News from Valparaiso, Chile
By Editor
The sweetness of the Christian life comes in a conscious experience of sins forgiven, of victories gained in Christ Jesus. News from Valparaiso, Chile.—Immediately on the occurrence of the earthquake in Chile we cabled friends there to send us full reports with photographs, but a week later the news came back, "Parties unknown." This led us to fear that the awful calamity might have destroyed their lives. But a letter has just come to hand stating that all are safe, and but little property destroyed. Over 2,000 were killed in Valparaiso alone. We will give more of the particulars by Brother Thomann in our next. The year has been fearful in calamity. One gentleman writes another, "I shall be glad when I can tear off the calendar December's sheet;" but 1907 may be a far worse year. The earth is waxed old. The curse of sin rests heavily. Sometime God will say, "It is enough." Mercy's ultimate plea is made and rejected, and sin reaps its own fruitage—destruction. Those who laugh at these warnings now, will weep and wail in anguish when they come. It is God's desire that we shall be both forewarned and forearmed. "The prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself; but the simple pass on and are punished." An Interdenominational Missionary Conference for Young People is to be held in Oakland, Cal., October 15 to 18, in the First Presbyterian Church. Every evangelical denomination is invited to participate, besides fifteen or more of the various associations auxiliary to or connected with the various churches. A very interesting provisional program of the four days has been placed in our hands by Rev. Dwight E. Potter, chairman of the program committee, which fairly covers the great field of evangelical effort. It ought to be an uplift to those who attend, and many ought to attend. Robert E. Speer, of New York, William Shaw, of Boston, and Alexander Henry, of Philadelphia, all earnest workers, will be present. The chairman of the general committee of the convention is F. Hullinger, and the secretary, Percy A. Bliss. The official address is First Presbyterian Church, 1214 Franklin Street, Oakland, Cal. At the present rate of waste and trust grabbing, a "new earth" will be absolutely needed before long, if the masses of the people are to enjoy the ordinary comforts of life, or to have any claim upon the natural resources designed by a munificent Creator for the use of all. Timber is being so wasted and "cornered" that in a few years more prices are likely to become prohibitive excepting to the rich. The San Francisco Chronicle of recent date states the situation in this way: "A despatch from the North indicates that there is another jar in store for the consumers of lumber. The men who have gobbled all the timber in the Northwest have concluded that the increasing necessities of this section warrant putting up the price of logs, and an edict has gone forth to that effect. These predatory gentlemen may yet overreach themselves. The cost of a frame house is approaching that of a well-constructed brick or concrete dwelling, and very soon the margin will be wiped out. In that event we may get the substantial habit, and instead of housing ourselves in painted shacks, we may conclude to live in well-built structures such as are found in eastern cities, where a good brick building can be put up for forty per cent. less than it costs to erect a ramshackle frame in San Francisco." San Francisco is making an unenviable record for daylight murders. August 20, Johannes Pfitzner, a shoe merchant, was killed in his store in the afternoon, while many people were passing. September 14, William Friede, a clothing merchant, was killed in his store about 3:30 o'clock in the afternoon. October 2, the manager of a Japanese bank was killed, and the teller beaten to unconsciousness during the noon hour when the clerks were out. Over three thousand dollars were stolen, altho many people were passing outside at the time. These men were all beaten with dull implements, and no shots were fired. The Japanese bank teller revived sufficiently to state that two white men had made the assault, and it is thought, from indications, that the same parties committed all three crimes. The Christian doesn't need to wear any garment but plain, common-sense clothing. He needs no white or blue ribbon, no metallic cross or other medallion, to indicate that he is a Christian. He needs no conspicuous uniform to show that he is a soldier of Jesus Christ. How then is he to be known? The Lord tells us to follow Him, and He wore no broad phylacteries, or other outward badge of recognition. Yet He was known so well that He could not be hid. From His own words we learn how to be known as Christians: "Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven." The light of good works and a clean, honest, self-sacrificing life is all the badge any Christian needs to be known almost anywhere. "A city that is set on a hill can not be hid." And now it is Paris, the headquarters of fashion, that comes in for criticism on account of her filthy slaughter-houses. A press despatch of the 2d inst. says: "After visiting the slaughter-houses of Paris, Louis Lepine, the prefect of police, declared to-day that they are 'not a bit better than those in Chicago.' He asserts that the windows have not been washed for five years and that there is only half enough light to show the pavement, which dates from the time of Louis XIV, while it is impossible for the workmen to keep clean on account of the terrible insufficiency of water." The prefect has ordered a thorough cleaning up; and to be sure that it will be immediately and thoroughly done, it will be done by the city. But after all that has been said on this subject recently, who could reasonably expect anything but filth in a wholesale slaughter-house at best? Later news from the Atlanta race-war clearly shows that the best and most respectable of the Southern people do not justify it. Sam D. Jones, leader of the Citizens' Committee in Atlanta, says: "On every hand citizens by the thousands are condemning in unmeasured terms the murdering of innocent negroes." The Rev. Dr. John W. E. Bowen, colored, acting President of the Cannon Theological Seminary, said: "The negro race is afflicted with a small brood of lustful, besotted, worthless, and dangerous black harpies who fear neither God nor man, and are the worst enemies to society. I speak from an experience of twenty-five years. They do attack white women, and, in addition, they pluck continuously and mercilessly at the vitals of their own race." He lays the seat of the trouble to "lack of home training and freedom from work," conditions destructive to the people of any race. Clark Howell, editor of the Atlanta Constitution, says: "I do not believe that mob law is ever justifiable. . . . All this talk about justification of mob law in the name of our womanhood is an appeal to prejudice and passion, which in the end endangers our womanhood, paralyzes commerce, stagnates industry, and stifles the cry of justice for the protection of the innocent, and the punishment of the guilty." The Grand Jury condemns mob law, and sensational newspapers for stirring up the mob. Mr. S. M. Williams, correspondent to the New York World, declares that "a dozen times a day one hears that no member of an old-time Southern family was in the mob." The mob was composed generally of younger men, and the lower class. In many cases respectable whites protected the colored people from the mad mob. Of these tokens we are glad, yet notwithstanding this sentiment among the better class, it does not check the mob spirit, prevalent throughout the country. One of the objections to the taking over of Cuba by the United States is that it will increase the suspicions of the Central and South American republics that our expansion policy will continue to reach southward. This suspicion was greatly strengthened by the Panama secession and the acquiring of the Canal Zone by this government. For several years there has been strong talk about South American federation to resist the aggression of the great northern republic. Such a sentiment will be likely to gain impetus through the heavy accession of European emigration to the southern continent. And European competitors of the United States will not be slow to encourage this spirit of jealousy and suspicion. Do not for one moment do evil that good may come. It is never justifiable. It may save temporal life to-day, and bring eternal death in the judgment day. The principle is utterly wrong, and is pervasive of every good principle in the soul. Despite all that we can do, it perverts our moral standard, and we can never see things with perfect rectitude till we utterly abhor it. A good conscience can only be kept by right action. Mr. and Mrs. T. S. Brandegee, the well-known botanists of San Diego, have donated their entire botanical collections and library to the University of California. As a result of this munificent gift the facilities for research work at the State University are practically doubled, and it now possesses the most complete representation extant of our Pacific Coast flora. It is ever a profitable prayer to God, "Keep my conscience clean." But that prayer implies that the soul will not violate conscience. Better never know that we have a conscience than to pray to God to keep it clean while we continually violate it. A clean conscience demands dependence upon God, a regulation of conscience by a faithful study of His Word, watchfulness against sin, and doing duty promptly. Humboldt County, California, has the second time in its history driven out the Chinese. A local cannery braved public opinion and imported twenty-seven Chinese; but the whole county was aroused, and the cannery company agreed to send them away. The sentiment is, No Mongolian must be allowed in Humboldt County. Begin the day with prayer. Commit your ways unto God. Endeavor to appreciate your weakness, your folly, your insufficiency by remembering past follies, but be assured that God will not hold them against you, and He has for you strength and wisdom for the day. To know God is better than to know ourselves. To know ourselves is to have charity toward all; for a knowledge of ourselves shows us to be so exceeding sinful that we will not feel to criticize others' imperfections. America's Highest Mountain.—Dr. F. A. Cook, of Brooklyn, is the first to ascend Mt. McKinley in Alaska. The height is 20,484 feet. "Be ye also ready; for in such an hour as ye think not, the Son of Man cometh."