The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1910-05-19

Salome reported the matter at once
,inquiring of the mother what gifts
she should request. We can better i'm.
ingin than describe the surprise of
the girl when told by her mother 10
request the head of John the Baptist
on platter. We may conceive what
disappointment this would mean:
what visions of the beautiful and
precious things 1t would DESTROY
with what surprise Salome must have
asked as to why this grewsome gift
should be given. We can imagine the
mother Kissing to her that the death
of John the Baptist was the most
necessary thing I'm the world for them
both--that without II any day might
| see them hurled from conditions OF
tnfluence into the ABYSS of degrade
ton and poverty. We can imagine
her saying. This, SaIome, is the
priceless gift which you must ask from
the King. And the power of the wo-
man over both the King and the
daughter was wonderfully exempIifled
In the result. Salome went gaily
again amongst the company of no.
bles whom she had charmed and in n
loud voice accepted the Kings offer of
Whatever she would choose, even to the
half Of his Kingdom and stated that
accordingly the gift should be the
head of the Prophet on platter.
! The Kings conscience was not quito
dead. He was grieved; bat his pride
= as well as his subserviency to Hero
dias controlled him. He reasoned that
Tor King to give his word of honor
In the hearing of mobiles and princes
land then to repudate II, would be to
him lasting shame. All, what an IL
lustration of how "the fear of man
bringeth snare! What lesson we
read in this!--that mans first re-
,sponsibilty is to his God and to his
conscience, whatever the cost Ira
dition has it that Herod was haunted
with fear the remainder of his days.
1t Is in line with this that when he
heard of Jesus and his mighty works,
he expressed the conviction that
somehow, the spirit or power of John
had passed to Jesus.
our lesson brings before us two strong
and two weak characters. John and
Herodas Were strong characters, the
one. for the right and for God, the other
for selfish ambition and sinful indul-
gence of IL. The one swayed his nat
ion for their good and prepared the
,pyorthy remnant to receive Messiah's
message. The other swayed the King
and her daughter to infamy, murder
and disgrace, and terribly blackened
her own character. Johns reward lies
I'm the future, when he, as a member
of the Ancient Worthy class, will come
| forth to n "better resurrection'--to he
associated with Abraham Isaac and
Jacob and all the prophets In the
earthly phase of the Mlllennial King
dom.
Herodias, surely continuously unhap-
'py, finally persuaded the King to a
course which led to his banshment, In
which she shared. Her future, accord
! ing to the Bible, will be a resurrection
to shame and lasting contempt Daniel
'12:2) Inasmuch as she degraded her
self and miss grand opportunities, we
may assuredly know that she VIII
come forth in the Millennium greatly
Handicapped by her improper course In
the present life. 1t may take centuries
even under the favorable conditions or
Christ's Kingdom. for such deeply
dyed character to purge itself OF the
shame and the lasting contempt ana
to rise gradually to true nobility and
human perfection, or falling so to do
| to die the. Second Death.