Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1908-04-18

jewelers. store In this city. While /
stood by the counter a young man
came in and said: "How about that
watch OF mine? Can 1t stand the rail-
road testT "What do you mean by
that?" | asked. "Is the railroad mans
watch any different from any other
persons watch?' "Yes," the jeweler |
answered. every railroad man must
own perfect watch. 1t must not vary
in It's time a quarter Of a second a
week Each day the time Is sent over
the railroad lines. And each railroad, |
like the Santa Fe. has an official called /
the watch tester whose business is to
do nothing but test watches So Inn
portant Is his position that this official
is paid by the Santa Fe railroad $1,000
per year. II 1t was not for the perfec-
ton of the watches there would be
thousands upon Thousands OF lives
sacrificed each year by collisions"
When you begin to realize that life
and death hang upon the revolving
wheels Of little watch as well as up
on the great driving wheels of loco
motive. do you wonder that we have
accidents? Then consider the perfec-
tion Of machinery and the perfection
Of materials as well as the perfection
Of the calculations Of time necessary
to safeguard the lives Of the people
who travel. When I am passenger
on a steamboat ] spend hours down in
the hull watching the moving machin-
cry. When l am a passenger upon the
railroad train | try to sit upon the
platform Of the rear car and watch
the receding rails as the revolving
wheels carry us over them. I never
go up into a high building but l al
ways think, This high structure is
erected story upon story" One bolt
Of that steamboat machinery out of
place, one rail of that track spreading,
one girder of that building sagging,
would mean death to scores. perhaps
hundreds, of human lives.
The Danger From the Elements.
Then from studying the dangers
MulCu CFCi hCAO cAo
from which we are saved by human
care would have you turn your minds
to the dangers which threaten US from
earthquake and fire and lightning and
tornado and tidal wave. All, we may
be able to guard against dangers aris-
Ing from human fraities, but who can
| fight the elements when they begin to
rear and plunge and to kick and to
snort? The hard surface Of this earth
is only as the shell Of an egg Is to the
inside of the egg. The internal fires OF
the earth may burst forth at any time.
The tornadoes and cyclones are ready
to beat us down from above. There
needs but little shifting Of the earth's
surface and great tidal waves would
submerge our coast cities. Dangers,
dangers, dangers, are everywhere!
Thank God that he has cared for US
and protected us from physical de-
struction or, what is worse, from phys
ical mutilation and agony! Every day
and hour of our lives we have been
surrounded by perils from the forces
of nature. We, like Paul and his fell
low voyagers on the Alexandrian corn
ship. "have escaped safe to land"
But there Is still another fact to
which want to draw your attention in
reference to this text. | want you to
focus your eyes upon that little word
"all" Luke does not here say, And
Paul escaped safe to land" He does
not say. "And Paul and myself escaped
safe to land" But he does say, AND
so 1t came to pass that they escaped all
safe to land" That meant that IL
there were families upon that ship the
father and mother as we'll as the broth
ers and sisters or the children escaped.
All-yes. all-escaped safe to land.
Have you ever stopped to think how
much you are indebted morally and
spiritually to the fact that your godly
father and mother were preserved tc
train your youthful steps in life?
A Narrow Escape.
or course we all know that spiritual
life comes from Jesus Christ alone. de
Is the vine. and we are the branches
Rut we also know that Christ works
by human agency. He sends certain
disciples to us to lead us to the living
waters. In many cases these disciples
. are our parents. If we had not beer
led to the cross by Christian fatnel
, or mother. many Of us would never
have knelt there at all. And yet az
. Won not remember when as little boy
in the most critical time Of your lif'
vou almost lost that mother OF yours
, who was to be your best spiritua
ruide? Do you not remember the aw
| ful sickness she had when you wer'
/ about ten years of age? Once, twice
sometimes three or four times da!
the doctor came to the house. You re
} member how the doorbell was muff1et
, and perhaps the sawdust was throw
T in the street to stop the noise OF tn
rumbling carriage wheels. The younge
3 children were sent away to nelgn
D boris. You were kept at home In or
, der to run errands when the medicine
were needed. You can still remembe
: the solemn faces about you. You Oil
? not understand what 1t all meant a
e that time. but you do now. You re
3 member that midnight hour when eV
4 erything was in excitement and the
: said she would never come out OF tina
D sinking spell, but the doctor got ther
0 lust In time. Ah. 1t was an awru
? night! You remember how you wen
r to your father and said, Papa, can
s 60 in and kiss mamma tonightT an
he said: "Hush, Charley! Hush! You
mother is very sick. Let me undres
: you and hear you say your prayers
Then you remember as he kissed 20
good night he left tear on your lip
You remember during that night 20
did not sleep a wink. Aye, she had a
awfully close call! If she had die'
where would you be mentally, spiri