CHRIST’S life had been so retired and secluded at Nazareth that John had not a personal acquaintance with him, and he did not positively know that he was the Messiah. He was acquainted with the circumstances of his birth, and he believed him to be the promised One. The secluded life of Christ for thirty years at Nazareth, in which he gave no special evidence of his Messiahship, suggested doubts to John whether he was indeed the One for whose coming he was to prepare the way. John, however, rested the matter in faith, fully believing that God would in due time make it plain. The Lord had shown him that the Messiah would be pointed out to him by a distinct sign; when this should be done, then John could present him to the world as the long-expected Messiah, the Lamb of God, that was to take away the sin of the world.
JOHN had heard of the sinless character and spotless purity of Christ. His life was in harmony with what the Lord had revealed to him respecting one that was among them whose life was without the taint of sin. John had also seen that he should be the example for every repenting sinner. When Christ presented himself for baptism, John recognized him at once as the superior one revealed to him. He discerned, in the person and deportment of Christ, a character above every other man he had ever seen. The very atmosphere of his presence was holy and awe-inspiring. Although he knew him not as the Messiah, yet never had such a holy influence been realized by John from anyone as when in the presence of Christ. He felt the superiority of Christ at once, and shrank from performing the rite of baptism to one whom he knew to be sinless. Many had come to him to receive the baptism of repentance, confessing their sins and crimes; but John could not understand why the only sinless one upon the earth should ask for an ordinance implying guilt, virtually confessing, by the symbol of baptism, pollution to be washed away. He remonstrated with Christ, acknowledging his superiority, and refused to administer the ordinance, saying, “I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me?” With firm and gentle authority Jesus waives the refusal of John and his plea of unworthiness, saying, “Suffer it to be so now; for thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness.”
CHRIST came not confessing his own sins; but guilt was imputed to him as the sinner’s substitute. He came not to repent on his own account, but in behalf of the sinner. As man had transgressed the law of God, Christ was to fulfill every requirement of that law, and thus show perfect obedience. “Lo, I come to do thy will, O God!” Christ honored the ordinance of baptism by submitting to this rite. In this act he identified himself with his people as their representative and head. As their substitute, he takes upon him their sins, numbering himself with the transgressors, taking the steps the sinner is required to take, and doing the work the sinner must do. His life of suffering and patient endurance after his baptism was an example to converted sinners of what they should endure and patiently suffer in consequence of their transgressions and sins. John finally yielded to the request of Christ, notwithstanding his feelings of unworthiness to baptize him, and performed the service. He led the Saviour of the world down into the River Jordan in the presence of a large concourse of people, and buried him in the water.
AFTER Christ rose up from the water and from the hand of John, he walked to the bank of Jordan, and bowed in the attitude of prayer. The eyes of John were fastened upon Christ with the deepest interest and amazement. His heart was stirred with emotion as he looked upon him thus bowed as a suppliant. Christ’s hands were raised upward, and his gaze seemed to penetrate Heaven. As the believer’s example, his sinless humanity supplicated support and strength from his heavenly Father, as he was about to commence his public labors as the Messiah. Jesus poured out his soul in earnest prayer. A new and important era was opening before him. His former peaceful, quiet life is to here end. He had been happy in a life of industry and toil, while fulfilling the duties devolving on a son. He was an example to those in childhood, youth, and manhood. His deportment showed that he felt the importance and solemnity of the hour. He knew that trials, toils, conflicts, sufferings, and death were in the path his feet had entered. He felt the weight of the responsibilities he must bear. He was about to engage in new and arduous duties. A sense of the sinfulness of men, and the hardness of their hearts, which separated them from God, convinced him that but few would discern his merciful mission, and accept the salvation he came from Heaven to bring them.
NEVER before had angels listened to such a prayer as Christ offered at his baptism, and they were solicitous to be the bearers of the message from the Father to his Son. But, no; direct from the Father issues the light of his glory. The heavens were opened, and beams of glory rested upon the Son of God, and assumed the form of a dove, in appearance like burnished gold. The dove-like form was emblematical of the meekness and gentleness of Christ. While the people stood spell-bound with amazement, their eyes fastened upon Christ, from the opening heavens came these words: “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” The words of confirmation that Christ is the Son of God were given to inspire faith in those who witnessed the scene, and to sustain the Son of God in his arduous work. Notwithstanding the Son of God was clothed with humanity, yet Jehovah, with his own voice, assures him of his sonship with the Eternal. In this manifestation to his Son, God accepts humanity as exalted through the excellence of his beloved Son.
As John had now witnessed the heavenly dove resting upon Jesus, which was the promised token of the Messiah, he stretched forth his hand, and with assurance proclaimed before the multitude, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world!” From this time John had no doubt in regard to Jesus being the true Messiah.—Mrs. E. G. White, in Great Controversy, Vol. 2.
THE BAPTISM OF CHRIST.
By Ellet Joseph Waggoner
WE do not by this mean that baptism which was taught or administered by Christ, as in the case of John, but that which he received at the hands of John in Jordan. On this also there has been much conjecture. It is mostly supposed to have been merely for an example. Jesus truly was our example; but we think his baptism has a significance beyond that of mere example.
Christ was not our example merely, but he came into the world to be our substitute and our sacrifice. They who deny (as some do) the substitutionary or vicarious nature of the work of Christ, set aside the efficiency of his work unto our salvation. His suffering for us was not altogether on the cross; his whole life was one of trial, of temptation, and of affliction. In the garden his soul was exceedingly sorrowful, even unto death; but an angel strengthened him that he might not then sink under the heavy burden of suffering. When Paul said, “He hath made him to be sin for us,” he evidently meant he was made to occupy our position, or be a partaker of our condition. And again when he said, “He was made under the law,” he must have meant that he was subjected to our condemnation; the apostle’s argument on the need and work of justification shows that this expression—under the law—signifies under its condemnation. He was made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law. Not under obligation to the law, as some vainly urge, for that condition does not call for redemption. Adam was subject to the law before he fell, but not a subject for redemption. It is a sinful condition, or being condemned by the law, which calls for redemption. It is evident that Christ was “made under the law” in this sense: as “the wages of sin is death,” he was “made sin for us,” to fall under death for our sakes. And this condition must have dated from his taking upon him the nature or “seed of Abraham.” And if he died because our sins were upon him (Isa. 53), and suffered under temptations and sorrows in our behalf and on our account, we must conclude that he was baptized for the same reason. And this is yet more evident when we consider that John’s baptism was “the baptism of repentance for the remission of sin.” Mark 1:4. There could be nothing appropriate to this purpose in his being baptized for himself; for he had no sins to confess, and needed no repentance. But inasmuch as the Lord “laid upon him the iniquity of us all,” it seemed suitable that he should be baptized, even as sinful men, for whom he stood, should be baptized.—J. H. Waggoner, in Christian Baptism.
Weighed in the Balances
By Alfred Lee
"Tekel. Thou art weighed in the balances, and found wanting." In what balance? In the balance of God’s pure and perfect law—that law which requires unreserved obedience and unspotted holiness. For all who are not sheltered in Christ Jesus as the Lord their righteousness, must be weighed, not in the balances of partial self-complacency or human judgment, but in the scales of divine justice. And who will not be found wanting there? "By the deeds of the law shall no flesh be justified."—Rev. Alfred Lee.
ONE WAY TO LOOK AT IT.
By Sidney Dayre
MRS. BARNES, with her friend Mrs. Preston, stood before a counter doing some morning shopping.
“I have a consignment of muslin underwear that I would like to show you,” said the proprietor. “They are much finer and cheaper than anything I have had heretofore.”
The ladies exclaimed as box after box was opened before them.
“How pretty, and how well made!” said Mrs. Barnes.
“Good work and good material,” said Mrs. Preston, examining with critical eyes.
“And the embroidery is so fine and put on so tastefully,” said her friend.
“They are much cheaper than you could get them by buying the material and having them made,” said the proprietor, and his customers fully agreed with him.
“How is it possible to sell them so cheap, and make any profit?” asked Mrs. Barnes.
“Well, you see,” said the gentleman, “the muslin is bought from the mills and the embroidery from the factories, by the million yards. The cutting is done by machines which cut thousands at one movement. And the sewing machines which make up the garments are run by water or steam power.”
“Still,” said Mrs. Preston, “there must be a good deal of human power expended on the putting together, the guiding of these dainty tucks and ruffles. I wonder,” looking thoughtfully at one of the pretty garments, “how many backs and eyes have ached over these.”
“I suppose that’s a consideration which has to enter in,” said the proprietor. “It is very likely that those who have the most work in these things have the least profit.”
“You needn’t, however, try to make me feel solemn over them,” said Mrs. Barnes, laughing. “I’m going to buy them, and take all the comfort I can out of their goodness and cheapness, without having it spoiled by your dismal reflections.”
“It is very likely I shall buy, too,” said Mrs. Preston, with a smile, “as I do not see my way to the correcting of whatever abuse may lie in the matter.”
Mrs. Barnes bought largely; Mrs. Preston took a few articles, remarking, “I must take measurements of my growing girls before I get any more.”
The ladies separated as they left the store, Mrs. Preston taking the street-cars which led into the neighborhood of the house of her washwoman.
She found Mrs. McFinn in the full tide of wringing, boiling, rinsing, and starching, but not too busy to sit down for a short time to enjoy the visit, made half for business, but half, she well knew, for friendliness.
A girl with a slender form, and a face whose paleness and expression of wistful depression appealed strongly to Mrs. Preston’s sympathies, was cowering over the stove as she came in, but soon after left the room.
“Who is she?” asked Mrs. Preston.
“O, it’s a slip av a gurrel that’s got niver the bit av a father or mother, God help the crathur! She come up from the country lasht fall, to take a place in wan o’ thim big shtores. An’ they worked her very hard—she shtandin’ on the two feet of her sometimes till livin’ o’clock o’ nights whin the Christmas thrade was doin’. An’ whin that was over, they give her short notice to quit; an’ she’s been thryin’ to sew since thin. But it’s the shtarvin’ prices they pays for shop work. An’ the poor bit av a thing comes in here to get herself warm, for it’s no fire she has in her own room.”
The steamy air of the room, heavy with the vile odors of soiled linen, together with other odors which belong to crowded living and lack of ventilation, were already making Mrs. Preston long for a breath of the outside air. Mrs. McFinn’s buxom figure seemed to thrive on the familiar atmosphere, but her visitor’s heart ached with the thought of the pale girl, and her mind wandered to her own blooming daughters. How could she bear to have them breathe such air for a moment? Had the mother of this girl, in dying, looked forward with sad foreboding to the possibilities which might await her child?
“Couldn’t she take a place at housework?” she asked—she had small sympathy for the sentiment, whatever it might be, which would keep a person from seeking the comforts of such a situation.
“Well, ma’am, it’s a wake back she’s got, an’ it’s no heavy work she could be doin’.”
Mrs. Preston considered for a moment.
“Tell her to come around to see me,” she said, “and I will give her some sewing.”
“Indeed, ma’am, it’ll be the blessed thing for her. She’s thryin’ with all her might to help somebody belonging to her, an’ it’s my belafe she don’t get a decent bit to ate from wan month’s end to another.”
Mrs. Preston considered again, then asked to see the girl, and engaged her to come to her house and do sewing by the day.
“Have you bought your underwear?” asked Mrs. Barnes of her friend as she stepped in for a morning chat two or three weeks later.
“No, I am hiring it made.”
Mrs. Barnes held up her hands in astonishment.
“Why, Margaret, don’t you know it’s the most extravagant and thriftless thing in the world to hire such work done?”
“Oh, I think not,” said Mrs. Preston, smiling at her friend’s vigorous way of expressing herself. “I am inclined to believe it about the most economical arrangement I have ever made.”
“Then you must be getting it done cheaply, wonderfully so. Now, begging your pardon, Margaret, I have my doubts about its being right to pay these very low prices. Doesn’t it seem a little like grinding the faces of the poor?”
“I hope I shall not do that,” said Mrs. Preston, smiling now at Mrs. Barnes’s virtuous air and words. “I am not putting the work out, but having it done in the house.”
“Margaret! It will cost you a small fortune! It’s bad enough by the piece, but the idea of having plain sewing done by the day! Why, I thought you had very sensible ideas on the subject of economy!”
“Did you?” said Mrs. Preston, a sober look taking the place of the smile. “I chanced to meet with a young girl who stood sorely in need of the comforts of a home, a warm room to work in, and plenty of good, nourishing food, and I have taken so much pleasure in seeing the color and the roundness coming into her cheeks, and the forlorn, discouraged look going out of her eyes, that I feel as though I had made a very good bargain.”
“But it will take her weeks, or months, to do your plain sewing.”
“Probably. And she is nice and quick in her ways about other things; so, if nothing better offers for her, I may decide to keep her all the time.”
“Very nice for people that can afford it,” said Mrs. Barnes. “You see, it is simply adding one more to your family. You are at the expense of her entire support.”
“Yes, and in view of the fact that I do not really need, all the time, exactly such help as she can give, it may look like an extravagance. But I have been thinking more about such things lately, Ruth, and I am not sure that our best economies are those in which we save the most money. To get right at the root of my idea—if I don’t bore you?”
“No; go on. I like to hear you talk.”
“Well, when a man is able to marry and support a family—a decent Christian family, I mean—he is doing a great deal more good in the world than if he lived only to himself, isn’t he?”
“Of course.”
“And if they keep one or more servants who become partakers of the comforts and good influences of the home, it is doing just so much more, isn’t it?”
“Yes.”
“Well, now, it has become impressed upon me that when such a family is blessed with a fair share of prosperity, the best use they can make of it is to extend these benefits a little farther. Suppose, for instance, a friendless girl has a share of the comforts under their roof, doing what lies in her power to earn them? Now, if in giving her the chance of doing so, my sewing costs me a little more than it otherwise might, I am quite willing to let the balance go over to my gifts, feeling sure that the Lord will see that it is counted up fairly.”
“You are right,” said Mrs. Barnes as she took her leave.
She walked home, musing on her friend and her friend’s words and ways: “I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat; I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink; I was a stranger, and ye took me in.’ Yes, yes; she is doing it in the very letter and the spirit.”—Sidney Dayre, in Congregationalist.
The Home Circle.
WORK AND PRAY.
Sow thy seed and never fear,
Never fear, never fear!
Though the prospect may be drear,
Never, never fear!
Falter not through unbelief—
First the blade, and then the leaf;
After that, the ripened sheaf—
Never, never fear.
Labor on through cold and heat,
Labor on, labor on!
Though with weary hands and feet,
Labor, labor on!
Life is brief, the field is wide;
Rest will come at eventide;
Jesus watcheth at thy side,
Labor, labor on!
Still with patient trust and care
Work and pray, work and pray!
Let the Master tell thee where,
Work, and trust, and pray!
He will guide thee with his eye;
Not a seed of truth can die;
Sure of harvest by and by,
Work, oh, work to-day!
—Selected.
THE OLDEST TIN MINE.
Dolcoath is the name by which the oldest and deepest tin mine in the world is known. It is situated at Camborne, in the west of Cornwall. In the early part of the present century it was noted for its enormous production of copper ore, the sales of this mineral having amounted to about £5,000,000. It now produces tin only. In the interval between copper and tin, about the years 1853–55, a period in the sinking when the two minerals were so blended that they could not be separated so as to make them marketable, the whole mine could have been purchased for £3,000. The market value of the same to-day is £470,000 (4,700 shares at £100 each); so that each sum of £50 invested in it thirty years ago is now worth £7,000 and receives dividends every twelve weeks amounting to about £500 a year.—Sel.
COURT LIFE IN RUSSIA:
A RUSSIAN officer, familiar with the subject, draws in Life (London) a lurid picture of the inner life of the Russian Court. Despite the unceasing vigilance of the police, to which the Czar certainly owed his life the other day, no such thing as ordinary tranquility or comfort is known in the imperial household. No one is trusted, for the Nihilists have their adherents everywhere, even in the royal kitchen; no food can be eaten that is not previously tested; no room can be occupied, even for an hour at a time, without special precaution being taken against attack by explosives or otherwise. It is never known in what bedroom the Czar will sleep. Frequently, after being an hour in one bedroom he changes to another, and he generally sleeps in a part of the palace, an attic, or even a cellar, where he is least likely to be looked for.
It might be thought that the emperor's driving in the open street was a proof of his courage, but this is not so. The danger there is no greater than it is in his study, guarded though he be in-doors as well as out-of-doors by triple rows of bayonets. Nihilism is, in fact, a specter that haunts the emperor night and day. That life should be worth living at such a price is hardly conceivable to the ordinary mind. That the Czar should, in such circumstances, be able to take an intelligent view of either foreign or domestic politics is out of the question.—Interior.
BIRDS KILLED BY HARSHNESS.
THE Boston Journal says it is well known that birds are very sensitive to tones of the voice, and are terrified at any loud, angry words. A lady who wished to make a bobolink stop singing at last scolded it in a loud voice and then took up a scarf and shook it in rebuke at the caged bird. In a moment the bird was still, and a short time after made a fluttering about the cage. Its owner turned to the bird and was shocked to see it fall dead. Unkind words had killed it. We know of two cases similar to this. In one case a canary-bird and in the other a mocking-bird died within five minutes after being spoken to in a violent, angry tone.—Our Dumb Animals.
Health and Temperance.
CLEAN OUT YOUR CELLARS.
TAKE one day down cellar to throw out and carry away all dirt, rotten wood, decaying vegetables, and other accumulations that have gathered there; brush down the cobwebs, and with a bucket of lime give the ceiling a good coating of whitewash. No matter if you don't understand the business; no matter if you have not got a whitewash brush; take an old broom that the good wife has worn out and spread it on thick and strong. It will sweeten up the air in the cellar, the parlor, and the bed-chambers (if your cellar is like ordinary farmhouse cellars), and it may save your family from the affliction of fevers, diphtheria, and doctors.—Boston Journal.
SHUN THE APPEARANCE OF EVIL.
An old Chinese proverb says, "Do not stop in a cucumber field to tie the shoe." The meaning is very plain. Someone will be likely to fancy that you are stealing fruit. Always remember the injunction, "Abstain from all appearance of evil." Do not stop under the saloon porch to rest yourself, however shady the trees may be, or however inviting the chairs. Someone may fancy you are a common lounger there, and so your good name be tarnished. Don't go to a liquor saloon to get a glass of lemonade, however refreshing it may seem to you. Rather buy your lemons and prepare the cooling beverage at home, where others may share it with you, probably at no greater expense than your single glass would cost you. Somebody seeing you drinking at the bar, will be sure to tell the story and will not be particular to state that you were drinking only lemonade. Then, too, if you are careless about the appearance of evil, you will soon grow equally careless about the evil itself.—Selected.
MODERATE DRINKING.
By John B. Gough
I WISH to relate one little incident to illustrate my point. At a meeting in a large town in Pennsylvania, at the close of a lecture, a gentleman rose and was announced as Judge So-and-so, judge of the Quarter Sessions. He said: "Ladies and gentlemen, before the audience is dismissed I wish to say a few words in defense of myself and the class I represent. Now it is very hard to have it publicly stated that I set a bad example. Now I am a moderate drinker; everybody knows me. I take it at home, I take it abroad. I am a moderate drinker—a respectable moderate drinker. Who dare say anything against me? Who ever saw me the worse for drink? If young men follow my example, they would be as I am, respectable and respected. I challenge the country to say whether my example is a bad one. Let young men follow my example and they will be as I am."
A man in the audience cried out, "Give it to him, old man, give it to him. Put a header on him." Someone said, "Put the man out;" and a gentleman said, "No, let the man remain; he is the only son of the judge—his only son tried to follow his example, and there is the result. He is so drunk that he would disturb a respectable meeting." And I tell you, every man from the beginning who has become a drunkard has become so by trying to be a moderate drinker and failing.
STARCH FOR BRUISES.
Too many medicines named in the "family column" for the emergency use are articles which are not commonly on hand in the family stock. There is nothing far-fetched, however, in starch, as most households always have a little of it in store. A writer in the Journal of Chemistry says:—
"Take a little starch or arrow-root, and merely moisten it with cold water, and lay it on the injured part. This must be done immediately, so as to prevent the action of the air upon the skin. However, it may be applied some hours afterwards with good effects.
"I learned this when a resident of France. It may already be known here, but I have met with none among my acquaintances who seem to have heard of it.
"I always make use of the above remedy when my children meet with an accident; there is nothing unpleasant in its use, and it keeps down swelling, and cleanses and facilitates the healing of scratches when the little ones fall on the gravel in the garden, or get other little hurts."
ABOUT INDIGO.
INDIGO comes from a plant which grows in Asia, Africa, and South America. The plant is not exactly alike in these different countries, but it is everywhere very pretty, with long, slender green leaves and rose-colored blossoms. The plant grows very tall, often as high as six feet. The coloring matter is found in the leaves, and is made apparent as the leaves dry. When the plant has arrived at the proper stage it is cut off and cast into a sort of vat with other plants, and after being covered with water they are left to ferment. During this fermentation the indigo is deposited in the water. It has to go through several processes before it is ready for market.—Selected.
Wood-Pulp for Paper
Wood-pulp for the manufacture of paper is now made from the wood of the spruce and poplar. When the first paper was made from wood-pulp it was thought that poplar was the best, and perhaps the only wood which could be used, but during the last few years it has been found that spruce wood made better and stronger pulp than poplar.
The Highest Mountain in the World
The highest mountain in the world is said to be Mount Hercules, in New Guinea, which reaches the altitude of 32,786 feet.
OATMEAL.
By John Harvey Kellogg
THE oat is one of the most nutritious of grains, and one of the most easily digested of foods. The baseless prejudice which has been so great an obstacle to its introduction is wholly unaccountable. The querulous Dr. Johnson, in the first edition of his dictionary, gave, as a definition of oat, "A grain used in England to feed horses; in Scotland, men," and from that time until the present the idea that the oat is fit only for "horse diet," has prevented thousands from using this excellent grain. All sorts of ridiculous arguments have been brought against its use. One charges it with being the cause of the prevalence of water brash among the Scotch, who make "brose" a staple article of diet; whereas the real cause of the water brash is the use of coarse oatmeal in an uncooked state, the brose consisting of coarse oatmeal stirred up with hot water and eaten at once.
Another attributes to the Scotchman's oaten cakes that state of cuticle which led a benevolent nobleman to set up scratching-posts in the streets of Edinburgh for the benefit of his countrymen, each user of which pronounced the benediction, "God bless the Duke of Argyle." It is quite possible that the same practice of consuming the oat in a raw state, which occasioned chronic dyspepsia, may, through disturbance of the general nutritive processes, have produced some form of skin disease, but this must be attributed not to the oatmeal per se, but to the unhealthful method of taking it.
For the summer months, oatmeal and the various preparations of wheat constitute the very best articles of food for general use. Persons who are accustomed to use flesh meats freely at other seasons of the year should, during hot weather at least, substitute oatmeal for beef and mutton, for a healthful change, if for no humane or æsthetic reason.—Dr. J. H. Kellogg.
Health-Getting
HEALTH-GETTING is a process of development, like the growth of a tree, or the raising of a crop of grain. We must sow the seed today, in right habits of life and a correct regimen; and weeks, months, or years hence, we shall reap the harvest.—Selected.
Health and Busy Men
A MAN too busy to take care of his health is like a mechanic too busy to take care of his tools.
SECULAR.
—Redding, Cal., had an $80,000 fire on the 27th ult.
—Fighting still continues at intervals in Burmah.
—The national debt of Great Britain is $3,750,000,000, or over $100 per capita.
—Twenty-five members of the German Reichstag are more than seventy years of age.
—June 30, the Italian Chamber of Deputies granted a military credit of 20,000,000 lire ($4,000,000).
—A fire in Marshfield, Wis., one day last week, destroyed property to the amount of over $3,000,000.
—The experiment of mobilizing the French army will, if carried out, cost 8,000,000 francs ($1,600,000).
—A riot occurred at Oak Ridge, La., June 27, and resulted in the killing of seven men, one white and six colored.
—The United States Supreme Court is about three years behind with its docket, and loses at a rate of 300 cases a year.
—The recent report of the Philadelphia Grand Jury recommends the establishment of the whipping-post for wife-beaters.
—Forest fires have recently done considerable damage in the Santa Cruz Mountains, on the line of the South Pacific Coast Railroad.
—The reduction of the public debt for June was $16,450,000. The total national debt is now but little more than $1,700,771,000.
—There are still several cases of yellow fever at Key West, Fla. So far there have been nearly fifty cases and about a score of deaths.
—Almost the entire business portion of the town of Pullman, W. T., was destroyed by fire June 26. Pullman is a village of about 500 inhabitants.
—On the 24th ult. a fire broke out at some point below the 1,300-foot level in the Gould & Curry mine, Virginia, Nevada, and fifteen men lost their lives.
—Hon. James G. Blaine is receiving more marked attentions in England than have ever been paid to any American in that country, with the exception of General Grant.
—Only eight lives are positively known to have been lost in the recent forest fires in Michigan, but the destruction of property was very great, amounting to $7,000,000.
—A strike in Rochester, New York, the other day culminated in a riot in which several men, two of them being police officers, were seriously injured. One of them fatally.
—English engineers are fortifying Herat. The aim of the English authorities is said to be to enable a garrison of ten thousand men to withstand a siege of the place for ninety days.
—The explosion of some fireworks in the basement of a New York business house on the 2d inst., started a fire which caused the destruction of $140,000 worth of property and the loss of two lives.
—The steamer Umbria recently crossed the Atlantic from Liverpool to New York at an average speed of nearly twenty miles per hour. The voyage was made in six days, four hours, and twelve minutes, the fastest time on record.
—There are in San Francisco 78,246 children of school age, between the ages of five and seventeen; of these 20,923 are the children of native parents, 16,757 of parents one of whom is foreign; 56,218 of foreign parentage, and 1,197 foreign born.
—The Poore homestead at Indian Hill, Mass., where the late Maj. Ben. Perley Poore was born in 1820, has been owned by his ancestors since 1650. The original deed signed by the Indians is said to be still in possession of the Poore family.
—Only a few days since a workman in Cuba, as a precaution against the small-pox, built a coal fire before retiring for the night, and placed thereon several leaves of tobacco, the fumes of which he had been told furnished a safeguard against the disease. The next morning the man, his wife, and eight children were dead.
—Jake Sharp, the man who furnished the funds used in corrupting the New York aldermen, has been found guilty of bribery, and will be sentenced on the 13th inst. The maximum penalty for the crime of which Sharp has been found guilty is ten years' imprisonment and $5,000 fine. Sharp is an old man and is in very delicate health.
—The bill of the Chicago Detective Agency for services in securing evidence against some of the corrupt officials of that city amounts to $23,000, charges being made at the rate of $25, $40, and $50 per day each for the men employed in the work. The remark is frequently made that "it takes a thief to catch a thief," and it would seem that this is literally true.
—Twenty-one persons were tried at St. Petersburg between the 7th and 16th of June on a charge of complicity in several murders and dynamite outrages. Three of the prisoners were acquitted. All the others were sentenced to death. The death sentences were, however, commuted in the cases of two prisoners to exile in Siberia, and in those of the others to imprisonment and hard labor.
—The recent Indian "war" in Arizona has been brought to a close by the capture of the few renigades that left the reservation. Only two citizens were killed, but little stock stolen, and no property destroyed. Speaking of this trouble, a Los Angeles paper says that there seems very little doubt that every murder committed by Apaches has been caused by rum sold by white scoundrels.
—It is stated that the financial condition of the Sandwich Islands is such that there is not the slightest hope of the Government ever again being independent of money-holders. The consequence will be trouble, which must come sooner or later, involving the interest of Americans, Englishmen, and Germans. A revolution seems not improbable. King Kalakaua never goes out without a body-guard. Everything is unsettled, and trade at a stand-still in consequence. It is understood that should a protectorate become necessary our Government will insist that only American authority shall be recognized in the Hawaiian Kingdom.
—Governor Bodwell, of Maine, has sent communications to the attorney-general of the State and to every county attorney in the State, calling attention to the fact that a conspiracy exists to evade the Prohibitory Liquor Law by an unjustifiable interpretation of the United States revenue regulations regarding the sale of liquor in imported packages, and calling upon them to enforce the State law to the fullest extent.
News and Notes.
By Editor
RELIGIOUS.
—Cardinal Gibbons is to revive the Catholic propaganda among the colored people of the South.
—Clarksburg is said to be the only town in Massachusetts that has no house for religious worship.
—There are in our own country somewhat more than 100,000 Sunday-schools, with an enrollment of 8,500,000 scholars.
—Bishop Potter's scheme to build a great cathedral in New York, costing at least $6,000,000, is likely to fail from lack of means.
—The most "prominent and pressing" topic before the recent General Convention of the Congregational ministers of Vermont, was the problem of State evangelization."
—The Congregationalist suggests that the following would be an appropriate name for some churches: "The Society for the Promotion of Picnics, Progressive Euchre Parties, and Theatrical Entertainments."
—At the city preachers' meeting of the M. E. Church, in Washington, D. C., a request was made that the camp-meeting this year be not appointed so as to include a Sunday, on account of the desecration of the day which the camp-meetings usually induce. This hardly looks as though the church is stronger than the world.
—A conclave of rabbis of the Jewish Church is to be held in Pittsburg, Penn., beginning July 8. It is expected that there will be not less than 250 delegates present, representing every State in the Union. The principal work of the convention will be to reconcile all existing differences between Jewish congregations throughout the United States.
—The Missionary Herald says: "A singular illustration of the changes which are taking place in India is the fact that the firm of Cook & Sons, of London, well known to all travelers, has undertaken to arrange for and personally conduct the usual annual pilgrimage of Mohammedans in India to Mecca. That the arrangements of this caravan of pilgrims are intrusted to regular English traveling agents, like any party of excursionists, is a significant fact not without a ludicrous side. It is supposed that the Government, which has annually paid some $10,000 for this pilgrimage to Mecca, will save a good deal of money by this new plan and will also avoid much trouble and commotion."
—Dr. McGlynn, the rebellious New York priest, is still attracting a fair share of public attention. Some days since he made the statement that the Vatican was anxious to have a representative accredited to the United States. This, however, is denied by Cardinal Gibbons, who authorized this explicit statement: "First, the Holy See has, up to this moment, expressed no intention of sending a nuncio to this country; and, second, the Holy See does not even entertain such an intention." McGlynn characterizes this denial as "a carefully worded evasion," and says: "I am morally certain that Cardinal Gibbons is as well aware as I am of the facts upon which my statement was based, and I further assert that these facts justify my statement."
Appointments.
By Editor
HUMBOLDT COUNTY CAMP-MEETING.
This meeting will be held at Eureka, Humboldt County, commencing Thursday evening, August 11, and closing Monday morning, August 22. We hope to see a full attendance of all our people in the county, and as many of their friends as they can induce to come with them. Those wishing to rent tents, or those who may have tents of their own to pitch upon the ground, are requested to report immediately to J. N. Loughborough, Pacific Press, Oakland, Cal. Give the size of your tents. The price for rent is the same as last year: 10x12, $4.00; 12x16, $6.00.
The Conference Committee take the liberty to appoint as Camp-meeting Committee for Humboldt meeting, G. D. Hager, Elder N. C. McClure, and G. H. Gibson.
CAL. CONF. COMMITTEE.
OAKLAND.—House of worship, southeast corner of Jefferson and Thirteenth Streets. Sabbath-School every Sabbath at 9:30 A. M. Preaching at 11. Prayer and missionary meeting every Tuesday evening at 7:15. Seats free.
EAST PORTLAND (Or.)—House of worship on G Street, between Tenth and Eleventh. Sabbath-school every Sabbath (Saturday), followed by services. Preaching or Bible-reading Sunday evening. Prayer-meeting Wednesday evening. The public cordially invited.
SAN FRANCISCO.—House of worship, 914 Laguna Street, between McAllister and Tyler. Sabbath-school every Sabbath at 9:45, and preaching at 11 A. M.; also preaching every Sunday evening at 7:30. Sabbath-school classes in the English, German, and Scandinavian languages. Prayer and missionary meeting every Wednesday evening at 7:15.