NOTE.—We wish those who ask questions to take particular notice: (1) Only such questions will be answered here as we believe to be of general interest and information. (2) We can not undertake to explain from four to a dozen scriptures, as in one sentence we are often requested to do. (3) Do not ask to “explain” a certain text or passage. State clearly the point in question. (4) Give full name and address, not for publication unless desired, but as evidence of good faith, and to give us the privilege of replying by letter if deemed best. (5) Unsigned communications of any kind find the quickest way to the waste-basket. (6) It is always well to inclose stamp. (7) “Foolish and unlearned questions avoid,” also those that minister to mere curiosity. (8) Study the Scriptures yourselves.
1251. Dealing with Captives.
Will you please express an opinion on Deut. 21:10-14. Is the permission granted in verse 14 in harmony with the principles of justice? G. T.
Was not this dealing far better than that of slavery? The Israelite was not permitted to use the captive as a thing of lust, but to make her his wife; if he could not get along with her, he might not sell her as a slave (see R.V.), but must let her go free, even as an Israelite woman. See Deut. 24:1. God did the very best He could do with that nation, and always does the best He can do with every nation, without destroying their free will. The laws He gave through Moses were so much better than the heathen around Israel knew that they were as America of a hundred years ago compared to barbarous China or Turkey. They were light and salvation to those in darkness, leading on to still greater light.
1252. The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.
Was there anything evil in the tree of knowledge of good and evil? Did this tree represent the character of Satan? If not, will it be restored to Eden again in the new earth?
INQUIRER.
1. If there was anything evil in the tree of knowledge of good and evil, how could God call all that He had made “good” and “very good?” Gen. 1:25, 31. If it had not been good, it would not have been planted by the Creator.
2. It, being “good,” could not be a representation of the character of Satan. It was not mere eating that brought the curse upon man, but it was disobedience, placing himself out of harmony with God. That tree was taken as a test of man’s loyalty.
3. It would seem that when God restored all things, He would also restore that tree. Why He did not wish man to eat of it at first is clearly evident; He wanted man to learn God’s goodness and character, and his own duty, by faith in God’s word. When man’s character is tested, why should he not eat of that tree, as of the tree of life?
1253. Satan’s Access to Other Worlds.
Did Satan ever have access to other worlds to tempt them? and has he the same power now?
That he did have access to other worlds and has not access now, since our Lord was raised a triumphant Conqueror, seems clearly evident from Rev. 12:9-13. When Christ conquered for man, Satan was cast out into the earth, and the heavens rejoiced because he was cast down.
1254. “Commanding to Abstain from Meats.”
Seventh-day Adventists teach that we are in the “last days,” and the second coming of Christ is near, and they point out signs to show that this is true. But now according to the Bible there was to come, in the last days, a certain class of people, “commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth. For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be rejected, if it be received with thanksgiving; for it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.” 1 Tim. 4:3-5. Now if we are in the last days, and the coming of Christ draweth nigh, who is fulfilling this prophecy? Seventh-day Adventists are the only people, so far as I know, that teach that anything is unclean; therefore they must be the ones that are fulfilling this prophecy.
GARFIELD THOMPSON.
This is sent in as a question, but it really comes as an accusation. Yet we wish to give him, and others similarly troubled, some light on the question.
1. We are in the last days; everything shows that to be the case.
2. The text in question does not say “the last days,” but “in latter times,” or, as the Revised Version, “in later times,” in times subsequent to the apostles’ days,—abundantly fulfilled in the man-made fasts commanded by superstition throughout the Dark Ages to the present.
3. The word translated “meats” means food of any kind, not necessarily flesh meat. So we use it in speaking of the kernels of nuts; so the English farmer still uses it in speaking of the food for his horse. Verse 5 modifies the “every creature,”—that which is sanctified or set apart by His Word, and by prayer. What does this say, the Word that was, when Paul wrote this epistle to Timothy? The only Word of authority then known was the Old Testament Scriptures.
4. Seventh-day Adventists believe that when God called the swine, for instance, unclean (Lev. 11:4-8), and elsewhere makes the distinction between the clean and unclean beasts, He knew the nature of the beasts. Knowing it, He told it to His people. We know of no reason for believing their nature to be changed. But when God sent His servants to the great Gentile world, sunken in the most depraved customs, ignorant of many things, surrounded with insuperable difficulties, He would not load them down with ceremonial observances which could not be borne. He removed the prohibition for the sake of the weak, but the nature of the beasts still remains, and the lessons remain. And many Christians believe this.
5. But Seventh-day Adventists command NO ONE to abstain from food. They teach what they believe to be the best kind of food, what will build up good, healthy bodies, clear minds, and clean hearts through God’s grace; but they command nothing. Every soul can do as he wishes.
Now, does our querist wish to find something against the people he has mentioned? or does he wish to tarry by the fleshpots and eat pork, snakes, snails, etc.? If he does, he has the privilege; that is, if he can get them, and all else is agreeable. No one, so far as we know, will prevent it. We believe in religious liberty. But, nevertheless, there is ever so much better food than flesh food.
A “RIGHT MIND.”
By G.
NEBUCHADNEZZAR was a man of the world, seeking only the emoluments of earth and the temporal aggrandizement of self. God loved him, had entrusted him with the dominion of the earth, and had given him extraordinary opportunity and instruction. Yet the king of Babylon was so inclined to follow his own way that the Lord let him down to a level with the beasts of the field, taking away his reason for a time. But while he was in that humiliating position, by some impulse he looked up to heaven. Then his reason was restored, and he “praised and honored Him that liveth forever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion.” This is what a person does who is in his right mind.
The son of a certain rich man had an ambition to travel, to see the world and to enjoy its imaginary pleasures. He asked his father for the portion of the estate that would eventually fall to him. His request was granted, and he took a journey into a far country. There he spent all he had in luxury and revelry, and then was reduced to absolute poverty. He was obliged to seek employment, and hired his services to a man who set him to feeding swine. But his remuneration was so small that he suffered with hunger, and this brought him to reflection upon the good things at home. So “when he came to himself,” when he came to his right mind, he resolved to return home, seek forgiveness of his father, and a place in his employ. This is illustrative of the proper thing for every one to do who has wandered away from God, and the thing which every one in his right mind will do.
A man who lived in Gadara was violently insane, and sought to kill every one who came near him. When Jesus came to that place, the insane man essayed to attack Him; but Jesus commanded the evil spirit to come out of him, and restored him to “his right mind.” Then the man became a disciple of Christ and an efficient home missionary.
These illustrations show what, in the estimation of the universal Judge, is a right mind. The “carnal mind” is enmity against God; it is “not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.” But the right mind is in harmony with God’s law. When Paul had found Christ, he could say, “So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God.” The prophet Isaiah puts this song in the mouths of the redeemed: “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee.” The new covenant is a promise of God to put His law in the minds and hearts of His people. Heb. 8:10; 10:16.
G.
MOB LAW AND ITS EFFECT.
THIS is what Thomas Goode Jones, ex-governor of Alabama, had to say on the mob spirit, manifest not alone in the South, but becoming increasingly manifest everywhere on the slightest provocation:—
These mob executions are brutalizing our children, blunting our religion, and undermining our civilization. Can any one in the sound of my voice rise up and say that this is not so? We are undermining all noble ideals of duty and manhood. When we surrender to any local public opinion, which dominates in some places, that a sheriff is not9bound to take any risks even to loss of life or limb in defense of a prisoner, we abdicate all our past, and bow down and worship false and base standards of duty. Why should not the sheriff die at his post as well as the locomotive engineer, or the priest, or the doctor, or the soldier? We are setting a baleful example to our young sons, who are coming up around us, if we teach that when a prisoner is given to an officer, that officer is free to desert his post of duty because there may be danger in it. It is not like Alabama or the South to tolerate such a doctrine. Let us declare our faith as to this in our fundamental law.
MEN OR THINGS?
The Awful Influence of Some Features in the Present-day Education.
In an article in the Independent of June 12 by Charles M. Sheldon, author of “In His Steps,” etc., is set forth some present tendencies of education in a most striking manner, yet true to the very letter. A weary minister needs a vacation, and he takes six weeks in visiting his old academy, college, and theological seminary, where he studied and graduated from thirty to twenty-five years before, spending two weeks in each place. After careful observation at each place, he talks with the principal of the academy, the president of the college or university, and the dean of the seminary. From an old vantage-point he looked upon the academy grounds, and this is what he saw:—
He stood for some time in silent amazement. In his day there had been one main building and a few dormitory buildings for the boys. But he now saw, spread out before him, at least a dozen prominent structures of brick and stone, built in modern fashion, and speaking imposingly of fine equipment and luxurious interiors. The old campus, which had been a free expanse of meadow, was now surrounded with a high board fence, and he could see on either side an immense grand stand to accommodate the crowds that evidently thronged in to see the foot-ball and base-ball matches. The minister shook his head. “The outside is altogether different. Wonder how it is inside. Does all this change mean progress, or is it simply a case of more things?”
After a two weeks’ visit, during which he attended classes and chapel exercises, and talked with teachers, he dined with the principal, when ensued the following conversation:—
“How many students have you now?” he asked the principal.
“Three hundred and sixty-five.”
“And there were only one hundred and eighty in my time. How do you account for the increase in numbers?”
“More people want their boys to have an education, and more are able to pay for it than in your time.”
The minister was thoughtfully silent a moment; then he said,—
“You will not be hurt if I ask you some very plain questions? I am honestly puzzled over some things, and I want honest enlightenment.”
“Go on,” replied the principal. “I shall be glad to be of service to you.”
“I must be very old-fashioned, or something——” the minister began with a little hesitation, “but I have been wondering how much of the outward growth of the academy represented real progress. Take, for example, your beautiful dormitories. I notice the boys have every possible modern physical luxury in the buildings, and very few, if any of them, do anything in the way of work. Their rooms are cared for entirely by servants. Now in my time nearly every boy in the academy took care of his own room, did chores for his board, and worked with his hands. I remember one winter I paid for my tuition, clothes, fuel, books, and board by sweeping out the academy building, making two furnace fires in professors’ houses, mending broken glass in the dormitories, and shoveling out paths. As I say, nearly every other boy in school was doing similar work to pay his way. Now my question is this: Do you consider the luxurious physical surroundings of your academy boys are a mark of progress and power in the development of useful men? Will the type of educated man that grows out of an atmosphere like that which pervades the physical life of these boys be stronger or weaker for the absence of that physical struggle which so many of us had to know? Please do not count me as the representative type of academy product thirty years ago,” the minister added with a smile; “that would be great egotism on my part. But, as I have followed the careers of the boys who worked through the academy in my day, I find that as a rule they have all developed into good, sturdy, useful men, with a knowledge of and sympathy for honest labor. Will the boys who are going through the school now make any better manhood because of all these modern luxuries and the fact that they do not add physical labor to their mental exercises? In other words, is it a case of more power, or only a case of more things?”
The principal looked at the minister in some astonishment.
“Then do you think it is an advantage to a boy to be poor and obliged to work his way through school?”
“Not necessarily, but in what particulars do the luxurious surroundings of your boys surpass the plainer, simpler equipment in my time, so far as turning out useful product is concerned?”
“The boys in your time turned out well in spite of their surroundings, not because of them,” said the principal a little sharply.
“Are you sure of that? Perhaps we had better not argue it. Will your boys in their turn become useful, strong men, in spite of their luxurious surroundings and not because of them, or will the tendency be to develop a type of educated man who has grown accustomed to have too much done for him?”
The principal did not answer, and after a moment the minister said,—
“There is another very marked difference between the academy in my time and now, and that is along the line of athletic development. I am not finding fault with it, any more than I am finding fault with your luxurious dormitories. You have a great gymnasium, two athletic training fields maintained at great expense, a campus that has been transformed into a regular exhibition ground in the season of foot-ball and base-ball. I learn that last year the Athletic Association handled $15,000, $13,000 of which was paid out for the services of professional trainers, traveling expenses for the ball teams, uniforms, equipments, etc. Now I am not criticizing or finding fault or condemning, only raising a question about a feature of modern education for boys. In what particulars will the athletic features of the academy life help to turn out better product than the methods employed in my time? Of course, I found all the physical exercise I needed during my academy life in working my way through. So did nearly every other boy. We had our ball games besides; but there was no grand stand, no paid admissions, no betting on games, no expenses to speak of, connected with the athletic life. Were we worse off than the boys to-day? Have your boys a real advantage over us, and what is it? Does the modern athletic atmosphere of school life turn out better product, or does it emphasize muscle at the expense of brain?”
The principal looked at the minister thoughtfully. “I will be frank with you, Mr. Dudley. I am personally in some doubt over the modern athletic development as it has grown up in our schools. To tell the truth, I am not at present prepared to express a decided opinion. I see both the advantages and the disadvantages of the present tendency. The type of product that will grow out of it is yet to be determined. Meanwhile we go on encouraging what we feel to be honest, healthy physical development, and try to hold the students to a strict account for mental achievement. I am, however, I am frank to state, much in doubt myself concerning some features of the athletic side of the school which are not altogether satisfactory.”
“That is plain and honest, I am sure,” said the minister after a thoughtful silence. “There is one other question I want to ask and I hope you will not consider it impertinent or unnecessary.”
“I hope not,” replied the principal in some curiosity. “What is it?”
“It is this: I understand that six of the new buildings that have been erected during the last five years were given to the academy by Gordon Roscoe?”
“Yes,” replied the principal.
“These buildings represent a gift of several thousand dollars to the school. Do you regard Mr. Roscoe as a benefactor to the school?”
“We certainly do!” said the principal in astonishment. “How else should we regard him?”
“Yet Mr. Roscoe, by the consent of all Christian people who know the facts in the case, has made his money by the most unchristian business methods. He has not hesitated to kill other men commercially. He has resorted to the methods of the highwayman to get rid of troublesome competitors. His company has had proved against it time and again conspiracy with railroads whereby competing firms were compelled to pay such high freights on their goods that in the end they were obliged to sell out to Mr. Roscoe’s company. Other serious charges have been made and proved against the company of which Mr. Roscoe is the head. It is monstrous to suppose for one minute that this company through which Mr. Roscoe has made his millions is a Christian business, conducted in ways that Christ would at all approve. Now my point is this: If you accept Mr. Roscoe’s money, do you thereby accept or indorse the methods by which he makes it? If so, what will be the result on the academy in course of time? Will it not tend inevitably to destroy the ethical standard in business? If you praise Mr. Roscoe as a great Christian philanthropist because he gives your academy money, what becomes of the standard of Christ’s rule in business? In other words, will not the result be disastrous to the boys in the academy? There will, as a matter of course, be no ethical teaching in the school against Mr. Roscoe’s business methods. There can not be, since you take his money and set him before the school as a type of benevolent Christian business man. So my question amounts to this: What will be the moral effect on the academy in the next quarter of a century? Will you not lose in moral power more than you gain in physical equipment?”
The principal of the academy had been looking at the minister in astonishment. There had also grown a look of anger on his face as the minister proceeded. When the minister stopped, the principal exclaimed,—
“Mr. Roscoe is a Christian gentleman without reproach. His money is being spent to assist needy educational institutions. Your attack on him is entirely without excuse!”
“I have not attacked Mr. Roscoe except as he is the head of a most unchristian system of money-making. Do you claim that he makes his money in Christian ways?”
“Large interests like those in which Mr. Roscoe is engaged can not be judged altogether by the simple rules of ethical conduct that govern individuals. The immense field of his operations demands what may seem at times to us to be harsh methods or even unchristian practices. But the end he has in view is the public good, and there is no question as to his own Christian sincerity. What would the academy be without such gifts as he is able to make? What would your own college be, Mr. Dudley, without Mr. Roscoe’s endowment?”
“You have answered my question about the result on the moral tone of the academy,” said the minister sadly. “The result is already seen in your own acceptance of Mr. Roscoe’s money and the acceptance of a sophistry which you stated when you said that the large interests in which Mr. Roscoe was engaged could not be judged by the simple ethical rules that govern individuals. Is it, then, wrong to make one dollar by resorting to conspiracy and greed and selfishness, and right to make one million dollars by resorting to the same unchristian practices? No man who knows anything of Mr. Roscoe’s company dare say that its methods are Christian. That he himself lives a quiet, unostentatious, outwardly Christian life does not redeem the methods by which his millions are made. The size of the pile is what makes his gifts acceptable to academies, colleges, and seminaries. And to my mind there is no more dangerous prospect before the institutions that have accepted Mr. Roscoe’s money than this very fact, that in accepting the money they virtually close their lips forever concerning the business methods by which the money is made. What the effect of such silence will be on the character of our boys you ought to be able to reckon as well as I or any one. I have no hesitation in saying that I regard the present situation in many of our great educational institutions as exceedingly critical.”
“It is a matter of difference of opinion, Mr. Dudley,” said the principal stiffly. “I question the expediency of debating the matter. We should never agree on the main fact.”
“I am sure we should not,” answered the minister quietly.
The subject was dropped, and early in the evening the minister took his leave. As he went down the hill past the academy building, which loomed up grandly by the side of the main street, he was unable to drive out of his heart a feeling of foreboding for the future of the old school. Were the buildings, the equipment, the things, of so much value that the principal should value them at the expense of that high, sensitive moral life that once characterized the place? The buildings made a fine showing; the trustees at their annual meeting had exultantly brought in their report showing the academy to be out of debt, thanks to Mr. Roscoe’s gift that year of fifty thousand dollars. Mr. Roscoe had been present at the alumni banquet, and after rounds of cheering and handkerchief waving, he had risen and modestly made a little speech, hinting at the possibility of larger gifts to enlarge the scientific department, which was in need of a new chemistry building; the local paper had mentioned all this, and referred with a glow of pride to the growth of the school, contrasting the present with the past, and so forth.
But the minister went away the next day to visit his old college, and as he caught his last glimpse of the academy building from the train as he looked up the hill, he was only confirmed in his judgment of the matter and could not help asking himself, “Is it only progress in things? Is it really a loss in moral forces?”
(Continued next week.)
Coronation Preparations and Silent Weapons
The opening of coronation week was marked by a great influx of guests into London from all parts of the world. Many members of the royal families of Europe have already arrived to witness the ceremony, and all the hotels are crowded with visitors. There have been many alarming stories of the king’s illness, and some reports that the king would not be able to have the ceremony performed on that date; but such reports are believed to be exaggerated. A wonderful scheme has been arranged for illuminating the great fleets at Spithead on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights following the coronation. All ships are to be outlined in electric lights of various colors. Clouds of steam are to pour from the escape pipes of the vessels, and these clouds are to be illuminated by colored lights. The searchlights of the fleet are also to play a prominent part in the illuminations.
According to a report from Paris, a French artillery officer has invented an apparatus, which, when applied to a rifle or a rapid-fire cannon, completely suppresses the flash, the report, and the smoke, even of black powder. In speaking of the matter the inventor says: “I have succeeded in converting the explosive power, which has been known for centuries, into motor power, giving impulse to projectiles from rifles and cannon without report, flash, smoke, or recoil, and without any diminution of force or effect.” Weapons equipped with such apparatus would be able to rain a perfect hailstorm of missiles upon a city or army without disclosing the location of those using them. It will also make murder much more easy and its detection more difficult.
The Government of Cuba, despairing of any assistance from American legislation, has adopted a measure which calls for the expenditure of $3,500,000, to be distributed among the sugar-growers and tobacco-raisers. The money advanced to the sugar-planters will be at the rate of two cents per pound on all sugar held by them, the money to be returned to the government in instalments; and cattle-breeders are to be paid a premium of $5 for each cow imported for breeding purposes. There is also to be an increased tariff on many articles now bearing small duties. The government will raise the money for distribution among the farmers by an internal loan secured by bonds.
The Senate, on June 19, passed the Spooner substitute for the Hepburn Nicaragua canal bill. The Spooner substitute provides for the building of a canal by the Panama route in case the President can secure a clear title to the property and concessions of the French company. In case he can not, he is to order the building of a canal by the Nicaragua route. The House voted almost unanimously for the Nicaragua route, and this action of the Senate is regarded by many as an attempt to prevent the construction of any isthmian canal. There will be a conference between the Senate and the House committees, the outcome of which it is impossible to forecast.
The Philippine Civil Service Commission reports good progress in the work of fitting the Filipinos for places of trust and employment under the island government. Ten thousand adults are said to be now attending night schools in Manila for the purpose of learning the English language and fitting themselves for civil positions. The commission has been surprised to find so much good material, especially in parts of the island of Luzon remote from the center of education at Manila. But why should they be surprised? They have been informed of educated natives and stable government in the interior of Luzon again and again.
The famous Ninth Infantry, which has seen service in Cuba, China, and the Philippines, and one company of which was practically annihilated at Balangiga, Island of Samar, arrived at San Francisco on June 21, with the exception of Company B, which remains in China as a legation guard. The regiment numbered 1400 men when it sailed for the Philippines. It now numbers 550, including those left at Peking.
The United States official representative at the coronation ceremonies in London, Mr. Whitelaw Reid, has refused to ride in the carriage with the representative of the Turkish Government. This has made necessary a special arrangement by which Mr. Reid is furnished a state carriage for his sole occupancy. The personal intercession of the king was necessary to bring about this change in the official program.
A British shipping combine is reported to have been effected at London. This shipping trust will be capitalized at $100,000,000, and will receive heavy subsidies from the British Government to enable it to compete with the Morgan shipping trust. It is reported that Canada will grant the combine $1,000,000 a year in subsidies. Six additional large passenger boats will be built and a dozen fast freight boats.
At Philadelphia, on June 17, former President Grover Cleveland was given the honorary degree of Doctor of Jurisprudence by the Catholic college of St. Thomas of Villanova. Mr. Cleveland is the only one in the United States who has ever received this degree. He had already received the degree of LL. D. from Princeton University, with which he is officially connected.
Four American teachers on the island of Cebu, P. I., went out for a day’s outing recently, and have not been heard of since. Several parties have been searching for them, but without success. A small party of American soldiers was captured and murdered at about the same time; but the captors of the latter party have been captured and will be punished.
Recent reports from Alaska state that the steamer Portland, with more than a hundred persons on board, has been caught in the grasp of an ice floe, and is being rapidly carried through the Bering Straits into the Arctic Ocean. The great danger is that the steamer, which was not built to withstand the pressure of the ice, will be crushed by its grinding force.
Brazil and Bolivia are reported to be near a conflict. Brazil has demanded that Bolivia shall annul a contract recently entered into with certain powerful capitalists, intimating that in case Bolivia refused so to do, Brazil would take compulsory measures. The contract affected territory between the two countries. Bolivia has not replied to the threat.
A street-car strike is now in progress at Toronto, Ontario, and on June 22 there were a number of riotous demonstrations when the company attempted to operate its cars with new men. The local officers were unable to control the rioting strikers, and the militia has been called out. Many persons were hurt by flying missiles.
The United States cruiser “Denver” was launched at Philadelphia on June 21. She is a vessel of sixteen and one-half knots speed and 4,700 horse power, a protected cruiser of 3,100 tons displacement, and 292 feet in length. Her principal armament consists of 10 five-inch rapid-fire guns, and her cost is $1,080,000.
There is a movement now on foot in Chicago for the consolidation of all the large packing concerns into one corporation, doing business under one management. Thus they hope to evade the anti-trust laws, while the business can be conducted at a profit even greater than that made at the present time.
Secretary Root has prepared for the Senate a statement of the expenses of the war in the Philippines. From this statement it appears that the total cost of the transportation of the troops by rail amounted to $4,803,448.
A resident of Hartford, Connecticut, who died recently, left in his will a bequest of $100,000 to the Advent Christian Publication Society of Boston for the purpose of controverting the doctrine of the immortality of the soul. His heirs contested the will, but the Supreme Court of Errors of Connecticut has just decided that the bequest was valid.
The United Irish League is making preparations for celebrating coronation day in Ireland as a day of mourning. One district council has resolved to hoist a black flag over their council chambers on that day and the day following, and will ask other councils to join them in thus celebrating coronation day.
A despatch from Shanghai, China, states that the Chinese cruiser Kai Chi was completely destroyed on June 22 by an explosion. She sank at once, and 150 of her officers and crew were drowned or killed by the explosion. This cruiser was built in 1882, was of 2,110 tons displacement, and 260 feet long.
At Hoboken, N. J., on June 22, a sympathetic strike was declared among the silk-weavers employed there. This move is made to express sympathy with the silk-weavers now on strike at Patterson, N. J. Trouble is feared at Hoboken, and the mayor has sworn in a large force of special policemen.
Reports from Washington indicate that President Roosevelt has abandoned his purpose to call an extra session of the Senate for the purpose of ratifying a treaty with Cuba in reference to trade concessions. All hope of reciprocity for the Cubans has thus been abandoned, at least for the present.
The Vatican has given its reply to Judge Taft’s proposition in regard to the purchase of the land of the friars in the Philippines. As this reply was not in agreement in detail with the judge’s proposal, it has not been made public, and the negotiations are still in progress.
A report from Newport, Virginia, states that a company of striking miners visited a mine being worked by non-union help, and after vainly attempting to induce the miners to quit work, threw dynamite into the shaft, killing a number of the non-union workers.
The amount of gold coin now held by the United States Treasury aggregates $554,000,000. This is the largest heap of the yellow metal gathered together in one place anywhere in the world. The next largest is the $514,000,000 held by the Bank of France.
Forest fires in Washington along the line of the Northern Pacific railroad during the week have destroyed standing timber to the amount of over a million dollars. A tract of timber land estimated at over sixty square miles has been devastated by the flames.
So great is the dearth of harvest hands in Kansas that many large wheat-fields are said to be going to ruin for lack of help. The State Employment Bureau has taken up the work of assisting the farmers to secure help, but with only partial success.
The police being powerless to control the frenzied strikers in Patterson, N. J., on June 18, the militia was ordered out for the protection of life and property there. The strikers were led by anarchists, and in the rioting many were hurt.
Mount Pelee continues in eruption, and all the inhabitants of the northern part of the island have deserted their homes. Ashes and mud continue to fall on that section of the island; but no further loss of life is reported.
There is a strong indication that the boilermakers of the Southern Pacific Company will join in the strike of the Santa Fe boilermakers, because of the assistance given to the Santa Fe by the Southern Pacific Company.
Reports from the Philippines indicate that cholera is spreading rapidly in the islands, despite the efforts of the civil and military forces to stamp it out. Ninety American soldiers have died of that disease since its outbreak.
In the municipal elections recently held at Naples, Italy, the candidates put forward by a well-known secret society were successful over all others. It is expected that the government will dissolve the council thus elected.
The government is now preparing its case against those implicated in the silk customs frauds at New York City. The case is to be pushed vigorously in both the criminal and the civil court.
Reports from South America state that the Colombian revolt has been practically crushed out, but that the revolt in Venezuela is rapidly nearing a successful termination.
All day June 20 a Venezuelan gunboat bombarded the suburbs of the city of La Guayra, where the revolutionists are entrenched, but without result so far as reports indicate.
The city of Agua Dulce, Colombia, which had been in the hands of the Colombian rebels for some time, was recaptured by the government forces on June 19.
There is practically no change in the coal-strike situation in the East, except that a special convention has been called for July 17.
A conflagration in Portland, Oregon, on June 21, destroyed property valued at $440,000.
IRELAND AND THE CORONATION.
CATHOLIC Ireland is taking occasion of the inauguration of peace in South Africa and the coronation of Edward VII. to manifest its opposition to British rule in general, and to the conduct of the South African war in particular.
On June 5 Parliament voted to grant General Lord Kitchener £50,000 for his successful termination of the war. This was done on recommendation of King Edward, and despite the strenuous opposition of the Catholic representation in Parliament. The Irish leader denounced General Kitchener and his conduct of the war, until his voice was drowned in a storm of protests from other members.
The city of Dublin shows its animosity by refusing to allow the decoration of the city in honor of the king’s coronation. Permission had been granted for the erection of poles and the display of streamers and banners; but the board of aldermen in regular session rescinded its former action and withdrew the permission. The same spirit was manifest also in the refusal of the lord mayor of Dublin to attend the coronation ceremony as the representative of the city.
When the lord mayor’s decision was made known, the high sheriff declared his intention of attending himself as the municipal representative. Thereupon a majority of the municipal council met, indorsed the action of the lord mayor, and repudiated the authority of the high sheriff to attend the coronation ceremonies in the capacity of Dublin’s representative. They also voted to expunge the name of the high sheriff from the roll of the party to which he belonged. The old sore was not healed by the laborious visit of the good queen a few years ago; but the spirit of hatred seems to grow more bitter as the years go by, and Dublin, the center of this animosity, is determined that it will not be represented at King Edward’s coronation. The king’s anti-catholic oath is, of course, one of the irritating causes of the present intensity of feeling.
