Poetry.

SOMEBODY'S MOTHER.

THE woman was old, and ragged, and grey,
And bent with the chill of the winter's day;
The street was wet with a recent snow,
And the woman's feet were aged and slow.
She stood at the crossing, and waited long,
Alone, uncared for, amid the throng
Of human beings who passed her by,
Nor heeded the glance of her anxious eye.
Down the street, with laughter and shout,
Glad in the freedom of school let out,
Came the boys like a flock of sheep,
Hailing the snow piled white and deep.
Past the woman, so old and grey,
Hastened the children on their way,
Nor offered a helping hand to her,
So meek, so timid, afraid to stir,

Lest the carriage-wheels, or the horses' feet,
Should crowd her down in the slippery street.
At last came one of the merry troop-
The gayest laddie of all the group;

He paused beside her, and whispered low,
“I'll help you across, if you wish to go.”
Her aged hand on his strong young arm
She placed, and so, without hurt or harm,
He guided her trembling feet along,

Proud that his own were firm and strong.
Then back again to his friends he went,
His young heart happy and well content.
"She's somebody's mother, boys, you know,
For all she's old, and poor, and slow;
And I hope some fellow will lend a hand
To help my mother, you understand,
If ever so poor, and old, and grey,
When her own dear boy is far away."

And "somebody's mother " bowed low her head
In her home that night, and the prayer she said
Was, "God be kind to the noble boy,

Who is somebody's son, and pride, and joy!"

DARE say the young friends who have read my two former papers on "THE GREAT PYRAMID," have wondered that such grand and glorious truths should have been embodied in that massive silent structure. They would wonder still more if they were able to go along with me into other grand truths embodied therein. But many of these would carry us into calculations in geometry and algebra too abstruse for the ordinary readers of the Juvenile Instructor; and would require engravings and pictorial illustrations to render them clearly understood. However, if the elder scholars desire further information on this interesting part of the subject, they may obtain it to some extent by carefully reading and studying my Pamphlet, price sixpence, to be had from our Bookroom; and still more abundantly by reading the large volume of Professor Smyth-the astronomer Royal for Scotland-that learned man who spent four months at the Great

Pyramid, sleeping at night in a tomb close by that wonderful structure, and labouring hard day by day during all that time in taking accurate measurements of the Pyramid in every part, inside as well as outside; and in studying the truths embodied in its proportions. But I fancy I hear some intelligent youth say-"Is it not strange that men did not know many ages before, that the Pyramid contained these truths?" My answer is, that the architect of the Pyramid did know those truths, or he could not have embodied them there; but they were embodied there in order that they might be discovered at a future time, when they could be clearly understood by people generally; and their truth being made manifest in an age of advanced science, they would thereby confront and confound Infidelity. This has been the way of Providence in other discoveries! Let us look at facts. For more than 2,000 years the Hieroglyphics (symbolical writings) which cover the temples and palaces and tombs of Egypt could not be understood. The old language of Egypt was dead, and the mysterious writing could not be read; no, not even by the Egyptians themselves; nor by the greatest scholars in the world; and infidels said, "Well, they will be read some day, and then there will be an end to the authority of the Bible." Vain prophecy was this! The lost key to this mysterious writing has been found, and now many of the treasures are unlocked; but instead of opposing the Bible, they prove and illustrate its historic truths. The Hieroglyphics of Egypt are just like a pictorial commentary on many portions of the Bible. How providential that the discovery was made. Though long delayed, yet it came just at the right time, and it came to confront infidelity and to confound its boasting. Of this I might give you many proofs, if my space permitted me. So with the monuments of Nineveh. That great city was destroyed about 2,600 years ago; and in course of time it became so completely buried in its own ruins that infidels began to doubt whether it had ever existed at all; and even ridiculed the history and the prophecies of the Bible where Nineveh was mentioned. They said, it is all a fable. Just then God sent Layard, and Botta, and Smith and others, and they uncovered its vast foundations, and found deeply embedded in the earth, palaces, temples, and other great public buildings covered with inscriptions. In these inscriptions when translated-as many of them have been translated-behold we read the names of Sennacherib, Esarhaddon, Sardanapalus, and other kings of Nineveh; also of Omri, Hazael, Jehu, Menahan, Pul, Tiglath-pileser, Hezekiah, and other kings of Israel, Judah, and Syria, who figure largely in Scripture history. We have not only their names, but even the very portraits of some of these kings, with long accounts of their wars; proving to the very letter the truth of Scripture history, so that what was once deemed a fable is now proved, beyond the power of doubt, to be a reality, an invincible truth. How remarkable that this evidence should have been concealed for more than 2000 years! How wonderful it should have been brought

to light just at the right time to put infidelity to shame! The Lord God hath done this!

It is much the same with regard to Babylon. True, the existence of Babylon was not denied by infidels; for portions of its history are blended with the history of Alexander called the Great, and other noted kings and warriors; but the evidence of Scripture truth buried beneath its ruins, was unknown for two thousand years. But now, within the last thirty years, the massive ruins of Babylon have been explored in part, and behold the name of old Nebuchadnezzar and his exploits as a builder, as a king and a warrior, are recorded on the monuments; yea, even the madness of that monarch as stated in the book of Daniel, is confirmed in the records of Babylon. Indeed, the name of Nebuchadnezzar occurs hundreds of thousands of times among the ruins of Babylon. Again we may exclaim, how wonderful that this evidence should have been concealed for so many centuries! How still more wonderful it should be discovered now, and made so manifest that infidelity is forced to blush at its presumption! This is the Lord's doing and it is marvellous in our eyes!

I could go on with many other facts, showing that it is the way of Providence to permit important evidence of truth to be buried in oblivion for a time, and then just at the right time to cause a resurrection of lost or forgotten truth, to confirm and illustrate His Holy Word.

Now it is just the same with regard to the important scientific truths embodied in the Great Pyramid. They were known to the architect of that wonderful structure; and built up by him in its solid masonry, in order to be brought to light at a period when they could be understood, and when they could render the most effective service in the cause of God. This is the time; but at an earlier period they could not render that service, because they could not be understood; and, therefore, could not be confirmed by the facts of science.

In former times the most erroneous notions prevailed respecting scientific truths, the very reverse of those which are built up in the Pyramid. Men thought the world was flat, like a plate; how then could they understand problems based upon the fact of its being round like a globe? They thought the sun turned round the earth every day; how then could they understand scientific truths based upon the fact that the sun is the centre of the solar system, with the earth and all the planets revolving around him? They thought the sun was only a few miles, or a few hundred miles distant from the earth; how then could they interpret the problems which implied its distance of ninety-two millions of miles? theory of the universe as then held by philosophers was the very opposite of truth, and the very opposite to the proportions of the Pyramid. It is only since the true system of the universe has been discovered that the truths built up in the Great Pyramid can

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