HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Exeter Times, 1894-11-22, Page 2AGM IN BROOKLYN'
W. TALMAGE RINDS LESSONS IN
THE JOY OF COMING HOME.
Of All Vforde thellangliage None Con-
veys So Many Sweet Suggestions as the
Word Home -foys of Christians and
Angels Over the convert,
BRoOKLY1c, Nov. 11 ,---Rev. Dr. Talmage,
lyjng ooncludea his round the world tour,
iiite selected. as the subject for to -day's dia-
olosure through the press, 0 Home Again,"
am text ohosen. being Luke xv., 23, "Bring
littler the fatted °elf and kill it."
In all ages of the world it has been Gus.
ternary to celebrate joyful event e by
festivity -the signing of treaties, the
proclamation of pesos, the Christrnate the
marriage. However much on other days
the year our table may have stinted
supply, Thanksgiving day there must be
eernething bounteous, and all the comfort.
4ble homes of Christendom have at some
time celebrated joyful events by banquet
and festivity.
Something has happened in the old home.
stead greater than anything that has ever
iaappened before. A favorite son, whom
She world supposed would become a vaga-
bond and outlaw for ever, has got tired of
Sightseeing and has returned to hie father's
house. The world said he never would
come baok. Tbe old man ewer said his
son would come. ,He had been lookmg for
hint day after day and year after year. Be
knew he would :some batik. Now, having
returned to his father's house, the father
proclaims celebration. There is a oalf in
the paddock that has been kept up and
fed to ntmoot capaoity, so as to be ready
for some occasion of joy that might come
along.
Ah, there never will be a grander day on
the old homestead than this day. Let the
butchers do their work and the housekeep-
ers bring in to the table the smoking meat
The musicians will take their places, and
the gay groups will move up and down the
floor. All the friehde and neighbors are
gathered in, and extra supply is sent out
to the table of the servants. The father
presides at the table and says grace and.
thanks God that his long absent boy is
home again. Oh, how they miseed him!
How glad they are to have him back 1 One
brother indeed stands panting at the back
door and says: "This is a great ado about
nothing. This bad boy should have been.
chastened instead of greeted. Veal is too
good for him !" But the father says,
"nothing is too good; nothing is good
enough." There sits the young man, glad
at the hearty reception, but a shadow ot
sorrow flitting across his brow at the re-
membrance of the*tronble he had seen. All
ready now. Let the covers lift. Music.
lie was dead, and he is alive again ! He
was lost, and he is found! By such bold
whitat you ere indulging-joye O thie
world--anto the repturee ef the goepol, The
world cannot satisfy yeu, you have fouled
ene--Alezancler lensong for other world e to
conquee, and yet &owned in his Own beetle,
Byron whipped by disquietudes arou4 the
world. Voltaire oursing his own gold while
all the streeto ofParis were applauding him,
Henry II consuming with hatred spinet
Poor Themaet Becket -all illustrations of
the fact that thia world oannob makes man
happy. The very mem who poleoned the
pommel of the saddle on which Queen
Elizebeth rode shouted in the street, "God
save the queen 1" One moment the werld
applauda, and the next moment the world
anuthemetizes, Oh, come over into this
greater joy, this sublime solaom this magni-
ficent beatitude I
But Inotioe that when the prodigal came
there was the father's joy, Be did not
greet him with any forms' "how do you
do I" Be did not oome out and say: "You
are unfit to enter, elo out and wash in the
trough by the well, and then you can
come in. We bave had enough trouble
with you,"
Ah, no When the proprietor of that
estate proclaimed festival, ib was an out-
burst or a father's love and a father's joy.
God is your fateer. I have not much sym-
pathy with that desoription of God 1 looms -
times hear, as though he were a Turkish
sultan -hard and unsympathetic and lis-
tening not to the or of his subjects.
A. man told me he'saw in one of the east-
ern lands a king riding along, and. two
men were in altercation, and one charged
the other with having eaten his rice, And
the king said, "Then slay the man and by
post mortem examination find whether he
has eaten the rice." And he was stein.
Ah, the cruelty of a soene like that 1 Our
God is not a Sulban, not a despot, but a
father -kind, loving, forgiving -and he
makes all heaven ring again when a prod-
igal comes back. "I have no pleasure,"
he says, "in the death of him that :Beth."
If a man does not get to heaven it 18because he will not go there. No difference
the color, no difference the history, no
difference the antecedents, no difference
the surroundings, no difference the sin.
When the white horses of Christ's victory
are brought out to celebrate the eternal
triumph, you may ride one of them, and as
God is greater than all his joy is greater,
and when a soul comes back there is in his
heart the surgingrof an infinite ocean of
gladness and to express that gladness it
takes all!the rivers of pleasure, and all the
thrones of pomp, and all the ages of eter-
nity. It is a joy deeper than all depth
and higher than all height, and wilier than
all width, and vaster than all immensity.
It overtops, it undergirds, it outweighs all
the united aplendor and joy of theuniverse.
Who oan tell what God's joy is?
You remember reading the story of a
king who on some great day of .festiviby
scattered silver and gold among the people,
who sent valuable presents to his courtiers,
but methinks when a soul comes back
God is so glad that he flings out new worlds
into space, kindles up new suns and rolls
arciong the white robed anthems of the
red.eemed a greater hallelujah, while. with
a voice that reverberates among the moun-
tains of frankincense and is echoed back
from the everlasting gates he cries, "This,
my son, was dead and is alive again 1"
imagery does the Bible set forth the merry-
making when a epul comes home to God.
First of all, there is the new convert's
joy. It is no tame thing to become a Chris-
tian. The most tremendous moment in a
man's life is when he surrenders himself
to God. The grandest time on a father's
homestead is when the boy comes back.
Among the great throttg- who in the par -
tors of my chureh professed Ohrist one
night was a young man, who next morning
rang my doorbell and said: "Sir, I cannot
oontaimmyself with the joy I feel. .1 came
here this morning to express it. I have
found more joy in five minutes in serving
God than in all the years :Amy prodigality,
and I come to say so."
You have seen perhaps a man running for
his physical liberty and the officers of the
law after him, and you saw him escape, or
afterward fon heard the judge had pardon-
ed him, and how great, was the glee of that
rescued man ! But it is a very tame thing
that compared. with the running of one's
everlasting life, the terrors of the law alter
him and Onrist coining in to pardon and
bleu and rescue and save. You remember
John Bunyan, in his great story, tells how
the pilgrim put his fingers in his ears and
ran, trying, Life, life, eternal life!" A
poor car delver, after heving had to strug-
gle to support his family for years, sudden-
ly was informed that a large inheritance
was his, and there was joy amounting to
bewilderment, but that is a small thing
compared with the experience of one when
he has put in his bands the title deeds to
the joys, the raptures the splendors of
heaven, and he can tray say, Its man -
dons are mine ; its temples are mine ; its
songs are mine; its God is mine 1"
Oh, it is no tame thing to become a
Christian. It is a merrymaking. Ibis the
killing of a fatted calf, Ib is jubilee. You
know the Bible never compared it to a
funerabbut always compares it to something
bright. It is more apt to be compared to
a banquet than anything else. it is com-
pared in the Bible to the water -bright,
flashing water -to the morning, roseate,
fire worked, mountain transfigured Morn-
ang. I wish I could to -day take all the
Bible expressions about pardon and pease
and life and comfort and. hope and heaven,
and twist them into one garland and put it
on the brow of the humblest child of God
in all this land and cry; " Wear it, wear
it forever; son of God, daughter of the Lord
God Almighty 1 Oh, the joy of the new
convert Oh, the gladness of the Ohriatian
service 1"
You have seen sometimes a man in a
religious assembly get up and give his ex-
perience. Well, Paul gave his experience.
Be rose in the presence of two churches -
the church on earth and the churoh in
heaven -and he said "Now, this is my
experiences; Sorrowful, yet always rejoic-
ing; poor 1 yet making man rich; having
nothing, yet possessing all thingsr" If all
the people who read this sermon knew the
joys of the Chrisbiart religion, they week'
all pass over into the kingdom of God the
nextenoment When Daniel Sandal -rush was
dying of cholera, his attendant said, "Have
you much pain ?" "Oh," he replied, "since
I found the Lord I have never had any pain
except sin." Then they said to him,
"Would you like to serid a meesage to yout
friends?" "Yee, I would. Tell them that
only buit night the love of Jesus came rush-
ing hate my soul like the surges of the sea,
and I had to my celb 'Stop% Lord. It is
enough! Stop, Lord -enough !" Oh, the
joys ot this Christian religion 1
Zust patio Over trom timed tate° joys in
At the opening of the exposition in New
Orleans I saw a Mexican flutist, and. he
played the solo, and then atterwards the
eight or ten bands of music, accompanied
by the great organ came in. But the
sound of that one flute as compared with
all the orcbestra was greater than all the
combined joy of the universe when com-
pared with the resounding heart of Al-
mighty God.
I notie.e also that when a prodigal comes
home there is the joy of the ministers of
reliatom Oh it is a grand thing to preach
this gospel! I know there has been a great
lea' said about the trials and the hard-
ships of the Christian ministry. I wish
somebody would write a good rousing book
about the joys of the Christian ministry.
Since I entered the profession I have seen
more of the goodness of God that I will
be able to celebrate in all eternity. I know
some boast about their equilibrium, and
they do not rise into enthusiasm, and they
do not break down with emotion. But I
confess to you plainly that when I see a
man coming to God and giving up his
sin I feel in body, mind and soul a trans.
port.
When I see a man who is bound hand and
foot in evil habit emancipeted, I rejoice
over it as though it were my own winanci-
pation. When in our communion service
melt throngs of young and old stood up at
the altars, and in the presence of heaven
and earth and hell attested their allegiance
to Jesus Christ, I felt a joy something akin
to that which the apostle describes when
he says: "Whether in the body I cannot
tell, or out of the body I cannot tell. God
knoweth."
Have not ministers a right to rejoice
when a prodigal comes home? They blew
the trumpet, and ought they not to be glad
of the gathering of the host? They point-
ed to the full supply, and ought they nob
to rejoice when souls pent as the hart for
the water brooks? They oame forth, say.
ing, things are now ready." Ought
theynot to rejoice when the prodigal sits
down at the banquet?
Life insurance men tells you that
ministers of religion, as a class, live longer
than any other. It is confirmed by the
statistics of all those who calculate upon
human longevity. Why is ib? There is
more draft upon tbe nervous system than in
any other profession, and their toil is more
exhausting. I have seen ministers kept ou
miserable stipends by parsimonious congre-
gations, who wondered at the dullness of
the sermons, when the men of God were
perplexed almost to death by questions of
livelihood and had not enough nutritious
foodto keep any fire in their temperament.
No fuel, no fire. I have sometimes seen
the inoide of the life of many of the Ameri-
can clergymen -never accepting their hos.
pitality, because they cannot afford it -but
I have seen them struggle on with salaries
of $500 and $600 a year, the average less
than that, their struggle well depicted by
the western missionary who says in a letter:
"Thank you for your last remittance),
Until it came we had nob any meat in our
house for one year, and all last winter,
although ib was a severe winter, our chil-
dren wore their summer clothes."
And these men of God 1 finchin different
parte of the land struggling against annoy.
maces and exasperations innumerable, some
of them week after week entertaining
agents who have maps to sell and submit-
ting them:selve8 to all styles of annoyance,
and yet withoub oomplaint and cheerful of
soul. How do yeti aecount for the fact
that these life insurance men' tell us that
ministers as a clots live longer than any
others? It le because of the joy of their
work, the joy of the harvest field, the joy
of greeting prochgals home to their Father's
house.
When prodigale come home, just hear
those Christians sing !It. is not a dull 'one
you hear at such theme. just hear those
•
Ero
Ohrietians pray 1 It ie not a stereotyped
supplication we have heard over and over
nate for 20 years'but a putting of the
case in the hands tef God virith an importun-
ate pleading. Mon never pray at great
length indent they have nothiug to say,
and their hearte are hard and oold. All
the prayere in the Bible that were answer.
est were short prayers ; "God be merciful
to me a sinner ; "Lord,.that I may
receive my sighb ;" " Rind, save me or I
perish." The longest prayer, Solomon's
prayer at the dedication of the temple was
less than eight iniautes in lengthawcording
to the ordinary rate of enunciation.
And just hear them pray now that the
prodigals are coming home Juet see them
shake hands 1 No putting forth of the
four tips of the fingers in a formal way,
but s. hearty grasp, where the muscles of
the heart man to clinch the fingers of one
hand around the other band. And then
see those Christian faces, how illumined
they are 1 There was a man of Keith who
was hurled into prisou in time of per.
secution, and one day he got off his shack -
els, and he name and stood. by the prison
door, and when the jailor was opening
the door with one stroke he strut* down
the man who had incarcerated hint Passing
along the streets of London, he wondered
where his family was. He did not dare
to ask lest he should excite suspioion,
but, passing along e. little way from the
prison, he saw a, Keith tankard, a cup that
belonged to the family from generation to
generation -he saw it in a wind.ow, Ilis
family, hoping that some day be would get
clear, oame and lived as neer as they could
to the prison houee, and they set that
Keith tankard in 'the window, hoping he
would see it. lie came along andsaw it,and
the longathsent family were all together
agate. Oh, if you would start for the king-
dom of God to -day. I know you would
meet your friends and teaniliee around the
holy tankard of the HolyCommunion. Oh,
it will be a great communion day when your
whole family its arousal the sacred tank-
ard. One on earth, one in heaven.
At the banquet of Lucullus sat Cicero,
the orator. At the Macedonian festival sat
Philip, the conqueror. At the Grectian
banquet sat Socrates,•the philosopher, but
at our Father's table sib all the returned
prodigals, more than conquerors, Let all
the redeemed of the earth and all the glori-
fied of heaven rise, and with gleaming
chalice drink to the return of a thousand
prodigals, Sing, sing, sing! "Worthy is
the lamb that was slain to receive blessing
and riches a,nd honor and glory and power,
world without end."
14,XBTIEto TIMES
TILE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
INTERNATIONAL LESSON, NOV, 25.
"Opposition to Christ." Hark O. 22-35, -
Golden Text, John if. 11.
--
GENURA.L STATitioNT.
Jesus is now at work in his almond tom
of preaching in Galilee.. He has delivered
to the twelve apostles mei a throng of Bat
-
(mere the Sermon on the .Mount; has healed
the centurion's servant at Capereamn, and
raioed to 'life the Widow's son at Naha
Everywhere the deepest interest has been
awekened,and the crowds that follow Jesus
as he teaohes by the sea, in the synagogue,
or on the hillside were never before so great
as now. The secret dislike of the l'harisees
and Scribes has at last broken out into open
opposition; they have taken their position,
and now openly assert there his mighty
works are wrought by Satan's power and
for an evil purpose. Jesus shows how
absurd is their charge from the very char -
eater of the miracles, which show Satan's
overthrow and the expulsma of his dernons
from their human dwelling places. Then
with deep soleinnity Jesus declares that
the deepesb of all sins is to impute to the
Evil One the work of the Holy Spirie, and
that for this crime there is no forgiveness,
because it hardens the heart against all
good intluenees. The reports of Jesus'
work, perverted by their -channels, come
to the immediate family of Mary,his moth
-
believed in his divine nature, and the heart
of the mother must have been sorely tried
by oontrary opinions. Thinking that per-
haps her son's mind has been overwrought
by his labors, she comes to the place of his
teaching with her family, and sends a meg
-
sage of her desire to see him. The word
is borne through the crowd to the house
where Jesus sits surrounded by his disciples.
He answers the summons by deolaring that
the ties of grace are closer than those of
nature, and his nearest friends are those
who listen to God's word and keep it with
loving obedience.
Romance a a Photographer's
Mistake.
This is a photographer's story: "About
a year ago a young man employed io a rail-
road. office came in arid had his picture
taken. About the same time a beautiful
young woman from an interior town came
n and had hers taken also; both left the
rder desiring me to send them to their
addresses as soon as imished. In the book
my clerk put the initial of the first name
and wrote the sirname in full. It happen-
ed both bad the same last name ; the young
men's name was John H. -and the young
woman's Julia H-. When the pictures
were mailed there was a mistake, the
young man getting the young woman's
pictures and vice versa. Now, oub of this
incident quite a love affair has grown, the
young peoplehaving fallen in love with one
another at sight of the pictures. They
oorresponded for several months. Some
time ago the young man bought a solitaire
diamond ring, and now he has ordered his
wedding suit That is what I cell a first-
class romance. 0 The best of it all ie that
the couple are well suited in every respect
and both are of good families."
en account of the orowd. They said. Per.
haps the words were spoken by enemies,
who, through the family, hoped to obtain
eerier:31 of Jesus.
33, 84. Who is my mother ? .Teene sees
the entire purpose at a glance, and. meta
it openly with word': which are surprising,
yet °lastly proelaim his relation not only
to the family of Nazareth, but to all man-
kind. Looked round. Matthew Ode, "Ile
stretched forth his hand upon Hie discip-
les." Behold my mother area my bretheri
Not that Jesus ignored his human relation,
ship; bee that he wane to be more titan
the (son of Mary," even the "Son of man."
The tie that binds Chriet and his dieciplee,
in every age, ia stronger than that between
Jesus and his mother a000rding to the
flesh. (8) Heace, we have no need of the
Virgin's intercession with our Saviour. (9)
We mey be as near to Christ as the dis-
oiples who on that clay sat around him.
35. 'Whosoever shall do. Attachment
to Christ will be shown by doing the will
of his Father. The will of God. God's
law as set forth in Holy. Scripture is the
utterance of his will. Brother. ...aister
... another. All mankind stand in the
same relation to Jesus Christ. Even. Mary
is saved, not because she was his mother,
but because she became his disciple.
FIELD FOR EXPORT.
Australa Offers a Capacious and Varied
!Demand for Our Surplus Illantlfue-
tures.
The prospeots of trade between Canada
and Australia assume anobleer shape now
that the material of our manufactures for
export has been made practically free of
duty. If this change enables us to send
er. His half-brothers have not as. yet 1 abroad large quantities of the product of our
skilled Mon some of it we shall be sure
to send to Australia, which offers a capaci-
ous and varied demand to the countries
which have surplus manufactures to
market. We are now for the &et time on
a footing to compete for a part of that de-
mand. Heretofore the chances of come
menial dealings between this cenintry and
Australia were confined to the few natural
eroduots we did not raise in common.
These presented a small basis for a trans -
Pacific intar-colonialtrade of sufficient magni
tude to warrant a large outlay • on our part
for a submarine cable. Mr. J. S. Larkes
the Canadian 'Commissioner to Australia,
has sketched in outline before some of our
Boards of Trade.
THE MARKET OPENINGS IN AUSTRALIA
that this country is equipped to fill. He
names cotton goods,boots and shoes, gloves,
paper, and farming implements. This list
may now be oonsiderably enlarged. All
classes of hardware, such as nails, bolts
chains, wire, harness fittings, axes, saws
and. other tools, various articles of maehin.
ery, engines, boilers, etc., are imported
by the Australian oolonies, and are on the
free list of most of them. The demand for
machigery outfits for manufacturing plant
will of course be limitei by the fact that
manufactures are not far advanced in the
colones:3, a oircufastanoe on which we cal-
culate for a good demand for our finished
Orders the King to qualify.
King Humbert of Italy owns property
n the little township of Rheme•Notre-
Dame, in the Aosta Valley. As property-
holderhe is entitled to vote for the muni-
cipal officers. The Mayor of the place is
evidently a man who takes his duties very
seriously, for he has addressed a summons
to "Mr. His Majesty Humbert I., King of
Italy, rate -payer of the town," in which
the King is ordered to appear before the
Board of addermen to prove that he is able
to read and write, end, therefore qualified
to vote. A similar summons has reached
the Duke of Aosta. Both have been noti-
fied that, unless they conform to the
regulations, their names will be removed
from the list of voters.
A Woman Recruiting Sergeant.
England has a woman recruiting sergeant.
She is Miss Gould, of London, and she
differs from the usual recruiting sergeant in
that she does not lie in wait fir young
volunteers at public houses and attract them
by the brilliancy of her attire. She has
worked among the poor for many years, and
has lately turned her attention to young
thieves. Having once got hold of them she
never feels safe about them until they have
accepted the Queen's shilling. -
Gets a Move on.
The clam is commonly taken for an exam.
pie of all that is unprogressive, but he is by
no means a stationary creature. Every
man bred at theseaside knows how a clam
Isis upon the sand will utterly disappear by
sinking himself below the surface ; but the
clam also has a forward movement and will
travel thirty feet in the course of a week.
The large muscle of the clam, which helps
to make him indigestible, is his single leg,
and by the aid of this he makes his pro.
gross.
Liable to Insanity.
It was formerly supposed that people of
pale complexion, especially if the hair Was
a pronounced blonde, fine and thin, were
specially liable to mental excitement and
brain disorder. Statistics which have re.
cently been compiled prove this to be
another of the grave errors of the old•titne
"specialist" At the Kirkbridge iEngland)
iwyltim out of a total of 265 patients only
one has red hair, pe nd only three either
light, hair or feet complexion. In the New
York, London and Paris hospitals for the
ineeme the same proportion hold e good.
Exactly why dark-haired persons are more
liable to mental disease than thou: of other
shades of color has not yet been explain.
ed,
Irrevocably Gone,
",I set four pies out on the window sill to
cool," said Mrs. Hunker to her husband,
"and they have all been efoleron
"Then we must dumber them tienoeg the
lost tarto," was the phil000phishel rea!y.
EXPLANATORY AND pRA.CTIOAL NOTES.
Verse 22. Scribes . . from Jerusalem.
Leading members of the order who had
come for the express purpose of passing
judgment upon the claims of Jesus. From
their position their utterances would ems -
seas great weight with the people. Thus
far the attitude of the rulers, though un-
friendly, had not been determined against
Jesus. (1) Everyman must make his own
decision concerning Jesus. He hath Beel-
zebub. According to the Jewish view, the
evil spirits were of different ranks, under
the control of Beelzebub, or Satan. The
name was originally that of an idol among
the Philistines (2 Kings 1. 2). The Scribes
asserted that Jesus, who cast out dames,
was himself possessed by the prince of the
demons. No baser nor more abominable
perversion of good into evil could possibly
be made ; and such a charge in such an
age could not fail to prejudice the minds
of the people against Jesus. Casteth lw
out devils. Not even the worst enemies of
Jesus sunsto undertook deny the fact of his
m
23, He celled them. Desiring to meet
his slanderers face to f ace, he sentfor them to
come to the house where he was abiding,
(2) The Gospel never shrinks from an open
contest with its foes. In parables. That
is, not in set parables; such as in the suc-
ceeding chapter, but teaching by illustra-
tion. Satan cast out Satan. Was it possi-
ble to suppose that one inspired by the
spirit of evil would go shout setting men
free from evil spirits and breaking Satan's
chain? Could anyone preach a Gospel so
pure and uplifting, and yet be the ag,ent of
the wicked one? (3) The true origin of
Clhristianity may be shown still by its in-
fluence over men
24-26. Kingdom be divided. The nation
which spends its strength in civil war must
filially lose its power; so if Satan's kingdom
is fighting itself and working againse its
own interests, it must fall before the king-
dom of God. (4) Notice that Christ, to
whom the invisible worlds are open, recog-
nizes the reality of Satan's kingdom. (5)
Notice also the traits of Satan's kingdom:
1. Unity, 2. Subordination; 3. Opposition
to God. Rath an end. Satan's power
may be great,but his defeat and doom are
certain. (6) Let us rejoice in this assurance
of victory.
27.- A strong man's house. The strong
man is Satan; his house is the human
heart. Spoil his goods. Take possession
and control his property. Except he will
first bind. In other words, Christ's power
to expel Satan and his demons from men's
hearts is a convincing proof that he is
mightier than Satan, and utterly disproves
the charge that he is Satan's subordinate.
The statement is more full in Luke 11. 21,
22. (7) No man unaided by divine power
can transform himself from a sinner into a
saint.
28-30. All ains shall be forgiven. That
is, all sins except the one named in the
succeeding verse. Blasphemies. Insults to
Gud, whether in irreverence, profanity, or
unbelieving sneer and jest. Blaspheme
against the Holy Ghost. From the s con-
nection ib is shown that this means a will-
ful and wanton attributing to Satan's
power the work of the Holy Ghost by
those veho may know and ought to know,
the truth, or "treason by professed mem-
bers of the kingdom of God againot the
spirit of Goa." -L. Abbott. This is some-
thing more than mere obduracy of heart
against the gospel ; more than mere careless
and heated utterances against God, how-
ever presumptuous or even blasphemous.
God's word purposely leaves the awful
crime undefined, that men may not venture
near its borders. Rath never forgiveness.
13oca.use of the very terms of his guilt he
can never meet with convietion, for he
considers the Spirit's work as no better
than Satan's. Eternal damnation. Is
guilty of an eternal sin." (Revised Ver.
sion). Eternal sin, because it can never
be blotted out by forgiveness.
31, 32. There atone then. "There come"
(Revised Version). Mules gospel has a
characteristic -the use of the present tense,
ao if to illustrate the activity of 0hrise's
life. His brethren. Probably the younger
half-brothers of Jesus, children of Joseph
and Mary. Their names are given in
Mark 6,3, Some of them afterwards
became his followers (Acts 1. 14), and one
ofathom an epostle (Gel. 1. 19), is mother.
Though believitig that her Son was divioely
end:need, Mary doubtless Was perplexed by
the reporta concerning iTesue, by the eves
deuces that he was disappointing thapopular
expectation as Meseta, and by the high
authority of the Scribes who were aopposed
to him. Perhaps et this moment she was
a mere tool in the bends of Ohristla enemite,
Standing without. Unable to come near;
ITHE PROWLERS OF PARIS.
THERE'S NOTHING SLOW ABOUT
FRENCH "CROONS."
Clever Tricks In 4,11Kold-11p"--,110w Foot-
pads Pounce lipon Their Victims-
iflCoupleetStddaililiT•trAToin-TheY Travel
t
Frenoh crooks have speoial tricks in rob-
bing people. In many of them they excel.
We are not speakidg of the thefts in which
blood is shed, or 'Which may resalt in the
death of the victim and bring the Authors
of it to the scaffold, but simply of the coinma», petty thefte which do not harm the
viotaisinsasvery numb, It is the method of
these criminals not to be more brutal than
zkeory.
An old offender on being brought before
the judge, who asked him why he had
nearly killed the mason 'whom he had first
robbed, answered "Why, I should have
°rippled that fool if I did not expect that
he would come into my clutches again."
Let us start with the lowest grade and
most inoffensive of ell thieves, called in
French "vol an poivrier" or " thieves of
drunkards," who most of the time have not
eeough money left to hire a room for the
night, and who are stranded on a benoh or
some lonesome place outside of Paris. They
are principally the victims. The false friend
who promises to bring him home, or the
tough waiting for a chance to do mischief,
will only find a few cents, a paokage of to.
baeco or a pipe in his pooket-less than
nothing.
The better prey for them is a working-
man, who has received his monthly pay
and Who has taken too much drink. In
neither ease is any cleverness required to
operform such an act. The only precaution
the thief has to take is to look out that no
policeman or witness is around and then
hehasfh
all stiiemepee:ecessary to pick the
pk
Sometimes, to his great surprise, the
latter will suddenly clutch his wrist and
awake, as by a miraole, and exclaim, with
a funny laugh: "You are caught, my boy;
come on to the station house." That day
he has hid the hard luck to meet a detective,
who,not having iaything else to do,aenused
himself by fishing for small fry.
THE TRIO OF WATCH STEALERS.
If nothing is easier than to rob a drunk.
ard asleep on a bench, it would seem to
everybody that it is absolutely impossible
to take a watch or a pooket-book protected
by a tightly.buttoned coat out of a sober
man's pocket. Nevertheless, this happens
quitts
e jw
often.
I "
/understood that the thieves
who do4work are not beginners, but
are regir pickpockets, and three at
least are required for suocess.
products. But the country has a large
and growing dairy industry, and works
its gold, silver, and copper mines. It
therefore needs refrigerators, separators,
and mining machinery. In Queensland
there is a lame sugar industry
for which plant is required. There are
also lumber mills and grist mills and
railroad for which running stock will be in
demand. New South Wales admits free
many lines of dress goods, cotton goods,
paper, linseed, metal goods, harvest ma-
chinery, tools, locomotive wheels, etc. It
has plenty of coal, and has iron ore, but so
far has not succeeded in building up ad iron
industry. Victoria admits free of duty
nearly all kinds of metal manufactures.
South Australia has on its free list cloth,
leather, bags, boots and shoes, paper, cot-
ton goods, many lines of hardware, iron in
every shape, steel rails, machinery, etc.
Western Australia has only a five per cent.
duty on the chief metal products. Queens.
land offers a good market for machinery in
its saw mills, sugar mills, and refineries.
Tasmania, exempts from duty a long list of
metal manufactures, as does also New Zea-
land. In nearly all these colonies
THEY ILAVE THE NATURAL CONDITIONS
for establishing manufactures. Most
of them have coal and iron, most of them
raise large numbers of cattle and therefore
produoe leather, and their vast herds of
sheep yield a large porportion of the world's
total wool supply. It would seem that
some of the colonies could have the whole
progeny of iron industries to make their
own finished iron and steel, their own loco-
motives, steel rails, and machinery, their
own agricultural implements,their own tools
and hardware. Raising so much leatbor
they might be expected to make their own
boots and shoes, and it would seem the
destiny of &country of sheep walks and wool
to become a country of woollen factories
and to be an exporter of cloth. But the
price of labor appears to be yet too high
for the Australian colonies to enter upon
a career of manufacturing. Nor do they
seem to be contemplating such a depar-
ture in the nea rfuture, as the tendency of
the popular will in all of them appears to
be towards lower tariffs.
A Curious Compound.
A. German chemist is reported to heve
disoovereclea new substance which his the
remarkable and unique property of solidi-
fying when heated and remaining liquid at
temperatures below zero.. It has been
named " oryostase," and is obtained by
mixing together equal parts of phenol,
camphor and saponine, and adding a some --
what smaller proportion of essence of tur
pentine. Certain sabstancea, like the albta
xnens, harden on heating, but this is the
only product that again liquifies on cool-
ing.
A Curious Marriage LaUr.
One of the mese curious customs of Siaria
is that each yearis named after an animal,
and only certain animals are allowed to
intermarry. A pernon born in the year of
the elephant, for instance, cannot marry a
person bort in the year of the tiger; neither
may the lion mate With the lernle. The law
imposes dire penalties upon all who give
false ages, or who represent that they are
gay gazelles when in feet, they aro mit-
chievoire mortosys, and therefore it is it law
which would not be weleoingN in weetern
lauds,
to rob those who ore eat a Match for thOill.
One of the two will seize a mark horn behind,
and, putbing hia arms around his lealyeveill
eneircle him in Beiag vise, and at the
same time handioo.p his logs w41t his own,
The poor fellove will naturally not be able tO
more, and the parther will have all the
time net:emery to rob him. Only this mob,
as well as tee one before, has this dispel.
vantage ; that after the operation is over
the vtotina will be able to call for help, and
even run after the thieves, and perhaps
have them arrested.
The question presented itself then to
find a possible way of plUnCloring 1:140146
without bloodehed, yet te render them ma
oornadous enough for thereto remain several
minutes before being abhe to recover the
use of the voice or legs. This has beim
found and called "le ooup de Pere Francois"
or "old retiree Francis's case."
The croak owning from behind will paws
a handkerohiefaround hie viotines neolt,and,
turning quickly around will make him lose
his balance and fall upon his beak. The hand,
kerchief will stramglethe poor fellow, who
will not be able to utter any sound, After
a half minute he will fall to the ground where
he will lay, and will be taken later ou by the
passer-by for a drunkard. When put on
Itis feet again it will be abooluteiaimpossiale
f or him to give any olew aboat the assault,
neiter will he be able to remember the facie
of his assailant, nor the direction he took.
The victim might even think himself the
prey of an hallucination,if it was not for his
sore throat This latter case would be the
deal of the marauders if it had not this
drawback; it sometimes happens that the "
operation is too long, or the one operated ,
has weak lungs, and will met awaken again
from hie senseless situatiat. This happens
very seldom, though, and, until the crooks
find something better, it will be in general;
favor among the rougher prowlers of Paris.
A quiet and respectable man walks along
the street, his mind deeply absorbed in
thought, or in reading his newspaper, when
all at onoe somebody runs up against him.
His first movement is to turn around and
see who has has done such a thing without
giving the least apology. If the fellow
laughs in his face, or shrugs his shoulder,
or abuses him, anger will overcome him,
and the beginning of a row will be the re-
sult. The preoccupation will be so great
that he does not take care that other people
will rub up against him or push him aside.
It is et this moment that the parbner comes
in with a carefulness belonging specially
to the "John Bull Sons." He will unbut-
ton his overcoat and even the coat, if neces•
sexy, and to take out the pocketbook or
the watch will then be an easy thing for
him.
It will be the one who has unbuttoned the
coat who will take out the watch or pooket
book, but in no care will he keep it. He
will pass it to a third fellow, a quiet wit-
ness ot the game. If the victim finds out
in time that he has been robbed, and an
arrest billows, the pickpocket brought be.
fore the ;judge will vigorously protest his
innocence, and will demand that he be
searched in order to show that hie accuser
is wrong. That is why this kind of a rob-
bery has to be performed by at least three
men.
The question will come to anybody. How
is it that a watch attached to a chain can
lie taken without a heavy pull which would
bring anybody back to his senses? It is
child's play. As soon as the robber has
the watch in hand he will press the bow or
ring of the watch with his -thumb and fore.
finger' and as if by magic the bow will jump
out ofthe watch. You oat try if you like
with your own watcheind you will see how
easy it is. Nearly all the stolen watches
have no rings, and in this way you can
surely detept where they come from.
THE PERVERTED BALANOE.
Having spoken about the pilfering accom-
plished without the use of any violence,
but mostly by dexterity, we will now de.
scribe those which need the use of some
strength, without excluding cleverness.
First of all is the balance or "coup de Is
bascule " which ie used by those obliged to
work alone. With one hand the footpad,
from bhe front, will take hold of the collar
of the passer-by, who surprised by the
suddenness of the idack, will instantly
throw himself backward. At that moment
he will tumble, for the assailant will have
handicapped one leg by tripping up his vim
tim, and this forms the main part of the
a.ot.
The victim, on feeling that he is losing
his balance, will move his arm to try and
get on bis feet again, ineteed of taking hold
of his aseaultee's miller. Meanwhile the
robber, with his other hand left free, will
quickly piek or pull the watch with the
chain this time. This operation finished,
he will knook the victim dowa, or ' throw
him in a corner, and tua away.
Tbe balance needs a great deal of quick.
nese end determination and is a- method
which fails very often, therefore the one
called "the little chair" is preferred. Two
are regaired for this game. The passersby
is seized by the collar,the same ire in the last
'operation, and while his brevet ie tightened
around his neck he fells and sits down on
the knee of the thief. As in the last case,
he will lose his balance, and will aot be
able to use his arms ; his pockets will then
be easily visited. The remedy in these two
times is, as soon as you feel yourself assault-
ed, nob ea fight, bub to kick your aggro:3.
sor's legs.
THE [NESE EMPRESS' SUICIDES
Slapped in tbe race by lier Royal Sponse'
She Takes Wrench Leave or ISbn.,
THE "dOur PANTE."
Another way of robbom-one of the
Most of all, especially when there are
two to extoomplish it. -is the one called
"coup do pante," a method of "doing up"
the victim used principally by rough people
It is quite true that the young Emprees'
of China has committed suicide.
She was rebuked by the Emperor, wht
slapped her face, whereupon she took
poison.
The married life oi the young Emperor
of Chine, has not been a happy one... The
outside world knows little of what goes on,
inside the sacredly guarded Imperial palaoe
at Pekin, but enough has transpired to'
show that the Emperor, who is hot -tempera,
ed and spirited, bitterly resented the
manner in which his consort was thrust'
upon him against his inclinations by the,
imperious and self-willed Empress Dowee
ger. The young Empress, to -Ho -Na -La,'
foundethe five years of marriea life filled .
with discord. and Unhappiness until at last,
after a violent scene with her angry spouse,
she put an end to her earthly troubles by
taking poison.
It was in 1889 that the Emperor married.
He was then a youth of eighteen. The
selection of his bride was governed by the ,
rules laid down in the Book of Rites,and is
a tedious and elaborate prooess. The dyn.
asty is Manchu, and the ;taperer must
marry one of his own race. For a year
before the marriage was celebrated hundreds
of fair competitors,all daughters of Manchu
maadarians of not less than the third rank,
competed for the honor of sharing the
Imperial throne. After several inspections,
in which the beauty, family influence and
intellectual attainments were taken into
grave consideration, the list of aspirants
was reduced to 30.
The Emperor himself was deeply smitten
with the charms of the daughter of a high
Manchu militery officer, and he expressed
his intention to share hie throne with her.
He also selected another fair damsel whose
beauty struck his youthful heart with
admiration for his second wife. But the
old lady whe had so long and so nobody
THE LATE =MESS OP ORIN&
wielded the soeptre during *his minority
had no intention of allowing the young Em-
peror to follow his bent in this matter, and ,
had already decided on a match for him by
which the throne would be shared by one
of her own family. Aocording, the lady
selected was her niece, who was anything
but a beauty, from a Chinese or Manchu
point of view, and after a great many
scenes" and violent altercatimee the EMT,
press Dowager proved her autbdrity h'Y
having the marriage with her 'niece celeb-
rated. But. the unhappy bridegroom,
though he wields sway over a third el the
human race, is as human and obstinate in
affairs of this kind as any other boy of
eighteen ; and hie marriage was the oota-
mehooment of a 'hitter strife between hini.
self and the old lady who had so kindly
looked after his inatrimohial welfare. He
neve • got over his disappointment, and
ever afterward regarded both the Empress
Consort and hiereLnperial aunt wibh an
antipathy which daily grow stronger.
Theetinhappy young Empress was at the
time of her marriage only thirteen yea:mold.
She was the daughter of Generel
Kuei-
haiang, younger brother of the Empress
Dowager. A marriage initiated uhder such
unhappy ample:Is couel scarcely prove sat-
isfactory in any respect, and the past film
years have bhp filled with quarrels be.
tween the Imperial eouple. Now the end of
it has come. The girl Empress, oompletly
broken in spirit by the humiliation to which
she found herself eonstemtly subjected, has
chosen to face death rather then try to
bear the burden of her unheryineso any
longer.
One of the curiosities of Brazil fa a tree
whoee wood and barkareontain so much
ailiea that they are used by potter% Both
wood ancl bark are burned in equal proper -
times with °ley, proatioing a Very superior
Ware. The tree grows to a heighth of 100
feet, but does not exceed a foot in diameter.
The fresh bark outs like seagleteno, and
when dried le brittle and harm