Earlier text: THE HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE, CONCLUDEDQuestion Corner.
By Editor
"If ye will inquire, inquire ye." "But avoid foolish questions." [From time to time we will reply under this head, if deemed advisable, to such candid inquiries as may be sent us. Correspondents wishing a reply to their questions must give their full name and address, not for publication unless they wish, but as an evidence of good faith on their part, and to give us opportunity to reply by letter if deemed best. It is always well to inclose stamp. Let the questions be short and pointed, and such as may be answered in limited space. The questions will be numbered continuously.] PLEASE explain in Question Corner of Signs what is meant by Heb. 6:4-6. SEVERAL SUBSCRIBERS. The text reads as follows: "For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, if they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame." Our understanding of it is that those who have known Christ in the fullest sense, and after knowing him turn again to the bondage of sin, cannot regain again the fullness which they have lost. That is, as the scripture above expresses it, "it is impossible . . . to renew them again unto repentance." This does not mean that God is not willing to save everyone, but it does mean this, that when the soul has tasted of the fullness of God, and turns, in the light of that fullness, back to sin, it is impossible for it to ever come in that condition where it can appreciate blessings from which it has turned. As a similar truth is expressed in Heb. 10:29, it is counting the blood of the covenant wherewith he was sanctified an unholy thing, and doing despite unto the Spirit of grace. The blood of the Lord Jesus Christ and the power of the Spirit of God are the only means by which God can cleanse and save the sinner. But if man turns from them, the Lord has no reserve means by which to reach him. That is what is expressed in the scripture we are considering. But with such individuals there is no genuine repentance. There may be sorrow because of the consequences of sin, but it is not a real sorrow because of the sin itself. There is always hope for everyone who earnestly and truly desires to do God's will, and who truly repents of sin; that is, who has such a sorrow for sin that his whole being cries out for freedom from its bondage. Such an one may know that God has not forsaken him, but that it is the Spirit which leads him on; and if he will follow the Spirit, the Lord will lead him back to light. Heb. 6:4-6 should never be a discouragement to a single soul who longs to be free from sin, and who desires above all things to do not his own will but God's will. 139. JESUS' PARENTS; PERFUMERY; THE "OTHER SHEEP." Will you please answer the following questions: 1. Were Jesus' parents Jews? If not, of what descent were they? 2. What does the Lord say about using perfumery upon our clothing? 3. In John 10:16 what did Christ mean when he said, "Other sheep I have, which are not of this fold"? READER M. 1. Jesus' parents were Jews. This is shown in the first chapter of Matthew and the second and third chapters of Luke. They were of the family of David and the tribe of Judah. 2. The Lord does not prohibit the use of perfumery upon the clothing. He does not say we shall use it or we shall not use it. He does say, however, that the incense which was made for the tabernacle anciently must not be used for private purposes. See Ex. 30:31-38. But it would probably be impossible for that to be made now, because it is somewhat uncertain as to just what the ingredients were. In regard to these things God has given us certain principles, in economy and in propriety, and desires that we shall have a sanctified judgment in regard to all these things. If, in the light of these principles, one's conscience condemns him, they had better not use such articles; at the same time, they must be careful not to judge others. One of the best ways is so to live that perfumes will not be needed, and that can be done by being scrupulously clean and living in harmony with the laws of health. 3. The "other sheep" of whom our Saviour spake were the Gentiles. The gospel was first preached to the Jews. It was to be afterward preached to the Gentiles. See Isa. 56:1-8; 60:1-3; Eph. 2:11, 12, 19, 20; 1 Cor. 12:13. The Spirit and truth of God unites them in the one Shepherd, Christ Jesus. Is it consistent with the faith of the Seventh-day Adventists to unite with any secret organization? E. G. F. To our minds it is not consistent for any Christian to unite with secret organizations. For an expression of the views of Seventh-day Adventists on secret societies, see No. 103 of the Bible Students' Library, published at this office. Price, 3 cents. 141. FORBIDDING WORK ON THE SABBATH. Should we forbid our children who are not of age to work on the Sabbath? and is the doing of this carrying out the same principles which we find in Sunday laws? L. G. M. The government of home is an altogether different thing from the government of State. The only province of State laws is to suppress incivility and to protect the lives, property, etc., of the subjects of the State. But God has given greater authority than that to parents. They are to train their children for eternity, always by love and moral suasion, if possible, but if necessary for the good of the child, by punishment. The command which the Lord gives is, "Train up a child in the way he should go." "Bring them [the children] up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord." Again we are told, "Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him." Prov. 22:15. Many other passages refer to the same thing. In 1 Sam. 3:13 the Lord severely rebukes Eli because he restrained not his sons. And in the Sabbath commandment we are told that "in it [the Sabbath] thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter," etc. This is the negative side of the question, however, and yet it is one which the Lord wants us to regard. But parents have a duty which is positive, as well as negative. They are not only commanded to restrain their children from doing evil, even by punishment if necessary, but they are commanded to teach them the better way, and so fill up their hearts with that which is good that they will not have the desire to do that which is evil. In order that this be the case, the instruction of the word of the Lord must be followed:— "And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart; and thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up." Deut. 6:5-7. If the love of God is in the parent, and the parent is a diligent student of God's word and works, he will find that this instruction in regard to what he should do, and in teaching the children what to do, will be much more effectual than in telling them what not to do. But, again, there are some parents to whom the knowledge of Christ and how to train children has not come till later years, when the children are more or less grown, when the constant repression would do no good, and restraint would only arouse rebellion in the children. What ought a parent to do in such a case as this? In the first place, as touching upon the question above asked, he should not permit his children who are under his control to dishonor the Sabbath day by work. Just as long as the child is under his control, it is the duty of the child to obey, and the Lord will hold the parent responsible for the work which the child does which could have been prevented. But in prohibiting work of this kind the Spirit of Christ ought always to rule. The parent's example should be consistent. What he says and the commands he issues should be in such a way as to appeal to the good judgment and reason of the child. And, even though they are not submitted to with good grace or proper respect for parental control, this should place no resentment in the heart of the parents. There are great dangers lying on both sides. There is the danger of being so severe in home government as to drive our children from us, by continually telling them they must not do this and they must not do that, while the active mind and healthful body must find something to do. There is danger of telling them what they must not do and giving them nothing better than what is prohibited in its place. There is just as great danger on the other hand of allowing children to have their own way, utterly unrestrained, and thereby developing in them a nature that is wholly selfish and evil. God desires that that course shall be pursued which is laid down in his holy word. If we have that word laid up in our heart and the love of Christ permeating our being, he will teach us the better way, and we, through his help, may train our children for eternity. GOOD INTENTIONS.
By J. W. Kirton
MORAL strength is acquired by moral fidelity, just as moral weakness is the result of sinful indulgence. "By the street By-and-by we come to the lane Never," the old proverb says. It is not enough to intend to do right or to go right; men must do and go. Daily resistance to small temptations is the moral training which best prepares for future temptations. To neglect this training is, therefore, to resign the victory and suffer a defeat. Of the tens of thousands who have gone astray, or fallen into bad habits, it may be safely said not one deliberately started out to do so, but they were caught one by one in some sly trap, because they were not on the alert, or, what is still more to be deplored, were not earnest in their search for good habits, or vigorous in their efforts to rise to the highest point attainable in goodness of which they were capable.—J. W. Kirton. CHARACTER SHOWN BY BELIEF.
By S. S. Times
CHARACTER is shown by what one believes rather than in what one disbelieves. It takes less of a man to sneer than to praise. Trust is a higher attainment than doubt. Even hatred of evil is no credit to a man who does not love goodness, and show his love for it. Yet how often we see a man seeming to pride himself on the number of his disbeliefs, and on his hostility to things which he dislikes! Being positive and earnest in support of something which one deems worth living for is a surer sign of high manhood than being opposed to forty forms of evil as he sees evil.
—S. S. Times. THE NEIGHBORS' BOYS.
By Mrs. Harriet A. Cheever
WHEN we moved into the neighborhood, I told my husband there was one thing which evidently would prove an insufferable annoyance. The streets were full of boys—horrid boys. I fancied I never did like boys, and, having none of my own, it seemed shameful to have to put up with such a tribe of other people's as there were about us. Mr. Wilborn said, soothingly, with a kind of twinkle in his eye—I suppose the man remembered that he was once a "horrid boy" himself—"Oh, well, I wouldn't worry; perhaps the little chaps won't trouble you as much as you anticipate!" And just at that moment with a whoop and a bound came half a dozen of them around our alley. We were at supper, and as I turned to see what was the matter, I was only just in time to see a half dozen heels flying over the back fence. "Well, did you ever!" I gasped. "Oh, yes," said Mr. Wilborn, "I've 'shined it' over the neighbor's fence more than a hundred times; my turn to take it now! That's all." Well, it looked like a terrible trial. Of course, like every other woman, I wanted to be as popular with my neighbors as possible, so I resolved not to make any more fuss about it than I could help, but I had a guilty suspicion that poor Horace would hear fussing enough. Well, they clattered and raced and whistled; they tooted and sung and climbed, and were veritable boys, I can assure you; yet at the end of three days I had not seen or heard anything absolutely objectionable, only the general racket and running fire of sport continually kept up. On the afternoon of the fourth day, which happened to be Saturday, a perplexity occurred. I had just received a note saying some friends were coming to tea, and, as my girl had not yet arrived, there was no one to send on some necessary errands. I went to the door and looked anxiously forth to see how far off a store might be, and if I could take four-year-old Addie with me. One neighbor's boy was perched on the railing separating our piazza from the next one. Another was sitting on the fence. Two or three others were lurking in the alley. As my anxious face looked forth, the monkey on the fence actually took off his cap as he inquired respectfully:— "Have you lost anything, Mrs. Wilborn?" "Oh, no," I said pleasantly, "I was only thinking of going on an errand, and didn't know just how to!" "Why, send us!" said the merry boy, with a bound off the fence and a nod toward the others. "Will you really go?" I inquired, as railing, fence, and alley delivered up their phalanx. "Why, bless you, yes, ma'am," said a boy with dimples—that 'horrid boy' actually had dimples—"why, that's what we're for! We hang around just to do errands and be useful. Mamma says that's what boys are made for." I laughed a relieved laugh as I produced a basket and told of my wants, and in less than fifteen minutes those mimic locomotives came choo-chooing around the yard with everything I sent for, and the change all right. I was proceeding to give a cent or two all around, when with a whistle off they bounded, one little chap lingering to say with mock dignity:— "We young gentlemen never take pay till we do something." Two or three days after, just as Horace was starting out to business, we missed little Addie. She had skipped off while we were eating breakfast and we thought she was with the girl, who came the day before. The child was nowhere to be found. With pale faces Horace and I rushed to the door. "O boys," I cried, "my little girl has run away! What shall I do?" "Do? Why, find her of course!" was the uninterrupted chorus. "She hasn't run away from us, you better believe," said one consoling little fellow; "there isn't a corner in the city where sissy could hide and we not poke our noses in less time than you can say Jack Robinson." "Oh, bless the dear boys!" I exclaimed. "How they do cheer me!" Horace looked at me and said never a word. I put on my bonnet to join the search, but before I reached the end of the long block two boys came round a distant corner carrying Addie "arm chair" on their clasped hands. A shrill whistle recalled the other scouts. Horace produced a handful of small change, but a low bow from the boy with the dimples was accompanied with the remarkable speech: "We coves don't take change until folks know us, and then they never offer it." But the time came when I broke down and cried, cried hard. Horace came home from the city one day when we had been in our new home about a fortnight, very ill. I was terrified at his appearance, he looked and seemed so sick. When he got to the door, he declared afterwards, he could not manage his night key, he was so faint. But a ubiquitous boy unlocked the door for him, then two others helped him into the house, as deftly as if they had been men. I met them in the hall and understood matters at a glance. A third boy had started with my message to the doctor in a trice. A fourth softly asked permission to take Addie up and down the sidewalk "for a little change." I blessed the boy's thoughtfulness in the midst of my care and anxiety. The two who helped Horace in stayed with me, moving silently about assisting in little ways until Horace was in bed and the doctor came and reassured me. Then all at once there wasn't a boy to be seen, not a boy until about half an hour afterwards, when I happened to go to the back door, and there perched on the fence in solemn conclave were seven of my neighbors' boys, so silent I should never have suspected they were around unless I had seen them. At my appearance one boy spoke up cheerily:— "You see we are only prowling around in case we should be wanted." That was when I broke down and cried, not because of my anxieties, those were greatly relieved, but because I had called those dear, quiet, helpful little fellows, "horrid boys." Toward night, as a tap came at the outside door, I opened it to see a bright face look up into mine, while a roguish voice remarked:— "The mourners are about to disperse for the night. Are there any errands?" I kissed right into a dimple as I replied cheerfully:— "No, my dear boy, nothing to-night, thank you." Now they scamper freely around the yard, perch on and tumble over our fence, coddle Addie, and chat with me at the open window, and I think my neighbors' boys are splendid, just splendid! The merry boys! And to my real delight I heard one confide to Addie the other day that the fellows all thought her papa was one of the nicest gentlemen they ever knew, and he added heartily: "And we all think you've got just the boss mamma!"—Mrs. Harriet A. Cheever. A BEAVER'S WINTER HOUSE.
By Edmund Collins
THIS sagacious creature, bearing the name "the wise old man of the ponds," among so many Northern hunters, does not become comatose like the bear, but goes into his comfortable house, which is reached by a tunnel running from below the water level of the pond through the bank. The beaver builds his own residence by hollowing out a deep hole in the ground, then putting on a roof of branches and poles, overlaying this thickly with mud, turf, and gravel; but this is done10 in such a way that an inexperienced person, walking along the edge of the pond, would pay no heed to it, for it resembles an ordinary turf mound. The beaver swims about through the ponds or creeps through the woods till the water becomes scummed over with ice; then he disappears, and does not come forth again till the spring sun bursts the fetters of winter. Before retiring he collects a store of berries, buds, succulent roots, etc., which are carefully stored away in the inner compartment of his house, and eaten sparingly through the months of imprisonment. I have watched the animal many a time in the autumn cut down rowan trees, laden with the bright, waxy vermilion berries, snip off three or four bunches, go with them to his house, and then return to the fallen tree for more. I have likewise seen him gathering buds and juicy roots and making way with them. In many cases only two beavers live in the same house through the winter, though sometimes the parents and their progeny of the previous summer are found huddled together. There are usually two compartments in the beaver's house, the inner one being drier and used for sleeping.—Our Animal Friends. COMFORT.
By Elizabeth Barrett Browning
SPEAK low to me, my Saviour, low and sweet
From out the hallelujahs, sweet and low,
Lest I should fear and fall, and miss thee so,
Who art not missed by any that entreat.
Speak to me as to Mary at thy feet.
And if no precious gums my hands bestow,
Let my tears drop like amber while I go
In reach of thy divinest voice complete
In humanest affection—thus, in sooth,
To lose the sense of losing, as a child
Whose song bird seeks the wood forevermore,
Is sung to in its stead by mother's mouth,
Till, sinking on her breast, love-reconciled,
He sleeps the faster that he wept before.
—Mrs. Browning. 'Tis bedtime; say your hymn, and bid good-night.
God bless mamma, papa, and dear ones all;
Your half-shut eyes beneath your eyelids fall;
Another minute you will shut them quite.
Yes, I will carry you, put out the light,
And tuck you up, although you are so tall?
What will you give me, sleepy one, and call
My wages, if I settle you all right?
I laid her golden curls upon my arm,
I drew her little feet within my hand;
Her rosy palms were joined in trustfulness;
Her heart next mine beat gently, soft, and warm;
She nestled to me, and, by love's command,
Paid me my precious wages,—"baby's kiss."
—Selected. HASTY EATING.
By John Harvey Kellogg
According to an old adage, "Haste makes waste." A good illustration of this is presented by the typical Yankee, while swallowing his food with business dispatch, using "water power," or, rather, tea and coffee power, with but little regard to the consequences. If it is necessary to take food, it is equally so to secure the needed nourishment from it, promoting health and strength, with due regard to decent and refined habits. Certain kinds of food—well represented by the grains, rich in starch—require a combination with the saliva of the mouth, this being the special solvent of starch, the most important step in the digestive process. If hastily forced into the stomach, this saliva cannot be properly combined with it, of necessity reducing the amount of nourishment afforded. If ordinary food passes into the stomach without being properly masticated, in masses, it will not be permeated by the gastric juice, in which case it will not be naturally digested, of course not furnishing its usual nutrition. The digestive organs are to that extent taxed, reducing their power to nourish the body. It would be wiser to take less food—if there seems to be insufficient time for the meals—that diminished quantity, well digested, affording more real nourishment than twice the quantity, but imperfectly digested, since only the digested food can be of any service.—Dr. J. H. Hanaford. HERE is a sad story which comes from Terre Haute. A highly sensational scene took place Thursday in the court room in that city. Everyone will have a feeling of sympathy for the prisoner, who acted as his own attorney, and made the brief but forcible argument in his own favor. The special was as follows:— "When Jim Godsey, aged twenty-six, was placed on trial to-day for forging his father's name to an order on a hat store by which he got two hats, which he pawned, he had no legal counsel, and declined to have any appointed by the court. When his father had testified that he had not signed the order, the son cross-examined him. The prosecuting attorney submitted the case without argument, saying that guilt was too clearly established to need argument. The young man then addressed the jury, and soon tears were trickling down the cheeks of several jurors, and all in the court room were deeply moved. "He told how he had spent his life from infancy until two years ago in his father's saloon and gambling house, 'the wickedest place of its kind in Terre Haute. For two years,' he said, 'this father of mine, with one foot in the grave, pretended to repent, and joined the church. How could I be other than what I am, raised among thieves, gamblers, and blacklegs? Before I was able to see over a pool table, he,' pointing at his father, 'put a box at the side of a table and taught me how to play. The first man that taught me to cheat at cards was my father. Some of you may have a son, but, gentlemen of the jury, you would not send your son to the penitentiary for $6.20. I stand here without a friend on earth. You may send me to the penitentiary, but I am not wholly responsible for what I am.' "When he had proceeded thus far, the young man broke down and sobbed as if his heart would break. The jury went out at 11 o'clock this morning, and at 9 o'clock tonight returned a verdict giving him five years in the penitentiary."—Vincennes, Ind., Commercial. PARALLELS BETWEEN ROMANISM AND HINDUISM.
By Rev. D. Moore, D.D.
A WRITER from Rome has undertaken to show an exact conformity between popery and paganism, and that the religion of the present Romans is derived from that of their heathen ancestors. The Abbe Dubois, long a Jesuit missionary in Southern India, in contending that his religion is better adapted than Protestantism for the people of India, uses these words: "If any of the several modes of Christian worship were calculated to make an impression and gain ground in the country, it is, no doubt, the Catholic form, which Protestants call an idolatry in disguise. It has a puja, or sacrifice; it has processions, images, statues, tirtan, or holy water, fasts, tittys, or feasts, invocation of saints, etc., all of which practices bear more or less resemblance to those in use among the Hindus." But I proceed to furnish parallels between Romanism and Hinduism, which a residence in India enabled me to discover. Both systems foster asceticism, and agree in proclaiming the meritoriousness of voluntary poverty and of celibacy. Both can boast of monks and hermits, devotees dwelling in monasteries and in deserts. Begging Brahmans may be compared to mendicant friars. Hindus and Romanists concur in saying prayers in an unknown tongue, and are both distinguished by the use of beads, which they count in performing their invocations. To the common people of both religions the reading of their Scriptures is forbidden. Hindus have their purgatories and their shraddha, or service for the repose and happiness of the dead. Their temples are lighted up in daytime like Roman churches, and as the Roman priest rings a bell during mass,395 so does the Brahman during worship in the idol temple. Works of supererogation are recognized alike in the Roman and Hindu systems. In both there is allowed a low standard of piety, which may suffice for persons engaged in business, while a higher is proposed to a select few taken from the common mass. Hindus know the use of pious frauds, and have their pretended miracles, wrought by holy men and by images. They, too, hold the doctrine of the opus operatum, or the merit of a religious act apart from the disposition of the worshiper. The alleged power of the priest to make a god of a wafer by saying, "Hoc est corpus meum," strangely resembles the Brahman's claim by the use of mantras to endow a block of stone with an animating divinity. Lough Derg pilgrims, who travel on their bare knees over rough stones, or who walk with peas or gravel in the inside of their shoes or brogues, as a penance, are but humble imitators of self-torturing Hindus, who will perform painful journeys to distant shrines by dragging their bodies flat along the ground. While professed thieves and thugs in India pay their devotion assiduously to the goddess Kali, and make her their tutelary deity, Italian banditti and pirates have been known to put themselves under the protection of the Virgin, and to have vowed to her a part of their plunder. Let me mention a fact which shows that Protestants are not without some justification in calling (to use the language of Abbe Dubois) the Catholic form of worship an idolatry in disguise. In the island of Salsette, near Bombay, there is a famous image of the Virgin Mary, which is much resorted to by her worshipers. It so happened that the plaster with which this image was overlaid fell off. This deterioration led to a discovery. It became evident that the statue was not originally set up in honor of the Virgin Mary. There could be no mistaking the fact that it was at first a heathen idol representing the goddess Parvati, the consort of Siva. The Portuguese, who had possession of the island before the English, appropriated the idol, and, after disguising and transforming it, made use of it in practicing their own superstition.—Presbyterian. A MAN in Sussex, whose wife was blessed with a remarkably even temper, went over the way to a neighbor one evening and said:— “Neighbor, I just should like to see my wife cross for once. I've tried all I know, and I can't make her cross no way.” “You can't make your wife cross,” said his neighbor. “I wish I could make mine anything else. But you just do what I tell you, and if that won't act, nothing will. You bring her in some night a lot of the crookedest sticks you can get, them as won't lie in no form, and see how she makes out then.” The pieces of wood were accordingly brought in, as awkward and crooked and contrary as could be found. The man went away early to work, and at noon returned to see the result of his experiment. He was greeted with a smiling face and the gentle request:— “Tom, do bring me in some more of those crooked sticks if you can find them; they do fit around the kettle so nicely!”—Ram's Horn. ELECTRICITY IN THE FAR EAST.
The willingness of the Japanese to adopt, without reserve, says a writer in the Electrical World, a civilization totally different in character from that under which they had previously lived, is one of their most striking characteristics. While they are very conservative in many ways, they are the most liberal people in the world in others. Twice in their history they have experienced a complete change of front, and adopted a foreign civilization. The first time was many centuries ago, when Chinese civilization, with its literature, manufactures, and science, was found to be better than their own, and its adoption raised them from a state of barbarism to one of comparatively high civilization; and now, in these last few decades, the new civilization of the West has been adopted to a degree that must astonish anyone who has a thorough understanding of the magnitude of the change that has taken place. In no way is this change made more evident than in the hold which electricity has taken in the past five years. The telegraph, of course, has been in use since soon after the opening of the country, and now extends to all parts of the empire. When it was first established, there were many amusing occurrences, due to the inability of the people to understand how the message was sent over the wire. The writer's first visit to Japan was early in 1886, and one day he was, with a guide, walking over a remote mountain road along which passed a telegraph line. A countryman was met who had seated himself by the roadside and was intently watching the wire. The gaze was so fixed that the guide asked what he was doing, and he replied that he was waiting to see a message go along the wire, that he had watched many times since it was put up, but had never been able to see anything. This incident was, perhaps, no more amusing than the reception of the telephone in Rio Janeiro. The writer was in that city when the exchange was being started, and considerable opposition was shown, as the people supposed nothing but English could be spoken, and, in order to be able to use it, they must learn that language. SOMETIMES a single homely phrase has in it so much truth that it sums up an entire situation. Mrs. T.'s cook is, in outward appearance, rather a stupid girl, but she is by no means without a homely wit and a goodly share of common sense. Not long since Mrs. T. had occasion to talk with the girl in relation to a grocer, a man of remarkably plausible manners, but concerning the honesty of whose dealings grave doubts had arisen. "He is certainly not honest in his weight," Mrs. T. said, "but he is very polite. There is at least that to be said in his favor." "Oh, yes'm," the girl answered readily, "I always thought he was too sweet to be wholesome!"—Selected. THE VICTORIOUS CROSS.
By A. Parke Burgess
BY A. PARKE BURGESS, D.D. Lift the banner, hold it high;
Blend its glory with the sky;
Furl it never, till you die;
Die at duty's post.
'Tis the banner of your Lord;
Follow quickly at his word;
He his own with strength will gird;
He will lead his host. God must arm you for the field;
Girdle, breastplate, helmet, shield,
Take them all, and bravely wield,
Then, the Spirit's sword.
Aimed with malice at your hearts,
Satan's subtle, fiery arts,
You may quench his deadly darts
By the holy word. Take the standard, hold it firm;
Fear no evil; dread no harm;
Trust, amid the wild alarm—
Trust your sovereign King.
Legion though your foes may be,
Hold the ground, and never flee;
O'er their hosts to victory
You your Lord will bring. Raise the banner, hold it strong,
For the battle may be long
Ere the triumph over wrong
Shall at last be won.
Yet He who from Edom came,
Lord Jehovah is his name,
Clothed in blood and crowned with flame,
All the earth shall own. RELIGION OF THE RED KARENS.
By A. A. B. Crumb
THE Red Karens of Upper Burma number probably two hundred thousand. They are devil worshipers, and the bones of hens, birds, pigs, and animals are their oracles. If they try the bones of chickens, they call it kah-sow-cru, and the whole nation has great faith in these oracles. The way they try the oracle is this: A man (never a woman) takes a small chicken in his hand, and, commencing to choke the chicken, he moves it up and down in front of him, telling it to go up to heaven and ask the angels to tell him whether the things he desires to do will prosper or not. By the time his prayer is finished, the chicken is dead. Then he takes out the femur bones, and puts bamboo splints into the air holes in the bones. If these air holes are parallel, the answer is favorable. Nearly all the fowls in the country are used thus to obtain information about future events. I went to a Red Karen house to see a sick man, and found him sick with congestion of the liver. He said he had consulted the oracle, and it said he must eat a pig; but he did not have any pig, so he ate several fowls, but he got no better. Then he ate a buffalo, but he did not get well. And he was confident if he ate a pig he would recover at once. But as he had no pig and no money to buy one, he was sure that he should die. I gave him some medicine, and when I returned to the village a month later, I found him in comfortable health, even though he had not eaten a pig. They believe there is a God, and that he is a spirit, that he is good, and that he is the Creator of all things, but that he has little or nothing to do with everyday events of life. They believe that there are angels, and that they reveal to man, through the bones of animals, what is best for him to do, being taught of God. They believe in a personal devil, and that he is fully interested in the daily events of life, and that he is the author of all the evil, the sorrow, and the suffering to which human flesh is heir. They believe there are seven worlds, all flat, and one above the other, like a set of shelves, three below the earth, and three above; that the earth is the best of the lot, and, when we leave it, we go to a worse place than we leave. They say that when a man dies, his spirit wanders around his house until his body is decomposed; his spirit then joins his body, and they go into another world. In order that a person may not be destitute in the next world, they fill the grave, or a hole near the grave, with the various articles the country produces; they also put a long box on posts over the grave, and fill this box with grain, hanging pumpkins and corn under the box, putting a plow and other farming instruments on top of the box. There is, however, no especial sacrifice in filling these boxes with grain; it is only an indirect way of feeding pigs.—Rev. A. A. B. Crumb. THE PEOPLE AND GOVERNMENT OF INDIA.
INDIA and its dependencies had in 1891 a population of 287,223,431, of which 66,050,479 are in the feudatory or native States. They are divided religiously according to the census of 1891 as follows: Hindus, 207,731,727; Sikhs, 1,907,833; Jains, 1,416,638; Buddhists, 7,131,361; Parsees, 89,904; Mohammedans, 57,321,164; Christians, 2,284,380; Jews, 17,194; Animistic, 9,280,467; others, not classified, 42,762. The official returns divided the "Christians" as follows: Roman Catholics, 1,315,263; Church of England, 302,430; Presbyterians, 40,407; Dissenters, 296,938; other Protestants, 63,967; Syrians, Armenians, and Greeks, 201,684. The people of India, divided according to languages or dialects, give the following: Hindi, 85,670,000; Bengali, 41,340,000; Telugu, 19,880,000; Punjabi, 17,720,000; Tamil, 15,230,000; Gujarati, 10,620,000; Kanarese, 9,750,000; Uriya, 9,010,000; Burmese, 5,930,000; Malayalam, 5,430,000; Urdu, 3,670,000; Sindhi, 2,590,000; Santali, 1,710,000; W. Pahari, 1,520,000; Assamese, 1,430,000; Gondi, 1,380,000; Central Pahari, 1,150,000; Marwadi, 1,440,000; Pushtu, 1,080,000; Karen, 670,000; Kol, 650,000; Tulu, 490,000; Kachhi, 440,000; Gypsy, 400,000; Oraon, 370,000; Kond, 320,000; English, 238,499. India is administratively divided into British territory and native, or feudatory, States, the former being under the direct control of British officials; the latter are governed by the native princes, ministers, or councils, with the help and under the advice of a resident or agent, in political charge either of a single State or group of States; but the chiefs have no right to make war or peace, or to send ambassadors to each other or to external States; they are not permitted to maintain a military force above a certain specified limit; no European is allowed to reside at any of their courts without special sanction, and the British Government can exercise the right of dethronement in case of misgovernment. The executive authority over India is vested in a governor general, commonly, but not officially, styled viceroy, appointed by the British Government, and acting under the orders of the secretary of State for India. The Marquis of Lansdowne was the governor general from December 11, 1888, until January, 1894, when he was succeeded by the Earl of Elgin.—Gospel in All Lands. "APPLES OF GOLD LIBRARY."
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