EVENING had come, and weary and sad I sat by the fire. The day had been a trying one, as many of my days had been of late, and I could not entirely exclude the discontented thought that life was, after all, a sad disappointment. “Why,” I asked deep down in my heart, “are such trials permitted?” I was tempted to say it was unjust.
Knowing that I ought not to indulge in such thoughts, I picked up the Bible which lay near, and turning to the book of Hebrews I began to read the second chapter. At first my despondent thoughts mingled with the written word, making a strange medley. Finally a sentence aroused me to full attention. It was this: “For it became Him for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect thru sufferings.”
I started at the thought “made perfect through suffering.” Then suffering was intended to bring about perfection. Ah, I see now that God has a purpose even in our suffering. But what can this mean? Could Christ, who knew no sin, need to be made more perfect? If so, in what sense? How could He be said to be made perfect?
Then I considered the last two verses of the fourth chapter. “For we have not an high priest which can not be touched with the feelings of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.”
PALACE OF THE QUIRINAL, ROME, ITALY.
Then a sense of the love of Jesus filled my soul as never before. Also a sense of the sin of my repinings. If Jesus consented to pass thru suffering to become perfect in bearing and suffering for our sake, how sinful and weak in me, a poor, erring mortal, to repine. I thought of how He left the glory of His Father and came to this earth to save fallen man; that He went thru all the suffering that flesh is heir to that He might the better inspire faith in us, His fallen ones. He whose word could speak worlds into existence suffered all this that He might be made a perfect high priest for us. All this and more did He suffer that God’s purpose toward us should not be thwarted.
What is His purpose? He could not tell us all for we could not understand; for “eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him.” And a prayer rose from my heart for that degree of faith which will enable me to trust in Him, and to believe that all things shall work together for good to them that love God. M. A. MORTON.
Fresno, Cal.
“CLEAR THE WAY.”
By Charles Mackay
Men of thought! be up and stirring,
Night and day;
Sow the seed—withdraw the curtain—
Clear the way!
Men of action, aid and cheer them,
As ye may!
There's a fount about to stream,
There's a light about to beam,
There's a warmth about to glow,
There's a flower about to blow,
There's a midnight blackness changing
Into gray;
Men of thought and men of action,
Clear the way!
Once the welcome light has broken,
Who shall say
What the unimagined glories
Of the day?
What the evils that shall perish
In its ray?
Aid the dawning, tongue and pen;
Aid it, hopes of honest men;
Aid it, paper—aid it, type—
Aid it, for the hour is ripe,
And our earnest must not slacken
Into play.
Men of thought and men of action,
Clear the way!
Lo! a cloud's about to vanish
From the day;
And the brazen wrong to crumble
Into clay.
Lo! the right's about to conquer,
Clear the way!
With the Right shall many more
Enter smiling at the door;
With the giant Wrong shall fall
Many others, great and small,
That for ages long have held us
For their prey.
Men of thought and men of action,
Clear the way!
—Charles Mackay.
Bank of Mountain View
By Editor
If you haven't already done so, why don't you drop us a postal asking us to send you a copy of our monthly paper, "The Bank of Mountain View Journal." It is very interesting. It is full of good ideas, and it is free to you for the asking. If you live in the East, send for a copy and see how we do it in California. We still hold ourselves ready to furnish you with information about Mountain View. Write us.
--Address--
Bank of Mountain View
Mountain View, Santa Clara County, California
Overland Limited
Chicago 68 Hours
Electric Lighted Equipment
World's Events Telegraphed, Train Daily
Unexcelled Dining Service
Observation---Parlor---Cafe Cars
Drawing-room---Stateroom Sleepers
Through without Change
Across Great Salt Lake and High Sierra by Daylight
Fastest Time---Most Direct Route
VIA
Southern Pacific
NEW YORK AND PHILADELPHIA, VIA NIAGARA FALLS.
An attractive way is via the Grand Trunk-Lehigh Valley Route; double track; solid trains. Write Geo. W. Vaux, A. G. P. & T. A., Grand Trunk Railway System, 135 Adams Street, Chicago, for particulars.
Help Wanted
Help Wanted.—Wanted at once for the summer rush at the Vegetarian Cafe, Los Angeles, Cal., eleven young or middle-aged women, two cooks, one pantry boy, one pantry woman. Good wages; good home; steady work. Write at once to G. H. Scott, Manager, 259 S. Hill St., Los Angeles, Cal.
Church Factions Create Fractions
FACTIONS in the church soon reduce it to fractions.—Ram's Horn.
Nature Leads the Soul to God
"As we behold the beautiful and grand in nature, our affections go out after God, while the spirit is awed, the soul is invigorated by coming in contact with the Infinite thru His works."
Our Influence on Others
"EVERY word we utter, every look we give, every act we commit, every attitude we take, is being photographed on others, molding to some extent their characters, and shaping the destiny of their souls."
Attractive Books
For Children and Young People
The following five books are printed in colors, and are very interesting and instructive.
Best Stories from the Best Book, ...paper, $0.25; board, $0.50
Gospel Primer, ...board, .25; cloth, .50
New Testament Primer, ... " .25; " .50
Our Little Folks, ... " .25; " .50
Story of Joseph, ... " .25; " .50
Wild Animals at Home, Alphabet Book, ...board, .50
Home and Church School Reader No. 1, ...cloth, .75
Home and Church School Reader No. 2, ... " .75
And for those ten years of age and older:
Our Paradise Home, ...board, $0.25; cloth, .50
Left With a Trust, ... " .50
Steps to Christ, ... " .50
Christ Our Saviour, ...board, $0.50; " .75
Beasts, Birds, and Reptiles, ... " .75
Home, Haunts, and Habits of Animals, ... " .75
A Little Girl's Visit to Africa, ... " 1.00
My Garden Neighbors, ... " 1.00
Uncle Ben's Cobblestones, ...board, 1.00
The House We Live In, ... cloth, 1.00
In Africa's Forest Jungle, ... " 1.00
Minute Men on the Frontier, ... " 1.00
Sent post-paid at above prices. Address your State Tract Society, or
Pacific Press Publishing Company
Mountain View, Cal.
285 Salmon St.,
Portland, Ore.
1109 East 12th St.,
Kansas City, Mo.
CHINA.
By Emma T. Anderson
I. Name, Territory, and General Features.
(Continued from last week.)
THE colonial possessions, or Central Asian dominions, of Mongolia, Ili, Thibet, and Kashgaria, or Chinese Turkestan, being so entirely beyond the radius of profitable commercial intercourse with the western world have been but little explored, and have always been a drain upon the Chinese Imperial Government.
Mongolia is known to be desert, for the most part, supporting but a sparse population in districts where scanty vegetation permits.
Thibet has large mineral wealth. Her natural trade outlet being over the Himalayas thru India, and the fact that the high plateaus and mountains of this steppe country form India's natural fortification against Russian encroachment, are inducements to Great Britain to press her suit at the court of the Dalai lama until not only trading points, as heretofore, but H'Lassa, the sealed and sacred city, and all Thibet and Turkestan shall be thrown open to foreign enterprise. It is God's method of preparing the way for the everlasting Gospel to go to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people.
Altho nominal dependencies of China, who keeps up the show of imperial authority, these lower Central Asian possessions are actually under control of the lamas. By this system of worship large numbers of the male population are drawn into monasteries.
While in China Proper Confucianism leads to polygamy, polyandrianism is the peculiar practise of the Thibetans. The wife of the eldest son by virtue of his choice becomes the wife of all the family of younger brothers. This choice is not obligatory, and if any brother prefers to leave the family and choose for himself, he may be free to do so.
Small Boats around a Steamer Landing at Amoy, China. A Scramble for Patronage.
The Climate of China.
Between the tropical climate of the extreme south of China lying within the Torrid Zone, and that of Manchuria bordering onto bleak Siberia, there is a great variety of climate and productions. The climate of the coast regions is further influenced by warm ocean currents, and the temperature also falls as one ascends to the high table-lands of the mountainous districts of the west. On the whole, the climate of China is considered healthful, altho the lack of sanitary law, the crowded condition of the cities, and the poverty of the masses make promiscuous living among the Chinese precarious for foreigners.
The Kowloon Side of Hong Kong Harbor after the Typhoon of Sept. 18, 1896.
The Rivers of China.
The physical contour of China Proper consists in general of high mountain ranges and wooded table-lands in the west, succeeded by mountainous and hilly country, where its rivers, breaking thru steep barriers, form immense gorges, the imposing grandeur of which add to the great natural beauty of scenery; and the region of the deltas of the Peiho, Yellow, Yangtse, and West Rivers. Between these deltas the mountain district reaches down toward the sea, sometimes in bold ranges and peaks, which do much to shut off communication between the sea and the interior. To the more level region of the delta belt may be ascribed one-third the area and two-thirds the population of China.
The Peiho, not a large river, but important as being a natural means of communication between Pekin and the Sea, empties into the Gulf of Pechili. The Hoangho, or Yellow River, sometimes designated as China's Sorrow, rising in the mountains of Mongolia, sweeps in a great bend to the north, several times intersecting the line of the Great Wall, then falling back into the plain, rushes out toward the sea, carrying with it the yellow alluvial from which it derives its name. It also empties its turbulent tide into the Gulf of Pechili. Nine times since the sixth century B.C. it has dammed up its own egress and broken out, sometimes with terrible results, in a new place of outlet, leaving its former course marked by cliffs and drifts of barren loess.
The largest and most important river of China is the Yang-tse-Kiang. It forms the main artery of trade communication between eastern and western China, being navigable, it is said, to a distance of 1,600 miles from the sea. From Shanghai to Hankow, a distance of 600 miles, it is easily navigable by large river steamers. Light draught boats penetrate 360 miles further to Ichang, while native junks carry trade 400 miles beyond. One who has made a survey of the region is authority for the statement that the present obstructions of rocks and whirlpools probably might be so overcome at no great expense that steamboats could cover the entire distance. Thru its tributaries, light draught steamers and native boats carry trade into a vast region both north and south of the Yangtse, thus opening to commerce one of the most fertile, productive, and populous districts on the earth's surface.
In the south, another great river, the Si Kiang or West River, taking its rise in the cool springs of the Himalayas, leaps down steep slopes, and after hundreds of miles thru most picturesque scenery between high ranges, narrowing at times to deep gorges, where the swift current is quickened into a rushing tide, it falls into the plain coast region about 150 miles from the sea. Left to leisure in the flat country, it breaks out into a multitude of streams and forms a network of waterways.
Just above the provincial city of Canton, the West River is joined by the North River, and thirty miles below receives the affluence of the East River. These three rivers drain a territory of not less than 150,000 square miles, and most of their channels are navi13gable for small boats to all the larger towns of Quang-tung and Quang-si provinces. Large river steamers navigate a distance of 200 miles, while slight improvements would enable them to reach Kweilin, the capital of Quang-si.
The estuary of West River forms one of the most remarkable deltas in the world, in the form of a triangle, not less than 100 miles on any side, embracing a network of slow waterways, enclosing low, fertile islands capable of producing three crops per year. In many parts these islands are "dyked" in and form the famous rice lands of South China. Each small farm or separate field is surrounded with an embankment crowned with fruit trees,—peach, plum, persimmon, litchie, orange, banana,—each vieing with the others in its season, while groves and hedges of bamboo add to the subdued beauty of the whole region.
EMMA T. ANDERSON.
OUR WORK AND WORKERS.
By Editor
FIVE pupils of the church school at Barbers Mills, Ind., were recently baptized by Brother J. M. Rees, uniting with the church.
BROTHER C. D. M. WILLIAMS writes from Honolulu, H. I., that he has baptized two who have joined the church. Two others have begun keeping the Sabbath.
TWO SISTERS are selling nearly 100 SIGNS in the down-town district of Anderson, Ind., on Saturday nights within two hours' time. A good example for many, it seems to us.
A SERIES of meetings held at Middletown, Ind., by Brother J. M. Rees has resulted in the conversion of eight, all adults but two. Brother Rees also reports one baptism at Kokomo, Ind.
THE Indiana Reaper contains the following item: "Brother Olmstead, who is being supported by the Indiana Conference in Africa, writes as follows: 'The Lord has given us ten souls since coming here in July. Another sister decided last Friday to unite with the church, who has been keeping the Sabbath for some time.'"
GOOD work for the Master is being done in many of our larger cities by those who give Bible readings from house to house. Sister Florence Niehaus, of Indiana, reports two new Sabbath-keepers among her readers.
THE Minnesota Health League recently attempted to secure the aid of the restaurants and dining halls of St. Paul in serving a vegetarian supper, but none of these would attempt it. Finally the Seventh-day Adventist ladies were called upon. They accepted, and the result was a feast of good things—pure things, of which two hundred partook.
A NOTE in The Worker's Record, the Missouri Conference paper, tells us of the death of Brother D. E. Scoles, February 12, after a very brief sickness, the result of a stroke of paralysis. Brother Scoles will be remembered as the author of a number of tracts. His family and associated laborers have the sympathy of the SIGNS readers everywhere.
THE news of the drowning of Elder A. G. Bodwell in Gila River, near San Jose, Ariz., comes to us thru the public press. It appears he hired a pony of a boy to cross the Gila River, desiring to visit some distant brethren, who thru some misunderstanding failed to meet him as he expected. The boy who accompanied him on another pony, crossed the river safely, but on looking for his companion, both he and the pony were missing. The body of the pony was found, but tho the river was dragged, the body of Brother Bodwell could not be located.
FRANCE AND THE VATICAN.
UNDER the above heading, "France and the Vatican," the Christian Cynosure for January has the following to say:
"All that the French Government demands of the Catholics, it demands of every other church organization. Of the eighty Catholic bishops in France, fifty-nine who were present at a meeting to consider the demands of the government, agreed to its terms and proposed to carry them out. The Catholics were thunderstruck by receiving an order from the pope not to obey the law of their country.
"French law requires each worshiping congregation to make out an inventory of the property of that particular congregation and apply for a charter, just as churches do in this country, and to elect a board of trustees for its management. French law differs from the law of this country in that it claims all church property not used by a congregation of believers. This prevents the church property being held by the pope, or Catholic Church in Rome, or by any other centralized body. The church belongs to the people who worship in it, and these will not be molested in any way. If it ceases to be used by them, it reverts to the State.
"Another cause of excitement was the demand that monks and nuns engaged in commercial enterprises in the name of the church should list their property and take out corporation papers and pay taxes, as do other corporations. All those who refused simply lost their legal rights, and the church property, under French law, became the property of the State. The movement in France seems to be a wise one, tho it is made possible by the cooperation of free-thinkers, Freemasons, and anti-clericals. What do our readers think of the pope in Rome commanding the French Catholics to disobey the laws of France? To whom do you suppose the Catholics in our country owe civil allegiance?"
THE OLD-FASHIONED GOD.
By Belle Jenks McKorkle
THEY talked to me of God as strange and wonderful—
An abstract thing—the Good in all—the Beautiful.
I listened, there was a charm of science and of reason;
They meant no harm—there was no thought of treason.
And I was at the morn of life—so gay, so glad—
So bright, so strong and brave—could I be sad?
The God I worshiped with a song was like unto a bird or flower,
Impersonal, esthetic, and nature's laws His power.
But noon has past—dark shadows creep up about my way,
The wind's drear moan warns of a storm-closed day;
And, like a helpless little child, lost and afraid,
I think of those who've lifted up their hands and prayed.
Ah! then, I knew the God I needed—Father, Friend—
Whose arms would fold me close about, when at the long day's end
I'd whisper low, "Our Father who in heaven art,
I lay me down to sleep—keep safe—send rest unto my troubled heart."
—Belle Jenks McKorkle.
Scientific American
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Patents taken through Munn & Co. receive special notice, without charge, in the
Scientific American.
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MUNN & Co. 361 Broadway, New York
Branch Office, 625 F St., Washington, D. C.
Adversity’s Blessing
Prosperity is not always good for God's children. The psalmist said, "Before I was afflicted I went astray." The Lord said to recreant Israel, "Ye looked for much, and lo, it came to little; and when ye brought it home, I did blow upon it." Hag. 1:9. Why was it thus?—Because of their selfishness. They sought their own and forgot God and His house and His cause. In giving them adversity, God was curing them of the worst of all evils, the curse of selfishness. Their adversity proved a blessing. God has some lesson in every providence. Let us learn to say: "Blest be the sorrow, kind the storm, that drives us nearer home."
Change of Address
By Editor
Change of Address.—E. W. Webster, formerly of Greenville, S. C., should be addressed R. F. D. No. 2, Box 80, Dayton, Tenn. Matters pertaining to South Carolina should be addressed to R. T. Nash, Cambello, S. C.
WANTED FOR MISSIONARY WORK.
By Editor
(Always prepay postage.)
LATE, clean copies of denominational papers for free distribution. Address, J. H. Robison, Bradentown, Fla.
LATE, clean copies of all our denominational literature. Address, Mrs. Cyrus Spears, Irving, Chautauqua Co., N. Y.
CLEAN, late copies of the SIGNS and Little Friend to be used by Sabbath-school in missionary work. Address, Nettie Brown, 2251 W. 69th St., Chicago, Ill.
CONTINUOUS supply of SIGNS and all other denominational papers, including Instructor and Little Friend, books and pamphlets, old and new, for use among the Indians. Address, S. B. Taft, Mechanical Instructor, Fort Defiance, Ariz.
Henton Fruit Truck and Farm Machinery
By Geo. E. Henton
Buy the celebrated HENTON FRUIT TRUCK when you intend purchasing wagons. For Carriages, or anything in the line of Farm Machinery, correspond with me. Can make it an object to you. Will lay goods down at your station at less than you pay local dealers. Satisfaction guaranteed. Geo. E. Henton, Mountain View, Cal.
IMPORTANT DISCOVERY.
By J. E. Brown
Because of diseased animals, make your own vegetable meat (equals beef, costs less) with a Russwin Food Cutter; also makes nut butter and meal. Machine, processes, and copy Vegetarian Cook Book, only $4.00. J. E. BROWN, 309 Iowa St., Waterloo, Iowa.
IT COSTS ALL.
JESUS said: "Whosoever he be that forsaketh not all that he hath can not be My disciple." To receive Christ, we must give up self. This is well illustrated by a story told in the Sunday School Times on the authority of Mr. H. H. Crawford:
The Rev. John McDowell told at Northfield last summer of an express train which started out from Chicago for the Pacific Coast. On board was the president of the road. As they rushed along in the darkness of the night the train was wrecked. The president of the road hurried to the front. The engineer was pinned beneath the engine. As the president stood looking at the prostrate form, he saw his lips move, and leaning down, he heard the dying man say, "I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day." "Jim," said the president, "I would be willing to give my life with all that I have for such a faith as that." "Mr. President," said Jim, "THAT IS JUST WHAT IT COSTS."
He who knows self emptiness, knows Christ's fulness.
