Ligonier Banner., Volume 45, Number 5, Ligonier, Noble County, 21 April 1910 — Page 2
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£ === HE Texas Panhandle is that ; portion of the state which b ' § lies directly south of what 4 was. No-Man's Land, ex*’fl_"w:nxgu}’n i§ tending from parallels 160 HIII‘ ‘“ “ to 103, east and west. Its ‘ Bl shape suggests its name, NgssosT | ;~ ‘an -‘its;’,'giaxne .suggests »lim- ; u&(:j’{m -it s§-*ffeas, of waving g vf4 grass; vast roving herds; - cowboys and ponies—both - |ot the. unbridled variety; bad men_whose chief business was. to start graveyards, and the glad primeval I.'lwlessn‘e.{} that prevails' when worlds are new. Al = = = -+ Nog 80 many years ago the Panhandle was distinetly a world apart, and a new one, - With No-Man’'s Land on the north, Indian Territory on the east and New Mexieo on the west; ®ivilization could come only from the south, and it did not come very fast. Indeed, there was still plenty of territory in that direction to be subdued—two or three tiers of countles in fact—before.the Panhandle would be reached.. .So, it was a place apart—an icolated fertile land, justifying the assertion of a tramp that he had lost $lOO, 000 there in one year by not having cattle.to eat up the grass. - - The cattle came in due time, fighting hack thqf‘Apache and the Comanche; protected by Rangers from Fort Griffin, ac‘companied hy stockmen of every nafion, cowboys of every grade and eriminals of every breed. That was a wild epoch—chaotic and pieturesque—a time of individual ‘administratfon and untempered fustice. . : - . : It was aiso a time of mighty domain. Ranches there were as liiii as some kingdoms. One, the X. I. TS, covered a good porticn of the nporthern part of the Panhandle. Another, the, Matador, spread itself into five countjes. When settlement became thicker—when there were ranch houses not more -than 25 ‘to 30 miles afmri——bfficiul allotment of the land€ wa§ made. Then there was a grand gobble. The big stockmen fenced everything with' little regard for boundaries afd less for the law. - |
With siugh ‘examples as these in high places; it-is not strangef that a general indifferencé “fo" legal rights and possedsigns prevailed. Next to cattie-raising, cattle-stegling was the chief industry. The cowboy proper was not concerned in such work. He was likely to-be a clean-handed, straightforward, even if reckless, individual, honest according to his lights. True, loyalty to his empldyer might render him a trifle indifferent as to brands and marks: wnsgwtrays mixedswith the herd, but it was the employer and not the cowboy who profited by such laxity. The cowboy was a retainer who would fight for his ranch, would ‘die for it when circumstances seemed to re quire such a ‘sacrifice, and the incréase of the ranch herd by any means short of actual raid and theft was a custom which bore no relation to disrepute. But individually. the:cowboy was likely to be the soul of honor and good nature, trouble‘séme_;only on helidays wheh he was moved to ride into thé" nearest settlement, drink up all the whisky he could buy, and then, wilh six-shooter drawn, go careering up and down the streets, shooting in random directions, explaining méantime’_ with noisy -and repetitious adjectives that he was a bad man—a very bad man from very- far up the creek.
“The Panhandle was full of bad men in the edarly nineties. Most of them had graduated from other schools of crime and, found here a last resort. Some of them—a good many of them—had obtained offictal positions and were outlaws and deputies by turns, or worked conjunctively as both. As a rule they were in one way or another associated with a gang. ; Local authorities, even when conscientious, ‘were poorly eguippéd to cope with such an element, and it was for Company B Ranger Force, consisting of eight men with quariers at Amarillo, Capt- W. J. McDonald commanding, to police this vast wilderness, and to capture and convert, or' otherwise tame, its undesirable citizens, . / [ierbotly Soon after MecDongld's appointment he was notified of a marawding band that across in Hutchinson county, ; were. committing, the usual crimes. They had Burned the hay belonging to a ranchman on’ Tuvkey creek—several hundred tons in guantity—they had cut his wire fences; they had Kilgdscows for their calves, butcheted beef catfle, cut oyt brands—in a word, they had conducted the busines of cattlé 'stealing and general degrefiatlon on a large geale; -
Taking a portion of his force, Capt. McDonald went over to investigate. There seemed to be a good cfeal of mystery concerning the identity of the offenders; but a mystery of that sort does not stand a very good chance when it is operated upon by a man with eyes like those of Capt. Bill and with a nose and a pair -of ears of his peculiar pattern. nI a short tims he had identified one member of the band in a young man prominently connected in that seetion. . This young fellow—a dupe, né doubt, of professional cow thieves, whose glittering reputation as bad men had dazzled him—was the son of an able and reputable lawyer, a member of the state legislature. The son, supposed to be a cowboy, had beceme in reality an outlaw. Capt. McDonald took him in charge one day, questioned him, and secured sufficient evidence to file a complaint. The prisoner was turned over to the sheriff of Hutchinson county, and Capt. Bill pursued his investigation. He located a bunch of stolen calves, herdefl,in the brakes of the Canadian river, guarded by another member of the gang. The calves were “hobbled and necked” and their methers had been shot as an easy method of getting rid of them. Capt. Bill found the dead cows in‘a nearby ‘canyon, and he brought a man who had lost a number of miich cows and calves to tdentify the property.. It'was no very difficult matter; thé man declared e knew the calves as 'well as his own children. One after another ‘the missing members of the band were brohght
‘ Best Vie‘wed From Distance
Chambermaids’ Hero Fell Off Al‘naz-fi : ingly When One Got Closer ” R ; to Him. S He'was a very distinguished-looking * man, this new guest of the hotel. He was over six feet in height, his shoul-. _ders were broad, his leonine head was praudly upraised, and his eyes Yeld concealed, ?ut half-hinted, stories of past’-sorrows.,é
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in, and lodged in jail. The cpse against them was clear. They were found with the stolen property; some of -them did not even attempt to make denial. TPheir- examining trial was held at Plemons, the county seat of Hutchinson county, and the settlers gathered from far and near for that event. The trial was held in a big barn of a place, and the prisoners were bound over to the district court. The Rangers were pneparit;lg to take them to Panhandle City, where there were safer and more commodious quarters, when the sheriffi—who had already distinguished himself by setting free the prominent young outlaw first captured—appeared and deman&dv the prisoners, on the ground that heing sheriff of that county, they could not be removed without his consent. The Ranger captain promptly informed him that sheriff or no sheriff, he had shown his disqualifications for that office, and -that these prisoners would be taken to more secure quarters than he seemed willing to provide. The officer departed, and presently mustered a crowd, armed with Winchesters. Then he appeared once. more beifore Capt. Bill, produced the law which under proper conditions might have supported him in his demand, and again declared . that he woul@d have those prisoners, or that there would be bloodshed and several Ranger funerals. Ca}pt. Bill promptly called his men together. = | : ‘ “We are not going to stand_any foolishness,” he sald. “If an attempt is made to take these prisoners, cut down any one who takes a hand in i¢. Come, let’'s move on now, and get these men In jail.” . ‘The crowd that had gathered expected battle, then and there, but nothing o the kind took place. The sheriff’s armed bluff had been called. Later in the day, he obtained a writ of habeas corpus, but it was not effective for the reason that the men had beéen committed under bond. | At all events it was not effective so long as McDonald and his Rangers were in charge of ithe jail. 1t was now evident that conviction of these offenders was not to be expected in that county. Most of them had official influence of one kind or another. In fadt, there appeared to be nobody except those whose property had suffered who seemed concerned in bringing these bandits to justice. it _ ; With such loverwhelming evidence McDonald wasfdetermixied if possible to secure their pun-_ ishment, and eventually was instrumental in getting their/cases distributed and sent to other counties for trial. Even so, they managed to evade the law. Through influence of one kind or another, and the co-operation of offi-.clals—,-formeq associates, perhaps, in the business of crime—their ‘cases were one by one dismissed; this in spite of the fact that one of the men confessed and gave direct testimony againsf, the others of the gang. - Notwithstanding this miscarriage of justice, the general q’fiect of McDonald’s vigorous prosecution was wholesome. The members of that band either left for remoter territory, or decided to rfform; : " It was strange indeed that McDonald did not “happen to get killed” in those busy days of the early nineties. One of the favorite vows of the “Panhandler” was to shoot -Bill McDon‘ald on sight. But there was suddenness and vigor about 811 l McDonald’s manner and method that was very bad for a vow like that when the momeni‘ for its execution arrived. Still, there were those who tried to make good, and one of these, duly assisted, came near being sucqessful. ézfie would have succeeded, no doubt, if he had had time. i That man’s name was John Pierce Matthews, which became simply John Plerce after its owner got the drop on a.steamboat captain one - ‘day in Louisiana and shot him dead. He took his new name with him to the Panhandle, where, in due time he got the drop on another
The two chambermaids of the hotel observed these things from the upper hall; as the guest sat in the office and read a papet, titlted back in one of Pap Crothers! baftered - old ' chairs. Their souls were;filled with awe and | admiration. - - “Tll ‘bet he's a ‘cappertalist,” said one of.them;. “he dooks. like it. .Get onto his frock coat and the Carry Nation in his butto&?le.”
man, somewhere up 1n the northern wer .of counties, with the same result. Thin was a good while before he came down to Childress county and got to be sheriff, but there were those who had not fergotten, and among .them was Capt. Bill McDonald, then stopping at Wichita Falls. Matthews, or Pierce, as he was called, frequently came down to the Falls fer a spreé, and on oneé such visit made application to join a secret society. McDonald was a prominent member of that society and Matthews did not get in. This stirred the animosity of Matthews and he began to clean his six-shooter ‘daily and to practice sudden and accurate firing, which he knew would be necessary in case of a show down. ; Matthews also had another enemy, one Joe Beckham, sheriff of Motley county, an officer of his own kind, who presently got-as short as possible in his accounts, absconded, and set out for Indian Territory. Matthews had no right to go outside of his own county after a fugitive, and no business in this matter any way, but he had an itch for Beckham on his own account, so he picked up another enemy of Beckham, named Cook, a citizen of Motley with an ambition for Beckham’s office, and the two came with péaceful attitude and fair words to Quanah where Capt. Bill vvas then - stopping, requesting the loan of a Ranger to go over into the Territory after the ilefaulting officer. McDonald refused, but said he would send a man as far as the Territory line— Ranger authority not extending beyond that Dorder. He did send one Ranger, McClure, who being strongly persuaded, overstepped, at the same instant, his authority and the state line; .captured Beckham, whom he lost through a writ of habeas corpus; fell into a plot devised' by Matthews and Cook to get rid of him, and was finally brought dback to Quanah by Capt. Bill, who ‘drove 100 miles on a bad night to get him out of the mess; after which McClure . ‘was a wiser and better Ranger. Beckham, meanwhile, had fallen a victim to remorse, or more likely had been promised immunity, and now hurried over te Quanah and gave himself up again to Ranger McClure —~Capt. Bill being absent from Quanah at the time. Beckham asked to be taken to Matador, county seat of Motley, for trial, and begged McClure to see him through Childress, where - ‘he expect&edv to be killed by Matthews and Cook. st McClure assured Beckham that he would see him hafely to Matador, and they set out by rail for Childress, at which point they would take the stage for the Motley county seat. < Ty Matthews was on hand at Childress. He demanded Beckham of McClure, who refused to deliver his prisoner. - : . If Matthews wanted to commit suicide he began preparing for it, now, in the right way. He gave it out openly that he was going to wander over to Quanah some day and kill Bill McDonald, just as a matter of pastime, and he sent word to the same effect by any of Capt. Bill's frienqs that he found going that way. s It was in December, 1895, at last that Matthews and his pals came down to Quanah for the declared purpose of killing a Ranger captain. It was a cold, dreary day and they vis‘ited one saloon after another, getting a supply ‘of courage for the job, and explaining what they were going to do. Then they took to following McDonald, always in- a group, evidently waiting the proper opportunity, confident enough that McDonald would not take the offensive.’ Finally, however, they pressed him 80 close that hé suddenly turned and told them to quit following him or trouble would ensue. - Perhaps it ¢id not seem a good place to do the job—there being no sort of protection; perhaps there was something disquieting in the manner of Capt. Bill’s warning. They ‘dropped away, for the time, and McDonald
“He looks swell, all right,” said the other, bending over the rail of the balustrade, her arms filled with towels; “why don’t he get his hair cut, I wonder?” 7 . “Maybe he ain’t got the price,” giggled her frlend. “Come on, Mae; we got to make up them beds.” - At dinner timé the two chambermalds, now transformed into waitresses by the simple addition of aprons, viewed with delight the appearance of the distinguished looking man in the dining-room.
CIIAPTER FRORMI THE MIEMOIRS OfF CADTAIN “BILL MSDONALD, @F 2\ TEXAS © © o o
They. hovered around his table and waited to hear him speak. In both their young minds was an idea that he would hail them in a cheery, roundvolumed, full-toned voice, but—but—- “ Can 1 have another biscuit, please?” inquired the distinguishedlooking man. His voice sounded like a shingle nail scraped on a joint of stove pipe. It rose shiveringly, shrill and high, and terminated in a squawk. At its sound the two girls fled to the kitchen, where they gazed at each other with open mouths and wide eyes.
gave the matter no further thought. Men threatening to kill him was an ftem ‘'on every day’s program. P It was nearly dusk of that bleak day, and McDonald was in the railway station, sending an official telegram to his men at Amarillo, when an old man named Crutcher, whom McDonald knew, came in with the word that Matthews wapted to see him and fix up matters without any more trouble. Capt. Bill regarded Crutcher keenly; evidently he was sincere enough. “John says he wants to see you and fix up everything right,” repeated the old ‘man, persuasively. Capt. Bill finished writing- bis telegram and sent it. Then turning ‘to Old Man Crutcher, he said in his slow, mild way: “Well, that all sounds mighty good to me. I never want any trouble that 1 can help. Come. on, let’s. go find him.” ' = They left the depot on the side toward the town, and as they did se they saw the sheriff of Hardeman county, whose name was Dick Coffer, with Matthews and two of the latter’s friends, coming to meet them. Sheriff Coffer was a step ahead of Matthews as they crossed the street: Old Man Crutcher in a friendly way put his arm through McDonald’s as they advanced. When there were but four or five feet between the groups, all stopped and there was a little silence. Then McDonald said: y “Well?” : : : And Matthews answered, keeping Coffer still just a trirde in advance: “Well, what is it, Bill?” «] understand,” he said, “that ‘you have been saying some pretty hard things about me, and that you-all are going to wipe up the earth with me. Is that so?” , : Matthews edged a:trifle nearer to Coffer. ' l : “No.” he sald, “I didn’t say that, but by God I'll tell you what I did say,” at the same moment pointing his left index finger in McDonald’s face, while his right hand slipped in the direction of his hip pocket. ' Capt. Bill saw the movement and his
own hand dropped into his side overcoat pocket where in winter he carried a part of his armament. Matthews’ practice in drawing for some reason failed to benefit-him. His gun seemed to hang a little in the scabbard. A second later he had jerked it free, and stepping behind Coffer, fired at Capt. Bill over the sheriff’s right shoulder. But the slight hitch spoiled his aim, perhaps, for the bullet missed, passing through McDonald’s overcoat collar, though the range was so short that the powder burned his face. 3 . The game could now be considerea open. Capt. pill, with a quick movement that was between skip and a step, got around Coffer and let go two shots in quick succession at Matthews. Both of McDonald’s pulléts struck within the space of a 50-cent piece, just above Matthews’ heart, penetrated a thick plug of Star Navy, found a heavy notebook Jbehind it, and stopped. With a thought process which may be regarded as cool for such a moment, Capt. Bill realized that for some reason he could not Kkill Matthews by shooting him on that side, and shifted his aim. Matthews, meantime had again dodged behind Coffer, who now dropped flat to the ground where it was quieter. .Capt. Bill was bending forward at the time, trying to get a shot -around Coffer, and as the latter dropped, Matthews fired, the bullet striking MeDonald in the left shoulder, ranging down through his lung to the small of his back, traveling two-thirds the length of his body for lodgement. i
The Ranger was knoc¢ked backward but did not fall. Matthews quickly fired again, but MecDonald was near enough now to knock the‘gun aside with his own, and the ball passed through his hat brim. Aiming at Matthews’ other shoulder, McDonald let go his third shot, and Matthews [ell. :
Meantime the twd deputy assassing had opened fire, and one of them had sent twao bullets through McDonald’s left arm. To these he gave no attention until Matthews drppged. Wheeling now, he started to cock his gun, when he received another ball, this time in his right shoulder, along which it traveled to his neck, thence around the windpipe to the left side. His fingers” were paralyzed by this wound and he made an effort to cock his gun with his teeth; but there was no further need, for with the collapse of Matthews his co-murderers fled wildly to .cover, behind the depot, nearly upsetting a box-car in their hurry. -. Capt. Bill walked a few steps to the sidewalk There was a post there, and holding to this he eased himself to a sitting position. A man ran aup to him. 4 “Cap, how about it?” “Well, I think I'm a dead rabbit.” They gathered him up and took him to a drug store, and they took' Matthews to a drug store across the street. By and by they carried Capt. Bill home, and a doctor came to hunt for the bullets. 3 “Now, Doc,” the Ranger captain said when the operation was over, and the surplus cargo had been removed, “now, I'll get well;” and Rhoda McDonald, his nervy wife, who had arrived on the scene, echoed this belief. “If Bill Jess says he’ll get well, he'll do i 3!” she declared. ‘ _ Matthews died in a.few days. He was re moved to Childress and died there. Before his death he sent word to McDonald: , “You acted the man all through,” was his message. “I'm only sorry that I can’t see you and apologize.” “Tell him that I'm doing all right,” was the answer returned, “and that I hope he’ll get well.” The mending of Capt. Bill was a slow process. For about two months he was laid up, and then with his wife he sojourned for a time at a sanitarium. After that, he was up once more, ready and eager for action—apparently as fit as ever; though, in truth, the = physical repairing was never quite complete. ? !
“Did you ever?” said one of them. “l never did,” the other said huskily; “you go take him his biscuit.* The other scowled. “And maybe have him say ‘“Thank you’ with that voice a’ his’n?’ she suggested sarcastically. “Not for muh.” : “Well,” said the other waitress, “t's a cinch he'll go hungry. I ain’t going to take 'em.”—Dallas (Tex.) News. Who reads Pickwick Papers has the Dickens of a time;
WOULD SAVE RELIC
Society Starts Movement to Preserve Billopp House.
Bcene of Only Peace Conference In America During Revolutionary War May Become a New - York Institution.
New York.—For the preservation of one of the most notable historical landmarks in the country, the Billopp house at Tottenville, Staten Island, the members of the Philemon Literary society of the town are-actively working. Through' their efforts and with the assistance of Assemblyman Bain, the representative of that district, a bill has been introduced into the legislature asking a state appropriation of $35,000 with which to buy the house and some ten or a dozen acres of ground. - “The Old Stone House,” as the place Is called locally, is- associated with one of the most Interesting events of the revolution, a situation full of grim humor so far as the Americans were concerned, but a source of bitter humiliation to Lord Howe: After the failure of Benjamin Franklin’s mission to England as the representative of the colonies Lord Howe was appointed royal pacificator, and early in 1776 he sailed for America with the boast that within ten days of his arrival peace would ensue. He reached New York ip July, 1776. On July 9 the Declaration of Independence, signed July 4, was read to the American troops - and t& the citizens of New York. On the evening of that day a statue of George 111, placed at- the foot of Broadway, Was torn down. Lord Howe and the other British officers saw it would be nec@ssury to defeat the American forces ih a decisivg battle before an attempt for peace could be made. ‘On August 27, 1776, the battle of Long Island was .fought and won by the British. At once a proposition for a peace conference on neutral ground was proposed. Benjamin Franklin, John Adams and Edward Rutledge were selected to represent congress and the Billopp house was decided on as the place of meeting. In the front room, overlooking the Kill van Kull, Lord Howe and the American representatives met. ) It - was the only peace conference e SR P SR Ny A ' ‘ -y/ S ""f : Rl ‘»_f“"' ':i';;./; : “’; | 277 g,fi., P, TSR sI/ By - -";\,éfi;z,," g Pl [T R RO e A B A RO e Tt § L&) By Y 7 g ;,« iS= ey SN -.., Historic Blllopp House. attempted on American soil in connec: tion with the revolutionary war. Its failure marked the final parting of the ways between Great Britain and her American colonies. Not only this mnotable historical event makes the building of peculiar interest. It is picturesque, and many fascinating traditions hang about the stone walls, strong enough yet to last 100 years more, but the quaint old shelving roof of the veranda, upheld of late by pillars, is practically out of commission, the roof is open to the elements in spots and the plastering is broken in many places. But the deep embrasured windows, the curious cupboards built in the walls, the small paned sashes and queer door fastenings are still intact. In this house, as tradition tells us was ‘the case in those days, the latch-string does literally hang out. By the pulling of the knotted cord the wooden latch is raised; but at night a strong oaken beam bars the door effectually against unwelcome guests. Big fireplaces are a feature of all the rooms. The kitchen in the basement boasts of one the entire width of the house. Here the long crane of hand-wrought iron, holding two kettles of mammoth dimensions, is still to be seen. Logs of tree length could easily have been disposed of within the capacious depths of this fireplace, but it would appear that quite as much cold air must have come in as was driven out by the blazing logs, since it was open to the heavens above, with no obstruction.
Quaintest of all is a really, truly dungeon of masonry built off from the cellar beneath the main entrance of the house. Here persistent tradition has it that colonial prisoners were confined and cruelly treated, for the Billopps were sympathizers with the crown, and for some time British soldiers were quartered in the house, which was built in 1695.
Elimination of Sailing Vessel.
The rapid elimination of the sailing vessel is shown by statistics recently given by a German paper. In the 20 years between 1888 and 1908 the percentage of sailing vessels has declined in the merchant marine of Great Britain from 44.1 to 12.6; of Germany, from 62.1 to 19.1; of the United States, from 80.7 to 30.5. in tne merchant marine of France, however, but little change has occurred; the respective percentages being 47.9 and 47.2. : The Latest in Simplified Spelling. A coal miner in southern Ohio, who couldn’t read or write, recently received his pay envelope at- the new mine. All that was written upon it was “No, 16.” : The miner looked at the writing for a long time, then exclaimed: ‘That’s a new way to spell George Primrose, I reckon.”—Judge. Way of the World. - Patient—Those new teeth, doctor, seem to cut and grind my old ones a good deal, > Dentist—Ah, yes! they cut the ones not in their get.
Warning and Invitation Sunday School Lesson for Aprii 24, 1910 Specially Arranged for This P;:)Gt
LESSON TEXT.—Matthew 11:20-30. Memory verses, 28-30. - i : GOLDEN TEXT,—"Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and'l will give you rest."—Matt. 11:28, : ) TlME.—Luke shows us that the time was a year and a half after our last lesgon, in connection With the mission of the seventy, Decemhber A, D. 28 PLACE.—Somewhere in Perea, on the way to Jerusalem. g A Suggestion and Practical Thought. Our last lesson was a discussion of doubt—honest doubt and -dishonest doubt. We heard our Lord, after highly praising John, who had proved his readiness to follow the light as fast as he received it; turn with stern upbraiding to the scribes and Pharisees, who had proved themselves unwilling to receive the light,.though hrought to them in such different ways as by John and Qhrist. Our present lesson carries the same theme further, discussing the most important of all subjects, the rejection or 'acceptance of the Saviour. i : e, Rejecting Christ—When did Christ speak the words we are to study? Matthew would seem to imply that he spoke them immediately after the coming 4and going of the messengers from John the Baptist. But Luke (40:13-16, 21, 22) reports almost identically the same words in connéction with the rethrn of the seventy, more than a year later. - ) What were the cities that Cgmst upbraided? The citles of Galilee, “wherein most of his mighty works were done.” Three are named as samples. Chorazin, probably about one mile north of the upper part of the Sea of Galilee; Bethsaida, a city situated by the Jordan where it empties into the Sea qf Galilee from the north, and Capernaum, our Lord’s ewn ‘city, to which he removed from Nazareth, and where he wrought many ‘mighty works. - Why did° Christ reproach these cities? Because, though given so many opportunities, they had “not repented.” That was \\'hy Christ préached and worked' miracles, to bring men to repentance. = :
With what cities did Christ compare these favored towns of Galilee? With Tyre and Sidon, Phoenician cities - on the Mediterranean coast to the northwest.” Sidon was a very ancient city, and Tyre, its offspring, was in Christ’s daw the chief commercial city of Palestine; and probably the largest, next to Jerusalem. Also with. Sodom, the city on the Dead Sea destroyed with Gomorrah -in the days of “Abraham. Receiving Christ.—Vs. 25-27. Christ then passed from -denunciation and warning to joyful thanksgiving. What was the occasion of ‘the transition? “At that time” should be translated (R. V.) “at.that season.” Luke connects the following words with the return of the, seventy; they are a prayer of re-
joicing ‘over the favorable reception accorded them. Perhaps ‘- the ' same thoughts were uttered on the return of the twelve (see v. 1 of this chapter 2 of Matthew)., < Peace in Christ.—Vs. 28-30. We have studied the pieture of those that reject Christ and the picture of those ‘that accept him. The great discourse closes with a famous wicture of the condition of those that will accept Christ, that will hear and Leed his Toving invitation. . ) -
To whom is Christ's invitation addressed? In the first place, to “all.” There was need for the insertion of
that- wide word. Had not the Saviour said a little before, “Thou hast hid these things from the wise and sprudent’ ?”"—Spurgeon. ~ In” the second place, to all “that labor and are heavy laden.” This describes the burdens of humanity both actively and passively, —those ' that are worn by ceaseless toil, and those that in silence and obscurity are bearing loads that no one knows about, are alike - invited to Jesus. The poor under the load of poverty, sinners uwder the weight of guilt, business men staggering .under heavy responsibilities;—all jare included in the precious invitation. “All men are miserable; all men.are ‘by nature thé children of wrath’; all men are laboring -in ‘the vain pursuit. of earthly happiness: all, therefore, may ‘consider themselves invited.”—Prof. Archibald Alexander. L g )
What are these weary oné§ invited to do? Simply to “come” to Jesus. The Greek is stronger than our English, and is, literally, *‘Hither to me, all weary and burdened!™ - -
And the rvesult of going to Jesus Is—? “I will give you rest.” '~
But what is this rest that Christ will give? We usually®top here, and lose the force of the message. “In the first verse the Physician opens his door te receive his patients; in the following verses he prescribes for them. To take the one part of the utterance without the remainder of it is like going to a great doctor and coming away again only to fling his prescription into the fire.”—Principal Adeney. = The rest thdt Christ gives consists of (1) discipleship, “Learn of me,” and (2) “Take my yoke upon you.” A Parable. - There was once a man and he had all the bodily equipment that a man usually has. One day he reviewed his person. He said: I have a heart—it beats regularly.” 1 have lungs, stomach, liver—-they are working peaceably and rhythmically. I have two legs, ®yvo thumbs, and e!lght fingers, all of which behave themselves and need no physician. 1 have a couple of dozen teeth so healthy that 1 never realize that they exist. But I have one tooth that aches mightily—l shall push the entire universe aside until this vers afternoon I attend to that -one tooth. —The Congregationalist. - g New Hope for the New Year. Without regard to what th( past has been, the New Year brings glad promisés to us all. Wrapped up in its unfolding days are new possibilities, new pleasures, new friendships, new chances for helping somewhere, new proofs of our Father’s goodness. Let us wake hopefully each morning, work neartily through each day, and fall asleep each night with the confidence that our days and our doings are in Godskeupitg, - - o
HE ALSO SPEAKS WELL OF CANADA." B . No matter what may be thé opinion of -Mr. Joseph Cannon, po matter if he may be looked upon by some as a czar, and by others as a big warmhearted mgn, with many of the instincts thaztxlnake humanity very bearable, all will admit that he is a man who has been advertised more than any other man in the United States. What -he may have to-say therefore on any subject, will have weight. Observant, he speaks his min&‘freely. He ‘was interviewed the other day by the- correspondent- of a Canadian newspaper, He-spoke of his admiration for Canada, and he is quoted in a way that pictures farily well the personat of the man. The correspondent says hé ‘launched out into personal biography,” proverbial philesophy, political comment, cynical scorn, broad pro- - fanity and sentimental poetry such as one rarely hears in the space of an hour. He discussed the Canadian tariff, and then said: “People say I break the Ten Commandmants, all of them. But I don’t, at least not often. 1 -did break one of them up in Canada two or three years ago. As I rode from Winnipeg to the Rockies over your great West and saw the finest wheatfields in the world, I thought of Virginia and a lot of our States, and I smashed the Tenth Commandment every hour of the journey. Yes, sir, I coveted miy neighbor's land.” Coming’ from-a man of the fame of Mr.
Cannon, these were words, that should have some weight with the Americans who may still have doubts of the advantages that are offered to them -in Western Canada. -A home amongst the wheatfields. Hundreds. of thousands of Americans are adopting it. They go to Centfal Cahada, to any one of the three Provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan or Alberta, or to the Coast Province of British Columbia, take up their homestead of 160 acres, and probably pre-empt another 160 acres, or it may be they do not, care for pioneering twenty or thirty miles from an existing railway, and purchase a farm. Then they settle upon it and, having no clearing away of timber they begin at once to cultivate it, and make money. That they . make money -and ‘much. more than they could possibly make on the highpriced farms they have left, is the evidence of hundreds of thousands. They do not leave civilized life, theys, but remove from’ &ne sphere to another. They have splendid social conditions, churches, schools, rural telephones, splendid roads, railways, convenient just the same as what they left, and what is more, they get much greater returns from their crops, which give abundant yield. The cli- . mate is perfect, and it is no wonder that most flattering reports are sent back to their friends in the States, and’'it is no wonder that Joe Cannon was tempted to speak as he did. He *coveted” his neighbor’s land. : . Britain's Rulers. . . Mr. Lloyd-George is pleasantly proud of his nationality, but. it is amazing that he had to go back to Queen Elizabeth and the Tuders to find historical precedence for a Welsh gov‘ernment of Great Britain: On the other hand, England has often been ruled by Scotsmen. Of the last three premiers, two—Sir Henry CampbellBannerman and Mr. Balfour—were Scotch. Mr. Gladstone sat for a Scotch constituency, and so does Mr. Asquith.. Ireland has always been busy supplying us with governing men, The Duke of Wellington, Lord Roberts, Lord Charles Beresford, Lord ‘Russell and a dozen others immediately occur to me. It is odd to remember that it is centuries.since Great Britain had a purely English sovereign. The Tudors were Welsh. The Stuarts were Scotch, William lIL' was:a Dutchman and the Guelphs are of German descent.—London Chronicle. , ‘ Ret’ur;flng to Prose. Flushed with triumph and 90 degrees ‘in the shade, parched and scant of breath, they stood upon the towering mountain pea% and surveyed the gorgeous panorama that spread itself beneath them liks a 4 two-inch to the mile ordnance map of the whole world. - “There!” she exclaimed, angrily. “We have climb=d all this distance to admire the beauties of nature, -and we've left the glass at home!” ! Tranqu:lly smiling, he shifted the lunch. basket to "he other arm. “Never mind, dear,” he repliea. “There’s nobody about. It won't huft us just this once to drink out of the bottle.”—Answeras. > ABANDONED IT For the Oid Fashioned Coffee Was - Killing. - “I always drark coffee with the rest of the family, fef it seemed as if there was nothing fe: breakfast if we did not have if on the table. : “I-had been troubled some time with my hears, which did not feel right. This troukle grew worse steadily.
“Sometimes 1% would beat fast and at other times very slowly, so that I would hardly d® able to do work for an hour or two after breakfast, and if I walked up & hill, it gave me a severe pain. : “I had no idnsa of what the trouble was until a frisnd suggested that perhaps it might be caused by coffee drinking. T tried leaving off the coffee and began Mlinking Postum. The change.came quickly, I am now glad to say that I am entirely well of .the heart trouble and attribute the relief to leaving off coffee and the use of Postum. ; “A numßer of my friends have abandoned the old fashioned coffee and have taken ud with Postum; which they arws using steadily. There are some people that make Postum very weak and tasteless, but if it is boiled long enough, according to d!m;xflons, it 18 a very deliclous beverage. We have never used any of the old fashioned coffee since Postum was first started in our house.” : : ~Read the little book, “The Road to Wellyille,”in pkgs. “There’s a Reason.” oee STRCER o R 4 Sl S ez o ; 2 s
