1900 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



361 



kind that some of us know but very little 

 about. Dear friends, I ^novi something about 

 the other kind, for I have had some experi- 

 ence. Perhaps we all or the most of us have 

 regular times for prayer. That is well and 

 good ; but if when we pray our mind is on 

 something else, and we repeat the same things 

 over and over, it is not much wonder that God 

 neglects to hear and answer. In fact, we 

 hardly expect an answer of any sort ; and this 

 explains why the Savior groaned and lament- 

 ed over man's unbelief. We have it in the 

 beginning of our story, and we have it in the 

 end. You set the children to doing something. 

 They will come back and say they tried, but 

 could not do it. The good parent says, " Oh 

 dear me ! I am sure you did not half try.'' 

 Perhaps the children want to do something 

 else, or do not feel like it. They do not zvanl 

 to succeed very bad. That would be a little 

 rough on the temperance people of Ohio, but 

 I am afraid it is true. There is half hearted- 

 ness all along the lines. Why, my quotation 

 from the daily points it out and emphasizes it. 



Now, Matlhew, Mark, and Luke did not half 

 try to cast out that demon. Their sympathies 

 were not sufficiently aroused. They did not 

 care enough about the boy or his father. The 

 Savior was away somewhere, and I do not 

 know but they felt a longing to go fishing or 

 do something else. They were at fault or he 

 would not have rebuked them as he did. I 

 am in the habit of praying two or three times 

 a day ; but if I do not look out a good deal of 

 it is half-hearted prayer. I am afraid I do not 

 do much real praying until Satan gets square- 

 ly in my way, and will not let me by. Then 

 comes prevailing prayer. A great part of my 

 life I have lamented that I was so constantly 

 hampered with an impatient temper. But this 

 very impatient spirit calls out the real prayer. 

 Just two days ago Satan stood squarely across 

 my footpath. He kept urging me to use my 

 authority, but I knew it was not best. He 

 planned what I should say and what I should 

 do, and pictured out what the result would be. 

 He said I was not a 'inan — had not the respect 

 of anybody unless I did as he suggested. His 

 evil suggestions followed me. I could not get 

 the matter out of my mind. It was time to 

 write my Home Papers, and I was not in a 

 right spirit for it. I walked over to the green- 

 house. Nobody was near, and I could pray 

 out loud. But he did not give up. He follow- 

 ed me as he did that demoniac child — he would 

 not let go. I wrestled in prayer for the sake 

 of the loved ones at home, for the sake of 

 harmony and peace in the busy workshops 

 across the way. I begged for deliverance. I be- 

 sought the dear Savior to give me the victory. 

 Like Jacob of old I wrestled not in vain, and 

 then came peace, harmony, and tranquillity. 

 That was real prayer. Something was really 

 accomplished, as much as if I had been fight- 

 ing fire. 



One morning last winter I came over to the 

 ofiice and opened a great valve to let the steam 

 into the pipes that run through the building. 

 The valve had never been screwed down se- 

 curely to the seat. The whole top came loose, 

 and the pressure of the steam raised it up a 



little. I put my whole weight on it, and 

 thought first I could not get it back into place. 

 If I let it get away from me I should be scald- 

 ed before I could get out of danger. I was 

 battling against the pressure of the steam. 

 If I could just make the threads catch the 

 least bit I could get it back into place. It was 

 so early in the morning nobody was near. I 

 became excited and nervous ; but by exercis- 

 ing a little ingenuity, however, I managed to 

 hold back the imprisoned power, and finally 

 got the valve back in place. I " licked," but 

 the tussle made me weak and faint. I felt the 

 effects of the fright and fatigue almost all the 

 forenoon. Now, an ungoverned temper that 

 threatens to break loose is a thousand times 

 worse than confined steam. It must be kept 

 back out of sight at all hazards. Just turn 

 this force into wrestling prayer, and then let it 

 go loose — it can not do harm ? 



Ernest has told you in another column what 

 faith and whole-hearted work did in Marengo, 

 111. I have told you already about the fierce 

 fight we had to keep the liquor-traffic away 

 from Chippewa Lake, four miles from Medina. 

 The enemy had their plans so well laid that 

 they boasted we were helpless ; but the good 

 men and women of Medina, including the 

 teachers and all our ministers, waked up to 

 the importance of the matter as they were 

 never waked up before, to my knowledge, and 

 arose in their might. We gave the rum pow- 

 er an ovei whehmng defeat ; and I said at the 

 time if that same crusade were kept right up 

 it would clean liquor selling clear out of our 

 county. Why, there is not a question in re- 

 gard to it ; and when the county is made clean, 

 a like crusade of all temperance people would 

 clear the State of Ohio, and Ohio ought to 

 give other States of the Union faith and cour- 

 age to let temperance rule under the stars and 

 stripes, instead of intemperance ; and finally 

 the temperance banner could be unfurled so 

 as to float over the whole wide ivorld. Our 

 text tells us what the trouble is, and why God 

 does not rule instead af Sitan. Jesus' follow- 

 ers are not willing to fast for the cause. I am 

 really afraid some of them are not willing to 

 forego intoxicating drinks. We want more 

 wrestling in prayer against the encroachments 

 of the evil one. 



And now as I finish, a new beauty radiates 

 (at least to me) from that brief little text: 

 " Howbeit, this kind goeth not out but by 

 prayer and fasting." 



EATING BETWEEN MEALS, AND THE WAY IN WHICH 

 IT MAY IMPAIR DIGESTION. 



Mr. Root. — I am glad you have discovered the great 

 pleasure there is in growing flowers. I have often 

 thought that you must be color-blind, or else looking 

 too high and far away, or you would discover these 

 shining lights which are really many times right 

 under your feet. I think you will not only find great 

 pleasure but health among the beautiful flowers. Nice 

 vegetables and fruit arc nice (I always have an abun- 



