The Present Truth, vol. 12

June 4, 1896

“A Call to Praise” The Present Truth, 12, 23.

E. J. Waggoner

A Call to Praise .-“Praise ye Him, sun and moon: praise Him, all ye stars of light. Praise Him, ye heavens of heavens.” Psalm 148:3, 4. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 353.1

The Heavens Respond .-“The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth His handiwork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge.” Psalm 19:1, 2. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 353.2

What They Tell .-They declare the brightness of God’s glory-which is but the shining forth of His infinite goodness and truth. Exodus 33:18, 19. God is light, because “God is love.” They show His power; for they are His own handiwork. They teach knowledge-the knowledge of God, the Creator. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 353.3

Starry Preachers .-But the goodness of God leadeth to repentance; the power of God is revealed in saving men-the Gospel “is the power of God unto salvation;” and the knowledge of God is “life eternal.” So the Apostle Paul shows (in Rom. x.) by quoting from this Psalm that the heavens are preaching the Gospel to men day and night. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 353.4

In Every Tongue .-They speak to benighted savage in the heart of Africa as well as the highest intellect in civilisation, in a tongue understood by each-if the ear were but open to hear. “There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard. Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.” PTUK June 4, 1896, page 353.5

ldquo;What though no real voice nor sound,
Amid their radiant orbs be found;
In reason’s ear they all rejoice,
And utter forth a glorious voice,
For ever singing as they shine-
The hand that made us is Divine.” PTUK June 4, 1896, page 353.6

“Life Up Your Eyes.” -The Psalmist says that God has set His faithfulness in the heavens, and to every one who is tempted to think God has forgotten him amidst the multitude of people the Lord says: “Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: He calleth them all by names by the greatness of His might, for that He is strong in power; not one faileth.” Isaiah 40:26. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 353.7

His Care for One .-It is because He is strong in power and infinite in goodness that He cares for the one weak soul, ready to perish. “He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might He increaseth strength.” If ready to perish in weakness and discouraged, “lift up your eyes on high”-God tells you to-and see that the stars are shining still. The same Divine power and care that keeps them-every one-is for you. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 353.8

Christ’s Power to Save .-The power displayed in the heavens is the power of God in Jesus Christ, “by whom also He made the worlds.” Christ now upholds “all things by the word of His power,” men and women as well as stars. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 353.9

To Show His Praises .-We are called also to join with the stars in declaring God’s praises-“That ye should shew forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His marvellous light.” They do it by reflecting the light of God’s glory: “Let your light so shine.” The firmament witnesses to His wonderful handiwork: “We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works.” They manifest His glory: “The Lord shall arise upon thee, and His glory shall be seen upon thee.” Let it be so. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 353.10

Greater Glory .-The telescope and photography have exhibited details not visible to the naked eye, multiplying the numbers of the starry worlds, and revealing distinctive beauties and marvels of design. But who can conceive of the glories of the universe of God which shall burst upon immortal eyes when earth’s sin-tainted atmosphere is cleansed-when “the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be seven-fold, as the light of seven days.” And outshining and dimming all, “the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory.” “Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.” PTUK June 4, 1896, page 353.11

“God Is a Sun” The Present Truth, 12, 23.

E. J. Waggoner

“For the Lord God is a sun and a shield.” Psalm 84:11. As the sun gives light and heat to the earth, so the Lord is the light of men, and warms them by His grace. All the heat and light that the earth receives, in whatever form, comes from the sun. The light by means of which we find our way at night through the crowded streets of the city, or by which we read in our study, comes from the sun. So with the cheerful wood blaze, or the glowing coals that warm our rooms in dreary winter; all the heat comes from the sun. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 353.12

The sun gives light, and light is life. All the plants turn to the sun! Who has not noticed a plant growing in a dark cellar? Its life is very feeble. In the darkness it is almost dead. But let an opening be made, so that a ray of light can shine through, and at once it revives. It will begin to grow in the direction of the light. Without the light that the sun furnishes to the earth there could be no plant life, nor animal life either. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 354.1

But life means growth. As the light of the sun is the life of plants, so it is the cause of their growth. As the plant grows, it is by storing up the light and heat of the sun. Those plants that grow very quickly, that come to maturity from the seed in a few weeks or months, have in them but very little heat. They are worthless for fuel. But the sturdy oak, that is centuries in growing,-which grows so slowly that in a year no difference can be detected in its size,-stores up immense quantities of the sun’s heat. Other trees are of even slower growth, and store up more heat. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 354.2

These woods become buried in the ground, and in the course of centuries are transformed in the coal. Then it is used as fuel, and gives to us the heat which it has stored up from the sun. The reason why we get so much more heat from the coal than from the direct rays of the sun is, that in the coal we have the concentrated heat of the sun’s rays for years. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 354.3

What the sun is to the earth, and to plant-life, that God is to His people. “The Lord God is a sun.” As the sun, by its light, gives physical life to the plants, so God gives spiritual life-the only real life-to His people. Christ’s life is the light of the world. As the oak tree stores up the heat of the sun, so the one who lives in the light of God stores up that light, which is His life. That light and life that are the life and growth of the Christian are to be given out for the enlightenment and warmth of others. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 354.4

Some one may say, that in order to carry out the figure completely, it ought to be that the Christian of the slowest growth should have the most of the life of God to give out. But let it not be forgotten that the just live by faith. The Christian’s life is not measured by years, but by the faith manifested. The more faith, which means humility and trust, the more of the life of God is appropriated. And the more life appropriated, the more will be given out to others, for the life of God cannot be hidden. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 354.5

“Confessing Christ” The Present Truth, 12, 23.

E. J. Waggoner

It is by our lives that we confess or deny Christ. To confess Christ is to confess that He is the Saviour of the world, and specifically that He is our individual Saviour; and this can only be done by manifesting that He is our Saviour, in the fact that we are saved by Him from our sins. Anything less than this would afford no evidence that Jesus is the Saviour of men. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 354.6

When we choose our own way in preference to His, that is, when we do not let Him have His way in us, we deny that He is our Saviour, for we thereby virtually say that our way is better than His, and if that were true He would not be our Saviour, for we could better save ourselves. So it is by our life, and not by empty words, that we confess or deny Him, and determine whether He, before His Father and the angels, will confess or deny us. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 354.7

“Coronation Scenes” The Present Truth, 12, 23.

E. J. Waggoner

Correspondents have vied with one another in trying to describe the brilliant effects of the Moscow coronation. Russia is a perfect example of the religious State, and religious ceremonial dominated even the civil and military rites. But there was nothing in it all to rouse the enthusiasm of those Russian subjects who suffer under the lash of ecclesiasticism because they prefer the simplicity of Christ and the Word to all this gorgeous ritual, borrowed from heathenism. The amnesties proclaimed contained no hint of any lessening of the rigour of religious laws. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 354.8

Here is a description of the coronation scene:- PTUK June 4, 1896, page 354.9

The scene was now one of great splendour. The sun was pouring into the southern windows, lighting up with dazzling effect the gold Iconostasis, the pillars, the walls and shrines, the jewels and dresses of the ladies and the brilliant uniforms of the men. The scene, moreover, now became almost oppressive in its splendid solemnity, as the Metropolitan laid on the golden cushion before his Majesty his Majesty the magnificent Imperial crown of diamonds surmounted by the ruby cross, which the Emperor kissed as he took the crown in his hands, and, amid breathless silence, placed it with dignity on his own head. The Metropolitan then addressed to his Majesty an earnest allocution, advising him to wear the Imperial crown wisely for the benefit of the Church and his subjects. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 354.10

We know well that there are many in Russia, under the frown of the authorities for the Word of God and the testimony of Jesus-who will never be found amongst political offenders, but will ever be an offence because of following the Lord instead of the Greek Church-who, as they hear of the splendid functions, will think lovingly and longingly of that other coronation soon to come, described by the prophets:- PTUK June 4, 1896, page 354.11

“I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought Him near before Him. And there was given Him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom.” Daniel 7:13, 14. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 354.12

“And I saw heaven open, and behold a white horse; and He that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns.... And His name is called the Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed Him.... And He treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And He hath on His vesture and on His thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.” Revelation 19:11-16. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 354.13

In that day of glory and power, when all the kings of the earth and their armies are destroyed “with the brightness of His coming,” it will be worth something to be a Royal guest. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 354.14

“Revival of Race Prejudice” The Present Truth, 12, 23.

E. J. Waggoner

Race prejudice in the southern United States has recently had a very pronounced expression in the so-called “Sheats’ Law,” of Florida, which forbids the co-education of blacks and whites in all schools in the State, whether private or public. A successful school carried on by the American Missionary Association, at Orange Park, Florida, has been compelled, by the action of the authorities under this law, to dismiss its pupils and close its doors. The law has temporarily triumphed. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 354.15

The teachers were arrested, bail was given, and the school continued, awaiting the settlement of the case. But the sheriff appeared again and showed his instructions to rearrest as long as the school remained open. By the terms of the law it seems, also, that the parents of the pupils in such a school are made equally liable with the teachers. Under these circumstances it became necessary to close the school. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 354.16

This is a remarkable outburst of the old slave-holding spirit, to have occurred so many years after the freeing of the blacks and their admission to civil rights. The “Sheats’ Law” will, no doubt, be eventually declared unconstitutional. Some of the Southern religious papers openly uphold the law, as they formerly sustained slavery. Such principles cannot be reconciled with Christ’s teaching. He was no respecter of persons. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 354.17

“The Sword and the Law—Or the Gospel and the Bible” The Present Truth, 12, 23.

E. J. Waggoner

Many men have done those things which seem right in their own eyes, but they were not right in the eyes of God. When Solomon said, “There is a way that seemeth right unto a man; but the end thereof are the ways of death” (Proverbs 16:25), he was stating something which would always be true, until death should be done away with for ever at the second death of the wicked and the destruction of Satan, by whom death came into the world. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 356.1

In every age there have been those who were zealous to persecute. By this they have thought that they were serving God. Paul, before he became an apostle, was one of these. It seemed right to him to persecute. But was it right? Did he do right when he helped stone Stephen? Did he do right when he went into the houses and took out Christian men and women, and committed them to prison? With what bitter repentance he afterwards acknowledges his error. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 356.2

Yet, although Stephen died, and many were put in prison, still even this did not suppress the Gospel, but it spread it the more, for many, being scattered abroad, went everywhere preaching the Word. In the condemnation and crucifixion of Christ a certain semblance to the fixed forms of law was followed, though so palpably insufficient as to be a mockery. In the stoning of Stephen legal regulations were observed. In the Roman persecutions of the Christians which followed, the forms of law were invoked. All the unnumbered millions whose lives have been taken by the Inquisition and in the persecutions of the Roman Catholic Church, have met their death for conscience sake, but according to the law. There have been Protestant persecutions, and in them also the law served the same purpose. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 356.3

Is it not time that history taught intelligent men a few lessons? It is time for those who would be Christians to know that neither the sword nor the law are Gospel missionaries, acceptable to God. And still more,-those who use them must yet repent, and suffer under the forces which they themselves have started, as did Paul, or take their place before the judgment seat at last, with Pilate and the priests, the Pharisees, and the soldiers who crucified Christ, the young men who stoned Stephen, and the informers, the inquisitors, and the executioners who have put to death their millions since, because they would not deny Him who Himself died upon the cross. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 357.1

It is indeed time that men read and understood their histories and their Bibles. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 357.2

“Ecclesiasticism and Civilised Paganism” The Present Truth, 12, 23.

E. J. Waggoner

Ecclesiasticism is the human substitute for the Divine government of the Church. The history of ecclesiasticism is the history of heresy and schisms, of persecution and intolerance, of the rack and the stake. It is a tale of the dungeon, of blood, of fire, and the sword. It is a story of the satiated frenzy of human diabolism on the one side, and the patient suffering of the direst agonies of which the human frame and mind are capable, on the other. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 358.1

Paganism is the epitome of earthly and infernal evil as expressed through humanity. It is the religion of devil worship, which has fed itself on human lives here that it may feast on eternal death hereafter. Paganism is a lie. It is false throughout. It is the worship of the father of lies. There is in it no foundation of truth, as there is in him no truth, for he is all of falsehood and evil personified, and his subjects are himself incarnate. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 358.2

How then do paganism and ecclesiasticism differ? If it is true that everything shall bear fruit after its kind, and that we may know them by their fruits, and the product of the one is similar to the product of the other, differing only in the degree of development, then we may justly draw the conclusion that both are from the same source, the fruits of the same spirit. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 358.3

Envying and strife, war and slaughter, the desire to conquer and to kill, and to take the conquered and his possessions as booty due the victor,-these are not the fruits of righteousness; for the fruit of righteousness is peace, “sown in peace of them that make peace.” That which counsels to such deeds is not the wisdom from above; for that is peaceable, gentle, and full of mercy, long suffering and kind. But that wisdom which is not from above is earthly and devilish. Of all these crimes against man and sins against God paganism is guilty; and so also have they all been done in the name and by the order of ecclesiasticism. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 358.4

In paganism Satan rules without an intermediary; in ecclesiasticism he rules by that human agency, which he has found so traitorous to its kind and to its God as to accept His delegated authority and undertake to be second in that dominion in which Christ refused to be first. In either case, then, the ruler is the same, and that being so, the government must be similar; the requirements of allegiance, the oaths of office cannot be different. They are not different; they are the same. They only vary as the varying development of the intellectual and social life requires, and that variation is equally true of either form of satanic government. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 358.5

The rule of Satan in the pagan world is supreme, his subjects render him a terror-stricken and unquestioning obedience. It is his aim to seek absolutism everywhere; thus he is always a usurper, and hence it is that ecclesiasticism is never content until it has enthroned itself in a despotism. All forms of ecclesiasticism are from the same original stock, and they will again merge into one common type, which, whether the name of the original be retained or not, will be the same antichrist. He who has staked an eternity and the third place in heaven upon his effort to win eternal supremacy will brook no rival and grant no equal. He, and no other, will rule his own. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 358.6

It is the ultimate philosophy of every people that all things resolve themselves finally into either good or evil, that there is in the last event no other contest than that between the forces of right and wrong. This is a legitimate deduction. There is also Divine authority for it, for He Himself has said that they who are not for Him are against Him. If this be true, as the human mind has acknowledged from all time, it is inevitable that the discrimination must be made. Each factor in the fight must be called up and the “shibboleth” put to him, “What say ye of Christ, whom say ye that He is?” By this and by their fruits must all be proved, that that which is good may be held fast. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 358.7

As in the ultimate event there can be put two principles, good and evil, so there are but two supreme representatives of these antagonisms, and these two beings are God and Satan. From the beginning the fiat has gone forth, “Choose ye this day whom ye will serve.” The necessity for this choice devolves upon a humanity none the less now that in these last days man has found out for himself so many evil devices, and Satan, having developed all his supernatural subtleties, is coming down with all deceivableness such as might lead astray the very elect themselves. It behooves every man then to ask, “Where is peace”? For God is the God of peace, and Satan is the God of strife. “Where is equal justice to all men without respect of persons?” For God is no respecter of persons, but Satan is the God of envy as he is of strife. “Where are they that confess that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh, for the salvation of souls?” for they are of God, but they that deny him are of the spirit of antichrist. “Where are they that keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus?” For at the last day they shall stand on the sea of glass, and sing the song of Moses and the Lamb; but as for the ungodly and the wicked what shall their end be? PTUK June 4, 1896, page 359.1

There is but one name by which men may be saved. It is not the name of any sect or denomination. It is not by protesting against the errors committed under the name and authority of any hierarchy, while neglecting to pick the beam from their own eyes. It is not by declaring loudly against the errors of others, while failing themselves to walk with humility and meekness in the steps of the Master. If this be so-as it is-where will they be who are striving among themselves for the mastery?-who are organising to combat one another,-not going forth two by two to preach the Word, to warn the world, to heal the sick, and bring the Gospel to them that hunger for God’s last message of joy to the world. The inner purpose of every human organisation is known to God. It can not be concealed from Him,-nor from those who serve Him in truth,-if their purpose is not to serve God: and, whatever their purpose, they cannot by the use of legal and military force serve the God of peace. It makes no difference what these organisations may call themselves; whether they be professedly religious, civil, or military,-if their methods and purposes are not those of the God of peace and justice, they are the final expression of a civilised paganism, or a highly developed ecclesiasticism, or a combination of both, in a last desperate allegiance to fight the battles of Satan against God and His goodness. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 359.2

“Items of Interest” The Present Truth, 12, 23.

E. J. Waggoner

-The population of Paris has increased 87,250 in flee years,-and during the same time London has gained 200,528 in numbers. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 366.1

-A mysterious ringing of electrical bells in a house in Switzerland was traced to a spider whose web had connected two wires. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 366.2

-The London census, taken in March last, shows the population of the Metropolitan registration district to be 4,411,271. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 366.3

-An insurrection in Crete is again causing anxiety in the Near East. The population of the island Is 250,000, of which 40,000 are Mohammedans. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 366.4

-A tower is in process of erection at Wembley Park, London, the base of which covers an area of one acre, and which, when completed, will be 1,150 feet high. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 366.5

-Locusts, rinderpest, drought, and war are devastating a considerable portion of Africa. At the present rate, by the time it comes to be divided, it will not be a land of milk and honey. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 366.6

-The women and girls employed in the straw-plaiting industry in Tuscany, Italy, are striking against a reduction in wages, which now enable them to earn a trifle over one penny per day. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 366.7

-Contrary to general belief, the Sahara is not a barren and worthless waste. Some time ago there were nine million sheep in the Algerian Sahara alone, Insides two million goats, and two hundred and sixty thousand camels. On the cases there are one million five hundred thousand date palms. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 366.8

-Living is dear in South Africa. A. workman writes from Cape Town warning against emigration to that land of sun and diamonds. He says that the necessaries of life are from forty to sixty per cent. higher than in Great Britain, and house rent from one hundred to one hundred and fifty per cent. higher, while situations are difficult to obtain, and wages extremely low. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 366.9

-M. Cartuyvets last week called the attention of the Belgian House to the importation into Belgium of old horses from England to be converted into tinned meat. No fewer than 8,000 horses had, he said, thus entered Belgium in the course of last year. The Minister of Agriculture admitted the fact, and stated that he would shortly take measures to stop the practice complained of. Horses destined to be utilised as tinned meat should be specially branded. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 366.10

-At a late session of the Co-operative Congress, at Woolwich,-a representative body of the greatest influence among English artisans,-a strong resolution was passed that for the sake of humanity, conscience, and the cause of commerce, a permanent tribunal for the maintenance of peace between English speaking nations should be established. At the Congress of the Chambers of Commerce, representing the interests of British commerce throughout the world, to be held in London on June 9, Sir John Lubbock will introduce a resolution favouring a reduction of military expenditures and the settlement of international differences by diplomacy and arbitration. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 366.11

“Back Page” The Present Truth, 12, 23.

E. J. Waggoner

The question of religion and the schools is stirring up more bitterness of feeling in England and in Canada just now than any other public question. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 368.1

As though to remind us at home that the earth is waxing old, two slight earthquake shocks were felt last week, one in Cornwall, the other in Scotland. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 368.2

“In some parts of Germany,” writes one of our German brethren, “the police already visit the houses to see whether the Sundays laws are strictly carried out, and these laws are becoming more and more severe.” PTUK June 4, 1896, page 368.3

The sanitary authorities in Egypt find Mohammedan fatalism a formidable obstacle to their efforts to restrict the cholera epidemic. If Allah wills that they shall have the cholera, then they must have it, argue the ignorant people, and they resist all suggestions of sanitary precautions. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 368.4

The terrible disaster at Moscow shows for how small a thing the thoughtless will put life in jeopardy. Hundreds were crushed to death in the mad struggle-for a free meal and a souvenir mug. The free banquet on the Khodynskoa plain was the scene of greater loss of life, apparently, than the tornado in St. Louis. So closely does calamity overhang festivity. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 368.5

The Times correspondent says that the vestments of the ecclesiastics who assisted in the coronation service cost 10,000 roubles each-?1,416. These sixty priests, wearing ?84,960 worth of dresses, looked “very impressive,” it is said. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 368.6

The following words concerning Japan are a sufficient answer to those who think idolatry and superstition could not endure alongside modern civilisation:- PTUK June 4, 1896, page 368.7

The worshippers in many of the temples of Kioto go on electric cars, and pilgrims to sacred Chikko or Isa go by railroad. Costly shrines are to be found in the homes or business houses of the wealthy merchants or manufacturers in the treaty ports. Children from the public schools are none the less attendants at the temples. Official Japan, with all its wonderful progress, has not overthrown a single altar or destroyed a single heathen temple. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 368.8

Nor do we need to go so far afield as Japan to see that enlightenment without God is but gross darkness. By the Bible rule which makes all covetousness, there is little difference between East and West in the matter of idolatry. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 368.9

In the preface to her new history of the Jesuits, Miss Cusak gives the following definition of Jesuitism:- PTUK June 4, 1896, page 368.10

A religious order which prides itself in being called by the name of the Saviour of mankind, and yet has made the practice of untruth a fine art, and reduced the practice of lying to a science. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 368.11

“‘Put up Thy Sword’” The Present Truth, 12, 23.

E. J. Waggoner

“Put up Thy Sword.” -A despatch from Odessa announces that about five thousand Russian Christians have been obliged to leave their homes, near Kars, because of their refusal to carry arms. During the early life of Jesus of Nazareth the chief priest and Pharisees said, “If we let Him thus alone, all men will believe on Him; and the Romans shall come and take away both our place and nation.” This fear in regard to the result of a belief in Christ, and a practical application of the precepts which He taught, has been shared by the authorities of all governments ever since. There is no Biblical teaching more pronounced, clear, and definite, than that for which these five thousand people suffer banishment. Such an incident as this is a significant companion-piece to the religious ceremonials and protestations of the Russian coronation which have just taken place. That bejeweled copy of the Bible which the Czar, the Czarina, and the Empress Dowager, so reverently kissed should have lain open at certain marked passages which those exiles could have designated. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 368.12

“National Irritability” The Present Truth, 12, 23.

E. J. Waggoner

National Irritability .-“The nations were angry,” or irritable says the prophet, describing last-day conditions. The newspapers bear witness to the prevalence of the evil temper day by day. The Spectator says this condition is getting chronic:- PTUK June 4, 1896, page 368.13

France on the Niger, Germany in the Camerons, Russia in Bokhara and Eastern China, not a Power can stir a foot even on the most legitimate business of its own without our getting into a fever of irritability.... It is the carelessness of children, not the caution of grown men, which they display, and they succeed in producing a chronic irritation, from which some day we shall reap most evil effects.... The other Powers suspect us at least as hotly as we suspect them. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 368.14

“A Great Wind” The Present Truth, 12, 23.

E. J. Waggoner

A Great Wind .-The tragic destruction which has fallen upon a portion of the great city of St. Louis, with the loss of so many hundreds of lives and so many millions of property, should convey a lesson, not only to those living within the tornado belt of the United States, between the Rocky and Allegheny mountains, but to all the world, of the increase of the irremediable dangers to human life. This was not an unusual storm,-it was by no means of unprecedented violence. Great numbers of similar tornadoes have swept across the prairies and cut through the forests of Western and Central United States, but this is the first time that one has passed through a populous city. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 368.15

Many conversant with these tornadoes and their irresistible force, have felt for years that it was the restraining hand of Providence which prevented just such catastrophes as this which has now happened. The marvellous freaks of the terrible forces engaged in the storms, in which heretofore human life seemed to have been played with and not taken, have been noticed and often even made a subject of newspaper comment. It has also been noticed that within the last few years loss of life and injury to persons have been made more frequent than heretofore. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 368.16

It was when the restraining hand of God was withdrawn that a tornado came up out of the wilderness “and smote the four corners of the house” where the sons and daughters of Job were gathered, and it fell, and but one escaped to tell the story. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 368.17

“The Inevitable Crucifix” The Present Truth, 12, 23.

E. J. Waggoner

The Inevitable Crucifix .-The educational power of pictures is undoubtedly great, and ecclesiastical art so often falsely represents the apostles as typical priests, with a pastoral staff, strange garments, and crosses that it is not surprising that many ignorant people are deceived as to the apostolic simplicity of the early church. A magazine writer, discussing stained-glass windows, describes a window in an Irish convent, representing the women accompanying Christ to Calvary:- PTUK June 4, 1896, page 368.18

Everything in the window when finished was correct except one figure, which was very much out of place. That figure represented one of the nuns of the modern convent, standing amid a crowd of sad women, and, yet more strange, from her neck hung a crucifix. She was actually wearing the emblem before the event took place. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 368.19

Such a detail, however, is scarcely worth noticing, as to represent the apostles and early disciples with crucifixes after the crucifixion is as false as to put the inevitable crucifix upon them before the event. It was not until the cross of Christ was lost sight of that the apostasy began to manufacture crucifixes. PTUK June 4, 1896, page 368.20