p. 13 | Signs of the Times, Vol. 30, No. 13. (3/30/1904)

THE GRINDSTONE OF FATE.

By Roy Farrell Greene

[Roy Farrell Greene, in November Success.]

ONE day when I, a boy, bewailed the wealth to me denied, I recollect my Uncle Hiram taking me aside To chide me for my petulance, and whisper in my ear A bit of homespun logic and some facts designed to cheer.

"My boy," he said, "in after years you'll recognize that strife, Unceasing toil, and poverty equip one best for life; For men, like tools, don't get an edge on things as smooth as wax, It's just the grindstone's roughness, lad, that sharpens up the ax.

" 'Twas Lincoln's task of splitting rails, his buffeting by fate In early life, that made him fit to steer the Ship of State. A tow-path life proved Garfield's steel, a tan-yard's pleasures scant And weary round of work brought out the best there was in Grant. If each had held within his mouth, when born, a silver spoon, And had not been so ground by fate the whole of life's forenoon, Their brains that keenness would have lacked to probe prosaic facts,— It's just the grindstone's roughness, lad, that sharpens up the ax.

"If things went always smooth with you," my Uncle Hiram vowed, "You'd go through life unknown and undistinguished from the crowd, More apt than not; while rasping want and grinding work, I've found, Will sharpen wits that steps may cleave to fortune's higher ground. The wearing stones of fate that seem your progress to retard You'll some day bless, and thank the world for bearing down so hard. The grit that puts an edge on is just what success exacts,— It's just the grindstone's roughness, lad, that sharpens up the ax!"

SIXTEEN LOST, ONE SAVED.

At a public dinner given to General Harrison, when he was a candidate for the office of President of the United States, one of the guests, rather conspicuously, "drank to his health." The general pledged his toast by drinking water. Another gentleman offered a toast, and said, "General, will you favor me by drinking a glass of wine?" The general, in a very gentlemanly way, begged to be excused. He was again urged to join in a glass of wine. This was too much. He rose from his seat, and said, in the most dignified manner:—

"Gentlemen, I have twice refused to partake of the wine-cup. I hope that will be sufficient. Tho you press the matter ever so much, not a drop shall pass my lips. I made a resolve when I started in life that I would avoid strong drink. That vow I have never broken. I am one of a class of seventeen young men who graduated at college together. The other sixteen members of my class now fill drunkard's graves—and all from the pernicious habit of wine-drinking. I owe all my health, my happiness, and prosperity to that resolution. Would you urge me to break it now?" The effect on the company may be imagined.—Selected.

HOW TO GET THE CORRECT STANDING POSITION.

By T. Carolyn Lemons, M. D.

STAND with the back against the wall; the door is preferable, as there is no baseboard, and the line from head to foot will be straight.

Place the heels, hips, shoulders, and back of the head firmly against the wall. Reach downward with the arms, keeping them to the sides, with the thumbs outward, and the little fingers touching the wall. While standing in this position, roll the head backward as far as possible, or until the eyes rest on the ceiling just over the head; at the same time allow the chest to move forward, but keep the heels, hips, and fingers firmly against the wall. When the chest is lifted, and the shoulders are the length of the head away from the wall, keep them in this position and raise the head, bringing the chin slightly in.

The body is now in a correct standing position, the head is erect, the chest out and up, the hips back, and the abdominal muscles are slightly contracted.

Now walk away holding this position; swing the arms to relax the body enough to prevent having a stiff appearance. If you are accustomed to doing your work in an incorrect position, it is well to try this position several times a day. Any of the ordinary duties of life may be made a beneficial exercise if done in a correct position.—T. Carolyn Lemons, M. D.

HONESTY.

THERE was a lad in Ireland, who was put to work at a linen factory, and while he was there, a piece of cloth was wanted to be sent out, which was short of the length that it ought to have been; but the master thought that it might be made longer by a little stretching. He thereupon unrolled the cloth, taking hold of one end himself, and the boy the other. He then said:—

"Pull, Adam, pull!"

But the boy stood still. The master again said:—

"Pull, Adam, pull!"

"I can't," replied the boy.

"Why not?" asked the master, impatiently.

"Because it is wrong," answered Adam, and he refused to pull.

Upon this the master said he would not do for a linen manufacturer. But that boy became the Rev. Dr. Adam Clarke, and the strict principle of honesty of his youthful age laid the foundation of his future greatness.—Selected.

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THE ADVANTAGES OF DISADVANTAGE.

THE apostle Paul says, "We know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose." Rom. 8:28. This is a good text to remember when circumstances seem to be against our good intentions. Paul's whole life experience, from the time of his conversion, was in demonstration of this fact. This was why he could so emphatically say, "We know," etc. One instance is particularly striking: He was anxious to visit Rome (Rom. 1:13; 15:22-24, 28, 29), but circumstances were apparently against his purpose for a long time; and just as he had finished all that he had in mind to do before starting, he was attacked by a mob in Jerusalem, and the police threw him into prison to save his life. Then followed charges against him by the Jewish authorities, and because some men had sworn to kill him, he was removed by night to Cæsarea. There, by delays in the trial of his case, and by changes in the governorship, he was kept a prisoner for two years or more. At last, however, on his appealing his cause to Cæsar, it was necessary for the government to send him to Rome. By this means he was taken to his desired destination at government expense, and permitted to do some important missionary work by the way. See Acts, chapters 27 and 28.

But this was not all. On arriving in Rome, he was still kept in prison "two whole years;" but he was allowed to live in a house by himself (guarded by soldiers), and to receive all who would come to him to hear the Gospel. He was thus secured from any attack from the enemies of truth, to which he had been subjected in other cities. Moreover, through his connection with the soldiers, he gained the attention of people in the emperor's palace, and some of them were converted. Phil. 4:22. It is just possible that he could not have reached these in any other way, and that he enjoyed much freedom in proclaiming the Gospel, of which he would have been in various ways deprived had he come to Rome privately and been nominally at liberty. While Paul was a state prisoner, his personal enemies and the enemies of the truth were also restricted against doing him harm.

Here is a lesson for the servants of Christ in our time, who are wont to become discouraged because of untoward circumstances. One of our brethren in Canada, Brother G. W. Sowler, a canvasser, reports to the Union Messenger how a discouraging outlook worked to the advantage of his work. Writing from Parry Sound, he says:—

In the past few weeks I have been canvassing in the country, and altho the weather has been cold, and the snow very deep, I have met with success, and have been much blessed in my efforts to spread the precious truth. Before I started out in the country, Satan tried to discourage me; the snow was so deep, it was so terribly cold, I would not be able to stand it. These were some of the suggestions that came to my mind, but the Lord gave me courage to start out, and when I started out He opened the way for my success, and all the hindrances that seemed to be in my way have turned out to be blessings in disguise. The deep snow and extreme cold have evidently frightened most of the worldly canvassers and agents from striking out into the country; the people are kept at home more, so that I find some one at nearly every house, and better than that, I have sold something in nearly every place.

The population is very much scattered in this country, and some of the people live a mile back from the main road, but I only came to one place that I did not care to go into. It was about a mile from the road, and no road broken to it, and I had about decided to skip it, when the post-master, who keeps a country store, and who had bought a book of me, said he was sure I could sell a book there, and asked me if I could use snow-shoes. I said I had walked a few miles on snow-shoes ten years ago. He asked if I would like to try them again, and I said I would not object, when he forthwith produced a good, strong pair. I put them on, and in about fifteen minutes I reached the house. They received me heartily, gave me my dinner, and I made two direct sales of $1.00 each.

I thank the Lord for opening the way through apparently difficult and impossible places. While we may, at times, feel tired of the long winter, and wish for spring to come, let us not forget the treasures of the "beautiful snow," and remember also that the winter time is the time when the people have more time to read than at any other time of the year.

DEATHS OF WORKERS IN AFRICA.

By Editor

[From the South African Missionary.]

THE mission forces in South Africa have sustained a great loss during the last two months. We were stricken with grief a few weeks ago, when we received a letter from Sister Watson, telling of the death of Brother Watson at the Nyassaland Mission.

During the early part of last year Brother and Sister Watson and little boy spent a few weeks in Cape Town on their way to Nyassaland. They were full of hope, courage, and confidence in the Lord. When they reached the mission, the work was in a very uncertain state, having been left so by Brother Booth. But they began at once to establish the work, and they were beginning to see the fruit of their labor when our brother was called upon to lay down his life. We know not why this is so, but the Lord knows. We are sure that the heartfelt sympathy of all our people will be with Sister Watson in this dark hour of her experience.

A short time after we had received the word from Nyassaland, a wire came from Brother Freeman, announcing the death of Brother David Kalaka, at the Basuto Mission, the first man who took hold of the truth in this country. Of his death Brother J. M. Herman writes:

'He took ill during the night after Sabbath with cramps in all the muscles of the body. I visited him, and prayed with him. He died on Monday night. The last words on his lips were, 'Blessed is the one whose sins are forgiven.' Brother Kalaka was a capable man, well known in the country, and has had ability to do a great work in giving this last message. He was near or about sixty years of age, a man of large proportions and splendid address. I shall miss him very much. It is difficult to realize he is dead, coming so suddenly.'

It is a sad blow to our mission work to have these workers stricken down by death. It will help us to realize and appreciate the danger that surrounds those who go to these unhealthful places to hold up a risen Saviour, that the thousands who are smitten with sin may look, believe, and be saved.

CHRISTIAN FIDELITY.

TRUE Christianity is the same in all hearts, regardless of race, color, or previous condition. It makes men earnest, humble, honest, industrious, courageous, solicitous for the welfare of others, self-sacrificing, "steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord." As an illustration we give the following incident from the Youth's Companion:—

A few years ago, in Peking, China, there was a young Chinaman who had been for a time a pupil in the school sustained by the Presbyterian mission. Not being so apt a pupil as the others, he had found his studies too much for him, and had finally left the school. But if his brain was dull his heart was not. The Gospel that he had heard had become a part of his life, and he was determined to follow its call. He begged the missionaries in charge of the school to give him some Christian work to do. They saw his earnestness, and fitted him out with a colporteur's pack, and from that time on he gave himself to the task of carrying Bibles out into the country places.

In the course of his journeyings he learned much of the Boxers, and knew that their menace was no trifling one. Going up and down he listened and learned all that he could, in order to be able to help his friends, the missionaries.

The hour came. It was June 13, the day of one of the early massacres. The young colporteur himself was in a place of safety, but others were not. He hurried into the city to give warning at the Methodist Compound—the one in greatest danger—and to Christians throughout the city. Of those whom he saved none ever saw him again. His warning given, he had gone out into the country once more. Thirty miles away were villages with other Christians; he must save them.

He did save them. So far as is known, all whom he warned escaped; but it was too late to save himself. The infuriated mob surrounded him.

"Are you a Christian?" they asked.

"I am," he replied, and straightway began to preach. They beat him upon the head and mouth to silence him, but still the eager words came. Finally they killed him with the most horrible torture. He died with his Master's name upon his lips.

INVITE THEM.

BISHOP MCCABE says: "I am sometimes startled at the ease with which a soul can be won. And I am often humiliated when I think of the many times and the many opportunities in my life which I have wasted and not used for the winning of souls to Christ. I want to illustrate the ease with which a soul can be won. Not very long ago, in a strange city, as the hackman got down off his box and opened the door to let me out, I dropped a quarter into his hand, and as I did so I grasped his hand and said to him, 'Good night; I hope to meet you again in glory.' I had often done that, and I thought nothing of it in this case. I went into the house,

met my host, and retired to my room for the night.

"About midnight my host knocked at my chamber door and said: 'Chaplain, that hackman has come back, and he says that he has got to see you to-night. I told him that he had better wait until morning, but he said, "No, sir; I must see him to-night, and I know that he will be willing to see me."' When the hackman came up, a broad-shouldered, rough-looking man with a great whip in his hand, he stood there in my presence with the tears rolling down his cheeks like rain. Said he: 'If I meet you in glory, I have got to turn around. I have come to ask you to pray with me.' What a privilege it was to pray with that man! what a privilege to point him to Jesus! and yet I never saw him before in all my life. There are 10,000 men in this country that have not had an invitation to come to God in all their lives."—Selected.

THE HEALER.

By Mabel Earle

[Mabel Earle, in Sunday School Times.]

THERE was a scar on yonder mountain side, Gashed out where once the cruel storm had trod; A barren, desolate chasm, reaching wide Across the soft green sod.

But years crept by beneath the purple pines, And veiled the scar with grass and moss once more; And left it fairer now with flowers and vines Than it had been before.

There was a wound once in a gentle heart, Whence all life's sweetness seemed to ebb and die; And love's confiding changed to bitter smart, While slow, sad years went by.

Yet as they passed, unseen an angel stole, And laid a balm of healing on the pain, Till love grew purer in the heart made whole, And peace came back again.

"O wondrous balm of time on pain and tears!" One saith, "O healing touch on soul and sod!" Yea; but the hands that wrought within the years— They are the hands of God.

HEATHEN WORSHIPERS OF THE TRUE GOD.

By Christian Work

BISHOP JOHNSTON, of Africa, writing of some tribes of Southern Nigeria, declares that African heathenism, too often spoken of as mere fetichism or superstition, has some very interesting and suggestive features about it. "It was a revelation to me to find heathen tribes worshiping the Supreme Being, the great I Am, Jehovah Himself, directly, and this frequently. I had noticed in Benin City that altars were erected and worship performed at them to Him by a heathen people who worshiped some other imaginary deities more frequently. But here are tribes, wild, savage, barbarous and cannibal, that worship any imaginary deity but little, but whose chief and constant worship is presented to the Most High God, who have no images of Him, and who, with blood atonement sacrifices presented directly to Him, seek His good-will. It is worthy of notice that the Yorubans, who profess to worship no less than four hundred and one imaginary deities, do occasionally, and among some of the tribes annually, offer worship to the Supreme Being; and the Ibos, a tribe inferior to the Yorubans or Benins, constantly present worship, directly and without the intervention of any imaginary mediator, to the Supreme Being, and this, too, as to a spiritual Being. There is much in this heathen religious system that would, if known to him, facilitate the work of the Christian teacher, especially if he would recognize what is true in it [as Paul did at Athens], and seek with the use of it to lead the people to accept the Gospel, with its higher teaching and higher provision for man's spiritual need."—Christian Work.

OUR WORK AND WORKERS.

By Editor

THE church training-school at Battle Creek, Mich., has an attendance of 180 students.

As THIS paper goes to press the Pacific Union Conference is in session at Healdsburg, Cal.

THE baptism of nine candidates at York, West Australia, is reported by Brother L. V. Finster, in the Record.

IN the Illinois Recorder, Brother O. S. Hadley reports the baptism of three candidates recently, who united with the West Side, Chicago, church.

THE officers of the school board for the Training-school for Christian Workers, to be established in Washington, D. C., are as follows: Chairman, A. G. Daniells; secretary and treasurer, W. T. Bland; financial secretary, J. S. Washburn.

SINCE Brother I. J. Hankins returned to South Africa from the United States, he has been made president of the Cape Colony Conference, and placed on the editorial staff of the South African Sentinel. After an absence of three years, he was given a warm welcome by his old friends and fellow laborers. The Sentinel also announces the return of three other former laborers in that field—Brethren G. W. Webb, W. C. Walston, and T. J. Gibson.

THE Southwestern Union Record says: "Brother C. W. Cutter, of Hot Springs, Ark., has been using one hundred copies of the SIGNS weekly since disposing of five hundred copies of the Capital and Labor issue. He reports quite an interest in the city as a result of circulating the papers, and feels that the Lord is truly blessing the work, and that the way is being opened for a series of meetings. Hot Springs is a great city and a great health resort; many going there from all parts of the United States in search of health."

A RECENT letter from Brother J. M. Hyatt, a missionary at Gold Coast, Africa, says: "One would think that in coming to the 'Dark Continent' he would leave all brass bands, drum corps, lodges, and the like behind; but such is not the case. At a recent turn-out of a lodge, I saw several suits that cost more than forty dollars each. These are some of the things that these people have learned of those that come here to teach them. Surely they need to learn to 'love not the world, neither the things of the world.' Frequently in talking to them of the way they live, morally and physically, they point to the European men and women, and say that they do the same. Hence they do not feel themselves behind in this particular. Christmas is a very bad time for the native; everything that can make a noise takes part in the confusion. In 1902 some were killed outright, many others badly hurt. The one just past was not as bad, as the government shut up all the rum shops, and patrolled the streets with police. Originally the native knew nothing of Christmas, but since that has been brought to him, he does just as he sees those do that brought it. Rum is surely the great curse of this country. The natives respect those that come to teach them. We are sure from present indications that the message will prepare some for the day of the Lord."

THE BIBLE AS A MISSIONARY.

Not long ago we quoted the observation of a French writer, to the effect that a traveler through the border territory between France and Italy might easily distinguish Protestant villages from Catholic by the cleanliness or filthiness of the village. It appears that a Roman Catholic traveler of perspicacity has made a similar discovery in foreign lands. A pamphlet has lately been issued from a Catholic printing office in Toulouse, with a preface by the rector of the Catholic Institute of Paris, entitled, "New Peoples and Holy Scripture; Reflections of a Catholic Traveler." This traveler has been struck, in his journeys to Tasmania, Australia, and New Zealand, by the moral superiority of these populations who have sprung into existence but yesterday. He notes the practical union amongst them, the suppression of immorality, and several like excellences. Whence come these virtues? he asks. Here is his answer: "To my thinking, this degree of excellence must be attributed chiefly to the daily study of the Word of God, and to the deep knowledge that they possess of its contents. I have constantly heard the Bible quoted in their parliaments. . . . They still believe, these youthful nationalities, that God is the Sovereign, and that, in order to prosper, man must be the humble instrument in His hands." The rector, in his preface, speaks to the same effect: "Even amongst those Catholics who 'practise' their religion," he says, "the most part are frivolous, superficial, enemies of work and of reflection. The Bible of these persons is some newspaper of the boulevards, and they seek there their opinion, their thoughts, and the kind of faith that is of their measure. Following the leaders that they have chosen, to-day they defend the priest and their religion, while to-morrow they will smile with pleasure at the elegant blasphemies of some fluent and unctuous apostate." The traveler complains of the shallowness of Catholic devotion, and says that if France, meaning the Catholics of France, gives four million francs a year for missions, Great Britain and America give sixty millions for the scattering of the Gospel.—Christian Work.

THE CAUSE IN WASHINGTON.

By Editor

IN sending out the appeal for funds to firmly establish our work in Washington, D. C., Brother J. S. Washburn, financial agent, gives us some interesting facts. One fact is that the building now used as General Conference headquarters, 222 North Capitol Street, was once the home of George Washington, the defender of liberty. His country home was Mount Vernon, on the Virginia side of the Potomac River, but his home while in the city was in the building now devoted to the proclamation of "present truth," as Brother Washburn puts it, "a liberty greater even than that for which George Washington fought."

Another fact, one that ought to stir every lover of religious liberty in both heart and purse, is that "across the Capitol and Library grounds stands the building used as headquarters by the International Reform Bureau, the association formed to unite church and state, to secure religious legislation in this country, and ultimately to bind the consciences of all men in a despotism that shall be terminated only by the ruin of the world and the setting up of the kingdom. Does not this situation appeal to every reader of this paper?"

As stated in last week's SIGNS, $100,000 is needed immediately to start the work on the proposed General Conference building, the sanitarium, and the training-school for Christian workers. Do not suppose, because the sum seems so small for three such enterprises, that you will not need to help. The urgent feature is, that it is needed at once. Send donations to W. T. Bland, assistant treasurer of the General Conference, 222 North Capitol Street, Washington, D. C.; or, if more convenient, to the office of this paper.

A Chapel in the Philippine Swamp

By Christian Work

In April, 1902, a Methodist minister went from Manila to Baliuag, Philippine Islands. He soon began to receive requests to come out into a swamp, five miles away, and hold services. He was unable to go for some weeks, and in the meantime, one Sunday morning, twenty people from the swamp walked into the little chapel at Baliuag and joined on probation. Two missionaries went out and had a service beneath two large mango trees, with two hundred people present. Soon after this the rainy season set in and the missionary was unable to visit them for six months, but every few weeks a crowd of the people would wade through the mud and water and attend the services at Baliuag, and nearly all who came would join on probation. Now, in that swamp, at a little village called Manena, there is a chapel erected by the people, with a membership of sixty-six full members and over one hundred probationers.—Christian Work.

WANTED FOR MISSIONARY WORK.

By Editor

(Always prepay postage.)

CLEAN copies of any of our publications, post-paid, suitable for reading-rack use. Address, Harriet Claxton, 424 Ash Street, Hammond, Ind.

LATE, clean copies of the SIGNS, Life Boat, and Good Health. Address, Jane E. Harris, 1308 Gates Street, Columbia, S. C.

LATE, clean copies of the SIGNS, Life Boat, and Good Health. Address, W. B. Jenkins, Blythewood, S. C.

NOTICE OF THE ANNUAL MEETING OF THE STOCKHOLDERS OF THE PACIFIC PRESS PUBLISHING COMPANY.

By Editor

NOTICE is hereby given to all whom it may concern, that the annual meeting of the stockholders of the Pacific Press Publishing Company, a corporation organized and existing under and by virtue of the laws of the state of California, will be held at the office of the company on the southwest corner of Twelfth and Castro Streets, in the city of Oakland, county of Alameda, state of California, on Monday, the twenty-fifth day of April, A. D. 1904, at 9:30 o'clock A. M.

The election of directors for the ensuing year, the advisability of amending, repealing, or adopting new by-laws, or changing the principal place of business of the corporation to the town of Mountain View, in the county of Santa Clara, of selling the property of the corporation, of re-organizing the corporation, and such other business as may be necessary or proper to be transacted, will come before the meeting.

By order of W. T. KNOX, President of the Pacific Press Publishing Company. A. G. MILLER, Secretary of the Pacific Press Publishing Company.

Special Notice.

IN view of the important questions that are to be considered at the next annual meeting of the stockholders of the Pacific Press Publishing Company, it is not only desirable but necessary that there shall be as large an attendance of stockholders as possible. To this end it has been thought best to postpone the meeting and hold it in connection with the California Conference and camp-meeting, which is to convene in Berkeley, the first of June.

But in order to comply with the law, it will be necessary to call the first meeting of the stockholders at the regular time and place prescribed by the by-laws. This meeting, however, will be adjourned (no objection being offered) to meet on the camp-ground at Berkeley, Tuesday, June 7, 1904, at 10 o'clock A. M.

Stockholders who can not be present at this adjourned meeting are requested to have their stock represented by proxy. Blanks and all necessary information will be furnished by the secretary. Address, A. G. Miller, care Pacific Press, Oakland, Cal.

By order of the directors. A. G. MILLER, Secretary.

ANNUAL MEETING.

THE regular annual meeting of the Society of the Seventh-day Adventist Church of Oakland, Cal., will be held at the house of worship, corner of Twelfth and Brush Sts., Wednesday evening, April 6, 1904, at 7:30 o'clock.

E. A. CHAPMAN, Sec.

Continue reading: LESSON 2.—APRIL 10. PETER CONFESSES CHRIST