752 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Sept. 



sympathize with the brothers who liave re- 

 cently suffered. Death seems to us terrible 

 ill this shape, because it is comparatively 

 new to us. We have been coiisratulatiiiR 

 ourselves during all these years, that eartli- 

 (piakes did not visit our locality, or, at least, 

 that the visitations are so far between, and 

 so feeble when they do come, we might con- 

 sider ourselves coniparatively exempt. The 

 events of the past few days teach us 

 differently, (ireat forces are at work under 

 our feet, that we dreamed not of, and our 

 whole continent is liable at any moment, or 

 at any hour, to be rolled and tumbled about 

 like the waves of the sea. After the great 

 Chicago lire, men talked of building houses 

 that W'ould withstand the devouring ele- 

 ments ; but wiiat architect or mechanic shall 

 think of planning a Iniilding that will be se- 

 cure against earthquakesV The idea is fol- 

 ly. The conviction forces itself upon us, 

 that there is no place exem]>t from devasta- 

 tion and death and ruin. No placeV Yes, 

 thank God, there is a place of refuge. We 

 are told in the Holy Scriptures, that, al- 

 though heaven and earth should pass away, 

 tiod's words shall not pass away. I do not 

 mean, mind you, that the Christian shall be 

 spared the pangs of death, or that he shall 

 be passed by when the devouring elements 

 come; but 1 do mean, that grace and 

 strength will be given the one who puts his 

 whole trust in God, so that he may bid defi- 

 ance even to calamity and death. " My 

 grace is sufficient for thee," is what the Ho- 

 ly Spirit told I'aul when he besought God to 

 take away the thorn in the tlesli. But the 

 thorn remained there still, and to the end 

 of his life, to buffet him. 



The question has sometimes been asked, 

 why God should permit innocent, helpless 

 women and children to thus suffer and die. 

 My friend, the helpless and the innocent 

 suffer and die by disease, and have suft'ered 

 and died since time began. I presume the 

 sufferings and death caused by an earth- 

 quake are not to be compared with the suf- 

 ferings caused by disease. Disease is all 

 round about us; we are familiar with it; 

 and for some reason, perhaps not quite ex- 

 plained, most of us would prefer to die a 

 slow and lingering death by disease, rather 

 than a sudden death by accident; this feel- 

 ing is perhaps largely caused jjy weakness- 

 more largely by want of faith. It is true, 

 that a faithful, trusting folloAver of the Sav- 

 ior is sustained by a Savior's love, and en- 

 abled to bear the pains and sufferings of 

 disease; but is it not true, too, dear friends, 

 that the faithful Christian has grace and 

 fortitude given liim to face death and tor- 

 ture unflinchingly, even though it comes by 

 iiccident, or in the discharge of regular 

 duties ? I think he has, and yet I have 

 asked myself the (]uestion over and over 

 again, whether vui faith in God's loving care 

 is such that I should not get demoralized 

 and frightened, and behave myself in a 

 manner unworthy of a follower of the 

 Lamb. May (Jod help me to endure trial 

 when the trial comes ! 



We are told by the papers that meetings 

 were held in Charleston, and that groans 

 and prayers were sent up to the Father, be- 



seeching him to spare them from further 

 shocks of the earthquakes. But still the 

 shocks went on. Shall we not bear in mind 

 that even the prayers of the Son of God for 

 deliverance from the cup that stood liefore 

 him were not granted V It is true, he ended 

 with ''Nevertheless, not my will, but thine, 

 be done." But what mortal is there among 

 us who could have the grace to say, when 

 death faces him, "Tliy Will, n<it mine, be 

 done " V And were tiiese prayers that were 

 offered iq) then in accordance with tiiat 

 spirit? When in sore ti'ouble, or amid in- 

 tense pain, it is human and natural to ask 

 simply for deliverance — nothing more. My 

 friend, did you ever tliink of it, that, when 

 you ask God t;) d(Miver you fioin the pain 

 and trials that fall to the lot of average 

 mankind, you are asking to be an exception 

 to the general rule of humanity ? In that 

 light, is it not a selfisli one V Can you be a 

 consistent follower of Christ, and ask that 

 your path may be easy and smooth while 

 your fellows are suffering all round about 

 you V In our little home circle, the younger 

 ones are prone to drift into selfish ways if 

 they are not carefully taught and guarded. 

 Sometimes Iluber, in the exuberance of his 

 spirits, sings out as soon as we get to the 

 table, ■' Give me some strawberries. I want 

 some strawberries. Mother ! mother ! give 

 me some strawberries !" And this request is 

 often made before any one .at the table has 

 been served at all. Sometimes I try to show 

 him his selfishness by a reply something like 

 this : '' Why, my boy, do you want some 

 strawberries when neither cousin Mabel nor 

 any of the rest have had any at allV" 

 Now. even though Iluber can' not under- 

 stand the truths of astronomy very well, he 

 can be taught the beauty of a self-sacrificing 

 and Christian spirit; and he usually hangs 

 his head with a look on his face that indi- 

 cates that he feels ashamed. When pressed 

 for an answer, he speaks up like a man. and 

 says, " Wait on cousin Mabel first." Now, 

 then, dear friends, are not our prayers for 

 deliverance too apt to be like the request of 

 the little one for strawberries V We want to 

 be waited on first ; we want the best of ev- 

 ery thing ourselves when there is a choice 

 of best. 



One of the daily papers, a few days ago, 

 was commenting on the dittei"ent people 

 who travel in our railway cars. The paper 

 spoke of the fidgetty, nervous people who 

 are unused to travel, and have to be making 

 constant inquiries as to what to do and how 

 to act. Then they contrasted them with the 

 class who make a regular business of travel- 

 ing — the commercial class, for instance. 

 Well, they said this latter class would be off' 

 the train "almost before it had stopppd. If 

 there were to be tvv'enty minutes for dinner, 

 they were first to the dining-table, and got 

 the best places and secured' the ])est viands 

 before the former class had found out where 

 the dining-room was. If tickets were to be 

 secured for a sleeping-car, they secured all 

 the best berths first, and left the others to 

 do as they could. Now, I hope I am telling 

 the exact truth when I say I don't w^ant the 

 best places when I travel. I hope I should 

 feel i^sh^u^iecl of mj'sejf , even if I w^ere smart 



