Nappanee Advance-News, Volume 29, Number 27, Nappanee, Elkhart County, 2 September 1908 — Page 3

A GREAT DELIVERANCE Story of Isaiah the Prophot and Hesekiah the KinsBY THE “HIGHWAY AND BYWAY" PREACHER

(Copyright, IMi, bj th. Author, W. 8. Edaon. ) Scripture Authority—The Book of Isaiah, esp. chapters 36 and 37. Outline of the Book of Isaiah.—Part I. Oeneral prophecies, 1-35; Part 2.—Historical parenthesis, 36-38; Part B.—Discourses chiefly Millennial, 40-66; Part 1 comprises six divisions, as follows: 1. Discourses concerning Judah. 1-6; 2. Prophet’s call, 6; t. Discourse concerning Judah and Assyria In Ahas’ reign, 7-9; 4. Discourses concerning the nations, 10-27; 6. Discourses concerning Israel, 28; 6. Discourses concerning Judah and Egypt. Part 3 has for Its theme, Comfort (40:1, 2), with the following divisions: 1. Divine care over them while scattered, 40 and 43:1-7. 2. Ultimate triumph over enemies, it, M- and 68, 3. Work of Messiah for them, 42-49, 50, 53, 61, 63. 4. Work pf Holy Spirit on them, 44, 32; 14-18. 5. Return from Babylon, 44, 45. 6. Punishment of Babylon. 46-48. 7. Ultimate restoration, 49-54, 55-60, 62, 65, 66.

SERMONETTE. How different the manner of Hezekiah when desperate conditions faced the nation from that of Ahaz. The latter turned farther from God. The other drew nearer to God. Trouble works curse or blessing to the life. It either drives from God or links up closer to God. As soon as~tfie evil tidings reached the king he laid asi.de his kingly robes and -‘went into the house of the Lord." An excellent thing to do. He might have called a council of the chief men of his nation and sought by the wisdom of men to solve tne problems that faced him. Bkrt no. He knew God well enough to want to get near Him in his trouble. Blessed and fortunate indeed is the man who thus meets his troubles. But not only did he seek to get right with God himself and to lay his cause in His hands, but he sent at once and enlisted the sympathy and help of God’s prophet, and in honoring God’s prophet by his confidences and his plea for help he was honoring himself. We fail sometimes in our efforts to meet trying situations because we do not give God a chance to speak to us through His chosen messengers. Hezekiah’s messengers found the prophet prepared to receive them and send them back with a message of encouragement. God had been there before them enlightening the understanding of the prophet so that he was able to return the answer which the king sought. Is it not wonderful to think how God goes before us to prepare the way? We go perhaps with trembling heart to seek the help we need, and 10, we find God’s spirit has been there before us and has prepared the friend to speak the word of which we are so much in need. Again a little later when Hezekiah received a profane and threatening letter from the hand of the foe which was encamped against Jerusalem he ventured no reply until he had taken it and spread it before the Lord in the temple and, had made the matter a subject of earnest prayer. Oh, that we might manifest the same simple, childlike spirit and spread before the Lord all the knotty problems of life. God would not fail us, but would give us the wisdom which would confound the mighty.

THE STORY. CONDITIONS in Jerusalem ’ were reaching a desperate state. The words of Rabshakeh, the general of the great Assyrian army which was encamped against the city, had struck tbs f or'Thfcf "llte" ‘hearts"'Sr"eVeryoner and only a few stanch followers of King Hesekiah sustained him in his determination to make no sort of compromise with the enemy. In fact, there was rising throughout the city an undercurrent of sentiment in favor of accepting the offer of Rhbshakeh. It were better, they reasoned, to yield while yet they might obtain mercy than to be put to the .gyord after the hosts of the Assyrians had swept over the city. ~ It was all well enough tb talk about deliverance which God would send, but who was there that could not see that their qase was hopeless Cnd that the forces of Rabshakeh were drawing in closer upon the city every day? Were not the words •of this great Assyrian "general true? Had not Hamath and „Atphad and Sepharvaim been crushed by his mighty arm? Had not Samaria felt ‘he force of his wrath?* How then could Jerusalem ! hope to escape? Rabshakeh. had chal- ! lenged the city to provide warriors for 2,000 horses which he would furnish. Why, "there" were not half that number able to carry spear and ride., upon the back of a charger. There was grim humor in the challenge of Rabshakeh, and .it drove home more keenly than ever the hopeless weakness of the city?" • It is not at all strange therefore In | the presence of that powerful Assyrian army and the known helplessness of ithe cRy, that the words of the king and the encouragement of the prophet isalah did not carry much weight, j

and that there sprang up here and there all over the city smoldering fires which threatened to break out In open insurrection, which could have but one end, the throwing open of the gates of the city to the enemy. In the palace Itself the disaffection was strong and it was not long before a conspiracy was on foot to betray the city into the hands of Rabshakeh. “Wliat good this sackcloth, these vain prostrations and pleadings in the temple, this sending ~to the Prophet Isaiah?” they impatiently inquired. “Is not every moment in which we stand out against the demands of Rabshakeh, but adding to the weight of penalty which he will exact of the city when at last he shall succeed In breaking down the walls?” And so they plotted together and sought opportunity to open negotiations with Rabshakeh, and the opportunity came when the messengers came with the final letter from the Assyrian general demanding the surrender of (be city. One of their number succeeded in slipping out of thß gate unobserved during the excitement and confusion attending the departure of the Assyrian messengers, and returned with them to the camp, a hint of the plan having been given to the messengers while they were at the palace. It was arranged that after making terms with Rabshakeh for the surrender of the city, they should return and at a signal agreed upon the city’s gates should be thrown open, and the secreted bands of Rabshakeh’s army should rush into the city and take possession. When Hezekiah had received Rabshakeh’s letter, a feeling almost of despair" came" over fifin' and" yes COn-' scious that God alone could help in the desperate extremity which faced the city, Hezekiah took the letter and went alone into the house of the Lord and there gave himself to earnest prayer. Had not Isaiah the prophet sent him a message of encouragement weeks before when the peril first threatened the city, and had he not said that the city should be delivered from the hand of the Assyrian king. But with the poming of this last message and the continued strengthening of the position of the enemy before the city, a shadow of doubt began to creep into the jieaft of the king. Could God and would God deliver?

He read the letter over again aloud. How blasphemous It sounded. Surely he -will not suffer such reproach against his name? And then as though he needed to reassure his own soul oj the majesty and power of the God of his nation, he poured out his soul in adoration, exclaiming: “O, Lord of Hosts, God of Israel, that dwellest between the cheruhims, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth: thou hast made heaven and earth. Incline thine ear, O Lord, and hear; open'thine eyes, O Lord, and see: and hear all the words of Sennacherib, which .hath sent to reproach the living God.” As he prayed anew assurance came to his heart and when word came to him from Isaiah saying that the Lord would surely hear and deliver he felt more hopeful and cheerful than he had -for weeks past. . __ The men who were in the against the city wondered as they' looked upon the calm face of the king, [ and felt not a little disconcerted, but J | they went ahead with their ,plans and | that night everything was in readiness to carry out the surrender of the city in the morning. But morning came and no sign came tp open the gates. As the watchers on the wall looked toward the Assyrian j camp they noted the deathlike stillness. Fear took possession of their hearts, and, forgetful of their plot, they fled to take the king word. What could it mean? Where the day before all had been activity now all was silent as the grave. “It is God's hand who would send deliverance according to his word/ exclaimed Hezekiah, confidently. “Thou shalt go apd see,” he added, turning to the group of men who had brought him word. They had plotted to betray the city and now were they to be driven into the very jaws of death itself? And they wondered what had become of their comrade in the conspiracy who had gone out to the Assyrian camp the night before and who was to have given them the signal that morning.' As though by way of answer as they reached the outskirts of the camp, they almost stumbled over the form of one whose garb told only tod plainly that he was a Hebrew. “It is he,” they exclaimed together, a shudder passing over them. And a hasty look about revealed heaps of dead bodies on every hand. "God has sent deliverance, indeed. And our brother would be alive to-day - had we not doubted the king and the word which the Prophet Isaiah spoke.” The Uninvited Guest. Uninvited guests who manage to “slip in” at dances,-dinners and balls may no longer be admitted >on “their facps." This has been one of the hardest things to stop in social affairs. Men and women will walk into an affair dressed for the evening, and not be questioned whether or not they are invited. They even had the “cheek” to enter the dining hall unsuspected. - ~fi.At a smart ball abro'ad the'novel custom was adopted of requesting each guest to wear a tiny badge. Even the most prominent guests did this without, any feeling of resentment. , Whether or not this will be taken up at the large, smart functions.given over here remains to be seen. True it is thai Philadelphia hostesses have bad some trouble on that score, and they have discussed ways and mean* to prevent it. v . - ■

TEST YOUR LAND FOR MOISTURE HOLDING ABILITIES v Som* Simple Lessons in the Porosity and Capillarity of Soils.

Break the bottoms off five longnecked bottles, tie a small piece of cheese cloth or thin muslin over the mouth of each and arrange them in a rack with a glass tumbler under each. Fill the bottles to about the same height with different kinds of soil — gravel ip one, sand in another, etc., and firm the soils by lifting the rack and jarring it down moderately three or four times. Now, with watch or clock at hand, and with a glass of water held as near as possible to the soil, pour water into one of the bottles just rapidly enough to keep the surface of the soil covered and note how long before it begins dropping into the tumbler below". Make a record of the

Apparatus to Test the Capacity of Soils to Take In Rainfall.

time. Do likewise with each of the other bottles and compare results, which soil takes in water most rapidly? Which is the most porous? What happens to the less porous soils when a heavy shower of rain comes? Howcan a soil be made porous? Repeat the experiment with one of the soils, packing the soil tightly in one bottle and leaving it loose in the other. What is the effect of packing? Does this have ahy bearing on farm practice? Which soil has the greatest capacity for water —that is, which could take in the heaviest shower? This can be determined from the above experiment by emptying and replacing each tumbler as soon as all free water has disappeared from the upper surface of the soil above it. After water

Apparatus to Test the Power of Soils , to Take Up Moisture from Below. has ceased dripping from all the bottles measure and compare the water in the different tumblers. Which soil continued dripping longest? W’hich would drain most readily? Which soil would store up, the greatest amount of moisture for the use of plants? This can he determined from the same experiment by weighing each bottle before and after filling

American Hellebore a Medicinal Plant

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The plant shown here is American Hellebore, called also Indian PokeRoot Its Latin name is Veratrum Viride. The plant- grows from two to four feet high. It is fou,nd in boggy meadows and in other low places. It U often found siiong the margins of

It with dry soil, And again after water has entirely ceased dripping from it. The difference between the weight of the dry soil and that of the wet soil is Jhe weight of water stored. During the time that the bottles are dripping, which may take several days, they should be covered‘to prevent evaporation of water from the surface of the soils. Make other practical applications of the principles brought out in this exercise. Arrange four or five student lamp chimneys, as shown, and tie cheese cloth or thin muslin over their lower ends. Fill each with a different kind of dry soil, as in previous exercise. Pour

water into the pan beneath until It stands about half an inch above the lower end of the chimneys, then observe the rise of water in the different soils. Make notes on the height to which the water rises, and on the time it takes. In which-sdil does the water rise most rapidly; in which to the greatest height? Which soil draws up the greatest amount of water? How can this be determined? This power t of soils to raise water from below is called capillarity. It is an important function, for by it plants are able to get moisture and plant food from the subsoil in times of drought. If chimneys are not to be had, this experiment can be performed with the apparatus first shown by substituting the pan for the tumblers; or the experienments performed with the bottles can be performed with the chimneys and tum.blers. If more accurate tests of capillarity are desired it will be necessary to procure a series of glass tpbes at least three feet high, for in some soils water will rise- to that height, or even higher, . a Shocking Wheat, —I find the best way to shock wheat is to set up six sheaves, -then hug the tops together anff put one sheaf tm top for a cap by spreading apart well, declares a correspondent of Rural New Yorker. Se oats up the same, only make the shock so as to be long; that is, only two sheaves side by side, and cap the same as the wheat. A stack should be built round commencing in the middle to lay the sheaves and keep the middle the highest all the time.

brooks; The leaves are -often a foot long. The flowers are lily-like in structure. ' Grear quantifies -of this plant are annually dried add sold for medicinal uses. It produces, however, a dangerous medicine, and this should only be perscrihed by physicians.

“BAD LANDS” IN. MONTANA. Miles on Miles of Rugged Chasms, Fantastically Carved. It seems to me that no human being can stand on that spot and view that marvelous labyrinth of wild nature without being thrilled by It. Instantly your thoughts fly to the Grand Canyon of the Colorado, as seen from Point Sublime, only this Is in miniature. The fact that you Stand on a sharp point, from Which the world drops steeply away on three sides, is not the thing that is so profoundly Impressive. It is. the depth, the breadth and the awful wilderness of the maze bf bad lands int which you look. Before you, and on either hand, there stretch miles upon miles of ragged chasms, divided and waited In by a thousand fantastic cliffs, and buttresses, and domes of naked hard pan that stubbornly defy the forces of erosion, and refuse to crumble down. In- several places there are masses of earth architecture ..that remind ene of the-'ruined castles on the Rhine. *:” These bare walls are mostly of gray earth, not rock, and the carving of them has been most strangely done. It is only when you climb among them, and touch them, that the wonders of erosion are fully revealed. The hard, dry earth has most stubbornly , resisted the disintegrating action of the water, wind, heat and cold, and there are hundreds of earth cliffs nearly as smooth and as perpendicular as the brick walls of Harlem?** I dislike to estimate the total drop of these bad lands from the plateau to the waters of Snow creek, but I think it is about 800 feet After the first moments of spellbound wonder and amaze, you begin to pick out the geography of what lies before you. You see tha£ the axis of all this wild waste of carved and furrowed earth is the level and very narrow valley of Snow creek, which comes down from the west. You can easily trace its course eastward to the point where it bends abruptly northward and runs into the Missouri, parallel with the last eight miles of Hell creek. In the creek bottom there is a sinuous string of cottonwood trees, aspens and willow brush. —Scribner.

Richest Family in Europe. It is not generally known that the imperial family of Russia is the richest royal family in .Europe, and derives its vast wealth from three sources—the state treasury, the imperial domains (formerly church lands), and the so-called “cabinet properties.” A writer in Harper’s Weekly gives., some interesting facts. The state treasury pays out $7,000,000 per annum for the needs of the imperial house, principally for the malnj tenance of the palaces and the officials hnd servants attached td them. The reigning empress, for example, has an allowance of SIOO,OOO per year, and the dowager empress the same. Every child born to the czar receives from | birth to the age of 21 nearly $20,000 ; a year, while the heir to the throne receives annually, in addition to the maintenance of Daughters receive a dowry of one million rubles when they marry. Another Version. Smithson —W’hat is Browne’s earning capacity ? —~— Jones —It’s never been tested. He’s always been employed by the government.—Judge. The Same Old Bore. “Ah, Miss Wose,” he lisped, “there Is a time for all things.” “Yds,” responded tlje weary girl with a yawn, “but sometimes don’t seem to notice the clock.” And even then he waited until the cuckoo had cuckooed 12 times before he called for his hat and cane. Where Platinum Is Plentiful. Sixty-five per cent, of America’s output of platinum comes from the placer mines of northern California and southern Oregon. ... THE MARKETS.. / New York, Aug. 3L LIVE STOCK—Steers $4 75 @7 SO Hogs ..... 6SO @7 00 Sheep 3 50 @ 4 50 FLOUR—Winter Straights.. 4 00 @ 4 15 WHEAT—September 118 @ 1 02 WHEAT—September ITE @ I 02% CORN—September 88%© .89 RYE—No. 8 Western 83%@ 84 BUTTER-Creamery 18 @ 24 EGGS 19%@ 29 CHEESE ....... 914® 13)4 • CHICAGO. CATTLE—Prime Steers ..... $.6 75 @ 7 80 Fair to Good Steers.-. 6-00 @. 675 . Yearlings, Plain to Fancy 4 50 @ 7 50 Plain to Fancy Heifers.. 426 @ 6 25 Calves ....- 450 @ 750 HOGS—Heavy Packers .... li 45 @0 70 Mixed Butchers 6 65 @685 Pigs .' 4 25 @ 6 10 BUTTER-Creamery ~ 19 @ 25 Dairy 16%@ 19 LIVE POULTRY 10%@ 14 EGGS HW 25 POTATOES' (per bu.); New. 63 @ 70 FLOUR-Spring Wheat, Sp’l 620 @6 50 GRAlN—W’iSeat, September. 94%@ 95% May :. 98 @ 98%' Corn, September 77%@ 78 Oats, September 48%@ 49% Rye, No. 2 69 @ 71 MILWAUKEE. GRAlN—Wheat, No. 1 Nor’n $1 05 @ 1 07 December 94%@ 9514 . . Corn; December f... . 66 @ —66% Oats, Standard v 49%@ 50 Rye, No, 1 ..... 76 @ 77 . KANSAS CITY. GRAlN—Wheat, September. $ 87 @ ' 87% December 88Vk@ 88% Corn, September 1 69%@ 70% ' Oats, No. 2 White 48' @ 49 ST. LOUIS. CATTLE-Beet' Steers $4 00 @ 7 50 Texas Steers 2 80 & 525 HOGS-Fackers 6 00 @ 690 Biitcßers 6 80 @ 7 10 SHEEP-Natives 300 @ 4 25 OMAHA. CATTLE—Native Steers .... $4 25 @ 7 25 Stockers and Feeders.... 2 75-@ 465 Cows and Heifers ....... 300 @ 425 HOGS-Heavy A... 645 0 660 SHEEP-Wethers 3 80 @425

HER GOOD FORTUNE After Year* Spent In Vain Effort Mrs. Mary E. H. Rouse, of Cambridge, N. Y., says: “Five years ago

I had a bad fall and It affected my kidneys. Severe pains In my back and hips became constant, and sharp twinges followod any exertion. The kidney secretions were badly disordered. I lost flesh and grew too

WNM / i wtw

weak to work. Though constantly using medicine I despaired of being cured until I began using Doan’a Kidney Pills. Then relief came quickly, and in a short time I was completely cured. lam now in excellent health.” Sold by all dealers. 50 cents a box. Foster-Mllburn Cos., Buffalo, N. Y. ABSENT-MINDED.

Old Gent —Here, you boy, what are you doing out here, fishing? Don’t you know you ought to be at school? Small Boy—There now! I knew I’d forgotten something. CURED HER CHILDREN. Girls Suffered with Itching Eczema-^ Baby Had a Tender Skin, TooRelied on Cuticura Remedies. "Some years ago my three little girls had a very bad form of eczema. Itching eruptions formed on the back* of their heads which were simply covered. I tried almost everything, but failed. Then my mother recommended the Cuticura Remedies. I washed my children’s heads with Cuticura Soap and then applied the wonderful ointment, Cuticura. I did this four or five times and I can say that they have been entirely cured. I have another baby who is so plump that the folds of skin on his neck were broken and even bled. I used Cuticura Soap and Cuticura Ointment and the next morning the trouble had disappeared. Mme. Napoleon Duceppe, 41 Duluth St., Montreal, Que., May 21, 1907.”

A Unanimous Vote. A German-Amerioan who had recently arrived at the estate of riches attended his first banquet. The wine was particularly vile, and so several gentlemen who were seated near the German were quite satisfied to have him empty the bottles that had been set apart for their common use. Neither the quality nor the quantity of the wine In the least disturbed the Teuton, and, after draining the last glass, he looked around jovially and said: “Shentlemen, I has now drunken all your wine and safed you the trouble of trlnking vat you did not like. I tink you ought to vote me a public tank.” They did. —Lippincott’s. Too Much Afraid of Dirt. It is quite true that “cleanliness is next to godliness,” but in this day of fads and scientific frills the question Is whether we are not getting altogether too afraid of a little dirt. Dirt has been defined as matter In the wrong place, and hygiene is the science of keeping It in the right place. But we are Inclined to think that we are all a little bit too much Up in the air on the matter of cleanliness; a little too afraid of coming In contact with the Clean-smelling, kindly earth, and are in danger of becoming nasty-nice. —Washington Herald. When the Little Man Scored. A meek-looking little man with a large pasteboard box climbed on the car. As he did so he bumped slightly into a sleepy, corpulent passenger with a self-satisfied look and two little dabs of sidewhlskers. As the c&i* rounded—a--ewv the - box -rubbeii against him again and he growled; “This Is no freight ear, is it? 54 — returned the meek little chap with the box, “and when you come right down to U. it ain’t any cattle car, either, is it?” REMAINS THE SAME. Well Brewed Postum Always Palatable The flavour of Postum, when boiled according to directions, Is always the same—mild, distinctive, and palatable. It contains no harmful substance like caffeine, the drug in coffee, and hence may be used with benefit at all times. “Believing that coffee was the cause of my. torpid liver, sick headache and misery in many ways,” writes an Ind. lady, “I quit and bought a package of Postum about a year ago. “My husband and I have been so well pleased that we have continued to drink Postum ever since. We like the taste of Postum better than coffee, as it has always the same pleasant flavour, while coffee changes Its taste .with about every new combination or blend. “Since using Postum I have had no more attacks of gall colic, the heaviness has left my chest, and the old, common, every-day headache is a thing unknown.” “There’s a Reason.” • Name given by Postum Cos., Battle Creek, Mich. Read “The Road to Wellville,”. In pkgs. Ever< read the above letter? Anew one appears from time to time. They are genuine, true, and full of human Interest.