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D. C, SOT!ON, Editor and Prop’r.
DR. TALMAGE’S SERMON.
THE 81/iCK SERVANTS OF THE
SKY.
Text: “And the ravens brought Him
bread and flesh in tha morning, and b ead
uudilesb in the evening.”—l Kings, xvii..
The ornithology ,>f tb • Hil.l ■ is ain st in
teresting study. The stork in the Inavus
“w hich knouuth her appointed time.' e
common sparrows, suggestive of ti.ivDHi o
J’rovidenoe. The ostriches of thed*t .t, *
careless incubation reminding omit !.e
leckiossnoss of sente parents'in regard i .
their chiUbvi* The laglu, suggesting tve
riches that take wings and 11 v aw iv. Tim
jelican. emblemizing solitude. The hat, a
llake of the darkness. Tho night lmwk, u.o
ossilrago, the cu hoo, tho l.ipwin;, tlso
osprey. liy Ciod’s command in Leviticus Hung
out ot the world’s bill of far . I wish 1 coubl
nave been with Andubon as lie went through
the forests with gun and pencil, bringing
down and sketching the fowls of heaven! ins
unfolded portfolio thrilling all Christendom.
What wonderful creatures the MnU are.
Their voices this morning seem d like mugs
ot heaven I t loose and bursting through ti.e
gates. Jxiok at their fcath is, wiiich
are clothing and < ouveyan o at th*
same t ime. Consider the nine vertebra* of
the ne *k. Consider the fact tint on libiid
has to each eye three eyelets, the tlrr I evek t
a curtain for graduating the light of the'day.
Sonic of these birds s avengers ami form* of
them orchestra. Thank God for .jun:ls’
whistle and larks’ carol, and the twitter of
the wren, by the ancients called tho kfngo'
birds, because when tho fowls of heaven went
Into a contest as to which could lly the high
est and the eagle swung under tho sun, a
wren on the l a .‘k of tho eagle sprung up still
higher, and so was called the king of birds.
Consider those birds that have golden crowns
and crests, showing that they are feather im
perials. Hear the humming bird scivnnde
the ear of tho honov suckle. Look at the
lolled king fisher striking like d irl li om s .y
to water. i ‘ear the voice ol lUo owl giving
the keynote to all croakers. Look al tho con
dor amid the Andos battling down the re n
deer, when, its eves destroyed, the poor crea
ture goes tumbling over the rocks. 1 cannot
tell whether a pin* inm or aviary is the best
altar from which to worship (led. Hut in
my text there is nn instance that battles nil
the ornithological womb r of the world. The
grain erop had been cut of. T'aiuine was in
the land. A minister of (rid. Eli jnli, sa’ at
the mouth of a cave by the brook Clienth,
waiting for something to cat. Win
didu’t lie go out to the neighbors There
were no neighbors. It. was a wilderne
AVlay didn't lie go out nn I pick brr ot?
There were no berries, and if th re had be n,
ii *y would have been dried uu by the
drought. Ono morning this man of God,
seated at the mouth ot the case, is looking I
up into the pitiless heavens when ho cent a
Hock of birds approaching. Oh, if they were :
only partridges and lie had an arrow with
which to bring them down' Hut, us they
come nearer, lie firt lit, » .-.re .„.t ■ .n ■ ;..nnS,
but unclean, and their eating would lie spirit
ual death. The length of their wings, the
strength of their beak, the blackness of their
color, the loud, harsh “crack, crack'’ of their
voice prove them to be ravens. They lly
around the prophet's head, rotnd an 1 ro m 1,
an l then on a buttering wing come to tho
level of his lip, and one raven brings the
bread and another raven brings the meat,
and having discharged their tiny car o. their
wheel away and other (locks of rnv errs come
until the prophet is rntistio 1 and Iheso black
servants of the wilderness table are gone.
Tho breakfat bell, anil the supper
bell, sounded for six months, and
some say for twelve months, .ailing the
prophet up to get his food, while these rav n<
Hung tho sounds on the air: “Crock, crack,
crock.” Guess wit to they get the food
from. Sotne say that th**y* got it from t lie
kitchen of King Ahab. Horne say that they
got it from Obadiah. Some sir that these
ravens brought the food to their young in
tho n *sts in the tree tops, and Elijah hail
only io climb up and get it. Some say tho
whole story is improbable, and that this
flesh must have been the torn flesh of living
animals, and therefore unclean,or it w ins car
rion, and then unlit for the prophet. Koine
say that the word iu my te ;t translated
“ravens'’ ought to lcive liet-n translated
“Arabs;” so that the text ought to have
read: “And tho Arabs brought bread an l
flesh to linn in the morning, and bread and
flesh to him in tlioev. ning.” Anything hut
udtnil the Bible to lie true. How away ut
this miracle until all tho miracle is gone; go
on with your work of depleting; but, my
brother, know that you rob only one man,
and that is yourself, of one of the most beau
tiful, comforting, blessed, triumphant lo s ms
of nil the ages. I can tell you who those
purveyors were. They were ravens. f
can tell you who freighted them with
provisions. God. I can tell yon who
launched them. God. 1 can tell you win
told them which way t > iiy. Gou. I cun
tell you who told them at what cave to
swoop. God. I can tell you who it was that
Introduced raven to prophet, and prnph to
raven. God. Here is a passage *.fsnurture
whkh I ought to give in a whisper lest, ut
tering it in a louder tone, some one might
drop down under its power. The passu go is
this—“Ho that tukelh away from the words
of the prophecy of this book, God will take
away I s p-vt out of the Hook of Life, an l
out of the Holy City.” Standing then this
morning and watching the ravens feed ,
Elijah, I hope the d r, oof God s spirit may
swoop dov.n tho sky, and with outspread
wing, pause at the lip of every soul hungry j
for comfort. On tic* tanks it what river
have the great battles of the world been ,
foil, lit 1 While you are examinin'.; the map ,
of the world to answer that. 1 will toll you l
on wlat banks the greet con (lit of to day is <
being fought. On the Tuanies, on the ifud- 1
son, on tho Mississippi, on the Kennebec, on
the Ha van n ah, on the Uhine, on the lihorir, t
on 111) Ni e. on tho Ganges, on the i
ldoangho. It is a battle of six thousand I
years Eleven hundred million troons are <
engaged, and the numb r of the fallen is <
* u-b-r than the number of those who mar li.
It is the battle for bread, ts ntimenialists, 1
seated in.arni chair ,a pict iro l study, with t
•Upper *1 feet on damask ottoman, tell us i
this world is a great scene of avarice arid
greed. I don’t believe it. 'fake all the I
uecessitie out of the * as -, anil nmc-teuths of
th** st ires, ttie shops, the factories, the bank- *
ing bouses of th.* earth would Is* close t b- I
morrow. 1 say take thene *■<- ties out of the 1
ca-e. Who is that, man toiling iu Colorado i
mine, or in New England factory, or count* i
lng out th-* roll of bills in the l.nhk. or nn-aa* 1
uring the fabric on the counter' He is a *
chaa pion going forth for some home circle 1
that needed to l*e car.-d for; or in behalf of 1
a chi rhos God that i.iu-t t o supported, 1
or in behalf of uu asylum of mercy (
that must be sustained. Who is that i
woman trending over the sewing machine, or i
carry ing tb** bundle, or mending the g ,r- I
ment. orsve’tering ut the wa-li tub? 'fl at i
is a Deborah, that ;soneof the Lord’s heroines t
going out against Arnalakitish want that !
comes down with iron chariot to crush nor i
an i her-. '11.9 great question of tht- day is* 1
n>tt .o ones* ■ri of Homo Rule, but whi or' £
there trill be any boms to rule; t a <
tion of tariff, 1 u* -vietlie -til •* -hall lie arsv.
thing to tax. With tlw vast n:.a: : .tyof ]*• •>- i
pie, it is a question of “how shall I Vipp ,rt v
i
cji illy
my family? how shall I meet my wants? liow
shall I.p#tv my rent? iiow shall I clothe ami
►belter and educate tho e dO; end entup* n me?”
If (io 1 will lielp mo t > assist you in the solu
tion of that question, tho happiest man in this
! hou © will l>» your proachor. I have pond
out on a cold morning with expert sportsmen
* » hunt for pigeons, 1 have gone out on th-'
titefldoW to liulit for quail. 1 have gone
down with some «»f my frietfdson the marshes
to hunt for reed birds, but this m uniug l dm
out for ravens.
Not i ©, in the first place, in regard to these
1 winged caterers t hat they were sent directly
from God to Elijah. *‘l have commanded
the ravens to hod thee,” says God in an a l
joining }>assago. They did not come out of
! some other cave, they did not jud happen to
fly that wav,they did not just Impnen to meet
Elijah, they did not just Impiieu to drop tho
into his mouth. They caiti* difectly
*om Go l. Tho dihlo says so. Tho sam i God
" ho is going to supply y ‘mi. Ile is your father.
It would take a great while to make calcula
tion df how many point Is of food, and how
many yards of cloth you will require during
your life, even tho i ;h you kn >w how many
years you wore to live. /V vory el iborate
calculation. God can toll without anv cal
cula; ion. lie ha * a groat family ami h * has
everything moth di/.01, and thare is a plate
for ca *U one of us if we do not a’t like
naughhfcy chil Iron and kick and Kcramhle
and try to upset things—a plate for oac'i one
of us, and we wilt ho serve:! in our turn. G >d
has already ordered nil the suits of cloth ’s
3 T < n will ever wear d >wn, t» the last one in
win li you will he laid out. God has
al v.a lv ordered a'l th ‘ food you will ever eat,
d nvn to the hist erunib that will be put into
your mouth in tho dying sacrament. Ido
not say ho will always give us just what we
wool I l ike. A parent must do -idafor a child.
The child might say: “(>, give me sugar nn 1
confe’tions, and nothing cls«.” Tlio parent
woul I say: “O, that wouldn't he good; that
woul In t bo well for you. You must take
something plainer first.” Tho child might
say: ‘‘Give mo notliiug hut great hlofc dies of
color in my garmonts.” “O,” the parent
won! I say, ‘ that wouldn't b» appropriate;
that wool lift be heair it ill.” Tho parent; de
cides for the child what is best for him fc>
©ai, and wlnt is host for him to wear. Now,
G m1 is our father, an 1 wo are minors of the
familv, and he is going to so *d us and clothe
us. although ho may not always gratifv our
Infantile wishes for sweets and glitter. Tliose
ravens did not. bring pomograuates from the
silver platter of King Ahab for Elijah. The/
nrought bread mid moat; tho very twstthing,
the very host food. Elijah was going to have
a hard time, and God wanted him to he
stout and strong, and ho gives him stout
fool. They did not bring cake or
pie or custard, but bread and meat, sub
stantial diet. And God is going to supply
us. ilo does not promise us tho luxuries
which somefc rnos kill th ■ body, but lie pro n
ises us food, nnd you have a right to take
courage. God has no hard times in Mis his
tory. 1 lis ships never break on tho rock ;.
His hanks never fail. He not only lias the
food, hut He has tho mode of conveyance; not
only the bread, but the ravens; and if in
order to satisfy yon it were necessary, God
would send out <>f the heavens a groat Ho k
of ravens, reaching from his gate to yours, so
that tho food could be Hung down the sky
•Mm .houlcomd from talon t • tj|lo;.i
“Though troubles assai 1 nnd dangers affright,
Though treasures all fail, and foes all unite,
Yet ono thing assuies us, whatever hei : do,
The Beriptm o assures us the Lord will pro
vide ”
Notice also, in regard to these winged
caterei‘B. these black servants of the sky,and
in regard to this whole question brought be
fore us, that nothing could Elijah hoard
up as a surplus. Tho raven did not bring
enough one morning to last a month, they
did not bring enough ono morning to last
until tho next morning. They brou ht
enough in the morning to last until the oven
ing, mid they brought enough in the evening
to last until the morniug. Twice a day.
“And they brought bread and flesh to him
In the morning, and bread nnd flesh to him
in theevening.” In other words they brought
last enough. Oh I wish we could all learn t hat
lesson. You know tho great struggle of the
world is for a surplus. It is not merely
enough for this w ee, or this year, but it is
for fifty years: it is fora lifetime. You have
moi e fait li in the Nassau Hank, the Fulton
tfnnk, the Hunk of England, than m the
Royal Hunk of Heaven. You say: “That
is all very poetic; you can take tho black
ravens; give mo tlw gold ea gles.” If in the
morning tho food b) exhausted, do not sit
down after breakfast and say: “I don't
know where the noxt meal is to come from;”
but go out, look up into the sky, and you
will sec two ravenu, not like tho insane
raven of Edgar A Poe, alighting on his
chamber door. “Oidythisan I nothing more,”
but Elijah's two ravens, the Lord’s two
ravens, tho ono bringing bread, tho other
bringing meat. Plumed butcher and linker.
Oh, how good God Is, and how great are His
resources! When tho city of Rochelle was
besieged, and the inhabitant were dying of
famiii”, history tells us that ho saw washed
upon tho beach as never before, and as never
since, enough shell-fish to feed the whole
ciiy. God is good, Go l is gracious, God is
bountiful. Jn I.VW>, in England, there was
great drought, an liu E'-so\ among the rocks
where there has been nothing planted and
nothing cultured, histxry tells us there came
up a great crop of peas, enough to fill a hun
dred measures, and there xrerp enough blos
soming vines pr unising a . much more. < >h,
God is goo 1, God is gracious, if people would
only trust him. I need not go so l ar. I could
go to this au'licn o and fin 1 500 instances
this morning in y«>ur family histories, illus
trating that God takas care of Jiis dear
children. Tho morning I left home to earn
my own livelihood, iny father sat on
ih j front seat, and I sat on the hack
seat, and I felt sad on leaving home, and my
father had away of improving circum
stances, and he said to me: “Mo vvitt, I am
an old man now, hut I want to tel; you one
thing; 1 have during the course of my life
como up to rnv last d' llar; but whan that
was spent, God always provided. Trust the
I/*rd and you will never want any go‘d
thing.” \Vaa not that a good thing to say to
a boy just starting out in the world? I have
found it tru •. In my family line there wan
an incident that f tried Ut mention, but I
only had part of th© facts, f have them now
fresh from a member of my own family.
There was a great drought no in Now l ing
gland, in Conne ti' iit, and the cr>ns were
failing, and the < at tie were dying for lack of
water Mr. Hirdseye, a Christian man, hail
bis cattle and her Is driven down into the
valleys to get water. This went on for a
whil and finally the neighbors sai 1: “Mr.
Birdseye, you mustu't sen i your cattle down
here t<j use our waters; our waters are fail
ing us; we are all g dug to die together; do
not send your herds and flocks down
here any more.” So Mr. Birdseye
went Ia k to his hou.se on the
hill, and ho called his family together, and
he ca led h s slaves—for sla . ery was ri vogue
in Connecticut—and he read a passage of
Scripture, and then they all knelt down and
ora- e l G f«l for water: an l the family st >ry
i-that there was great sobbing and weep
ing at the family altar the h rds
were {H*risbiri/ ai d there wa; a prospect that
the family w ,uld die of thirst. Th f *y nr m
f omtherko es, and Mr. Hr! ’.e tz>>. a
staT and walked out over the hills, hardly
knowing why or where h** walked, nnd
e< i*ig along a p’a ;e where he ha 1 keen s-or>s
of timos,and never not * ed anything especial,
iu. aw tha the ground we•« very dark, and
h* thru t li - tall int/> it. nu t bor«*d into it,
and wate- fiowe*! forth. He l>eckoned to h:s
slaves and hi 3 servants to come, and be told
MTi VERNON. MONTGOMERY CO., (L\.. i iS! , HKI)AV..II LV 29, IBBii.
.., \ ]
v Mie nto bring buckets nnd to bring palls, and
I they were brought, and water was taken to
II the house, and taken to the barn, and then a
trough was placed there and a larger oxen va
s tion wrts made, and tho waters poured in,
o and in larger volume, and have 1 een
a pouring hi ever since. It is a
o perennial spring that j*ou'*ing I
o now. 1 call that old groat grand fit her
s Elijah, nnd I call th ’ brook that, started that
n , day and ha ;l> en running over since, C'herith,
anil the 1 \sson for you and for me is, th.it
n when wo ivo in any kind of <1 ;t res ,we must
v pray and dig. and prav and dig, mul dig and
I pray, and pray and <li g. How • toes t hat pas
sage go? “The mountains drill de art. and
f the bids he removt d, but my loving kindness
o shall not fail.” If y»u pu s (do lon trial and ,
>t condemn Him for be ng guilty «»f cruelty, t *
o day I move a now trial. If your biography
y is ever written. I can tell you what, tin* first
;» cbflptW witt bo about, and the secon 1 chap
-1 to. , and the nliddlo chapter, mal tlio last
chapter, if it is writtui accurately The first
v chapter will bo about mercy. th“ mid lie
, r ‘ chapter about Morey, the la *t * hapbn* about
J mercy—the merev tint liovi*red over your
\ , cradle, the met* *y tlmt will hovor over vour
grave, tho mercy that hovers over all bo*
s tween.
’ “Wo may like the tiifby tempest bo tossM,
, (>n perilous deeps, lint cannot bo lod :
Though satan enrages tin* wind and tho ti l©.
'* The promise assures us the Lord will provide.”
j Mv subje t, also gives to me a more strik
. ing an l impi'cssive lesson; and that that
, relief is apt to come in an unexpected and
s seemingly iinjinS-sibl» comcvaiico. If it had
been a robin r»wl breast, if it had l e? 11.-mnisi
i cal mo id ov lark,if it. hid been a meek turtlo
, d()vo, it it had b *on a siiblimo albatross that
, brought food to Elijah, 1 would not have
been so surprised; but no, ifc was a
j tierce and inauspicate bird out of
|. whi h we mako ono of tin most
t forceful and repulsive words in our language:
“ “ravenous.” That bird has a passion for
. flicking out; it. is glad to worry the si«*!v an I
p tho slam. With vulturous gu/./do it destroy ■»
everything it can put its h *ak on, in i yet
for six months, or for twelve m mt'is, m
' fomo think, that bird brought Eli jah food.
Your supply is going to co ne in an unex
pected convoyau You get iu so mo busi
ness trouble anl you think some groifc
h *arled man will coino around and will put
' his name on tho back of your note, or h » will
stand by you in some great ontorprisn.
No, ho will not; no, ho will noL
' God will start so no old Shylo lc
to help you, n man who never
helped anybody. lie will bo wrought
upon in such a wav that ho will
come and help you. Oir uioistaneas most
' ominous will tu n out in >st auspicious. It
will ii 1. beachatliu h, its wings and foa*-hors
dashed with white and chestnut. It will be
a raven. O, here is whore wo all make a
mi hake, and th it is, in regard to the color
of God’s provi hm os. A whito ]>rovid u*o
: comes to us. Wo say: ‘‘That is a inorcy.”
A black pr ivideuc » comes to u>. and we say:
•‘O, that is a disaster.” A white providence
conies to us, and we have plenty of meney,
plenty of friends, large government sa *tir
l! ios, plentv of mortgages, SIOO,iKM, every
thing bright, beautiful and fair. And
that petition, “Give me this day my daily
broad,” seems to you inappropriate, because
! ys>;. liav«» enough anyhow for a hundrol
fyi nr-s. Tint al»hi>k I'ntvldi e conies, an*!
' this investin'-*nt fails, and that inve.stnnnt
; goes under, anl misfortune is .idle I tomis
fortune, until all your property is gone, and
then you Ir.'gin to cry to God. Nf»w you look
for help from II aven. Now you see the in
sin'li ieney of this \v »rld; now you are brought
very near to God, nnd vour hopes of Heaven
are bright. It was ill) block I'rovidence
that saved you. It was the white Provi.
donee th it destroyed you. It
the Prov idonce so full of harshness and dis
sonance that brought the greatest mercy to
your s ml. It, w.as a ravon; it was a raven.
A child is born in your house. Your friends
send fho r congratulations. The elder chil
dren sta id with auiauvl look at the new
comer and ask many questions genealogical
and chronological. Great brightness iu that
house. That little one has i's two feet planted
in the very centre of your affe ;tion,nn<l wi:.h
its two bands it takes hold of your very soul;
hut one of the Hire) s merges of children:
scarlet fovor, or »u*oup, or diphtheria, blasts
all that scone. The ch ittoring, the strange
(pii'stions, the pulling at your dress as you
cross tlm room; all that has <;i*n.sed.
As the great frion 1 of children
comes to tlm era tie and s!o>ps
down and puts His arms around your little
one and folds it to His h art and walks away
into thu bower of everlasting summer, your
eyes follow and follow, and you ko *p lo
that way; mid when on m yo»i 1 bought of
Heaven once a week, now you think o it fill
the time, and you are purer and more ten ler
tha i vou used to be, and you are waiting for
the day to break. Oh, how changed! You
are a li dt- r man tlian you wore before that
trouble; ;* on are a better woman. It is not
ft'rotMtical for you to say it,: you are I jotter.
What brought that i 1 *-.sing? It was trouble
that cast its shadow o:i your heart; trouble
that east its shadow on a short grave, and
troubh’ tint < ast its sluwhiw on your home
bla<*k-winged trouble. It, was a raven; it was
a raven. J ,’ear I>ord, teach my ople tiia , it>
is not the dark Providoice licit js so
dcstruct'vo ns the win!/* Providence, and
tha*. “who n the loveth lie cha>tenoth f
and scourge'h - ery one whom He reodv
eth;” and that when trouble comes, it is n>t
because God has a grulgo again *t you, but
liecause he hive you and wants to bring you
nearer to Him, and lift yoti up to higher ra-
diation and on grander pjatfonu. On, chil
dren of God, ge» * nit of v i *ies oclon - in; J
fling your sorrows to the winds. God never
lul lso many ru v m a*ll • Jri ; u*i *v. S ;,ne
ti iios. peril ip-, nnd • Mie #-ares of life you 1
feel likoinv li'tl*child of f >ur years, who
under a (hildis'i r? rdo x it/si id one day: “f
widi I could go U> l£*aven an l see God aid i
pek flowers.” Ah* iny d -ar, at the rig it
time you willgoau I i>i k th II >w r . I .id
tiiat time, prav I k qqiose Elijah
all the time. Tr«iu'*n<lhh work ah -ad <»i' Inm, i
tremendous work behind him. And what 3’otl
want ask for. J put it, in the !»<.] i** tsh i <e,
and I r.sk my eternity on the truth .f it,
when I say, as ■ a God in the right way for ’
what you want and you will it if iis
b'-st for you. (), tiie iner des of God! Fo oo
timos wo canrot uudor-tand thorn. 'Yh -f
come this morning; Hoy alight on the plat
form: they alight on the ed ms of th < gall'*r
jhs: they alight on the back of the pews,
bringing to od from Go I for all your souls.
JiavenP ravens' Mrs. Pithy, a well known
wom oi in Cin* ar ». w;s left by it -r
husband a wid >w with a half
dollar arid a cottag;. Bbo was pabied,
and had n mother nin *ty y •ars .f ag • t/j take
care of. li, was u.arvehm» how th it iv*> u.'iu
got of God, in the way of to nporal .apply,
everything she usk© l / >r, th il the <rv irit.
the hired sor/.iTit in the house, not o I it and
used t/> speak ot it. Ono morning they a rue
from prayer aml the servant said to h;r:
“»Vhv, you have forgotten to ask foe « ord,
and thecr#al is out.” Tn .*y l there and f
as :© 1 fr od for coal, nn I ;ri an hour Hi • d<op
swungojieiiand :hohi»*o I - r /ant viid ' , i, s
come.” A man who h.-id no or done that tbi ig
Ik*fore, an<l never did it a an, hearing that
that woman was in straitened *•::*•‘umstan
thought it would be a go/d thing to send
coal. You do not nnd -rstau 1 it. I do.
Havens! Ravens! You have a right, my 1
brother, rny si-tor. to take God's are of
you in ti© oas , rucvid n •t at If*! is g . ng
t/> take cm re of you in *he future, f- it • a
wonderful thing that .all vour J fe. fort v>or f
three times a day. A has given vou foo l?
I look upon it awo id/r that all my life,
“sirii />/*vi vaoto ivimrFn:'
{/*r*'• tiling n tiny, llod Iwv* given
mo iiHuf, wivh once, anil thou I
was V'sfcon tliomV.ifijt/tinmt noo:t. But that
very morninj; nn'l 111 1 it* wr y ithjhfc 1 mot the
rn v> ;s. Oh tha*t you might tYol sfif irtiteb tl*»
cootluass of Uiul that y»ui could tihfsffc (riirt
lor the two lives, the life you are now
and the li t o whi h every tick of the watoli
uiul ‘very stroke of Iho clock informs you is
flporoa Inn lx> >!c d >\vn an l you see noth
• nig Ur ‘ vimr own spiritual iloi'ornittiaa; look
in \ II ! ViAl see l< thill.; lint WllStod OppOP
i tunity; look for .van} iiml von son nothing
but fearful ju'lgniout riml Ih'ry inillgtm
-1 tion; but loot up and vo’u mo the
wlupt shoulders of mi liit iiVHlin ; l‘lfrist.au'il
tlio fu •« of a pardoning Uod, anil tho imidin
tb •.! fnn o|wning Heaven, bake this food
1 fVu your soul to-dny. Iteimvw now into all
vo ir tioirts. mi l ilia only question 1 wont to
ink is. Ii ‘.v ninny of tliosi' pimple nregnlug to
lake (tod for thoir portion hero no 1 their
portion lioreaftar, going to trust Him itow,
for tli • food of tho nody, aid tni.t him alio
( v lb i food of tlw souls Amid t.liß clatter of
tile tio ii a mid amid tho dang of tlio who. Is of
tho ju Lenient. chariot, the whole subj a, '.ill
; bo demonstrate I.
TTio Hum] Oyster.
i ml Monday afternoon, tin mail eater
sane upstairs to the line embossed, pi no
quill, d recess v. here we write thrilling
editorials tm Canon’s future, ami the out
lo 1; for evening pmnieiuules in the near
lienee, and by loudly exercising his
I'.ngs, tried to intimidate us. We didn't
in'i:■ iicl.ite, however, for a cent. Wo
in- ized up this blooming hloivhanl of
111 e 'lllpleled kidllcod, as he wagged his
chin while singing his song. it wnsim
men > the song wo mean and worthy
of a h tier reception ; and if wo had not
he u too busy ui the time, we should
. lei e paid him for it. with a lick fiom an
in , stove hook, along the base of the
v.icuum, which is supposed to hold his
brains. If the parents of this mouthy
young man would look after him a lit lie
mor closely, tl ey might save themselves
a ./nod deal of sorrow in days lo come,
nisi help to abate a nuisance I lull, has
Img all! let ed the people of Canon.
I here are several varieties of oysters,
Igil the one which we are writing about,
at presn.t is the rural oyster, and is not,a
•sail water product, Imt an inhabitant of
i oiiiii n t owns, where lie grows lo exuber
nne . In fact he is always fresh, is in
si i "i ali the year round, and although
not a fish,he ti ins to dr,nk like one.think
ing by so doing people will imagine he
i a man. II he were cooled once in a
while, he would furnish his own sauce,
lie can he found lounging alioul tho
cliar h door when the ladies are, making
thru exit and '.lie saloons. His steady
on upilion consists in listening to the
clatter of Ids own voice, when he is not
smoking a cigarette, .lust as the tough
"".idiliiiy develops into the slugger, so
ora !h\ rural oy >‘i r in dec process of
cv dulion develop into the tough, so to
speak. A religious paper says that the
or der shoiil I he opened with prayer. This
evidently do-s not refer to the rural oys
ter. lie should lie pried open with a
stocking full of bran mush. Canon City
JAvi ary.
It was an Obi Story for Mini.
“Now,’’said the bride, “llenrv, I want
you to understand distinctly that I do
not wish to he taken for a bride. lam
g ling to behave exactly as if I were an
ol I married woman. So, dearest, do
not think me eolil and unloving if I t reat
you very practically when there is any
body by.”
“1 don’t believe I can pass for an old
married man. lam so fond of you that
lam bound to show it. 1 aui sure to
give the snap away.”
“.No, you inusn’t. It’s easy enough.
And I insist that you behave just like
old married men do. Do you hear;”
“Well, darling, i’ll try, but 1 know f
wil l not Stic aid."
Tim first evening of their arrival the
bride retired to her chamber and the
groom fell in with a poker parly, with
ivh .mliesal playing cards until I o’clock
in the morning. His wife spent the
wearv hours waiting. At last lie turned
up and inet his giief stricken bride witli
the hilarous (piegtion :
“Well, ain’t I doing the old married
in ui like a daisy'”
Slie never referred lo the subject again,
and everybody knew after that that they
had in th cn married. San I'ranciacn
They Il;> Somewhat Heseinblft One.
l.avica “Oh, dear; what can 1 liml to
trim thi - hat with I womlerf”
.-I, , i iu, "1 wouldn’t trim it all, if
I were you.”
Lavinn “Hut I can’t wear a hat with
out trimmings, you stupid thing.'’
i 'ha ■ dus “Don’t we ir it, my dear.”
i a, ,ni -“And what, shall I do with it
then, i 1 nny'f”
I'ha - , in’, “Hut a weather vane on it
and |m , . ,i- church edifice builder have
it for a spire.” —Free i'rMt.
Was Already Accommodated.
H ueerin/ ! awyer “Have you got
brains or bin k whe t bill ter i.i \ our heads”
Wiiue sweetly)- -“brains, sir.”
Lawyer “Well, I would rather have
buck wheat, bat 1 1 r. ”
Witness “1 believe that ii what you
have got.”
A i.aiiok tract of waste land on the
farm of H. F. J’eniek, near ( ireleville,
Ohio, is infested with snakes. A rain
Hooded this tract recently, and drove
the reptiles to a little hill in the vicinity,
i'eniei lingers and Iwo farm hand - came
to thi place shortly after the sUirm, and
were greeted w ilh a i horn of hi < Tie y
pro sued heavy elilhs and vet, to work to
extermhmte the ierj Hints. Iu half a day
they killed four hundred and seven’ . -
three Muike , which, when piled together,
made a neap three and one-half lei t high.
The snake.-Iwere of every species known
in that region.
Tiik woman who wants her garden
spaded at small exp< n-c, has only to give
•h« small hoy- to understand Ihesoil eon
tail, the bf-l fish-bale in town, and they
are welcome to all they want. ,
hASIvdi.M.L.
Facts About tho Mnt,tonal
Game as u Business.
The Expense Attonilant Upon Maintaining
a First-Oliiffc (Hull.
Twelve or fourteen years ag 9 it was
predicted that baseball would erenow be
,ihiv (tf ilni things of the past. In those
days elilhs \\v *e organized on the narrow
est monetary margin-, mostly by specula
live and irresponsible men, ViTto, in many
eases, when it came to paying their debts
failed to do so, and at once declared that
there was nothing in baseball, and that
it would soon die out, lint instead it
lias struggled along, yeat itfler year, un
til it is now the leading American ?t[s>rt,
and is hacked by some of the wealthiest
men in the country. To-day there are
thoroughly organized and fully equipped
eight associations as follows: The Na
tional League, eight clubs; the American
Association, with eight clubs; the South
ern League, witli eight eluhs; the New
England League, with six eluhs; the
Inter HI ate League, with eight clubs ; tho
Northwestern League, with six eluhs,
and the (lull League, with six clubs.
These eight organizations employ over
SUO men, whoso stilarios for the season
will aggregate $1,000,000 or more. Tho
salary list alone of any first class club,
fools up from $35, 00(1 to SIO,OOO a year,
and individual salaries, in some instances,
have nearly reached 000 a season, and
in many eases they have range Irom $3,
500 lo $3,500 for the season. Hill there is
no class of public amusement or sport
which, when properly conducted, gives
better ret unis than baseball.
The travelling expenses of a club, form
quite all item iu the expenditures, and
generally foot up to SIO,OOO or more dur
ing the year. This includes all railroad
fares and accommodations at first.class
hotels. Each club has about 13,000
miles to cover during its regular cham
pionship season, not to mention how
many more while playing exhibition
games. Then there is the additional
cost of keeping the grounds in proper
playing condition, besides paying gate
men, ticket-takers and special men em
ployed about the grounds. All these
things ale well understood by those who
have studied the subject, and they know
full well that a large capital is required
to properly conduct the business. Tho
day lias gone by when half a dozen men
can organize a chili, unless they can
show that they me financially able to
carry out their engagements during the
season. A year or two ago fancy sala
ries were paid in a great many instances,
and players who happened to receive a
little notice demanded such exorbitant
prices that it came near ruining some of
the elilhs. To avoid any unreasonable
prices by players, the leading organiza
tions have passed a rule limiting a play
er’s salary to $3,000 and doing away
with the advance money system except
just enough to defray travelling expenses
at the beginning of the season. The
paying out of a large sum of advance
money during tho earlier part of the sea
son proved a great burden to most of the
eluhs, and the abolishing of that system
lias met with general favor throughout
the country. A year or two ago a good
first or third baseman could not he en
gaged for less than $1,300, and from that
up to $3,300. A first class second base
man could obtain from $3,000 to $3,000.
A short slop with any reputation wanted
from $3,500 to $3,51)0 a year. Outfielders
eoiumaud from $1,500 to $3,500 for the
Henson. The pitcher, who is a very im
portant man in the nine, especially if lie
lias any known abilities as a twirler,
would make a modest demand of from
$3,000 to $3,500 for his .season’s work,
and then he would want a man to alter
nate with him. There are some men
who are really worth more than the $3,
000 limit, and they should be paid in ac
cordance with their merits Imt there
must lie a line drawn somewhere, and
I lie iim ii w ho make unreasonable demands,
simply because they happen to do well
during a season, should be kept down to
the limit For $3,000 for one hour’s
work, six days in the week, for seven
months in the year, is good compensation.
A'i:i/> Ynrl Mail anil IS - i*.
Circumstances Alter Eases.
wyer fto client) Your old uncle
Isaac died this morning. I was just on
my way to your office to tell you.
Client What; That old lunatic?
Lawyer -Yea, and what’s more, lie left
you all his money.
Client Well, f declare, this is terribly
sudden. J trust lie died peacefully.
Four, dear, old man, I do hope that lie
didn’t uffei. A’/as York tlruphic.
We should think a shad would be
pretty confident of a thing wlicu it feels •
it in its bones.
YOL. I. NO. 21.
tff» Kcntarknble Children.
Perhaps tho two most striking instan
ces of home triiinifjg that t)live been given
to the world, writes Agnes'ltcppiier in
tlxi Atlantic Monthly, are fUose of John
Stu.'dl tli 11 and Giacomo LeeqnirfU, the
principal di/Terence being'that while tho
English boy was crammed scientifically
by his father, the Italian boy was ]H.t
mitted relentlessly to cram himself. In
’ Imth cases we see the same melancholy,
blighted childhood, the same cold indif
ference to t’fjc mother, ns to one who had
no part or pan.} in their lives; tlio satiui
joyless routine of hilsw; the same unboy
ish gravity and precocious intelligence.
Mill «tmlied (Ircek at 3, Latin at 8, the
Organon' it 11, and Adam Smith at 13.
Leopardi, at 10, was well acquainted
with most Latin authors, and undertook
alone and unaided the’ study of Greek,
I* 'Hooting himself in that language be
fore he was 11. Mill’s sole recreation
was to walk with his father, narrating to
him the substance of his last day’s -read
ing. Leopardi being forbidden to go
about Ueeamiti without his tutor, acqui
esced with pathetic resignation mid
ceased to wander outside of the garden
gates. .Mill had all boyish enthiisinsni
ami healthy partisanship crushed uul of
him by bis father’s pitiless logic. Leo
pardi’s love for Ids country burned liken
smother' d Halin', ami added one more to
(he pang's that ate out his soul in silence.
His was truly a wotiderlul intellect; and
whereas the English lad was merely
furred by I raining into a precocity for
eign to his nature, and which, according
to Mr. Main, failed to product' any great
amount of scholarship, the Hu Hun boy
fed on hooks with a resistless anil i rav
ing appetite, his mind growing warped
and morbid as his enfeebled hotly sank
more and more under the unwholesome
strain. In the long lists of despotically
reared children there is no sadder sight
than this undisciplined, eager, impetuous
soul, burdened alike with physical and
moral weakness, meeting tyrannical au
thority with a show of insincere submis
sion, anil laying up in his lonely infancy
the seeds of a sorrow which was to find
expression in the keynote of his work,
“Life is Only Fit to lie Despised.”
- ii—' V
llangers in Africa!
“The most dangerous savage foes wc
have to fear,” says Mr. Manley, “are the
crocodile, hippopotamus ami tho buffalo.
We lost live men during my last visit to
the (loiigO from these animals; three were
killed by crocodiles, one by a hippopota
mus mol one by a buffalo. Thera are a
large number of hippopotami along the
Congo anti its tributaries, mid thousands
upon thousands of crocodiles. The lat
ter are by far the most insidious foes wo
have, because, they are so silent and so
swift. You see a man bathing in the
river,” said Mr. Stanley, with one of ids
viviil graphic touches; “ho is standing
near the shore laughing at you, perhaps,
laughing iu the keen enjoyment of his
hath; suddenly lie falls over and you see
him no more. A crocodile has approach
ed unseen, has struck him a blow with
its tail that knocks him over, and lie is
instantly seized and carried off. Or, it
may lie that the man is swimming; lie is
totally unconscious of danger; there is
nothing in sight, nothing to stir a tremor
of apprehension; hut there, in deep wa
ter, under the shadow of that rock, or
hidden beneath the shelter of tlio trees
yonder, is a huge crocodile; it lias spot
ted tlie swimmer, and is watching the
opportunity; the swimmer approaches; lie
is within striking distance; stealthily,
siiently, unpereeived, the creature makes
for its prey; the man knows nothing till
lie is seized by the leg mid dragged un
der, and he knows no more! A bubble
or two indicates the place where he lias
gone down, and that is all.”
A Fenny liamL
In the year IHOI there were very few
pence coined at the mint, says an English
paper. This arose simply from tho fact
that there was little or no demand for
them. A short time ago this fact seems
to have dawned upon some ingenius per
sons supposed to be tho flower-sellers
round the; Hank of England. It is cer
tain that the subsequent “bullying the
market” commenced with them. The
story became circulated that through ac
cident or oversight a quantity of gold
had become mixed witli the bronze used
for coining, and that this hail been made
into | k:iice in that year. Those in the
fraud for fraud it was eagerly offered
twopence apiece for as many 1834 pen
nies as they could obtain. The story got
abroad. Everybody endeavored to get
these coins, and the original collectors
rapidly sold their pennies at three and
four times their value. The fact that
there are comparatively few pence of
that year in circulation materially assist
ed tin: deception, and the “speculators”
did a good trade, it is perhaps needless
to say that there is not au iota of truth
in the story of the gold.