BY HURLEY & MOFFI IT.
ESTABLISHED 1844.
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IN ESSENTIALS, UNITY ;^IN NON-ESSENTIALS, LIBERTY; IN ALL THINGS, CHARITY.
RALEIGH, N. 0., THURSDAY OCTOBER 24, 1896.
VOLUME XLVIII: HUMBER 41.
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Ch*i$tiart $Ui\
Th« Organ of the General Convention
the Christian Church (South).
CARDINAL PRINCIPLES.
t. The Lord Jeans Is the only Bead of the
church.
*. The name Christian, to the exclusion
of all party and sectarian names.
8. The Holy Bible, or the Scriptures of
the Old and Mew Testaments, sufficient rule
of faith and practioe.
4. Christian character, or vital piety, the
only teat of fellowship or membership.
6. The right of private Judgment, aud
the liberty of conscience, the privilege and
duty of ell.
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THE EXPOSITION.
Quite a number of our friends
have asked us to give them our
estimate of the Atlanta Exposi
tion, that they may know wheth
er or not it is worth going to see.
We shall not attempt a write-up
of it this week, as we could not
possibly do it justice in the few
moments that we could ‘steal’
from our sight-seeing. We have
now been here two days, and
hence feel that we can say that
it is well worth the time and
money that it copts to see it. A
fuH write-up will appear next
week.
to Dor Contributors.
1 STATESMAN’S VIEW ON MISSIONS.
It is refreshing to read the
straightforward tribute to mis
sions in the address delivered by
the Hon. John W. Foster at the
Episcopal Convention at Minne
apolis last week. We have been
treated of late to an unusual
amount of criticism of missions.
Passing travelers, diplomatic
and naval officials, resident mer
chants, Buddhist priests, Hindu
philosophers, have combined in
an attack that has had not a lit
tle weight with some who were
not folly posted as to the facts.
With some exceptions, they have
been calm in tone and judicial
in manner, and their assumption
of absolute knowledge has been
so complete as almost to over
power the ordinary reader, who
is some times tempted to think
that perhaps, after all, these men
and women whom he has been
brought to revere were, not less
noble in their purpose, but less
wise in their action than he had
supposed.
IQ ail sucn peisuus, aum w
those who are liable to meet
them, we commend ex-Secretary
Foster’s words. Not less calm
and judicial in tone than Norman
and Curzon and Vivekananda
and their associates, his state
ments carry on their face the
evidence of an amount of per
sonal investigation which does
not appear in theirs. To begin
with he admits that his first im
pression was one of disappoint
ment at the small results appar
ent, and acknowledges that this
was the prevailing testimony ot
natives, foreign residents en
gaged in business and business
officials. Closer examination,
however, changed his opinion.
In India he found great improve
ment in the moral and social
condition of the people, great
•advance in education, hope for
women and the lower classes
such as had, under the old re
ligions, been impossible, and a
number ol Christians equal to
those that could be counted un
der the Roman Empire at the
end of the first century of the
Christian era, a fact which he
considers a just indication of
success. As to the relation of
missions to the welfare of the
country he mentions two signifi
cant facts: the contribution by
the British administration of
$100,000 annually to the support
of missions, and the statement
by a Government official that if
missions did not exist, it would
be the Government’s duty to in
vent them.
Similar is his testimony to the
work being done in China—
medical, educational and evan
gelistic. The charge that the
Chinese are so stolid and utterly
degraded, that it is a hopeless
task to attempt to convert them,
he answers by the simple ac
count of what he saw in a revi
val at one the stations of the
Methodist Episcopal Church.
Even the riots, he considers, do
not indicate any great hostility
among the great mass of the
people or nobility to the mis
sionares of their work, but are
the direct result of the scheming
of the . literati and the manda
rians, assisted by the unpopular
ity of the Government in view
of the victory of Japan in the
late war; Turning to Japan,
after hearty words of apprecia
tion for her great advance, he
utters a word of warning, in the
remark that “she makes a great
mistake in accepting the results
while she rejects the cause of
Christian civilization” : but there
is still sharper rebuke to some
Americans in the following :
“Christianity, however, would
undoubtedly be to-day the recog
nized religion of Japan had those
nominal adherents to it, with
whom she first became acquaint
ed, been true to their principles.”
Missionaries in the field who
have become almost fearful to
entertain American guest, lest
their hospitality be turned into
occasion for attack, will read
with gratitude Mr. Foster’s tri
bute to the self-denial which
even comfortable homes and
with several servants makes of
their life a long-continued, al
njost unintermitting tax upon
nervous. They will also indorse
most heartily his interpretation
of their appeal for Gevernment
help as being based not at all on
their work as missionaries but
on their rights as citizens. Per
haps the most significant passage
of all is that in which he claims
the triumph of Christianity and
shows the present opportunity
furnished by open doors to the
whole heathen world, except
Tibet, by accumulated facilities
of steam, electricity and the
press, and the most of all by the
fact that the Bible is open to
nine-tenths of the population of
the earth in their native lan
guages.
Such words, coming from the
man who probably did more
than any other to bring about an
honorable peace between two
nations, themselves the field of
extensive missionary effort, are
full of meaning. No man who
did not understand both Chinese
and Japanese character could
have had his influence with
Chinese aud Japanese rulers.
More than that, they are the
words of a man trained by a
long experience to sift evidence
and form just conclusions—one
intimately acquainted as Sere
tary of State with foreign na
tions—and as such they must
have weight, not only with men
who already sympatize with
missionary work, but with those
who do not. We do not forget
the testimony already given by
Minister Denby in China, by
every minister that has spent
more than a few months in
Turkey, by English ambassa
dors and statesmen, including
Governors General of India and
such men as Lord Shaftesbury
_in fact, by every man of broad
culture who has taken the pains
to examine into the work of mis
sions. If missions needed de
fenders they have had them by
the score; but none the less will
mission workers in every field
be personally grateful to Mr.
Foster for his stirriag words and
earnest appeal.—N. Y. Indepen
dent.
A DAY ON McAFEE’S KNOB.
BY MYRTIE DAUGHTRY.
Recently, during a few weeks
sojourn among the mountains, I
had the pleasure of vising Mc
Afee’s Knob, from the top of
which are some of the most
splendd views that are found in
Virginia. The Knob is situated
about eighteen miles north-west
of Roanoke, and is named in
honor of McAfee, the man Who
explored it, and dwelt, with
Spur and others of his com
pany, upon its rugged side
fighting the Indians, who hated
these people that would take
from them not only their fertile
valley, but the grand old hills,
where they gathered their chest
nuts.
We left Roanoke a little after
sunrise, and reached the foot
before nine o’clock. We had a
very jolly party of five, and we
had seen the hanging rock as it
glistened in the early morning
sun, for the first time, and now
as we go slowly up the mountain
road, watching the strange scene
ry about us, the woods which has
been slightly changed with early
autumn, and the small houses
that seem to grow smaller as
we leave them behind us in the
valley, our driver stops and an
nounces that we must alight,
and walk the remaining three
miles, around the road, to the
top, the road being too rough
and steep for the horses to pull
up a loaded carriage. Now
those, who climb mountains oc
casionally, know how hot and
tiresome it is on such «. day as
the 12th of this last September;
while to those who probably
have never climbed these very
high hills it is sufficient to say
that we could not walk longer
than five or ten minutes with
out resting. It was after two
o’clock in the afternoon before
we reached the top, and gazed
on that landscape of exceeding
beauty, with its grand classic
mountains, its deep, rich valleys,
and its bright bending skies.
Ill LHC meantime:, we uau
ped nt the house of a mountain
eer, quenched our thirst, and
heard their “thars” and “hits."
And had, finding that we were
hungry, stopped (or dinner. It
was a lovely place that we se
lected, comparatively flat, with
abundance of shade, rocks like
huge ships loomed up before us
on every side, all these beauties
of nature remind us of the one
living and everlasting God, who
has given us so many things to
enjoy, I felt pleasure and thank
fulness in my heart; for surely,
“No tears Dim the sweet look
'hat nature wears.” We lad
with us a splendid pair of field
glasses, which were a great help
to us.
The Knob seems to be not of
solid rock, but rather of great
•rocks forty or more feet across,
some less, piled up, standing on
one side, and straight up, on the
other, we could see the crevices
between some of these rocks,
On the front where the rocks
seem to be piled straight, they
form a real precipice of fifty or
sixty feet.
How grand ! On the top we
were in full view of both the
Blue Ridge and Alleghany
mountains, with the great Ca
tawba and Shenandoah valleys.
We could look into several dif
ferent counties, and point out
five towns and cities, Roanoke,
Salem, Bonsack, Cloverdale and
Fincastle.
The deep green valleys are
dotted with occasional houses or
village, and I remember hearing
the dull noise of a saw-mill, and
and the faint tingling of a dis
tant cow-bell; everything spoke
of nature’s supremest rural
beauties.
1 find my article already,
longer than I had intended it,
so we will not dwell longer upon
the beauty, the grandeur of the
scenery, but Ay down the moun
tain side and turn our faces
again toward “The Magic City”
of our Southland.
Aguste, Va.
WASH1SOTOS LETTER.
OCR REGULAR CORRESPONDENT.
There is a lesson for those
who meet all propositions for re
form legislation with the stereo
typed reply, “Oh, you can’t re
form people by passing laws,”
in the annual report of Hon.
John L. Thomas, Assistant At
torney General for the Post
Office Department. Mr. Thomas
has charge of the enforcement
of the anti-lottery law, of which
he says in his repoi't: “It may
be confidently asserted that the
death-knell of the avowed lot
teries in this country has been
sounded.” The law he says
“has been most successful and
has virtually closed the mails to
lottery concerns.” Now this is
one very conspicuous instance
of a great reform having been
accomplished by the enactment
and enforcement of a stringent
law. Could Congress have a
stronger argument in favor of
enacting other reform law?
There is another point in Mr.
Thomas’ report that isn’t so
pleasing, but which is perfectly
true and which 4e8erve8 the
condemnation of all, who hope
to see the morals of the coming
generation better than those of
our own. After noting the
stamping out of the lotteries
proper, the report says ; “But
many business men think they
must, in order to succeed, re
stort to schemes that appeal to
the gambling spirit of the peo
ple, and they accordingly sugar
cbat their legitimate enterprises
with lottery advertisements.
These fascinating and appar
ently' innocent schemes reach
the boys and girls of the land
and tend to make them gam
blers.” The good people of
this country have an effective
remedy in their own hands
against this evil. They have
only to refuse their patronage to
those who resort to lottery
methods of attracting business
and the evil will be short-lived.
Mrs. C. M. Brown, who has
charge of the Helping Up Mis
sion, of Baltimore, addressed the
W, C. T. U., this afternoon on
“Valuable Lessons in Mission
Work on the Lines of Temper
ance.” The tenth “Y” of the
W. C. T. U. was organized in
the First Congregational Church
a few days ago.
The Excise board of the Dis
trict of Columbia has practically
decided to ask Congress to in
crease the bar-room license from
$400 to $800 a year, and* the
officials would be very glad if
the Anti-Saloon League and
other temperance organizations
would add their endorsement to
the proposed change. The
temperance organizations are
not likely to do so, however.
They are fighting to abolish the
saloons entirely, and, although
many individual members be
lieve in high license and will
doubtless aid in trying to get
Congress to make the change,
the organizations are not likely
to endorse any such compromise
as doubling the price for legally
protecting the rum sellers. Sev
eral prominent workers have
expressed- the opinion that it
would be a much better move,
from the stand-point of the pro
hibitionists to do away with all
licenses and allow everybody to
sell rum who wanted to, be
cause that would result in dis
gusting the public to such an
extent that the business would
soon be legally prohibited, in
stead of legally protected.
ine ixauona; uospei mission
Union, which was organized
last January, held its first annu
al meeting here this week, and
very interesting were, their ses
sions, the programme being
made up of good singing by the
Moody choir and other volun
teers and short addresses on
gospel mission work by those
who knew from practical ex
perience whereof they spoke.
A special leature consists of the
Gospel Wagons, owned by the
Central Union, Mission of this
city, which attend every meet
ing of the National Union, for
the purpose ot carrying such
members and may desire to go
to the mission meetings held
somewhere in the .city at the
close of each session. In the
day they are outdoor meetings
and at night there is the mid
night mission meeting. The
National Union, in addition to
Washington, has work under
way in Alexandria, Va.; Pitts
burg,. Pa.; Baltimore, Md., and
Philadelphia, Pa., and hopes in
the near iuture to take in other
cities. The special aim is to
reach those the churches can’t
reach.
Mr. Potter and Prof. Miller,
the Chicago evangelists, are
conducting a very successful re
vival here.
The lamented death of Mr.
Pugh has lett the Y. M. C. A.
without a secretary. Here’s a
good place for a good man.
The Pulpit.
THE AGONY AND BLOODY SWEAT
OF CHRIST.
BY REV. JAMES MAPLE, D. D.
And being in agony he prayed more ear
nestly : and his sweat was as it were great
drops of blood falling down to the ground.
Luke 22:44.
The mission and work ot
Christ as the Saviour of the
world caused him to leave his
home in heaven, to take upon
him “the form of a servant,” and
endure great suffering. This
was necessary in the nature of
things, and the salvation of man
could not be accomplished with
out this, “Wherefore in all
things it behooved him to be
made like unto his brethren, that
he might be a merciful and
faithful high priest in things
pertaining to God, to make re
conciliation for the sins of the
people. For in that he himsell
hath suffered being tempted, he
is able to succor them that are
tempted.” He was subject to
great physical suffering, and
fierce conflicts with the powers
ot evil. He “was in all points
tempted like as we are, yet
without sin.” In his suffering
and temptation he went to his
Father in prayer for help, and
in his prayers he was deeply
moved. Hence Paul says, “Who
in the days of his flesh, when he
had offered up prayers and sup
plications with strong crying
and tears unto him that was able
o save him from death, and
was heard in that he feared.”
Paul here refers to the intense
and terrible suffering of Christ
in xne garden jusi Deiore ms
crucifixion. From some cause
he was in great mental agony,
and the struggle was so intense
that he “sweat as it were great
drops of blood falling down to
the ground.” Agony is a Greek
word transplanted into English
with a slight variation of form,
literally denotes a severe con
test or painful struggle. In
English it uniformly embraces
the idea of acute mental or
physical struggle; and such is
doubtless its import here. The
suffering of Christ was so in
tense that the blood was forced
through the pores of the skin,
mingled with the perspiration
and fell to the ground. This
though unusal has been witness
ed in other cases of extraordi
nary agony. Aristotle says,
“some have sweat a bloody
sweat, and Dioderous Liculus
saith of indian serpents, that “if
any one is bitten by them, he is
tormented be excessive pains,
and seized with a bloody sweat.”
The philanthropist Howard
says, speaking of the terrible
punishment to which prisoners
were suojeciea m cerrain pri
sons, “on taking notice of the
rings, pulleys, etc., for the tor
ture, the jailer told me that he
had been seen drops of blood,
mixed with the sweat, on the
breats of some who had suffered
the torture.” Roltain speaking
of Charles IX, of France in his
Universal History, says: “He
died in his thirty-fifth year. His
disorder was of a very remark
able kind : the blood oozed out
of all his pores. This malady,
of which there have been in
stances, was owing to either ex
cessive fear, or violent agitation,
or to a feverish and melancholly
temperament.” Dr. Mead says,
that sometimes in great mental
fervor or pressure, the pores are
so diluted that even blood issues
from them, and there happens a
bloody sweat.” Dr. Schniedler
gives us an account of some
Norwegian sailors who in a
tremendous storm were so
frightened that they sweat blood.
A man in Lyons, when sen
tenced to death was so terrified
that he was covered with bloody
sweat. Sir John Chardin, in
his History of Persia, mentions
a like phenomenon, to which
Dr. Jackson adds another from
Thieanus. These facts show
that intense mental agony some
times forces the blood through
the pores, and covers the body
with bloody sweat. Taking all
the facts in the case into con
sideration it is evident that the
intense agony of Christ caused
his bloody sweat. His agony
was great. This is seen in his
sad expression, “my soul is ex
ceeding sorrowful, even unto
death.” This denotes extreme
sorrow and agony. The suffer
ings of death are the greatest of
which we have any knowledge ;
and they are the most feared
and dreaded by man. These
sufferings are therefore put for
extreme and indescribable angu
ish. The suffering and anguish
of Christ were so great that he
felt as though he must die un
der the dreadful burden. It
seemed to him that he was bear
ing the pains of death.
The question has been asked
how was it possible for Christ
who was a divine Being to suf
fer thus? Why did not his
divine nature lift him above it?
The answer to this question is
the fact that Christ came into
the world, not only to make an
atonement, but to be a perfect
example of a holy man in all
the relations of life. This made
it necessary for him to subject
himself to the common condi
tions of humanity—that he
should be subject to suffering as
other men suffer, and be
strengthened as other men are ;
and submit to the common lot of
pious men. He suffered as men
suffer physical pain and mental
anguish. This alone could make
him a perfect example lor us.
This was necessary to bring
him into full sympathy with
man, and make him just such a
Saviour as we need. “Though
he was a Son, yet learned he
obedience by the things which
he suffered; and being made
perfect, he became the author of
eternal salvation unto all them
-that obey him.”
Wnat was the cause ot this
great distress of the Saviour?
Various answers have been giv
?n to this question, and some ot
•hem very unreasonable; and
no scriptural. The Bible is silent,
but the facts in the case make it
plain. He has come from his
home in heaven his heart over
flowing with love for man, and
had endured great suffering in
his missionary work; but his
people had rejected him, and
were seeking to kill him. Just
before him he saw the savage
murderers, and the cruel cross.
His sensitive nature shrank
back fiom it, and he prayed his
Father to save him trom this
dreadfhl death if man could be
saved without it, but he left it
all to the will of his Father.
An incident occured in Christ’s
agonizing struggle in the garden
that reveals the deep sympathy
and love that was felt for him in
heaven. “There appeared an
angel unto him from heaven
strengthening him.” The angels
knew him in heaven before his
incarnation, and when he left
his home there to come into the
world to redeem man, they were
earnestly anxious to learn all
about the nature and object of
his mission. Peter says that
“the angels desire to look into”
the profound mysteries of the
plan of human redemption,
(i Peter 1:10-12.) They were
present and rejoiced over the
birth of Christ, and when he had
his encounter with satan on the
mount of temptation “angels
came and ministered unto him.”
Matt. 4:11. In some way they
supplied his wants, and comfort
ed him in his great trials. In
his great agony in the garden
these sweet loving spirits came
to his aid, and inspired him with
strength. How they did this,
and what considerations they
presented we are not informed,
but doubtless it was just what
he needed. The angels are in
terested in all the disciples of
Christ, and ever ready to aid
them in the hour of need. Paul
asks, “Are the}' not all minis
tering spirits, sent forth to min
ister tor them who shall be heirs
of salvation?” Heb. 1 :i4.
This agonizing experience of
Christ teaches us that however
pure we may be sorrow will
come to 11s. Christ was spotless.
“He did no sin; “yet what a
dreadful experience he passed
through. His soul was sorrowful
even unto death. This was no
evidence that his Father did not
love him. All this time he lov
ed him with an unutterable love.
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Thus our heavenly Father loves
us, and directs all tilings for our
good.
This agony of Christ reveals
his sensitiveness, and brings
him near to us. He was not a
coarse, hard being insensijffis to
pain, “He suffered being "tempt
ed,” and the afflictions of others
moved him even to tears. Even
on the cross his heart was mov
ed with the tenderest feelings
toward his murderers, and he
prayed earnestly for their for
giveness.
“What a friend we have in Jeans,
A]1 our sins and griefs to bear.”
This experience of Christ re
veals his great love for man, for
he endured all his agony for his
redemption. “Christ also suf
fered for us.” How great our
obligations to him, yet how in
different many are to their obli
gations. They treat him with
neglect, and disregard all his
claims upon them. No wonder
the prophet exclaims; “Hear,
O heavens, and give ear, O
earth : for the Lord hath spok
en ; I .'have nourished and
brought up children, and they
have rebelled against me.”
In a presentation of last year’s
land and water traffic of the
world, Dr. Chauncey M. Depew
gives the following interesting
figures:
“The whole of the tonnage of
the world last year was about
140.000. 000 tons, while the ton
nage of the railways of the
world, carried 100 miles, was
about 1,400,000,000 tons. There
400,000 miles of railroad in the
world, of which 180,000 are in
the U nited States. Of the 1,400,
000,000 tons carried 100 miles
last year on the railways of the
world, 800,000,000 tons were
carried on the railways of the
United States. You take the
600.000. 000 tons carried 100
miles on the railways of the
world outside of the United
States, and then you add to it
140.000. 000 carried on the ocean
in the commerce of the world
upon the seas, and we still have
in the 800,000,000 tons carried
on the railways of the United
States 6,000,000 tons more than
on all railways of the world out
side of the United States and in
all the ocean commerce of the
world put together. This inter
nal commerce of the United
States makes it the most wonder
ful market on the globe.”
_The Navy department receiv
ed a short cablegram yesterday
which refutes in a practical
manner the sensational stories
which occasionally find their
way into print, concerning the
attitude of this government to
wards American missionaries.
The message was from Naples,
and stated that the U. S. S.
Marblehead had, in obedience
to orders from Washington, left
that port for Mersina, Syria, for
the protection of American mis
sionaries in that section. The
vessel was sent upon the recom
mendation of Mr. Terrell, U. S.
Minister to Turkey, he having
informed the State department
that the presence of the vessel
would have an excellent deter
rent effect upon the native ele
ment which is inclined to deeds
of violence.
The Woman’s Foreign Mis
sionary Society of the Baltimore
Conference M. E. Church,
South, seventeenth annual meet
ing was held here this week.
The reports submitted indicated
active interest in missions in all
the churches represented and,
like those from similar societies
in all sections of the country,
noted the etYect of the “hard
times,” now happily passing
away permanently, it is hoped,
upon the contributions.
We ought not to wait till our
friends die to speak kind things
of them—it can do them no
good then. A kind word, a
word of commendation, of en
couragement, may wonderfully
help on the pull of life. It may
lighten a burden, and make it
easier to live and labor in the
service ot humanity, It cost*
nothing, and at the same time
may be worth thousands of dol
lars to your friend.