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hot tears from her eyes streaming down her cheeks. He would cry, and sometimes promise her he would do better. There was a time when sin made an impression upon him; when the slightest little thing that was wrong in heart was recognized, he said, “I am done with it,” but what about today? That was when he was first employed in the boiler factory. That was in the early days of his experience. How’ about it today? The time came when he felt differently. The preacher’s message does not come to him, as it once did. It may be more powerful, but it does not affect him. You do not find the tears in his eyes he once shed. You do not find him praying as he once did. He has ceased to attend church. He does not feel as he once felt when Mother came to talk to him, though he loves her just the same. Death knocks upon the door of his neighbor, and the crepe is seen on the porch, but he does not feel as he once felt. Oh, my dear man, have you be gun to feel that way? Something is the matter. What does it mean? It means there is a process of spiritual and moral calcification going on within. The heart has undergone a process of hardening. Sin does not impress you as it once did. You have become hardened .against the Spirit of God, and you are not touched as you once were. You are not impressed at all. Oh, may God help us! Do I speak to a man who is about to reach the place where the last sensation will be felt, where the har dening will have been complete? Tomorrow, feel ing will be gone forever. “There is a line by us unseen, That crosses every path, God’s hidden boundary between— His patience and His wrath.” DOOMED AS DEAD. I remember very well in the days gone by—it was before I was a preacher—a splendid young man. He was a prominent young lawyer, who was highly respected by everybody. He loved God’s people; liked to go to church, and gave liberally to its support. He was a man of exemplary moral character, but was not a Christian. A great revival of religion was in our town. The leading lawyer of the town was converted, a man seventy-five years of age. It was expected the next to be saved would be this young lawyer. Finally, one night in that church when the preacher was exhorting the peo ple to give their hearts to God, there was a woman in the church who had her eyes fixed upon this lawyer. She went to him, and sat down by him, and asked him if he would not yield his heart to Jesus, and confess Him that night. He said very respectfully, “If you will wait until tomorrow night, I will do it.” There was something else to do but wait. Something said to him, “You have played the fool. You have let a little woman scare you into something you are not ready to do.” lie took a train, and left the city. Something said to him again, “You have played the fool twice. You have let a little woman run you out of town, and run you out of business.” He took the train back to town, and got back by nine o’clock in the morn ing. Nothing was said by him about it. That night he was in the church. The invitation was given, but he did not respond. The same Christian worker came to him, and reminded him of his promise. He said to her, “No, I will not go.” I shall never for get when, after awhile, that man stood and said. “Last night I was impressed. I promised to yield tonight. Instead of that, the devil told me to leave town. I did it. Then he told me I was a fool, that I had run away from my business. Tonight I am here. I haven’t a bit of feeling about my salva tion.” Hundreds prayed for him, but he was un touched. When the meeting closed, he was left out. I saw him about three years ago. We talked of past days, and I asked him about his soul. Said he, “I have never had a whit of feeling about it from that time to this. What it means I do not know. ’ ’ I believe that man had hardened his heart until he had gotten past impression. Without hope on earth where we have churches and preachers and praying and singing. He was only waiting the breaking of the brittle cord of life. Do you know I believe there are people to whom I preach that are past feeling? It hurts me to talk The Golden Age for December 13, 1906. to you this way. I have tried to keep from it. It is an awful truth, and the fact that it is awful makes it the more concern about salvation! Christ hangs on the cross, and bleeds, but no feeling! I know some people say, “It is a pessimistic doctrine, and it ought not to be preached. It may scare peo ple away from the Lord.” The one thing I want is to so impress some that they may come while they have a chance. Now, a word as I close. Who is the man past feeling? You can answer the question just as well as I can. You have, perhaps, already asked your self the question, “Have I committed the sin unto death?” Are you past feeling? Have you no feel ing as I talk to you about this solemn truth? Have you come to the place where you have no desire about your salvation? Then it is you. But can you say, “No, I am not past feeling. I know I ought to give my heart to Jesus. I still have feeling.” There is hope so long as that feeling lasts. But when you cross the line between feeling and no feeling, when the heart becomes paralyzed to the touch of the Spirit, there is no hope. Our London Letter. 10 Paternoster Row, London, E. C. Although there is at present no outstanding ac tivity along evangelistic lines, there are signs, so an evangelist of experience tells me, that the com ing winter will witness an unusually strong move ment on the part of the churches and missions all over the country, and the indications are that the opening of 1907 will become memorable in the Christian Church by a widespread revival. I hope this friend’s estimate is an 'accurate one, and that there is approaching a spiritual movement that will destroy the apathy and indifference and ungodliness that prevail so extensively. While missions on a smaller scale are being held in many quarters, noth ing so large as the Torrey-Alexander campaigns is in progress, though one of the leading evangel ists in England, writing from the large city of Derby, tells me that he is having a wonderful time. There is certainly much need of a general blessing, and we are all praying that it may soon come. There is no doubt that one of the greatest obsta cles that the Church of Christ has to face is the tremendous prevalence of the drink evil. It af flicts every grade of society. Only this week, the retiring Lord Mayor of London, Sir Walter Vaughan Morgan, made the remarkable declaration that but for cases of drunkenness, the city might do with almost half the number of policemen at present required. Nevertheless, he thinks that so far as the city is concerned, the habit of drinking is decreasing, especially among the better c’a s of bus iness men. They drink much less at meals than formerly. That may be so, hut still it must be ad mitted that the evil is a terrible one and that its hold upon every class is enormous. The Rev. Can on Horsley, who is one of the leading authorities on this question in the Church of England, was tell ing a friend of mine within the past week or two that in his opinion temperance is making undoubted progress. He admits that there is a terrible amount of drinking among women, and that is one of the features that appeal to the reformer. Recently at one of London’s police courts, the majority of the offenders were women, and -that is a picture that is not very encouraging. Temperance sentiment is growing throughout the country, and. with a Liber al Government in power, temperance workers are looking for measures that will tend to the dimin ishing of liquor consumption. It is true that a na tion can never he made sober by acts of parliament, but these can help considerably to reduce the drunk enness that is such a blot on the fair name of England. I don’t know’ whether Baptists in America ever perform their baptismal ceremonies in the open air. but on this side these singular services are oc casionally witnessed. On Sunday last, thousands of people lined the banks of a Welsh river to witness the baptism of a number of people. The candi dates were of all ages. As they entered the stream, which ia thermometer test showed to he 38 degrees, they were pressed beneath the chilly cur rent. and while the ceremony w r as being performed massed choirs on the banks sang revival hymns. The officiating minister afterward declared that no ill effects ever followed upon these immersions, and the candidates camie down to the water full of the fire of the faith which nothing could cool. This par ticular river—the river Dee—has become a histor ical stream in connection with Welsh baptisms, and through its sacred waters a vast army passes year by year to be pillars of strength in the Church. July of next year will witness an interesting gath ering in London, arrangements having just been made by thie Evangelical Alliance for the Eleventh International Conference of Christians of all countries. The secretary of the Alliance told me a few days ago that the Conference will probably bring to London representatives of the Evangelical Alliance from all parts of the world, and that the invitation, to be issued shortly, will embrace Chris tians of all countries and Churches. Such a unique spectacle of Christian unity, he added, should prove an object lesson to thle Christian Churches in gen eral and a stimulus to the cause of unity at home much needed at the present time. I have never selen any calculation of the amount of money that must be given away every year in London in support of charitable objects, but it must run into millions of pounds. “There is nothing like it in the world,” said thle secretary of one in stitution to me today.” During the recent Boer war. the societies that depend upon the contributions of the public suffered to a great extent through the subscriptions falling off, but there is happily an improvement setting in. and from inquiries which I have been making I find that the funds of the various organizations are in an excellent state. It is cheering to know that. I remember a New York editor once expressing to me his astonishment at the enormous number of agencies of a charitable character in London, and he wondered how they all found support. And yet they all got along and ac complish excellent work. Every need seems to have some provision made to meet it, and that is a splendid tribute to the Christianity of the nation. The religion of Jesus Christ makes men and women go about doing good. J. Kennedy Maclean. Dr. Bernard’s Book. The Work Once Delivered to the Saints, is the striking title of a neat little volume of 98 well printed pages, written and published by Dr. H. R. Bernard, of Athens, Ga., and sold for 25 cents a copy. Although the purpose of this is somewhat re moved from the purview of the Studio, yet it is so full of keen and fresh interpretation of the Scrip ture that our readers will enjoy its perusal. Written primarily from a Baptist Viewpoint, and to correct some practical blunders in the methods of that great body of Christians, its principles will be quite as valuable to all denominations, because derived from Scripture. There is not a dull line in the book, which con tains therefore more interesting matter than the average volume many times its size and cost. Dr. Bernard is strictly an original student and thinker, with courage enough to tell clearly what he means. To read this book will open up many chapters of the Bible in away to make it valuable to those who may care nothing for the special theme therein treated. It would, however, seem impossible for any one to read this bright monograph without receiving fresh incitement to work more zealously for the Master. The book is for sale by American Baptist Publication Society, Atlanta, Ga. Price, 25 cents. —Dr. W. 11. Young, in Bible Studio. The Smith Family. An old lady, traveling for the first time in a large city, saw a glaring sign on the front of a high building, which read, “The Smith Manufac turing Company.” As she repeated it aloud slowly she remarked to her nephew: “Laws ’a’ mercy! Well, I’ve heard tell of Smiths all my life, but I never knew before where they made ’em!”—Tit Bits (London). 5