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Signs of the Times, Vol. 15, No. 46.

The Influence of the Home
Earlier text: CIVIL LAW TO FILL THE CHURCHES

The Sabbath-School.

By W. N. Glenn

Notes on the International Lesson.

SOLOMON AND THE QUEEN OF SHEBA.

(December 8; 1 Kings 10:1-13.)
SHEBA, the country whose queen came with such display to visit Solomon, is supposed to have been the southernmost part of Arabia. When Jesus referred to the circumstances of her journey (Matt. 12:42), he spoke of the royal visitor as "the queen of the South," and said "she came from the uttermost parts of the earth."
IT would seem that the queen's errand was not altogether prompted by curiosity, but that she was really in quest of wisdom. She had "heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the Lord," and came to "prove him with hard questions." From this expression we might suppose that she was actuated by a spirit of rivalry, but the Saviour appears to have attributed to her a better motive, by saying that her action would, in the judgment, condemn the course of the Jews of his time. From this indorsement it seems fair to infer that the queen's "hard questions" were concerning matters of importance, rather than mere attempts to puzzle the famous wise man. The immense value of the offerings she brought would indicate that she entertained an exalted idea of the king and his God.
KING SOLOMON treated his inquiring guest with becoming courtesy, and kindly gave her all the information she desired; for it is said "she communed with him of all that was in her heart." And the Lord was evidently interested in her case; for the Spirit of God was the source of Solomon's wisdom, and the record says that "there was not anything hid from the king." The Lord never disappoints any who honestly seek after the truth.
"WHEN the queen of Sheba had seen all Solomon's wisdom, and the house that he had built," etc., it is said "there was no more spirit in her." On this Adam Clarke remarks: "She was overpowered with astonishment; she fainted. I have seen precisely the same effect produced. A lady, who was herself an artist, viewing some exquisitely finished Oriental paintings, was so struck with astonishment that she twice nearly fainted, and was obliged to leave the room."
ON the expression, "and his ascent by which he went up into the house of the Lord," Clarke comments as follows: "It seems very strange that the steps to the temple should be such a separate matter of astonishment. The original . . . all the versions have translated, 'and the holocaust which he offered in the house of the Lord.' The Vulgate, Septuagint, Chaldee, Syriac, and Arabic, all express this sense; so does the German translation of Luther, from which, in this place, we have most pitifully departed: 'And his burnt-offering which he offered in the house of the Lord.'"
THE queen promptly acknowledged the truthfulness of the report she had heard in her own country, but said, "I believed not the words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it." It is strange, but true, that most people believe error more readily than they will the truth. Many professors of the Christian religion will cling to dogmas based on mere tradition, with no Scripture support but some strained inference, while they will resist to the last doctrines announced in the plainest statements of the Bible. Thomas would not believe the fact of the resurrection of Christ until he had demonstrated it with his own eyes; but the Lord said, "Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed."
HOWEVER, when the queen of the South heard the wonderful wisdom and saw the great prosperity of Solomon, she at once appreciated the great favors which his God had bestowed upon him. "Happy are thy men, happy are these thy servants, which stand continually before thee, and that hear thy wisdom." It is probable that comparatively few of those who had the privilege so highly valued it. There are few, if any, causes of mental and material poverty so potent as neglected opportunities.
THE present which the queen gave to Solomon was indeed a royal offering. "A hundred and twenty talents of gold" would be over $3,000,000, and the spices and precious stones were "a very great store." It is conceded by commentators that verse 13 should follow verse 10, completing the account of the queen's visit before entering upon the matter pertaining to Solomon's dealings with Hiram.
VERSE 13 says: "King Solomon gave unto the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatsoever she asked." Just what she asked we are not told, but there has been much speculation in regard to the matter, some of which would reflect seriously upon her character. But unwarranted speculation is no part of Bible study, and has been fraught with much harm to Bible truth. Human life is too short to learn well even that which is revealed, without marring plain truth with the traditions of men. Mr. Bruce, a Scottish traveler and writer of the latter part of the eighteenth century, says: "The Abyssinians, both Jews and Christians, believe the forty-fifth psalm to be a prophecy of the queen's visit to Jerusalem."

THE MUCH-NAMED SUNDAY.

By Editor

THE New York World has the following item from Atlanta, Ga., which will be of interest to our readers, both because of the facts stated, and on account of the new designation given to Sunday, namely, the Sabbath of the Methodist Episcopal Church South. The World says:—
"Four of the leading members of the Alpharetta Methodist Church, of Atlanta, Ga., have just been expelled, the charge against them being heresy in being converted to the doctrines of the Seventh-day Adventists. These are: Mrs. J. M. Howell, Mrs. J. M. Dodd, Miss Dodd, and Mrs. Rinnie Letson, wives and daughters of prominent citizens, and they are only a few of the converts made by Elder Huffman. A dozen others against whom the same charges were made refused to submit to trial and withdrew from the church.
"The Investigating Committee finds the four who stood trial guilty of heresy in that, 'believing themselves to be right, they do not recognize the sabbath of the Methodist Episcopal Church South, and hence are observing the seventh day of the week, Saturday, as the Sabbath.' They propose to continue until convinced that they are in error. They are also confirmed in the belief that the doctrine of the immortality of the wicked, as held by the Methodist Episcopal Church South, is not founded on biblical teaching."
"The sabbath of the Methodist Episcopal Church South" is a new name for Sunday, but it is just as appropriate as is the much-used designation, the "American sabbath." It is well that the ladies were expelled for the non-observance of a church day and not for any unscriptural doctrine or practice. It is much better to be out of harmony with even as great a body as the Methodist Episcopal Church South than to be found disobeying an express commandment of God.

Letter to the Hebrews.

HEBREWS 6:19 to 7:3.

(Lesson 11, December 14, 1889.)
  1. On what does our hope rest?
  2. What does a true hope afford?
  3. What is our hope cal'ed?
"Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which entereth into that within the veil." Heb. 6:19. 4. What is said in the Scriptures of the hope of the hypocrite? "So are the paths of all that forget God; and the hypocrite's hope shall perish; whose hope shall be cut off, and whose trust shall be a spider's web." Job 8:13, 14. 5. Is there any likeness between an anchor and a spider's web? 6. How many hopes are recognized in the Bible? "There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling." Eph. 4:4. 7. What is the condition of those who have not obtained an interest in the promises of God? "That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world." Eph. 2:12. "But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope." 1 Thess. 4:13. 8. What is the nature of a true hope? Heb. 6:19. 9. To where does our hope point us, or reach?—Ib. 10. Who has entered within the veil for us? "Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek." Verse 20.
11. In what scripture may we learn concerning the veil? "And thou shalt make a veil of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine-twined linen of cunning work; with cherubim shall it be made. And thou shalt hang it upon four pillars of shittim-wood overlaid with gold; their hooks shall be of gold, upon the four sockets of silver. And thou shalt hang up the veil under the taches, that thou mayest bring in thither within the veil the ark of the testimony; and the veil shall divide unto you between the holy place and the most holy." Ex. 26:31-33. 12. Was there more than one veil to the sanctuary? "And after the second veil, the tabernacle which is called the holiest of all." Heb. 9:3. 13. Were the two veils alike? Compare Ex. 26:31 and 36. 14. What was their use? "And thou shalt hang up the veil under the taches, that thou mayest bring in thither within the veil the ark of the testimony; and the veil shall divide unto you between the holy place and the most holy." "And thou shalt make a hanging for the door of the tent, of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine-twined linen, wrought with needlework." Ex. 26:33, 36. 15. To which veil does Heb. 6:19 refer? See note. 16. Whose office was it to go into the sanctuary? Ans.—The priest's. Ex. 28:43; Num. 8:1, 7. 17. Who had a special commission for the work of the sanctuary? Ans.—The high priest. 18. Who was Melchizedek? "For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him." Heb. 7:1. 19. What is said of him in the Scriptures? "And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine; and he was the priest of the most high God. And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abraham of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth; and blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all." Gen. 14:18-20. 20. Do we learn anything more of him in the Old Testament? 21. What did Abraham give to him? "To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace." Heb. 7:2. "And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave tithes of all." Gen. 14:20. 22. Can you tell how Abraham learned about the duty to pay tithes? 23. What is the meaning of the name Melchizedek? Heb. 7:2. See note. 24. What is said of his parentage, or descent? "Without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like unto the Son of God, abideth a priest continually." Verse 3, Revised Version. 25. In his priesthood whom was he like in these respects?—Ib. See note.

NOTES.

It is not possible within the space of a Sabbath-school lesson to give a full description of the work of the priest in the sanctuary. Every day in the year the priests ministered in the holy place, or the first room of the sanctuary. Ex. 27:20, 21; 30:1, 7, 8; Heb. 9:6. The tenth day of the seventh month was the day of atonement, on which the high priest went alone into the most holy place, and sprinkled blood upon the mercy-seat, over the ark which contained the law of God. Ex. 16. By this act he cleansed the sanctuary from all the defilement of sin. This was a type of the day of Judgment. Our Lord ascended on high in the year A.D. 31. He said to his disciples, "I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter." John 14:16. And, "If I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you." John 16:7. Within ten days after his ascension to his Father, his priesthood in the sanctuary in the heavens (Heb. 8:1, 2) begun, for on the day of Pentecost his prayer was answered, and the Comforter came. Acts 2. This was the beginning of his priesthood, and he was then of course officiating in the holy, or the first of the two holy places. It is not until the seventh trumpet sounds, which is near the close of this dispensation, that the temple in heaven is opened where the ark of the testament is seen. Rev. 11:14-19. This is the most holy, within the second veil. Now as Paul wrote the letter to the Hebrews in A.D. 64, but a little more than thirty years after the beginning of Christ's priesthood, the veil within which he then entered must have been the first. PAUL says of the name Melchizedek that it is "by interpretation, king of righteousness." It is compounded of two Hebrew words; melek, king, and tzedek, righteousness. Most Hebrew proper names were thus significant. As Salem means peace, king of Salem is, also, king of peace. In both these names Melchizedek fitly represented the Son of God, who is truly the King of righteousness and the King of peace. It is on the throne of grace that he is our peace. Eph. 2:14; Zech. 6:12, 13. HEB. 7:2, 3 contains some of the most significant and interesting of all the statements of this wonderful argument. All that is known of Melchizedek is contained in Gen. 14:18-20, and in these two verses in Hebrews 7. The truth is, that if we could ascertain his genealogy, all the force of Paul's reasoning would be lost, and he would no longer serve as the type of the priesthood of Christ. For it is the evident intention of the record to give Melchizedek as the type of Christ, in whose priesthood no genealogy or succession can be reckoned. Christ has indeed a genealogy, but that serves solely to prove his heirship to the throne of David, and does not refer at all to his position as a high priest on the throne of his Father in Heaven. This will be seen with more and more clearness through all this chapter. The original Greek says he was agenealogetos, literally, without genealogy. Authorities to almost any extent may be quoted to show that the method of expression used in Heb. 7:3 was common among the Hebrews where no genealogical record was preserved.

ADDITIONAL NOTES.

As made plain in the previous lesson, the hope of the Christian rests upon the word and oath of God, "that by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us." The very idea of hope implies that the present condition is undesirable as contrasted with that hoped for; but a well-grounded hope affords strong consolation for present sorrows, and "is an anchor to the soul, both sure and steadfast." THE purpose of an anchor is too well known to need explanation, and just as it takes hold of the bottom of the sea and holds the vessel from drifting upon the rocks or into the quicksands, so hope reaches within the veil, that is, into the heavenly sanctuary, where Christ ministers for us, and keeps the soul from drifting away from God. But hope, like faith, must have a firm basis; it is a combination of expectation and desire, and must rest upon the promises of God. A man may believe that which he does not desire, or he may desire that which he has no warrant for believing that he will obtain; but such faith, or such desire, is not hope; faith and desire must unite to form hope.
BUT what is the Christian's hope? He can only hope for that which God has promised; let us therefore turn to some of the promises of God and see if we can find what is pre-eminently the Christian's hope. When God created man he gave him dominion over the whole earth; but man lost that dominion, and it passed into the hands of Satan. This we have learned in past lessons. But in Micah 4:8 we have a promise that the dominion which Adam lost, the first dominion, shall be given to Christ: "And thou, O Tower of the flock, the stronghold of the daughter of Zion, unto thee shall it come, even the first dominion; the kingdom shall come to the daughter of Jerusalem." And in Gal. 3:29 we read: "And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise." This shows plainly that if we belong to Christ we shall share with him the dominion of this earth restored to its Eden glory; and with this agree the words of the psalmist: "The meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace" (Ps. 37:11); also the promise of our Lord: "Blessed are the meek; for they shall inherit the earth." Matt. 5:5. BUT the possession of the earth does not alone constitute the hope of the Christian. Says the apostle John: "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure." 1 John 3:2, 3. Not only is the Christian a joint heir with Christ, but he will be like his divine Lord. "Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness; for they shall be filled." What could be more desirable than to be like Christ, "holy, harmless, and separate from sinners;" "filled with all the fullness of God." IN his epistle to Titus the apostle Paul says: "The grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ." Titus 2:11-13. The coming of the Lord is here called the blessed hope, because everything depends upon it; it is then that we shall be clothed with immortality; it is then that our vile bodies shall be "fashioned like unto his glorious body;" it is then that we shall be caught up to meet the Lord, and "so shall we ever be with the Lord." Is it not a "blessed hope"? C. P. B.

The Missionary.

WOMEN'S MISSION TO WOMEN.

THE Missionary Conference in London in 1888, while reviewing the present condition and future prospects of the Protestant missions in the world, gives special attention to the subject named at the head of this article. At the meeting held July 14, Right Rev. Bishop Baldwin, D.D., of Huron, in the chair, remarked: "We are gathered together here to-night for one of the most holy and blessed objects, to consider women's work amongst women. As the time of our blessed Lord's second coming draws near, we find that the Master is bringing out fresh energies, using new means, and putting into activity powers that have long been dormant; and amongst others is that great feature of modern Christianity, the noble mission of women to women.
"There is a sadness in all infidelity and rationalism, but it has been powerfully remarked that of all the sad sights that weary Christendom beholds, the saddest is to see a woman laboring under skepticism and under rationalistic views. Christianity has done everything for us, but who shall tell what Christ has done for woman? Look where he found her and see to what a place he has raised her. She rises to-day to realize that all the blessings she enjoys she owes to that Lord who took her feet from the miry clay and the horrible pit and placed her in the position that she now occupies."
In some respects mission work by women lies back of all missionary operations. If we only get the mothers, the wives, the daughters of the country, we have got the men. To whatever land you go the woman has her power, and of all heathen countries there is none where the woman has the same power as in China; notwithstanding all that has been said, or is being said, of the oppression and degradation of which we so often hear, hers is a most remarkable power considering the circumstances under which she is placed. Hence the necessity for the establishment and support of schools for girls in all that country.
At the meeting referred to one of the speakers who well understood the matter—had learned by experience—said: "I wish to emphasize that China of all other countries is the field for the mission of women. I am in the habit of saying that there is some backbone in Chinese men, and if I were to go on to say what I think of the women I should say there were several backbones in Chinese women. They have been the great force which has preserved the country. I say this without any fear of contradiction. They have been important factors in its political history, and they are important factors in social life. A woman when she comes to be a mother and a grandmother, is a power in the family and a power in the village or the town that it is almost impossible to overestimate."
Such is the testimony of a learned and experienced minister who had long been on the ground and studied the Chinese as they are at their homes.
He also insists that in order to success the missionary must learn the manners and customs of the people, and especially learn their language; and as anyone may see, this is easier and better done in their own country than anywhere else. There is no way of getting at the heart of a people except through their language, and for a woman, as for a man, there is no royal road; and, other things being equal, it is always better to learn it as it is spoken.—St. Louis Christian Advocate.

COREA.

THE "Hermit Nation" is about to throw away the cloak of seclusion, and follow in the wake of nations penetrated by the religion of Jesus Christ.
This peninsula lies to the northeast of Asia, and is separated from China, of which it is a nominal dependency, by the Yellow Sea. In shape it resembles Italy. It is exceedingly mountainous, and is covered with forests, especially in the north. Its winters are cold, and its summers hot. On the whole, its climate is healthy, though a great deal of sickness is caused by bad water. The peninsula is about 400 miles long by 150 wide, and is divided into eight provinces. Its population is estimated, by different persons, at from eight to twenty millions. The people of Corea belong to the Mongol race. The men are of a medium height and are strongly built, but they are not very active, and are, in fact, inclined to indolence. They make excellent friends but dangerous enemies.
The women, although treated with more consideration than are their sisters in some other Oriental lands, are yet so little thought of that, as a rule, they receive no distinctive names, but are known by the places of their habitation or marriage, or, if married, as the mothers of their sons. Their lives, after the first few years of childhood, are spent in strict seclusion, and after marriage they cannot even leave their houses without first obtaining the permission of their husbands.
Marriages are all arranged for by the parents of the contracting parties, and the ceremony is performed by a formal salutation.
A curious wedding custom compels the bride, especially if belonging to an aristocratic family, to maintain absolute silence in the presence of her husband on the day and night of the wedding.
The ruling sovereign of Corea is looked upon as the great father of his people, and he exercises a father's authority over them.
The nobles constitute a powerful factor in Corean public affairs, and personally they enjoy many privileges not accorded to the common people. The latter have very little influence, and only by combination into guilds or trade unions are they able to protect themselves from the high-handed exactions of the aristocracy.
Coreans glory in a history that traverses the misty past, and takes its students back to the time when Samson was judging Israel. During that time, through all the varieties of fortune, they have preserved their autonomy, either as a Province of China, or as an independent nation.
The present king is an absolute monarch, except as regards an acknowledgment of the sovereignty of China.
The Corean religion is chiefly Buddhism, while Confucianism and Feng-shui have a place.
The Roman Catholics, by means of native converts from China and Japan, propagated their tenets in Corea as early as some two hundred years ago, and met with considerable success; but they were called upon to endure persecution, and their converts were scattered or martyred. In 1835 they again began work in Corea and again achieved success, but until recent years, owing to the determination of the government to exclude foreigners, they have been obliged to live in comparative retirement. This exclusiveness of the Corean Government was carried to such length that so late as 1877 it was ordered that any Chinaman found across the border should pay for his presumption with his life.
Corea has been opened to Western commerce and the gospel through the influence of the medical mission. Rjutei, a Corean nobleman, some years ago received a slight knowledge of the gospel through the medium of Japan. This nobleman was afterwards the means of saving the life of the queen, and so won royal favor. On a treaty being made between Corea and Japan, Rjutei found his way, as a representative of his government, into the latter country. Here he was taught the simple doctrines of evangelical Christianity, and, on his return to his native land, he lent his influence to open the door for the gospel's entrance. In 1882, a treaty was made with the United States, and in 1884, at the request of Rjutei, the American Presbyterian Board opened a mission station at Seoul. Dr. Allen, who had been a medical missionary in China, took charge of this station, but while his person was protected by an appointment as physician to the American Legation, his work received little encouragement from the natives.
At length there was a revolt in Seoul, and several distinguished persons were wounded. Among them was the king's nephew. The native surgeons endeavored to staunch these wounds with wax, and many would probably have not recovered but for the intervention of Dr. Allen, whose skillful treatment won the gratitude of the sufferers. The king in appreciation of the service performed by Dr. Allen in saving the life of his nephew and others, encouraged the building of a government hospital, which was placed under the care of the Presbyterian Mission, and under Dr. Allen's supervision.
Later others came, and in July, 1886, the first convert was baptized. In the fall of 1887 the first church was formed, with ten members.
The Methodist Episcopal Church of the United States has also a few missionaries at work in Corea, and in January, 1889, there were two congregations with a membership of over one hundred.
Copies of the gospel have been distributed throughout the land, and as a result hundreds are sending in applications for baptism, twenty-eight coming in in one month, of whom nineteen were received.
There are calls for teachers and missionaries on all sides, and the work promises to be of the most fruitful character, and will, no doubt, ere many months, grow to such a proportion as to entitle Corea to a place among the miracles of missions.—Missionary Echo.

Love Versus Selfishness

JESUS not only taught the principle of love, as did also his apostles, but, in his earthly life and in all his relations to men as well as God, he was a sinless illustration of his own teaching. Love, as the law of living, just reverses the law of supreme selfishness, displacing it and substituting itself for it. Selfishness is the central principle of all sin, and the universal curse of this world. It makes man a depraved being toward God and depraved being toward his fellow-man. It is essentially the law of hell. Love, on the other hand, is the central principle of all virtue, and is the law of heaven. The moral salvation of the gospel is a salvation from supreme selfishness and the enthronement of love in the human breast. Man is saved from himself and from his own depravities when love becomes the monarch, the guide, and inspiration of his existence.—Independent.

MISSIONARY MURMURINGS.

GATHERED FROM LEADING MISSIONARY JOURNALS.
A SUGGESTION was made at the Missionary Conference in London, 1888, that a World's Missionary Committee of Christian women should be established as a means of communication between the different denominations or societies. This has been carried out, and its chairman is Miss A. B. Child, of Boston, Mass.
IN Spain the gospel is preached in at least 112 chapels or halls, by 56 Protestant pastors, and 35 native evangelists. The number of communicants is placed at 3,442. There are also 80 Sunday-schools and 111 day-schools in connection with the Protestant work,—all the result of 20 years' work, during which time only Spain has been open to the gospel.
IN Chicago there are several wards where there is only one church for every 12,000, 17,000, 20,000, and even (in one case) 30,000 souls. There is little wonder that these wards are the breeding-places of anarchy. But even this is riches compared with one ordained missionary to every 150,000 souls in heathendom, while some have parishes containing 500,000, and very few helpers.
MEXICO has been and is a fruitful field for mission work. It is nearly twenty years since Protestant missionaries entered her territory, and the visible results of their labors are indicated in the following figures: Mexican preachers ordained, 146; other native helpers, 127; communicants, 12,135; adherents, 26,967; evangelical papers, 8; church buildings, 75; martyrs (killed by persecution), 62. Certainly this is a noble record for a mission field.
A CONGREGATION was formed in Andalusia, Spain, from one of the peasants purchasing a Bible from a colporter. The twenty or thirty members of the congregation did not know they were Protestant until they were told so by a passing visitor. They did, however, apparently know what the “great commission” meant, and every Sabbath a collection was taken for the support of a missionary in South Africa, to which every member of this extremely poor congregation contributed.
PERSONS desiring to send books to Syria will have to exercise considerable caution, or they may find their selections barred an entrance to that land. It is stated that recently 600 volumes were burned by order of the government, on account of some objectionable feature contained in them. Among the books refused an entrance we notice, Dr. Pierson's "Crisis of Missions," Thompson's "The Land and the Book," "The Church at Home and Abroad," etc. Fortunately, the Scriptures are not interdicted.
THE widow of the late General Colin Mackenzie, who for over thirty years was intimately acquainted with mission work in India, says that missionaries are not “in society;” that while they have neither the time nor inclination for such pastime, there is a great gulf fixed between them and the “station people,” which the latter, as a rule, never cross. Mrs. Mackenzie bears testimony to the simplicity of the lives of the missionaries, and says that nothing can be more unjust than to charge them with “self-indulgence” or “luxury.”
THERE is a strong anti-American feeling in certain quarters in China, which is said to be increasing. The Rev. M. C. Wilcox, B.D., says: "Several months ago an ordinary-looking Chinaman, in an obscure village on the Kucheng District, surprised me by asking, 'Did you have to present a certificate before you could land in China?' 'Of course not,' was my reply. 'Then why do the Chinese have to present certificates before they can enter America? And why is it that some are refused a landing who have proper certificates?'"
IN heathen countries, Protestants occupy 500 separate mission fields, containing 20,000 mission stations, supplied by 40,000 missionaries. In these 20,000 mission stations there are 500,000 Sunday-school scholars, an average of 25 to each station. In the 20,000 Protestant mission stations there are 1,000,000 native communicants, or an average of 50 to each station. There are also 2,000,000 of adherents who are friends of the evangelical faith, and hearers of the gospel preached from the Bible—an average of 100 to each station.
THE Hon. William B. Reed, a former U. S. Commissioner in China, thus speaks of mission work: "I went to the East with no enthusiasm as to missionary enterprise. I came back with the forced conviction that it is, under Providence, the great agent of civilization; and I feel it my duty to add that everywhere in Asia and Africa, among the Kaffirs in Natal, on the continent of India, among the forests of Ceylon, and over the vast expanse of China, the testimony to the success and zeal of our countrymen, as missionaries of truth, is earnest and concurrent. I heard it everywhere, and from high authority."
SINCE the founding of the Universities' Mission to Central Africa, in 1861, 37 of its missionaries have found, in that continent, lonely graves. But the work survives, and there are now 105 laborers in that field. This mission was proposed by David Livingstone. Its Lake Nyassa branch is located right in the heart of a great slave-yielding territory, and the Arabs are endeavoring to drive out the missionaries, who form an obstruction to the prosecution of their nefarious traffic. There are as many laymen as clergymen, all receiving £20 each for clothes and private expenses, and receiving the necessaries of life from one common store.

UPPER COLUMBIA T. AND M. SOCIETY.

By S. H. Carnahan

REPORT FOR QUARTER ENDING SEPTEMBER 30, 1889.
No. of members at present, - - - - - - 212 “ “ dismissed, - - - - - - 2 “ “ added, - - - - - - 2 “ “ reporting, - - - - - - 73 “ missionary visits, - - - - - 400 “ letters written, - - - - - - 137 “ “ received, - - - - - - 18 “ Bible-readings held, - - - - - 14 “ attending Bible-readings held, - - 153 “ pp. tracts, pamphlets, and books loaned, 6,671 “ “ “ “ “ “ given, 10,972 “ “ “ “ “ “ sold, 2,935 “ periodicals distributed, - - - - 2,107 “ subscriptions obtained, - - - - 18 “ SIGNS taken in clubs, - - - - 59 “ Sentinels “ “ “ - - - - 65
Societies failing to report were Alba, Echo, Heppner, Highland Valley, Lewiston, Medical Lake, Moscow, Spokane Falls, Walla Walla.
S. H. CARNAHAN, Sec.

A TRUE STORY.

By Philadelphia Methodist

"PAPA, will you please give me fifty cents for my spring hat? Most all the academy girls have theirs."
"No, May; I can't spare the money."
The above request was persuasively made by a sixteen-year old maiden as she was preparing for school, one fine spring morning.
The refusal came from the parent in a curt, indifferent tone. The disappointed girl went to school. The father started for his place of business. On his way thither he met a friend, and, being hail fellow well met, he invited him into Mac's for a drink. As usual, there were others there, and the man that could not spare his daughter fifty cents for a hat, treated the crowd.
When about to leave, he laid a half-dollar on the counter, which just paid for the drinks.
Just then the saloon keeper's daughter entered, and going behind the bar, said, "Papa, I want fifty cents for my new spring hat."
"All right," said the dealer, and taking up the half-dollar from the counter, he handed it over to the girl, who departed smiling.
May's father seemed dazed, walked out alone, and said to himself: "I had to bring my fifty cents here for the rumseller's daughter to buy a hat with, after refusing it to my own. I'll never drink another drop." And he kept his pledge.—Philadelphia Methodist.

DRESS.

By Selected

CHILDREN should be sensibly and comfortably dressed. The child must have ample freedom for the exercise of its muscles, and the breathing must not be restricted. Great harm is wrought in children's dress; style is allowed to rule regardless of comfort or health.
Never allow the child to sleep in the clothing worn during the day (whether it be infant-in-arms, or the man or the woman grown). Just here allow us to say that each will be the better cared for to sleep alone; indeed, this is true morally and physically with all ages. Before passing from this subject, we have a word more; as the girls grow up, natural taste will be liable to want to follow the fashions of the surrounding society; here beware of folly. Corsets and high-heeled shoes may be in style, but are always out of place. Never permit a girl to wear a corset, and cut down the heels of the opera shoe.
Low necks, short sleeves, and tied-back fronts, revealing the exact figure of the lower limbs, with great bustles, are unbecoming in appearance, and are invitations to vulgar remarks by the coarse. Avoid all such dress.
Be careful to inculcate principle in the matter of dress in dealing with your daughters. Be kind but positive here, and never yield to the demands of fashion, the most tyrannical god (or goddess) of this world.—Selected.

The Home Circle.

TRUST.

SEARCHING for strawberries ready to eat, Finding them crimson, and large, and sweet, What do you think I found at my feet, Deep in the green hill-side? Four brown sparrows, the cunning things, Feathered on back, and breast, and wings, Proud with the dignity plumage brings, Opening their four mouths wide.
Stooping lower to scan my prize, Watching the motions with curious eyes, Dropping my berries in glad surprise, A plaintive sound I heard. And looking up at the mournful call, I spied on a branch near the old stone wall, Trembling and twittering, ready to fall, The poor little mother-bird.
With grief and terror her heart was wrung, And while to the slender bough she clung, She felt that the lives of her birdlings hung On a still more slender thread.
"Ah, birdie!" I said, "if you only knew My heart was tender, and warm, and true!" But the thought that I loved her birdlings too Never entered her small brown head.
And so through this world of ours we go, Bearing our burdens of needless woe; Many a heart beating heavy and slow Under its load of care. But oh! if we only, only knew That God was tender, warm, and true, And that he loved us through and through, Our hearts would be lighter than air.
—Selected.

LOVE YOUR WORK.

MARGARET SIDNEY has such an excellent piece of advice for boys and girls, in one of her stories, that I must repeat it at once:—
The first thing that you must do in order to be successful in anything—love your work. "But I don't," you say. Well, then, make yourself. Get up, in some way, a hearty, genuine enthusiasm for whatever you are to begin. If you are to study French, make up your mind that you'll be the best French scholar that you can think of. Be glad of any chance to study it that you can invent. Imagine how you would feel if someone took away from you every French book and locked it up; if there were a law that no one should be allowed to learn it. All the day, when you are not studying it, think of it pleasantly; watch every bit of improvement you make jealously; above all, keep track of the little slippings back in your progress. And then see what others are accomplishing in the same line. There is nothing so stimulating as this. You will be surprised now to find at this stage of your progress how many delightful avenues are opened up to you. Little clubs will want you, where the other boys and girls desire to learn, at the same time that they have a nice, jolly time. Somebody may give you a splendid invitation to go to Europe, somebody who would much prefer to pay their nephew, or their little friend, than a stranger, for saving them the trouble of scraping up all their forgotten French at the last moment. Oh, it soon becomes a fine thing to work, and moil, and study, when one sees the results of their labor.
It is just so in music, in painting, in learning arithmetic, or in taking care of a garden. Whatever you are doing, make yourself love it to begin with. By and by you will love it because you can't help yourself.—Selected.
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