86 THE UNITED STATES IN PROPHECY.
liorned beast, in any nation upon the face of the
earth except our own.
And with these horns there is no objection to be
found. They are like those of a lamb, the Bible
symbol of purity and innocence. The principles are
all right. The outward appearance is unqualifiedly
good. But, alas for our country! its acts are to
give the lie to its profession. The lamb-like features
are first developed, but the dragon voice is to he
heard hereafter,
Chapter Seven.
THE DRAGON VOICE.
Fo the facts thus far elicited in this argument,
we have seen that the government symbolized
"by the two-horned beast must be somegovernment
distinct from the powers of the Old World, whether
civil or ecclesiastical ; that it must arise this side the
Atlantic ; that it must be seen coming into influence
and notoriety about the year 1798: that it must
rise in a peaceful manner ; that its progress must be
80 rapid as to strike the beholder with as much won-
der as the perceptible growth of an animal before
his eyes; that it must be a republic; that it must
exhibit before the world, as an index of its character
and of the motives by which it is governed, two
great principles, in themselves perfectly just, inno-
cent, and lamb-like ; and that it must perform its
work in the present century.
And we have seen that of these eight specifications
Just two things can be said : First, that they are all
perfectly met in the history of the United States
thus far ; and secondly, that they are not met in the
THE DRAGON VOICE. 87
: history of any other government on the face of the
. earth. Behind these eight lines of defense, therefore,
the argument lies impregnably intrenched.
And the American patriot, who loves his country,
| and takes a just pride in her thus-far glorious record
and noble achievements, needs an argument no less
ponderous and immovable, and an array of evidence
no less clear, to enable him to accept the painful se-
+ quel which the remainder of the prophecy also ap-
lies to this government, hitherto the best the world
as ever seen ; for the prophet immediately turns to
= a part of the picture which is dark with injustice,
¢ and marred by oppression, deception, intolerance,
: and wrong.
After describing the lamb-like appearance of this
| symbol, John immediately adds, “And he spake as
E  adragon.” The dragon, the first link in this chain
“of prophecy, was a relentless persecutor of the church
of God. The leopard beast, which follows, was like-
‘Wise a persecuting power, grinding out for 1260
ears the lives of millions of the followers of Christ.
The third actor in the scene, the two-horned beast,
8peaks like the first, and thus shows himself to be a
dragon at heart ; “for out of the abundance of the
heart the mouth speaketh,” and in the heart actions
-are conceived. This, then, like the rest, is a perse-
“euting power ; and the reason that any of them are
Mentioned in prophecy, is simply because they are
Jerecating powers. God's care for the church, his
little flock, is what has led him to give a revelation -
of his will, and point out the foes with whom they
‘Would have to contend. To his church, all the ae-
tions recorded of the dragon and leopard beast re-
late ; and in reference to the church, therefore, we
conclude that the dragon voice of this power is ut-
tered.
The “speaking” of any government must be the -