- !
ThekBiblical Recorder.
The .Biblical Recorder.
PUBLISHED EVERT WEDNESDAY !
ADVBRTIpIKb RATB8.
EDWARDaBROU(iUTO'& CO.,
RALEIGH, N. C. - , - -
"rIcc; tJorner Hargelt and Salisbury St$ .
i ' Spaoe. - ltitne 1 m. 3 mo. 6 mo. 1! l ip, :
linch...... $1 00 $2.50 7 50 $14 00 ii.5 00 ,
3 inches.... 2 00 5 00 14 OO 85 OOf- - Oft- i '
S inches.... S 00 7 50 20 00 SO 00 00 I !
4 inches.... 4 00 10 00 25 00 40 OC ,) 00
Quartered. 6 00 14 00 35 00 50 00 -: Or 1
Half ccdo'n. 10 00 25 00 60 00 80 00 liW 00- 1 !
One column 18 00 40 00 90 00 17-5 0t' OO i
, -. . il . . lA 1 . i . l-A
' ... . .... C "
- : : " . tlx--- ' . .' . ; ... ' - :.x f. 5 ' ,,i-i0'jjf oy -iU-' &4ax5 1 . . , -.. r . .... .. .
Terms of Subscriptioh ., , .
One copyi one year, ; . .$2 00
One copy,' six months, . . . . 1 00
Clubs of Ave, . v.,.r.v.. ...i. 10 00
Clubs of ten, (copy extra to sender), 20 00
Remittances m ait be sent by Registered Let
er, ostoffice Orders Postal Note, Express or
-Draft, payable to tht order of the Publishers. V
The Organ of the North Carolina Baptists, Devoted to Bible Religion, Education, Literature, Agriculture, and General Intelligence.
Special notices charged '20 cents per line. '
Ne contracts made for erery-other-week fid
tisanents, nor for special position in paper. '!
Obituaries, sixty words lonf, are inserted free ;
of charge. When they exceed this length, tme '
cent for each word most be paid ia' advance. ? a
Volume 51.
RALEIGH, K 0., WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 13, 1886.
NUMBEB 27.
Sunday School Lesson, Jan. 31st-
( Ite-arranged frxrm the Baptist Teacher.)
DANIEL IN BABYLON. -
(Dsoid r: 8-ai.)
r INTRODUCTORY.
The first capture of Jerusalem by
Nebuchadnezzar was in the fourth year
of the reign of Jehoiakim; the second,
in the fourth month of the reign of Je
hoiakim; and the third and final one,
in the elv:mrh year of Zedekiah 's reign. -It
was it itie.H-sfc capture that Nebu
chadnezzar took certain youths of the
royal house and of princely families to
Babylon; as hostages for the good be
havior of Jehoiakim. Among these
were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and
Azariah in this lesson.
GOLDEN TEXT.
"Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse
his way ? by taking, heed thereto according to
thy word." Psalm I id: 9.
. THE LESSON.
The Godly Purpose.
I
S. And Daniel purposed in his heart that
he would not defile, himself with the portion
of the king's meat, nor "with "the wine which
he drank;? therefore - he reqnestedpjf the
prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile
himself. L '"' ; ' ' " -:- ; '
9.- Now God had brought Daniel into faror
and tender love with the prince of the eunuchs.
. 8, 9. Daniel. Meaning," judgment of
?od. ' His name was changed by Nebu
chadnezzar to Belteshazzar, . meaning
Prince .of Bet."'. .He was descended from
one otthfihighest families of Judah, if
not" evenTofroyal blood (Dan. 1 : 3 ; 2
King&2Q; lfW8. He was taken to Baby
lon when from twelve to 15 years old, with
three other Hebrew -youths of jack.
Hananiah. Mishael and Azariah, at the
first deportation of the people of Judah
in the founh year of ' Jehoiakim, B. C.
606.:-i Nebuchadnezzar i selected these
youths,' on account of their superior
bearing and intelligence to be trained
for his service as public officials, and ap
pointed that tbey should be supplied
with food and winefrora his table.,. Dan
iel proved to be a nutnof remarkable
natural and spiritual gifts, as also a man
.of wonderful pa rity and , integrity of
character;, .Purposed in his heart, etc.
At the vervi beginning of his captivity
he showed .that he had a conscience,
and an inflexible purpose to stand by it.
Much of the food .of Babylon would be
useless to a strict Jew, such as the flesh
of swine, hares, etc-i and much present
ed on the table may have previously been
used in offerings to idols. To eat this
would seem like an endorsement of idol
atry,, Moreover,- wine was in the be
ginning of the feast poured out as a liba
tion to the gods; and, hence, Daniel and
his friends could not drink of what was
thus tainted with idolatry. Requested.
Though fully determined, Daniel was
courteous in . manner. Prince of the
eunuchs. By name Ashpenaz ,(v. 3).
He was a high official having the post
of lord chambelain, or chief officer of
the king's household. Qod had brought.
As Daniel had determined to please God
the Lord undertook for him. As in Jo
seph's ease (Gen. 39: 2). the Lord was
with him.'i Favor and tender love. The
officer had a fatherly affection for the
beautiful and ingenius youth ; a thing -
very important in enabling Daniel to
carry out his purpose. ,
"II. The Tkmperance'Experiment.
. -. . - '-.'
, ia And the prince of the eunuchs said unto
Daniel, I, fear my lord the king, who hath ap
pointed your meat and your drink: for why
should he see your faces worse liking than the
children which are of your sort ? then shall ye
make me endanger my head to the king.
11. -Then said Daniel to Melzar, whom the
prince of. the eunuchs- had set over Daniel,
Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah,
j. XI. Prove thy ;servants I , beseech thee, ten
idays; and let them give us pulse to eat, and
' water to drink. '' "
13.. Then let our" countenances be looked up
on' before thee, and the countenance of the
' children that eat of the portion of the king's
meat: and as-.thpu seest, . deal with thy ser
vants: '
14. So he consented to them in this matter,
and proved them ten days.
10-14; - Worse liking. Thin, wasted
from improper nourishment. The king
had given given orders concerning their
diet (v. 5), and both-he and their officer
supposed that luxurious living was fa
vorable to a, fine appearance and to
health a very common error. . Chil
dren of vour tort.:. That is youths of
vout atre. ' Endanger my head. -Orien
tal monarchs often chopped; heads off
on a very slight provocation. Melzar.
Rather, the melzar or steward. It is
not a proper name. -He was-employed
under Ahpenaz .to care for the yoang
men. Hananiah. -Meaning, whom Je
hovah has given: P His name was chang
ed by Nebuchadnezzar . to Sbadrach,
meaning, circuit of the sun-:' Mishael.'
Meaning, who is what God te. His name
was changed to Meshacb, meaning, ram
a name of the sun god of the Chaldseans
4faraA. Meaning whom Qod has help
ed; changed to Abednego, servant of
Tfego, one of, the ChaJdangoda'Thus
1 the. king endeavored 'to make them
change their religion, by giving them
. names which , would , make them seem
devotees of his.deities. Prote. Try.
Puis. literally, seeds or graina veg
. etable diet. He wanted simply food in
stead of . rich meats, rand water, instead
of wine, o ,4 thou seest me. According
td the result of experiment. . 1 ; U
III. The Favorable Result. . .
' 15. And at the end of ten days their- coun
tenances appeared fairer and fatter in flesh
than all the children which slid eat the portion
of the king's meat. ?. ' - n -
16, Thus Melzar took away the portion , of
- their meat, and the wine that they should, drink
and gave them pulse. v ;
'15, 16. Fairer- and fatter.' It is not
necessary to suppose anything miracu
lous here. - There are reasons in nature
whv this sim nle diet should, be more
favorable to health and, "beauty., than
the dainties from which they abetain-
ed. The result was one of temperance
in both eatinand drinking. ' Still, the
Lord may nave emphasized this result
by giving his special blessing to these
voaths who honored him. -: took away.
From Daniel and his friends. - And this
. course of diet tbev :.continued for . the
thtee years of training. jf -.) . ,
: IV. Favok with Goo and the King-
17. As for1 these four' children' God - gave
them knowledge and skill in all learning and
wisdom: and Daniel had understanding in alt
Visions and dreams. - ' i r-
13. Now at the end of the days that the
kin? had said he should bring them in, then
the prince of the eunuchs brought them in bc-
lore .Nebuchadnezzar. . - ,x
19. And the king communed with them'; and
among them all; was found none like Daniel.
tlnaniah, Mifhael, and Aiariah: therefore
Stood they before the king.'
, ao. And in all matters of wisdom and un
derstanding, that the king inquired of them,
he found them ten times better than all? the
aaagiciaas and astrologers that were in all his
rea'ms. ,
21. And Daniel continued even unto the
first year of king Cjrrus.
17-21. God gave them knowledge, etc.
Their strong, healthy bodies had much to
do with thei intellectual proficiency ;
and superadded was, doubtless, a spe
cial endowment from the Lord. This
certainly was the case with Daniel,, who
bad understanding in all visions and
dreams. An lability nojfc resulting from
natural study! but miraculous, and dis
tinguishing him above his companions
and all ' others. Note his marvelous
skill in interpreting visions (2: 36, etc ;
4: 10, etc. ; v. S6, etc.), and his wonder
ful power of beholding' visions (chaps.
7 :-:). At the endqf the days. The
three years verse 5. Communed with
them. Examined them in their appear
ance, their studies, . and attainments.
None like DaMel, etc. Temperance and
God's blessing were victorious Stood
before the king. Were appointed to ex
alted positionB in his service. Ten times
better. A definite phrase with the sense
of an indefinite one. The Lord's favor
and their own earnest, clear-headed
work.:, gave them vast' superiority over
all the professed wise men of Babylon.
Daniel continued. That is, in power
and influence: He maintained exalted
position under succeeding kings of Baby
lon, until the first, year of Cyrus, the
period when Cyrus issued an edict to at
the Jews should return to Jerusalem.
The Baptist Orphanage.
The utility p? the Baptist Orphanage
as at present suggested, is no new idea,
as some; suppose. It has- been more
than ten years since some of our promi
nent BabtiHsj declared "that christian
churches should do their own work, in
their own way, should teach orphans
some definite faith and practice in re
ligion." Some ' objections have been
raised, by. the Baptists of North Car-
Una, to, the Baptist Orphanage; all
of these objections we will not men
tion;. one, however; is this: ''We
have an Orphan Asylum at Oxford;
every thing is: prepared there for the re
ception of Orphans, there :is no need of
this extra expense, this contracted idea
of things; nay this selfish way of want
ing to manage and ' control an orphan
age according to Baptist views. Why
not send our orpnans to .Oxford and
spend what money we have for them
thercrf .
la the first place, we never have contrib
uted to the support of that institution
as we should land it is natural to suppose
that we nevef will. There is an old ad
age: i "Everybody's business is no
bodyfs business," hence the reason why
we do po more for the orphans at Ox
ford.! Everybody's church is nobody's
church, and ione need not go further
than! five miles from Raleigh to test the
truthfulness f this assertion.
But I will ask your attention to a more
particular view of the subject. Why
do we not have our denominational col
leges and churches? Why not enter in
to an agreement, at once, with other de
nominations,! that we will not have any
such.: thing i&P a Baptist college? You
may say that; it is our duty to enforce
the truth, asywe believe it is taught in
the Holy.Scriptures. A sacred regard
for God and his truth, as we hold it,
compels us tq have our colleges, to train
our boys and girls, in points of doctrine
as well as in j morals, and our churches
that! we may "continue steadfastly ' in
-the apostles' doctrine and fellowship.
and in breaking of bread, and in pray
era,"1 Acts 2i: 42.
Said a brother some time since. Noth
ing iB more immovable than I am in my
religious views. The money of Roths
child, or love for a female beauty, .akin
to that of Jacob's for Rachel, could not
make him anything else than a Baptist,
or buy from jhim the privilege of claim
ing Wake Forest as our College, or New
Hope as our (church. Shall we claim the
privilege of having colleges and churches
of our own for the benefit of the men
and women ef our denomination, where
they may be trained to work efficiently
for the Master, and at the same time,
woefully neglect the children. Think
you that Christ meant nothing when he
said, Feed my lambs." It, is true be
said, Feed my sheep," but he said first,
"Feed my lambs." John 21 : 15.
When standing around the gate, cold
and hnngry,howea8y to turn the pleating
lamb1 into the sheepfold j but neglect it
bv allowing It to wanderaway over hula
and dales, jtul It contracts namts 01
wildnees, hoiw exceedingly difficult to get
it home. So it is with children; they
can easily be framed into the fold of the
(iood shepherd, wnen iambs, out wnen
grown up into sinful naoits and worldly
love, now nam is tne wors 01 conscience.
John Randolph says, "I once took the
French side of politics, and I .should
have been an atheist if it had not been for
the memory of the time, when my de-
parted motaer usea to rase my litue
napaS in ners, ana causo me w say.
Our Father. Train np a child in the
wav he should co. and when ne is old
he will not depart from it." Prov. 22:6,
Ah! the vast influence, for good, of such
mothers as Lois and Eunice, who train
ed Timothv? from a child to know the
Poly Scripture 2 Tim.' 1 i 5, 3 : 15. -
But there are many poor little waifs
who have no such mothers as Lois and
Eunice to train them for. neaven, no-
mother at all, no father. ?
It is for these we should be earnestly
at work, these hungry, naked, homeless
orphans need the comforts Of life. Shall
we deprivel ourselves of God'e Messing
by failing to do our duty nay, shall we
call down qls curse Decause 01 our neg
lect! ? Listen I "He, that giveth to the
poor; shall toot lack, but hoi that nldetn
his eves, shall have many a eurse. He,
that bv nsurvand unjust gaiCLincreaseth
his iubstanee, he shall gather it for him
that will nitv the Door." .Prov. z: zo, o.
'He, that hath pity upon he poor lend
eth to the Lord, and that, which he hath
eiveni-will he nay him ; atrain." Prov
erbs 19: 17t' ,.-'.-
And if thou draw out thy soul to the
hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul,
then, shall thy light rise in obscurity,
and thy darkness be as the noonday,
and the Lord shall etude thee eontlnu
ally, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and
make fat tbv bones, and thou Bhalt ' be
watered like a garden, and the springs
whose -waters fail not. lsa. 5-e: 10, 11
- They ask of me the ordinances of jus
tice, they take delight in approaching to
Qod. v la it not to deal thy bread to the
hungry, and that thou bring the poor.
that are cast out, to their homes t When
thou seest : the naked, that thou cov
er him. and that thou hide not thy
self from thy own flesh! lsa, 68s 2-7. .
. The Lord in the last passage com
mands us to bring the poor to our house.
Let ua address ourselves with profound
earnestness, to the discharge of , our
doty. This Baptist Orphanage is our
house and it need1? our support, i
If for no other than selfish' motives it
behooves as to contribute to the sup
port of this, our honse. v I. know the
glowing brightness of prosperity scat
ters peace ; and happiness . all ' around
your homes, and some of yon can, even,
feast at rich men's tables, repose on lux
urious couches and call them yours, but
how do you know that the chilling blasts
of adversity will never come; that; the
dark clouds of misfortune will; never
gather thick and heavy around yon and
yours. --Charg them -that are rich in
this world, that they be not high-minded,
nor trust in uncertain riches, but in
the living God, who giveth us richly all
things to enjoy; that they do good, that
they be rich in good works, ready to dis
tribute, willing to communicate; laying
up in store for themseves a good founda
tion, against the time toeome, that they
may lay hold on eternal life." 1 Tim.
6:17-19.;
Your luxurious homes may soon be a
place of want and misery, where reside
only your pale-faced widowed wife and
fatherless, starving little ones. To-day
your children shout and sing, for joy,
making music with their merry laughter
and filling your heart with gladness;
happiness beams from every countenanceto-morrow
anxious watchers may a
be bending over your bed, waiting, help-:
lessly waiting for death to-do his work,
a few more hours and all is over and a
broken hearted, widowed mother weeps
and mourns beside a still, cold form
stiffened and straightened for the grave ;
hushed are your children s songs of joy,
and peals of merry laughter; their hearts
are bursting with grief in the time of
their first bereavement and sorrow.
These stricken hearts all know they can
never recall their loved one to the home
circle again; the grave shuts from their
fight the dear form, and all that is mor
tal is henceforth a tenant of the tomb.
Prepare a horaefor your children while
you may and thus be admonished by the
gospel; '.That thon bide not thyself from
thine own flesh."
Dr it may be your neighbor is tohave
this dark, dark hour of trial, "If f hop
wilt be perfect " Matt. 19: 2L prepare
a home for his children. Remembering
the words of the Lord Jesus, how he
said "it i more blessed to rive than to
receive." 20 : 35. '
"Withhold not good from them, to
whom it is doe, when it is the power of
thine hand to do it. I Say not unto thy
neighbor, give, when thou hast it by
thee." Prov. 3:27.1
God in his providence has placed the
poor among us; they are ever to be
among us, for our Saviour said, "Ye
have the poor with yon always and
whensoever ye will ye may . do them
good." Let us ever be ready to do them
good by distributing! to their necessities.
These homeless, suffering little ones have
souls to be saved or lost and as the soul
towers above the body in real worth.
just so much the more deeply concerned
should we be to secure their salvation ;
then let us "bring the poor orphans that
are cast out to our house," the Baptist
Orphanage, give them pious teachers,
that will tendeitly watch over them and
pray for them, Itbat, they may be early
led tojesua f
It is a principle recognized in all our
systems of education that the ideas and
associations of early life correctly indi
cate the indications and pursuits of
manhood and womanhood. A school boy
who reads tales of war and bloodshed,
of daring adventure and robbery, insen
sibly becomes enamoured with uch a
life, then how difficult to divert his mind
from it. The seeds of vice and sin in
the heart should be eradicated by eulti-,
vatmg those of virtue and goodness.
Make the child, of tender years, ac
quainted with the conflicts and triumphs
of the Christian ; let him read the lives of
Adoniram and Ann H. Judson and such
like books;' tell him of Mrs David, whose
last words, were"Never give up Africa, "of
Matt. T. xates, that noblest of the noble
christians in China, and countless others
who have traced their course through
burning deserts and dreary wildernesses,
far from home and kindred, joyfully
suffering privation, and even death, that
the knowledge of a blessed Saviour may
be extended to dying men. Teach him
that this process is to be carried out by
like-minded men and women till all shall
know the Lord from the least to the'
greatest." Heb. 8 11.
Think you, that his young heart will not
beat with the hope that someday he
may carry tne oread 01 life to them?
Nay will he not long for the time to
come! Hi'
There is no restraint to the Lord, to
save by many or by few, but he has cho
sen human instrumentality to convey
the gospel to the boundleesdominions
of sin and Idolatry in this perishing
world . 5 Now, if bur denomination can
be aroused to a sense' of its duty, and.
after being aroused, can be induced to
perform It, what new interest,' zeal "and
liberality wonld such enlarged efforts
indicate and excite in our church. If
we can but succeed in reaching and pu
rifying the hearts f of the orphan chil
aren, in our enurcnes, even, that are
left desolate and homeless,' there will
De one ox toe grandest revolutions we
have ever seen. Soon there wonld be
vn? : niuiuuuuco . iuoi uuiug . uuuCi - - UJu
ibannerof King Jesus, where there are
none now. Fathers and mothers, breth
ren and sisters,' : we must meet the mil
lions of unsaved tools,: who are daily
dropping into eternity; we must meet
the Judge of the earth and be inquired
of concerning the Opportunities we have
enjoyed to glorify 'God In the salvation
of these millions. VCast thy bread upon
the waters:' for thon shalt find it ; after
many days.? Ecc. 11 : 1.' ' -
There is an inseparable connection be
tween this life and that which is to come.
"Whatsoever.a man soweth, that shall
he also reap." GaL 6: 7. How fear
fully solemn , and awful this truth! X
few bhort years of precept and example
exerting a deleterious effect upon those
around us. It is a doctrine, no less sol
emn, than true, that every one possesses
a degree of influence, whatever his .sta
tion or circumstance may be; minds are
molded after the fashion of our life.aud
Within tne limits 0 their present exist
ence we cannot see the end ; of human
actions. Oar conduct here not onlv in
fluences those about us, and stamps Its
impress 1 upon their character, but
through them tell with fearful Increase
upon the generations to come after as
tons me seeas sown nere .snail be con
stantly Increasing till the reapers shall
come to gather the entire harvest: then
must we jaeet the whole of life and Its
Influences. ."Let us not be weary in
well doing. As we have 'opportunity,
therefore, let ns do good onto all men.?
Gat 6: 9, 10. Our experience, as a
whole, makes us inhabitants of two
worlds and this life may be spent in pre
paring for a higher and better in the
great beyond, for the soul that lives for
$tod here, shall be blessed with him for-
iver, hereafter, (suppose tne low Je-
us Christ were here as be certainly was
iore tbanloOO years ago an obscn re child.
poor carpenter's son, so-called, would
we be ever ready to look after bim, be
kind to him, clothe him, if be were
naked, feed him, if he were hun
gry, visit him, if he were sick, and
in prison! in a word, minister to his
personal comfort as - his humility
and dependence might require? How
assiduously we would attend him, even
anticipating every want. This life is
the seed time and eternity is the harvest,
let us be careful how we sow; for every
measure of seed sown we shall gather a
garner full. ' This poor "obscure child is
coming again as the Lord of Glory,
"and all the holy angels with him and
before him shall stand all nations" di
vided as shepherd divideth his Sheep
from the goats.
"Then shall the righteous answer
bim, saying, Lord when saw we thee
hungry, and fed thee? or thirsty, and
gave thee drink? When saw we thee a
stranger and took thee In, or naked,
and clothed thee! and the king shall
answer and say unto them inasmuch as
ye have done it onto one of the least of
these, my brethren, ye have done it unto
me.
Then shall he say unto them on the
left hand, depart from me, ye cursed
into everlasting fire, prepared for the
devil and his angels, for I was an hun
gered and ye gave me no meat, thirsty,
and ye gave me no drink, naked, and
ye clothed me not Inasmuch as ye did
it not to one of the least of these ye did
it not to me. And these shall go away
into everlasting punishment; but the
righteous into life eternal." Matt. 25.
"Whatsoever a man soweth that shall
he also reap," in kind the same, in
quantity a tremendous increase. The
harvest of our actions will be reaped
while eternal ages shall roll on. What
shall the harvest be, with regard to this
momentous question, now before us?
Ye lovers of truth, brethren and sis
ters, I challenge you on your honor and
I appeal to your candor to decide at
once whether we, as servants of Christ,
ought to have, or ought now to have
this Orphanage a placje to supply oc
cupation for the idle, 4 home for the
homeless, a place to fepd the hungry,
clothe the naked and comfort the af
flicted, "our house" for the poor tha
are cast out. If we ought to jiave it,
let us do our whole duty towards sup
porting it with our prayers and with our
money. "Let us be rich in good works
towards it," so that when God shall
bring every work into judgment Ecc.
12: 14. we.may hear the heavenly sounds
"Thon hast been faithful over a few
things, I will make thee rpler over many
things; enter thou into the joy of thy
Lord." Matt 25: 21. Mrs. R. J. H.
Raleigh, N. C.
What to Head.
BEY. J. B. HAWTHORNE, 0. D.
The following beautiful sermon was
reported in full by the Atlanta Consti
tution, of Dec. U, '85.
Several hundred men and ladies brav
ed the falling rain to Attend the morn
service at the First Baptist church. Dr.
Hawthorne preached with unusual pow
er irom Heel. 12: lz "Of making
many books there is no end." His
theme was "How and What to Read."
Sa;d the doctor : When Solomon wrote
these words the whole literature of the
world embraced only three or four
thousand books. What would he have
said, had he foreseen the literature of
this day! In Fngland, France, Ger
many and Russia there are single libra
ries that contain more tban a million
of volumes each. In the United States
there are twenty-five hundred public
libraries, ranging from en thousand to
eight hundred thousand volumes each.
There are private libraries that contain
as many as 75,000 volumes. Every asre
of the world .has been distinguished for
something. Ours is the reading age.
Start at the apex of the pyramid of
society and go down to the very" base,
and yon will find almost everybody
reading books; and newspapers are
everywhere. Whether you enter the
palace of the millionaire or the cabin of
the plantation negro, ; you find some
thing to read.
there is so
ESCAPE
TORE.
FROM LITERA-
If you entetthe8team8hip, the rail
road car,-" the omnibus or the stage
coach, it is there; counters, shelves, ta
bles, floors, " steps, sidewalks, streets,
turnpikes, dirt roads and foot paths are
dotted with it.
There is nothing so cheap as litera
ture. With five dollars I can. bay as
much as the average man will read and
digest in three years. And when a man la
too poor, to pay anything for it. he can
have it and all he wants without money
ana wunout price, 'mere are two or three
thousand - families in Atlanta, which
have books of6cience, of history, of
philosophy , and of poetry that thus
would either give or lend to poor Per
sons desirous of informing themselves
upon these branches of study. In al
most every quarter of the land, there 4
are free libraries, where persons may
go and spend years if they choose in pur
suing special lines of study. God in his
good providence has permitted this
multiplication of books and periodicals
Luai men. everywhere may De emancl-
Eated from the curse of ignorance. He
as permitted it that his own word may
i i. .
oe put. inw me lianas ot every human
being.v The gospel is preached to dav.
not only by . the men who stand in the
pnipit, oat through the medium of
millions upon millions of books, mag
azines, "newspapers and tracts. It is.
5 t FLASHED i AROUarn THE flLOBH ' :
on . telegraph wires. The z sermons . of
laimage and opurgeon and Maclaren
ana a arrar. delivered on Sunday morn
ing jrom war pnipits are preached next
morning .through the daily newspapers
m aimost every quarter oi toe civilized
world. " . .
There is no substitute for reading. Mere-
jy neanng tne gospel wm not sufllce for
v a f a . -
our development in Christian life. ' Wer
must read it. Hence we are command-;
a. , to . " search the scriptures." The
man who depends alone upon ..hearing
lor nis information - is , ignorant, and
shamefully ignorant in comparison with
men who read as well as hear.
" What made the dark ages of priestcraft;
superstition, persecution And oritnoi
It was the fact that reading was confin
ed almost entirely to the clergy. The
great masses of men and women never
saw inside of a book. Martin . Luther
and the printing press put an end .to the
dark ages. ' fv ; ' .
Travel is no substitate for reading. It
is true that what we see' is more vividly
fixed on the mind than what we read.
But seeing is a very- slow and tedious
and expensive process of learning. I
can ait In my study with map and his
tory and biography in hand, and learn
more about the world in one week than
you can learn in five years by traveling
around it in a steamship. There are
thousands of men in this country who
never crossed the ocean that . know
more of the catacombs and the ruins of
BERCCIiAN'ECM, BAALBEC AJTD EPHESUS
than any tourist ever learned about
thern. from personal observation.
Spinoza, one of the greatest phil
osophers and one of the most learned
men the world ever Baw, was never fifty
miles from his birthplace. -
I envy the man who is able to supple
ment the knowledge which he has gain
ed from the Careful study of books, by
extensive travel and observation, but I
do not envy the parvenus and shallow
pates and society dudes who have made
two or three brief excursions across the
Atlantic, and who can tell all they
know about Great Brittain and the
continent in an hour's conversation.
For swift and cheap learning
GIVE ME THE PRINTED PAGE.
I can get more out of one great book in
two days than the average man will get
by seeing and hearing in the course of a
whole year. In this way I will get more
valuable knowledge for $5 than the
traveling sight-seeing man will get for
five thousand dollars. . '
Thank God for books! They make
me heir to the wisdom of all the ages.
In the light which they throw upon the
past, I can know the generations of
men that have gone before me. I can
sf-e cities and empires' as they rose and
flourished and declined and fell. I can
see drama succeeding drama in the
world's grand show. With the historic
volume opened before rue, these things
pass like pictures on the reel of a pan
orama. I can commune with the noble
and lofty spirits of the ancient world. I
can follow Moses in bis wanderings
through the wilderness, I can stand by
him when in ihe sequel of his wonder
ful career, he Booked out from Pisgah's
summit and saw the land of beauty
which the Lord God had promised to
his fathers. I can sit down with old
Homer and hear him sing of Achilles'
wrath to Greet, the direful spring of
woes unnambired. I can live with
Christ from hisVradle to his tomb. I
can journey with
PAUL THROUGH MACEDONIA.
I can stand withhim on Mars Hill
and see him confound and overwhelm
the astute philosophers of Greece. I
can go with him to Roue? V can dwell
with him in the Mamertme dungeon : I
can s3e him as be goes forth to the place
of execution and bear him say: 1 am
ready and the time of my departure is
at hand. " lean stand by the lion-hearted
Luther as he arises and speaka-befoie
the diet at Wurms. I can Bpend an"
evening with old Bunyan in Bedford
jail and hear him describe Vanity Fai,
the land of Beulah, and the Delectable
Mountains, I can enter the great schools
of philosophy and sit down at the fet
of Descartes, Leibnitz, Spinoza, Hobbes,
Hamilton, Kant and Hegel
I can spend a day with Savonarola,
Massillon, Bassnage, Robert Hall Ja.nd
John Knox and Whitfield, the great
masters of sacred eloquence. I can see
the lightning flashing from their eyes. I
can hear the wizard tones with which
they bewitched .the minds of ,heir
auditors. I can feel the contagion
which swept over their vast audiences,
the impetuous enthusiasm leaping from
heart to heart. Every kind of know
ledge is accesible now. The sources of
it are within every man's reach. In
the days of Plato not one man in every
50,000 had an opportunity to learn phil
osophy. In the time of Chaucer the lovers
of poetry had very little to gratify their
taste. In the days of Newtpn there
were scarcely any facilities for the study
of natural science. In the ages when
all the books belonged .to the biQjaaster
ies, who but the priests had any- chance
to make a critical study of tise word of
God ? It is not so now. &
THE 8CXDAT SCHOOItSfKACHER-
of to-day has an equipajyrnt for his work,
which the most distoguibed minister
of the gospel might-nave envied a hun
dred years agoKnowiedge in this day
is so classified and simplified that the
8tudet" of ordinary capacity has but lit-
Itiedifflculty in finding .what he wants
upon any given subject, or in com pre
bending It when it is iouna. . u a man
bad no other helps in the study of the
Bible than our Sunday school lesson
papers and quarterlies he could by mak
ing diligent use of them become an ex
cellent biblical scholar. There Is no
reason why any person in this congre-
gration should not prepare nimseii in a
few weeks or a few months at most to
meet every argument against Christian
ity .Hint, has been made oy the advo
cates of materialistic revolution. I can
put bim In possession of , two or three
brief treatises that will enable bim to
do it. For j ust one cent you buy a tract
which contains a complete answer to all
that David Home ever wrote against
the doctrine of miracles. n
QOD BE PRAISED TOR BOOKS!
With the greatest intellects of every age
for my companions here can I be lone
ly! . What care I that money kings and
devotees of fashion never enter my cot
tage home, when 4 have there Jb ranklin
to teach practical wisdom, Shakespeare:
to , conduct me Into worlds--Lpt, lancy,!
Spurgeon to preach to me the ; , wonders,
of redemption and Milton to sing to me
of Paradise. But. we cannot read all
that is written, nor the half of it, nor
the tenth of It, nor the hundredth part
of it. .' . I
It is only a fragment' of the ; world's
literature that any of us can have the'
time and the opportunity to read, and
that fragment sbou I d . be selected with
the utmost care We should not . waste
an hour or a moment on anything that
Is trashy or indifferent: -- - . -' -1;;;:. ?
There are some men who carej very lit-;
tie what tb.eaiij-:
: THET EAT SIMPLY TO WOJ CP .. ;-.v ?
and satisfy.' hunger,3 and they? would
just as soon fill; up with one thing as
another. Such meu are very unwise.
Every day they violate physical law
and sooner or later their physical health
and rigor will be gone. :' A man needs
variety in his diet. He needs one kind
of food to make "muscle, another -to
make bone and another to make brain.
, .There are some men- who seem to
care very little what they read, so they
read.,"Any thing is food for their mluds,
wnetner rit be newton's Frinclpia or
Mother Goose's Melodies. Their only
idea is to fill up the mental vacuum,
and they would as soon fill it with one
thing as with another. There are some
kinds of intellectual diet that are very
wholesome and there are other kinds
that are exceedingly unwholesome. We
must learn to discriminate between tne
good and the bad. Then too, we mast
have variety in our intellectual f ood if
we would nourisn every faculty anq
supply every want. ; Blessed is the man'
who understands mental dietetics, and
lives accordingly. We are very careful
about the water we drink. The people
of Atlanta, said : ;
WE WILL HOT DRTJTK IMPURE WATER,?
and for eighteen months they were bor
ing through granite rock to find what
they wanted. The great water problem
is solved and we are all happy. We are
very watchful of our food markets, if
we should discover dangerous impurities
in our bread, a disease in our meat, we
would kindle with righteous indignation
and rise up en masse and correct the
evil; How soon we. would banish a
vendor of poisonous adulterations from
the community.
Should we be less watchful of the
markets -where intellectual and moral
food is bought and sold? Is the body of
more value than the mind! is temporal
life more worthy of our concern than life
eternal ? The worst devil In onr midst is
the whisky deviL You said .to him a
few days ago "You must depart from
our borders," and I believe and the
world believes that you meant what you
said. If you permit ' yourselves to be
trifled with about a matter so serious as
this, yon are not the people yon are sup
posed to be. But there are other devils
to be expelled and one of them is
A LITERARY DEVTL.
Who is it that does not know that in
our book markets there are thousands,
tens of thousands of productions which
no man dare read without injury to his
moral life. In this city there are tons
of sensational novels and periodicals,
whose influence upon character is cor
rupting in the very last degree. 1 would
sooner invite pestilence to enter my
household than a book or a magazipe
which bears upon every page the impress
of an impure mind and which must
inevitably breed moral pollution and
filth. ,
It affords me a very profound pleasure
to be able to say that
ATLAKTA HAS THE CLEAREST NEWS
PAPERS of any city its size on this continent.
They are not perfect yet, but in com
parison with nine-tenths of the political
papers of this country, they are ineffably
pure. We have three daily papers, and
the moral influence of every one of them
is good. They publish more matter up
on more religious subjects tban any
secular papers of the same dimensions
in the world; and it is not often that
they coutain anything that is offensive
toretined moral sentiment.
This is one explanation of. the faet
that Atlanta is leading the whole country
in the grand work of moral reform.
What an unspeakable blessing to a com
munity to have its newspapers, controlled
by men who believe in God and moral
government, and who will nse their
influence in the interest of pure morals.
The same is true of the Georgia press
generally. It can not be bought by any
corrupt ring or used to debauch society. I
do not wonder that right minded people
in every quarter of this land are turning
their faces and their footsteps towards
this old commonwealth, for there is not
a spot on this planet where they will
find more sympathy ?with what is pure
and lovely and pt good report. But
there are newspapers that come to oar
market whose
HOSTIIJTYfrO CLEARNESS
and virtue is visible on every page.
They sneer at everything that is good
and holy. They seek and publish with
all its sickening, details, every filthy
scandal that is started at home or abroad.
Every man who lifts up his voice for
moral reform incurs their wrath and is
hounded as either a fanatic or a hypo
crite. ' I am very hopeful of seeing the
day when there will be no market for
such intellectual garbage within the
borders of oar state.
Now my friends I lay down this
proposition, the correctness of which no
sensible man will deny. We should
choose our reading always with refer
ence to
ITS INFLUENCE UPON CHARACTER.
Parents should do this for their chil
dren, 'there is no captain leading ar
mies to battle; there is no statesman
guiding the counsels of a nation; there
is no astronomer searching oat the
mysteries of the stare; there is no scien
tist taming wild nature to the arts of
peace; there is no artist carving his ideal
from the stone, who is called to so high
a mission as he to whom it is given to
brine up a household to that exalted
model, which the man of God . reached,
when he said : "As lo me and my house
we will serve the Lord." To attain to
such a result, be must exercise the nt
most care and wisdom in the selects n
of books and periodicals for his children.
One bad book or one obscene newspa
per in a family may sow the seeds of
incurable eviL There is no possession
that is comparable to character. It is
the diamond, which. cutB every other
stone; with it a man can penetrate and
pass through any - wall of difficulty.
With it, every misfortune is but a : step
ping stone to some noble and lofty end.
It is an armor like that fabled one that
fell down from Jupiter. Clad in it man
can breast any earthly storm, and bid
defiance even to the gates of helL . CJaia
the late W. II. Yanderbilt, " I am the
richest man in the world." But the
Poorest peasant who seeks first . the
kingdom of God and His righteousness
Is richer than he was, when he uttered
those boastful words. t beard a great
orator, standing over the dead . form of
a bumble Christian say : " There lies a
man. who never ,
, Vv 4 DID A MEAN THI50." s
-v I would rather have that said of me
than to have ail the gold of Australia or
all the pearls of the ocean. I would
rather leave such a tribute as a legacy
to my child,' than to leave him a crown
or a kingdomrf'' m4tri
,l Sir Walter Scott read , more books
than any man of his time. But when
he was about to die he said : ' There is
but one book.! When we think of what
that old Bible has done, to . renovate
and expand and enoble and exalt and
glorify humanity, we m ust admit, that
it is not hyperbole to say : "There is bat
one book. Look at that man wno is
doing more than any other living man
to brins this dark, sinful, world to
Christ. , '
. . I SPEAK OF MOODY,
a man who has electrified " nations and
stirred the' pulses of the world. ' He
knows no more about natural science,
or the science of language than my ne
gro cook knows about metaphysics or
comparative anatomy. . What has made
him so great! What has given him
such power with men t Nothing but bis
knowledge of God's word, his love for it
and his unalterable faith in it as the
8tar and only star by which man can
navigate the sea of life and gain the
coast of bliss securely.'
Chemistry never silenced a guilty
conscience. Mathematics never healed
a broken heart. All the sciences in the
world never smoothed a dying pillow.
No earthly philosophy ever supplied
hope at the ' portal of the grave. AH
these things are of the earth, earthy,
and can never raise man above the
earth's level. But in this book there is
a divinity that gives me wisdom to
grapple with every - dark problem,
strength to overcome every foe, pa
tience to endure every frown, and hope
and confidence to go to my grave as
calmly as he "who wraps the drapery
of his couch about him and lies down to
pleasant slumber." To the guidance of
this book let us commit our lives, and
we shall not go astray. Our. ways shall
be ways of pleasantness and peace, and
in the end of oar Journey, having ac
complished God's will in our day and
generation, we will pass over the inky
Jordan, and in the shades of the trees
of paradise lie down and enjoy "the
rest that remaineth to the people of
God."
The Missionary Field.
Dr. Arthur T. Pierson, in the January
number of the ffomUetic Review, gives
the present religious outlook of the
world. ' His figures are worth preserv
ing. Of the 1,500,000,000 people in the
world, be says that one third are nomin
ally Christiana But we give his figures
as we nnd them :
" Of China's 300,000,000, 75,000 are in
Christian communities; of India's 250,-
000,000, about 700,000; of Japan's 85,-
000,000, about 15,000 ;ofSiam's8. 000,000,
3 000; of Tartary's 20,000,000, 100,000; of
Persia's 7,500.000, 5,000; of Africa's 200,-
000,000, 600,000; American Mission fields
add 700,000, and the Isles of the Sea,
400,000 more, identified with Christian
institutions; and so we have a grandto-
tal ox 2,600,000 who in tne whole mission
field are either converts or adherents of
the Christian churches.
" Now let ns glance at comparative
results. Over 100 organizations now in
the field, with a working force of 35,000;
of these, 3,000 ordained, and 3,000 more
lay workers and women, all from
Christian lands; with 2,400 ordained
natives, and 26,000 native teachers and
neipers.
" What work can these 35,000 show
for the last reported year 1883-4 ! In
all missions there are 800,000 living na
tive communicants, of whom the year's
net gain was 125,0001 average of over
three converts to each worker. The
whole number of pupils in mis-ion
schools is not known, but, as in India
alone it reaches 200,000, it is believed
that the whole number would run into
the millions.
"What has aU Christendom done to
effect such colossal results? Given in
that same year ten million dollars, or
seren and a half cents for each Protest
ant church member; and sent one qut of
every 22,500 of those members into the
field ; and distributed 6,000,000 copies of
parts, or entire copies of the Word of
God, in 250 tongues.
"And now what is the average cost of
each convert in mission fields ? All
things brought into the estimate, it may
reach 90 cents ; while the average cost of
each convert in Christian lands exceeds
$650, seven hundred times as much. At
the same time, Rev. R. G Wilder, the
most careful and accurate of our statis
ticians, says tbatthe percentage of in
crease of communicants in all missions
is 1& 71 over against 0-57 at home thir
ty five-fold as great. . '
" If we judge the quality of these con
verts by their giving, their average is
$ 1.25 per yar against the 7.5-10 cts. for
Protestant Christians at home. Two
hundred laborers in the South Seas late
ly sent to the London Missionary Socie
ty $465, over $2.33 each; and 10,000 con
verts of Wesleyan missions in Sierra
Leone and the gold coast raised last
year a Jubilee fund of 175,000, or an av
erage of seven and a half dollars each,
instead of seven and a half cents."
George MuZler.
It was the advice of Terence to con
sider the lives of other men as we would
a looking-glass, and from thence fetch
examples.
Numerous biographies are being pub
lished, and we infer are more in demand
and more read than they have been.
For us, as Terence suggests, scarcely
any one of the living or dead is more
suggestive than that of George Muller,
the founder of the celebrated homes of
friendless orphans, on Ashley Down,
near Bristol, England.
He was born in the little Russian
towu. Kroppenstaedt, bept. 27tb, ib05.
He was like many other boys, not re
markable for sobriety or the strictest
rectitude or proprieties of life. His fa
ther early endeavored to teach him how
to possess money witnont spending it.
His mother died when he was about
fourteen years of age. His father in
tended to make a clergyman of him, en
deavored to give him a good education
and desired to see him - in a good posi
tion in that profession without any par
ticular anJety about his fitness for the
position. He was duly confirmed in hie
fifteenth year, without any special reli
gious experience or regard for God, as
he himself afterwards acanowiecffes. m
fact, his life was in harmony with iui-1
moral associates Though a divinity
student of twenty years of age, and li
censed to preach, he had not read the
Bible for years.' let ' his life and reli
gious condition was in accord with that
of his associates in the course of theolog
ical studies.
Far from ' being at ease in mind in
this course, he relates that in his twen
ty-first year, be accepted an invitation
to meet with a few friends at the house
of a Christian man each Saturday for
the purpose of prayer and Bible study.
This proved the tnrningpoint in his life!
He was led to see his sinful and ruined
condition and to trust in .Christ : alone
for salvation. He was laughed at by
his fellow-students on account of his
changed habits became interested in
missionary work and desirous of enter
ing some field of labor in that line.
This much displeased his father, who
hoped to see him in some lucrative po
sition in his profession1 where he might
be supported by him. Yonng Muller,
with the spirit of his . Master, was anx
ious to do, and sought opportunities for
religious conversation with those around
him. He commenced preaching -'by writ-i
ing out find memorizing his sermons; but1'
finding himself thus unable to continue'
preaching to the same people; ha tried,
faithful study and exposition of the '
Scriptures. Finding his written and ':
memorized sermens were the most prais- - v
ed, but the extern poary expository dls-
courses were producing the most good, "
he adopted the latter form of preaching. 1 i
Various things defeated bis . plans for
entering the mission field. After preach- i
ing to different congregations of Chris-
tians belonging to the Plymouth Breth-1
ren, he became settled over a" small
church at Teigmoutb. V He declined to '
receive any stated salary and only what,
was offered voluntarily. This often re
duced him and his , to the last loaf of
bread or to a few pennies, but in answer :
to prayers supplies always came. :- On
commencing this life of faith he records
that he gave up to the Lord all he pos
sessed, amounting to about f 500 -per
year, but that in pursuing this course,
he was better supplied and had less anx
iety about temporal things. 5' -7
Jone 12, 183$, Mr. Muller's journal
expresses a strong desire felt that morn
ing to do something for the poor boys
and girls and aged people to whom lie
had daily given bread. He betoos him
self to prayer for wisdom to guide him
in carrying out his desire. In this line
he was led to form" "The Scripture
Knowledge Institution for Homeland
Abroad." It was decided that it should 1
have no patron but the Lord no workr l
ers but believers and no debts should be
incurred. It has already provided for )
the education of 95,143 children and 1
grown persons in its school, trained 6,
892 orphans, by prayer and waiting on
God. No person has ever been asked I
for a penny. He who owns the gold j
and silver of all the earth has inclined
people from all parts of the world to
send donations. The largest gift has . I
been nine thousand one hundred pounds
and the smallest one farthing, " 1
Mr. Muller tells us that 'as he .set
about the work for the glory of God he j
prayed that there might be a visible
proof to the world that God did supply
answers to prayer only. He gives nu- j
merous examples of special exigences j
met in answer to prayer. While 'con- j
ducting this work at Bristol,. his interest
in mission work has been constant .and '
intense. He has taken long journeys tor
stir. up the Lord's people to greater ac-
tivity, to stronger faith and to see . for ;
himself those Christian friends in whom,
he felt a great interest.' He has visited
Switzerland. Holland, Germany, France,
Spain, Itaiy, Canada, the United States,
Egypt, Palestine, Syria, Asia Minor,
Turkey, Greece, Austria, Hungary, Po
land, Bohemia, Russia, India. Many
will remember with tender interest his
visit to the United States and to Hart
ford. The writer can never forget that j
Monday morning he met the ministers
at their usual meeting and the statement ;
he gave them of his religious experience
and life work how he met their some
what skeptical inquiries, and the pro-
found impression he made of the great
ness of his work, Of his executive abili- .
ty, his wisdom, his spirituality, his great
faith and his marvelous success. For
nearly sixty years the principles jof
which he is the cheerful faithful em
bodiment have inspired his life and
urged him to .new difds of faith that
have astonished t he world. The skep
tic is silenced, for there stands the live
immense Orphan Houses on Ashley
Down, and there are the 2,050 orphans, -an
incontrovertible proof of that there
is a God and that he answers fervent
believing prayer. Christian Secretary.
Notes of Travel No. 4.
North Carolina, like Palestine, has its
" hill country," and do mistake. 'Tin.
surprised to' see what hosts of Baptists
there are in that State," said a friend
who had been perusing your new alma
nac, Mr. Editor. If the "tribes "of Is
rael" should "go up" to Jerusalem, in
these modern times, your Jerusalem
should be situated in the extreme west
of the State, characterized as the longest
in the Union this side the Mississippi:
and what a crowd of pilgrims climbing
in that direction! We have just been
reading in an ancient book, how certain
"husbandmen" were repudiated and
the "vineyard" given to others. Let; us
hope this large body of diseiples who
claim to maintain "the faith once for
all delivered to the saints" will not be
recreant, and so "lose their hold."
Asheville in its nest in the mountains
is reached from Salisbury by a wonder
fully picturesque and romantic railway
route. We presume the readers of the '
RECORDER have been often treated to
descriptions of the grand scenery and
marvels of art on this line of road. The
region thereabout is making strides, in
growth and enterprise. There may .be
a slight wink of truth in a traveller's
observation that some ot the stations"
may be described as consisting, of two
stragglers by the side of the track and a ,
shriek of the engine whistle ! That may
be true to-day. But to-morrow Presto,
change, you behold a stately ; "depot,",
a number of goodly houses, piles of j.
lumber, and corner lots at fabulous;:
prices. A sdort stay in A. enabled ns'
to mark the location of a substantial
brick edifice in which Baptist (i. e. .Ne w
Testament) principles are; promulgated;
to appearance the cause is in good
hands. Our Sight beyond; to -Knox-ville,
thence Bristol, Lynchburg, Wash
ington, may not particularly interest the
constituents of the Recorder. Suffice
it to say the Lynchburg of to-day is in
striking contrast to what it was a doz
en or more years ago, .when we-visited
it. Evidences of strong constitution
and a healthy grpwth are spread. on-
every side, over the roughest, steepest;
most appalling bills in the world nh-
less it oe Dwitzenauu, uaieua, - xii, cr
some other dreadful place. . The colored
Baptist people of L. deserve mention as .
having built and occupying one of the
most sightly as well as solid houses of
worship, on a principal street; which
we have met witnin our "travels.".. .
i On this recent, pleasant tour having
made a number of agreeable christian
acquaintances, witnessed in a sister
State beyond "Mason's and Dixon's"':
the indications of prosperity, spiritual
and temporal, and an era, well begun, ;
of commercial, and f cateroal acquain
tance and intercourse, noting also a cer
tain cordiality and expressiveness shall
we say, of tocial manners and friend-1
ship, which to the 4 'cold North" we
shall venture to bold up for considera
tion we lay down our pen. - ' v n
- ' f' II. R. Wilbur! .;
- .Success in Christian efforts is, accord
ing to the principles that govern busi-1
nesa success ' ,ui : exact ratio with the :
capita! invested. ; If we would do heavy
work for the Masterrwe must give time,
and thought, prayer and faith pandas
aure as law we can but succeed. Nash--'
i ville Advocate.
v-