p. 652 | Review and Herald, Vol. 78, No. 41. (10/8/1901)

A SHOT ACROSS THE BOW.

By Theodore L. Cuyler

Rev. Theodore L. Cuyler, in the Independent.

SOMETIMES a man-of-war encounters on the open sea a merchant ship which the commodore suspects may belong to a hostile Power. So he sends a cannon-shot across the bow of the merchantman, in order to “bring her to” for an interview. In like manner the word of God sends some solid shots across the bows of wandering souls, not to sink them, but to stop them, and bring them to reflection. “To-day if ye will hear His voice, harden not your hearts;” “Turn ye, turn ye . . . for why will ye die?” are specimens of these weighty warnings. They are sent in love, and not in wrath; they are earnest admonitions to halt and to “put about ship” and steer Godward, or heavenward.

One of the mightiest questions in the Bible is, “What think ye of Christ?” On this question pivots the soul’s destiny. Another very solemn Bible statement is, “Ye were without Christ.” This may be the actual condition of more than one who is now reading this article. My friend, let me say to you in loving frankness, that a soul without Christ suffers badly from moral weakness. Intellectually you may be very strong; spiritually very feeble. For instance, I once saw a man of colossal intellect utterly besotted by the brandy bottle—which he was morally too weak to abstain from. The evidence of moral weakness is the inability to withstand the seductions of selfishness, the gales of passion, or the onsets of temptation. Perhaps you have resolved a thousand times to break off from certain besetting sins, and to lead a truer and a better life. You have failed. Your purposes had no staying power from on high. Jesus Christ offers it to you; He says: “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.”

Whoever is without Christ is a wandering soul. Strike your own little match if you choose; it will soon go out and leave you in the dark. All the Christ-denying books of these days—whatever brilliant name may be on their title-page—are only lucifer-matches. You would not dare to have one of them beside your dying pillow. You need an unerring, infallible guide, one whom you can implicitly trust, and whom millions of the wisest and best people have trusted, and been led aright. Jesus, the Son of God, very kindly says to you: “I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” Try Him, my friends; and the very instant that you find Christ leading you into evil thoughts or crooked paths or wicked ways, you are welcome to halt and desert Him. Did you ever hear of such a case?

But you are not only weak and wandering; you are often worried with a sense of sinfulness and guiltiness and moral failure. Conscience pricks you. We can bear almost anything—pain, poverty, loss, disappointment, or bereavement—as long as our soul is at rest with God. Sin is the only unendurable tormentor. Over and over again you have been tormented by it, and have tried to drown your convictions of sin. But just as the cannonading in a naval battle brings up dead bodies from the bottom of the sea, so the artillery of God’s word keeps bringing up your sins to your memory. How to get rid of sin and its condemnation without Jesus Christ is the question. It is impossible. His blood “cleanseth us from all sin;” “there is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus.” Friend, confess your sins to Christ, and give Him an honest trial; I have never heard of any doing this, and ending in wretched disappointment or skepticism. Infidels uniformly belong to the class who have not honestly made a practical test of Christ for themselves. Blind and deaf people are no judges of Niagara.

In addition to the weakness and the wandering and the want of all true peace without Christ, is the certainty of perdition. Jesus saves; there is none other name under heaven that is given among men whereby we must be saved. Whosoever is not saved goes to wreck. We hear much in these days of the “larger hope.” Certainly no sinful soul could ask for a larger hope or a stronger one than is held out in the glorious offer: “Trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men.” You could not ask for a fairer probation or a fuller opportunity. Do you imagine that you would work at better advantage on a second trial in the next world if you should strive to build a better life of the shattered wreck and remnants of a misspent life in this world? It is in mercy that God pushes you up to the necessity of accepting Christ and building your eternal character on Him; and no other opportunity to do this is even hinted at in the Bible. There is infinite loving-kindness in the persistence with which God presses on you the fact that “now is the accepted time; . . . now is the day of salvation.”

There is only one thing that keeps you without Christ, or, as the Revised Version has it, “separate from Christ;” and that is sin. You cannot plead ignorance of Christ or inability to accept Him, nor hide behind any decree of

the Almighty; for God is long-suffering to you-ward, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. The Saviour stands knocking at the door of your heart, with infinite blessings in His hands for you, and you bolt Him out. Perhaps some favorite sins hold the door; they and He cannot dwell together there. Perhaps self-righteousness has piled your own good deeds against the door, and you insist that you can be just as useful without Christ as with Him. Perhaps willful unbelief refuses to lift the latch; or mayhap it is only a delaying spirit that fully intends to open the door to Him before the footsteps of death are overheard outside, No matter what excuse may keep a sick man from taking the only medicine that can cure him, he may dislike it, or disbelieve in it, or delay the taking of it,—death comes just the same. “Without Christ” means to be without pardon of past sins, without power to resist present temptations, without peace toward God, without hope for eternity. “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him.”

Do you inquire what you will gain by accepting Christ? Let me tell you some things you will gain. First of all, you will secure the forgiveness of your sins. If a man were in prison, it would be a kind act to take him a good book or a good dinner or a bunch of flowers; but it would be an immeasurably greater kindness to take him the governor’s pardon. Sin unforgiven, sin unrenounced, means hell. Penitence on your part and pardon on Christ’s part means the first step toward heaven.

With Christ comes a supernatural strength to resist temptation. He that is within you is infinitely stronger than any force that may assail you. The secret of every noble, true, holy, and victorious life, from the days of Paul to this hour, has been just this: “Not I, but Christ liveth in me.” This divine power to resist sin, to conquer selfishness, and to achieve success is not an occasional visitant; it is a resident force, “Lo, I am with you alway.”

With Jesus Christ you have the purest and sweetest of joys. The possession of Christ is itself an indescribable source of happiness.

“Wealth as a source of happiness is sheer humbug,” said a millionaire to me the other day; “mine never gave me an ounce of pleasure until I began to do good with it.” We ministers often find that the happiest souls are they who have the least of earthly goods and the most of Christ.

A pastor once called to see an old woman on the ground floor of a dingy rookery: she lay helpless and alone on her bed, and poked the scanty fire with a long iron rod; a kind neighbor came in occasionally to feed the fire. Her solace was her Bible, her one companion was her Saviour. Cheerful, uncomplaining, joyful, she was a living witness how little a human soul depends for its richest happiness on mere externals, and how supremely happy it may be when it has the continual presence of the Lord of glory. “These things have I spoken unto you that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.” Put this promise to the test, my friend, and then tell me—when we get to heaven—if you were disappointed.

WHO IS MY NEIGHBOR?

By William Warren Prescott

ELDER W. W. PRESCOTT.

(October 13-19.)

The principles which the Lord lays down for the true conduct of life among men are the principles revealed in His own character. The true interpretation of these principles will be found in the interpretation of His character as He is made known to the world in the person of Jesus Christ. In His mission to this earth He set forth in humanity and for humanity the true standard of character, and brought within the reach of man the power necessary for its realization in human experience. It was those who were “separate from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of the promise,” whom He came to seek and to save. It was those who by their conduct had placed themselves at the greatest distance from Him who were treated by Him as though they were the nearest to Him. In doing this He left the throne of glory and “pitched His tent by the side of the tents of men.” And thus “in Christ Jesus ye who were formerly far off were brought nigh in the blood of Christ.” Moses asked, “What great nation is there that hath a god so nigh unto them, as the Lord our God is whensoever we call upon Him?”

This makes it clear that according to the Lord’s own standard of action the one who needs help is the one to whom we should come near in ministry. Every soul in distress is our neighbor, whether he lives in the next house, or on the opposite side of the world; and in the application of this principle is found the test of our Christianity. Upon this foundation Jesus established the gospel. “Have this mind in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: who being originally in the form of God, counted it not a thing to be grasped to be on an equality with God, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, becoming in the likeness of men; and being found in fashion as a man, He humbled himself, becoming obedient unto death, yea, the death of the cross.” “Hereby know we love, because He laid down His life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.”

In His talk with the lawyer, Jesus answered the question, “Who is my neighbor?” A man “stripped” and “wounded” and “half dead” offered the opportunity of neighborly ministry to the priest and the Levite, both of whom “passed by on the other side,” as far as possible from the case of need; but the Samaritan, despised by both priest and Levite, “had compassion on him, and went to him,” and ministered to his need. When asked, “Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbor to him that fell among thieves?” the lawyer readily recognized the true principle, and answered, “He that showed mercy on him.” The poor man had been so ill treated that he had nearly lost what was to him the most precious thing in the world, for the thieves robbed him of a good share of his life, “leaving him half dead.” He needed some one who would minister to him that which he had lost, some one who could be a channel through whom life could flow from the fountain of life to him in his perishing condition. By treating him as a neighbor and coming near to him, the Samaritan became the connecting channel between the man’s need and God’s supply, and thus himself shared in the benefits of his own ministry.

The people of the world to-day are perishing for lack of that knowledge of God which is life. God has made His people the depositaries of truth, the real principles of life for body, soul, and spirit. This truth, which is the message of life to all the world, is to be given “to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,” “to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” A great work is to be done in order that the “whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Old forms of disease are spreading, and new forms are constantly appearing. Much of the suffering on every hand is due to the transgression of those simple laws which God has established as the basis of sound health. A knowledge of life-saving principles has been committed to us that we may impart them to others, and thus bring relief from their bodily suffering.

But the increase of disease and consequent physical suffering in the world is simply the index of the increase of sin and distress of soul, and there is one physician and one remedy for both. The opportunity to minister life for the healing of the body should be improved for its own sake, and the certain consequence will be to open up an avenue for the ministry of the same life to the soul. Even sickness which is brought upon men by their own wrong course may be overruled by the Lord to turn their thoughts toward Him. “Foolish men, by their course of transgression and by their iniquities, brought themselves low. Their soul loathed all food, and they drew near to the gates of death. And they cried to the Lord when they were in trouble; He saved them out of their distresses. He sent His word and healed them, and rescued them out of their grave pits.”

The physicians and nurses in our various health institutions could fill volumes with the record of their experiences in pointing those to the Saviour from sin whose hearts and minds had been prepared by their deliverance from “their distresses.” And the same privileges and opportunities are open to all who will acquaint themselves with the principles of health, and those natural remedies for disease which can be employed by any intelligent person. In these God-given opportunities lies the greatest stimulus for faithful ministry. When we remember that the needy person is our neighbor to whom we are to show mercy, and we see how full the world is of persons in both physical and spiritual distress, what a call is thus made upon us to give freely to others the life-saving truth which has been given so freely to us. And this ministry will be blessed to our own good in an enlarged capacity to receive and to enjoy the fullness of God. “With what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.” “And the Lord turned the captivity of Job, when he prayed for his friends: also the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before.” “Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbor unto him that fell among thieves? And he said, He that showed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go thou and do likewise.”

QUESTIONS.

Is this relationship determined by place, or condition?
By whose example is this decided?
How did Jesus establish the true principle?
In what instruction did He set forth this principle?
What was the evidence that the Samaritan recognized a neighbor in the man who fell among thieves?
What was the man’s condition?
What was his need?
What are we permitted to minister to the people?
What emphasizes the need which the people have of thus ministering?
What will open the way for the ministry of life to the soul?
What evidence do we have of this?
To what should this be a stimulus?

English Admiralty Seeks American Naval Histories

THERE are reliable indications that the English Admiralty are waking up to the fact that it would be a good thing for them to become possessed of standard works on American naval history, such as Theodore Roosevelt’s work on the War of 1812 and Captain Mahan’s writings. It may be added that the Navy Department at Washington has for years bought for the libraries of American men-of-war copies of all naval works appearing in England and upon the Continent.

MAN AS AN ANIMAL.

By L. A. S.

SCIENCE assures us that man is an animal; and history and observation compel us to believe that man is the most ferocious animal on the face of the earth. The thirst for blood seems to be greater with man than with any other living creature. These statements have reference to man as he is by nature.

The earth is full of animals that prey upon other animals for food, but man is the only animal that kills merely to gratify the instinct for killing. The lion and the tiger are types of ferocious beasts, but they kill other animals only to provide themselves with food. They do not materially lessen the number of the animals upon which they prey; but man is the exterminator. Wherever man comes, there all other animals disappear, save such as are kept for domestic pets or can be made to serve the purpose of financial gain. Already a number of the animal species have disappeared from the earth before the merciless march of “civilized” man; and other species are on the point of sharing the same fate.

The desire to kill shows itself in man in the years of childhood. Where is the “small boy” who does not instinctively, at sight of bird or frog or other harmless and inoffensive creature near his pathway, look for a stone to throw at it? And his object is not to scare it, either; he means to hit it and kill it if possible. If he should succeed, it would be of no possible use to him; yet he seeks for the life of the little harmless creature as if it were something indispensable to his happiness. There may be some of the “small boy” genus with whom this disposition is not instinctive, but they are so scarce as merely to constitute the exception which proves the rule.

When the “small boy” is grown up, he finds one of his chief delights in going “gunning.” So great is the mania for killing in every community, that if he has not a gun himself, he has ready access to a gun shop, where he can get fitted out with the latest appliance for taking life by means of powder and shot. He starts out determined to kill something—some fine “game,” if possible; but if not that, then something else, it doesn’t matter very much what. Perhaps he is unsuccessful in his search for “game;” the killing mania within him becomes clamorous for gratification; he must fire off his gun at something. Almost anything that has life in it and can be safely killed will answer the purpose. On a limb of a neighboring tree he spies a robin. He takes aim, fires, and the bird drops dead to the ground. “A good shot,” he comments, and feels better; it would not do to go home without having killed anything. He picks it up, notes where his shot took effect, examines it a moment, and then throws it aside; and that is the end of the matter for him. For the value of life, as the gift of the Creator, and the right of the innocent bird to enjoy it; and for the nest with its tiny occupants that perchance may be awaiting the return of the mother bird, he has not a thought. Every other consideration is subordinated to the gratification of the lust for taking life.

The animal man kills not only because he feels like killing, but also to gratify vanity; and here, sad to say, the “gentler” sex come in for a share in this bloodguiltiness. The ladies must have birds, or parts of birds, to wear in their bonnets. For this high purpose, no doubt, the Creator put forth His infinite power and brought the feathered tribe into existence! Far better is it that the beautiful winged creature of the air should rest motionless and mute upon some piece of feminine headgear, than be roaming free in the heavens, and giving life and voice to what else would be wooded solitudes! Far better that the feathered songster should serve the ends of pride in church or theater than serve to beautify creation upon field and forest! And so the birds are slaughtered by the hundred

thousand; and in proportion as they are slaughtered, injurious insects multiply and plague the farmer and the fruit grower, and do such damage that in some States vast sums are appropriated yearly to combat their ravages. Certainly the brute creation would not be guilty of such folly.

The beast of prey must have other animals for food; it cannot well live upon anything else; but the civilized animal that rules the rest of creation kills other animals, and makes a business of it, simply to furnish one item, and that not a necessary one, in his enormous bill of fare. Man must eat a thing simply because it is eatable; he must eat an animal simply because he does not know what else to do with him. “What would you do with the hog, if you did not eat him?” is his query. And so man eats the scavenger hog; and by his general lust for, and lordly appropriation of, everything in both the animal and vegetable kingdoms that can pander to either natural or perverted appetite, gives striking evidence of the natural hoggishness as well as bloodthirstiness of the human species.

But the animal man feels himself far superior in every respect to the rest of creation, and is always ready to lay the blame for the results of his own depravity upon the animal world beneath him. Here is an illustration taken from a newspaper published on the Pacific Coast (the San Jose Mercury), which will do to conclude our observations upon this subject. It is printed under the heading “Sea Lions Acquitted:” —

“It is a pleasing thing to see the once despised and hunted sea lions and seals defended, and their right to life upheld. A war of extermination has been waged against these animals along the coast from California to Washington, and thousands of them have been slaughtered. State legislatures have aided in the work by giving bounties. All this has been done on the theory that they destroy tons of fish daily, and are therefore responsible for the diminution of the food fishes along the coast. It has been claimed that a sea lion eats four hundred or five hundred pounds of fish every day, and bites many other fish so that they die. The investigation now progressing along the coast by scientists sent out from Washington, aided by other scientists from our universities, appears to be proving that this charge against them is not true. Examination of the stomachs of scores of them reveals the fact that fish constitutes but a small portion of their diet. It is to be hoped that this will prove to be true, and that our legislatures will pass acts protecting them from slaughter instead of dooming them to extinction.

“It has been well said that, regardless of whether they live on an exclusive fish diet or not, the record does not show them to have been the cause of the decrease in food fishes. When this coast was first settled, the lions climbed over the wave-lashed rocks by the thousands. Where there is one now, there was then a hundred, and probably had been for centuries. At the same time the waters swarmed with fish. The fish have only declined since man began his wasteful methods of fishing, catching all he possibly can, and permitting almost none to reach their natural spawning grounds. Man, in his greed and blindness, has been the cause of the great decline in the number of salmon and other food fishes, and now seeks to lay the blame upon the lions and seals, contrary to the evidence and common sense. We ought not to need a scientific report on the subject, in view of the clear logic of the situation, yet a report exonerating them would not come amiss as a basis for legislative action for their protection.”

L. A. S.

THE RIGHT MOTIVE OF OBEDIENCE.

By Luella B. Pridy

MRS. LUELLA B. PRIDY. (Berlin, Wis.)

The Bible recognizes the right of parents to exercise authority in the home. But the right is given for a specific purpose. That purpose is that the household “shall keep the way of the Lord.” Any form of government that comes short of that has missed the mark.

In the choice of methods the object to be gained should be considered. It is not enough that the child simply does what he is bidden. He should do right because it is right, and because she loves the right.

He should be taught what God’s law requires. He should be taught that God made him, and gave him all he has, and therefore He has a right to his obedience. He should be taught that there is a tempter who tries to lead him astray, but God is able to keep him in the right way if he will ask Him. The child does not need to be very old to understand these things. He may understand them before he is able to express them in language.

“Even the babe in its mother’s arms may dwell as under the shadow of the Almighty through the faith of the praying mother. John the Baptist was filled with the Holy Spirit from his birth. If we will live in communion with God, we too may expect the divine Spirit to mold our little ones, even from their earliest moments. . . . As the mother teaches her children to obey her because they love her, she is teaching them the first lessons in the Christian life. The mother’s love represents to the child the love of Christ, and the little ones who trust and obey their mother are learning to trust and obey the Saviour.”—“The Desire of Ages,” pages 512, 515.

Many make a serious mistake in not beginning soon enough. They allow evil traits to develop and become habits, thinking that when the child is old enough to reason will be soon enough to correct it. Thus the most favorable opportunity is lost. The baby should not be allowed to have his way because he kicks and screams. What may appear cute in the baby is not so interesting in an older child whose willfulness and stubbornness have grown by repeated indulgence.

But how shall the desired results be obtained? The most finely planned theory will fail if unaccompanied by the grace of Christ. The Christian mother will many times be driven to her knees in prayer. We cannot fight the evil one in ourselves in our own strength; neither can we in our children. Many times the evil temper may be subdued by kneeling in the presence of the child, and praying with him.

A child should not be frightened, flattered, nor hired into obedience. These various methods may have a temporary appearance of success, but in the end they are a failure. Outward rectitude of conduct is not enough. The Lord requires the heart. Besides, the motive worked upon is really being developed.

The world is full of people who are afraid to serve God because of what people will think, or because they think it will result in financial loss to themselves. We do not want our children to obey us for any such reasons.

We should not exercise authority simply to show that we have a right to do so, or to minister to our own convenience. But we do want our children to obey, because in doing so, they are learning to submit their wills to God.

It will not do to deal with a slack hand, and allow the child to have his own way when his way is the wrong way. This was the sin of Eli, and it brought the curse of God upon his household. “In that day I will perform against Eli all things which I have spoken concerning his house: when I begin, I will also make an end. For I have told him that I will also judge his house forever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not.” 1 Sam. 3:12, 13.

The Lord said of Abraham: “For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment; that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which He hath spoken of him.” Gen. 18:19. We see from this that the promises to Abraham were dependent upon the fact that the Lord knew him, that he would command his children and his household after him.

The Lord requires no less of us. Neither are His promises any less. There is just as much power to help us in our families as there was in Abraham’s household.

THE HYMNS THAT MOTHER SUNG.

THROUGHOUT the changing scenes of life, That shadowed vale of smiles and tears, Where all is lost within the mist That hides the bygone years, Some strains there are that linger still, And many hearts no longer young Are thrilled with joy again to hear The hymns that mother sung.

We'd used to gather at the hearth When darkness overcame the day, And dreamily, as children will, We'd watch the shadows play; And sitting by the glowing fire, As to and fro the kettle swung, We learned the songs we've always loved— The hymns that mother sung.

We seem to hear again her voice, So long remembered, clear and sweet As when, in days of long ago, We sat at mother's feet; And gazing upward on the wall, Where dearest father's picture hung, We thought he smiled; for he, too, loved The hymns that mother sung.

On many snowy winter nights, When all without was cold and drear, We've clustered close around her chair In happiness and cheer; No more for us the glowing fire, No more the cricket's chirping tongue, And nevermore on earth we'll hear The hymns that mother sung.

To them we owe our happy homes. Praise be to God, who reigns above, For keeping ever bright and clear The lessons learned in love, Outliving sorrow, bearing hope, The dear old songs have always clung, And never can the heart forget The hymns that mother sung.

— Selected.

Where a Christian Would Be Ashamed

“WHERE a Christian would be ashamed to have His Master find him, there he ought never to find himself.”

POISONED FOODS.

By H. W. Wiley

*H. W. Wiley, in Leslie's Weekly.*

There are many other poisonous principles in our foods besides ptomaines which are not powerful enough to produce immediate sickness and death, yet which act on the organs of the body, gradually reducing their vitality, changing their physiological functions, and finally undermining the health of the subject. These insidious poisonous principles are very common constituents of food products. I refer particularly to those which are not the result of fermentation or decay, but which are added in the preparation of the food, either for improving its appearance, increasing its bulk, cheapening its cost, or preserving it.

Chief among these mildly poisonous principles may be mentioned the preservatives added to food products to prevent decay. The only proper way of destroying the germs in food products is by sterilization or Pasteurization. These two terms practically signify the same process, namely, the destruction or paralysis of fermentative germs by the application of heat. The term “sterilization” is, however, by common consent applied to that form of the process in which the intensity of heat employed is that of boiling water or higher, while “Pasteurization” is used to designate that form of the process in which a lower degree of heat is used.

There are certain chemical reagents which, on account of their cheapness and efficiency, have been largely used instead of heat for germicidal purposes. It is much easier to add a reagent of this kind than it is to subject the food product to a high temperature. Moreover, there are many food products the physical state and appearance of which are unfavorably changed by the application of heat, and for this reason some other form of preservation is sought.

Chief among the common preservatives which are injurious to health may be mentioned salicylic acid and formaldehyde. I am aware that there are many contradictory statements in regard to these bodies. Some authorities of a high reputation in medicine and hygiene claim that the moderate use of them is not prejudicial. I am far from saying that in every case the use of these poisonous bodies in the minute quantities which are administered in the consumption of food preserved by them, is productive of immediate injury; in fact, perhaps most really healthy stomachs are able to dispose of small quantities of these chemicals, even for an extended time, without suffering any apparent inconvenience. But the public supervision should look after the weak and diseased digestive systems rather than the strong and vigorous, and there is no doubt of the pernicious influence of these preservatives in cases of this kind.

Digestion itself is only a form of fermentation, and the admixture of any body with a food which prevents fermentation outside of the digestive organism tends also to interfere with it in the body. I by no means advocate a law which would forbid the use of preservatives in food. There are many food products which are less objectionable when preserved with practically harmless bodies than if left to the natural decay they would undergo before use. Foods intended for mining camps, ocean voyages, and points far from the source of supply, must be preserved in order to secure their highest utility.

It is not the purpose of this article to discriminate between preservatives, and to say what may and what may not be used. That is a question for the lawmakers and the courts, guided by the experience of physiological chemists and hygienists. But it is evident that there are certain preservative bodies, such as common salt, saltpeter, sugar, and borax even, which have no deleterious effects upon digestion, and yet which possess high preservative powers. Sugar, indeed, is one of our most valuable articles of food, and salt is essential to health. The admixture of a small quantity of borax with butter fits it for transportation to distant points, and renders it more wholesome and more palatable than if allowed to become rancid.

No food product, however, containing a preservative should ever be offered for sale without a plain statement on the label of the package showing the character of the preservative and the amount employed. In the same category with preservatives, though not open to the same serious objection, are the coloring matters which are often used in foods. The butter which is commonly found upon our market is colored with a coal-tar dye. Canned peas and beans have the green color of the vegetables preserved by copper. Preserved meats and sausages are made to imitate in color the fresh products from which they have been made by artificial coloring matters. I would not assert that all coloring matters in food products should be forbidden by law, but the law should require in each case a statement on the package showing the character of the coloring matter and the amount of it in the product.

The Human Heart Is Like a Millstone

“THE human heart is like a millstone in a mill. When you put wheat under it, it turns and grinds and bruises the wheat into flour. If you put no wheat, it still grinds on and wears itself away.”

HEALTH NOTES.

By A. J. B.

An entire sermon on health may be found in the following appropriate mottoes used by two health journals of the country: “Health is Beauty;” “Ugliness is Sin;” “Weakness a Crime.”

Prudishness on the part of parents too often keeps children in ignorance of the physical laws of their being, concerning which they should be fully informed. Children should not be compelled to pick up such knowledge upon the streets, mingled as it is with vice.

Those who find themselves or their children becoming dissatisfied with a plain, simple fare may be interested in the following incident related by John G. Haderer: “An old lady of high society called on me some time ago and requested me to look at her pet dog, which was very sick, and would not eat anything. I called on her, and saw the dog, and told her that the dog was going to die, and she wanted me to doctor it. I asked her what she was feeding it, and she said that it would not eat anything but beefsteak and cake and candy. So I said, ‘If you let me take the dog to my place, I will try to doctor it, but I don’t think he will live.’ She consented, and I said that she must give me five dollars for medicine, which she did. When I arrived home, I put the brute down in the cellar, gave it a pan of water, and left it there until next day, when I gave it a crust of dry bread, which he refused to eat. But I left the bread there. Next day I went down to see him again, and found the bread gone. So I gave him another crust of bread, which he devoured at once. I followed up the same treatment for several weeks. At the end of that time I called on the lady and demanded another five dollars for medicine, and told her the dog was getting well. She gave me the money, and I departed. The dog got more dry bread, and he looked as sleek as a rat, and could run like a wild deer. So I took the dog home, and told the lady that if she wanted the dog to live, she must not feed it on beefsteak and candy. ‘Why,’ she said, ‘he won’t eat anything else!’ ‘He won’t?’ I said. ‘Just give me a piece of dry bread.’ I gave it to the dog, and he swallowed it quickly, and looked for more. The lady paid me well for my services, and I went away.” And it was right that he should receive the money, for he had really given the dog the very best medicine. The tale needs no moral.

A. J. B.

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