The Alaska citizen., 1916-10-02
THE UNWRITTEN TEXT.

THE UNWRITTEN TEXT.
 And again he stopped down, and wrote on the ground" John S:S.
 Somehow the scarlet man is able to escape much of the criticism and | scorn that is the result of the life of sin Nature has favored him and he can more successfully cover the evil practices and degrading re-
 suits of his folly Often in his criti
 cism and scorn of those less for
 tunate he is the harshest and se
 verest, knowing no pity and eXer- cising little regard for the better ment of those not so much shining as sinned against Knowing his ad
 vantage, he makes evil used of it to keep in easy transgression those who have fallen, or to scorn them mos
 when they would endeavor to recall the days of passion and years of he demands the letter of the law in their punishment Thinking not of his worse guilt, he would punish | the weaker soul in the name of re- ligion. Thus did Jesus come face to face with men of His day when he was called upon to deal with the woman of the street. A guilty one was brought into His presence. | The evidence was against her. Calm i ly she waited the interpretation of the law that would stone her. Je- everyone present. He knew the | backnesS of those hearts before him; He knew the demon of their actions. Calmly he wrote on the dust of the temple stones. It was the only words that were recorded by His hand, and they were but for moment The stern, but wicked, accusers grow impatient. Why does not He interpret the law and speedi- | ly put it into execution. But He writes as though he had not heard | lieHi oo WLtu lHeS COulluueu dSh- ing Him, he lifted himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her" "Without sin among i you were the words that silenced them. And they which heard it, being convicted by their own con hy | (sneaked out is the word) beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst" Thus lest some reformer would grow dis couraged Jesus has left us this story. It is story of a human dere- lCt. Tn her Illuminating book Jane Addams has discussed An Ancient Evil in Modern Society," With per
 feet frankness and the utmost deli cacy she has told the story of the cede that her portrayal of the events of history, as illustrated by the so- cial evils of Jerusalem and Ephesus, in Athens and Corinth, in Paris and London, ill New York and Chicago, la clear, accurate, startling, and de-
 pressing to the last degree" Re formers stand in wonder and de- spair of any remedy or reformation. i Day by day we get articles on ev
 cry hand portraying the history of human delinquency. What hopeless the pages, Do drugs and drink en- tirely destroy the will? Is it true that there is nothing left to which an appeal can be made? Equal tt all other tasks, even physical death, is an Omnipotent God unequal to the task of the recovery of the lost woman? Just here to recover our faith He tells another story: it is another type of human derelict. One night He went to Simon, the rich mans house, as guest of honor. The reception was large and the house packed. In the dark, hoping to es- cape observation in the shadows, young girl entered the room, and knelt at the couch upon which Jesus reclined. Guests who were cynical looked knowingly at each other. Perhaps the young girl had heard Jesus often. Respectable men 1 like Nicodemus had gone to Jesus by night with their story of hidden trouble. Now, in turn, this girl, with her broken heart, turned to One who seemed to embody her last chance, her last hope. Her story is told in an old Italian panel, paint ed by master. The panel repre- sents the unfolding story of the girls experience. We see Jesus standing for moment before an open window. beyond which is a beautiful girl, surrounded by admir- CTS, who stretch out the cup of flame, and wreathe her forehead with blossoms, and bribe her with rings and gold Suddenly Jesus looks into her eyes, reads her story and knows her life And all the dis
 guises fall away. and without word Jesus disappears. In the next panel the girl has torn the wreaths from her forehead, flung the rings and jewels on the floor, is grinding be-