"For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them." "For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God."
The love of God is a golden chain which binds finite man to the infinite God. It is a love which "passeth knowledge." No science can explain it, no wisdom fathom it. The more we feel the influence of this love, the greater will be our amazement at it. Job exclaims: "Canst thou by searching find out God? canst thou find out the Almighty unto perfection? It is as high as heaven; what canst thou do? deeper than hell; what canst thou know?" "The measure thereof is longer than the earth, and broader than the sea." "O the depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and love of God!" exclaims Paul, "how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out." "I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus."
God's creatures are never absent from his mind. Even the birds which fly in the heavens, and the flowers of the field, are objects of his tender care. "Behold the fowls of the air," said Christ, "they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them." "Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow, they toil not, neither do they spin, and yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these." If the great Master Artist has bestowed such care upon these things, how much greater will be his regard for man, who is the "image and glory of God!" His care and love for his children are unceasing, and he longs to see them reveal a character after his similitude. "I will make a man more precious than fine gold," he declares, "even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir."
And tho sin has existed for ages, seeking to counteract the tide of love flowing from God to the human race, tho man has lost the image of God through yielding to this sin, yet the love and care which God bestows upon the beings he has created, has not ceased to increase in richness and abundance. He "so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." He who was in the form of God, who thought it not robbery to be equal with God, descended from his throne, clothing his divinity with humanity that he might reach humanity. He was in the beginning with God; yet he came to announce to the human race, fallen and degraded, that he had brought them the gift of everlasting life.
God's gift to this earth was beyond all computation; nothing was withheld. The love demonstrated in the life of Christ, from the manger to the cross, the mystery of his divinity veiled in humanity; the bright beams of righteousness manifested to the world in his words and works, these are themes which the angels desire to look into. How would men receive this gift? Could they fail to appreciate the sacrifice? Could the world resist this boundless love? At the time of Christ's advent the hearts of men were corrupted by sin. Hatred against God was cherished by the entire race. A wakeful impiety was exercised by the enemies of God; the principles of injustice were wide-spread; and a master-power was at work, seeking to eclipse the love of God, and gain control of the minds of men. And so Christ, the Bread of life, came to his own, "and his own received him not." The light of God shone on the darkness of this world, but the darkness comprehended it not. The inestimable gift of heaven was not appreciated; the healing flood of life and heavenly grace was disregarded.
God has given men intellect in order that he may lead their minds higher and still higher, opening to them the mysteries of divine love. The contemplation of the theme of redemption enlarges the mind and sanctifies the will. By beholding Christ, the Lamb of God, who "taketh away the sin of the world," our conception of his love is deepened and broadened. Why, then, are our ideas so narrow? Why do we not comprehend that love which is so deep and broad?
As in the days of Christ, the enemy of God works constantly to lead men to place the will in his control, that God may be forgotten. He knows that if this is done, he can control the whole man. He tempts men in many ways to forget their Creator. To some he offers tobacco and alcoholic drinks. Others he tempts by pointing them to their own degradation and helplessness. Those who yield to his temptations can have no conception of the love of God. The will becomes enslaved, bound to pursue a course which the word of God does not justify. Reason is enfeebled; the power to distinguish between right and wrong is lost; sacred and eternal realities are estimated as of less value than gold, silver, houses, lands, and bank stock. The love of God fades from the mind; and the captives in the tempter's power live on, "having no hope, and without God in the world," because they do not behold the Lamb of God.
Sin can triumph only by enslaving the mind. Christ came to our world to break the power of Satan, and emancipate the will of man. He came "to proclaim liberty to the captives," to "undo the heavy burdens," and to "let the oppressed go free;" and he calls upon us to coöperate with him by entering his service, wearing his yoke, and lifting his burdens. And, if we consent, he can and will so identify himself with our thoughts and aims, so blend our hearts and minds into conformity with his will, that when obeying him, we shall but carry out our own impulses. The will, refined and sanctified, will find its highest delight in doing his service.
Man is not his own; he has been bought with a price, even "the precious blood of Christ." By pouring the whole treasury of heaven into this world, by giving us in Christ all heaven, God has purchased the will, the affections, the mind, the soul, and the strength of every one. And man is safe only when he places himself under the control of God. When this is done, the will becomes firm and strong to do right; the heart is cleansed from all selfishness, and filled with a Christ-like love and tenderness. The mind yields to the authority of the law of love, and "every thought is brought into captivity to the obedience of Christ." The powers, hitherto "members of unrighteousness," and "servants of sin," are consecrated to the service of a God of love.
"Thus saith the Lord God, he that created the heavens, and stretched them out, . . . I the Lord have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and will give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the gentiles, to open the blind eyes, to bring the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house." This precious assurance of God to his Son, the Anointed, embraces all who receive Jesus Christ; for the word of God declares, "As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name."
Satan is determined to shut out all light and communication from above. As if in defiance to the mercy of Omnipotence, he caused the Son of God to be crucified. But Christ rose from the grave, and to-day he is our Advocate in the courts of heaven, reconciling us "unto God . . . by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby." He has a claim to our wills and affections, and in a voice full of love and mercy he calls, "Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
The Lord directs every mind that yields to the power of his love, and reveals to it the mystery of godliness. Yield yourself entirely into his keeping; for his love is everlasting and unchangeable. Consecrate your powers to him. The divine influence of his love will diffuse itself through the chambers of your mind; your soul-temple will be cleansed from all selfishness; your heart, filled with all that is pure and lovely, will reveal the mysteries of redeeming love. Then you shall be indeed God's workmanship, "created in Christ Jesus unto good works," "sanctified, and meet for the Master's use."
CHRIST'S HUMILIATION HIS GLORY.
"He humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name." Phil. 2 : 8, 9. The exaltation of Christ, that which is and will be his highest glory, and which makes angels bow before him, is due to that which he has done and suffered for us. The prints in his hands, and the wound in the side, will be throughout all eternity the tokens of his exaltation and6power. When the Lord comes from heaven in glory, it will shine brightest from the side that was pierced. "His glory covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise. And his brightness was as the light; he had bright beams out of his side; and there was the hiding of his power." Hab. 3:3, 4, margin. Thus, as every eye sees him coming in the clouds of heaven, and they also that pierced him (Rev. 1:7), the marks of his humiliation when on earth will be the highest glory.—Present Truth.
GOD'S LOVE IN CREATION.
By R. C. Porter
BY R. C. PORTER.
The Creator of the universe is the Author of all life. Death is an innovation, and formed no part of his plan in creation. His purpose in offering redemption now is the same as his object in giving life by creation originally. Therefore the study of the motive which prompts God to offer salvation from death, and redemption unto life now, is equivalent to the study of the motive which prompted the creation and giving of life in the beginning.
Upon life depends every other blessing; hence the greatest possible blessing is life. With it in God's plan is provided a universe of bliss. What now prompts the offer of life with all its privileges to the lost? "God so loved the world, that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." It is love, then, that prompts the gift of life now to the fallen race. And as God is the same yesterday, to-day, and forever, may we not reasonably conclude that his purpose in giving life in creation, was also prompted by the same love?
The plan of redemption was not devised after the fall of man, but Christ is set forth as "the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world." Rev. 13:8. We are saved, "not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began." 2 Tim. 1:9. This plan, altho devised in the eternal past, long before the entrance of sin, was "kept in silence through times eternal." Rom. 16:25, R. V. During the intervening period between the originating of the plan of redemption and its unfolding to fallen beings after the entrance of sin, it was "hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ; to the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, according to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord." Eph. 3:9-11. Being hid in God, it was known only to the Godhead. Angels did not even know that if the ways of sin were chosen by any of the members of the family of God, there was the possibility of return through Christ, according to the provision of the plan of redemption. So no one could say, after having chosen the ways of sin, that they were induced to take the step on account of their knowledge of the plan of redemption, whereby they knew it was their privilege to return at will if they tired of sin. This plan being devised as a part of God's purpose, through which to restore and perpetuate the life he gave in creation, together with the fact that he gave to all his intelligent creatures the right of choice between following his instruction as to the way to life and happiness, or choosing forbidden ways, still in his infinite plan laid before they were created, holding ready to unfold for their eternal good, a plan of rescue sufficiently adequate to reach the case of every creature of his creation who chose to accept it, if they fell, not only reveals the manifold wisdom, but the infinite love of God in creation.
That the purpose of God in creation was to create intelligent creatures upon whom to bestow his love, and to whose happiness he could minister to all eternity, is well expressed in Rev. 4:11: "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created." The highest estimate is placed upon that which is loved most. In all God's created universe, what did he value most? Not the universe of planets, with their indescribable glory and beauty, but the inhabitants who were to occupy them. "For thus saith the Lord that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not vain; he formed it to be inhabited." Since he would have made the planets in vain, but for the fact that they were to serve as places of abode for their inhabitants, it was the inhabitants above all else which was uppermost in the mind of God in creation. All other things were created for them. To this agree the words, "All things are for your sake."
It is in the purpose of God, then, that all created things should contribute to his pleasure, and among all his created works, his intelligent creatures are his supreme delight. It was for this purpose they are and were created. If we can now learn in what God's pleasure consists, we can conclude with unerring certainty as to his object in all his creation. In 1 John 4:16 we read that "God is love." The delights of love are then the pleasure of God, and "love seeketh not her own." The highest pleasure of God in the creation was then the giving of life to his intelligent creatures throughout the universe, for the purpose of having the privilege of loving them, and living for their happiness to all eternity. What loftier and more worthy motive could have prompted creation?
It is not alone in redemption that Christ is interested in the human family. He stands in the same relation to us, both in creation and redemption. In creation the Father said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness." Again, it is said of Jesus, "All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made." And speaking of the relation of the Father and Son in creation, it is said, "Who created all things by Jesus Christ." So it is clear that Jesus Christ is the active agent through whom all things were created. And as the true parent, in bringing his offspring into the world, stands pledged to give all the powers of his being in loving service to the child, so God and Jesus Christ in creating the human family, stand pledged to use all their powers in loving service for their children. The Sabbath, instituted at creation, stands as the pledge of this relationship. "O, how great is thy goodness, which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee; which thou hast wrought for them that trust in thee before the sons of men." Ps. 31:19. "What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? . . . Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? . . . Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us."
CHRISTIANITY NOT A "FLINTY HAMMER."
By W. N. Glenn
BY W. N. GLENN.
THE following comment of the Missionary Review, while apparently designed to show that Christianity should be a militant power to check crime by force, fully demonstrates that such is not its prerogative:—
The savage dangerousness of Turkish Mohammedanism (Arabian and Indian standing considerably higher) can only be kept in check by the proximity of a watchful Christian power. Russia, by her very hardness and semi-barbarousness, as well as by her vast extent, seems best suited to this function. We may well recognize the hand of God, who doubtless knows his own mind, in choosing out a flinty hammer to pulverize a flinty rock.
While it is contended that a Christian power only can keep the Turk in check, the argument admits that the more unchristian the checking power is, the more effectual it will be. It is a fact that God "knows his own mind," and it is a fact that the only weapon which he has placed in the hands of the Christian is the "sword of the Spirit, which is the sword of God." Eph. 6:17. "For tho we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh (for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds)." 2 Cor. 10:3, 4. The reason why our weapons are not carnal is because "we wrestle not against flesh and blood." The strongholds that we are to pull down are the strongholds of sin, the powers of darkness, the "spiritual wickedness in high places." Eph. 6:12. When God sends the Christian to war, it is that he may conquer by love and good works; when he would overthrow a wicked secular power by the sword, he sends the "flinty hammer" of secular power to do the work. Altho the implement of vengeance profess to be Christian, the fact that God sends it as an executioner is evidence that he does not deem it Christian.
The admission that "Russia, by her very hardness and semi-barbarousness, . . . seems best suited to this function" against Turkey, is an admission that Christianity is not suited to such a work. A policeman set to watch a dangerous criminal must be prepared to resort to the use of carnal weapons, else his watching will soon lose its terror. To apply the term Christian to a hard, "semi-barbarous" power, one prepared for carnal warfare, and itself a cruel persecutor of Christians, is a confusion of terms. When the disciples of Christ wanted to call down fire from heaven on a certain village because its people would not receive him, he rebuked them, and said: "Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. For the Son of man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them." John 9:55, 56. So those professed Christians who urge the so-called Christian governments to "wipe the Turkish domain from the map of the world," know not what manner of spirit they are of. They certainly do not have the spirit of Christ in that particular demand.
Christ sent his disciples to preach the Gospel, "beginning at Jerusalem," the very city that had rejected him and put him to death. Moreover, they were not to begin their work until they were "endued with power from on7high;" their power was not to come from any earthly source. And when Jerusalem inaugurated a wholesale persecution of the disciples, the Lord did not employ a Christian power to hold it in check by military force. No; the disciples fled, and preached the Gospel elsewhere, leaving the Lord to do the checking in his own time and in his own way. Then, when the Lord's time came to chastise the wicked city, he did not employ even a nominal Christian force to destroy it; he sent against it the power of Pagan Rome.
There is nothing that so clearly indicates the apostasy of the professed Christian world of to-day as its clamor for secular power, in order to enforce its dictates and to take vengeance upon those who do not yield to its demands. It is not alone the pope of Rome who is scheming for temporal power, but nominal Protestantism is seeking a like carnal power with equal pertinacity. Nor do they seek temporal power merely to coerce the avowed enemies of Christ, in order that the meek principles of true Christian charity may prevail; but they aim to enforce upon Christians certain man-made dogmas of the nominal church, nowhere sanctioned in the word of God. Wherever they have the sanction of law and the public sentiment to back it, they are ready to join forces with the "dragon" to "make war" with those who "keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ."
NEGLECTING DUTY FOR FEAR OF MEN.
By E. Hilliard
BY E. HILLIARD.
It is a sad thing that any one should fear and serve men instead of fearing and obeying God. A much larger per cent of the world’s population are abject slaves to the opinions of those whom the world esteems great men than most are aware of. In religious matters their conclusions and theories are accepted, instead of the mind of God, as revealed in his holy word. This is sometimes the case even when the parties are convinced of the truth, and know their duty; but for fear of incurring public displeasure it is too often the case that duty is evaded.
The parents of the man who was born blind, and whom the Saviour restored to sight, did not dare tell the Jewish rabbis by what means their son had been made to see. The Jews had agreed “that if any man did confess that he was Christ, he should be put out of the synagogue. Therefore said his parents, He is of age; ask him.” John 9:19–23. Rather than displease their religious leaders, and be turned out of the church, they refused to acknowledge Christ and his power to heal. Think of it! rejected him on whom their eternal life was dependent because of the fear of men! Whether they continued in this slavery during their lives or not, the record does not inform us. If they did, in the judgment the parents and the Jewish rabbis will be called forth to be rewarded according to their works. Then let the parents appeal for help to those who made the agreement, “that if any man did confess that he was Christ, he should be put out of the synagogue.” It would be the helpless appealing to the helpless for help. It would have been much better for the parents to have been turned out of the synagogue than to be turned out of heaven. No one can imagine the sorrow of heart that will be realized by those who see pearly gates on golden hinges swing to against them. Multitudes of people will be in this condition who now see the claims of God’s holy law upon them, but because popular opinion is against observing it as it reads, they choose to remain in transgression of the heavenly mandates. O foolish choice! O sad fate! Why, O, why, choose it, dear reader, with such fearful consequences!
How much better to seek the Saviour, be pardoned of sin (the transgression of the law, 1 John 3:4), and be clothed in his righteousness. All such will pass the test when judged by the law. Rom. 2:12. All who are brought to true repentance, will look at themselves somewhat as the penitent thief did upon the cross. They will care but little for the opinion of men. The cravings for pardon, and relief from self-condemnation, will outweigh all of the censure of sinful men.
The thief was regarded by the people as a base man; and he himself looked upon their judgment in thus regarding and punishing him as just. He said to his fellow thief, “We receive the due reward of our deeds.” With the condemnation of stealing, the censure of the multitude upon him, and in the agonies of death, he triumphantly rose above all, and prayed, “Lord, remember me when thou comest in thy kingdom.” He knew that the surging crowd beneath his cross would soon forget him. His faith reached beyond the vale of time. It took in the resurrection and the second coming, in his kingdom, of him who was dying at his side. He recognized life eternal in the dying Life-giver. O what faith! We have scarcely heard of its equal. It was a glimpse, by faith, of the great eternal future, that caused him to rise above the opinion of the people, and amid agony of body and distress of soul to pray to one who was to be laid in the grave the same day. Jesus’ reply, “Verily I say unto thee to-day, shalt thou be with me in Paradise,” calmed his troubled heart, and he died with his Saviour, an innocent man. He was condemned by men, but approved of God. In the day of God it may seem strange to those who proved him to be a thief, and executed him accordingly, to see him enter heaven, and take his place by the side of him with whom he died on earth, while they are excluded, altho they were never guilty of the overt act of theft.
O, how different things will appear in the day when the world is brought before God in judgment! The popular erroneous opinions of the people of each generation will be shown in their true light. Will not those who are stealing God’s sacred day of rest, the seventh day of the fourth commandment, and appropriating it to secular purposes, manifest moral courage equal to the thief on the cross? Will not such confess their guilt, no matter if the masses of mankind condemn them, and be remembered when Christ comes in his kingdom?
Daniel Boone, the Pioneer of Kentucky
By Charles Morris
CHAPTERS IN UNITED STATES HISTORY.* NO. 6.
Daniel Boone, the Pioneer of Kentucky.
(Concluded.)
Boone a Prisoner—Adopted into the Tribe—The Fort Threatened—The Captive’s Escape—Assault of the Fort—The Devoted Nine—The Tunnel Unmasked—Repulse of the Indians—Boone’s Later Career.
He was taken to Chillicothe, on the Little Miami River, the chief town of the tribe. Here a grand council was held, at which his fate was considered. That he would be put to death with torture he did not doubt. Luckily, at this critical juncture an old woman of the family of Blackfish, one of the most distinguished chiefs, claimed him as her adopted son, to replace a son lost in battle. Her claim was in accordance with the time-honored customs of the tribe. It could not be set aside. The captive was set free, and was adopted with great ceremony into the tribe, the warriors being proud to have so mighty a hunter as one of themselves. The ordeal was no trifling one. All the hair of the novitiate was plucked out by the roots, with the exception of the scalp-lock, a few inches square. But Boone bore the pain with true Indian phlegm, and appeared so contented with his lot that he went far to throw his captors off their guard.
Yet the Indians were too wary to be easily deceived. Their white brother was constantly watched, tho seemingly left free to go where he would. Careful measures were taken to prevent his escape. Tho permitted to go out alone to hunt, his powder and balls were heedfully measured out, that he might not have enough to serve him in a long flight. But shrewd as they were, they were no match in cunning for Daniel Boone. In the hunt he cut his balls in half and used small charges of powder, thus gradually accumulating a small stock of ammunition. To all appearance he was content with his lot, while his scalp-lock, his dress, and his deeply embrowned face gave him the aspect of a genuine redskin. But despite his seeming content, he had no thought of spending his life in an Indian village, and, with all his outward satisfaction, was secretly laying plans to escape. The time came when flight was imperative. On his return to Chillicothe from a visit to the Salt Licks, with a party of Indians, he found the former peaceful aspect of the town changed to one of warlike preparation. A band of 450 warriors had collected for a hostile expedition, which he learned with horror was directed against the fort in which he had left his wife and children. In the present state of security of the garrison, they might easily be taken by surprise. He alone could warn them, and to do so, he must escape from his vigilant captors.8From the first he had pretended ignorance of their language, tho he understood it quite well enough to learn all of the details of their plot. But no trace of anxiety was allowed to appear on his face. He looked on at their war-dances with smiling aspect, and seemed so careless and indifferent that they talked of their project freely before him, and were pleased to find that he seemed warmly interested in their preparations and eager for their success. So marked, indeed, appeared his sympathy with them that, absorbed in their enterprise, they became less watchful of his movements. This was the state of affairs he had desired to produce, and, the preparations for his flight being made, on the morning of June 16, he set out for his ordinary hunt, fully resolved not to return.
Adding to the ammunition given to him by his guards that which he had concealed in the woods, he lost not a moment in his flight, heading straight southward through the forest. He well knew that as soon as the usual hour of his return had passed, a host of Indian scouts would be put on his trail, and that if he was captured and brought back, death by the cruelest of tortures would be his lot. Yet he knew also that none of the savages surpassed him in speed of foot and powers of endurance, and that few were his equal in knowledge of woodcraft, while in skill with the rifle he had hardly an equal in the western wilds.
Onward he went with the utmost speed, tho taking all possible precautions to avoid making a plain trail. He dared not use his rifle to obtain food, as quick ears might hear its sound. He dared not kindle a fire to cook game, as quick eyes might detect its smoke. He had with him a little dried venison, and with this for his sole food he kept onward day and night, taking little time for sleep, letting no obstacle stop him in his course. And, like bloodhounds, on came the furious pursuers, now losing his trail, now finding it again; and spreading out far to right and left, lest he should deviate from the southward course which he was almost sure to pursue.
The fugitive at length found himself on the banks of the Ohio River. He dared not yet relax his vigilance. Tho he had not seen a foeman, he knew well that human bloodhounds were upon his track, and that there was no safety for him until he had placed that stream, now swollen by recent rains, between himself and his foes. Yet he dared not trust himself to its current. Skilled as he was in woodcraft, he was a poor swimmer. Fortunately, he found a stranded canoe among the bushes of the shore half full of water from a hole in its bottom. This hole he soon closed, and, with the aid of an improvised paddle, succeeded in reaching the southern shore. Now, for the first time, the fugitive dared to discharge his rifle, and to build a fire. Shooting a wild turkey and broiling it over the flames, he made the most delicious meal of his life. Then he hurried onward in fear that some of his pursuers had crossed the stream. At length he reached the fort, after five days of incessant forest travel, during which he had traversed a distance of 160 miles.
He was stared at like a dead man restored to life. He had long since been given up for lost, and his wife and children had returned to their old North Carolina home. But there was no time for regret. The fort was in bad condition. It must be quickly repaired, for the hostile band might be already on the march. The men were put energetically to work, while, to strike the Indians with terror, Boone led a party swiftly to, and across, the Ohio, met a party of savages, and attacked them with a fierceness that quickly put them to flight.
This foray and the escape of their dreaded captive so alarmed the Indians as to delay their projected assault. It was not until August that they appeared. They numbered 444 warriors, and were led by Captain Duquesne and other French officers. There were fifty men, all told, in the fort. The situation seemed desperate, but Boone answered their summons to surrender with the bold reply, "We are determined to defend our fort while a man of us lives."
Failing to obtain a surrender, Duquesne tried treachery. He proposed that nine of the garrison should come out and treat with him, saying that he would retire if they could come to terms. Tho Boone had no faith in this promise, he was daring enough to accept it. He selected nine of the strongest and most active of his men, appointed a meeting place 120 feet from the fort, and stationed riflemen to cover the spot with their weapons. The meeting took place. Liberal terms were offered and accepted, and some of the chiefs suggested that the treaty be concluded in the Indian manner, by shaking hands. Boone knew very well what this meant. The device was that two Indians should seize each white man, drag him away, and by threats of torture to the captives, compel the garrison to surrender the fort. But to unmask the wily foe, he consented to the dangerous proposition.
It proved as he expected. No sooner had the Indians grasped their hands than they sought to drag them away. At the same time a storm of bullets was poured upon the fort, to which the rifles of the garrison actively replied. Boone and his companions, who had taken care not to permit too close a grasp, easily shook off their assailants and fled back to the fort, followed by bullets, tho the sharp fire from the fort disconcerted the aim of the foe. The nine adventurers were soon within the gates, only one of the number, Boone's brother, being wounded. Through their strength and alertness they had escaped a frightful peril.
A fierce assault was now made upon the fort, the fire being kept up almost incessantly for nine days and nights, during which the garrison had scarcely any sleep. The bullets of the foe, however, fired from behind rocks and trees, did little harm, while every response from the garrison told. While this was going on, the assailants were seeking to undermine the fort with a tunnel beginning at the river's edge. But the clay thrown out discolored the waters of the stream, and the garrison, warned by their danger, averted it by cutting a trench across the route of the tunnel. An effort was next made to fire the fort by flaming arrows. The dry timbers caught and burst into flame; but one of the young men dashed upon the roof and extinguished the fire regardless of the bullets, which fell like hail around him. At length, the enemy, thoroughly discouraged, gave up the attempt and retired, having killed only two and wounded four of the garrison, while they had thirty-seven dead, and a large number wounded. So industrious had they been that 125 pounds weight of bullets were picked up, besides what were buried in the walls of the fort. As for their marksmanship, little can be said in its favor. The remainder of the life of Daniel Boone may be briefly summarized. He took part in the Indian war which afterwards raged for years on the frontier, and which was at length brought to an end by General Wayne. After that the settlement of Kentucky went on rapidly, and the population became in time too thick for Boone. In 1802 he plunged again into the western wilderness, saying: "Too much crowded. I want more elbow room." Several times afterwards he moved west, and finally settled beyond the Mississippi, about fifty miles west of St. Louis. Here he dwelt for years, engaged in hunting and trapping, and here in 1818 he died, of pure old age, after a most adventurous career, having won undying renown as the most daring, skilful, and successful of the great band of American pioneers.
Christian Greatness
"To ENTER into the world and there live to save souls, live firmly and fearlessly according to your own conscience, that is Christian greatness."
Power to Move Mountains
“The man who would have power to move mountains, must begin on grains of sand.”
The Shield of Faith
“SATAN never shot a dart that did not break when it struck the shield of faith.”
THE ACADIANS.
By Charles Morris
IN the year of Braddock's defeat, 1755, an event of the greatest historical interest took place in a far-distant locality. During Queen Anne's War, the English had captured the peninsula called by the French, Acadia, now known as Nova Scotia. During the later war, the French peasants of this district naturally favored their countrymen. Believing that they were acting as spies, and aiding the French with secret information, the English authorities conceived the cruel resolution of removing them all from their homes, and scattering them in lands afar. This pitiless plan was carried out with ruthless severity. The Acadians were lured to the ports, treacherously seized, placed on shipboard, and sent away over the seas. Their houses and barns were burned, their lands confiscated. Some of them escaped to Canada; some were sent to Louisiana; the land which had been their home for a hundred years was given to others; the whole community was broken up.
In the end many of the wanderers, after years of hardship in foreign lands, made their way back to Acadia, which they still fondly remembered as their birthplace and home. The sufferings of these poor fugitives, most of them innocent of any crime but that of French descent, have continued to excite the warmest sympathy, and Longfellow has immortalized their hard fate in his pathetic poem of Evangeline. War had stories of much greater horror to tell, but it has few that have appealed so strongly to the pity of mankind, and the fate of the Acadians is not likely to ever pass away from the romantic annals of human wo.—Prof. Chas. Morris.
A First-Class Church Row
“The devil can take a vacation when he has succeeded in getting up a first-class church row.”
IT IS SAFE TO TRUST IN GOD.
THE Bible is full of lessons, making it as clear as language can express it, that God wants his children to know that they can depend upon him under all circumstances. He has declared, and tried to make plain in hundreds of different ways, that he is an ever present help in every time of need, and yet he finds it hard to find people who will take him at his word, and trust him as he would be trusted. There are so many who lose all their faith and courage whenever they hear a lion roar, and become so paralyzed with fear that they forget to count on the promised help of God, and undertake to make a way of escape for themselves, when, if they would but know it, they are at that very moment in the best place in the world for them. If not, what does the ninety-first psalm mean? Was it put in the Bible simply to fill up?
Surely in no way is God more dishonored by his children to-day than in their failure to believe and appropriate his promises. Imagine a millionaire's son going to a station-house to ask for shelter because he sees a storm coming, when he has his pocket full of his father's checks. "He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty." Who wants any safer place than that?—Selected.