A VERY gratifying feature of the exercises connected with the laying of the corner stone of the new Sanitarium, a report of which is given in another part of this paper, was the absence of fulsome personal flattery, and the emphasis which was placed upon the principles for which the institution stands. All the speakers seemed to appreciate the fact that the occasion was not intended to be merely an opportunity to glorify men, but rather to set forth anew that which is greater than any man or any organization,—truth, divine, eternal truth. Attention was called repeatedly to the important consideration that the foundation of stone was not the real foundation of the institution, but that the principles which had been wrought into its work during the past quarter of a century and more constituted the true foundation, and that this foundation was eternal. Neither fire, nor flood, nor any of the so-called forces of nature could overthrow such a foundation, or destroy that which was built upon it. This sentiment was well expressed in the lines inscribed upon the reverse side of the handsome trowel presented to Dr. Kellogg by a few friends for use on this occasion:— “Build as man may, time gnaws and peers
Through marble fissures, granite rents;
’Tis only principle that rears
Imperishable monuments.” This is simply the poetical paraphrase of the inspired statement: “The things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” “The truth of the Lord endureth forever.” A substantial building and a suitable equipment are important factors in the work of setting forth the gospel of salvation for spirit, soul, and body, but they are, after all, subordinate to the one essential requisite for success,—the indwelling of the truth as a personality in the living presence in the heart of him who is “the way, the truth, and the life.” It promises well for the future work of the Sanitarium that these thoughts should be emphasized anew at this time. There is constant danger of forgetting these simple facts, and of resting our hope for success upon that which is at best of secondary importance. While the minds of managers and workers are at present necessarily occupied with the problem of building and equipping a suitable structure in which the principles of the gospel may be fittingly represented, it is of the first importance that the true basis of the work should not be forgotten. “For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” Every worker and every institution which is connected with this great movement to prepare the way of the Lord should proclaim with a loud voice, “All flesh is grass. . . . Behold your God!” Every worker and every institution should be in himself and in itself a revelation of “the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ,” a witness to the fact that the coming of the Lord to dwell with men is no cunningly devised fable. In this way a genuine message can be quickly borne to the world, the gospel of the kingdom speedily preached in all the world for a witness, and the consummation of our hopes may be realized.