.

This Is a wonderful world in which
to live. For six Thousand years its
Inhabitants have been ransacking 1t
from cellar to roof, and every genera
ton has discovered some new adap-
tation Of it, and stood amazed at Its
vastness, its variety, and its perfect
equipment for the home of man.
Look at it's carpets,-gretn grass,
interviewer with figures of flowers.
Behold it's ceiling, frescoed with
cloud-tints, and luminous with con-
stellations Of stars. Its foundations
the everlasting rocks. Its draperles,
the rainbow colors of the autumn
foliage, or the bursting buds and APP
pie blossoms and green leaves OF the
spring. It's front door,-the flaming
sunrise through which the day comes
In. It's back door, the gorgeous sun
set through which the day goes out.
It's chandelier and candalabre, the
sun by day, the moon and stars by
night. It's chimneys, Vesuvius and
Stromboli, with multitudinous lesser
safety valves all around the planet.
It's flour-bins, the wheat fields OF Eu-
rope, Asia and America. Its safe de-
post vaults crammed with yellow
metal, only waiting for business to fit
its key to the locked up treasure. Its
coal bins stored with fuel to warm
the world. Its atmosphere vocal with
the music of birds. It's hills populous
with sheep and cattle Its valleys
plantations clothe the nations, while
in all the earth the hum Of busy fac
tories is heard turning out richer
attire for those who prefer linen, or
woollen, or silken or leathern, or
furs. The air is just adapted to our
breath, the water is just adapted to
our taste, sound is just adapted to
our hearing. We cannot imagine
better color for the sky, than blue,
for the grass, than green, for the
water, than crystalline. He who SLAM
ders this world, only exposes bis ig-
norance, for those who know 1t best,
and are most familiar with its mag
nificent proportions and properties,
unite in declaring that as residence
for the human race, it could not be
improved upon. The fact that peo-
pie grumble about the weather Is no
evidence that it isn't all right. 1t Is
difficult to imagine some people per-
fectly satisfied in Paradise ITSELF
They would be uneasy unless they
could find something that needed
fixing.
Now, how did all this wonderful
home of man come about? Who Is
responsible for it's architectural
beauty? Who reared the pillars of
the universe, and sent this planetary
bal spinning down the grooves OF
time with such well-ballasted ma
chinery that it has never jumped the
track? There is only one answer.
There are theories enough. Plenty
of big men and little men, have Ia
ken pad and pencil and figured out q
speculation, more or less plausible
and acceptable to those who deny the
supernatural. They talk learnodly
about "star DUST and centripedal
motion, and germs" and "hypothe-
ses," and when they have enveloped
US In an Egyptian darkness OF
"guesses," they declare that the mys-
terry is inscrutable. Very we'll, leave
them there to founder in the fog
bank Of materialism, and turn to the
first verse of the first chapter OF
Genesis, and read the answer. In
the beginning God created the heav-
ems and the earth" 1t will be just as
well to let that stand until some bet
ter explanation is offered. l would
not be in a hurry to expurgate those
first ten words Of the Bible.
Napoleon Bonaparte. pacing the
de.k of a ship overheard some of his
| skeptical officers scouting the idea
of a God, and suddenly pausing IN
his walk pointed to the midnight
| heavens, all asparkle with light, and
said, Gentlemen, who made all
that2" and in the presence Of such q
| spectacle they were dumb. The Bible
| is the only book in the world that has
| the glorious audacity to answer Ma
polcon's question and it has never
been disproved. "In the beginning
God created the heavens and the
earth"
"a fire mist and a planet;
A crystal and cell,
| A jelly fish and saurian,
| And caves, where cave men dwell
| Then a sense of law and beauty,
And a face turned from the clod-
Some call 1t evolution,
And others call it God
"a haze in the far horizon,
| The infinite tender sky,
The ripe, rich tint Of the corn fields
And the wild geese sailing high,
And all over uplands and lowlands
The charm of the golden rod -
Some Of us call 1t autumn,
And others call it God.
Like tides on a crescent sea beach,
When the moon Is new and thin,
Into our hearts high yearning
| Comes yelling and surging In
Comes from the mystic ocean
Whose rim no foot has trod-
Some of US call it longing,
And others call it God.
| ga njckot Trojan On Autv