"Behold I come quickly, and my reward Is with me, tn give e'ery man according as his work shall be." Rev. 22:12. VOLUME 12. OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA, FIFTH-DAY) MARCH 11, 1886. NUMBER 10. PUBLISHED WEEKLY. FOR THE International Tract and Missionary Society. (For terms, etc., see last page.) Entered at the Post-Office in Oakland. A LAS'l.., FHA YER. FATHER, I scarcely dare to pray, So clear I see, now it is done, That I have wasted half my day, And left my work but just begun; S0 clear I see that things I thought \V ere right or harmless were a sin; So clear I see that I have sought, Unconscious, selfish aims to win; So clear I see that I have hurt The souls I might have helped to save, That I have slothful been, inert, Deaf to the calls thy leaders gave. In outskirts of thy kingdom vast, Father, the humblest spot give me; Set me the lowliest task thou hast, Let me, repentant, work for thee. -H. H., in the Century Magazine. ®tntral ~rticltS5. Parental Responsibility. BY MRS. E. G. WHITE. "Train up a child in the way he should go; and when he is old, he will not depart from it." .NOTWITHSTANDING the boasted advancement that bas been made in educational meLbods, the training of children at the present clay is sadly defecLive. It is the home training that is neglected. Paron ts, and especially mothers, do not realize their responsibility. They have neither the patience to instruct, nor the wis- dom to control, the little ones intrusted to their keeping. It is too true that mothers are not standing at their post of duty, faithful to their mother- booJ. ~~hey are generally the willing servantR of worldliness and fashion. Many, even among those who profess to have renounced the world, are influenced to a great degree by its customs and its spirit. Many times the mother neglects her precious charge, and looks to the teacher of the Sabbath and the day subool to make np her deficiency. But she bas no right thus to shift her responsibility upon others, and leave them to do her work. God does not c~Lll her to en- gage in any enterprise to advance his cause or to benefit mankind that will lead her to neg- lect tue physical, mental, and moral training of her own children; and what shall we say of her course vvhen she neglects her sacred duties from worldly and selfish motives? 'rhe opinions and maxims of the world should not govern tue mother, nor should she labor to reach tbe world's standard. She should decide for herself what is the great end and aim of life, and then bend all her efl'orts to attain that end. She may, for want of time, neglect many thi11gs about her house, with no serious results; but she cannot with impunity neglect the proper discipline of her children. Their de- fective characters will publish her unfaithful-of real value. If one mode of discipline does ness. The evils which she permits-to pass un-not produce the desired results, let another corrected,-tbe coarse, rough manners, the dis-plan be tried, and the effects carefully noted. respect and disobedience, the habits of idleness · Mothers, above all others, should accustom and inattention,-will reflect dishonor upon themselves to thought and investigation. If her, and will imbitter her life. ~1otbers, to a they will persevere in this course, they will great degree the destiny of your children rests find· that they are acquiring the faculty in in your bands. If you fail in duty, you may which they thought tbemselve~ deficient; that place them in the ranks of the enemy, and they are learning to form aright the characters make them his agents to ruin souls; but by a of their children. The result of the labor and godly example and faithful discipline you may thought given to thiB work will be seen in their lead them to Christ, and make them the instru-obedience, their simplicity, their modesty and ments in his bands of saving mnny souls. purity; and it will richly repay all the effort Wherever I go, I am pained by the Jack of made. proper home discipline and restraint. LiLtle A want of steadiness in family government children aTe allowed to answer back, to ma.ni-is productive of great harm; in facL, it is nearly fest disrespect and impertinence. Parents who as bad as no government at all. The question permit this are more worthy of blame than is often asked, Why are the children of relig- their children. Impertinence should not be ious parents so often headstrong, defiant, and tolerated in a child-even once. Bnt fathers rebellious? The reason is to be found in the and mothers, uncles and aunts and grandpar-home training. The children have not bad a ents, laugh at the exhibition of pa,ssion in good example, faithful instruction, and proper the little creature a year old. Its imperfect ut-restraint. rroo often the parents are noL united terances of disrespect, its childish willfulness, in theit· family government. The father, who are thought pretty and cunning. Thus wrong is with his cuildrcu but little, and is ignoraut habits are confirmed, and the child grows up of their peculiarities of disposition and tern- an object of dislike to all around him. perament, is harsh and severe. He does not One great reason why so many children are control his temper, but corrects in passion. forward, bold, and impertinent is, that they The child kuows this, and instead of being arB noticed and praised too much, a11d their subdued, the punishment fills him with anger. smart, sharp sayings are repeated in their The mother allows misdemennors to pass at bearing. Do not put them on exhibitiou be-one time for which she will severely punish at fore visitors as prodigies of wit or wisdom, but another. The cuildren never know just what leave them, as far as possible, to the simplicity to expect, and are tempted to see bow far they of their childhood. Endeavor not to censure can transgress with impunity. Thus are sown unduly, nor to overwhelm with prn.ise and seeds of evil that ~:>pring up and bear fi·uit. flattery. Firmness and decision are necessary. I have Parents, you should begin early to teach known parents to say, You cannoL have this or your children respect, obedience, and self-con- that, and then relent, thinking they may be trol. Remember that every exhibition of pas-too strict, and give the child the very thing sion that is not firmly and decidedly checked they at first refused. A life-long injury is thus is a lesson of evil. Your neglect of proper inflicLed. It is an important law of the mind restraint opens the door to Satan, and invites -one which should not be overlooked-that him to come in and control your children; and when a desired object is so firmly denied as to be will not be slow to improve his opportunity. remove all hope, tbe mind will soon cease to Children require patient, faithful care. It is long for it, and will become occupied in other not enough that they are fed and clothed; pursuits; but so long as there is any hope of their mental powers must be developed, and gaining it, a persistent effort will be made for their hearts imbued with right principles. its attainment. rrhey need constant care; but you need not let vVhen it is necessary for parents to gi-ve a them see that you are ever guarding them. direct command, the penalty for disobedience Learn the disposition ofyourcbildrenasrevealed should be as unvarying as are tbe laws of nat- in their association with one anotber, and then ure. Children who are under this firm, deci- seek to correct their faults by encouraging op-sive rule, know that when a thing is forbidden posite traits. Cuildrcn should be taught that or denied, no teasing or artifice will secure the development of both the physical and the their object; hence they soon learn to submit, mental powers tet- s with themselves, and is and arc much happier in so doing. The chit- the result of effort. They should early learn dren uf uuclocidcJ and overindulgent parents that happiness is not found in selfish gratifica-have a constant hope that they may gain their tion, but follows ot!ly in the wake of duty. end by coaxing, crying, or sullenness, 0r that I have be:-trd mothers say that they bad not they may venture to disobey without suffering the ability to govern which others have; that tho penalty. rrhus they are kept in a state of it is a peculiar talent which they do not pos-snspense, which makes them restless, irritable, sess. Those who realize their deficiency in and insubordinate. God holds such parents this respect should make the subject of family guilty of wrecking the happiness of their chil- government their most diligent study. And dren. This wicked mismanagement is the yet the most valuable suggestions of others key to the imponitcnce and irreligion of thou- should noL be adopted wiLhout thought and sands. It bas proved tue ruin of many who discrimination. 'rhey may not be equally have professed the Christian name. In many adapted to the circumstances of every mother, cases Lhe restless, rebellious spirit, unsubdued or to the peculiar disposition and temperament in youth, creates disturbance in the church. of each child in the family. Let the mother Many church trials may be traced to defective study with cai'e the experience of others, note 1 1 family government. In temperance and crime the difference beLweon tbeit· methods and her of every degree are ofLcn the fruits of seed own, and carefully test those that appear to be. sown by parents. 146 [2) THE BIG NS OF THE TIMES. VoL. 12, No. 10. Let. none imagi11e, however, that harshneRs and severity are nece,Bar.r to secure obedienee. I have seen the most efficient family govern- ment maintained without a harsh word or look. I have been in other families where commands were constantly given i11 an authoritative tone, and h:ll'sh rebukes and f;evore puniRhments were of"ten adminiRtered. In the first case the cbildrt'll followed the course pursued by the parent;-;, and Reldom spoke to one another in bar8h tones. In the second also the parental example was imit:ltod by the children; and cross words, fault-finding:-;, and disputes were heftrd feom morni11g till night. Fathers and mothers, you are teachers; your children are the pupils. Yonr tones of voice, your deportment, your spirit, are copied by your I i tt.le ones. You should be united in their government. Stndy their dif3positions with care, ftnd together seek wisdom and strength from God to deft! with them aright. If you attempt to govern without exercising self-con- .trol, without system, thought, and prayer; you will mo t asstu·edly reap the bitter consequences. Bnt when .rou ha•.re faithfully done your duty, you may then ask the Lord to do for your chil- dJ·en that which yo11 cannot do. And having trained them in the way they should go, you .will find that when old they will not depart from it. The Resurrection of the Dead. soning of Paul; and this settles the question tent ourselves with the facts, rather than at- that those who are Christ's are destined to be tempt to explain them. the subjects of a bodily resurrection. It was to The apostle completes his statement of the a bodily deftth, and restoration to a bodily life, doctrine of the resurrection, as found in the fif- thftt the apostle referred when speaking of teenth chapter of his first epistle to the Gorin- Christ as ri:-;i11g feom the dead, and also when thians, in the following triumphant words: be Raid that "as in Adam all die, even RO "For this corruptible must put on incorruption, in Christ slwll all be made alive." Nothing can and this mortal must· put on immortality. So be plainer than that this is the intended appli-when this corruptible shall have put on incor- cation of his words. ruption, and this mortal shall have pnt on im- This great and wonderful event, designated mortality, then Rhall be broug~1L to pass the in the Bible by the term" resurrection," is, as saying that is written, Death is swallowed up to the time of its occurrence, identified with the in victory. 0 death! where is thy sting? 0 second coming of Christ. On this point the p;rave! where is thy victory? The sting of apostle says: "But every man i.n his own order: death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. Christ the first-fruits; al'l.erward they that are But thanks be to God, which giveth us the vic- Christ's at his coming." ':Chis "coming" is ev-tory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 'Therefore, idently the second coming of Christ, so fre- my beloved brethren,·· be ye .·teadfast, unmov- quently referred to in the New Testament, able, always abounding in the work of the Lord; wben be will personally appear again in this forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in world, raise the dead, judge mankind, and re-vain in the Lord." ceive his people unto himself. Paul speaks of The resurrection, with its attendant facts, this period as "the end." "Then~" he says, will, in the conception of this inspired writer~ "cometh the end, when he shall have delivered cancel and eternally abr·ogate the apparent vic- up the kingdom tu God, even the :B'ather; when tory of death and tbe grave. Death will then Le shall have put down all rule and all authority be swallowed up in victory. The dead will and power. For he must reign till he bath put hear the voice of Christ "at his coming;" and all enemies under his feet. The last enemv as be rose from the dead, so will they be" raised that shall be destroyed is death. And incorruptible," and, in their bodies, be fitted to when all things shall be subdued unto him, then dwell in Heaven. Christians then living, will shall the Son also himself be subject unto him "be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of that put all things under him, that God may be an eye," and, also, in their bodies be fitted to all in all." This connects the second coming of the heavenly world. The "corruptible," in re- Christ, the completion of his mediatorial work, spect to both, will "put on incorruption," and THE doctrine of a bodily resurrection, as held the resurrection ofthe dead, and the termination "this mortal" will "put on immortality." by the Christian church, does not reRt upon of the present mundane s}rstem, as events as- What a proRpect, in theRe marvelous changes, reason at all, except as reason may be exercised sociated in time. The resurrection bas its place and in this great victory, is presented to the in ascertaining that it is a doutrine of the Bible, in a group of august events. eye of Christian thought! We need not won- and that this book is of divine authority. Mere Moreover, alike as to the risen dead, and those der that Paul, who thoroughly believed in his reason never discovered the doctrine, and, if lim-living when these stupendous miracles shall own teaching, should exultingly exclaim: "0 ited to the facts supplied by nature, would never burst upon tho world, the apostle lays down tbiR death! where is thy sting? 0 grave! where affirm it. The Bible doctrine on this subject, general proposition," Now thiR I say, brethren, is thy victory?" The resurrection, as be sftw though intimately connected with the future that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom it. and as he presents it, .fills the Christian's fut- life oftbe soul, is not simply the continuance of of God; neither doth corruption inherit incor-ure with transcendent glory. tbat life. ruption." By" flesh and blood" he means our The same apostle, seeking to minister com- The fifteenth chapter of Paul's first epistle to anima.! bodies, organized and fitted to this world, fort to Cbristia"t}s who were sorr·owing over the Col'inthians is the chapter in which this but not to the heavenly world. rrhese eorrupt- their dead brethren, said to them, in his first subject is more fully considered than in any ible bodies, in their present C011dition, ,, cannot epistle to the Thessalonians: "But I would not other part ~f the Bible. This chapter is de-inherit the kingdom of God." By" the king-have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning voted exclusivelv to the resurrection of "the dom of God," as here used, the apostle means them which are ftRieep, thnt ye sorrow not, even just;" anci in tl1'e opening verses thereof the Heaven, appropriately called God's kingdom as others ·which have no hope. For if we be- apostle cites the proof of Christ's bodily resur- because be reigns there in" undivided and per-lieve that Jesus died and rose again, even so rection, consisting in the testimony of the wit-feet glory forever." Our bodies of "flesh and them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring nesses, including Paul himself, who saw Christ blood" must therefore be changed before they with him. For this we say unto you by the after he rose from the dead, and to whom be can go there. "CotTuption," ::-mch ftS belongs word of the Lord, that we [Chl'istians then liv- identified himself, by" many infallible proofs," to them, cannot, without a change," inherit in-ing] which are alive and remain unto the eom- :IR the Christ that was put to death on the cross. corruption," such as belongs to the bodies pro-ing of the Lord, shall not prevent [precede] AsRuming the fact on the basiR of' this evidence, dueed by the resurrection. This is alike true them which are asleep. For the Lord himRelf the apostle thus reasons therefrom: "Now, if of those dead and those living when Christ sbnll descend from Heaven with a shout, with Ch1·ist be preached, that be rose from the dead, shall come the seeond time. the voice of the archangel, nnd with the trump bow :=;fty some among you that there is no res- And as to both classes-the den.d and the liv-of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise firRt; urrec:.t ion of the dead? But if there be no res-ing-considered with reference to this change, then we [OhristinnR then living] which are alive urroction of the dead, then is Christ not risen; tho apcmtle proceeds to say," Behold, I show you and remain shall be caught up together with ftnd if Christ be not rison, then is OUJ' preaching a mystery: we shall not all sleep [die], but we them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the nir; v:t.in. and your faith is also vain. But [Christians then living] shall all be changed, in and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Where- now is Christ risen from the dead, and become a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last fore comfort one another with these words." the first-fruits of them that slept. For since by trump; fot· the trumpet sball sound, and the Here are essentially the same thoughts tbat we man came death, by man came also the resur-dead shall be r::t.ised incorruptible, and we find in the fifteenth chapter of the first epistle rection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, [Christians then living] shall be changed." to the Corinthians. Pau1 regarded the words even so in CbriRt shnll ftll be made ftlive. But The apostle uses the pronoun "we," meaning containing them as being ad,apted to alleviate every man in his own order; Christ the first-thereby to designate Chri:-;tian.;;, aR a cla.ss, liv-the sorrows of bereftvement, and for this pur- fruits; ftfterward they that are Christ's at his in~ when Uhrist shall come to raise the dead. pose used them. He reminds the Tbessaloni- coming." What be says is that the dead will "be raised ans of the fact that Christ is coming back to this The resurrection of Christ is here treated, I incorl'llpLible," and tktt these Christians will be world personally, in great glory, and with not only as an example of an actual resurrection, "changed," and, in their bodies, fitted to the mighty power. aod that when he comes, be will and hence as a proof of the doctrine, but also as heavenly world without death and the resur-raise the dead. 'l'he dead in Christ will rise a gnaranty of the resn rrection of tho!:le who are recti on. Thus all the difficulty, in respect to first, and Christians then living will be caught Christ's. There is no question as to whether both, growing out of the fact that ''flesh and up together with them in the clouds to meet biR was a bodily reRurrection, any more than blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God," 'vvill the Lord in the air, and both classes will ever wbetber his was a bodily death. The fact th~tt be effectually removed. Both alike will have he with tbe J..Jord. Such was the theology of his body, though dead, saw no corruption, did bodies adapted to Heaven. Paul calls this ''a Paul, and this is a good reason why it should be not, in Paul's view, rnake its restoration to life mystery;" because unknown to natural reason, ours. The resurrection of Christ, and that of his leRs an inRtance of reHurrection, or less tho and because, even when knovvn by revelation, people at his second coming, were cardinal "firRt-fruits '' of thoRe who sleep. As mortality not fully within the comprehension of reason. points in the preaching of the apostles. 'rhey came through Adam, so all the righteous dead We can appt·ebend the facts which be states, gave to these points a prominence that does not will be mnde alive through Christ. ·As be rose an~ believe· them; yet they involve mysteries! e_xist in t.he ministratio~1s of the modern Chris· .i.'rom the dead, so will they. Such is the rea- whiCh we cannot solve. We must heno~· con-tian pulp1t. · ~ --· __ , , .... , lVlARCI-1 1], 1886. TI---:fE SIGNS OF THE TIMES. [S] 147 It seems that the ThesKalonians received the imprel3sion that the second coming of Christ, the resurrection of the dead, and the end of the world were events then near at hand. The apostle in his Rccond epistle to this chnrc-h, cor- rects this impression, anJ exhorts these Chris- tians not to be "soon shaken in mind, or be tronbled, neither by spirit, nor by ·word, nor by letter, as from us, as that the day of Cbrist is at hand." He adds that this dn.y will not come until after the occutTence of certain events w bich be predicts. Eighteen centuries have since rolled away, and that day is still future. It will however come, and then what the Bible says on this subject will he fulfilled. Christ's comin~· to raise the dead and judge the world, as set forth in the word of God, is not uncertain, because it has not yet occurred. · Peter, in his second epistle, speaks of scoffers as appenring in "the last days," as walking aftee their own lusts, and saying, "Where is the promise of his coming'? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things eontinne as they were from the beginning of the creation." His answer to these seoffers is in these words, "Bnt the heav- ens and Lbe earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of un!.!,'odly men. But, beloved, be not ignorant, of this one thing, that one Jay is witb the l;ord as a thousand yearn, and a thousand yean; as one dav. The Lord is not slack concerning his pr;mise aR some men count slackness; b'ut is Jongsufl'eri11g to ns-ward, not willing that any should periKh, but that all should come to re- pentance. But the day of t.be Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heav- TH.li~ SINNER'S PORTION. OH! where shall I hide while the storm sweeps by? No place of refuge, no shelter nigh, No shade of a rock in a weary land, No oasis on the desert sand! No mother's love, no father's home, Can shelter this poor, doomed, wandering one. " Toil without recompense, tears all in vain;" No hope now a future rest to gain. No note can I strike in that glorious strain That swells to the praise of Immanuel's name; No part can I take in that chorus sweet That blends with the sound of the dancers' feet. No place have I in those bright spheres Where God shall wipe away all tears. No draught for me from the crystal tide That flows the throne of God beside; No seat on the bank of the river of life, With the ransomed ones free from care and strife. No rest for the weary, no light can I see Placed in the window of Heaven for me. I stood once the living fount beside, But I would not drink from its healing tide. I would not list to the Saviour's voice, On the world's gay pleasures fixed my choice; At my heart's closed door he waited long, But I turned away with the giddy throng. From the temple of Heaven, from the throne, The voice hath spoken: "It is done!" "Too late! too late!" my anguished cry, " The angel of mercy hath passed me by!" Not yet hath that fearful die been cast; Not yet hath the pitying angel passed. Sinner, to-day look up, and see, Heaven's gate is open still for thee. 0, heed it now, the Spirit's cry,- " Turn ye, turn ye, why will ye die? " -E. 0. D., in Review and Herald. "Redemption Greater than Creation." ens shall pas~ away with a great noise~ and the ONE of the most common objections raised elements shall melt wi tb fervent beat; the earth against God's Sabbath is that, " l{edemption is also and the works that are therein shall be greater than creation, and Christ finished the burned up.': work of redemption on the first day of the This "dny of the Lord" mentioned by Peter, ·week; therefore, we f:'hould observe the first is the period mentioned by Christ himself, when day in boner of bis.fim~shecl work." he "shall come in biR glory, and all the holy rrhere are at least two points that should be angels with him," a.nrl wuen "all that are in clearly.,. proved before any one settles down be- the graves shall boar his voice, and 8hall come bind the above excuse. The first is, Who bas forth; they that have done good unto the res-informed us that redemption is greater than urrection of lifo, and they that have done evil creation? God has not said so in his word; by unto tho resurrection of damnation." The sec-what line of reasoning can it be proved? Can ond coming of ChriRt is no fable. The resurrec- finite minds that are unable to grasp the most tion of the~ dead, both of "the just and the un- elementary principles of God's creative power ju8t" at his corning is no fn ble. The judgment reach out and lay hold on the vastness of crea- of' the world by him is no fable. The diRsolntio11 tion, and properly compare it with the infi- of the present earthly system is no fable. A II nitely marvelous plan of redemption? Cer- these great events have their date in what Pe-tainly the idea is absurd. And since inspiration ter cails "the day of the Lord," which "will makes no snob comparison to tell us which is come as a thief in the night." the greater, it is im pos:;;ible for mortals to That "day" is in the plan of God as a determine in regard to it. Yet men will assurne part of the history of this world. He has so what they know nothing about, and stick to it declared in his word, and so it will be. We with great tenacity, and will entirely ignore shall be in existence when that" day" come&, the plain word of God. n11d all sh:1re in its events. Happy will it But there is another point. Ifwe allow that be for us i 1· God in ChriHt shall then recognize Sunday ~bould be kept in commemoration of us as" l1uir,; of God and joint heirs with Christ." tbe.finished work of redemption, a theory, bow- This will make it to us a day of gren,L joy, glory, ever, which is not founded in reason or the and hollor. Inconceivably ill will it be with word of God, it would be well to inquire us if our uhanwter on earth shall thr:m consign whether or not redemption is finished. Jf the ns to the ::perdition of ungodly mon." May Bible shall inform us in plain terms that re- . God: by bis all-suffi('ient grace: cauRe our names demption is not finished, the above excuse for to be "written in the I;amb's book of life," Sunday-keeping is of no aecount. and secuce to us that" holy conversation and In Rom. t;: 23 we read: "Even we ourselYes godlinesR," referred to by Peter, that will pre-groan within ourselves, waiting for the adop- pare us for "the day of the l;ord," \V hether it tion, to wit, the redemption of our body." Paul greets us as the risen dead, or those who are wrote this language nearly thirty years after to be "changed in a m1>ment, in the twinkling Christ's resurrection, and yet he says we are of an eye: at the last trump." -Samuel T. Spear, waiting ±or "the redemption of our body." D. D., in thP-Independent. Now if the body was not yet redeemed in Paul's day, redemption could not be called a finis/ted CouRAGE that grows from coustitution very work when Christ rose from from tho dead. often forsakes a man when he bas occasion for Again, in Luke 21 : 28, the Saviour says: it; and when it is only a kind of instinct in the "And when these things begin to come to pass, soul it bren,ks out on all occasions, without judg-then look up, and lift up your heads; for your mentor discretion. That courage which arises redemption drttweth nigh." "These things" 1'rom the sense of our duty, and from the fear referred to can mean nothing else than the of offending Him that made us, acts always signs to immediately precede tho second advent -irt' ·a unifoi·m manner, and according to the 1 of Christ, as any one will readily see by the dictates of right reason. · 1context. Then our redempLion is not finished, but only" draweth nigh" when the signs of his second coming appear. And if our redemption only "draweth ni,gh" at that time, surely it will not be .finished before the advent itself takes place. In Eph. 1 : 13, 14, we are informed that after we believe we are sealed with that Holy Spirit of promiRe, "which is the eamest [or pledge] of out· inheritn,nce nntil the redemption of the purchased possesRion, unto the praise of his glory." Here is proof positive that we have only a pledge, as yet, for the "redemption of our purchased possession." And since we have only a pledge for this redemption, redemption cannot be called a finished work, although it is 1:endered sure by the blood of Christ and the "Spirit of promise." In consideration of these facts, who would be willing to risk: his faith on such an excuse as the one proposed at the head of this article? Let us try to consider the feelings we will have when called to stand before the Judge of all the earth; and let us have a faith fou~ded on the word of God, so that we may not be a"hamed of it in that day. A. 0. TAIT. Infidels and Law-Abolisllers. '1 1HE repetition of the Sabbath commandment in the fifth chapter of Deuteronomy is seized as a strong fort both by infidels and those who would have the moralln,w abolished. The former class proclaim a contradiction between this and the same commandment in .Ex. 20; but the latter, it would seem, can never find the commandment as given by the voice of God at Sinai, and en- graved by his finger on the tables of stone, but endeavor to prove from Dent. 5 that the deliver- ance from Egyptian bondage was the reason for instituting the Sabbath; and hence that tho Snb- bath did not exist from the creation, and is there- fore only obligatory upon the Jews. 011e who reads a whole Bible can see that the crontion of the world in six days, and the rest upon tho seventh, is the reason for instituting the Sab- bath; and that the gracious deliverance of the Jsraelites from Egypt was only urged as an ad- ditional rnotive that they should ''keep the Sab- bath day to sanctifY it, as the I.Jord" had com- manded them before, in Ex. 20. See Deut. 5: 12. Now both the infidel and be that would abolish the Sabbath ot' God, cnn find n refutation of their position on this text. in Lhe following extract from :Scott's reply to Pnytw:- " The fourth commandment, as it stands in the fifth chapter of Deuteronomy, varies from the original law in the twe11tieth chapter of Exodus; hence it is inferred tiHtt the writer of these books received his materials from tradi- tion, or invented them himself. But impostors do not admit such appc~Tent inconsistencies, which may at all times be avoided with very little troubl·e; so that they are rat.her proofs of the writer's conscious integrity. In fact, Moses, when delivering a mo~t impressive and pathetic exhortation, did not confine himself to the words which be had recorded as an hiAtorian. The people very well knew the original ground for hallowing the Snbbath in bo110t' of the Creator; and he thought himself at liberty to remind them of their obligation to Je!Jovah, their Re- deemer from Egyptian bonchtge, and of the b umanity due to their bond-servants; for this constitutes another important reason for hallow- ing the Sabbath. Dist'inct motives are not nec- essarily inconsistent. Mr. P., in writing his several pamphlets, might aim both to free man- kind from V'ulgar prejudices, and to obtain celeb- rity for himself; and he might deem it proper on some occasions to insist on tue one motive, and in different circumstances to bring forward the other, without being justly chargeable with inconsistency or self.contradiction." R. F. CoTTRE r,L. _"MY defense is of flod, whicu :'3aveth tue up· right in heart." 148 [4) THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES. VoL. 12, No. 10. The Ostrogotbs and the Visig·oths. (Concluded.) "THE loose discipline of the barbarians al- ways exposed them to the danger of a surprise; but, in8tead of choosing tho dissolute hours of riot and intemperance, Stilicho resolved to attnck the Christian Goths, whilst they were devoutly employed in celebrating the festival of Easter. The execution of the stratagem, or, as it was termed by the clergy, of the sacrilege, was intrusted to Saul, a barbarinn and a pagan, who bad served, however, with distinguished reputatio.n among the veteran generals of 'rhe- odosius. The camp of the Goths [A. D. 403, March 29] which Alaric bad pitched in the neigh borbood of Pollentia, was thrown into confusion by the sudden and impetuous cbnrge of the Imperial cavalry; but in a few moments the undaunted genius of their leader gave them an order and a field of battle; and as soon as they bad recovered from their astonishment, the pious confide nee that the God of the Ob ris- tians would assert their cause, added new strength to theit· native valor. In this engage- ment, which waR long maintained with eqn~d courage and suecess, the chief of tho Alani, whose diminutive and savage form concealed a magnanimous soul, approved his suspected loy- alty by the zeal with which be fought and fell in the service of the republic; and the fame of this gnllant barbarian hns been imperfeetly preserved in the vort~es of Olaudi:tn, since the poet who celebrates his virtue has omitted tho mention of his name. His death waR followed by tho flight and di8may of the squadrons which he commanded; and tho duf"oat of tho wing of ca.valt·y might have decided the victory of Alaric, it Stilicho bad not immediately led the Roman and barbarian infantt·y to the attack. "rrhe skill of the general and the bravery of the soldiers surmounted every obstacle. In the evening of the bloody day the Goths re- trea.ted from the field of battle; the intrench- mentA of their camp were forced, and tho s<.:ene of rapine and slau.gbter mnde some atonement for the calamities which Lhey bad inflicted on the subjects of the empire. The magnificent spoils ot' Corinth and Argos enriched the vet- erans of the West; the captive wife of Alaric, who bad impatiently cln.imed his promise of Roman jowelr:; and Patricinn handmaids, was reduced to implore tho mercy of the insulting foe; and many thousand prisoners, released from the Gothic chains, dispersed through the provinces of Italy the pmises of their heroic deliverer. 'fhe triumph of Stilicho was corn- pared by the poet, and perhaps by the public, to that of M,trius, who, in the same part of Italy, bad encountered and destroyed another army of northern b::nbarians. The huge bones and the empty helmets of tho Oirnbri and of the Goths, would easily be confounded by suc- ceeding generations; and posterity might erect a common trophy to Lhe rnemOJ'Y of the two most illusLrious generals, who had vanquished, on the same memorable ground, tho two most formidable enemies of Rome. "'fhe eloquence of Claud ian bas celebrated, with lavil'lh applause, the victory of Pollontia, one of the most glorious days in tho life of his patron; but his reluctant and partial mu8e be- slows more genuine pr::tit:le on the character of tho Gothic king. His name is indeed branded witb the reproachful epithets of pirate and rob- ber, to which the conquerors of every age are so justly entitled; but the poet of Stilicbo is compelled to acknowledge that Alaric possessed the invin<.:ible temper of mind which rises sn- perior to every misfortune, and derives new resources from adversity. After the total de- feat of his infantry, be escaped, or rather witb- dl'ew, from the field of battle, with the greatest part of his cavalry entire and unbroken. With- out wasting a moment to lament the irreparable loss of so ma.ny bravo companions, he left his victorious enemy to bind in chains the captive images of a G-othic king; and boldly resolved to break through the unguarded passes of the Apcnnine, to spread desolation over the fruit- ful face of Tuscany, and to conquer or die be- fore the gat,es of Rome. "The capital was saved by the active and incessant diligence of Stilicho; but be respected the despair of his enemy, and instead of com- mitting the fate of the republic to the chance of another ba.ttle, be proposed to purchase the absence of the barbarians. The spirit of Alaric would have rejected such terms, the permission of a reLrea.t, and the offer of a pension, with contempt and indignation; but he exercised a limited and precarious authority over the inde- pendent chieftains who bad raised him, for their· service, above the rank of his equals; they were still l0ss disposed to follow an unsuccess- ful general, and many of them were tempted to consult their interest by a private negotia- tion with th2 minister of Honorius. rrhe king submitted to the voice of his people, ratified the treaty with the empire of the West, and repassed the Po with the remains of the flour- ishing army which he bad led into Italy. A cont>iderahle part of the .Roman forces still con- tinued to attend his motions; and Stilicbo, who maintained a secret correspondence with some of the barbarian chiefs, was punctually ap- prised of the designs that were formed in the camp and council of Alaric. The king of the Goths, ambitious to signalize hi::-; retreat by some splendid achievement, had resolved to o<.:cupy the importa.nt city of Verona, which command8 the principal passage of tho .Rhre- tian Alp:1; and, directing his march through the terri toriet:l of those German tribes whose a.lliance would restore his exhausted strength, to invade, on the side of the Rhine, the wealthy and unsuspecting provinces of Gaul. , "Ignorant of the treason which had already betrayed his bold and judiciou8 enterprise, be advan<~ed towards the passage of the mount- ains, alrefLdy possessed by the Imperial troops; where be was exposed, n,lmost at the same in- stant, to a general attack in the front, on his flanks, and in the roar. In this bloody action, at a small distance from the walls of Verona, the loss of the Goths was not less heavy than that which they had sustained in the defeat of Pollentia; and their valiant king, who escaped by the swiftness of his horse, must either have been slain or made prisoner, if the hasty rash- ness of the Alani had not diHappointed the measures of tho Romnn genera.!. Alaric se- cured the remains of his army on tho adjacent rocks, and prepared himself, with undaunted resolution, to maintain tL siege against the su- perior IJUmberS Of the enemy, WhO invested him on all sides. But be eollld not oppose the destructive progrm;r:; of bunger and disease; nor was it posf:lible for him to check the contin- ual desertion of his impatient and capricious barbaria,ns. In this extremity be stili tound resources in his own coumge, or in the moder- ation of hi8 adver::lary; and the retreat of the Gothic king was considered as the deliverance of ltaly."-Dec. and Fall, chap. 30, pa1·. 8, 9. Although Alaric was thus dcl'uated nnd com- pelled to retreat to his <.:amp on the confines of Itnly, and although his retreat "was considered as the deliverance of ltaly," yet it was only a seeming deliverance; and his retreat was only for a season, during which, events were being so shaped that when bo returned it was to trace a line of devastation over the whole length of Italy, from Lbe Alps to the strait" of Sicily; and .Rome herself, which ba.d stood for so many ages the mistress of the world, was visited with such a calamity as to fill with "grief and terror," "the astonished empire," already so familiar with seenes of fearful rapine. And now while Alaric and his terrible Visi- goths, chafing bitterly under their defeat, hang like an angry cloud ready to burst from the Illyrian frontier upon the Western Empire, a furious tempest is excited on the coast of the Baltic Sea, and a torrent of barbarous German tribes pours from the north upon the devoted empire, and carries destruction almost to the gates of Rome. Here we must leave the Visi- goths for a short time while we contemplate, with curious interest, the nations of the North, and the causes which impel them upon the tottering empire. A. T. J. Hints to Church-Goers. "WELL, Hugh, what was the sermon about?" inquired his father, who bad been kept from church by a severe headache. "Really, father, I don't know," replied the young man. "It was so very stupid, I gave up listening and thought of something else." Mr . .Ryegate looked disappointed. "Did I never tell you, my son," said he, "what a great impression was once make on me by something a distinguished lawyer said to me? It was this, and I want you to remember it: Every time you go to bear a sermon or a lecture, and allow your thoughts to wander, you lose just so much of mental discipline and of the power of concentrating your mind. Why, my boy, you are studying for the law, and do you not know that that gift-the ability to keep your mind on a subject-is one of the great- est helps in your or any other profession? Here is a remark on the same subject which I clipped from a paper not long ago: 'Tho concentration of the mind on but one thing at a time is the great end of education. If this habit is per- sisted in, it is surpri8ing what progress ca11 be made.''' "And Hugh," here interposed the sweet voice of his invalid aunt Eunice, "that is only the lowest, most selfish reason for listening to a sermon. 1, ton, have a quotation for you here in my scrap-book: 'Consider the sermon, no matter who may be the preacher, as a message to you from God, not as an effort of man.'" "J!apa," sa1d Hugh's sister DoroLhy, after a moment's pause, " don't you think it is just. as important to concentrate your mind on the singing as on the sermon?" "Certainly," replied Mr. Ryegate, "and on the prnyers as well. No part of God's public worship can be slighted." "Because," continued Dorothy," I never can forget a lesson I received last Fmmmer. A girl stood next to me at evening service when the hymn,- ' Father, what'er of earthly bliss,' was being sung. As I could not sing on account of a cold, and Rhe was looking over my book, 1 could not avoid bearing her. She was looking around the cb urch most of the time, hardly resting her eyes On the words at all, and this, as nearly as I can remember it, is the way E!.he sang tho first verse:- ' Father, what'er of earthly bliss Thy a--a--will sztpplies, Accepted at thy a--a--a-- Let this position rise.' Of course, she was not thinking of a word she sang. It shocked me so much that, whenever I find my thoughts OL' eyes wandering during tho singing, I am aiways brought to myself by the recolleetion of that girl." "A wholesome lesson," said Mr. Ryegate, as the bell rang for tea; "ma.y we all remember it."-.Hester Wolcott, in 8. S. 1'imes. l HAVE heard the weekly prayer-meeting called the thermometer of the church. It is said that the numbers attending it indicate the degree of spiritual warmth pervading the con- gregation. A crowded room would be an infal- lible sign of revival, as an empty one shows the state of religion to be very low-below zero.- Dr. P1'ime. "WITHOUT earnestnes~ no man is ever great or does really great things." MARCH 11' 1886. THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES. (6] 149 Examination of a Fmnous ~-.alsehood. (Continued.) THE investigation to which this statement has been subjected, shows, 1. That no such question as, Hast thou kept the Lord's day? is upon record as proposed to the martyrs in the time of Pliny; 2. 'rhat no such question was asked to any martyr prior to the commence- ment of the fourth century; 3. 'rhat a single instance of martyrdom in which any question of the kind was asked, is all that can be claimed; 4. That in this one case, which is all that has even the slightest appearance of sustaining the story under examination, a correct translation of the original Latin shows that the question had no relation whatever to the observance of Sunday! All this bas been upon the assump- tion that tho Acta Jl;[o/rtyr·wn, in which this story is found, is an authentic work. Let Mosheim testify relative to the character of this work for veracity:- " As to those accounts which have come down to us under the title of Acta Martyrum, or the Acts of the Martyrs, their authority is certainly for the most part of a very questionable nat- ure; indeed) speaking generally, it might be com- ing nearer to the truth, perhaps, were we to say that they are entitled to no sort of credit whatever." Such is the authority of the work from which this story is taken. It is not strange that first- day historians should leave the repetition of it to theologians. Such are the facts respecting this extraordi- nary falsehood. They constitute so complete an exposure of this famous historical argument for Sunday as to consign it to the just contempt of all honest men. But this is too valuable an argument to be lightly surrendered, and more- over it is as truthful as are certain other of the historical arguments for Sunday. It will not do to give up this argument because of its dis- honesty; for others will have to go with it for possessing the same character. Since the publication of Domville's elaborate work. James Gilfillan of Scotland has written a large volume entitled, "The Sabbath," which bas been extensively circulated both in Europe and in America, ·and is esteemed a standard work by the American Tract Society and by first-day denominations in general. Gilfillan had read Domville, as appears from his state- ments on pages 10, 142, 143, 616, of his volume. He was therefore acquainted with Domville's exposure of the fraud respecting "Dominicum ser-vasti ?" But though be was acquainted with this exposure: he offers not one word in reply. On the contrary, he repeats the 'story with as much assurane;e as though it had not been proved a falsehood. But as Domville had shown up the matter from the Acta Mar-tyr·um, it was necessary for Gilfillan to trace it to some other authority, and so be assigns it to Cardinal Ba- ronius. Here are Gilfillan's words:- " From the days of the apostles downwards for many years, the followers of Christ had no enemies more fierce and unrelenting than that people [the Jews], who cursed them in the syn- agogue, sent out emissaries into all countries to calumniate their Master and them, and were abettors; wherever they could, of the martyr- dom of men Fmch as Polycarp, of whom the world was not worthy. Among the reasons of this deadly enmity was the change of the Sab- batic day. 1'he Romans, though they had no objection on this score, punished the Christians for the faithful observance of their day of rest, one of the testing questions pnt to the martyrs being, Dominicum servasti ?-Have you kept the Lord's day ?-Baron. An . .Eccles., A. D. 303, Num. 35, 8tc." Gilfillan having reproduced this statement and assigned as his authority the annalist Ba- roni us, more recent first-day writers take cour- age and repeat the story after him. Now they are all right, as they think. What if the Acta ters 14 and 19. Said he, "I know that my lda1·tyrnrn has failed them? Domville ought Redeemer liveth, and that be shall stand at tho to have gone to Baronius, who, in their judg-latter day upon the earth." That be bad a n~ent, is the true source of information in this living Redeemer, made his resurrection sure. matter. Had he done this, tbey.say, he would· rl'he Redeemer himself also· said, "Because I have been saved from misleading his readers. live, ye shall live also." J obn 14: 19. His life But let us ascertain vvhat evil Domville bas made their lives a certainty. They were dead, done in this case. It all consists in the asser-or, under condemnation of death; but. "Your tion of two things out of the Acta Ma1·tyr-um: life is bid with Christ i.n G-od. When Christ, 1. That no such question as "Dominicum who is our life, shall appear, then sbaJl ye also servast'i?" was addressed to any martyr till appear with him in glory." Col. 3 : 3, 4. the early part of the fourth century, some two The Judgment is the "Judgment to e;ome." hundred years after the time of Pliny. Eternal life is given "in the world to come." 2. That the question even then did not relate 'rhe punishment of the wicked is "the vvratb to what is called the Lord's day, but to the to come." All these are still future. The com- Lord's supper. ing of Chri8t in the clouds of beave11, is the Now it is a remarkable fact that G-ilfillan bas Lime of rewards and puniRbments. "The dead virtually admitted the truth of the first of these praise not the Lord;" "lwow not anything;" statements; for the earliest instance which he "their thoughts perish." Death is called "the ' could find in Baronius is A. D. 303, as his refer-land of forgetfulness." The dead "sleep in the ence plainly shows. It differs only one year dust of the earth." EPSILON. from the date assigned in Ruinart's Actc~ Mctr- tyrum, and relates to the very case which Dom- ville has quoted from that work! Domville's first and most important statement is therefore vindicated by Gilfillan himself, though he bas not the frankness to say this in so many words. -J. N. And?·Mvs, in Jhstory of the Sabbath. (To be concluded next week.) "Not Dead, bu"f! Sleepeth., THE great Teacher, who "brought life and immortality to light through the go:;pel," calied death, sleep; and the result of his teaching was, that his disciples preached "Jesus a11d the resurrection." Sleep implies two things: un- consciousness, and a final waking. 'rbe sound sleeper never dreams; and time, long or short, is but a moment to him. In Matt. 9: 23, 24, we have an account of our Redeemer's raising from death tho daughter of Jairus:- " And when Jesus came into the ruler's bouse, and saw the minstrels and the people making a noise, be said unto them, G-ive place; for the maid is not dead, hut sloepetb." W by did J e- sus not say that the maid was not dead, but alive in Heaven? Did he not know her true condition? Did be say one thing and mean another? Jesus was a model teacher. G-ood teachers are thoughtful and use plain language. But what did our Lord say? "Tho maid is not dead, but sleepetb." Says one, "He meant that the body sleeps." Then, if the body sleeps, it is the body that is not dead. Says the Roman- izer, "It is the immortal soul that is not dead." Then if it is the ''living soul" that is not dead, it is the "living soul" that sleepeth. 'rhe Romanizer may take whichever horn of the dilemma be pleases; for either is fatal to his theory of disembodied spirits. In the eleventh chapter of John, we h:we an account of I1azarus being called back to lifo by Him who is "the resurrection and the life." His words are, "Our friend Lazarus sloepetb; but I go that I may awake him out of sleep." Verse 11. \Vhy did he not say, Our friend _Lazarus bas gone to Heaven; but I go that l may call him from Heaven? When the weep- ing sisters mot him, why did he not comfort them by asRuring them that Lazarus wns happy among the angels? His comfot·t was, "Thy brother shall rise again." Mary understood, for she had sat at the feet of Jesus. The weep- ing Saviour gave the only comfort that the Bible warrants in such cases. See 1 Tbess. 4: 13-18, especially verse 18. The great hope of Job was in the fact that be had a living Redeemer, who would Rtand upon the earth at the latter day; and that, after ~eing destroyed by worms, he would yet see his Redeemer, when called from his sleep in the dust. He saw nothing but silence and darkness in death. It v.ras in hope of that resurrection-life that he gloried. See Job, c!Jap- A Personal God. PosiTIVISM tells us that G-od is abstract and general; it calls us to worship ·•a being immense and eternal-Humanity." But when we at- tempt it, our adoration fixes itself upon a single person, the best and highest we have known, and we escape from the cold inanity of an ab- stract worship to the warm arms of a personal love. Pantheism tells that he is everything, the one eternal substance which appears as con- scious in out· thought and as unconscious in nature.-Hegel. But we can no more worship this than the leaf can worship the tree on which it bangs, than the wave can worship the ocean out of which it rises and into which it sinks. Ag11osticism tells us that be is unknovm and unknowable, "the Power not ourselves that makes for righteou~ness."-Matthew Ar- nold. But behind the povver we seek the will from which it flows, behind tho law we seek the G-iver, behind the moral distinctions we seek the Maker in whom goodness, holiness, and truth are forever embodied. Tbu::;, fi:om all these vague abstractions the soul flies, by a natural instinct, to the God of the Bible. He is revealed as the Creator who called all things into being by his \VOrd, the Preserver who con- trols and directs all things by his will, the Re- deemer who bends in love and pity above the world, seeking to save it; a G-od with a heart, who can boar us when we cry, and forgive us w ben we confess, and bless us w ben \Ve come to him; a ]'ather, waiting for hi~:; lost and wan- dering rhildren, and rejoicing when they return to him. This is he who l1ntb made us for him- self, and in whom alone our unquiet hearts can find rest. Chri~tianity tad to unpleasant results. spoken a lying eli vi nation, whereas ye say, The All such questions should be avoided. Therefore Lord saith it; albeit I have not spoken?" Eze.13: we should advise that, if there were any male mem- 3-7. They declare that to be the will of God of hers in the church, one be chosen to presidejor the which the Lord hath not spoken. Truly, they have time, as moderator of that meeting. But if any mat- followed their own spirit! They claim this as ters come up which present points of any difficulty "true Christian liberty." To do that which the whatever, you might better postpone the bu:siness Lord hath spoken, is to them bondage, a legal serv-and ask the Conference or some minister who may iee, worsl1iping in the letter, not by them to be be near, for assistance. Sometimes trouble::~ arise borne. But the Lord pronounces a woe upon them. which are not settled for months by unadvised ac- Thus we learn that to be guided by our feelings tion in matters which might be postponed till help and our will, and to disregard God's commandments, can be obtained. is will-worship,-is to follow our own spirits. This At th~ General Conference the question of the is not worshiping God in spirit, though by some 01.d,ination and powers of local elders was consid- supposed to be so. Sucl1, instead of worshiping God erecl by a large committee, and thP-ir report was in spirit, are vainly puffed up by their fleshly mind. unanimously adopted by the Conference. T1Jis de- There may be a false worship in the letter. For cision varies somewhat from the position which we this we never plead. This is a Pharisaical, heart-took in our article on "The Church." To show less, outward ob:-;ervance of precepts, without the that there is no· conflict of opinion, we will state promptings of love. Some are so blind that they. that we drew up the report, and presented it to the tldnk all obedience to commandments is of this Conference. And this again shows the great benefit kind. A greater miRtake can not be made. The of general meetings, where bretheren can consult Lord himself has distinctly assured us, "This is the and counsel together. "In the multitude of counsel- love 01 God, tl1at we keep his commaudments." ors there is safety." The report is as follows:- Obedience is required of the citizen in the State. The Committee to whom was referred the subject Obedience of tbe child is the only evidence of love of the orclinatiou of local elders, would respectfully in the family. Obedience is the only manifestation report that we find there is a difference of opinion of love recognized in the Bible. "If I be a father, existing, and there has been a difference in practice in different Conferences, in regard to the jurisdiction where is mine honor? and if I be a master, where is of local elders, or to the extent of their authority to my fear? saith the Lord of hosts." Mal. 1:6. act. In some places, the jurisdiction aud ordination Paul says: "We know that the law is spiritual." have beeu looked upon as confined to the church Therefore loving obedience to it is spiritual service, which elected them; in other cases they have been permitted to administer the ordinances wherever the only true worship. To disobey is to deny the they might chance to be, aR unrestricted as a min- Lord the honor and fear which are his due. Pro-ister. We have tried to canvass the .ground thor- fes~ed worship in willful disobedience is will-worship oughly, and find that there are difficulties in both and mockery. positions if separately traced to their conclusions. It is worth while to notice that this plea against All agree that it is to be regarded as purely a mat- ter of church discipline, and we believe there is the letter of God's law is invariably urged against truth in both positions whkh may be combined in to the fourth commandment, and seldom against any-one consistent system. We therefore offer the fol- thing else. And they who make this plea will seize lowing recommendations:- with avidity any sentence in the Bible from which 1. That the jurisdiction of a local elder, or his they can possibly infer, however forced the iefer-authority to administer the ordinances, be confined to that church which elected him as elder; the only ence. that we are taught to keep Sunday. They exception to this is where the Conference Committee would cling to the letter if the letter suited them. deems it advisable to instruct him to go to another '!'heirs is the spirit of self-will, not of obedience. church under special circumstances. MA1{CH 11 1886 ' . THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES. (TJ 151 2. If he is re-elected, or properly elected elder of another church, his ordination shall stand good. He need not be re-ordained. 3. But in ease of his removal to another church or another Conference, the fact that he has acted as elder over another church should not be considered a g-round for calling him to net as elder agnin. The church should consider his qualifications just ns they would if he hnd never bef'n an elder; and jf there is anv doubt, inquiry should be made of some minister or of an officer of the Conference, to ascer- tain whether he filled the office acceptably. 4. It is well understood that a license from the Conference does not authorize the licentiate to cel- ebrate the ordinances, to administer baptism, or to organize a church. And, therefore, if a local elder receive a ministerial license, it does not enlarge his sphere of action as an elder; it gives him no author- ity to celebrate the ordinances outside of the church of which he is acting as elder. were laid upon it as a whole, so that they might be conveyed into the sanctuary either by the flesh or by the blood. The animal wAs innocent, and might therefore be a type of Christ; but the prif'st was a sinfnl, mortal man, and could not therefore himself represent Christ in the act of bearing our sins. We design erelong to give this subject a more extended consideration in the SIGNS. E. J. w. The Foundation of God's Government. THERE is one more argument that we would in- troduce right here. To do so, we shall have to refer to the taberna'cle built by Moses, and we shall try to do so as briefly as is consistent with perfect clear- ness. In general, only references will be given; the reader can look them up at his leisure. In Ex. 25:8 we read these words: "And let them 5. And, finally, though his ordination shall stand good for all time, except in case of apostasy, when- ever and wherever he may properly be called to act, make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell mnong l1e cannot Pxercise the functions of an elder beyond them." These words of the Lord follow a commnnd the time for which he was elected, unless he is re-I to Moses to receive offerino·s of !rolcl, ~ilver, brass, elected, or elected by another church. But if from . . ~ , ·-.. any cause there should be a failure to hold an elec-acac1a wood, fine lmen, go.tt s ha11, etc. Of these tion, he may then act until his successor shall be the tabernncle Wi'IS to be built. Chapters 25-30 elected. contain the complete description of this structure, A Question Concerning the Sanctuary. together with all the furniture and vessels con- nected with it. The framework was composed of boarrls standing upright. There were twenty on A BROTHER sendR a letter of inquiries, in which This ark, as stated before, was in the most holy place (Heb. 9: 3-5), into which no man could enter save the high priest, and he only once a yeHr. Reb. 9:7. Even then he did not see the ark, be- cause the cloud of incense arising from the censer which he held in his hand, entirely concealed it. Lev. 16: 12, 13. Without thig precaution, he would have died, and the reason why will presently ap- pear. Turning to Ex. 25:20-22, we read: "And the cherubim shall stretch forth their wings on high, covering the mercy-seat with their wings, and their faces shall look one toward another; toward the mercy-seat shall the faces of the cheru him be. And thou shalt put the mercy-seat above upon the ark; and in the ark thou shalt put the testimony that I shall give thee. And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy-seat, from between the two cherubim which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things whiclt I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel." Now we know why no one ex- cept the high priest could enter the most holy place, and why even he, in his yearly visit, could not be- hold the mercy-seat and live. It was because the glory of God was there. In that place the priest was in the immediate presence of God. each ~ide, and eight on the west end. These boards we find the following:- wf're ten cubits (fifteen feet) long, and a cubit and It is now time to inquire how Moses, after having "In reference to the priests taking the blood of a half wide, and were entirely covered with gold; been commnnded to build the sanctuary, happened the victim into the sanctuary, it seems to me that to light upon the special style that he did. For an in case it was for the sin of a··priest or of the whole each one had at the lower extremity two tenons, 1 · 1 · d · 1 f ·1 d 1 · answer, read Ex. 25:9, 40. "According to all that congregation, then the blood was taken into the w 11c 1 were 111serte Into soe \ets o s1 ver, an t 11s ~ first room [the holy place]; but if it was for a ruler arrangement, together with bars that ran through I show thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and or one of the common people, the work was all clone rings on the sides of the boards, sen'ed to keep them the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so in the court, by the altar of burnt offering. And if . E shall ye mnke it." "And look that thou make them this is true, how were the sins of these lorlged in in position. x. 26:15-30. ~ 'l'h t d 1 d b ·1 h · f after their pattern, which was showed thee in the the sanctuary'( From Lev. 10:17, I gather that e eas en was c ose y a va1, or ang1ng, o l · b - fi 1· f · 1 · h fi mount." Since it was to be God's house, God him- t 1e pnests, y eating of those sin offerings who~:~e ne Inen o vanous coors, wit gures or· cherubim blood was not taken into the sanctuary, bore the workeq on it. This was cnlled the door of the tab-self furnished the plan. But by reading a little 1:niquity of the people." · ernacle. Ex. 26:36, 37. Four curtnins, made re-more, we shall find that this pattern was not some- The brother is partly right and partly wrong in spectively of linen, goat's hair, rams' skins, and thing then for the first time conceived. In the 9th his conclusions. It is true that the blood of some badgers' skins, formed the covering of the taberna-of Hebrews. Paul, after telling that Moses purified sin offerings was taken into the holy place, and that cle. Ex. 26: 1_14. Besides the door, there was a (in a figure) the tabernacle, and all the vessels of the the blood of others was not. When the blood was second vail of the same material, which divided the ministry, by sprinkling them with the blood of ani- taken into the sanctuary, the body of the victim tabernacle into two rooms; the first wns called the mals, says, verse 23: "It was therefore necessary was burnt without the camp. See Lev. 4: 1-21; 6: "holy plnce," and the second the,, most holy place." that the patter·n.<; of things in the Heavens should be 30. But when the blood of the offering was not Ex. 26: 31_33; Heb. 9:1-3. So much for the taber-purified witl1 these; but the heavenly things them- taken in to the sanctuary, its flesh was taken by the naele itself. selves with better sacrifices thn n these." This tells priests into thA holy place, and was there eaten by 'iVithi 11 this tabernacle were various articles of us pli'linly that the tabernacle and its furniture them. See Lev. 6:24, 25. Thus the sin was figura-furniture. Just within the holy plnce 011 the north were copied after things in the Heavem;. Now read tivel.y taken within the sanctuary,-in one cn;e by side, was a table, upon which show-bread was Heb. 8:1, 2: "Now of the things which we have the blood, and in the other by the flesh. placed. Ex. 2fi: 23-30; 40:22, 23. On the south spoken, this is the sum: we have such an high priest, The wrong part of the conclusion was in suppos-side there was a candlestick, or lamp-stand, having who is set on the right hand of the throne of the ing that in the latter case the priests them:'lelves seven lamps, the whole beaten out of one solid Majesty in the Heavens; a ministerofthesanctuary, bore the i niq ui ty of the people. Lev. 10: 16-18 piece of gold. These lamps were to be kept con tin-and of the t1'ue tabenwcle, which the Lord pitched, reads as follows:- ually burning. Ex. 25:31-39. In the western ex-and not man.'' "And Moses diligently sought the goat of the sin tremity of the holy place, just before the second Now we know that the tabernacle built by Moses offering, and, behold, it was burnt; and he was angry vail, was the golden altar of incense. Upon this as a dwelling-plnce for God, was only a temporary with Eleazar and Ithamar, the sons of Aaron \Vhich the priPst offered incense night and morning. Ex. representation of God's real, permanent dwelling- were left alive, saying, ·wherefore have ye not eaten 30:1-9 .. This is all that was in the holy place. In place in Heaven. That God does have a tangible the sin offering in the holy place, seeing it is most the most holy place there wns but one article of fur-structure in Heaven for his occupancy, where, to holy, and God hath given it you to bear the iniquity niture, the ark of the testimony (Ex. 25: 10-22), use a common expression, he holds court, is evident of the congregation, to make atonement fot· them and that is of so much importance in our investiga-from the scriptures just qnoted, and also from Ps. before the Lord r Behold, the blood of it was not tion that we shall examine it more particularly. 11:4: "The Lord is in his holy temple, the Lord's brought in within the holy place; ye should indeed By a careful examination of the scripture last re-throne is in Heaven; his eyes behold, his eyelids have eaten it in the holy place, as I commanded." ferred to, we find that this ark was an oblong box try, the children of men." This temple, the place of A careful reading of the above, especially verse of acacia wood, covered within and without with God's throne, has been seen in Heaven. Johu says: 7, plainly shov s that the flesh of the sin offering, gold. On its sides were rings of gold, through which ''And the temple of God was opened in Heaven, and not the priests, was to bear the iniquity of the staves were passed for use in carrying it, so that it and there was seen in his temple the ark of his congregation. What did Mo3es say God had given need never be touched by human hands. The testament." Rev. 11:19. to the priests? The flesh. For what purpose had cover to this ark was called the mercy-seat, and was If we shonld ask what portiou of the earthly he given it r To bear the iniquity of the congrega-of solid gold. Upon the mercy-seat were the cheru-tabernacle e~pecially represent-ed God's throne, the tion. The construction of the sentence absolutely biro, one on each end, of solid gold, and of the same reader would almost at once answer: "The ark, forbids the conclusion that the priests bore the in-piece as the mercy-seat itself. The wings of these with the cher.ubim on the mercy-seat above; be- iquity.' cherubim were extended so as to form an arch over cause it was b~tween these cherubim that his glory The victim represented Christ. He "bare our the ark, and their faces looked toward each other, was manifested." This would be correct. God's sins in his own body on the tree." 1 Pet. 2:24. and downward to the ark. Within the ark was the actual dwelling-place is between the cherubim; "The Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all." "testimony" (Ex. 25: 16), which was nothing other when he moves from place to place, his throne (a Isa. 53:6. In his own person he took them into the than the ten commandments which God spoke from living throne) and the cherubim accompany him. true sanctuary in Heaven. And as the lamb or goat Sinai, .wrote on tables of stone, and delivered to For proof of this read the following texts:- typified Christ, the sins that were confessed over it Moses for ~Safe deposit in the ark. Deut. 10 :1-5. "Give ear, 0 8i1erherd of Israel, thou that leadest 152 [S] THE BIG NS OF THE TlMES. VoL. 12, No. 10. Joseph like a flock; thou that dwellest between the made in it. We must exclaim with the psalmist: cherubim, shine fortu." Ps. 80: 1. "Thy word is true from the beginning; and every "The Lord reignetlt; let the people tremble; he one of thy righteous judgments endureth forever." sitteth between the cherubim; let the earth be Ps. 119:160. E. J. w. moved." Ps. 99:1. Besides these, read Eze. 1 and 10, Isa. 6·: 1-3, and Eze. 28 : 14. "The Abiding Sabbath." Remember now that everything in the earthly sanctuary was a representation of some correspond- ing thing in the heavenly sanctuary, as nearly ex- act as human hands could approach to a likeness of things not made with hands, and 'Ve shall of neces- sity conclude that the throne of God in Heaven i8 directly above the original law ~f ten command- ments, of which the tables placed in the ark by Moses were only a copy. In other words, the ten commandments form the foundation of God's throne. In further pursuit of this thought, read Ps. 89: 14: "Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne; mercy and truth shall go before thy face.'• Also the following: "The Lord reigneth; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude of isles be glad thereof. Clouds and darkness are round a bon t him; righteousness and judgment are the habitation [establishment] of his throne.'' Ps. 97:1, 2. We have already learned that the law is holy, just, and good, and that it is righteousness; it is perfect righteousness, and there is no righteousness outside of this law of ten commandments. Therefore when the psalmist says that righteousness is the establish- ment of God's throne, it is equivalent to saying that God's throne is established upon the ten command- ments; that the ten commandments literally form the basis, or foundation, of the throne of God. The term "throne" is often applied to sovereign authority or royal dignity. The ruler of a country is the representative of that government, and by metonymy the place where the ruler dispenses just- ice is put for the ruler, and so for the government· We speak of "the throne of the universe," meaning thereby the government of the universe. So, then, the fact that the ten commandments are the founda- tion of God's throne, shows that they are the rule of his Government; that every act is in accordance with their just sanctions; and that all the creatures of his Government throughout the universe are re- quired to obey them. This is a conclusion which we are confident can- not be overthrown, nor can any one who holds him- self to a strict regard for the plain word of God, contradict it. This being so, what a view it gives us of the perpetuity of God's law! Leaving the eternity that is past, we look forward and ask, How long shall God's moral law endure? And the an- swer comes, It will endure just as long as God's throne endures, just as long as God rules the uni- verse; for God's throne could not remain firm if its fo4ndations were destroyed. And this shows the unchanging nature of the law, as well as its perpetuity. The moral law is composed of ten precepts. Since the law is the foundation of God's throne, we may with propriety call the ten precepts the ten stones composing the foundation. Indeed, Bishop E. 0. Haven, of the M. E. Church, seemed to have a similar idea in his mind, when he wrote the little book entitled, "The Pillars of Truth." This work contains ten chapters, each chapter being the substan~e of a lecture before the studeuts of Michigan University, the subject of the lectures being the ten commandments. These commandments. according to the bishop's idea, are the ten pillars that uphold all truth. This being true, how can one ofthem be exchanged for another( What would support the throne of the universe while the transfer was being made? Such a q ues- tion needs n'o auswer. vVheu we realize the relation which the moral law ~ustains to GoJ :md hi:; Gov- ernment, the mind at once sees the absurdity of the idea that one jot or one tittle can pass from the law, or that the slightest change could ever be "ORIGIN OF THE LORD'S D.AY." IN continuing his efforts to find the origin of the Lord's day, the author of the "Abiding Sabbath" says:- "After the several appearances of the Saviour on the day of his resurrection, there is no recorded ap- pearance until a week later, when the first day is again honored by the Master. John 20:26. 'l'he exact mention of the time, which is not usual even with John's exactness, very evidently implies that there already attached a special significance to the 'firsL day of the week' at the time when this gospel was written."-P. 190. From Mr. Elliott's assertion of "the exact men- tion of the time, which is not usual even with John's exactness," it would naturally be supposed that John 20: 26 makes exact mention of the first day of the week; we might expect to open the book and read there some such word as, "the next first day of the week," etc. Now let us read the passage referred to, and see how much exactness of expres- sion there is about the first day of the week. The record says:- "And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them; then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you.'' John 20:26. There is the "exact mention" which attaches significance to the first day of the week! That is. an expression in which the first day of the week is not mentioned; an expression, indeed, in which there is no exactness at all, but which is wholly indefinite. "After eight days'' is exactly the phrase which John wrote. Will Mr. Elliott tell us exactly how long after ( Granting that it was the very next day after eight days, then we would ask the author of the "Abiding Sahbath" if the first day of the week comes every ninth day? If this is to be con- sidered an exact mention of time, unusual even with John's exactness, then we should like to see a form of words which Mr. Elliott would consider inexact. Perhaps some one may ask what day we think it was. We make no pretensions to wisdom above what is written. And as the word of God says it was" afte1· eight clays," without telling us anything , tall about how long after, we know nothing more. delinitely about wltat day it was than what the word tells us, that it was "after eight da:ys.'' We know of a similar expression in Matt. 17: 1: "And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain ap:trt;" and we know that Luke's record of the same scene says: "And it came to pass about an eight days after these sayings, he took Peter, and John. and James, and went up into a mountain to pray.'' Luke 9 :28. Therefore we know that Inspiration shows tltat "after six days" is "about eight days,'' and by the same rule "after eight days" is about ten days. But even then it is as indefinite as it was before, and Inspiration alone knows what day it was. But, though we know nothing at all about what day it was, we do know what day it was not. We know that the meeting previous to the one under consideration was on the first day of the week. John 20:19. We know that the next first day of the week woultl come exactly a week from that time. Vve know that a week consists of exactly seven day:::. And as the word of God says plainly that this next rneeLing was "after eight days," we therefore know by the word of God that this meet- it'g wns not on Lhe nexL first day of the week. Then S, bad this great rebel Ead the power to do it. I11 view of all these things, there can be no que~Lion but that the time La!" about come when the great drama is to come to a clo8e. Christ is finishing up his mediatorial work. 'l'be long period of twenty-three hun- dl·ed prophetic: days, spoken of by the prophet, has terminated. The message of warning to all, 6f the unmingled wrath of God that will be poured out upon those who reject the light, is going furLh, and soon Christ will rise up and bring this rebellion to an end. The most fear- ful scenes of human history are jusL before us. But to us a$ a people are committed the great truths of this message. "We are living, we are dwelling in a grand and awful time; In an age on ages telling, to be living is sublime." Can we suppose that at such a time as this, iudifference and neutrality will be any more acceptable than it wns in a local conflict in ancient Canaan? Will not tbe curse of God fall upon those that are indifferent now as much as it did then? We ask the reader to judge. It is posHible that some of us may question whether, indeed, we are approaching this great crisis. None can deny that such a time will come; and no one who bas investigated tbe evidences contained in the Bible, can doubt that its statements clearly prove our proximity to the end. There is not a prophecy in the Bible relative to the time of the end, but that bas been either wholly fulfilled or nearly so. Only a very few specifications linger unfufilled, and these are shaping themselves in Rnch a manner that we cannot question the certainty of the result. G. I. BuTLER. TIJe Work in Europe. r_rHE following interesting pn,ragrapbs are from a private letter from Sister White, dated Hasol, Switzerland, January 27:- "Evcry week leLters come to this place from .France, Italy, RnRsia, and India, stating that souls are embracing the truth from reading our French paper. 'l'o-day one bas been received with five names signed of persons who are rnue;h interested in the truth from reading Les S'ignes, and who send the pay for a year's sub- scription_ Another comes from a man in France, thanking Brother Whitney for the papers sent him. He says be has no money to pay for the paper, and nsks if BroLlJ~~~· Whitney will take n. blank book (a register) in exchange for it. His father and mother Llave been opposed to his reading Les Signes, but now they are read- ing it themselves. Brother Whitney has most precious letters from India· and Russia also, commending Les Signes, and telling the good it has accomplishEld. These testimonies are cheer- ing to our hearts. "'.rhere have been some conversions here. One young man, a German, who was attending the theological college, left school, and is now in the office, working on the German paper. He is just the help that is needed here. ''These tokens that God is working in Europe are matLers of great rejoiuing to us. We ex- pec.:t the truth will go forth as a burning lamp. Hut it is harder for men and women who receive the truth here than it is in America. Work- men, jewelers, receive but one dollar a dn.y as the highest wr.ges, and they have large families to support. Many get for their day's work only from one to two francs; and when they receive the Sabbath, it is doubtful whether they can get any work, and they are obliged to take np with any jobs tbey can get. "lf out· people in America could understand the privations that have to be endured here, nnd the close economy that has to be practiced i11 order to obtain even tho necessaries of life, L .. oy ·would g;uard their me~ws that not one peuny should be expended needlessly. There would not be a feather on their bonnets, and they would wear 110 needleR~ ornaments; neither would there be H.11y exLntvagnnt houses built, o1· money laid out in co~Lly i'llrniture. They Rhould bear in mind that it is God's money that. they are using,-money that could be invested in saving ROllis for whom Christ died. Any needless expenditure of this money is blocking up the way; for the means thus used would send publications and the living preacher to those who have not the truth." A Letter from Switzerland. SINCE our Conference at Basel, my e:ffor: s have been divided between Geneva and Lau- sanne, a city of 35,000 inhabitants, beautifully situated on Lake Geneva, which vies with Gen- eva so far as attractiveness and literary and scientific attainments are concerned. ~ I have given twenty-six discourses at our ball in Geneva, and have spoken fourteen times at my bonse and at another point, besides do- ing the ordinary amount of visiting. Four per- sons are obeying the trll th ad the result, one of whom may help as a colporter. rrhe work bas moved slowly here because of varion1-1 kinds of lectures, and a general revival effort of a superficial character, either after the regular order of things at this season of the year, or to bead us off. Hut we arc not dis- couraged. In due time we shall reap a glorious harvest if we faint not. We have patiently sown the seed with a sense of God's approbation, knowing God bas a people here who will cut loose from influences that bind them; Rome in the ordinary way, and others through troubles hastening on apace-God's rod and crucible to break and melt away obstacles that are slow to yield. My brother bas lately joined me in the work here. His labors are app-reciated. I have just returned from Lausanne, where I spoke twice in our ball to a large and attentive audienee. The first night some thought we were Salvationist~, and threatened to break up our next meeting. I went to the pdfect, the first officer of the city, and got him to send us two policemen, and all passed off quietly. The eanton of Vaud, of which J_;ausanne is the capital, bas taken the lead in opposing all that does not go through the groove of-' the Na- tional church; but we shall try to pursue a a course that will secu-re the respect and pro- tection of the authorities. Pray for us. D. rr. BoURDEAU. Napa and Santa Rosa. Report from Indiana. SINCE the beginning of the present year I have held two meetings at Kokomq, two at New J;ondon, nine at Hartford City, seven at Pleas- ant Lake, nine at Corunna, seven at Ligonier, nine at Marion, one at Bunker Hill, three at Rochester, six at Akron, four at Forest Chapel, four at Noblesville, eleven at Patricksburg, and eighteen at Farmersburg. This has been the busiest part of my ministerial experience. The aggregate number of members received into fel- lowship at these meetings, counting thirteen who gave in their names to constitute a cb urch at Pleasant Lake, is thirty-three. Thirty-four joined the tract and missionary society. We raised $256, cash and pledges, on tent fund. At Akron $61 was raised toward meeting the re- maining debt upon their meeting-bouse, and nt Farmersburg the sum of $308 was raised for the purpose of relieving the ch nrnh property from debt. We find many who are preparing in eamest to give finaneial aid to the cause. 'l'he mis- sionary spit·it is aroused very mne;h in some of the uburches. The number of canvassers in the l:;tate has nearly doubled in the last three monthR. There is a perceptible increase in means paid to the SLate treasurer. In nearly every church that I have viRited I find persons hopefully interested in the truth. 'rhere is an increased attendance, except in a few places. I cannot remember a time in the past when there were so many calls for labor as at the present time. WM. CoVER'.r. California Tract Society. REPORT FOR QuARTER ENDING DEc. 31, 1885. No of members.... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,000 " " added . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 " dismissed.................. . . 19 " reports returned . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 407 " missionary visits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,697 " letters written. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,870 " pages of reaJing matter distributed ........ 662,10:3 " periodicals distributed .................... 58,717 " SIGNS taken in clubs.................. . . . . 2,689 " new subscriptions obtained . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 357 Cash received on membership and donations, $677. 98; on sales, $:223.05; on SIGNS and other periodicals, $1016.57. ANNA L. INGELS, Sec'y. A Drawback. AMONG the minor drawbacks to the work of a missionary in Asia, must be reckoned hi.s dres::;. It is true that as the preacher sta 11ds in the city gate or at the foot of a stone bridge, the strange garb helps to draw a crowd of listeners; but it often turns away attention from the theme of IT was my privilege to hold meetings, in the the discourse; and then, in the eyes of the Ori- fore parL of February, in both of the above ental, the close-fitting, short coat is neither places. I was with the Napa church Sabbath dignified nor comely. With his people, tbe and first-day, Febl'uary 6 and 7. 1 spoke to the scholar and genLleman wears a loose robe that church three times. It bad been ~orne eight reaches nearly to the feet. Only the laboring years since I had met with this people. Death man bas a short blouse. When the Presbytery and removals have depleted their number, still of Ning}')O once met in Lba.t city, some of the there are a few fn.it.hful souls "holding the Cbinef::le thought thnt the missionari s who wore fort." Some of thel:le are feeble and aged; may sack coats .w!lre an inferior order of the clergy; the I;ord raise up others to fill their places the dignital'ies of the uhu'rch wore the men who when it HhnJI be their lot to pas~ away. I was had the frock coats of full length. glad to meet some who have embraced the truth We heard a lively aucounL recently from the since my last visit to Napa. We bad a few Rev. A. H. Smith of a reception which be and interested, outeide hearers who attended our his colleague inN orth China gave to an imm'ense meeting. deputation of Chinamen. The miHRionaries had On the 13th and 14th l was with the church been very active in bestowing relief during'the in Santa Rosa. I gave two discourses and held terrible famine which prevailed in that region. two Bible-readings. On first-day, the 14Lb,. rrbe Chinese wished to testify their gratitude three aJults were baptized, two of these were· by presenting an honorary tablet Lo their bene- persons living near Mark West Springs, who factors. A day was appointed for the ceremony. became convinced of the truth, and commenced For miles around delegates were to gather f m the observance of the Sabbath, from reading the towns and villages with banners and music; the SIGNS OJJ' THE TIMEs. They kept the Sab- a procession was to form, and a1l were to march bath for several months before they knew of to the missionaries' house, where the presenta- tbe Santa Rosa church. Now they have be- tion of the tablet would take place. The native come acquainted, and have cast in their lot with Christians were solicitous that the missionaries the Seventh-day Adventists. should make an appearance worLby of the oc- J. N. LouGHBOROUGH. casion. They intimated to their foreign friends MARCH 11, 1886. THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES. [ll] 155 that it might be well to get ready some special dress-to wear clothes of more than usual dig- nity. So the missionaries looked through their trunks. Mr. Smith put on a long linen duster; his colleague choFJe a loose morning wrapper. The eyet; of the native brethren sparkled; that would do; and in this stately apparel the mis- sionaries received the proeession and returned thanks for the honorary gift.-.. iJ!issionary Her- ald. Harry's Missionary Board. "I CAN'T afford it," J obn Hale, the rich farmer, answered, when asked to give to the cause of missions. Hany, his wide-awake grandson, was grieved and indignant. "But the poor heathen," he replied; "is it not too bad that they cannot have churches and school-houses and books?" "What do you, know about the heathen?" exclaimed the old man, testily. "Would you wish me to give away my hard earninp;s? I tell you l cannot afford it." "G-randfather, if you do not feel able to give money to the Missionary Board, will you give a potato?" "A potato!" ejaculated Mr. Hale, looking up from his paper. "Yes, sir; nncl land enough to plant it in, and what it produces for four years." "Oh, yes!" said the unsuspecting grandpar- ent, Retting his glasses on his calculatit1g nose in a way that showed he was glad to ef-icape from the lad's persecution on such cheap terms. Harry planted the potato, and it rewarded him the first year by producing thirteen; these the following season became a peck; the next season, Reven and a half bu~hels; and when the fourth harvest came, lo! the potato had in- creased to seventy bushels; and when sold the amount realized >vas with a gbcl heart put into the treasury of the Lord. Even the aged fa1·mer exclaimed, '' Why, I did not feel that donation in the least! And, Harry, I've been thin king that if there waR n. little miRsionary like you in every boLlse, and each one got a potato, or some- thing else at:> productive, for the cause, there would be quite a hn·ge sum gathered." J_;ittle reader, will you be that missionary at home ?-Gospel in Alt Lands. NOTES ON THE INTERNATIONAL LESSON. Messiah•s Messenger. (March 21.-Malachi 3: 1-6; 4: 1-6.) FRoM the clny that man sinned to the clays of Malachi, there had been promiseR of the coming of the Deliverer. And now as the last pro- phetic voice of the Old Testament is heard, it announces the coming of the messenger to pre- pare the way of the promised One, and to make ready a people prepared to meet him. This messenger came accordingly, calling the people to repentance, and to belief on him that was to come. 'l 1hose who received the message of the messenger, were by that prepared to receive Him whom the mesRenger announced. Those who rejected tbe words and testimony of the messenger, likewise rejected the Messiah when be came. Job n the Baptist was the messenger here announced. He knew that be was that messenger. He knew the message that he had to bear to the people, and be delivered his mes- sage faithfully and fearlessly. He, like the prophet. Haggai before him, was "the Lord's mesRenger in the Lord's message unto the peo- ple." Hag. 1 : 13. for the kingdom of Heaven is at hand. And now also the ax i!'l laid unto the root of the trees; therefore every tree which bringeth not f(>rth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. I indeed baptize you with water unto re- pentance; but He that cometh after me is mightiel' than I, whose shoes 1 am not worthy to bear; He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire; whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly purge his floor, and gather his " heat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire." Matt. 3 : 1-12. And when they sent priests and Levite1::1 to ask him who he was, "he said, l am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Mnke straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias." John 1 : 23. He knew the work that be had to do. He knew that the time was come for. the fulfillment of these prophecies. And he knew that his work wat~ the fulfillment of them. He wa1::1 the one of whom Malachi had snoken in the lesson for to- day; he was the o~1e of whom Isaiah had spoken; and he and his message were the living evidence that God· gave to the people that the MeRRiab waR at band. And while he was pro:whing, Messiah came and was baptized of him. BuT it was not alone the first coming of Christ tb at was announced by J obn the Bapt i!::lt, nor by Malachi, nor by any of the prophets. John the Baptist announced the gathering of the wheat into the garner-the harvest-and the burning up of the chafi'. This is what Malachi hatl prophesied in the verses chosen for the present lesson. He not only spoke ot' tbe coming of the I..Jord to his temple as at his first advent, but he also spoke of the coming of the same Lord" to judgment" (verse 5), which will be at his second advent; as says Paul, "I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord J et:~us Christ, who shcdl judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom: preaeb the word." rl 1bis is the coming which is re- ferred to in the questions, "·who may abide tbe day of his coming? and who shall stand when be appeareth? '' Verse 2. See also Joel 2 : 11. lt is then especially that he sits as a refiner and purifier of silver, and whosoever reflects his image will be accepted with him. And thit-~ is especially flO of those who sh~Lll be alive on the earth to behold him when he appearetb. They are to endure a "fiery trial" (1 Pet. 4:12, 13); they are to be "baptized with the baptism;'' they are to lutve every vektige of this world's dross purged out of them. The test will be severe so that none is like it; but those who endure it shall come forth as gold, and " be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ.." 1 Pet. 1 : 7. THEN after that comes the burning up of the chnff. "For, behold, the day cometh that shall burn as an oven; a·nd all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble; and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch." Here is the declaration of the word of God, as plain as language can make it, that all that do wickedly shall be burned up, root and branch. And the force of these words cannot be evaded except by making the lan- guage figurative, and then it may be made to mean just what any one pleases. But as long as plain language conveys any real meaning, so long will it be the truth that these words mean that the wicked shall be burned up as chaff is burned in the fire. This is made even stronger, if such a thing were possible, by the third verse, which says to the righteous, "And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the Lord of hosts." The wicked are to be punished upon this earth JoHN the Baptist came "preaching in the (Prov. 11: 31; lsa. 24: 21; Rev. 20:8, 9); they wilderness of Judea, and saying, Repent ye; , are to be punished by fire, and that fire is to be the fire that is to melt the earth. 2 Pet. 3 : 7, 10. The earth will in that day burn as an oven, and all the wicked, being upon it, will be, according to the words of the prophet, burned up upon the earth. Then the earth is to be made over new, and the righteous shall cl well therein forever (Rev. 21 : 5, 7), according to the word of Christ, "Blessed are the meek; for they shall inherit the earth" (Matt. 5: 5); and accol'cling to the words of .M:alaC'hi in the le!::lson. After saying that the wicked shall be bumed up, then be says: ''But unto you that fear my name shall the Snn of Righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth and grow up as calves of the stall." And the wicked, having been COtlHUmcd on the earth, and returned to clust and ashes, shall be ashes under the soles of the feet of those who inherit and inhabit the earth. Tbe doctrine of eternal torment is contrary to the word of God. More than a hundred times the l;ord speaks of the fate of the wicked in terms that denote noth- ing but utter destruction and cessation of exist- ence. As THERE was a message of his coming car- ried to the people to whom Christ was to appear in his first advenL, so lilcewi::;e thel'e will be a message announcing his coming to the people who will see him in his second advent. lt will be a mcRsnge such as was that of .El ijnb to the people of his clay. "Ye have forsaken the commandments of the J:;ord. Row long halt ye between two opinions? If the L01·d be G-od, follow him; hut if Baal [the sun J tl.Jen follow him." (1 Kings 18: 21.) The world in these last days have forsaken the com- mandment of the Lord and have followed Rome, and now God sends a mel:-lsa.ge of warning and of duty to this, the generation of those who shall see the appearing of the Lord in glory. He says: :c If any man wort~hip the beast nnd his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same ~hnll drink of the wine of the wrath of G-od, wbiuh is poured out with- out mixture into the cnp of bis indignation. . . Here is the pntience of tbe saints: here are they that keep tne commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." Rev. 14: 9-12. Then the next thing that is seen is a white cloud, and upon the cloud, one like the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his band a sharp ~ickle, and coming to reap the harvest of the earth; to gather the wheat in to his garner, and to gather the chaff to burn it. Rev. 14: 14-19. As those who accepted the message of God by John the Baptist were thereby prepared to accept the Messiah whom be anno11nced, so those 110w who accept this message of God will be thereby prepared to meet theM el"sinh in his t;econd aclven t to this world. Goli'R me:-;sage and his messengers are now in the world announcing the second coming of Christ, as really :ts was his messenger in the world proclaiming bis first coming. Will you accept the message and meet him in peace, bear his imnge, and be gathered as the precious wl.Jeat into his garner? or will yon reject his warning and be found among the ch,ttf? A. T . .J. HERE is a valuable hint to all teachers of youth and reformers of the erring. The best way to lift a soul above the temptations of a depraved physical nature is to fill it with a worthy aspiration-to fix it upon some noble aim with high and firm resolve. The Master's pantble of the swept and g!}rnishecl house is most true: An empty soul is a standing invita- tion to roving spirits of evil. One who would save man must not only cast out possessing devils, but set in an ab~orbing spirit of good. The music of Orpheus within the soul is a surer gnard against temptation than the wax of Ulysses in the ears.-Sel. "LET thy mercies come also unto me, 0 Lord.'' Ps. 11.9: 41. 156 [121 THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES. VoL. 12, No. 10. SOM:B-: OTHER DAy, OF all the words that grown folks say, The saddest are these, "Some other day.' So easily, carelessly; often said; But to childish ears they are words of dread, To hope a knell, and to wish a doom, A frost on expectancy's tender bloom; For even the baby who scarce can crawl, Knows a promise like that is no promise at all, And that out of sight aud of minJ alway Is that mocking mirage, "Some other day. 11 The years flit by, and wishes fade, And youth in the grave of age is laid, And the child who bent his youthful will ls a child no more, but is waiting still. For the pleasure deferred, the left-out game, Though it come at last, is never the same; The bubble has died on the mantling cup, The draught is dull as we drink it up; And old hopes laugh at us as we say, "At last it has come, that 'other day.,,. Ah! little hearts which beat and fret Against the bounds by patience set, Yours is but universal bte, And the old, as the young, all have to wait. You will learn like us to be stout in pain, And not to cry when your wishes prove vain, And the strength that grows from a thwarted will, And that service is done by standing still, And to bravely look up into heaven and say, "I shall find it all there 'some other day.' " _________ -_Susan Coolidge. Phil's Offering. EvERYBODY in town liked him, and was proud of him. "A smart yom1g fellow, the world will bear from him yet," said one to an- other, nodding approvingly, as they met him. "He will make his mark in the world, you see if be don't." ''There's only just one thing to hinder," said Joe Graham, his chum and best friend. "Phil is a little too smart for his own good, according t6 my way of thinking; and if he doesn't look out pretty sharp, be will find a shoal or two ahead of Lim in the end." But Phil only laughed when Joe intimated anything of the ki11d to him; he felt sure of himself and his capabilities. Why, there wasn't a boy in the nc::tdcrny that could make such brilliant reeitations as Le, and he never spent half the time preparing them that the rest did! To be sure, upon close examination some of the boys whom ..Phil secretly raLber looked down upon as "pokey," had re::tlly come out ahead of him, because they had gone to the root of the matter and thoroughly mas- tered the subject, wbile he had only skimmed on the surface of it. Joe's warnings had come to him at su<.:b times, and he Lad been troubled with faint misgivings, lest after all there was some truth in them. But as such thoughts were uncomfort::tblc, he alvrays shook tbem off as quickly as possible, resolving, however, to be more thoruugh himself in the future. But there was always so m ucb to attend to, and, after all, one did not get caught very often; and before Phil kne it, he had forgotten all about bis resolve. But when be was sixteen he gave himself to Christ. He was thoroughly sincere in the con- secration: and made many an earnest resolve to be faithful in working for the Master. But he forgot that be could gloriiy God just as truly in doing his every-day work and duties faithfully aB in attending church services; so it came to pass that 'IV bile his place was never vacant in church, and he never failed to take part in the young people's meeting, his lessons were but poorly prepared. Joe Grahum watched him in silent disap- provaL "Phil's eiLher making a mistake, or else there ain't anything to it. I don't believe in a religion that approYes of wasting talents like his," be said to himself. "Going to meet- ing and makiug prayers ttre all well enough; but somehow I'd have more faith in and re- spect for it ii' it made Phil get his lessons thor- oughly and do Lis work faithfully. His father sent him to mend a piece of fence the other day, and be actually didn't half do it, he was in such a hurry to get off to the meeting. It would hardly stand alone; but be said it would do well enough. As for school, be is just wast- ing Lis time there; it's a shame, I say.'' ln the meantime, Phil -vvas longing to have Joe wiLb him in this, as be bad been for years in everything else. 1t was so hard not lo be able to appeal to Lim for sympathy and counsel; and many an earnest prayer went up from bis heart for his friend. He tried time and again to plead with Joe; but somehow, do his best, he could never get a chance to say a word on the subject. Be felt a little hru·t over it, and one night as they were goi11g home together, be resolved that he would speak anyway. Perhaps Joe guessed his purpose; for be talked incessantly of the most nonsensical things. Phil could not help laughing1 but be would not be bluffed in that manner. "1 say, Joe," he said, interrupting him finally, "just save your nonsense aw bile. 1 want a little talk ·with you. 1-want you with me, Joe. Won't you give yourself to Cbri3t '? Can't we try to serve him together?" Joe walked on a few steps in silence; then he whistled a bar or two of': Sweet Horne." "You say that you have given yourself to Christ, do you'?" be said preseu tly. "Yes," said Phil. "Won't you do the same?" "I always supposed tLat when we gave away anything, Vi'e took spe<..-ial pains with it. I remember when you made that bracket for lYliRs Gardner you fussed over it more than a little to have it perfectly true. I don't exaetly understand you now, Phil." "And I am sure that I do not understand you," responded Phil, rather stiffly. He was quite sure that Joe was finding fault with him, though he really did not see bow; and he had a chronic dislike to being found fault with in anything. "Why, you say that you have given yourself to Christ. Now if you were going to make a gift to the l'reRident, for instance, you wouldn't give anything but the very best tb~tt you cuuld get-you would be ashamed to, you know; but it strikes me you are making a poor arLicle of your gift to the Lord. I am 110t very well ven:;ed in the Bible, but if I remember aright, it was a command that only tLat whi<.:h was pe1ject should be offered in sacrifice. It seem~ to me if I gave myself to him, 1 would try to make my otfering aR nearly perfect as possible; tor, as 1 look at it, it would honor and praise Lim more if 1 was all that 1 possibly could be in that direction. I don't mean to burt vour feelings, ..PLil; but it seems almost insulting for one to compl::wently offer the Lord what one '"'ould never think of offering an earthly friend. Good night," and Joe bounded in ::tt his own door, giving Phil no chance to say anything either way. He felt very uncomfortable; it bad seemed to him tbat the gift of himself was a great deal. Could it be possible that Joe vvas right? He remembered bow much pains he had taken with that bra<~ket for Miss Gardner; he could never have offered her anything that was not done the very best that he could do it; and yet he was taking no particular pains with the self be had given to God. He knew very well that he was not makiDg half what be might of him- self. It came over him as never b0fore· how little he was really making of himself. lt was a new idea to bim, and not a very comfortable one; for he liked to feel that be. and whatever he did, was about rigLt; but be- fore he went to bed at night, be knelt down by the bed::;ide H.J1d humbly prayed for help to make hil:l offering as perfect in all ways as pos- sible. Joe nodded approvingly several times to himself during the next two or t liree days as he watched Phil closely, and one night when Phil came to him, he met him with oulslretched bands. "0 Joe, I am so glad that you spoke to me so; and, God helpi11g me, I will make the most of myself after this, though the best is poor enough; but somehow 1 uever looked at it so before." "All right, old fellow," reRponded Joe. "I knew that you would be if you only thought of it, and-I guess-we'll try together after tbis."-Zion's Herald. The Sabbath Dinner Table. "DmN'T we have a good sermon?" inquired the eldest son, with all the zoHt of his satisfac- tion in his tone. "Good ! " echoed the father scornfully, bristling up as usual when the vvord "sermon " was uttered. "He took ten mi nu tcs to prove something that we knew as well us he does, ten more-" A shade of distress flitted across Sophy's eyes; the minister had made her feel that she was a sinner. Was not that worth ten minutes? "And as for the pr::tyer," continued the head of the family, with a gesture of impatience, ''it was the dryest prayer I e·rer listened to." "PerhalJS be was not praying to you," 8ug- gested the privileged member of the family. "I think it was the loveliest prayer 1 c'i·er beard," exclaimed the visitor, with t·it;ing; color. The visitor, by the wny, did not enjoy tbe prnyers of the bend of this family. In her own you11g opinion, addressing God in long, bard pbra:::;es, made him seem high up and away from her. "Such length ! Such diffusiveneRs and mi- nuteness! Such rambling! It was a talk, not a prayer. He brought in everybody under the sun." The impul~ive young visitor kept her lips sLut; but she could not keep the indignant flash out of her eyes. rrhe prayer in ehurcb tLat morning bad tou<.:hed her as a prayer bad rarely touched her before. At that inst:tnt she hotly wished that she might never have to bear the head of the family pray again. "Prayer is not a thing to be criticised," sug- gested the eldest son, gently. "I never felt so elenrly as I did lbis morning, how Christ is our ot!ly Lope. Our minister made it so strong and clear." "After rambling on ten minutesabout nature!" commented tbe argumentative voice of the fa- ther. By this time cons('iL~ntious Sophy had a finger-tip pressed into encb car. That sermon was one of the marked periods in her Rpiritual growth. "And then the idea of saying-" The sensitive boy of fourteen, whose mer- cuyy rises and fall:::; with every change in tbe home atmospbere, dropped his eyes and looked troubled. All his delight in tbe plnin, strong sermon bad been marred, even while listening to it, by the dread tba.t somebody at home would pick fla'vvs in it at the dinner table. lf he migLt Lave li~tencd with an untroubled l1cart, into what ready soil the seed would have been dropped that day! Sometimes l think that Satan takes more delight in tbe Sabbath dinner-table than in any other home gathering during tbe week. He knows what little winds carry the good seed away. Somebody, anxious to interrupt the flow ofun- kind eriticism, now made a hurried remark,- " Did you see that lady in r]:ont of us? Wasn't her bonnet grotesque? Just the shape and col- ors to make her look hideous." A relieved laugh went around the table. Surely this was better than finding f::tult with the minister. But Sophy's laugh bad a touch ot uneasiness in it. For several Sabbaths sLe had b~~en trying lo school herself' not to look at bo1mcts ::tt <.:burch; and tbis morning, under the impressive sermon, sLe bad not even noticed MARCH 11, 1886. THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES. [lS] 157 the offending bonnet almost within the range of her eyes. The boy of fourteen looked up brightly. "We have such a good lesson for Sabbath-school to- dny." "I'm glad there's one good one," grumbled his next older brother. ''I had come to the conclusion that they bad picked out the hardest and dryest parts of the Bible for the lessons. Your teacher is such a poke, with his melan- choly voice and solemll face, I don't see how you ever like the lessons." Public opinion again quenched the boy of fourteen. Coming home from cbnrcb, he bad resolved to hurry through dinner that he might give the extra minutes to the study of the les- son; but if it was the dryest part of the Bible, and his teacher a "poke," why should he care for the Sabbath-school? Perhaps be ought to be ashamed for staying after Sabbath-school last Sabbath to talk to the" poke" about some- thing in the lesson. Of course the big boys knew! "He has no sense about asking questions," continued tho big boy. "Your superintendent is a r-mperior man," ob- served the head of the family. "I noticed in prayer-meeting this morning bow uneasy be was under that long prayer. He could not keep his bead down through three sentences." The visitor :flushed again. By this time she had almost resolved to be busy else-where when the time for family worship f:lhould come that night. The listener, who was not a Christian, and who bad spent her Sabbath morning in reading "George Elliot," pushed her napkin into her ring with considerable energy. ''I didn't go to church this morning, and I do not intend to go to Sabbath-school ! A ser- mon that docs no good, a prayer that irritates, dt'y pm·ts of the Bible to study, and a poke to teach it, have no attractions for me." The others, who were Christians, looked bl:mk. A blessing had boon asked upon the dinner. What about a blessing upon the dinner- table talk ?-Sel. Occupation a B1essing. THE most unhappy women in our communi- ties to-day are those who have no engngements to call thorn up in the morning; who, once hav- ing rison and breakfasted, lounge through the dull forenoon in slippers down at the heel, and with disheveled hair, reading Onida'R last noye]; wbo, having dragged tbrongh a wretched fore- noon and taken their afternoon sleep, and hav- ing passed an hour and a half at their toilet, pick up their card-case and go out to make calls; and who pass their eveniugs waiting for some- body to come in and break up the monotony. Arabella Stuart never was imprisoned in so dark a dungeon as that. There is no happiness in an idle woman. It may be with hand, it may be with brain, it may be with foot; but. work she must, or be wretched forever. Tbe little girls of our families must be started with that idea. Tbo curse of onr American society is that our young women are . taught tbat the first thing in their life is to get somebody to take care of them. Instead of that, their first lesson should be how, under God, they may take care of themselves. We now and here declare t.he inhumanity, cruelty, and outrage of that father and mother who pass their daughters into womanhood having given them no faculty for earning their liveli- hood. Madame De Stael said: "It is not. tlJese writings that I am proud of, but the fact that I have faculty in ten occupations, in any one of which I could make a livelihood."-Talmage. IT is an essential element in all thrift that children be taught how to_ save, but it is quite as important that they should learn how to spend.-Uiwistian Register. ~ealth tiD£nt~ernttce. Tobacco and Theolog·ical Seminaries. AMONG the happiest omens for the future we1l being of our country is the growing movement against tobacco. The sentiment which a few have always held, that the tobace;o habit is not only the sonrce of an enormous waste, but that it is directly and exceedingly injurious to the physical, mental, and moral nature of man, is becoming more general and confessed. 1 know that in France and Germanv the mat- ter has been duly considered, and vai·ious laws regulating the use of tobacco have been enacted. But from time to time I am agreeably surpri~ed to find how rapidly public sentiment in tllis country is rising to a just view of the habit. On one side I hear _of numerous associations which refuse to approve ministers who use to- bacco. On another side I hear of churches pleased with candidates, but which refuse to accept them because of their tobacco habits. Again, I learn of young men in my parish applying for positions of trust, and letters of inquiry come to parties who know tbem, and among other questions is this: "Does he use tobacco in any form?" It is generally admitted that a tobacco-user will be less capable and loss trustworthy than one ·who is not. 1 do not propose in this article to discuss at length tho effects of the habit under considera- tion, but to speak of the growing sentiment of the times, and of some considerations to be de- duced from it. I will, however, give one illus- tration of its deadening i-nfluence on the moral nature. It is the confession of a smoker:- " I was in cburch when fidelity to my idol would allow, and often 'vas moved by thoughts of the wrath to come; but J hurried home to drown the stl'iving of God's Spirit in tobacco fumes, and many times bas my meerschaum relieved every twinge of fear or pain. Somolimos I took the anxious scat. I have gone home feeling poor and mil::lerable, and have smoked one pipe, and in ten minutes 1 was in a state of hallucina- tion, having need of nothing." Observing men are coming to recognize the fact that tobacco is hurtful to body, mind, and son], and partie;ularly to the young. I have letters from a n nm ber of New England college presidents, from tho president of Oberlin and from the Pncifiu Theological Seminary, strongly condemning the habit of using tobacco, especially by students. lt is clear that a teacher of morals and religion should be free from the habit, and ~bat the influence of a young minister for good will be greatly and injuriously affected if it is known that be is a smoker or cbevver. Tbis being so, we appeal to all young men in course of training for the ministry, for their ov,rn sake and for the sake of the cause, to bold them- selves free from this evil habit. But we go fur- ther, and ask whether the time bas not come for itll our theological seminaries to take a stand with Oberlin, where students are required to abstain en Lirely from its nse. The posi Lion of many ministerial associations, thnt they will not lice11se a tobacco-user, and of the Er:lucation Society not to assist snch, I believe to be right. But I think the reform should begin further back in our colleges and seminaries. Why carry a smoker through college and the semi- nary only to tell him, when he seeks the sanc- tion of his brethren to use his acquirements and gifts, what he should have been told long before --that the church does not want men in the :Destruction of Disease Germs. Too lUCH stress is laid upon the scientific definition of the term "disinfection." Its use should be limited to the destruction of specific infectious material w hicb causes specific infec- tious contagious disease; for example, Asiatic cholera, small-pox, typhoid fever, diphtheria, scarlet fever) etc. It bas been proved for sev- eral kinds of infectious material that its specfic infecting power is due to the presence of living micro-organisms, known in a general way as "disease germs;" and practical sanitation is now based upon the belief that the infecting agents in all kinds of infectious rna terial are of this nature. "Disinfection," therefore, consists es- sentially in tbe destruction of disease germs. "There can be no partial disinfection of such material; either its infecting power is destroyed or it is not. In the latter case there is a failure to disinfect. Nor can there be any disinfection in the absence of infectious material." For practical purposes this distinction is en- tirely unnecessary. The best disinfectants are "deodorizers" as well; they will prevent or ar- rest putrefactive decomposition, tberetore they are also" antiseptics." A large number of the proprietary" disinfectants," so called, w hioh are in the market, are simply deodorizers, or anti- septics, of greater or less value, but are entirely untrustworthy for disinfecting purposes. Premising that neither deodorizers, antisep- tics, nor disinfectants can be relied upon as sub- stitutes for cleanliness, the following is recom- mended as an efficient and cheap disinfectant: Dissolve chloride of limo of the best quality in sort water, in the proportion of four ounces to the gallon. As the value of this solution depends upon the amount of chloride it contains, it is essential that the chloride of lime be fresh. Such limo may be bou,£!;ht by the quantity for five cents per pound; the cost of the solution is therefore Joss tban two cents a gallon. It i1'i available for free and general nse in privy-vaults, sowers, sink- drains, refuse heaps, stables, and wherever else the odor of the disinfectant is not object ionnble. A quart or more a day may be used in an of- fensive vault, and such quantities as may be necessary in other places. It may be URed in a sprinkler in stables and elsewhere. In the sick-room it may be used in vessels, cnRpidorR, etc. Use one pint of this solution for the dis- infection of each discharge in cbolera, typhoid fever, etc. Mix -vvell, and leave in vessel for at least ten minutes before throwing into privy- van] t or water-closet. The same directions ap- ply for the disinf'ection of vomited matters. Infected sputum should be discharged directly into a cup half full of the solution. The surface of the body of a sick person or of his attendants, when soiled with infections discbhrges, should be at once cleansed with a suitable disinfecting agent. In diseases like small-pox and scarlet fever, in w b ich the infectious agent is given off from the entire surface of the body, occasiOilal ablu- tions wiLh Labnnnque's solution (liquid soda chlorinatre), dilnled with twenty parts of water, will be more suitable than the stronger solution above recommended. In all infectious diseases the surface of the body of the dead should be thoroughly washed with one of the solutions above recommended, and then enveloped in a sheet saturated with the same.-Sel. Live in Peace. pulpit who smoke and chew? FRETTING, worrying, fault-finding, borrowing 1 am happy to say that by personal corre-·trouble, giving way to temper, and holding spondence with Btmgor, Andover, and New long, bilter grudges-all these things affect the Haven theological seminaries I learn that the liver, poison the blood, enlarge the spleen, carve use of tobacqo by the students is s~rongly dis-ugly lines on the face, and shorten life! Try countenanced. Is it not time, however, that to be half as wise as that little creature, the our seminaries should be entirelv free from the bee, who takes all the honey she can find, and habit? It is time, certainly, that theological leaves the poisons to themselves.-Mrs. E. H. teachers should be clean.-Cong1·egat·ionalist. Leland. 158 141 T~IE SIC+NS OF THE TlMES. VoL. 12, No. 10. The Sensible Girl. Gjj} 1l ~ f -There was an extensive fire in Akron, Ohio, on @,~.ewz anu @;'-,0' eSJ. the morning of March 6. Loss :1l>out $1.000,000. THE senRible young woman is se(.f-1·etiant. -Mount Etna is in a state of eruption; slight earthquake shocks have been felt at the base of the She is not 1nen~ly n doll to be petted: or a bird REL.IGIOUS. mountain. to be :-;upported; but, thougb she may be bles8ed -It is stated that the J'ockey clubs in this coun- witb a father able and willing to care for l1er . -.There are eleven Youn~ M.en.'s Christian Asso- ~ h D 1 I d try last yPar contributed $973,000 to "stimulate the every want. Rbe cultivates her uapabilities. Sh<~ CiatJOns among t e awta n Jans. noble industry of horse-racing!" Heeks t~ ])I'Ul):tre herself for possibilities, and, I -A movement is on foot among t·l,e Hebrews of d . -Eight of the leaders in the recent Lon on nots though she may not need to, she qualifies her- t~lis countr! to for:m an orgrr~ization. for the estab- have been tded, and sentenced to penal servitude self to feed and clothe herself, so that, if left llshment of a Jewish theologiCal semll1ary. for terms ranging from one to five years. alone, she can stand upon her own feet, de- -The Moravians, with a membership in Europe -There was a severe snow storm in the northern pe11dent upon no hnman being. With the mul- and the United States of onlv about 20.000, main-part of Grent Britain, March 1--4. Some trains were tiplied ways of hono~L toil now open for young tain 82 mission stations, in \~hich the ;lUmber of imbedded in the drifts for forty-eight hours. women, it seems quite exuu;;;eless for any one of native converts amounts to over 77,000. -In beginning its career ns a State, Dakota is them to be helple~H. There are hut few no- -Beckx, formerly Superior General of the Jesuits, considering the educational interests of its children. bier sights than· that of a young woman who, is now quite infirm, having reached the ripe age of It has 3,279 public schools, 4,145 teachers, and 69,- thongh Rhe may have a good home with f'a.ther 91. Two or three years ago he was succeeded in his 075 enrolled pupils. Its permanent school property and mother that arc willi11g to indulge her to influential office by~ priest named Anderledy. is valued at $2,187,850; the receipts for school pur- the utmost, realizing t!te limitation of their -Tl1e Woman's Christian Temperance Union is poses $last year were $2,141,757, and the expendi- -u trvintr to ar•>tlse tl1fl worr1en of all lauds to influence tures '1,214,212· means, and t.heir hard self-denial, says," _r.,ather - ' - d 1 1 tti'eir 'Governments to protect their homes by the -A local-option bill has just passe t 1e ower shall not be burdened by me·, I will be self-reli- h f th v· · · L · 1 t A · ·1 1 total prohibition of the liquor traffic and the opium ouse o e 1rgnna eg1s a ure. simi ar aw ant and clothe myself; yea, I will help him pny trade. has been enacted by the Legislature of Washington f(n· the farm, and help him edncate the younger Territory; and a bill having in view the same ob- children." Such a one is a thousand times su- -Not less than 2 ~000 children, ma~y of the~ Mo- J'ect is before the New Jersey LeO'islature. Tl1e harnmedans and Hmd()os, marched In procession at · . . 1 f 1 1 t' l 1 ° d d i perior to the pale-fingered, befrizzled, bejeweled the anniver.oary of tlle Mdhodist Sunday-schools of ~nnCip e o d .oc\ oa.. 1 1on 1a~ wo.ne w~n er 0 u substituteR for young women, who are good for Lueknow, lndia, December 29. Twenty-one schools· eorg1a, an. IS sea I y growiDg m popu ar av r. nothing but to spend a father's hard-earned were represented, each school having its banner. . -.Accorciing: to th~ New Y~rk World, a c?tt~n- money. Over 1,000 prizes were given for regular attendance. piCkmg machme whiCh promises to revolut10n~ze Hero- the South, and take a place am(1ng the grea:test ln- Tbe sensible young woman is b1·ave. -The Examiner reports a case of religious per-ventions of the age, has been exJ1ibited at the Cotton ism is not most, soon upon great occasions, but secution in Russia. Two Russian Baptists, who Exchange. It cost $57,000,000 to harvest the crop in little tbi:1gN. rrhe stre11p;Lh of life :Ps in tbe were accused by Russian priests because of their of 1884-85; and by substituting these machines for povver of' ea.<"ll little, common act. Bl'avery is belief, were sentenced to death by the court. Their manual labor, it is claimed that a saving of $50,- best exhibit(·d. noL in Ollcluring things we can- wives, children, and relatives also were arrested, 000,000 can be effected. not helj), but in the small matters one might and on expressing their determination not to yield -Governor Martin, of Kansas, says that in that their faith, were sent to prison. d help. [n sueh a little thing as dress is a field State there is a general an popular readiness to for heroiRm,-in willingness to be neat and not -A Catholic journal, commenting on the fact comply with the terms of the amended prohibitory f I · bl · d · t 1 · ' that the vessel that carried Protestant missionaries Jaw, and organized. opposition i::; fast disappl'arin~.· as Jlona e, 1n tU'Jng o wear ast Winters - .1 to their field of labor, carried rum also as a part "He asserts that through the concurrence of all cloak or lnst. spring's bonnet untl you can of its cargo, pronounces Protestantism a "sham at agencies in behalf of law, order, and practical tem- afford to have another, in being superior to home, and worse than a fraud abroad." In reply, perance, Kansas last year made greater moral prog- t l1e l:twR of style. Some young women who the Independent reminds the Catholic of the" mon-ress than in a_ny other period of its history." wo11 1d ho willing to die for the flag of their asterv of St. Xavier and the convent of St. Vincent, -The California State Horticultural Society has c;ount.ry. will almost die, in another sense, for with "their monks and college at Latrobe, not very passed a series of resolutions 011 t.he Chinese ques- the v. :111 L of a little ribbon. far from Pittsburg, and the Rt. Rev. Arch-Abbot tion, in which they vigorously pro Lest against boy- The sensible young woman makes the best of Boniface Wimmer." "Does not the monastery own cotting. While declaring themselves opposed to h. Wh t d h t l and run an immense brewery," it asks," which ships further Chinese immi2:ration, and expressin2: their everyt ~ng. a we want an w a we neea 1'ts lJee1· all over the United States'? The difference ~ ~ t tt. Wh t t d d t determination to give the preference to white men are no ue same. a we wan r.n ° no I·s tl1at those missionaries hate the rum, while the bl A bl as laborers, they assert that any man has a right to need makes life misera e. sensi e young monks make and drink and sell the beer." employ a Chinaman or an Indian tli do any work woman treats herRel f as she does her plantsf. -A correspondent of the Illustrated Christian th:tt he may have. "\Ve pledge ourselves," they She giveR them all the Runshine there is. I Weekly says that tlJe colporter of the American Bi-say, "not t~ be ?,on trolled iK the management of there is buL one little window in ber room, she ble tlociety stationed at Merida, Yucatan, although our own bus111ess. gives thern tho benefit of that; and if the sun protected from serious harm by the civil authorities, -According to a London dispatch, there is good comes round to them but once a day, she gives has· been made the victim of a series of exasperat-authority for the statement that England is treat- them the be11efit of that. She does not lock ing persecutions instigated by the Catholic priests. in2: with China respecting the claims of the Chinese them up in her closet and stifle what lite they He has been there since May last, and has distrib-Government to the suze>raiuty o\u00b7er Burmah. The have because they are so small, but she makes uted16,000 tracts and sold 1,500 Bibles, either com-British Govemment is also trying to secure a mo- all the more of them because of their smallness. plete or in part. On the 15th of November, Prot-nopoly of the right to build and operate railways in estant services were held in that city for the first China and Burmah for the transportation of t.roops, So the sensible young woman lets all the light time. In the audiences, and listening with revPrent war material, etc. Tl1e result of the negotiations is there is come into her heart, pushes back her attent:0,,, were lawyers, doctors, State senators, and of obvious importance to American manufacturing tears and throws out her smiles; and thus her representative merchants, but not one woman. , This States, and particularly to those near the Pacific life grows in contentment and gladness. fact· is explained by the statement that "never was Coast. rrhe sensible young woman is reverential. a priesthood more utterly demoralized tlJan that -Lieutenant Graydon, of the United States navy, Somehow it seems more unnatural for a young which is found in the city of Merida. Never were has invented a new system of cable torpedoes for woman not to be a Christian than it does for the mothers and daughters of a great metropolis harbor defense. The merit of his invention lies in Ch · S h more completely swayed by priestly coun;:;el and the fact that the torpedoes can easily be withdrawn a young man to reject rist. uc a young authority than in that city of 60,000 inhabitants." to allow the passage of friendly craft, and speedily woman is like a flower refusing the sun be41,ms replaced, ready to deal death and destruction to an which draw fort.h its beauty. It is by faith in SECULAR. enemy's fleet. Lieutenant Graydon is also the in- Christ that her true self-reliance comes, and she ven Lor of a dynamite cartridge, which is sure death is made brave and calm, and her life incarnate -The estimated value of the diamonds in Amer-to every man hit by it. The Lieutenant says that sunshine, bursting at last into the eternal full- ica is $1,000,000,000. when 54 pounds of dynamite are used in a 2,100- ness of the heavenly world. Such sensibleness -The treaty of peace between Servia and Bulga~ pound projEocLile from a 110-ton gun, there is nothing wins the admiration of men and the approba- ria was signed March 2. on sea or land that can sustain the Rhock. · f G d R S · h B k -The latest scheme of the ormon church is said twn o o .- ev. m~t a er. -On the 1st inst., there was a heavy fa]] of snow A FLOWER has been discovered in South America, which is only visible when the ~ind is blowing. The shrub belongs to the cactus family, and is about three feet high, with a crook at the top, giving it the appearance of a black hickory cane. When the wind blows, a number of beautiful flowers protrude from little lumps on t.he stalk.-Sel. A HOLY life, spent i.n the service of God and in communion with him, is without doubt the most pleasant and comfortable life that any man can live in thi,s wo-,:~d .. ~¥-clanchthon. · d B · k 1 to be a plan to gain control of a State; and their in Maine an New runsw1c , serious y blockading choice seems to have fallen upon Nevada. They trains. hope to secure their object by a Mormon immigra- -Prince Bismarck's bill for expelling the Poles tion into the State in sufficient numbers to command from Germany has been presented to the Cabinet a majority at the polls. Such colonization can be Council. The bill was unanimously opposed by his effected without weakening their hold on Utah or colleagues, and Bismarck yielded. any of the outlying Territories. The Mormons -A Washington letter, as quoted in the Sau Fran- would then be free from the interference of Con- cisco Bulletin, says that the most industrious lobby gress. In dealing with them under a State organiza- in Washington is that devoted to the interests of the tion, constitutional questions will nrise as grave as Mormons. They are doing everything possible to those settled by the civil war of 1861-65, "with the secure the removal of obnoxious Territorial officers perpetual difficulty that in dealing with this partie- in Utah; and Governor Murray and Judge Zane are ular case, precPdents may be established which in special objects of their wraLh. Rumor says that after time could be quoted in justification of the re- the gentleman who has charge of the matter has pression of civil and religious liberty, and the im- received ·$30,000 in one -,sum, as a retainer for his pairment of ,t4e i.ntegrity of duly invested ~t,l: ~- service during the Forty-ninth Congress.·.·, hood." · · ·,, --·~ MARCH 1]' 1886. THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES. [15] 159 A Question Answered. 'l'HE question which is so often asked, "Can a def- jnite day be observed as the Sabbath, by all the inlrn bitant:; of thP. earth?" is satisfactorily answered by Elder J. N. Andrews in a tract entitled, "The Definite Seventh Day; or God's Measurement of Tim<' on the Ronnd \iVorld." This tract is a corn- plt•!e refutation of the common objection against tlrL"Snbbath, that the rotation of the earth on its axis mnkes it impossible for all men to keep the same day, showing not only that a definite day may be observed in all parts of the earth, but that no real difficulty has ever bePn experienced in the matter. 16 pp. Price, thrre cents;· or, $2.00 per hundred. Address, SIGNS OF THE TIMES, Oakland, Cal. "The Sanctuary of the Bible." THE "Sanctuary and Its Cleansing," by Elder Uriah Smith, should be i rr the h :~nds of <-'very Bible student. This work shows the nature of the mistake m:rdt· in expect.ing the Lord to come in 1844, which was not an error of time comput:rtion, but in the nature of the event to take place, namely, the cleans- ing of tlre sanctuary. It opens up the Scripture~ in a wonderful manner, showing the perfect har- mony that runs through the whole, and makes c>s- pecially clrar the subject of the atonement. 352 pages. Price, $1.00; condensed edition, in paper covers, 30 cents; in flexible cloth, 50 cents. Aclctress. SIGNS OF THE TIMES, Oakland, Cal. g;~ ~ ninttntntz. SAN FRANCisco.-House of worship, 914 Laguna Street, between McAllister and Tyler. Sabbath-school every Sabhath at 9:45 A. M. Classes in the English, German, and Scandinavian languages. Prayer and missionary meeting every Wednesday evening at 7 : 45. Mission Reading-rooms at the church. ----------------- Camp-Meeting· in North Pacific Confere11ce. THE time to com me nee preparation for this an- nual convocation has now come. The usual time for this meeting hns bren in the month of June; but, in order to lengthen the season for tent-meet- ngs, wlrieh at best is short, the propriety of holding he camp-meeting at rtn earlier dnte ha~;, been con- sidered. Also the long-felt desire to meet with Elrler Butler, PrPsident of thC' General Conference, may be realized this year if our meeting-be held in May; hC'nee this time has be<·n fixed upon. Com- mence now, brethren and sisters, to get readv to come, nncl to invite your neighbors to c'Orne. • There are more SaLbatlr-keepers in this Confer- ence thn.n ever before. Our church membership has doubled during the pnst few years. Those who have but recen tl v em braced the faith will receive great help and en.courn.gement at this meeting. We nre one year nen.rer the Judgment than when you were last cn.lled together; we have one year less to work,-one year less of precious time to finish the work committed to our trust. This year WP want to do more for the Mn.ster than in any year before. The exact cln.te, which will be sometime in May, and the place. which will be at or near Portland, will be given in clue time. CH.AS. L. BOYD. Salem. 0Tegon, Feb. 26, 1886. ~ hituarJl. DAVIS.-Died Feb. 5, 1886, at Cedar Gap, Wright Cou nt..v, Mo., :1 ftpr a brief ill ness, my companion, Mnry Vv. Davis Through reading some of our pub- licaLions, together with my explanation of them and God's word, she was con vi need of the truth, and had commenced to keep the Sabbath. She said she wished to be b;rptized into her new faith at tile first opportunity. She ha.s been a worthy member of the M. E. Churcll for some year:::. She said while dyiJlg, 'I know my Redeemer liveth," and exhorted those around her to trust in the Lord. Comforting words were spoken by Elder J. Davis (Metlrodist), text, Rev. 14: 13. I hopP. to meet her in the first reHur- rection. GRIFFIN P. DAVIS. SHIPTON,-Died in Cassville, Wisconsin, Jan. 5, 1886, Sister Arizona Shipton, aged 20 years, 6 months, and 5 days. Her suffering·s were very in- tense. She had been a member of the Waterloo church for three years, anct had always tried to live a true and devoted Christian, and was ever ready to do her duty. Sire leaves a husband nncl infant child, parent:;;, brothers, and sisters, and mnny friends to mourn tlrei r loss; but we hope that her dPath will be the cause of helpin?: others to prepare to m<~et their loved one in the first resurrection. \iVorcls of comfort by Brother B. McCormac, from Job 14. M. E. CHAPMAN. BAXTER.-Diecl at Arcata, Humboldt County, Cal., February 26, of dyspepsia and general debility. Sister Lavina A. Baxter, aged 43 years and 16 dnys. Sister Baxter w:rs born in Ln.ncasldre, England. When about six years of age she moved with her parents to Philadelphia, Penn. Tlrere she was mnrried in 1864, and with her own family, moved t.u Sonoma Couuty, Cal., in 1877. Three years ago they moved into Humboldt County, where tire family heard nnd nccepted the views of Seventh-day Ad- ventists. Sistf.l· Baxter and her dnugh ter Elln, then, for tire first time in their lives, mncle a profession of religion, and united with the church. Sister Baxter hns been a faithful and earnest worker in Lhe cause, and will be greatly missed by the Arc:rta church. She died, conscious to the lnst, as peacefully as the setting of the sun, at the commeucement of tLe Sabbath, February 26. She leaves a companion and three childrer1 to mourn her loss. The funeral was lu:•ld at tireS. D. A. church in Eureka, February 28, tire writer addressing a full house, from words found in Rev. 21: 4. J. N. LOUGHBOROUGH. SuBSCRIBERS whose time expires in March or April, will please renew their subscriptions at once. Only $2.00 per year. 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BooKS SENT BY FREIGHT.-L S Campbell, Edward Bare, Henry Scott, Walter Harper. BooKs SENT BY EXPRESS.-Eld G W Colcord, M A Lee, Mrs M E Fleming, Elijah Williams, W A Blakely, Mrs C Ruoff, Frank Lamb, Geo C Codding, Effie Morri- son, F T Lamb, Eld A J Cudney, Mrs L A Fero, Zina Gifford, Mrs C Ruoff. RECEIPTS. CALIFORNIA CoNFERENCE FuND.-Mrs Chritchlow $1.- 50, San Jose $8.10. RECEIVED ON AccouNT.-Maine T and M Society $50, B Robb $:ll. CALIFORNIA T AND M SociETY.-Dist No 2 Callahan's Rauch $6.50, Dist N~J 3 Oakland $5:3.30, Dist Ng 4 San Jose $7.35. AGENTS AND BOOK DEPOSITORI:B;s. Australia-International Tract Society, Bible Echo Office, Rae and Scotchmer Sts., North Fitzroy, Victor!a, Austral:a. British Guiana.-Joseph R. Brathwaite, 152 Church St., Gourg-etown, Demerara, British Guiana, S. A. California Tract ::lociety-1"067 Castro St., Oakland, Cal. Canada Tract Society-South Stukely, P. Q. Colorado Tract ::lociety-831 California St., Ocnver, Colo. Dakota Tract Society-Vilas, Miner Co., Dale District of Uolumbia.-International Tract Society, 1831 Vermont Avenue, N. W., Washington, D. C. England-The Present 'l.'rut'l., 72 Heneage St., Grimsby, Eng. Florida Tract Society-Moultrie, St. John's Cn., Fla. Hawaiian IslanJs-International Tract Society, Honolulu, H. I. Idaho-Elder D. T. Fero, Boise City, Idaho. Illinois Tract Society-No. 9;) Thirty-fifth ::it., Chicago, Ill. lnd.hna Tract Society-No. il2 Cherry St, Indianapolis, Ind. Iowa Tract Society-1315 E. Sycamore St .. Des Moines, Iowa. Kansas 'fract Society-Box 160, Ottawa, Franklin Co., Kan. Kentncky Tract Society-West Clifty, Grayson Co., Ky. Louisana-International Tract Society, 732 Magazine Street, New Orleans, La. Maine Tract Society-113 Pearl St., Portbnd, Me. Michigan Tract Society-Battle Creek, Mich. Minnesota Traet Society-2820 Nitollet Ave .. Minneapolis, Mint Missouri Traet Society-321 Lamine Ave., Sedalia, Mo. Nebraska Tract Society-Fremont, Dodge Co., Neb. New England-N. E. Tract Society, South Lancaster, Mass. New Mexico-John McMurchy, White Oaks, Lincoln County, N. M. New Yu; k Tract Society-Rome, N. Y. New Zealand-Edward Hare, Upper Queen Street (Tumer Street). Auckland, N. z. North Pacific-N. P. Tract Society, East PorUand, Oregon. Norway-'l.'idernes 'l'egn, Chri~tiania, Norway. Ohio Tract Society--Toledo, Ohio. PennsylYania Tract Society--No. 5 Maund. Price, $1. 25, post-paid. Addres<, PACIT<'IC PRE'3S, Oakland, Cal. MAN'S NA'l'URf-i} AND DGSTlNY: OR, THE STATE OF THE DEAD, THE REWARD ~F THE RIGHT EOUS, AND TH~<.; END OL~ THE WICKED. BY ELDER. URIAU SMITH. This work is a thorough canvass of the gTeat question of a future life, the nature of man in the present li1e, and the condition of im- mortality from a logical and Scriptural standpoint. Every text in the Bible which haB any possible bearing upon these points, i taken up ami carefully explained, Lhus gi1·ing the most com- prehensil-e view of the subjeet that has yet been presented. •· Mau's Nat.ure and Destiny" contaius 444 pag-es, and is printed from clear, new plate~, on heavy paper, and is attractively bound in green muslin, with gilt side and black titles. Facing the title-pag·e is an appropriate frontispiece, desig-ned especially for the work. All orders will be promptly filled by mail or express. Price, $1. 50. Address, PAClFIC PRESS, Oakland, Cal. THE SPIRIT OF GOD: ITS OFFICES AND MANIFESTATIONS TO THE END OF THE CHRISTIAN AGE. BY ELD. J. H. W AGGONF:R. Tars is a brief but comprehensive argnment on the solemn and important subject of the Spirit uf God. Its chapters embrace the following heads: The Holy Spirit of Promise; The Power from on High; Circumcision of the Heart; The Unity of the Faith; The Law and the Testimony; Try the Spirits; The Great Commission; Gifts in the Reformation; In tQ.e Present Century; Spirit of Prophecy Restored. These are subjects of vital importance to all. and espe- cially to those who are looking for the return of their Lord. 144 pp. Price, 15 cents. Address, SIGNS OF THE TIMES, Oakland, Cal. AGE TO COME: A REFUTATION OF THE DOCTRINE. BY ELD. J. H. WAGGONER. Em bracing a critical examination of the Temporal Millennium-The Return of the Jews-Time and Manner of the Establishmeni of the Kingdom of God-The Day of the Lord, and the Promises to Israel. Second edition revised. 168 pages; price, post-paid, 20 cents. Addres~, SIGNS OF THE TIMES, Oakland, Cal.; Or, REVIEW AND HERALD, Battle Creek, M1cb, 1()0 [16] THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES. VoL. 12, No. 10. OAKLAND, CAL., FIFTH-DAY, MARCH 11, 1886. ~\Ve send no papers from this office without pay in advance, unless by special arrangement. When persons receive copies without ordering them, they are sent by other parties, and we can give no information in regard to them. Persons thus receiving copies of the SIGNS are not indebted to the office, and will not be called upon for pay. Please read the papers and hand them to your friends to read. THE article entitled "The Resurrection of the Dead," beginning on the second page of this issue, is worthy of a careful reading throughout. It is good, because it gives Bible doctrine. We think its length will not be considered an objection to it by any one who begins to read it. \VE frequently receive letters in which questions are asked that concern only the writer, which we are requested to answer by letter, and sometimes by return mail. \Ve are glad to be of service to any- body when we can; but we would like to emphasize the fact that when people write letters on their own business it is customary to inclose at least one stamp. THE Bible Banner, J. D. Brown, publisher, has been removed from Philadelphia to Chicago, Ill. Its present location is Room 35, Central Music Hall, Chicago. The Banner is especially devoted to the advocacy of the doctrine of the soon coming of Christ, and we believe that in its new location it will find a larger field than heretofore. THE San Francisco Alta of recent date says:-- " The ClJinese seem to be getting; ample attention; now, suppose that the respectable citizens of Sn n Francisco get together and decide thnt the hood- lums must go'~ \Vithin two years a gang of these heartless, conscienceless wretches outrnged a poor old widow, who had been to visit her children, and abused her until she died; and now another gang of the same sort of hounds has repeated the crime on another helpless old womnn. The good earth would be greener if these scoundrels were swept oft' it. This city would dignifiy itself by sending to the jail a sufficient force to take these brutes out and kill them. The next Lerri!'>lature should take steps to punish such guilt as tl~eirs with death." Very good; but although such outrnges are part of the hoodlum's every-day life, and are the excep- tion among the heathen Chinese, we have no hesita- tion in saying that the Chinese will "go" a long while before the hoodlums do, because-the hood- lums can vote, and the Chinese cannot. A Little Mixed. How PEOPLE will get things con fused! The Chds- tian at TVod:: has done some gooJ service in the Sab- bath cau"e by reiterating to its readers the fact that Sundny is uot the Sabbath, that it has no counec- tion whatever with the fourth commandment, R.nd that it was never regarded by the church as a day of rest and worship until after the time of the apostles. Notwithstanding the knowledge it has on the Sab- bath question, a recent issue contained the follow- ing editorial note:- " A Sabbatarian wave overwhelmed Newport a week a)!o; and barbers, grocerymen, and tradesmen generally, who have usually continued their busi- ness 011 that day, all had a complete Sunday's rest for the first time in half a century." Certain Sunday advocates have attempted to show that Sunday may be "the first day," the ''eighth day," and any or all of the days between, but the Sabbath has no such elastic properties. "The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God." No other day can lay any claim to the title of SabbR.th. Therefore we would like to k11ow h~w a "Sabbatarian wave" could give people rest ou SundR.y. the first day of the week. Can any of our readers solve the question for us? A Good Testimony. THE following I copy from a letter, recently re- ceived from the State of Massachusetts by one of our missionary workers:- " I have received a number of copies of the SIGNS, and wondered where they came from. I want yon to send me the SIGNS, and also the book you spoke of [Great Controversy]. "The reason I have not written sooner is that I 'vanted to read and thoroughly understand the doc- trines which they teach. I am satisfied that the doctrines are thoroughly Scriptural. I am glad you sent me the SIGNS. I can now see and understand some things which always appeared strange to me. The Bible now seems to be shedding a new light. J must say that I have never read nny paper that will stand beside the SIGNS for good, sound reason- ing and pure religion. It is a power for good, and my prayer is that it may go on and prosper in the good work. I hope the wll01e land will be flooded with such literature." The writer inclosed $5.00 for a yearly subscription for the SIGNS, and some books. \Ve bid this friend GodspAed in his search for the truth, and pray that Heaven's richest blessings may rest upon the editors and managers of this silent yet powerful evangelist, the SIGNS OF _THE TIMES. CHAS. L. BOYD. Rural Health Retreat. LAST week we made a visit to the Retreat, and found much to please us in its condition and pros- pects. The pR.tients are doing well, and without ex- ception are of good con rage. Every room is occu- pied, both in the main building and cottages. They are building, and improving the grounds; having recently set out orange, lemon, olive, and fig trees. \V"e have no doubt that oranges will do well in that locality .. The physicians and helpers are competent aud faithful, and have the entire confidence of all. Monopolies. LAST week one of our news items was to the effect that the McCormick Renper Works of Chicago had shut down, throwing 1,000 men out of employment. But that wns only a part of the story. The managers had recently acceded to a request from their work- men for higher wages, and received baek certain men who had been discharged. Then the workmen, who belonged to a "trades union," demanded that five men who did not belong to the union should be discharged. The managers, very properly, refused to comply, and, knowing that a "strike" had been ordered, shut down for a few days. vVhen tlrey re- opened, a large force of police had to proted those who wishetl Lo work, from the assaults or the" union'' men. vVe are opposed to monopolies of every kind, and we believe in helping the laboring people. for we are of this class oursPlv<:·s, and it is for this very reason that we do not believe in these so-called "trades unions." They are the laboring man's en- eruy. Every man wlJO joins one, voluntarily puts himself into the hands of an unscrupulous monopoly. The capitalist who oppresses the hireling iu his wages is no greater enemy to the laboring man than is a company of men who presume to dictate when he may and may not work. The Golden Rule con- demns all monopolies. Character and Reputation. IN a recent murder trial in Oakland, it is stated that the defense agreed to rest t!Jeir case at a cer- tain point, if the prosecutiou would agree that up to the attempt at muruer the prisoner had borne a day; yet it is claimed that up to that time he had · borne a good reputation. That may be true; but if it is, it only serves to emphasize the difference be- tween character and reputation. It is absolutely impossible that a man of previously good character could have committed such a deed. Character is a thing of growth. No person acquires character in- stantaneously; a perfect character is the result of long-continued practice of virtue, each upright act tending to the final result. And it is equally true that no man of good character falls at once t-o the depths of vice and crime. When a man of good reputation commits some great crime, it may be de- pended upon that vicious practices of some kind or other have long been sapping the foundations of his character. The expression, "a good character," means inva- riably one thing. But the expression, "a good reputation," is very indefinite. It may mean al- most anything, according to the class of persons by whom it is used. If used by honest men, it is a compliment; but if med by rogues; it is not much to one's credit. The prisoner in this instance may have enjoyed a good reputation among the hoodlums and prostitutes with whom he associated; yet that would be no recommendation to him. \u00a5 e are glad that in this case justice was not turned away back- ward, so far as the judge was concerned; for he ignored the plea of good reputation, and passed sen- tence according to the prisoner's character as indi- cated by his actions. THE revivalist Sam Jones says some good things which might not be so well received as they are, if they were spoken under other circumstances. Speaking against the custom of pew-renting, he said in a recent sermon: "A man who has not enough of the love of God in him to induce him to pay as much voluntarily to the cause of his l laster as he will for the rent of a pew, has enough selfish- ness to damn his soul." WE have received a copy of the Register of the University of California for 1885-86, which gives interesting information concerning that institution. There are in the Academic Senate fifty-eight mem- bers. Of assistants, demonstrators, and other officers not members of the Academic Senate, there are thirty-eight. There are at present 513 students in the University. In all, the University offers to students 161 courses in the various departments. The Lick Observatory will doubtless, under the di- rection of President Holden, who has a national reputation as an astronomer, be a valuable f'actor jn the educational interests of the State. The 36- inch objective has at last been succ:essfully cast, and will be finished during the year. Nearly two years will be required for mounting it. The ~reat dome to cover Lhe 36-inch refrnctor wi11 Le corr- structed of steel plates. The e11tire dorne i'i he seventy-five feet in diameter, aml will weigh about niuet.y-three tons. SEE notice concerning the North Pncific C::rmp- meeting, on the preceding page, undl'r the beau of Appointments. THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES, PUHLISHED WE:I!:KLY, AT OAKLAXD, CAL., FOR TUB International Tract and Missionary Society. A sixteen-page Religious Family Paper, devoted to a. discussion of the Prophecies, Signs of the Ttmes, Seeond Coming of Christ, Har- mony of the Law and Gospel; with Departments devoted to Health nnd Temperance, the Home Circle, the lissiunJ.ry Work, and the Sabbath-school. P-rice Per Year, post-paid, $2.00 good reputation. To this the prosecution assented, ln clubsof ft·:eormorecopiestoonen~mea.ndaddress,tobe used in Missionary work, each, 1.50 and the case went to the jury. Here was a young , To foreig-n countries, single sub!lcriptions, post-paid, lOs man who carried a pistol in his pocket, and without A.d!irll~s, SIGNS OF THE TIMES, provocati.on shot a woman on Broad way in open Twelf.tb 11.:o.Jd Castro Stree.ts, OAKLMill, cu., u, s. A.