Earlier text: OUR COUNTRY’S PROGRESSTHE HOPE OF THE RIGHTEOUS.
By G. V. Kilgore
“And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads; they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.” Isa. 35:10. Isaiah was blessed of the Lord by being permitted to have a view of the redeemed in their glorified state. Glorious promises to the righteous are recorded by him. He also writes of fearful scenes to be witnessed by them before they enter their everlasting possession. The apostle Peter says that the holy prophets spoke of the restitution of all things. And so they did. Micah declared that the first dominion should come to the stronghold, or Saviour, of the daughter of Zion. The first dominion was this earth in its Eden beauty. That was lost by transgression; but Christ came to seek and to save that which was lost. He declares that he will make all things new. Therefore this earth will be restored to its primeval glory. Isaiah tells us that the “wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose.” This whole earth will be made “a desolate wilderness” by the great army of the Lord at the second coming of Christ. Joel 2. And thus it will remain for a thousand years; after this, the city of God, the camp of the saints, will descend with all the shining hosts and the King of Glory. The wicked will then be raised to receive the devouring fire, which will leave the earth free from sin and sinners. Rev. 20:9. Ps. 37. “Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.” Matt. 13:43. This earth that was “a desolate wilderness,” a “solitary place,” shall be glad for them; for they (the righteous) have been away from it for a thousand years. Then they will receive their “everlasting possession;” and from one new moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, they will all assemble to worship their King. Yes, “the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads.” And because there shall be no death there, nor any pain, “sorrow and sighing shall flee away.” Grand promise! Glorious reward! Zion, the city of our solemnities, is that “strong city” of which the saints will sing in that day when they wait with anxious eyes to behold their King. Trials and sore afflictions will have separated them from the world. All their joy will be to think of the future. During the plagues they will be protected by the angels of God, Ps. 91; yet their hearts will meditate terrors, Isa. 33:18; for the angels will be unseen by them. They can only hear them saying, “This is the way, walk ye in it.” Isa. 30:21. Then mortal men on earth will be holy; for the decree will have passed: “He that is holy, let him be holy still.” Probation will be over; for the unmingled wrath of God will be falling on the ungodly. These scenes will not last long; for the Lord then says, “Behold, I come quickly.” Rev. 22:11, 12. Isaiah says, they that give the proclamation of coming salvation to the end of the world shall be called “the holy people, the redeemed of the Lord.” Chap. 62:11, 12. Following this is a description of One whose garments are sprinkled with blood, One who is mighty to save. And he declares, “The day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of my redeemed is come.” This is the time during which the plagues will fall. Rev. 18:8. To illustrate how God’s people will be protected, he mentions the loving kindness of the Lord to ancient Israel: “The angel of his presence saved them.” How good the Lord is! How wise the plan! Mortal eyes cannot endure the shining brilliancy of the heavenly angels. But at this time they will be guarded on every side by hearing a “word behind” them. Isa. 30:21. Many scorn the idea of a special work of preparation for the last generation. Perhaps they do not consider that all the living who are saved will have to become holy in order to be called holy by Him who “is like a refiner’s fire, and like fuller’s soap.” But they tell us, “The Lord will have to forgive our sins just as he has always forgiven sins.” The good of past ages are saved because they sincerely repented, and because Christ pledges his blood to the Father that if they had lived till the perfect day they would have become blameless. See 1 Thess. 5:4, 23. Therefore, brethren, let us not “sleep as do others,” but let us “watch and be sober.” We must become righteous, and we must do it by true repentance and careful watching with fervent prayer. We can then be numbered with that waiting “holy people.” And when the afflictions are all over, our eyes will behold the King in his beauty. We can look up with joy and say, “Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us.” Soon the voice of the Archangel and the trump of God will shake the earth. The heavens will tremble at the sound. The dead will hear and live. Then the waiting remnant will unite with the good of all past times, and ascend with shouts of victory to worlds on high. Oh, the rejoicing! It is said that tears will then be wiped from off all faces, but it almost seems that tears would be shed for joy as saints clasp glad hands in the kingdom. What a meeting! G. V. KILGORE. Nebraska City, Jan. 24, 1876. DO BEASTS HAVE IMMORTAL SOULS?
NOTHING is plainer than that animals do have memory. Every-day observation of the conduct of horses, dogs, cats, hens, etc., confirms this fact beyond a reasonable doubt. As illustrating this point, read the following interesting anecdotes:— “Any one who is accustomed to the ways of insects can tell by the manner in which a wasp leaves the nest whether it is an old or a young one. An old wasp crawls to the entrance of the nest, and at once darts off without any ceremony. A young one, however, when going out on its first expedition, acts in a very different manner. When it has emerged from the entrance, it turns round and examines the spot; it then takes to wing, but flies backward and forward in front of the nest, and always looking toward it as if taking notes of the bearings, and gradually increasing its distance, until it is out of sight. “Here, then, is a distinct exercise of memory as well as of reason, the creature impressing on its mind the appearance of the objects near its nest, and acting on the result of those impressions. Human beings act in just the same way when traversing for the first time a locality through which they will have to return. And yet, as I have already stated, the wasp has no true brains. “The late Mr. Stone remarked that he had seen bees act in a similar manner when their hive has been moved to a spot at any distance from that which it formerly occupied.” “Here is a good example of memory in the case of a domesticated bird:— “Our noble yellow-crested cockatoo was the especial pet of the eldest daughter of the house. The young lady married an officer, and was absent from the old house for nearly three years. Her anticipated advent on a visit to her father was of course talked about, and we may imagine the cockatoo pricked up her ears at the sound of her name. The moment the carriage stopped at the door, she flew down from her perch, and, before mamma or sister could greet her arrival, was outside the front door with, ‘Kiss me, my dear; kiss me, Sa; kiss me, Sa.’” “A gentleman who has kindly taken a great interest in the object of this work furnishes the following account:— “‘When I was a boy, my father bought from a neighboring farmer a gray Galloway pony, that was very vicious to all with whom he came in contact except myself. The way in which I acquired so much power over him was by feeding him with bread, and showing him other acts of kindness. “‘Some years afterward I left home, and when I returned to my father’s house, I found that “Donald” had been sold, and that all trace of him had been lost for about seventeen years. At that period, being resident in a village in a neighboring county, I saw an old white horse in a cart, and, thinking that it might be the same animal, I went up to him in the same way as I used to do in boyhood, and said “Donald.” He immediately turned his head to me, laid it on my shoulder, pawed the ground, rubbed his nose upon my arm, and showed the greatest possible affection. “‘The driver of the cart came out of a shop, and warned me to keep away from the horse, as he would bite me. I moved up the street, when Donald became restive, wrenched the reins out of the lad’s hands, followed me along the street, and it was not until I entered a house that, after much difficulty, he was induced to move away.’ “This is a really wonderful act of memory on the part of the horse, and not at all a bad one on the part of the man; and the incident affords a direct proof that memory is a common possession of man and beast. That the man should recognize the animal which he loved in his boyhood was a tolerably fair exercise of memory; but that the horse should recognize the man is even more astonishing. From boyhood to manhood, the lapse of seventeen years makes such changes in personal appearance that, as a rule, the man of thirty can scarcely be recognized even by those who knew him well as a boy of thirteen. Nor can the voice give any help in recognition, for the deep tones of the manly voice are as unlike the shrill sounds of a boy’s treble pipe as is the bearded face of the man to the smooth cheek of the boy. “Dress also makes a great difference in the appearance of a human being; and when we consider that the dress of a man is quite unlike that of a boy, we must appreciate the strength of memory which enables the horse to recognize his friend in spite of so many alterations.” That animals are possessed of feelings of generosity cannot be reasonably denied. Notice the following cases:— “‘A cat in a Swiss cottage had taken poison, and came, in a pitiful state of pain, to seek its mistress’ help. The fever and heat were so great that it dipped its own paws into a pan of water—an almost unheard-of proceeding in a water-hating cat. She wrapped it in wet linen, fed it with gruel, nursed it, and doctored it all the day and night after. It revived, and could not find ways enough to show its gratitude. One evening she had gone up-stairs to bed, when a mew at the window roused her. She got up and opened it, and found the cat, which had climbed a pear tree nailed against the house, with a mouse in its mouth; this it laid as an offering at its mistress’ feet, and went away. “‘For about a year it continued to bring these tributes to her. Even when it had kittens, they were not allowed to touch this reserved share; and if they attempted to eat it, the mother gave them a little tap—“That is not for thee.” After awhile, however, the mistress accepted the gift, thanked the giver with a pleased look, and restored the mouse, when the cat permitted her children to take the prey, which had served its purpose in her eyes. “‘Here was a refined feeling of gratitude, remembered for months afterward, quite disinterested, and placed above the natural instincts (always strong in a cat) toward her own offspring.” “The following anecdote was told to me by Mr. Swecker, the well-known artist. A friend of his had a couple of tame sea-gulls which ranged the garden freely, one wing of each being clipped, to prevent them from flying away. He had also a fine young cat, which struck up an oddly assorted friendship with the gulls. After a while, she evidently compassionated their crippled condition, and thought that it prevented them from hunting. So she set to work at hunting for them, and was in the habit of bringing them little birds and mice, which they ate with the solemn satisfaction of a gull at meals.” “The manager of a mill in Fifeshire was very much disliked by the watch-dog, probably because he had acted harshly to the animal. One very dark night he strayed from the path and fell over the dog. Perceiving the mistake which he had made, and that he could not recover himself, he gave himself up as lost, the dog being a very powerful one. The animal, however, was magnanimous enough to spare a helpless enemy, and to lay aside old grievances. Instead of seizing the prostrate man by the throat, the dog only licked his face and indicated his sympathy. Ever afterward, the man and the dog were great friends.” Patient Endeavor and the Pursuit of Fame
Every man must patiently abide his time. He must wait, not in listless idleness, not in useless pastime, not in querulous dejection, but in constant, steady, cheerful endeavor, always willing, fulfilling and accomplishing his task, “that when the occasion comes he may be equal to the occasion.” The talent of success is nothing more than doing what you can do well, without a thought of fame. If it comes at all, it will come because it is deserved, not because it is sought after. It is a very indiscreet and troublesome ambition which cares so much about fame, about what the world says of us—to be always looking in the face of others for approval—to be always anxious about the effect of what we do or say—to be always shouting to hear the echoes of our own voices. A Child's Question About Santa Claus and Truth
A LADY thinking it was time for her little girl to put away childish things, told her that “Santa Claus” was a “made-up” person. Upon which the child, with becoming solemnity, asked, “Have you been telling me lies about Jesus Christ, too?” THE SANCTUARY.
By Uriah Smith
Eighth Paper.—The Seventy Weeks.
It has now been proved, 1. That there is the clearest connection between the 8th and 9th chapters of Daniel. 2. That the seventy weeks are consequently a part of the 2300 days. 3. That these weeks are cut off from those days. 4. That the seventy weeks are the first 490 days of the 2300 days. 5. That, consequently, where the seventy weeks begin, there the 2300 days begin. Respecting the time, therefore, we have now only to inquire further, From what point are the seventy weeks to be reckoned? The data which the Bible furnishes on this point are found in the further instruction which the angel gave to Daniel in chapter 9. After informing him that seventy weeks were cut off from the 2300 days, and allotted to his people and the city of Jerusalem, he proceeds immediately to tell him in the following language where they begin, and what events would mark their termination:— “Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks; the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself; and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week; and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.” Dan. 9:25–27. From this testimony respecting the seventy weeks we learn, 1. That a commandment to restore and build Jerusalem marks their beginning. 2. That seven weeks or 49 years were allotted to the work of restoration. 3. That sixty-nine weeks or 483 years would span the interval to the time when the Messiah the Prince should appear upon the earth, or when our Lord should commence his public ministry here among men. 4. That during the last or seventieth week, the Messiah should confirm the covenant (the new covenant) with many. 5. That in the midst or middle of that last week, he should be cut off, and cause the sacrifice and oblation to cease; expressions which must be considered as referring to his crucifixion, and the effect which his thus offering himself upon the cross would have upon the Jewish sacrifices and ceremonies, in causing them virtually to cease. When the seventy weeks, therefore, are correctly located, we shall find the seventieth week falling at such a time that the commencement of Christ’s ministry will stand at the beginning, and his crucifixion, three and a half years later, in the middle, of that last week. The whole question might therefore be left to an argument on the date of the crucifixion of Christ, since this has as much bearing upon the point at issue as even the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem from which this period is to be dated. But it is not difficult to find the commandment to restore Jerusalem, and to ascertain that it went forth at the precise time to render the prophecy harmonious in all its parts. There are four events which have by different ones at different times been regarded as the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem. These are, 1. The decree of Cyrus for the rebuilding of the house of God, B. C. 536. Ez. 1:1–4. 2. The decree of Darius for the prosecution of that work which had been hindered, B. C. 519. Ez. 6:6–12. 3. The decree of Artaxerxes Longimanus to Ezra, B. C. 457, Ez. 7. And 4. The commission to Nehemiah, from the same king in his twentieth year, B. C. 444. Neh. 2. 1. Respecting this last, we find no feature about it necessary to constitute it a Persian decree. It was essential that such decree should be put in writing, and signed by the king. Nehemiah had nothing of the kind. His commission was only verbal. If it be said that the letters granted him constituted a decree, then the decree was issued not to Nehemiah, but to the governors beyond the river; and moreover these would constitute a plurality of decrees, not one decree as the prophecy contemplates. 2. The occasion of Nehemiah’s petition to the king for permission to go up to Jerusalem was the report which certain ones, returning, had brought from thence, that those in the province were in great affliction and reproach, that the wall of Jerusalem was also broken down, and the gates thereof burned with fire. Neh. 1. What wall and gates were those that were broken down and burned with fire? Evidently some which had been built by the Jews who had returned to Jerusalem under one, or all, of the preceding decrees, of Cyrus, Darius and Artaxerxes; for it cannot for a moment be supposed that the utter destruction of the city by Nebuchadnezzar, 144 years previous to that time, would have been reported to Nehemiah as a matter of news, or that he would have considered it as he evidently did, a fresh misfortune, calling for a fresh expression of his grief. A decree, therefore, authorizing the building of these had gone forth previous to the grant to Nehemiah. 3. Should any contend that the commission to Nehemiah must be the decree in question, because the object of his request was that he might build the city, it is sufficient to reply as above, that gates and walls had been built previous to his going up; besides, the work of building which he went to perform was accomplished in fifty-two days; whereas the prophecy allows for the building of the city, seven weeks, or forty-nine years. 4. There was nothing granted to Nehemiah, not embraced in preceding decrees, while those decrees had already granted vastly more privileges than his commission. 5. Reckoning from the commission to Nehemiah, B. C. 444, the dates throughout are entirely disarranged; for from that point the troublous times which were to attend the building of the street and wall, did not last seven weeks or forty-nine years. Reckoning from that date, the sixty-nine weeks or 483 years which were to extend only to the Messiah the Prince, bring us to A. D. 39–40; but Jesus was baptized of John in Jordan, and the voice of his Father was heard from Heaven declaring him his Son, in A. D. 27, thirteen years before. According to this calculation, the midst of the last, or seventieth, week, which was to be marked by the crucifixion, is placed in A. D. 44; but the crucifixion took place in A. D. 31, thirteen years previous. And lastly, the seventy weeks or 490 years, dating from the 20th of Artaxerxes, extend to A. D. 47, with absolutely nothing to mark their termination. Hence, if that be the year, and the grant to Nehemiah the event, from which to reckon, the prophecy has proved a failure. But such a conclusion is simply an overwhelming proof that that theory which dates the seventy weeks from the commission to Nehemiah in the 20th of Artaxerxes, is an utter failure. We may therefore dismiss this commission, and this date, from consideration. The question now lies between the decrees of Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes. Which one, if only one, and how many, if more than one, of these did it take to make that decree to which the prophecy refers as the starting point of the seventy weeks? THE SCAPE-GOAT NOT A TYPE OF CHRIST.
By Roswell F. Cottrell
To N. A. G.: I do not distinctly remember what called out my article, headed, “One and One Make Two,” in the REVIEW of July 28, 1863. I certainly do not claim infallibility, but am willing to confess my errors. On reading the article carefully to discern my fault, I judge from its tone that I might have been short of patience toward those who, after a full investigation of the subject has been made, still claim that the scape-goat was a type of Christ. For this I ask pardon. Two goats were taken, and lots were cast to decide which goat should be taken for the Lord, and which for another person called Azazel. The one on which the Lord’s lot fell was slain for a sin-offering. The other was reserved to be presented “alive before the Lord, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scape-goat into the wilderness.” The slain goat was a type of Christ on Calvary. The high priest was a type of Christ in Heaven. Heb. 8:1-5. The atonement is made by the priest. The sins of the sinner are laid upon the head of the sin-offering. For these sins it is slain. Then the priest bears the sins to the sanctuary, where they await the final decision, while intercession is being made, and probation lasts. Last of all the work of the high priest, in making the atonement, he bears all the sins of the pardoned out of the sanctuary and lays them off from himself upon the head of the goat that represents Azazel, as the slain goat represented the Lord Jesus, and the goat, with all the sins of the pardoned upon him, is sent away to a land not inhabited, the atonement is finished, and Israel is free; while those who did not avail themselves of the benefit of the atonement, by complying with the conditions given, are to be cut off. Lev. 23:29. As our sin-offering, Christ bore our sins in his own body on the cross. As our Priest, he has borne the sins of the penitent to the sanctuary, there to present them before his Father in connection with his own atoning blood. And as probationary time closes, he bears the sins of all in every age, who have complied with the conditions of pardon and have been faithful to the end of their probation, from the sanctuary, places them upon the head of Azazel, and sends him forever away from the Israel of God, and they are eternally free! Their beloved High Priest now takes them to himself to reign with him, and they hear no more of Azazel, till, after a thousand years, when, with his wicked host, he compasses the city of the saints and meets his final doom. In your recent letter you accuse me of contradicting the scripture that says that the scape-goat should “be presented alive before the Lord, to make an atonement with him.” On this point I advise you to read more carefully. Compare what I did say, not what you say I said, with this text, and see if I have given “God’s word the lie.” Your question, as you have stated it, was whether “the devil is a going to make an atonement for the sins of the righteous.” And you have stated twice in your letter, that my answer was, that “the scape-goat was not taken to make an atonement with.” This would be contradicting the word; but what did I say? Just this: “The scape-goat had nothing to do in making the atonement. The high priest alone made the atonement, but he made use of the scape-goat to bear away the sins after the work in the sanctuary was finished.” Now I apprehend a difference between the idea of the devil making atonement for the sins of the saved, and that of their sins, in which he shares the responsibility as their instigator, being forcibly laid upon him by One stronger than he, having removed them from the people who have obtained pardon by virtue of the sacrifice offered in behalf of all, and accepted by them. Can you, brother, see a difference? THE SABBATH AS A MEMORIAL.
By John Nevins Andrews
WHEN God had finished the creation of the heavens and the earth, he instituted the Sabbath to commemorate that infinite work. This is plainly taught in Gen. 2:2, 3, and Ex. 20:11. Yet it is said that when he raised his Son from the dead he determined that the Sabbath should thenceforth commemorate that event, and so changed the institution from the day on which he rested from his creative work to the day on which he raised Christ; but nothing of this kind is stated in the Bible. To show the absurdity of this view, I will suppose that, instead of ordaining an institution to commemorate his creative work, he had set up a literal monument for that purpose. Thus, the heavens and the earth being finished, God erected a monument with the following inscription: “In six days God created the heavens and the earth, and rested on the seventh. This monument was erected to commemorate that work.” However, when the Father raised his Son from the dead, he thought it good to make an addition to the words upon this monument, and under the original inscription he placed a second, which reads thus: “God raised his Son from the dead on the first day of the week. This monument was erected to commemorate that event.” This illustrates the case of those who say that the Sabbath commemorates the creation of the world and the resurrection of Christ; but whoever reads the two inscriptions on the same monument, will say that one of them is a falsehood, for they contradict each other; and it would not be difficult to determine that the untruth is in the second inscription. Others think to remedy this difficulty by the statement that he removed the original inscription and then engraved the second. This does not avoid the falsehood, it only hides it in the case of those who do not think; while thoughtful men will say, “This monument was not erected to commemorate the resurrection of Christ, for it had been standing four thousand years when he was raised from the dead.” If the Great Architect lacked materials he might have demolished the original monument and used its stones to erect another, and on it he would have written the second inscription. This is what many assert that he did. In that case he declares the first event no longer worthy to be commemorated, and the original monument no longer worthy to exist. This is to say, that the creation of the heavens and the earth is no longer worthy of commemoration, and the Sabbatic institution no longer worthy to be hallowed. The resurrection of Christ is worthy of a divine memorial; but it is not necessary to inscribe a falsehood upon the memorial of creation, nor yet to destroy that memorial in order to secure a memorial of Christ’s resurrection. As the Lord’s supper commemorates the death of Christ, so does baptism commemorate his resurrection, Rom. 6:1-5; Col. 2:12; 1 Pet. 3:21; while the Sabbath remains the Memorial of CREATION. J. N. A. PROGRESS OF THE WORK.
By W. M. Jones
The Seventh-day Baptist General Conference held its sixty-first session in September, at Alfred Center, New York. The interest of the meetings exceeded that of any former anniversary. It was also the largest gathering, a thousand Sabbath-keepers being in attendance. The membership is increasing, and the publishing and mission work is more vigorous. They sustain the Rev. N. Wardner as missionary to Scotland and Ireland, and assist in the printing and circulation of Sabbath literature in the United Kingdom. Their work in China is extending, and the calls at home are increasing. Tent-lecture work is to be an additional feature for future operations. The remarkable success of the Seventh-day Adventists, by means of tent life, has doubtless finally awakened our brethren to action in this direction. We bid them God-speed: “To your tents, O Israel!” The Seventh-day Adventist General Conference was held in August, at Battle Creek, Michigan. It was the largest gathering of Christian Sabbath-keepers of modern times. Hundreds have joined during the Conference year. Two publishing houses are established, one at Battle Creek, and the other at Oakland, California. A third on the Atlantic coast, and a fourth at Basle, Switzerland, are contemplated. The Rev. Mr. Bourdeau, a French Canadian, is on his way to France. The Rev. J. N. Andrews is laboring successfully in Switzerland, and the Rev. Mr. Ertzenberger is doing good work in Prussia. In less than a year, three Societies of Prussian Sabbath-keepers have been discovered, each ignorant of the other previously and of the American brethren; also a Sabbath-keeping Society of German immigrants has come to light in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The Bible Sabbath leaven works wherever the Bible is read and esteemed as the rule of faith and practice. Publications and correspondence are awakening serious inquiry in Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Africa, Australia, and Mexico. The brethren also aid our work in the British Isles. In this country the good cause is surely progressing. In July, Mr. Wardner and the writer lectured in Grimsby, Elgin, and Belfast. Since then, Mr. Wardner has lectured in Elgin, Forres, Belfast, and Govan. Four have been baptized, three in Belfast and one in Glasgow. Converts to the Sabbath are, however, not reckoned by the number of baptisms. An edition of 40,000 tracts will soon be issued in Glasgow. A native Scot, by profession a lawyer, but who practices gospel as well as law, is now in the field as a co-laborer with us. We have tract distributors in Belfast, Elgin, Glasgow, Grimsby, Canterbury, Tewkesbury, and London. A correspondent writes: “I shall be glad to act as tract distributor over the whole of Ireland.” An influential Baptist minister writes: “I must confess, the more I read the more strength your position seems to acquire. You have the weightiest argument on your side.” Another says, “I am still thinking about the Sabbath.” We could fill pages with lines of interest and encouragement, but our tiny paper is already overburdened. To all who read our publications, we beg to say: Do not be foiled by tradition, and the vain, fanciful escapades, by means of which so many are estranged from obeying God. Let not convenience sit in judgment upon your CONSCIENCE.—W. M. JONES, in Sabbath Memorial. Russia Recalls Ambassador From the Holy See
Russia has withdrawn her ambassador to the holy see, another reminder to the pope that his power, as a political sovereign, has departed. AN APPEAL.
By B. L. Whitney
N. Y. and PA. Tract Society There has never been a time since the organization of our Society when there seemed to be the interest in present truth on the part of the public generally as now. And while this is doubtless the case, to a greater or less extent, everywhere, there seems to be special indications that the Spirit of God is at work upon the minds of the people of our own State, and the way is being prepared for the reception of the truth. If this is the case, and I think none who have been laboring to place the light before the people will doubt it, what stronger reason could be urged for taking hold of this work with renewed energy and zeal to do all in our power to carry it forward? Our earnest inquiry should be, In what way can we most effectually accomplish the work? This question decided, it remains to set ourselves earnestly and perseveringly at work to carry out the decision. We would heartily recommend the plan which has lately been suggested in regard to the circulation of the SIGNS. Two thousand copies should be sent to this State the present season. We believe this can be done, and the plan proposed is as follows:— 1. Let our brethren everywhere immediately subscribe for from three to five copies for their own use. At least, 1000 copies should be taken in this way. These extra copies are to be used in getting interested readers among neighbors and friends everywhere. The plan of using them is fully explained in articles on this subject by Bro. Haskell. They will be furnished for this purpose at the regular Tract Society rates, $1.50 per copy. We do not suggest this to interfere with individual's subscribing at the regular subscription price. Let those who are able take a copy at $3.00 per year for their own table and several copies to use in doing missionary work. Wherever this plan has been proposed, the brethren have taken hold of it with commendable zeal, and already nearly 300 copies of the SIGNS have been subscribed for in this manner; but what is needed is that this movement should be general, and thus the greatest amount of good possible be accomplished. We request those who have not already thus subscribed for the SIGNS, to send in their names immediately to the State secretary, stating how many copies they wish, and they will be forwarded without delay. These names will be properly reported to the officers of the districts in which the individuals belong. We make this suggestion because the volume is fast passing and the subscriptions should commence without delay. They can be paid for at any time during the next quarter. 2. One thousand copies should be sent to candid, intelligent persons who are interested to read, that they may become acquainted with our views, and examine for themselves in regard to the truthfulness of our position. These individuals should, so far as possible, be induced to pay for the paper at the price at which it is furnished to the Tract Society, or at least a part of it, the balance to be paid by the Society. With proper effort on our part, a much larger number of names than has been mentioned might be judiciously obtained. We do not ask that any number of names be indiscriminately gathered up, simply that a given number may be furnished within a given time, but we believe the SIGNS ought to go to a thousand or more families during the next three months who would be benefited by reading it. The names may be obtained by the individual members of the Society who shall find persons interested to read whom they may not themselves be able to furnish, and by canvassers who may be appointed by the Society to act in that capacity. All names paid for out of the Society funds will be sent at the discretion of the directors of the districts from which they are sent, that careful and judicious work in the selection of names may thus be secured. In order to do this work, means will be needed in the Tract Society treasury, and we wish especially to call the attention of the Society to this point. We ask the co-operation of all in this direction, and at the same time we wish to see the work carried forward on the basis of equality. While quite an amount of means has been raised and expended by our Society, it is a fact that this has been furnished mostly by persons of moderate means, while more able brethren have not borne their proportionate share of the burden. One very encouraging feature of our late meeting at Adam’s Center, reported elsewhere by Bro. Haskell, was the fact that the necessity of a reform in this direction is being felt by those who have means, one brother coming forward with a donation of $500, and several others with $100 each. There are others in the State who would bring the blessing of God into their homes and hearts by following this good example. Then, when this class have led out in the work, we may be sure that all our brethren, according to their ability, will contribute their share, and thus the need be supplied so that the work in this department be not hindered for lack of means. We should immediately raise a fund of $2500 with which to furnish the SIGNS to those who should receive it, and to purchase publications, for which the call is constantly increasing. Nor should the REFORMER be neglected in our efforts for the SIGNS. With the premium that is being offered as an inducement to new subscribers, hundreds of new names should be added to the subscription list in this State. And we recommend with this, as with the SIGNS, that those who can use them subscribe for extra copies at half price to use in the same manner. We need the education and discipline that this kind of labor would give us, and I fully believe the real benefit we should receive, as individuals, by a faithful effort in this direction, would be worth many times more than it would cost, to say nothing of the good that might be accomplished for those for whom we labor. We expect an immediate response from all parts of the State, especially in regard to the SIGNS. Do not wait till you have fully decided just how you can use them before you dare to order; but with faith in the work to which God has called us, let us go forward and trust in his providence to open the way for us when we have done all that we can on our part. God has led his servants to the work of preparing this agency by which we may be instrumental in carrying the light to others; and when the means are thus made ready to our hand, shall we not be held responsible if we neglect to use them? Let the names of our brethren who want from two to ten copies of the SIGNS to use in the missionary work come in without delay. When convenient, let the business be done as usual through the officers of your districts; but when it is not, send direct to the State secretary, who will see that the business is properly arranged with the district to which you belong. Then, as you go to work with the SIGNS and find those who are interested to read, send in their names to the district secretary, or the director of your district, who, if he judges advisable, will forward them. Of course there will be no question as to those who are willing to subscribe at Tract Society rates. May the Lord help us to take up the work with faith and earnestness, laboring with zeal and discretion, and we may be sure of his blessing upon us and the work. B. L. WHITNEY.