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"lone rocky isle of the sea," and disclosed the last whitehaired survivor of the Apostolic band walking along its heights with his glorified Lord, and then slowly the curtains closed again. It was enough. We would not part with this one vision for half the history of the world. No island on our planet after this can ever begin to compare with it for interest. Down to the end of time it will occupy a leading place in immortal story, and the heart of the world will ever beat faster because of the unveiling of the unseen that was there revealed.

66 PATMOS LETTERS. "

DR. JOHN L. CAMPBELL.

PEACE ON EARTH.

The Christian Church has no greater message to utter in the councils of nations, with all the emphasis and moral authority within her power, than the words of Jesus to Peter "Put up again thy sword into its place," and making her way through forts and fortifications, over ramparts and battlements, brushing aside guns and bayonets, reach the people of these Christian lands, and stir them in the name of the Lord with the challenge "Let us have peace.

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Just think of some of the evils and horrors of war, evils and horrors that the civilized world ought to remember, instead of being absorbed with the glittering glories of war. Think of the desolation of the ravaged battle-zones, the paralysis of industry and commerce, and the reckless destruction of property that travel with contending armies. Think of the suffering and sacrifice, not only of those fighting at the front, but of those martyrs of the home left behind. Think of the savage passions aroused in the hearts of the victors, and the hatred and vindictiveness born and nursed in the hearts of the vanquished. Think of the cost

in men and money, in what President David Starr Jordan affirms is the best and bravest of a country's manhood, and in the millions of money the rest of the nation must toil and slave to provide, taking the bread from the mouth of the children to satisfy the ferocity of the dogs of war; and think, consider, realize that all this and much, Oh! much more, is the tribute paid by Christian nations to barbarism, paid for the most part to avoidable, unnecessary, unjustifiable, intolerable barbarism. Think, I say, and induce others to think of the cruel cost of war, war that after all cannot settle moral issues, for arbitrament of war only decides who is strong, not who is wrong, war only establishes the dominance of might, not of right. Without going into the harrowing recital of the awful cost in shattered bodies, and broken hearts, and shadowed homes, and weakened and burdened states, think of the crushing cost in money, think of the wealth of the rich and the blood of the poor, yea, the very blood of the multitudes that must needs be poured out to sustain, but never to satisfy, the barbarism of militarism. Think what it means to the social and economic life of the people that seventy-two (72) per cent. of our governmental expenditures is for war, war in its preparations and war in its results.

And what for? We don't want to fight anybody, and nobody wants to fight us. We e were never invaded in the time of our weakness, and we are surely not likely to be in these times of our might, and as for our Island Possessions, there is very little danger of anybody stealing them overnight.

Do you realize that every one of our foreign wars was fought on our initiative, and that not one would be able to justify itself to-day before a court of moral conscience, not one? The war of 1812 with England was unnecessary and fruitless; that of 1846 with Mexico was fruitful, but un

just and unjustifiable, and that of 1898 with Spain was altruistic, but jingoish, unnecessary, and never would have broken out but that the explosion of the ill-fated "Maine " let loose the passions of our people, and tore the reins out of the hands of reason and justice.

War belongs to animalism, not to humanism; to barbarism, not to civilization, most positively not to Christian civilization; to the brutal reign of might, not to the gracious reign of right; to the night of the past, not to the day of the coming age. Washington said " My first wish is to see this plague of mankind banished from the earth. " Jefferson declared" I abhor war, and view it as the greatest scourge of mankind." Grim old Sherman, who ought to know, said " The glory of war is all moonshine, war is hell," and General Grant, our conquering glory-crowned soldier, uttered this conviction, "There never was a time when, in my opinion, some way could not have been found of preventing the drawing of the sword."

Surely, surely, surely, disciples of Jesus Christ, followers of the Prince of Peace should show the world a more excellent way, and teach the nations to lay aside the crimes of war, and learn together the graces of brotherhood.

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In time of peace prepare for war " is a relic of pagan

ism, and belongs to by-gone ages when every foreigner was an enemy and every stranger a foe. Wisdom and common sense should laugh such an adage to scorn in these enlightened days. In the time of peace prepare to perpetuate peace. But to be forever thinking of war and talking of war and writing of war and planning for war and preparing for war is a preposterous way of insuring peace. Nay, let us think of peace and talk of peace and write of peace and plan for peace and prepare for peace, then we shall have peace.

A hundred years ago we entered into agreement with one of the mightiest nations of earth, with a border line extend

ing four thousand miles along the entire length of our northern frontier, not to build a single fort on either side, nor float a single warship on the great lakes, and for a century these two countries, the United States of America and the Dominion of Canada, with the whole of the British Empire behind her, have lived in undisturbed peace, with an unprotected frontier reaching clear across the widest stretch of the continent. Do you think that this story of a century of bloodless and peaceful history could have been written, if in times of peace the great Republic and the mighty Empire had been preparing for war, if each had been vying with the other to see who could raise the most formidable fortifications, and build the most destructive floating fortresses, and had looked at each other through the glistening bore of frowning guns threateningly pointed at each other? No, not without a miracle that no one has a right to expect from God, and any ground at all to hope for from men. Here is a concrete example of complete disarmament tested by the experience of a hundred years, and what we have done with England in Canada, why may we not do, in large measure, with England elsewhere, and with other nations everywhere. The Church of the Prince of Peace, speaking the language of love and justice, stands forth in the Parliament of the Nations, and declares that there is a better way to establish honorable and prosperous peace than by killing and slaughtering our fellowmen, and that there are better defences than armies and navies, battlements and battleships, for "Unto us a child is born the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Prince of Peace. " "He shall judge between nations, and they shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. "" REV. SAMUEL J. SKEVINGTON.

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FOURTEENTH STEP IN RENDERING.

LYRIC.

Lyric Poetry is the poetry of self-expression: love, hatred, anger, grief, and other emotions are its distinctive subjects. Lyrics are both sacred and secular: Psalms and Hymns are sacred lyrics. Unity of this style requires that the poem be limited to the expression of a single emotion coloring the whole poem. The meter should be suggested by the subject.

An Ode is a lyric where exalted feeling is expressed. It is the "voice of poetry in frenzy." Odes may also be either sacred or secular. One of the finest Odes is Wordsworth's "Imitations of Immortality.

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An Elegy is a lyric with melancholy feeling. Gray's Elegy; In Memoriam, Tennyson; " Thyrsis,

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Matthew Arnold.

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A Sonnet is a little song, ( poet's ecstasy) is a lyric of fourteen lines. The Sonnet expresses a single sentiment. All forms of Lyric Poetry are subjective, dealing with feelings rather than that which is objective or what appeals to the outer senses. As this style is subjective, the action of the whole being is concentric. In medi tative selections the body folds up as to arms and limbs, the eye looks into the heights or the depths, in a "brown study. An attitude of the body in harmony with the feeling intensifies and helps true expression.

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