Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1914-08-11
LIVING AND DYING NATIONS.
Rem arkable Sermon by Rev. Wilbur
r. Crafts at LittIeton Camp Meet
ino,

The following sermon, by Rev. Wilbur
F. Crafts, Phi. D., superintendent OF the
International Reform Bureau, was the
feature at Littleton campmeeting Sunday
afternoon:
The supreme fact of living history is
that Sabbath keeping nations are liter
ally riding on the high places of the
earth, in fulfillment of the promise in
Isaiah LvIII a
l have not read in years news item
so significant as the statement of Brad
street, a few years ago, that two-thirds
of the worlds mail is in the English
language. One-fourteenth of the worlds
population sends two-thirds of the mail.
which indicates a corresponding pre-
eminence in intelligence and wealth.
On the other hand the Sabbathless and
Sabbath breaking nations are poor every
way; poor physically-Italy once, and
France twice in 20 years past have cut
down their standard for soldiers till now
il is below FIVE feet; poor mentally they
have the greatest illiteracy, poor NOR
ally-they have the most vice and crime;
poor financially-their workmen, despite
longer hours per day and one more day
in the week. get the lowest wages; and
they are also the worst off politically,
vibrating between the extremes of des-
potism and anarchy, while Sabbath
keeping peoples alone enjoy the golden
mien of liberty under law.
l should proclaim that l had been run
away with by a lobby if l should claim
that the differences in nations are all
due to their treatment of the Sabbath.
Let US broadly study the Giving and dy-
ing nations"-to borrow Lord Salisbury S
expressive classification of the CULVER
ing map of the world as it now spreads
before us in dissolving views. What
time to teach geography and history!
Surely no true teacher can fail to teach
also great lesson in civics that throng
the map of the world today.
Lord Salisbury did not need to specify
the dying nations" Every we'll
informed person knew, whatever might
be debatable ground, that he must in
clude in that category, France and Spain
And every intelligent reader was bound
| to admit that the British Empire and the
United States belong to the living ma
tions."
These Giving nations" however, have
1
some serious symptoms, and should study
the dead and dying nations in order tc
keep out of their graveyard. With ma
lions once mighty dying before our eyes
we face anew as a living problem the
| old academic question of our college his
tory classes. rs 1t necessary that ma
ton should grow old and weak to die?
AS a matter of fact nations have hardly
averaged as long life as the patriarchs
and there Is no Methuselah among them
We are easily deceived by old names or
the maps. The body polite" the gov
eminent which bears the name today
may be but a young namesake of a body
polite deceased. that once occupied the
same territory.
The Graveyard Of Nations.
Where are the nations OF which We
read in the Bible and the classics? Tht
world empires of the Egyptians, Hittites
Assyrians, Babylonians, Scythians. Per
SLAMS, Macedonians, Romans, died II
turn. We read Egypt on the map, ou
there are no Egyptians, The wore
| Rome" is on the map, but there are ne
Romans. OF all great races of antiquity
the only ones that survive are the Jews
and Arabs both dead politically, sur