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Signs of the Times, Vol. 12, No. 34.

General Articles
Earlier text: The Third Angel’s Message

The Commentary.

By J.

NOTES ON THE INTERNATIONAL LESSON.

The Mission of the Spirit.

(September 12.—John 16:5-20.)
In the promise of the Spirit, Jesus spoke of him as the Comforter. “I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever.” John 14:16. “The Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost.” Verse 26. “If I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.” It is by the Holy Spirit that the Lord comforts his disciples. Says Paul, “Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ.” 2 Cor. 1:3-5. This consolation abounds by the Holy Spirit which Christ sends, for his mission is,—
1. TO WITNESS of Christ. “When the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me.” John 15:26. This Spirit is given only to those who are Christ’s. “If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.” Rom. 8:9. “If ye love me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him; but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless; I will come to you. . . . If a man love me, he will keep my words; and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.” John 14:15-23. One part of the mission of the Holy Spirit, therefore, is to witness of the presence of God and of Christ with his disciples.
2. A WITNESS of the forgiveness of sins, and that thus we are the children of God. “The Holy Ghost also is a witness to us; for after that he had said before, This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them;” then he said, “And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.” Heb. 10:15-17. “The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God.” Rom. 8:16.
3. An earnest of our inheritance. “Ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.” Eph. 1:13, 14. An earnest is “a part paid beforehand on a contract, as security for the whole.” God enters into covenant with men, and to those who will accept his Son, he promises an inheritance. But the time is not yet come when the inheritance can be given; it is not yet redeemed. So until that time does come, until it is redeemed, he gives to his people the Holy Spirit as the earnest, the security of the inheritance. Another definition is, that “an earnest gives assurance that more is coming of the same kind.” By receiving the Holy Spirit we become partakers of the divine nature, and by this “earnest” God gives assurance that more is coming of the same kind, even so much more, that, “when he shall appear, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.”
4. As a guide into the truth. “But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.” John 14:26. The Holy Spirit then is to teach us the things that Christ has said. And as the Spirit of Christ spoke the Old Testament as well as the New (1 Pet. 1:10-12), this is to say that the Holy Spirit is to teach us the word of God. This is confirmed by John 16:13: “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth.” And as Jesus said, “Thy word is truth,” it is plain that the Spirit is to guide us into the word of God. Again, “He shall take of mine, and shall show it unto you.” Verse 15. The Holy Spirit, therefore, as teacher of the word of God, as guide into the word of God, is to take these things of God and show them unto us, to show us their breadth of meaning, that we may know how to apply them to our lives and conform our ways to them. Compare Ps. 119:18; Eph. 1:17, 18, and Acts 26:18.
Just here is where those fail who claim sanctification. Even granting, for the sake of the argument (and for that reason only), that they have received the Holy Spirit, instead of allowing him to fulfill his office of teacher of the word of God; instead of having him take the things of the word of God, and show unto them; instead of allowing him to guide them into the word of God; they seek to make him the guide independent of the word of God; and not only that, but in many instances directly contrary to the plainly written word which he himself has spoken. Such spirit is not the Spirit of God; such is not his office; he is not divided against himself. Again, this makes him the end instead of the means, which is to pervert the way of the Lord. In no single instance, in this connection, is he made the end; but in every instance he is set forth as the means by which we may reach the end which God has in view for us. And again, to make him the guide independent of the word, is to make him speak of (from) himself. But Christ plainly declares, “He shall not speak of [from] himself.” John 16:13.
5. TO CONVINCE of sin. “And when he is come, he will convince the world of sin.” Verse 8. “Sin is the transgression of the law.” 1 John 3:4. And the Holy Spirit can convict no man of sin before God, except by the law of God, “for by the law is the knowledge of sin.” Rom. 3:20. And without conviction there can be no conversion. So the matter stands just thus: There can be no conversion without conviction; and there can be no conviction without the law; therefore, where the law of God is despised there can be no conversion; hence neither sanctification nor salvation, call it what they will.
6. TO CONVINCE of righteousness. He shall convince the world “of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more.” “All unrighteousness is sin.” 1 John 5:17. “Sin is the transgression of the law.” Righteousness is the opposite of unrighteousness. And as unrighteousness is transgression of the law, righteousness is obedience to the law, but this only through the faith and merit of Christ. Therefore, in convincing of righteousness, theHoly Spirit convinces of obedience to the law of God, by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
7. To CONVINCE of judgment. He shall convince the world “of judgment.” “As many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law,” “in the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel.” Rom. 2:12, 16. “So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty.” James 2:12. As, therefore, in the Judgment men’s acts are to be compared with the law of God, the office of the Holy Spirit in convincing of judgment is to enable us to see the law of God as it is, that we may have our transgressions washed away by the blood of Christ, and that we may obey the law as we ought; thus to convince us of judgment now while there is hope, that when we shall stand before the Judgment seat of Christ, our lives may be found in perfect harmony with the holy law of God, and that so we may stand in the Judgment.
8. To SHED abroad the love of God. “The love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.” Rom. 5:5. This again points directly to the law of God, and to the keeping of that law: “For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments; and his commandments are not grievous.” 1 John 5:3.
By all these evidences we see that the office of the Holy Spirit, in every instance in the life of the Christian, is to spread the law and word of God before him, and to impress upon him the duty and knowledge of obedience. Additional evidence on this point is given by Peter: “Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father; through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience.” 1 Peter 1:1, 2. This teaches plainly that the Holy Spirit is given to us to teach us to obey the written word of God, and that true sanctification of the Spirit is unto obedience to that written word.
9. This also reveals to us another part of the mission of the Spirit. That is, as the Sanctifier. A great deal is made nowadays of a certain kind of sanctification, but any sanctification that is not “unto obedience” to the law of God, is spurious sanctification; it is a deception and a snare.
CHRIST prayed, “Sanctify them through the truth,” and then immediately added, “Thy word is truth.” John 17:17. This shows that sanctification is through the word of God; but it can only be through the word of God by the aid of the Spirit. The text quoted just above from Peter, tells of sanctification of the Spirit “unto obedience.” Here we have another text from Peter on the same subject: “Seeing ye have purified [sanctified] your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit.” 1 Pet. 1:22. Men are elect through sanctification of the Spirit unto obedience, but they are not sanctified until they have obeyed the truth, the word of God, through the Spirit. The truth of God cannot be obeyed except through the Holy Spirit. The law of God is spiritual (Rom. 7:14), the word of Christ is spirit (John 6:63), but man is carnal. Therefore “the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.” Rom. 8:7-9. The Holy Spirit is given to take away the carnal mind, and make us spiritually minded, that so we may discern the things of God (1 Cor. 2:9-16), and thus he takes the things of God and shows them unto us. Thus by the Spirit of God, we can see our duty in the truth of God, and then we can obey that truth through the Spirit, and so we are sanctified through the truth. J.

California T. and M. Society.

REPORT FOR QUARTER ENDING JUNE 30, 1886.

No. of members 1,038
"     " dismissed 28
"     " added 39
"     " reports returned 526
"     " missionary visits 4,062
"     " letters written 3,322
"     " pages of tracts, pamphlets, and books distributed 766,308
"     " periodicals distributed 55,418
"     " SIGNS taken in clubs 2,654
"     " other periodicals taken in clubs 3,956
"     " new subscribers obtained 227
"     " Bible-readings held 522
Received on donations and membership $385.71
"     " book sales 145.98
"     " SIGNS and other Periodicals 1,064.41
Total receipts $1,596.10
ANNA L. INGELS, Sec’y.

THE LAW OF GOD.

The First Day of the Week.

(Lesson 22.—Sabbath, September 18.)
1. On what day of the week did Christ rise from the tomb? “Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven devils.” Mark 16:9.
2. Did the disciples whom Mary Magdalene saw believe that he was risen? “And she went and told them that had been with him, as they mourned and wept. And they, when they had heard that he was alive, and had been seen of her, believed not.” Mark 16:10, 11.
3. Where did two of the disciples go that same day? “And, behold, two of them went that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was from Jerusalem about threescore furlongs.” Luke 24:13.
4. Who joined them on the way? “And it came to pass, that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near, and went with them. But their eyes were holden that they should not know him.” Luke 24:15, 16.
5. After Jesus had made himself known to them, what did they do? “And they rose up the same hour, and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven gathered together, and them that were with them.” “And they told what things were done in the way, and how he was known of them in breaking of bread.” Luke 24:33, 35.
6. Did the other disciples believe what these two told them? “After that he had appeared in another form unto two of them, as they walked, and went into the country. And they went and told it unto the residue; neither believed they them.” Mark 16:12, 13.
7. What time of day was it when the disciples were thus gathered together? “Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you.” John 20:19.
8. Why is it impossible to suppose that they were celebrating the resurrection of Christ?—Because they did not believe that he had risen.
9. How did it happen that they were all together at that time?—They had a common dwelling-place. Acts 1:13.
10. Who appeared to them on the first day evening? “Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you.” John 20:19.
11. Were the disciples expecting him? “And as they thus spake, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. But they were terrified and affrighted, and supposed that they had seen a spirit.” Luke 24:36, 37.
12. What did Jesus do to assure them that he was a real being and not a phantom? “And he said unto them, Why are ye troubled? and why do thoughts arise in your hearts? Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself; handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have. And when he had thus spoken, he showed them his hands and his feet. And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat? And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of a honey-comb. And he took it, and did eat before them.” Luke 24:38-43.
13. How was it that they had food so handy? “Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen.” Mark 16:14.
14. What is the only recorded instance of a religious meeting on the first day of the week? “And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight.” Acts 20:7.
15. On what part of the day was this meeting held? “And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight. And there were many lights in the upper chamber, where they were gathered together.” Acts 20:7, 8.
16. What part of the day comes first? “And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.” “And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.” “And the evening and the morning were the third day.” Gen. 1:5, 8, 13, etc.
17. With what does the day begin? “It shall be unto you a sabbath of rest, and ye shall afflict your souls; in the ninth day of the month at even, from even unto even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath.” Lev. 23:32.
18. When is it evening? “But at the place which the Lord thy God shall choose to place his name in, there thou shalt sacrifice the passover at even, at the going down of the sun, at the season that thou camest forth out of Egypt.” Deut. 16:6. “And the king of Ai he hanged on a tree until eventide; and as soon as the sun was down, Joshua commanded that they should take his carcass down from the tree, and cast it at the entering of the gate of the city, and raise thereon a great heap of stones, that remaineth unto this day.” Josh. 8:29. “And at even, when the sun did set, they brought unto him all that were diseased, and them that were possessed with devils.” Mark 1:32.
19. Then since this meeting was on the dark part of the first day of the week, when would we say it was held?—On what is commonly known as Saturday night.
20. How long did the meeting last? “When he therefore was come up again, and had broken bread, and eaten, and talked a long while, even till break of day, so he departed.” Acts 20:11.
21. For what place did Paul start on the first day morning after the meeting closed? “And we went before to ship, and sailed unto Assos, there intending to take in Paul; for so had he appointed, minding himself to go afoot. And when he met with us at Assos, we took him in, and came to Mitylene.” Acts 20:13, 14.
22. While Paul was preaching what were his companions doing? “And we went before to ship, and sailed unto Assos, there intending to take in Paul.” Acts 20:13.
23. What is the only command in the Bible concerning the first day of the week? “Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come.” 1 Cor. 16:2.
24. Can a person “lay by him in store” that which he puts in a contribution box at church?
25. How is each one to know how much to“lay by”?—“As God hath prospered him,” after examining his accounts, he is to lay aside a certain per cent. of the profits.
26. From all these things, among what must the first day of the week be classed?—Among “the six working days.” Eze. 46:1.

Notes.

THE student, after learning that the evening begins the day, may wonder how the disciples could be gathered together “at evening near the close of the day of the resurrection, and it still be the first day of the week.” John 20:19. This is made clear when we remember that the Jews reckoned two evenings to each day. Dr. Clarke, on Ex. 12:6, says: “The Jews divided the day into morning and evening; till the sun passed the meridian, all was morning or forenoon, after that all was afternoon or evening. Their first evening began just after twelve o’clock, and continued till sunset; their second evening began at sunset, and continued till night, i. e., during the whole time of twilight.” See also Scott, McClintock and Strong’s cyclopedia, etc. Ex. 12:6, margin, reads: “Return between the two evenings.” It will be seen that the day began and ended with an evening. The evening at the close of the day was the first of “the two evenings,” and the one at the beginning of the following day, from sunset onward, was the second evening. When John speaks of the evening of the first day of the week, referring to the close of the day, he evidently means the first evening. But when Luke (Acts 20:7) speaks of a meeting on the first day of the week, we know that he refers to the second evening, the one which began the day, because lights were then required. But when we say that “when John speaks of the evening of the first day of the week, referring to the close of the day, he evidently means the first evening,” we do not mean that all the events of that evening took place before sunset, nor that it was before sunset when Jesus met with the disciples in their room in Jerusalem. The language of John 20:19 does not demand such a conclusion. The disciples assembled in their room for their evening meal while the sun was yet above the horizon; their hour for eating being doubtless about the same as that of the disciples who lived in Emmaus. But as in that country darkness very quickly follows the setting of the sun, it must have been some time after dark when the two disciples returned from Emmaus. Still it was the first day of the week when the disciples assembled.
IN chapter 20 of Conybeare and Howson’s “Life and Epistles of the Apostle Paul,” we find the following in regard to the meeting spoken of in Acts 20:7: “It was the evening which succeeded the Jewish Sabbath. On the Sunday morning the vessel was about to sail. The Christians of Troas were gathered together at this solemn time to celebrate the feast of love which the last command of Christ has enjoined on all his followers.” A few paragraphs further on we find the following: “Strength and peace were surely sought and obtained by the apostle from the Redeemer, as he pursued his lonely road that Sunday afternoon, in spring, among the oak woods and the streams of Ida.”
FROM Troas to Assos is at least nineteen miles, and therefore Paul must have been still on the way in the afternoon of that Sunday, although he started at break of day. Acts 20:11. On the supposition that he recognized Sunday as the Sabbath, is it not strange that he should leave the church at Troas on Sunday morning, and spend the entire day in traveling? And this, we remember, is the only time when the first day of the week is mentioned in connection with a religious meeting.

Recent Earthquake in New Zealand.

By Sel.

FURTHER details of the earthquakes in New Zealand state that the most violent disturbances were felt in the neighborhood of Rotona. The severity of the shocks led many of the people to believe that the island would sink into the sea. The sensation experienced is said to have been fearful beyond description.
Immediately after the first shock the inhabitants rushed frantically in all directions. When the second shock came the entire country for miles around was lit up by the glare of the volcano, which had suddenly burst into activity. The scene was as grand as it was awful. Huge volumes of smoke illuminated with flame simultaneously burst forth from a range of mountains over sixty miles in length, and above the smoke could be seen huge masses of fire resembling meteors rushing through the sky. The natives who had escaped death gathered in groups, and, filled with abject terror, held religious services, but when another shock would cause the earth to tremble, they would fall with their faces to the ground, quivering with fear.
As soon as the news of the fearful occurrence was received at Auckland, a Government agent made immediate preparations to go to the relief of the sufferers. Wagons were chartered and filled with provisions and clothes. Mr. Johnson, the Government agent, on his arrival at Rotona, sent back the following account: “The scene among the mountains as viewed from the Wairoa road is terribly grand. Flashes of lightning, peals of thunder, and shocks of earthquake are incessant, while dust is falling in heavy showers. In addition to these inconveniences, the roads throughout the entire country are covered with several feet of blue clay mud ejected from the volcanoes. All vegetation is destroyed, and the aspect of the country is entirely changed. Blue Lake and Lake Rotakokahi have been transformed into mud baths. The outlet of the latter lake is blocked up andthe bridges which cross the lower end are covered with mud.
“Nearly all the buildings that I have noticed are crushed in with fallen mud. At this place Snow’s Temperance Hall and the two principal hotels, and nearly all the other buildings in the town, are completely wrecked. The house occupied by Mrs. Hazard and her family was borne down by the weight of the debris. Mrs. Hazard was dug out alive, but four of her children were found dead. Mr. Hazard is missing. Detailed reports of the foreign residents at other points who were killed have not yet been received.”
The captain of the steamship Southern Cross, which arrived at Auckland on June 18, reports having felt at sea the effect of the disturbances. On the morning of June 10, the day following the earthquakes, his vessel was in a shower of dust. From 5 to 10 A. M. there was complete darkness, and balls of fire were continually playing around the mastheads. A gale suddenly sprang up and carried all his canvas away. The men were unable to stand the blinding showers of dust, and the vessel was put about and stood away to the north, but it was not until 11 o’clock of the following day that the dust was left behind. The reports show that earthquakes generally prevailed at all points in New Zealand during the same period.—Sel.

About Egypt.

By Mrs. Susan E. Wallace

Very pleasant was that ride to Cairo, the city called by Orientals the precious diamond in the handle of the green fan of the Delta. It was the retreat of the Fatimite Caliphs, the beloved asylum of the poets, and is famed in flowery prose and voluptuous song.
Our swift train appeared to glide through rather than break the stillness of the drowsy country. The mellow sunshine was like our Indian Summer, balmy and yellow, glorifying all it touched, and made less melancholy the squalid, filthy Arab villages, haunted by hags who are not witches, but wives and daughters of the fellahin. The mud houses are like an outgrowth of Nilotic slime and ooze, and beside them grow lovely acacias and mimosa or gum arabic trees, in which pigeons flock and flutter. About the straw heaps at the door chickens cackle, and dirty sheep hunt for food, and sore-eyed children lie basking, resembling torpid reptiles. It was in November, which was mild and delightful as bridal June is with us.
The valley of the Nile produces three crops a year; and sowing, plowing, reaping go on at the same time. Women worked in the fields with the men, each wearing one loose garment. There was no machinery but the shadof, like our old-fashioned well-sweep, the most primitive of pumps, and a rush basket. Swinging the water-tight basket, they moved with machine-like precision, these forever oppressed Egyptians, without recollections of a great past or ambition pointing to a better future. Their very souls are enslaved by centuries of grinding tyranny, knowing no change but a change of taskmasters. The locomotive gives them no impulses, and they do not lift their heads as the herald of a new civilization, a chariot mightier than Pharaoh's, rolls past. Among the low bending figures we saw the tattooed faces and painted blue lips, forbidden by the Levitical law.
In a slow, heart-broken way they moved steadily, swinging the rush basket, in the hard service of the field named in Deuteronomy, drawing up water from the river and emptying it on the fields in the higher levels. Sometimes the passer-by may hear a dull, droning sound from the unpaid toilers, a melancholy chorus chanted by gangs of boys and girls degraded unspeakably, who are set to work together along the Nile banks. The Arabic scholar tells us these are the words of the slow, sad song:—
GIRLS.
They starve us, they starve us!
BOYS.
They beat us, they beat us!
CHORUS ALL TOGETHER.
But there's some one above, There's some one above, Who will punish them well, Will punish them well.
Another burden in full chorus is:—
The chief of the village, The chief of the village, May the dogs tear him, tear him, tear him!
In the oldest of the world's illustrated histories, on the walls of Thebes, are pictures, perfect as though sculptured yesterday, for which these waiting human machines might have served as models. There is little doubt that, in the changeless East, this is the very same cry which went up to Heaven from the enslaved Hebrews, groaning under their taskmasters. An exceeding bitter cry when swelled in a chorus of multitudes doomed to perform impossibilities, gazing in despair at their unconquerable work. There is a tomb-painting near Ghizeh supposed to represent the hard usage of Israelites in Egypt, an accurate illustration of the house of bondage. The features of the Jews it is impossible to mistake. They are making brick, their bodies are splashed with clay, and their service is plainly exacted “with rigor.” In the center of the picture sits an overseer or taskmaster, with baton in hand, ready to enforce obedience,—an actual portrait of some Egyptian face, with oblique eyes, and narrow, receding forehead.
As we journeyed, camels in twos and threes went by, their Arab drivers seated on horrible high-posted saddles, taking the motion of the brute in that tilting perch. The mangy, dreary creatures did not take fright at the steam-whistle; they were too far gone for that. They only turned, and chewing the cud of nothing particular, surged slowly along unmindful of our invasion on the sanctity of the past; and musing, it would seem, on the hard lot of the beast of burden, the slave of slaves. I thought they had no spirit left, but when a load too heavy to be endured is being girded the kneeling beasts give a complaining groan most dismal to hear. The Scripture word “girded” first has meaning here. It was a new idea to see two heavy bales balanced, one on either side, and kept in place with broad bands, wound round and round the animal.
A street-car line is projected for Cairo. Venerable and historic monuments are laid low to make room for glaring hotels, and the dreadful costume of the Christian is adopted, instead of the flowing robes and soft, light fabrics suited to tropic heat. Comfortable loose slippers are abandoned for leather shoes, and women are forsaking cool draperies for corsets and the many discomforts of Parisian toilet. It is consoling to learn they must keep to the veils which law and religion hold sacred, and which no foreign influence can alter.
The hills of the Libyan Desert gird the horizon and frame the matchless picture, and the mountain tombs of Ghizeh tower against the sky, blue as when Cleopatra lavished her blandishments on Antony, as they did when the great Rameses breathed the burning incense offered to him as to a god. They look no older now than when the patriarchs saw them as they went down into Egypt to sojourn there, for the famine was grievous in their land.
Formerly the soft sand of the streets of Cairo gave back no sound of chariot wheel, hoof, or footstep; now the paved roadway of the Muski is a din worthy of Regent Street or Broadway. It has lost in dignity and quiet, but much gain is made, in some respects, by the improvements of Ismail Pasha. Instead of donkeying to the pyramids, or perching on a back-breaking camel, you ride in an open barouche to the very foot of the Great Pyramid. It is a delicious drive, eleven miles on a raised causeway, under the shady acacia trees, sacred in our eyes to poetry and song. The highway was built for the Prince of Wales, according to an immemorial compliment in the East, which orders a new road made for a guest the king delights to honor. Verily, Ismail Pasha builded better than he knew, when he ordered this for the Prince of Wales. His it is now.
The Arab proverb runs: “Time mocks all, but the Pyramids mock time.” How the outer casing of Ghizeh has been carried off to found new towns, and for the upbuilding of Cairo, is an old tale and often told. The illiterate children of the desert paid no heed to tablets of hewn stone which contained precious histories, and the conqueror Amrou founded the city of Victory on the field where the leathern tent of the commander-in-chief was pitched. When he was to return to Alexandria, and ordered his tent to be struck for the march, he was told that a pair of pigeons had made their nest on its roof. He exclaimed, “God forbid that a Mohammedan should deny his shelter to a living being, a creature of Allah who had confided to the protection of his hospitality. Leave the tent standing. It is an omen of good.”
The pigeons remained unharmed in their nest, and when Amrou returned, flushed with triumph, from Alexandria, he found it there standing, occupied it again, and made the spot a center for the new capital, Fostat, i. e., the tent. The reader will remember a similar story told of the Emperor Charles of Spain in Flanders, immortalized in verse by Longfellow. “Golondrina is my guest,” the emperor said, “let no hand molest nor hurt her.” And when the army disbanded, the canvas palace was left standing for the sake of the swallow's nest.
—Mrs. Susan E. Wallace, in The Advance.

The Home Circle

SLIPPING AWAY.

They are slipping away, these sweet, swift years, Like a leaf on the current cast; With never a break in their rapid flow, We watch them as one by one they go Into the beautiful past.
As silent and swift as a weaver's thread, Or an arrow's flying gleam; As soft as the languorous breezes hid, That lift the willow's long golden lid, And ripple the glassy stream.
As light as the breath of the thistle-down, As fond as a lover's dream; As pure as the flush in the sea-shell's throat, As sweet as the wood-bird's wooing note, So tender and sweet they seem.
One after another we see them pass, Down the dim-lighted stair; We hear the sound of their steady tread In the steps of the centuries long since dead, As beautiful and as fair.
There are only a few years left to love, Shall we waste them in idle strife? Shall we trample under our ruthless feet These beautiful blossoms, rare and sweet, By the dusty way of life?
There are only a few swift years—ah, let No envious taunts be heard; Make life's fair pattern of rare design, And fill up the measure with love's sweet wine, But never an angry word!

Bites and Stings.

ALMOST all these are destructive from their acid nature, consequently the cure is an alkali. Spirits of hartshorn is one of the strongest, and is kept in almost every household, and you have only to pour some of it out in a tea-cup and dabble it on with a rag. Relief is immediate.
If you have no hartshorn, then saleratus is a suitable alkali. Moisten it with water, and use as in the case of hartshorn; or, pour a tea-cup of boiling water on as much wood ashes, stir it and in a few minutes you will have an alkali. The lye of ashes will answer a good purpose while the physician is coming. Remember the principle—bite is an acid, the cure is an alkali.—Hall's Journal of Health.

Washington’s Modesty.

THERE is a story told of Washington’s first appearance as a member of the House of Burgesses. He was something more than a new member; he was the late commander-in-chief of the Virginia army, the foremost man, in a military way, in the province; he had just returned from the successful expedition against Fort Duquesne. So the House resolved to welcome him in a manner becoming so gallant a Virginian, and it passed a vote of thanks for the distinguished military services he had rendered the country. The Speaker, Mr. Robinson, rose when Washington came in to take his seat, and made a little speech of praise and welcome, presenting the thanks of the House. Every one applauded and waited for the tall colonel to respond. There he stood, blushing, stammering, confused. He could give his orders to his men easily enough, and he could even say what was necessary to Mrs. Martha Custis; but to address the House of Burgesses in answer to a vote of thanks—that was another matter! Not a plain word could he get out. It was a capital answer, and the Speaker interpreted it to the House.
“Sit down, Mr. Washington,” said he, “your modesty equals your valor, and that surpasses the power of any language I possess.”—St. Nicholas.

Health and Temperance.

Nature of Tobacco.

Q.—WHAT are the chief ways of using tobacco?
A.—Smoking, chewing, and snuffing.
Q.—What is the natural effect of tobacco upon the system?
A.—It is narcotic and emetic.
Q.—What is an emetic?
A.—Anything which causes a person to vomit after taking it.
Q.—What is a narcotic?
A.—Any drug which, taken in small doses, stupefies the nerves and causes sleepiness, and in larger quantities produces convulsions, stupor, and death.
Q.—What deadly poison does tobacco contain?
A.—Nicotine; a very small quantity will produce death.
Q.—What proof can you give that tobacco is poisonous?
A.—If given to a dog he will die in spasms.
Q.—Give another example of tobacco poisoning.
A.—A single drop of liquid taken from a pipe stem and placed on the tongue of a cat will kill it almost instantly.
Q.—How then can men form a habit of using tobacco if it be so deadly a poison?
A.—If taken in small doses at the beginning, the system grows to tolerate many kinds of poison.
Q.—What other poisons can be taken in large quantities if begun by degrees?
A.—Alcohol, arsenic, opium, and nearly all poisons.
Q.—Why does not tobacco kill people when they first begin to use it?
A.—Because it is an emetic, and the stomach will seldom retain enough to produce death at once.
Q.—Does the use of tobacco ever cause death?
A.—Yes, but usually it poisons the system slowly.
Q.—Does the system attempt to work it off?
A.—The system tries to throw off every poison as soon as swallowed, and is greatly weakened by the effort.
Q.—But does a little do any harm?
A.—Any poison must hurt more or less in proportion to the quantity taken.
Q.—How is the injury done?
A.—It poisons the stomach, affecting digestion, often producing dyspepsia, and rendering the whole system liable to disease.
Q.—Is there any evidence that tobacco goes all through the system?
A.—If a drop of perspiration from a habitual user of tobacco fall on a hot stove, you can smell the tobacco at once.
Q.—How is it that there are some who are not made sick by the use of tobacco, at first?
A.—Such people have, perhaps, inherited a taste for it, and are hardened to the poison to begin with.
Q.—If tobacco is so injurious, why do people use it?
A.—Because it is a narcotic poison, and seems to quiet, while it really injures them.—Silver Star Catechism.

Hair Doctoring.

A FASHIONABLE modiste gave a reporter some points on women doctoring their hair to obtain certain effects in color. She said:—
“Women are blessed with such luxuriant hirsute adornments they rarely ever become bald. If they did not attempt to doctor their hair it would never fall out, unless some scalp disease caused it. In nearly every hair store you visit will be found a hair lotion especially prepared to do something wonderful either in the way of producing extraordinary growth, or changing the color from a sandy to a golden, or as desired. Women have a fondness for experimenting with their hair, and cannot resist the temptation to try all the nostrums offered.
I have seen many a beautiful head of hair ruined by applications of lotions. I know a young married lady who moves in the highest circles. She had long, wavy, blonde hair, the envy of nine-tenths of her friends. She concluded that she wanted it a shade lighter—some one had told her that it would add to its beauty. She began by using borax and a lot of prepared stuff, guaranteed by each person who sold it to do its work effectually and without harm. Her hair is now an ugly shade of sorrel and completely dead. It is also much thinner, and will all come out, I think, in a few years. Her case is but one of many.
If women would only take into consideration the fact that health, as a rule, gives vitality to the hair, they would not use so many ineffectual remedies. It is enough to have a race of bald-headed men—may the females be spared.”— N. Y. Mail and Express.
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