Earlier text: ENFORCEMENT OF THE "CHRISTIAN SABBATH."NEVADA CITY AND ROCKLIN, CALIFORNIA.
By E. A. Briggs
DIRECTLY after the Sacramento camp-meeting, I visited the church at Nevada City. Each member of the church was visited; several public services were held; the internal affairs of the church received especial attention; three brothers and two sisters were baptized, and all expressed themselves as being much encouraged. The company at Newcastle was found to be in good condition, and two members thereof were baptized. I found the church at Rocklin had discontinued meetings for several months past. After much visiting, and several preaching services, the church was thoroughly reorganized with thirteen members. A club of twelve SIGNS was ordered; one person was baptized, and two made a start to keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. E. A. BRIGGS. NAPA, CALIFORNIA.
By M. C. Israel
The interest in this place is quite encouraging. Twenty-three discourses have been given by Elder Van Horn. Commenced on the Sabbath question last evening. Sister White spoke in the M. E. Church yesterday on Christian temperance to quite a large number who were very much interested. She will speak again this evening in our own church, on the same subject, more especially to mothers. Audiences average about 40. M. C. ISRAEL. MEDICAL AUTHORITY AGAINST SMOKING.
We take the following paragraphs from the New York Tribune's account of interviews with Dr. William A. Hammond, and Prof. Lewis A. Sayre, M. D. Both these men are eminent in their profession, and what they have said will be corroborated by every intelligent physician. And yet in spite of all the testimony as to the injurious character of tobacco—that it is simply a poison and nothing else—there are hundreds of men who will virtually claim that they are exempt from the laws which govern other human beings, by saying that tobacco doesn't hurt them:— "If children smoke cigars they destroy their nervous systems before they are fully formed, and render themselves liable to neuralgia and various functional diseases of the brain, which are certainly calculated to destroy their mental force. There is also some evidence to show that tobacco in young persons actually interferes with the development of the body in regard to size—that it stunts their physical system. It certainly impairs digestion, for they cannot use tobacco without spitting inordinately. The saliva expelled from their bodies is one of the most important of the digestive fluids, and the proper digestion of the food in the stomach is materially interfered with when there is not enough saliva left to mix with their food before it is swallowed. Again, it certainly impairs hearing and eyesight. I have seen several instances of young children having their eyesight injured seriously, if not irreparably, by the use of tobacco. The excessive use of tobacco is injurious to everybody, adults as well as infants, male as well as female. "Now as to cigarette-smoking. It is injurious to everybody, practiced as it ordinarily is, by inhaling the smoke in the lungs. The use of cigarettes has been increasing to a most extraordinary degree in this country in the last ten years. I have already seen the ill effects of it in my practice, in the production of facial neuralgia, insomnia, nervous dyspepsia, sciatica, and an indisposition to mental exertion. In young persons all these effects are seen with much greater intensity, and, consequently, the effect upon them is very much worse than upon adults. In France, the difference between those who smoked cigarettes in the polytechnic schools and those who did not, as regarded their position in their classes, was so great that the government has prohibited absolutely the use of tobacco in all the government schools. Some time ago I was consulted by Commodore Foxhall Parker, then superintendent of the Naval Academy at Annapolis, relative to the advisability of allowing the cadets to smoke. He stated in his letter that it was almost an impossibility to prohibit the practice, and he put the question whether it wasn't better to allow them to smoke under regulations than to punish them constantly for violation of rules. I replied that that was a matter of discipline; but that, so far as the effects of tobacco were concerned, I had no hesitation in saying that its influences would be injurious to the cadets and that I had constant evidence of it in my private practice and in the course of my observations otherwise. Commodore Parker replied that he thought what I said was right. "I see boys in the street, three and four years old, smoking. To-day I stopped a little wretch, and took away from him a long, strong cigar, that would have made me quail. As to the practice of smoking cigar-stumps, it is simply villainous. A cigar is a kind of retort and the oil condenses in the stump. . . . It is undoubtedly highly injurious to persons whose nervous systems are not developed, or to women, who naturally have more delicate nervous organizations than men and, consequently, are more susceptible to sedative or exciting influences." "Cigarettes are worse for boys than pipes or cigars. The nicotine absorbed from the cigarettes has a very bad effect upon the nervous system, and, taken in excess, weakens the action of the heart and in that respect diminishes the force of the circulation of the blood. This necessarily impairs nutrition of the tissues and of the brain itself, independent of the poisonous influence of the nicotine upon the brain and nerve tissues. Dryness in the mucous membrane of the faux and larynx is produced, and boys who smoke cigarettes are mostly in the habit of expelling the smoke through the nostrils, which produces the same dryness, in the mucous membrane of the nares. Boys make chimneys of their noses by exhaling this dry, hot air, and destroy the natural sweetness and liquidity of the tones of their voices. Every boy who expects to become an orator, with a liquid voice, should never smoke a cigarette. The habit also causes loss of appetite. If boys smoke cigarettes over night, they have no appetite for breakfast, and a growing boy who has no relish for his meals is being retarded in his growth and development. It results in a nervous trembling of the hands, and, carried to excess, cigarette-smoking affects the memory. I think paper cigarettes are worse than tobacco cigarettes. It may be because the paper absorbs more of the nicotine, which is thence carried into the system. Certainly the paper cigarette has the worse odor." "Some years ago, it is said, an insane man in a New England town, once rose from his seat in the midst of a large assembly, and seizing with a great deal of energy one of the pillars that sustained the galleries of the church, declared aloud that he was going to pull it down. Had another Sampson Agonistes suddenly appeared, and declared himself just ready to bow between the pillars of another of Dagon's temples, there could hardly have been a greater consternation. If the people had but stopped to consider, their good sense as well as their confidence in the architect of the edifice, would have assured them of the man's utter impotence to execute his threat. But amid outcries and faintings and general confusion, they yielded to the most foolish fears. Nor did they recover their self-possession, and quietly resume their seats, until another man, significantly pointing to the large and strong pillar which had been threatened, calmly said, 'Let him try; let him try.'" "This proposition restored order and confidence at once; the house did not fall, and the services went on. 'And so, to compare great things with small;' when men insanely threaten to pull down the pillars that the skill of the Divine Architect has reared, and holds up, we are too easily moved with alarm, and too slow to consider the strength of the structure. When God pleases he can indeed make 'the pillars of heaven to tremble, and to be astonished at his reproof.' But so long as it is a feeble mortal who undertakes to shake them, our confidence in the Omnipotent Ruler would do well quietly to 'let him try.' This seems to be the very object of that assurance of God to the trembling inhabitants of the earth in a time of great fear: 'The earth and all the inhabitants thereof are dissolved;' that is, melted with fear, trembling with dark forebodings; but 'I bear up the pillars of it.'" The skeptic, the scoffer, the blasphemer, or the persecutor, boasts of his power, and threatens to overturn Christianity, explode religion, confute the Bible, and introduce a new order of things. We have heard of such threats before. Let him try. Let everything that can be shaken, shake, and everything that can be overthrown, tumble; something has hitherto survived such assaults, and there may be some of God's work left after the devil has done his worst. If a man thinks to bombard Gibralter with boiled potatoes, 'let him try!' One who knew man in his weakness and his strength, has said, "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away."—The Christian. Cigarette Smoking and Selfishness
By Ex.
THERE are few things which make a man more utterly selfish than the smoking of cheap cigarettes. The more odious the cigarette the more regardless of the comfort of his fellow-creatures is he who smokes it.—Ex. Ardent Spirits Traffic and Murder
I CHALLENGE any man who understands the nature of ardent spirits, and yet for the sake of gain continues to be in the traffic, to show that he is not involved in the crime of murder. EFFECT OF THE MAINE LAW.
By Neal Dow
As AN illustration of the general effect of the law in Maine, I repeat a story told me by an eminent Presbyterian clergyman, of Newark, N. J., when I was his guest, some time ago. He said he spent six weeks of the preceding summer at Kennebunkport, in Maine, at a large hotel there. In the old rum time that town was a very drunken place, as all great shipbuilding towns in Maine were. My informant said, when he was there, there were several great ships on the stocks, in process of construction. He took especial and constant pains to observe; but he saw no indication of strong drink anywhere. He took especial pains to inquire; but could not learn that intoxicating liquors were sold in the town, and he did not believe there was a grog shop there, either secret or open. That town, in this respect, is not exceptional. The same story would be true of the smaller towns in the State generally. The friends of the licensed traffic point exultingly to Bangor, and exclaim: "Ah! bah! The law is a failure." No; it has only failed of execution there temporarily, I think, as all the indications there point in that direction. Young men from other States come here as to an asylum for shelter from the temptations to drink by which they are surrounded at home; and they remain here many months, until weaned from their dreadful appetite. One of them, whom I know, has been here two years, from Boston. There is one young man here now from England, sent to my care, to be sheltered from temptation. He was an abject slave of drink. The drink bill of Maine, in proportion to its population, would be now about thirteen million dollars; and we used to drink our full share of the vast national aggregate. But now I am confident that half a million will cover the cost of all that is smuggled into the State for illegal sale. Ex-Gov. Dingley, in a speech in Portland city hall, some time ago, said we could afford to set the amount down at a million dollars, and the difference would overwhelmingly vindicate the policy of prohibition and the wisdom of the law. No man of character has ever ventured to take issue on that point with the Governor.—Hon. Neal Dow. PROTECT THE BOYS.
By John Pierce St. John
You cannot, under our laws, cruelly kick your own dog; because we have a statute prohibiting cruelty to animals. You cannot get a license to kick dogs; it makes no difference how great a petition you present; it makes no difference how much money you may offer, you cannot get a license for any such purpose. Just a little further over in this statute book it tells you that at all seasons of the year you are prohibited from killing turkey buzzards. Is it not high time we were giving as great protection to the boys of Kansas as we give to the dogs and turkey buzzards of the State? We protect the buzzards—we protect the dogs—but we have been licensing the destruction of the boys. In this triangular fight between the buzzard, the dog, and the boy, I am for the boy all the time.—Governor St. John. Drunkenness and Child Cruelty
A DRUNKARD's home in New York was entered by the officers of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to children on March 29. A more deplorable spectacle than that which met their eyes can scarcely be imagined. They found a man and his wife lying on the floor drunk, while their four children, varying in age from nine to two years old, were playing about the room. The woman was so drunk that she could not be roused, and was taken to the station-house in a cart. The room was filthy in the extreme, and very scantily furnished. The children were filthy and dressed in rags, and had a half-starved appearance. The youngest child was found to be suffering from severe burns on the lower portion of his body, which it is said, were received by his having been dropped on a hot stove by his mother. Yet these people once moved in respectable society, and were connected with a Christian church. What a terrible indictment is accumulating against this traffic in intoxicating liquors! Satan has no more efficient ally on this earth than this liquid fiend. Kansas Prohibition and Population
Concerning the alleged decrease of population in Kansas in consequence of the prohibitory amendment, Gov. St. John replies: "The only place where there has been a decrease of population is in the penitentiary, where there are sixty-six less now than there were six months ago." THE CHRISTMAS BOX.
By Ela Thomas
It was a bit of a house in a new western town. A town so new that many of the houses had as yet only had time to throw out a wing or kitchen part, and even many of these fragmentary structures had not yet donned a coat of paint. There were two little churches, of a freshness to correspond with everything else, and the tiny house I have spoken of was one of the parsonages. Now the word "parsonage" suggests a gray old house, shaded by great trees, half hidden by the embrace of sweet swaying vines; a house whence the white-haired old minister of our childhood went out from his flock and labors on that silent journey; a house whence kindly offices and ministries have come for generations. But the plaster on the Bayton parsonage was hardly dry when the Rev. Mr. Hosmer moved in, and though there were trees and vines, the one were but whips with a cluster of leaves for heading, and the other had hardly begun to stretch their tendrils towards the lattice they were to cover. But to the minister and his wife, who had learned to look at the blessings instead of the discomforts of life, it seemed a cozy little spot, for they were Home Missionaries, and the way they came to Bayton, the people there wrote to the Society in New York that they needed a church and a pastor, but were too poor to build the one or support the other without help. So the Home Missionary Society helped them to build the neat little church, and sent Mr. Hosmer, who preached to the people of Bayton every Sunday morning; at the North school-house, three miles over the prairies, one Sunday afternoon; at Hopkins, five miles away, the next; at Prairie Grove, nine miles, the third, and at West Point, seven miles, the fourth, in succession. Receiving from the Society two hundred dollars and the church at Bayton one hundred and fifty dollars a year, while these other stations, that were not churches at all, but simply waste-places, he was trying to cultivate for the Master, that churches might spring up there, contributed now and then a bag of wheat or a few bushels of common potatoes, as the spirit or convenience of the hour might move. Not a very large amount to support a family, where ten-year-old Annie was growing so fast her dresses could not keep pace with her, and Tommy and Jack were continually bursting out at toes, or elbows, or knees, and Baby Bessie's sweet helplessness demanded the softest and warmest of folding; and all the four small mouths were as voracious as young robins. But when Mr. and Mrs. Hosmer left their comfortable Eastern home to carry the "glad tidings of great joy" to the great West, they accepted the cross of hardship and privation, and as the early Christians "took joyfully the spoiling of their goods," these modern saints accepted in the same spirit the having of few goods to spoil. True, this was sometimes an effort of grace, for missionary flesh is humanly weak, after all, This was especially the case last autumn, when there were but ten dollars in the family purse, and the Society, which owed them a quarter's salary, was itself out of funds and depending on the contributions of the faithful to supply the deficiency. And the chill winds from over the wide prairies were whistling around the little parsonage a warning that winter was coming, and the necessity for warm flannels, strong shoes, and thick comforters—all of which were lacking. So, with all their trust in Providence, it was not strange they should feel this burden of wants press heavily. Debt was not to be thought of. Retrenchment there seemed no room for. Mrs. Hosmer was wearing the same winter bonnet in which she came west, a bride, eleven years before, and Mr. Hosmer's Sunday coat had already been cleaned and mended, and the seams (that would grow threadbare) inked, times without number. So Mr. Hosmer said: "Mary, there is nothing we can do but to wait patiently on the Lord." And they knelt down and commended not only themselves, but the daily needs—the flannel, the shoes, and the comforters, to the hand who gives the young ravens their food, and in whose eyes we, though of so little faith, are of much more value. But a few days had passed when there came to Mrs. Hosmer a letter from an unknown Ohio town, where some of the ladies had formed a Home Missionary Society, and sent to the Society in New York for the name of some missionary for whom their work might be done, receiving in reply Mr. Hosmer's; whereupon the secretary wrote a letter of inquiry to Mrs. Hosmer, as cheering as the grasp of a friendly hand. Sympathy, fellowship, what elixirs of hope and courage they are to the sad, the disheartened, the weary! And the pulses of this lake-shore town beat against those in the far-off western parsonage, and they took up their work anew, feeling that it was not unknown that they were remembered not only by their heavenly Father, but by his earthly followers. Mrs. Hosmer answered the letter in the spirit in which it was written. There was no whining, no begging In a half-merry strain she told them of the home, its cares and needs, and the work that was given into their hands. And many an eye, when the letter was read, grew moist at the pathos that revealed, under all the gentle gaiety, the delicate, cultured woman, treading rough paths, and bearing heavy burdens, for the sake of that Master they were content to serve in ease and luxury. For this little society in Clifton was made up chiefly of young girls, members of the large and prosperous church, who, having known no burden of service, were, from very inactivity, fast drifting into passive, idle selfishness, when a few of the church workers who had the interests of these bright young lives at heart, persuaded them to form this little Home Missionary Society. Most of them had yielded with but languid interest, till the receipt of Mrs. Hosmer's letter. Before it had been an abstraction, now it became a reality. The little house, the busy father, the no less busy mother, gentle, studious Annie, the bright, romping boys, the winsome baby were at once taken to their hearts. There was eager discussion of ways and means. One had a dress that could be cut over for Annie; another a little brother whose out-grown ulster would be just the thing for one of the boys; and every one was ready with her offering, some made sweeter still for the self-sacrifice they cost. So they were gathered in—the strong boots, warm caps, and soft dresses, with some pretty baby garments, from a home where the baby music was stilled, and a lonely mother gave the dainty hood and cloak and socks, in the hope they would gladden some happier mother's darling. The father and mother were, however, not forgotten. "Fancy our minister with his Sunday coat inked, and just think of her who has worn one bonnet eleven winters!" And a flutter of white hands went up in amazement. There were busy workers in Clifton in those days, for all agreed the box must go before Christmas. True, many cherished bits of fancy-work had to be laid aside because of it, and home friends go without their usual remembrance. But they could better do without the intended stand-spread or tidy, though of gracefullest design and finish, than this poor minister's family without the warm clothing that was to make them comfortable. Fortunately there were some older heads to watch that the girlish enthusiasm was directed in practical ways, to see that comfortables were made, as well as ruffled aprons, and to suggest that a plain felt bonnet would be more suitable than a velvet one with jet passementerie, and the surplus be invested in a serviceable dress. But at last the box, so precious in their eyes, was finished, and delivered to the express company, with numberless charges concerning care and speed. Meanwhile in the parsonage, nothing had been said to the children, as Mr. and Mrs. Hosmer had learned from experience that missionary boxes were often delayed, and sometimes disappointing in result. And the late autumn chilled and whitened into early winter, nipping little ears and pinching little bodies, but yet bringing the Christmas-time so near, that Tommy began to wish for a cap with ear tabs, Jack for some copper-toed boots, and Annie for a new school dress, to take the place of that grown so shabby. Mrs. Hosmer heard and sighed, as she tried to freshen the dress that refused to look anything but worn-out, and told the boys she was afraid their old caps would have to do, and they be content with shoes instead of boots. But at last, over valley and prairie the eve gathered, so dear to childish hearts, with hanging of stockings and lighted tapers on Christmas trees, and the glad morning dawned, with joyful greeting ringing like a sweet Jubilate through all the waking world. In Bayton parsonage, however, the minister was shaded by disappointment—nothing had been heard of the expected box, the letter which should have foretold its coming having been delayed, and though the best had been done, it was so little. However, just as Mrs. Hosmer was deep in the mysteries of plum-pudding that was to crown the day, an express wagon drove up to the door, and tumbled out a heavy box. Instantly a reign of excitement began, the children shouting, "A box—a Christmas box! O, where is it from? What is in it?" And Mrs. Hosmer hardly less eager, as they hastened to remove the cover. There are missionary boxes and boxes, and never before had the Hosmers, young or old, seen one like this. A magic box, the children thought it must be, since every one drew from it just what they most wanted, Tommy and Jack going through a series of executions that would have graced Piute braves at a war dance over the new caps (with ear-tabs), the boots and the ulsters; Annie in an equal transport of delight, at sight of the bright soft dresses, and dainty white aprons; and Baby Bessie looking like a tiny princess as she crowed in the down-trimmed cloak and hood; while Mr. Hosmer declared he hardly knew himself in the new coat, that fitted him so perfectly, he said the Lord must not only have known his need, but his measure; and Mrs. Hosmer's eyes filled with happy tears as she saw not only the new bonnet and dress for herself, but the warm flannels and stockings, and bedding, and underclothing, that would save her so many a weary hour, and felt her heart lighten as the burden of anxious care was lifted. The pudding was forgotten, but pudding was voted a superfluity, with all the gifts of these far-away and in the flesh unknown friends, that had made their Christmas indeed a merry one, and who in return found their own gifts dearer, their hearts more gladsome, for the sweet service, the sacrifice, the sympathy, with which they had so heavily freighted their Christmas-box. The Home Circle.
By O. A. Pratt
SONGS of joy be thine, O earth!
As we celebrate the birth
Of the Babe at Bethlehem born,
While was ushered in the morn.
As the angel band proclaim-
"Peace on earth, good will to men;"
While to God who reigns in heaven,
"Glory in the highest given." Let us catch the joyful sound,
Waft it all the earth around;
May each heart with holy joy
All its nobler powers employ,
Still the tidings to proclaim,
Still to bear the Saviour's name,
Till each kindred tongue and tribe
Praise and majesty ascribe. Gather round the Christmas hearth,
Mingle there thy social mirth;
Children, once more welcome come
To the loved paternal home;
Ring the glad and gleesome song
Loudly from the merry throng,
As the beams of joy ye trace
In each dear familiar face. Pause amid the festive scene;
Ponder there the wondrous theme;
Think of him, the lovely child,
Patient, humble, meek, and mild.
As the bright and Bethlehem star
To the wise men shone afar,
Promised signal of his birth
To a dark and fallen earth. Think of him, the tidings brought,
Of the miracles he wrought,
Of his mercy, truth, and grace
To a lost and fallen race;
Of his love beyond degree
On the cross of Calvary;
As he yielded up his breath
In the agony of death. Christmas day! O, joyful sound!
Here my smiles and tears abound-
Smiles that thou may joyful be,
Tears for him who died for me.
Celebrate the Saviour's birth,
All ye nations of the earth;
Songs of praise and glory be
His through all eternity.
—O. A. Pratt. Peter the Great, emperor of Russia, was one day in a sailing boat, when he became so angry with one of his companions that he seized him with the intention of throwing him overboard. “You may drown me,” said his subject, “but your history will tell of it.” The reminder was effectual, and the emperor pardoned the man. As WATER runs down from the swelling hills, and flows together in the lowly vale, so grace flows not but into humble hearts.—Augustine. -Severe storms of wind and rain have been raging again in England. -Twenty-five thousand persons are employed in manufacturing tobacco in New York. -Ex-Senator Frelinghuysen of New York has been nominated and confirmed as Secretary of State. -Benjamin H. Brewster of Philadelphia has been confirmed as Attorney General of the United States. -One gentleman of Vienna has contributed $62,500 to the fund for the relief of the sufferers by the theater fire. -Quite recently $10,500 were sent to Ireland from Chicago as her first contribution to the Anti-Coercion Fund. -Among the Indians in the Indian Territory there are ninety Baptist churches, and nearly six thousand church members. -The dams near Algiers, on the line of the railway, have burst and the tracks are flooded. Fifty-four persons were drowned. -It is said that in one square mile in London, where the poorest people congregate, over $2,000,000 a year is spent in strong drink. -Fowler's Steam Plow Works at Leeds, England, were burned recently. The loss is £60,000. Three hundred persons are out of employment. -Within eleven months permits have been given in New York for nearly 4,000 structures, which cost in the aggregate about $43,000,000. -Dr. Isaac I. Hayes, well known in connection with Arctic exploration, died Dec. 17. His first exploring voyage was in 1853, under Dr. Kane. -The number of wrecks reported by the English Lloyds from January 1 to November 1, was 883. The estimated loss to commerce is $650,000,000. -Another mine association plot has been discovered at the Russian Imperial Palace at Gatchina. Several persons were arrested, and a large quantity of bombs were seized. -A cargo of 116 tons of beef and mutton was recently received in London, from Sydney, Australia. The meat was shipped in a frozen state, and was as fresh on its arrival as when shipped. -A dispatch from Dublin says that the reluctance to pay rent is more extensive and truculent than usual, and that there is good reason to believe that the Land League is as flourishing as ever. -The correct list of the victims of the Vienna fire has been issued by the police. It puts the number at 794. This catastrophe has served to materially diminish the attendance at theaters at present. -There is now a firm conviction at Constantinople, that an offensive and defensive alliance will shortly be concluded with Germany, that State having the commanding political influence that England once possessed. -Near Bradford, Pa., recently, an explosion occurred in a magazine containing 1,300 pounds of nitro-glycerine. The magazine was in the woods, and no damage was done except that for a radius of two acres, the trees were stripped. -A New York dispatch says the Southern Pacific Railroad Company is making arrangements for a very heavy traffic. It expects to convey wheat from San Francisco to Liverpool in 33 days, as against 150 days by the Cape Horn route. -The Hongkong Press says: It has been reported to us from Peking that the Hon. James B. Angell, before he left China, had succeeded in obtaining the permission of the Government to lay an American cable between this country and the United States. -A special dispatch from London says: Reports are just received of a terrible typhoon which visited the country around Harfong and Fermony, in China, raising the waters of the sea and driving them inland four miles. One town was entirely submerged and swept away, with all its inhabitants, numbering 3,000. -The Supreme Court, of California, holds that it is the duty of a landlord to repair the leased premises on notice by the tenant, and if he does not perform this duty he can be compelled to pay by deduction from the rent, to the extent of a month's rental, or, at the option of the tenant, the term be concluded without redress to the landlord. -The American Book Exchange, which reprinted foreign works and standard home books unprotected by copyright at an exceedingly low price, no longer exists. The margin over actual cost of production, which includes no authors' percentage, was too small to compensate for the dead stock, which is the necessary accompaniment of the book trade. -A London telegram says: There is intense excitement in Europe regarding the activity manifested by France in increasing its armament. France has just ordered 900 new cannon of Hotchkiss, the American armorer, for the French Navy, and other purposes. The French have requested Hotchkiss to double the capacity of his works at St. Denis. The Germans are making several hundred new cannon at Magdeburg. The French are building several new ironclads. Heavy special appropriations for ordnance have just passed the French Chambers. -The electric railway in Paris has been so successful that it has found capitalists who are ready to support a scheme for its permanent establishment, and arrangements have been made for an elevated electric railway around the city. The proposed railway is to be about fifteen feet wide, carried on pillars 130 feet to 160 feet apart, which would occupy but a comparatively small proportion of the total width of the boulevards. The proposed gauge is four feet, and there are to be stations at intervals of 400 yards, so arranged that an intending passenger would not have to traverse more than 200 yards to reach a station. -In a recent speech at Leeds, Henry Richard said that the war with Afghanistan cost the British taxpayers $120,000,000. Careful statisticians on the continent estimate the cost of the six great wars amongst the nations of Christendom, within the last twenty-five years, at $15,000,000,000, to say nothing of the 2,000,000 of men whose lives were a part of the price. It is also computed that there are now in Europe nearly 13,000,000 of trained soldiers, and that between four and five millions of these are actually under arms every day, and costing altogether something like $2,500,000,000 per year. These figures are reached without making any allowance for the cost of ammunition, arms, etc., and ironclads. The cost of one of the latter in these days would start five and twenty large factories. Nor is anything added for the enormous loss of the productive labor of all these millions of able-bodied men.—Alta. TRACTS.—2 cents each. Christ in the Old Testament—The Sabbath in the New Testament—The Old Moral Code not Revised—The Sanctuary of the Bible—The Judgment—Much in Little—The Two Laws—Seven Reasons—The Definite Seventh Day—Departing and Being with Christ—The Rich Man and Lazarus—Elihu on the Sabbath—First Message of Rev. 14—The Law and the Gospel. YOUNG'S ANALYTICAL CONCORDANCE
THE latest and most complete work of the kind ever published is now offered at a price within the reach of This book places in the hands of every earnest student, knowledge heretofore limited to a very few. IT CONTAINS ONE HUNDRED AND EIGHTEEN THOUSAND MORE WORDS Than Cruden's Unabridged Concordance. It gives every English word, also the Hebrew and Greek original words, with their pronounciation and literal meaning. The Greek and Hebrew words are transliterated so that they are intelligible to any English reader. A complete index of the original words is added, referring them to the English words under which they are found. Address, PACIFIC PRESS, Oakland, Cal. SMITH'S COMPREHENSIVE DICTIONARY OF THE BIBLE.
NEW EDITION, octavo size, 1,200 pages, with many important additions and improvements from the works of the most eminent scholars, commentators and travelers. It is designed to be In regard to the pronunciation and signification of Scriptural names; the solution of difficulties respecting the interpretation, authority and harmony of the Old and New Testaments; the history and description of Biblical customs, events, places, persons, animals, plants, etc. In this book it is designed to make everything intelligible to those who understand only the English language, and to place them as nearly as possible on a level with the scholars who are familiar with the original languages of the Scriptures. All the words in the vocabulary are pronounced and divided into syllables, and words or parts of words are respelled whenever this is necessary to indicate the pronunciation. The book contains numerous maps, and is abundantly supplied with superior engravings, which are of real utility to the student. No one who desires to study the Scriptures intelligently will be without a copy of this most excellent book, as its price is within the reach of all. Price, in cloth ..................................................... $5.00
" in library binding ............................................... 6.00
Address, SIGNS OF THE TIMES, Oakland, Cal. Obituary.
By John C. Thorp
THORP.—Died of typhoid fever, at Jay Eu, Republic Co., Kansas, Nov. 8, 1881, after a long and painful illness, our beloved brother, Wilmot P. Thorp, aged 32 years, 10 months, and 16 days. The subject of this notice was converted in his youth, and united with the Missionary Baptist church, with which he remained until 1871. He then united with the First-day Adventists, and remained with them until about four years ago, when he commenced the observance of the Sabbath of the Lord, which he continued to keep until the time of his death. He came to this country eleven years ago, to secure a home, and endured all the privations and hardships peculiar to pioneer life. His life has truly been one of toil, anxiety, and care. But he rests from his labor. He leaves a wife and two children, a mother, one sister, and five brothers to mourn his loss. Again our number is broken by the tyrant death, and our brother sleeps beside his aged father. While we mourn the vacant places, we rejoice that the time is not far distant when all the righteous shall rise victorious over death and the grave. God grant that we may meet, an unbroken band, in the earth made new. HOLIDAY BOOKS FOR OLD AND YOUNG!
HISTORIES AND BIOGRAPHIES.
Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, six vols............ $6.00
Rollins Ancient History, in two royal octavo volumes, small pica type (Bound in Muslin)............. 5.00
Bound in Library Sheep.............. 6.50
Complete works of Flavius Josephus, royal octavo size, pica type.. 3.00
D'Augbine's History of the Great Reformation, five volumes....... 4.50
Dowling's History of Romanism..................................... 4.00
Half Morocco...................................................... 4.75
Life and Times of Luther.......................................... 1.50
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Mysteries of the Ocean..... 5.00 | Book of Bible Pictures..... 1.50
The Mountains.............. 5.00 | Stories of Bird Life....... 1.50
Child's Bible.............. 5.00 | Treasures of the Deep...... 1.50
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Home Life in Palestine..... 1.50 | The Greek Maid............. 1.00
Nannie Davenport........... 1.50 | Life and Labor of Mary Lyon. 1.00
Earthen Vessels............ 1.50 | Edith Somers............... .90
Tom Bentley................ 1.50 | Jessie's Work.............. .90
Ellen Dacre................ 1.25 | Tip Toe.................... .80
Tim the Scissors Grinder... 1.25 | Vatican Council............ .80
Sequel to Tim.............. 1.25 | The Climbers............... .80
Gutta Percha Willie........ 1.25 | Sybil Grey................. .80
Paul Venner................ 1.25 | Jane Taylor................ .75
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Little Nellie.............. 1.25 | Star of Bethlehem.......... .70
Lenore's Trial............. 1.25 | May Coverly................ .60
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Climbing the Mountain...... 1.15 | Songs for the Little Ones.. .70
The Brother's Choice....... 1.10 | Jesus the Way.............. .25
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Treasure Poems............. .10 Address, PACIFIC PRESS, Oakland, Cal.