The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-03-06
BY wIHLIAM T. ELLIS.

BY WILLIAM 1T. ELLIS.
 The reported deat. of the great Ne- gus of Abyssinia. King Aenslek. links this old Bible story to present. day y news. The Ethiopia of the New Tss- | lament episode is generally identified | with Abyssinia, the country which a 1 few years ago startled civilization by defeating the forces of Italy Abys- sinia is an old and proud nation, and nominaily Christian. Its ruler claims l descent not only from the Candace of the present lesson. but also from King Solomon.
 The outstanding character in the in- cident which constitutes this Sunday school Lesson is the prime minister or the queen of Ethiopia. The common impression is that eunuchs are mere menial servants and palace messen- gers. Quite the contrary is frequently the case. as in this instance. For f1f- teen years past one of the most potent figures in the national affairs of China has been a certain eunuch. who has been raised to princely rank. Prob ably the recent overthrow of Yuan Shi-Kat was in part due to this eunuch's reactionary machtnations. In winning Candace's prime minister Philip achieved a distinctive victory for Christianity.
 The Great Procession.
 The scene of this dramatic meeting between Philip and the eunuch was a. desert place on the way between Je- rusalem and, Gaza. The spectacle makes an appeal to the imagination. for this eunuch was one of the proselytes of the gate, believers In Judaism. who was on his way from the temple at Je- rusalem. Alone he was. except for his retinue. yet he was a part of the most significant procession of his day. From all. parts of the known world devout Jews and converts made their way to and from the hill of Zion. They were multitude in number and an influ- ence beyond measure.
 Yet vastly greater Is the procession which. today goes up every Sabbath to the new Zion. the house of God. There Is stimulus for ones faith in a con- temptation of the innumerable host of men, in teeming cities and in desert highways, who are going to and from the church of the Christ whom Philip expounded to the Ethiopian, The mod ern Zion is represented by the stately cathedrals of Europe, by the New Eng land meeting houses, by the great Christian temple in Uganda; by | churches in every heathen land: and l men of all colors and races and condt- | tions are following in the train of the Ethiopian eunuch. Whoso has open eyes may see, like the servant of 1s- | f6el anCtent prOpHety q ~WHoAc hoSt oA the army of God in procession to Zion. l What . Person Rends.
 | One unconsciously puts his fellow | travellers into certain classifcations by
 what he sees them reading. The kind | of literature which congresses one Is pretty clear index to ones character, | culture, and caLibre. Even the social
 status of stranger may be reason ably gauged by the kind of book which hn fo a fnfpraaffnD fn
 call how a common book has brought | together many of the best friends; 0
 kinship of taste in literature Is still
 one of the most delightful ties that ] bind friends.
 It was well for the eunuch that out
 on the desert, where nobody was at hand to pass judgment upon him, he did not indulge In some furtive | glimpses into the latest issue of The
 "Jerusalem Scandal-Monger." He was l engrossed. rather. in reading a scroll
 of Holy Writ, thus employing his time
 to the best advantage. He knew the
 art of beguiling a Journey, and he
 used 1t as an opportunity for the cult ure of his best self. Many persons who travel are idle all the while: others, ! more careful of their time. plan that even the momentary passage through 6 tunnel shall minister to their spirit ual development. One of the most striking bits of recent magazine poetry expressed workers worship while riding in the New York Subway. Some persons carry pocket volumes of good literature--in most cases, of course. the Bible itself-that they may thus minister to their spirits in moments of enforced leisure.
 The Hard Book.
 It may frankly be confessed that there Is a great deal of cant in much that is said concerning the Bible. The advice is given indiscriminately to all classes of people to read the Bible, as if all parts of the Bible were alike en- tertaining and inspiring and all minds were fitted to extract profit from 1t. The truth Is that the Bible in most places is a hard book to read. Bible reading is an acquired taste. Even those who do faithfully peruse the Scriptures do not always do so intelli- gently. The class to which the eunuch belonged is a large one: readers who do not understand what they read. Nor are all so honest as he. Some are con- tent with the mere sound of the famil- far and sacred words, and are little troubled that they do not discern the deeper meaning of the inspired page.
 The Bible needs interpretation. It should be read in the latest. simplest. and best translation. Scripture should be compared with Scripture. Every available source of light upon its pages should be utilized. for It is un- ique tribute to the Bible that it has for centuries exhausted the fullest re- sources of scholarship in its interpre- tation. and still to-day the profoundest minds are wrestling with 1t. Never theless. so wonderful is this book that 1t affords platable and nutritious men, tai food for the simplest and most un- tutored Christian who takes to it the same inuuiring mind that was possess cd by the Ethiopian eunuch.
 4 Wayside Meeting.
 Whoever is running Gods errands is sure of delightful surprises by the way. Philip was a sent man. q mes seneer who employed life in going where the Lord bade him. So, follow ing the strange command to leave the thriving new world in Samaria. he went south toward Gaza on what he together with the bretheren. might well have considered a wild goose