For years our attention has been called to the work of the apocalyptic Beast and his Image. Revelation 13. But we have heard it repeated so often, especially of late in our periodicals, that our sensibilities have become blunted, and many have doubtless been tempted to think that the giving of life to the Image is still a great way off. But if we look at the means by which, according to the prophecy, this work is to be done, and then note the events that are occurring in the religious world, it will be seen that it is much nearer than many of us have supposed.
How the Image is to be made is clearly seen: “Saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by the sword and did live.” Rev. 13:14. As the Image, when given life, is to be worshiped, it is clear that a great religious work must be carried on, having for its object the awakening of the people and the public conscience on what is regarded the crying need of the hour.
Futile attempts have been made to have this work accomplished through the legislative powers, irrespective of the public conscience. Men have been in power who have understood the evils that must follow any union of religion and the State, and, like Nicodemus in the Sanhedrin, they have put off the evil day indefinitely.
A change of tactics has been decided upon, and so, instead of appealing to the national Legislature, and stating bluntly what is wanted, as the National Reform Association and the American Sabbath Union have so often done, a movement, or movements, looking to the education of the public mind in matters of a religious character has been decided upon.
In the REVIEW of December 4 two significant reform movements were reported and commented upon, both of them having their origin in New York State. At the time of the writing of this article the REVIEW has not had time to reach the thousands of its readers, reporting these two great movements; yet there has sprung into being still another organization that promises to be far more far-reaching than the first two put together. It, too, has its birth in New York State, having been organized in the city of New York, Dec. 3, 1900.
Speaking of this movement,—it has not yet been formally named, although its aims are well defined,—a prominent New York paper says: “Probably never before in history did representative ministers and laymen of every prominent evangelical denomination and church society come together to plan a religious movement which was to comprehend their own organizations, and bring their work into greater accord and promote its co-operative effectiveness. Yet in spite of the diversity of doctrines, and the religious methods represented, the greatest harmony prevailed. Those who attended went away impressed, they said, with the meeting’s profound significance.”
This meeting is to operate entirely through the medium of existing churches and religious societies. “Correspondence will be begun with every church in every city and village in the United States. Inquiry will be made of every church’s needs, and effort put forth, through suggestion, the circulation of literature, or the providing of religious workers, to accommodate those needs. It is hoped in this way to reach every religious enterprise in the nation.”
As with the Conference of Religion, a report of811which was given in the REVIEW, it will not recognize doctrinal differences; its aim is the evangelization of the nation.
In short, the following tells the whole story: “The whole nation is to begin, systematically, through the co-operation of existing religious agencies, working upon those fundamental Christian truths concerning which no evangelical denominations disagree, to work out the religious awakening and uplifting of this nation.”
As certainly as this is so, so certainly will Sunday have a prominent place in this evangelical work. With the exception of the immortal-soul doctrine, it would be hard to find another so-called fundamental Christian truth upon which evangelical denominations are agreed, or in the interests of which they will more readily lay aside all differences, and unite, than the Sunday question. And the keeping of Sunday as an absolute essential to the uplifting and well-being of the nation, is believed in by many, who are at the head of this movement. And we may be equally certain, as before stated, that it will be made prominent in the work of evangelizing the nation.
There can be no doubt that there is but one mind, but one unseen power, back of all these federations. However, it would be uncharitable to believe anything else than that the organizers of these federations, and the sympathizers with these movements, firmly believe that God is in them. And to them it would seem almost like blasphemy even to suggest that some other power is at the back of it all. But we must not forget that God’s word clearly points out these things, and shows that Satan is to work with all power, and signs, and lying wonders. As he has, in the past, used the machinery of the Church for the propagation of his work, so, at this time, he will carry on his work under the garb of Christianity. This will be one of Satan’s masterpieces of deception. The following, one of the latest statements from the Spirit of Prophecy (See REVIEW, December 4, 1900), is to the point:—
“As we near the time when principalities and powers and spiritual wickedness in high places will be brought fully into the warfare against the truth, when Satan’s deceptive power will be so great that, if it were possible, he would deceive the very elect, our discernment must be so sharpened by divine enlightenment that we may not be ignorant of Satan’s devices.”
Federations of a religious nature are to be one of the characteristics of the last days, and it is clearly shown that God will not be in them; for thus it is distinctly written: “For the Lord spake thus to me with a strong hand, and instructed me that I should not walk in the way of this people, saying, Say ye not, A confederacy, to all them to whom this people shall say, A confederacy; neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid.” Isa. 8: 11, 12.
That this refers to religious federations is plain, for verse 10 says: “Take counsel together, and it shall come to naught; speak the word, and it shall not stand: for God is with us.” This last expression implies that God, instead of being in these confederacies, will really be with those who protest against them. But it also shows that the claim will be made that God is with them. And the character of the work will be such as to make it appear that it is so. When these federations have developed more fully, it will require a large amount of faith to speak the truth concerning them; yet it is to be done.
Nor are we to be deceived because some of these religious movements, like the one of which we are writing, are carried on as revivals. In “Great Controversy,” page 464, is the following: “In those churches which he can bring under his deceptive power, he will make it appear that God’s special blessing is poured out; there will be manifest what is thought to be a great religious interest. Multitudes will exult that God is working marvelously for them, when the work is that of another spirit. Under a religious guise, Satan will seek to extend his influence over the Christian world.”
Thus we are rapidly nearing the final crisis; the ruin of the world is impending; and the word of the Lord is, “Get ready.” C. H. KESLAKE.
THE WEEK OF PRAYER
By George A. Irwin
This will be the last issue of the Review before the beginning of this important gathering of God’s people; and while much has already been said on the subject, I feel constrained to add a little more.
The Week of Prayer, from the time of the beginning of its observance by us as a people, has been an important occasion; and the influence it has exerted for good, both on the lives of individuals and on the cause of God in general, will not be known until the mists clear away, and we know even as we are known.
Each succeeding year may very properly be termed a crisis; but there are times when, by the culmination of a series of events, both from without and from within, we are brought to face a special crisis, upon the outcome of which has hung the destiny of the cause of God in the earth. The fact that we have successfully turned these points hitherto, is no assurance that we shall be equally successful in those of the present or future; and to fail in the one that last comes to us is equivalent to having failed in all that have gone before.
The present is pre-eminently a time of crisis. The nations of earth—our own included—are rapidly preparing armament and marshaling their forces for the final conflict. Riots, lynchings, murders, and robberies are everyday occurrences. Ten thousand murders were officially reported in the United States alone the last year. Embezzlements and defalcations of immense sums of money are so common that they fail to elicit more than a passing comment. A multiplicity of trusts and trades unions control to a large degree both the capital and the labor of the nation. The poor are becoming poorer; and while they suffer from the effects of their poverty, they see the rich becoming richer, and hatred that is destined to burst in a storm of fury, is cherished against the rich. On the other hand, the rich are becoming more oppressive and less regardful of the rights and claims of the poor. Intemperance, with the vices that are connected with it and that follow in its wake, is openly practiced, with only an occasional voice lifted in remonstrance. Men in high positions of authority and trust, who should be examples of purity and integrity, and guardians of the rights and interests of those over whom they have been placed to protect them from the vicious and vile, are themselves conniving with vice and crime for gain, and to further their own wicked schemes.
Strong religious organizations are admitting their inability to cope single-handed with the influences both without and within their ranks, and are forming federations and alliances, enlisting the aid and co-operation of government officials, in the vain hope of being able thereby to turn back the great tide of iniquity that is sweeping over the land.
From the foregoing facts, which are patent to the most casual observer, we may know that the world’s measure of iniquity is about full, and that as it was before the flood and in the days of Sodom and Gomorrah, so it soon will be in the world of to-day.
While the enemy is thus active in producing in the world the condition just described, he is no less active against the remnant people of God; for we have been told that the dragon was wroth with the woman, and would make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. Every energy of Satan’s gigantic mind, which has been used to invent subtle schemes to entice persons away from God, coupled with his extensive experience of six thousand years, will be used against the remnant church in these closing days of the conflict. To some, he will present doubt as to the cardinal points of our faith; to others, skepticism in regard to the Spirit of Prophecy and the exercise of this gift among us. “My Lord delayeth His coming,” and there are many years before us yet, will be used to lull others to sleep. To yet others, a desire to do and be like the nations around, will be made to appear right. A personal, selfish ambition to do something independently of the body or the counsel of brethren, will be encouraged in some. Covetousness will be stimulated in many,—a desire not only to hold on to what they already have, but to add to it. A speculative desire will also be encouraged, and business methods that are questionable even in the world, will be made to appear right, because the speculator vows, if successful, to give liberally to the Lord. Others will be tempted to believe that they are so good that there is no danger in their case, and hence they have no special need of seeking the Lord; while efforts will be made to so overwhelm others with a sense of their guilt and unworthiness, that they will give up in despair, feeling that there is no possible hope.
All of these schemes, and many more that might be enumerated, will at this time be employed by the enemy to draw away those that have been recognized and acknowledged as God’s remnant people. We may be nearer the border line of being entrapped in some of these ways than we suppose; for the heart of man “is deceitful above all things.” This very season of prayer may mean a crisis in our life, the outcome of which will settle our destiny for both time and eternity.
He who is intensely interested in the future welfare of every one, would have us at this time call a halt upon the busy activities of everyday life, and seriously inquire of ourselves, in the light of God’s truth and its obligations upon us, Is it well with my soul? The principles and motives that have prompted our acts should receive careful scrutiny.
These special seasons of prayer are as milestones along our Christian journey. They will either mark a time when our feet are turned more perfectly and securely into that strait and narrow path which will terminate in eternal life in its fullness, or they will mark a time when we diverge more and more into that broad way which leads to destruction. Not only will this season of prayer mark a turning-point in our individual lives, but it will mark a turning-point in our institutions and general business policy. The successful turn of the latter, however, will depend upon the former. If we are so earnest in seeking God that selfishness and covetousness are put out of our lives, we shall be constrained to give liberally of that which the Lord has intrusted to us as stewards, to help forward His cause in the earth.
The present is a time of crisis to some of our institutions; and in these the honor not only of the institution and the men having immediate charge, but of the cause of God, is at stake. The Lord is testing us through the appeals that have come to us in the little leaflet sent out to all our churches. Our opportunities to show our loyalty to, and faith in, the Third Angel’s Message will very soon be past. Influences are rapidly crystallizing that will bring about the time foretold when we can neither buy nor sell. How we shall regret it if, when that time comes, because of our covetousness and lack of faith now, we have in our hands property which should have gone to sustain the Lord’s cause, but which will be confiscated by the enemy!
May the Lord incline us first to give ourselves to Him; and then to our power, or even beyond, may we be willing to give for the support of His cause!
GEO. A. IRWIN.
IT IS BEING ACCOMPLISHED
By S. H. Lane
Much has been said about the sale of the book, “Christ’s Object Lessons,” to liquidate the debts of the schools throughout the country, and we are glad to report that this is actually being done. Forty thousand of these books have been printed by the Review and Herald Office, and nearly all of them have been shipped out to the different States. The Pacific Press Pub. Co. has shipped ten thousand. Our brethren and sisters are taking hold wherever these books have been sent, and are selling them. Some have sold as high as two hundred copies. The Battle Creek church has voted to take twelve thousand, and many are the feet that are now conveying them to friends, neighbors, and strangers, and money is being brought in from their sale every week-day.
The Review Office employees have **recently started a colporteur wagon, which is selling not only12“Christ’s Object Lessons,” but “Best Stories” and “Easy Steps,”** to supply the holiday trade. Many copies of “Christ’s Object Lessons” are sold for Christmas presents. Some are selling them in near-by towns, and they are constantly being sold to those who come to solicit the patronage of the Review Office or the Sanitarium. Several hundred books have been thus disposed of. Others are selling to merchants and tradesmen.
We have shipped several thousand to the State of Iowa, which so far seems to be the banner State to which shipments have been made. They are endeavoring to dispose of twenty-five thousand copies in that State. Many are writing letters to their friends, asking them to purchase. Business firms have been written to, and some have replied by ordering from ten to thirty copies for Christmas presents for their employees. The colleges are receiving money from these sales.
The Battle Creek College paid one thousand dollars a few days ago on its debt. The business manager of Union College has just reported that he has twenty-seven hundred dollars to send out immediately on the debt of that institution. Since the sale began, nearly four thousand dollars has been paid on the debts, and yet the work is only well begun.
If you have not already engaged in this work, will you not take right hold with us, and push it to a finish? The Lord will bless; and when the books are sold by the thousands, and our schools are all out of debt, then the note of jubilee will sound throughout all the borders of our land. “Glide swiftly round, ye wheels of time, and bring the welcome day.” S. H. LANE.
CAN WE DO IT?
By W. C. Sisley
Do WHAT?—Why, sell three hundred thousand copies of “Christ’s Object Lessons,” putting the proceeds into the treasury for the wiping out of the debt now weighing down our schools. In our own strength, we should say, No; but in the strength of God, we should answer, Yes.
True, it is a large undertaking, and we are a small people; but the work is the Lord’s. Remember the taking of Jericho; remember Gideon’s army; and remember that all these things “were written for our learning.” I ask again, “Can we do it?”
Let the faint-hearted hold their peace. Let the courageous ones respond, Yes.
Yes; we believe that we can sell these books, and pay the debt. But, brethren and sisters, in order to do so we must work in Christ’s lines.
But how shall we know what are Christ’s lines?—By inquiring of Him, and heeding the many counsels He has already given.
And let us do this at every step of the way. It is not only that we wish to lift the debts, but we long to see thousands of this precious book scattered all over the country. Such a circulation of “Christ’s Object Lessons” will do an untold amount of good, by causing hope and joy to lighten many a sad heart. A rich blessing will surely come to every one who labors with this double object in view.
Then let us be Christians, selling the book in such a way that those who purchase will feel it a privilege so to do, and having bought, will be in the best frame of mind to enjoy the book and be edified. To this end, let us work diligently, pleasantly, considerately, honestly, and trust God for success and the realization of our hopes.
In this connection, let everybody read the leaflet, “Rolling Back the Reproach,” which can be obtained free from the local tract societies.
W. C. SISLEY.
OHIO'S BRAVE WORK FOR MOUNT VERNON ACADEMY
By P. T. Magan
Our academy at Mount Vernon, Ohio, is burdened with a heavy debt. The obligations against this institution aggregate seventeen thousand dollars. The Ohio Conference is not a large one, and the only territory tributary to the academy is the State of Ohio itself. The Conference Committee feel that it will take united effort and much energy to pay off this large amount; but they have faith in God, and have set their faces firmly and courageously to the task, believing that the Lord will assist them, and give them favor in the sight of their brethren and the world.
Not long ago a meeting was held at Springfield, Ohio, at which it was decided to begin immediately an active campaign in the churches. Several of the brethren in the ministry started out at once to visit the churches in the interests of this work. At the Mount Vernon meeting the question arose as to the terms upon which the book, “Christ’s Object Lessons,” should be sent out to the brethren and sisters in the churches. It was decided that in this matter there must not be anything that would have the semblance of simply transferring the debt from the academy to the tract society. It was agreed that all books must be paid for in advance. Where the brethren are too poor to do this, the ministers are planning to get wealthier brethren to become responsible for the books until the poorer ones can pay for them. This is a plan born of Heaven. It will cause the burdens to be distributed among the wealthier brethren in the Conference, which otherwise would have to be borne by the tract society, or which, if they were not borne by the tract society, would prevent a number of consecrated persons from joining in the work of freeing the academy from its debts.
Beginning Friday, November 30, a district meeting was held in the city of Springfield. Elder A. G. Haughey, the president of the Conference, was present. There were also in attendance two district directors, besides several of the ordained ministers and ten Bible workers. The time was taken up, chiefly, with Sabbath-school work and the work relative to the selling of “Christ’s Object Lessons.” From the first, a tender spirit prevailed in the meeting. Some of those in charge of the work had had fears that the Conference laborers might not feel that they could take hold of the selling of “Christ’s Object Lessons;” but almost all, if not indeed all, the Bible workers arose to testify that they saw the hand of God in this movement, and expressed their determination to engage in the work with energy and consecrated zeal. Extensive plans were laid for carrying on a campaign through the winter. The Testimonies of the Spirit of Prophecy bearing on the matter of paying off the school debts were read, and were greatly appreciated by all present.
A call was made for help for the big fund for the RELIEF OF THE SCHOOLS, and three hundred and three dollars was subscribed in cash and pledges. It was at an evening meeting that I presented this matter. I first asked if there was any one present who felt that he could give one hundred dollars to this fund. Several told me afterward that they were almost staggered when I asked for so much, as they thought there was not one in the room who could possibly afford to give that amount; but a young colored girl, whose whole appearance showed that she was not a stranger to economy and self-denial, arose and said that she would give one hundred dollars. A holy hush came over the room as she made her vow to the Lord. I have since learned that this sister works hard as a janitress in a school building, and I can not help thinking that if those whom God has blessed with an abundance would only be as liberal in proportion as are the poorer ones among us, it would not be long before all our denominational debts would be paid.
Following are the names of those who made cash contributions at the meeting for the RELIEF OF THE SCHOOLS:—
Elder J. G. Wood....................................$ 5 00
W. W. Miller........................................ 1 00
Anna E. Smith....................................... 10 00
Phoebe Click........................................ 1 00
Mrs. E. W. Horner................................... 1 00
E. R. Hunster....................................... 1 00
Belle Orr............................................ 1 00
Miss S. M. Haughey.................................. 2 00
Gifts................................................ 2 00
Following are the names of those who made pledges for the same purpose—the big fund for material:—
J. G. Wood..........................................$ 25 00
A. E. Miller......................................... 5 00
Chas. A. Smith...................................... 10 00
Chas. J. Gearhardt................................... 1 00
B. H. Rannells...................................... 25 00
C. S. Zebold......................................... 1 00
Nellie M. Stevens.................................... 5 00
M. C. Huffaker....................................... 5 00
Margaret Weakley....................................100 00
Mrs. E. J. Miller..................................... 5 00
Bessie E. Russell.................................... 6 50
Bertha Gatton........................................ 10 00
Jessie B. Sweet....................................... 5 00
Mrs. E. E. Remsberg.................................. 10 00
Mrs. Nettie E. Graves................................ 5 00
O. F. Guilford....................................... 10 00
Elder R. R. Kennedy.................................. 50 00
Ida M. Walters........................................ 5 00
P. T. MAGAN.
MICHIGAN
By S. E. Wright
I AM sure the readers of the REVIEW AND HERALD will be pleased to learn that the Michigan people are helping to pay the indebtedness on our schools, by selling “Christ’s Object Lessons.”
Many are preparing to enter the work of canvassing, and a few are in the field. But comparatively813few have reported; however, we have reports that show a sale of fourteen hundred copies up to December 7. We are told that canvassing for “Christ’s Object Lessons” is a test to us, to see if we will work together and be of one mind in self-denial and self-sacrifice. I believe nearly all have decided to stand the test.
Let us be faithful and “push the battle to the gate,” that the day may be hastened when we shall “sing the jubilee song of freedom.”
S. E. WRIGHT.
THE WORK IN NEBRASKA
By N. P. Nelson
COLLEGE VIEW, NEB., Nov. 8, 1900.
DEAR BROTHER: Your kind letter has been received. Since I came home from Battle Creek, I have been organizing the Conference to work for the sale of “Christ’s Object Lessons.” I have sent all our licentiates and Bible workers out with the book. One was out two days, and took nine orders. I have instructed the ministers to visit all the churches in their respective districts, to see that every church-member has a copy of the book for himself, and as many as he can procure to give to his friends; also to get as many of the church-members as possible to canvass for the book. We advise those who can do so to buy and give copies to ministers, so they can recommend the book to their congregations.
The State agent and one of our best canvassers give instruction in selling the book. They also go out and get others started in the work. We intend to continue this work till the middle of March. Then perhaps we shall have the licentiates and Bible workers resume their usual labor, and the general canvassers go out with the book, receiving the same discount as for any other, the remainder going to the school. We hope to have the Conference quite well worked up by that time. Two or three persons are going to towns where none of our people are. They have not been in the work before, but we pay them a little each week.
When you see Elder Morrison, he will tell you all about the plan of the Conference.
Your brother in Christ,
[Signed] N. P. NELSON.
A Plan to Sell Christ’s Object Lessons
By J. T. BOETTCHER
UNION COLLEGE, NEB., Dec. 6, 1900.
DEAR BROTHER MAGAN: I went to Lincoln, and sold my six books in a short time. I do not think I canvassed any one person over five minutes. The Lord gave me a plan by which I think I shall be able to dispose of a number of “Christ’s Object Lessons.” I talked to a book man, and he said he would put twenty-five copies in his store, and advertise them in his Christmas catalogue, free of charge. I believe the Lord will bless the work. God’s plans are always good.
Yours very truly,
[Signed] J. T. BOETTCHER.
NEWS AND NOTES
— Lord Roberts will reach London, January 2.
— Gen. W. R. Shafter will be retired next July.
— December 11, a pro-Boer meeting in London, England, was prohibited.
— The third telegraphic cable between the Netherlands and England is now being laid.
— The Standard Oil Company has just acquired all the interests of the Pacific Oil Company.
— The annual report of Secretary Gage shows a surplus for the fiscal year of 1900 of $79,527,066.
— President and Mrs. Mc Kinley gave a reception, December 6, to 1,000 delegates to the W. C. T. U. convention held in Washington.
— The telegraph operators on the Santa Fé Railroad are on a strike, and operators on the Missouri Pacific threaten to strike, in sympathy.
— Professor Parker, head of the music department of Yale University, has sued a New Haven, Conn., daily paper for $6,000 damages for a lost manuscript on church music.
— The Bulgarian Cabinet has resigned, because of political differences.
— Rev. Dr. Joseph Parker will edit the London (England) Sun the week before Christmas.
— Queen Wilhelmina received Mr. Kruger at The Hague, but only as a private individual.
— The annual revenue of the British government in India, from the opium traffic, is $15,000,000.
— The Dutch government refuses to take the initiative in behalf of arbitration between Great Britain and the Transvaal.
— The Salvation Army of New York City will give a Christmas dinner to 25,000 poor persons, in Madison Square Garden.
— Hon. Wm. Wirt Henry, a distinguished member of the Virginia bar, and grandson of Patrick Henry, died December 5.
— Li Hung Chang’s secretary, Yiko, is under arrest, by Count Waldersee’s order, charged with communicating with the Boxers.
— Twenty-three Boer families will arrive in New York the 28th inst., the first of a colony to be established on Long Island, near Hicksville.
— Foreign dispatches say that “the Boxers are disturbing northern and western Korea, and the Russian troops are preparing to scatter them.”
— The centennial anniversary of the establishment of the seat of government in the District of Columbia was celebrated in Washington, December 12.
— The death of Oscar Booz, of Bristol, Pa., December 5, is said to be due to brutal hazing while he was a student at West Point Military Academy.
— It has been necessary to re-enforce the American garrison on the Island of Bohol, Philippine Islands, because of the increased rebel activity there.
— Representative Kitchin, of North Carolina, recently introduced a resolution in Congress to repeal the Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.
— A detachment of 130 bluejackets from the United States cruiser “Dixie,” attended service at St. Peter’s, at Rome, December 8, and were “specially blessed by the pope.”
— Queen Victoria has appointed, as British members of the International Court of Arbitration, Lord Pauncefote, Sir Edward Malet, the Right Hon. Sir Edward Fry, and Prof. John Westlake.
— Ernest Brenner has been elected president of Switzerland, succeeding E. Müller, who was elected Dec. 21, 1898. He is only forty-four years old, and yet “is deemed one of the ablest of the international lawyers of Europe.” He is a native of the canton of Basel, and has served several terms in the national Bundesrath. It is interesting to note that “the president of Switzerland is elected every year from the Bundesrath, in rotation. He must first serve as vice-president of that body.” The president’s salary is less than $3,000 a year, while his power is very limited. He can not even appoint cabinet officers.
— At the national convention of the W. C. T. U., held in Washington, D. C., December 3-6, the following amendment to the constitution of that organization “was rejected by a vote of 312 to 15:’ ‘ARTICLE VI.—PLANS OF WORK.—Nothing shall ever be incorporated into any plan of N. W. C. T. U. work, by department or otherwise, which must of necessity become the occasion of sectarian controversy, or which can in any sense be made to interfere with perfect liberty of conscience.’” By referring to the REVIEW of Nov. 14, 1899, it will be seen that this was the amendment proposed by the late Mrs. S. M. I. Henry at the N. W. C. T. U. convention last year. Thus that organization gives its sanction to the prosecution of all seventh-day observers under the Sunday laws.
— By a vote of sixty-five to seventeen the United States Senate adopted the Davis amendment to the Hay-Pauncefote Pact regarding the Nicaraguan Canal, December 13. Washington dispatches state that “in all probability the Hay-Pauncefote treaty is beaten. If the United States builds the Nicaraguan Canal, it will be an American canal, and foreign consent will not be asked as to its control or the means adopted for its defense,” and “the Senate is determined to revise the treaty in an American spirit, to make it a compact which will suit America, but will not suit Great Britain, and thus throw upon the latter country the responsibility for its rejection.” And again: “If Great Britain refuses to accept the amended treaty, the Senate and House of Representatives will almost instantly, and by a large majority, pass a resolution directly and formally abrogating the old Clayton-Bulwer convention. And that will be the end of it, and the United States may go ahead and build the canal under any rules that it may see fit to adopt.”
— General Mercier, in a recent debate in the French Senate, pointed out “the ease with which England could be invaded.”
— The Suez Canal is ninety-two miles long, and it costs from $1 to $1.50 a ton, according to the tonnage, for a ship to pass through. It cost $80,000,000 to make the canal.
— The United States transport “Hancock” arrived in San Francisco, the 11th inst., with the bodies of 1,500 sailors and soldiers who died in the Philippines, China, Guam, and Hawaii.
— The German members of the International Court of Arbitration will be Dr. Bingner, President of the Senate of the High Court; Herr von Frantzius, Councilor of the Foreign Office; and Professor von Bar, of the University of Göttingen.
