The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, February 7, 1896, Page 10

10 " THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY _— FATHER YORKE T0 DR, WENDTE Brief Review of the Status of the Big Contro- versy. PRIMACY OF THE POPE. The Catholic Clergyman'’s Caustic | Words to the Oakland Divine. SOME LINKS OF THE CHAIN. The Five Main Points of the Discus- sion—Is'the Biblical Authority Sufficient ? To the Editor of the Call—DEAR Ste: I rémark with pain that the Rey. Dr. Wendte has yielded onuce more to what the old theologians denom- insted ‘“‘the concupiscence of wrath.” His gentle humor of & week ago is overcast and he makes his exit from the controversy in a very bad temper. Iam sorry indeed that e should prove such a striking example of the inefli- cacy of good resolutions. However, he came into the arens of his own free will,and I do not think that he 1§ wise 1n attempting to ex- cuse his conspicuous unsuccess by animad- verting upon his oppon ent’s manmers. THE STATE OF THE CONTROVERS On January 10 Dr. Wendte intervened in the current controversy by declaring his intention 10 prove 1. That the primacy of. the Bishop of Rome not supported by seripture or history. 2. That the Catholic theory or doctrine of the relations between church and state was opposed-to the American theory or doctrine on the same subject. 3. That Protestant countries, races and men are superior to Catholic countries, races and w men. Inthe midst of the discussion Dr. Wendte announced his determination not to treat this third subject. He offered as his reason an un- willingness 1o irritete Catholies. 1 entreated him to publish his pamphiet and let us know the worstat once; but my entreaties were in vain, Catholics are still shivering as they think of the engine of destruction which Oak- land scholarship holds in reserve. Dr.Wendte's admirers rest_confident that if Rome should become to0 obstreperous their champion has but to hurl his lucubration and, lo! Rome will be no more. this withdrawal confined to two points—I, The primacy of St. Peter; 1L, The relations between church and siate. THE PRIMACY OF ST. PETER. In his first letter Dr. Wendte undertook to prove five points. 1. Peter never received any authority over the other disciple: there was nothing to show aded to his successors. op of Rome. ome for any such term as if elaimed for him in the-official dec- laration of the Roman Catholic church. 5. Peter was, in all probability, never in Rome at all Notwithstanding the old warning against at- tempiing to prove a universal negative Dr. Wendte went bravely a¢ his arguments. It is not necessary for me to describe his method. He confounded several dents in one, he bronght oddsand ends of texts from all over the New Testament, he showed &1 unacquaintance with secular and ecclesias- tical history surprising in_one who laid such claims to scholarship. In answer 1 was com- pelled toseparate the pture incidepts-which he had confounded, to examine each text of scripture which be produced and to eorrect his misstatements of historical facts. Dr. Wendte's answer desérves to be puton Teco The Scripture texts and incidents to which I referred as demonstrating the untenableness of the Catholic claim to Peter's primacy among the disciples and the great unlikeliness of his sojourn and bishopric at Rome are requoted one by one by Farther Yorke and given an entirely differ- ent interpretation, so that after his manipulation | e 5 | revelation. No matter how the gates of hell toey are made 1o appear as confirmations of his own side of the controversy. In other cases he contents himself with evading my statements or denying them altogether. And finally, he breaks the continuous force of my reasoning and proofs by separating each from the other and nibbling and quibbling about each in detail unti! the reader, wearied and bewlldered loses all sense of the logical connection and cumulative force of the varions Pparts of my argumentaiion. This is certainly & very extraordinary ad- mission. Dr. Wendte must know that the strength of & chain is the strength of its weakest link. I did with his chain or argu- ment what any competent mechanician wouid do with & chain. 1100k up each link separate- ly and examined it. If Dr. Wendte wasconfused and wearied by this simple process, his mind must not be accustomed to logical ratiocina- tion. Ido notimegine that my readers were bewildered by performing one of the most elementary processes of reasoning. ¢ Dr. Wendte did not attempt to amblyze my explanations of the sacred text. He consid- ered that the performance would be unspeak- ably tiresome, and therefore he leavesthe whole matter to the public. In order, how- ever, that the public msy see what Dr, Wendte’s case amounts to, I will teke the trou- ble of reviewing the argument in detail. As I stated above, Dr. Wendte undertook to establish five points: A. Peter never Tecelved any authority over the other disciples. Even if he had there was nothing to show that this apthority descended to his successors. Peter was never Bishop of Rom: D. Peter never abode in Rome for -any such term as is claimed for him in_the official declaration of the Roman Catholic church. at all. A. PE1ER’S PRIMACY. | In order to show that St. Peter had been in- vested with anihority over the other disciples. 1 proved from the Seripture that: irst—Christ built his church on Peter. Second—That Christ gave Peter the symbols of royal authority in the church. . Third—That Christ gave Peter the royal power of binding and looning; Fourth—That Christ gave Peter the power of confirming the brethren, - Fifth—ThatChrist lgnve Peter the commission to feed the lambs and sheep. Let us see how Dr. Wendte treats each argu- ment, First—The rock foundation. Against the argument drawn from the fact that Christ had named Simon the Rock and had promised to build his church upon that rock Dr. Wendte objected: (a) Peter isnot the only rock. (b) His name Rock was given on a different occasion and therefore has no special signifi- cance. * “(c) Peter was the rock simply because he took s leading part in spreading the church. (d) Peter wes not the rock becatse .Christ rebuked him and because he denied Christ. ;31) Peter not the only rock. . Wendte attempied Lo show from parallel passages in the Scripture that Peter was not thepuly rock on which the church was built. He therefore quoted two texts, in one of which it is-said that Christ is the only foundation, and in the otner of which-Christ is called the headstone of the corner. _ That Dr. Wendte’s objection should be of any, value he should demonstrate that in both these places the church of Christ is said to be built on Uhrist bimself in the same manner in which Christ says it was (0 be built on Peter. Inmgly made clear by quoting the passages cited that in neither was there any question about building the chureh on a rock. The first passage was shown to refer to ‘the spiritual life of the individual Christian, ‘which ean be built only on the one foundation Christ Jesus. The second passage was shown to refer to the despised stone, which was afterward made the head of the corner. Dr. Wendte's only reply to this demonstra~ tion of the irrelevancy of his quotations is: “The Scripture texts are requoted one by one by Father Yorke and given an entirely differ- ent interpretation.” If Dr. Wendte, instead of bewailing my dia- lectic devices, had attempted to show that these texts could bear any other interpretation than the one I have given he mijght have strengthened his cause, instead of allowing the case to go by default. - Hence, I claim that my opponent has not shown that ““Peter is not the oaly rock.’”. b) The giving of his name. r. Wendte tried to break the force of the ar- gument derived from the name Peter. It is the custom in the Scripture to signalize the dflice or destiny of-a maun by & change of name. Abram was cailed Abrabam, or the “Father of = multitude,” because he was destined to be the parent ‘of t nations. Simon’s name ‘was changed to Peter, or Rock, because he w: be the rock on which Chris Anyhow, the controversy was by | | | | | { inct seripture inci- | E. Peter was in all probabllity never in Rome | IR his'church. Dr. Wendte stated in regly that Peter's name was givey on_another and differ- ent occasion and therefore had no significance. 1showed that Dr. Wendie's statement was incorrect, and that there was nothingin the gospel narrative to imply that Peter's name Wwas given on a different occasion. “Dr. Wendte's answer is an offer to mail his original pamphlet to any one who wishes to read it. e(C) Peler was the rock because he spread the chureh, 3 My reply to thi tion was to warn metaphors. Dr.p\\'endlc answered that it was I who mixed the metaphors and that he made no such objection. To show where the responsi- bility Iies let me quote Dr. Wendte’s first letter: “Jesus, no doubt, depended greaily on Peter to spread his gospel and_build up his cause on earth. This i3 pot only shown by his indicating him as the rock on which his church was to be founded,” ete. f this is not a mixture of metaphors I do ngb know what is. Moreover, Dr. \\Pendte has not the excuse of Irish blood unless, indeed, he horrowed the objection from his theological ok. 3 “CPo explain away Christ’s words, “Thou art Peter and upon this rock will'I build my church,” by saying that St. Peter spread the church’ is to turn the apostle into a rolling stone. Dr. Wendte did not try to justify his inter- pretation. 1. Peter was not the rock. Dr. Wendte objected that Peter was not the Rock when he denied his mastcr and when his master rebuked him. In auswer [ admitted the objection and drew Dr. Wendte's aktention to the fact that the words of Christ only promised to make Peter the Rock. That promise was not fulfilled until after the Resurrection, and therefore Dr. Wendte’s objection is worth nothing. i d'm& Wendte replies by seying thatl am preju- iced. . s extraordinary interprota- Dr. Wendte not to m?x !_JIE NEW OBJECTIONS. Though Dr. Wendte did not attempt to sub- stantiate his old objections, he brought tor- ward in his reply two new objections. One that the rock meant Peter’s faith and the other that Doellinger is authority for the statement that none of the early church writers in- terpreted the text as implying the primacy of Peter. OBJECTION NO. 1. Let us now see what Dr. Wendte's first ob- jection amonnts to. He says the more ne Teads the passage in question—“Thou art a rock, and upon this rock will I build my church”—the more firmly he is convinced that Christ referred to St. Peter’s faith. Let us sup- pose he'did. When we say that the courage of & general won @ battle, do we separate the gen- eral from his courage? If we declare. that such and such a building is a monument to the skill of an engineer, do we divide the man from his abilit: So, if we admit that Peter's faith was the rock founndation on which Christ would build the church, what warrant have we for separat- ing Peter from his faith? It wason Peter as endowed with that ““faith which fails not”; it was on Peter the confirmer of the brethren; it was on Peter the shepherd of the sheep and it was on Peter in the concrete that “hirist founded his church in such wise that the gates ot heil should not prevail against it. Dr. Wendte seemed to. be Iaboring under a lamentable confusion of ideas in interpreting this fext. He completely forgets -that Christ does not hand over the buildiug of the church to Peter. He himself is the architect and mas- ter builder. He, not Peter, Jays the founda- tions; he, not Peter, makes it strong, to resist death and hell. His power, not Peter’s faith, erects the building on the solid rock. The office of Peter or the rock is not to spread the faith, bud to sustain it. Hels the center of unity. He holds the building together though winds blow and rain beats and floods surge around. When, in the course of time, ideas clash with ideas and truth seems to be set against truth the office’ of Peter is to declare the faith. For that is he set by his master. Dr. Wendte of course believes that the Mas- ter was & mere man, and he may deride the idea that Christ could preserve his ehurch from the fate of all human ipstitutions, schism and decay. But Christians believe otherwise. To them Christ was God, and he possessed the wisdom and poWwer of God. If therefore he wished to preserve his truth intact he conld do so. If he wished to keep his church one he overcame all obstacles. That he willed his church to be one &nd to be indefectible is the only rational conclusion the unprejudiced mind can draw from the words “Thou art Rock, and upon this Rock will I build my church, and the gates of hell shail not prevail against it.” And, as & matter of fact, every attempt to build & church on a foundation other than this rock has met with disaster. Let Dr. Wendte look at the history of all the, reformed charches, his own included. He speaks about m being founded on ideas, on truth, on irtue, on-faith:; He might as well recom- mend our Harbor Commissioners to build the new ferry depot on wind. Ideas are like the shifting sands and Dr. Wendte knows the fate of the house which was built upon the sand. Already that fate has come upon the churches which “would not build upon Peter’s rock. Sects, heresies, divisions—all the evils of the latter days are rampant among them and faith is dead. There is only one church which knows the truth and is not afraid to proclaim it. The church in which Peter still lives and teaches never falters in her declaration of Christ’s may rage, her faith fails not, and all through the centuries she confirms the brethren. OBJECTION NO. 2. Dr. Wendte uext quotes irom Janus, and ascribes the guotation to Doellinger. T have already.exple’ned that there is absolutely no evidence to connect Doellinger with Janus, and that there is every reason to believe that the book was not written by Catholics atall. Aui'- how, let us see how much the objection is worth: 401 al] the fathers who iriterpret these passages in the Gospels (Mafthew xvi:18, John xxi:17), not a ‘single one applies them to the Roman Bishops as Peter's successors. How many fathers have busied themselves with these texts, yet not oneof them whose commentaries we Dossess— Origen, Chrysostom, Hilary, Augustine, Cyril, Theodoret, and those whose interpretations. are collected in catenas—hae dropped the faintest hint that the primacy of Rome is the consequence of the commission and promise to Peter; notone of them has explained the rock or foundation on which Christ would build his church if the office given to Peter to be transmitted to his successors, but they understood by it either Christ himself, or often both to- Or else they thought Peter was the on equally with all the Other apostles; the v ing together the foundation stones of the church (Revelations xxi:14). The fathers could the Jess recognize in the power of the keys and the power.of binding and loosing any special preroga- tive or lordship of the Roman Bishop, inasmuch as —what is obvious to any oneat firsy sight—they Qid not regard & power first given to Peter and afterward conferred in precisely the same words on ail the apostles as. anything pecullar to him or hereditary in the line of Roman Bisbops. and they held the symbol of the keys as meaning just the same ag the figurative expression of binding and loosing.” In'order to show how far different were the sentiments of Doellinger from those of James, let me quote from his “First Age of Chris- tianity, ete.,” vol. I, p. 47: t the turning point, when his ministry was closing and his_suffering about to begin, Peter made confession that Jesus Christ was the son of -the living God. For this he was repaid by four closely allied prom- ises of future power and pre-eminence in the church. First, he should be. the rock whereon Christ would build it; necflndler, tlie church built on him should never fail; thirdly, Christ would f‘ive him the keys of his kingdom, or church; ?urt.hllh what he bound or loosed on earth would be bound or loosed in heaven. “Peter alone spoke here; he was not com- missioned by the other apostles, but he stood foremost among them_through the faith given him by his heavenly Father. That faith, firm as a rock, fitted him to be the foundation of the church which Christ had compared to a house, Now, first, Simon Bar Jona erce%efl why the Lord originally named im_Cephas, the rock. And thus Christ, like St. Paul afterward, has combined the two similes of & home and of family life. He wills to build his house, the mperishable church, never to be overcome by the powers of death, on the believing and confessing Simon, who again is to be its foundation in the same sense s all the apostles are according (o 8t. Paul or 8t. John, though excelling all others in his specialty as chief foundation-stone. And in this house built upon-him, Peter is to have the duties and powers, not of the master of the house—that Christ is and remains—but of the steward. These were promised him under the symbol of the keys, whereby he is enabled to open the treasures of the house, to guard the spiritnal stores and posessions of the church, doctrine and means of grace, “What is here first, according to St. Matthew's account, only promised to Peter, was, afrer the resurrection, bestowed upon him at the third appearance of Jesus to three apostles and three disciples only besides himself. As he had before assured him of his future ex- eltation on the evidence of his divinely in- spired strength of {aith, s0 now he taught him by & question, thrice solemnly repeated, that he must also surpass the other apostles inlove 0 him, and be & rock-man in love as in [aith, giving’ him thereby an opportunity of retracting his three denials and adding the charge thrice repeated, ‘Feed my lambs; feed my sheep.’ Thereby a chief shephe ‘was given to the whole church, including the apostles, and Peter was placed in the same re- lation as Christ had ‘been belore to the col- lective body of believers. As the good shep- herd who cares for his sheep and gives himself for themi out of love, not like a hireling, for his own Adv;nu&a." Now, as to the question of fact, is it true that none of the fathers interpreted the ~pun$ of Peter and his successors? By the word fathers is meant the early Christian writersand .I am afraid that Dr: Wendte isaboutas familiar with ‘them as he is with Bellarmine or Suarez.- It will be very easy to show that Janus is ho&e- Jessly incorrect; indeed his knowledge of the as t would build | fathers is on & par with Dr. Wendie's. The best way to answer the extract is to quote a few of the fathers on this passage. Tertullian says in the second century in his work on preseription : “Was anything concealed from Peter, who was styled the rock on which the chu: was to be built, who received the keys of the king- dom of heaven and the power of loosing and binding in heaven and on earth?” In the third century Origen wrote: “Peter on whom the church of Christ {a built, ‘against which the gatesof hell shall not pre- vail, left one epistle.” W[I’hc remainder of Fathéer Yorke’s answer to Dr. ‘endte will be published in The Cail to-morrow ] IS UNDER HAWAII'S FLAG. Some Odd Juggling With the British-Bullt Steamer Aztec. There was a rumor yesterday that the new British steamer Aztec, recently pur- chased in. England by the Pacific Mail Steamship Gompany, had been transferred from an English to a Hawaiian register, and that she would hereaiter fly the Ha- waiian flag. It was said that Colonel E. C. Macfar- lane, who was recently in London, and who is now at the California Hotel, was in- strumental in the transfer. When seen he admitted it. He said: ‘“Yes, the rumor is correct. The transfer took place six weeks ago. and T assisted the owners and the Hawaiian Consul in London to bring about the matter.” When asked further if the change of flag had any special significance, he admitted that the request was mde by the owners for the change just #t the time of Cleve- land’s message on the Venezuela ques- tion, but he afided: il ‘I presume it_was for port and other nd\]nnttzges the Pacific Mail Company re- quired the Hawaiian registry, but I actéd in the matter purely from _patriotic -motives, as it is the policy of the Hawaiian Government to increase their merchant marine by offering every facility for the transfer of ocean steamships to their flag. Another object I had in view was to add to the revenue of the country, as the taxes on New MAKES HIS HOME ON THE WATERS. A Hermit Who Has Isolated Himself in an 0ld : Ark, WAS ONCE A PREACHER. He Trundled a Wheelbarrow Over 7000 Miles With Bibles for Sale. : HAS RETIRED IN HIS OLD AGE. He Is Up Before Sunrise and Says His Prayers at the Masthead of His Craft. Hermits who make their homes in the | caves and forests of California are plenti- ful,-but a hermit who makes his home on the water 13 not so common. The first one that has ever been seen in the bay of San The Ol Ark in Which the Hermit Makes His Home. The Old Man Is Shown at the Masthead Saying His Morning Prayer. [Sketcned yesterday by a *“Call” artist.] this fine steamer will now be paid into the Hawaiian treasury instead of the British, 1 do not deny, however, thet in the event of war between England and America 1t would be a distinct advantage for the Aztec to be under the Hawaiian flag, as Hawaii isan indePendent State and conse- quently neutral.” CNIL SERVCE ADOPTED The Trustees of the Free Library Apply It to Certain Offices. Appointed Employes Will Work Under New Regulations Here- after. Some time ago the trustees of the Free Library came to the conclusion that it was not desirable to allow appointments to be secured through political influence in the- main library or its branches. They de- cided they would -establish a civil service rule for applicants and that no appoint- ments should be made unless there had been satisfactory evidence of the qualitica- tions of the parties examined. " In the furtherance of this purpose the following rules—practically civil service— were unanimously adopted: All appointments to the library staff shall be made from those whose names appear on a list of eligibles to be kept by the gecretary. In order to determine who shall be enti. tled to places on the said list of eligibles ex- aminatioas for applicants shall be held under the supervision of an examining committee composed of the members of the committee on rules and administration and the librarian; suchexaminations 1o be conducted in writing and to be of such nature as will fairly test the applicant’s knowledge in tne elementary ‘branches of study taught in the higher grades of the grammar schools, inciuding questions on history and literature of a general nature. All who pass such examinations to the satis- faction of the examining committee shall be required to render a probationary service in the library for & period of not less than two weeks, in order thata jidgmentmay be formed as to their personal qualifications oradaptabil- ity for library work. Such service shall be given without remuneration and at such times and in such manner as the librarian may direct. At the expiration of the probationary period, the librarian shall report to the ex- amining committee on the qualifications of such applicant. The examining committee shall lereupon prepare & list of those persons who, in their judgment, may be eligible for n‘lspolmment to the library service. The order of the names on this list shall be determined by the standing obtained on the written examination, taken in connec- tion with the fitness of the applicant as devel- oped during the probationary ‘service. This list shall then be filed with the secretarv. No applicant failing to render satisfactory evi- dfinfgla( fitness shall be placed on the list of eligibles. i All substitutes shall be_selected from the mfhe"' three names onythe list of eligibles. n general, the line of Yromouon shall be {rom substitute and irom eligible assistant in & branch library to subordinate in the -main library; and since it is desirable that branch libs s should have the knowledge and training acquired by experience in the main library, vacancies in such positions shall' be fillea by appointment from the main library. The first examination under the new sys- tem will be held in the main library on the 15th inst. and it will be the first time in this city that the ciVil service rules will be applied to appointive offices. here is but one vacancy to befilled at present. . - B —————— Onjon Peeling Is No Sinecure. BURLINGTON, Iowa, Jan. 20.—Because of a cut-of 1 cent in the price paid per gal- lon for peeling and sorting young onions, twenty-five girls have quit work in the Barlington Vinegar and Pickle Works. Peeling onions, they claim, is anything ! § but pleasant, and at 5 cents per gallon, the new rate put in force, they could not make decent wages, and so went on strike. No attempt has- made to fill their places.—Inter Ocean. . TSR S A Denmark leads the world in dairy prod- ucts. 3 ‘the latter were made of wood with iron tires. ‘The body is shaped from the limb of a manzanita tree, while the receptacle in which he carried his bibles is a regular kitchen boiler. The Jatter is rustea and weather-beaten, but otherwise the ma- chine is in good order, but its owner is now too old to trundle it. : ‘When seen aboard his floating hermit- age yesterday the old ex-preacher was making a frugal meal on hot cakes, minus the coffee. At first he refused to speak, but later on he thawed a little an ex- pounded some of his views. “The gift of tongues, the power to heal the sick and raise the dead bestowed upon the Aposties at the Feast of Pentecost has all been lost to the world owing to the apostacy of the churches,”” said he, in opening. ‘ right living and by following the laws laid down by the Messiah ‘I think all these things can be restored to us, that we will earth will be turned into heaven. That is what I look and pray for. You know Adelaide Proctor says, ‘This life is but the suburb of the life eternal, whose portal we call death.” Now I think that by and y there will be neither suburb nor portal, but a life eternal on this earth.” RAfter this little speech, which was de. Jivered to a CaLL artist, a reporter and a boatman, the Rev. Mr. Smyth paused a moment, and in answer to a question put by the artist he said: ‘‘The churches are doing baby work compared with what should be done comsidering their oppor- Francisco is now living in a small scow, or ark, in the cove near Black Point. There he spends his days and with the exception of an occasional drifting cruise along the front in a small skiff he never leaves the home he has made for himself on the old, battered craft which is named ‘‘Southern Pacific.” ¢ The hermit is well known around Meiggs wharf, and in fact had it'not been for the boatmen and Custom-house officers he wounld have starved long ago. The runners for the various butchers and gro- cery firms who trade with the deep-water ships also put an occasional donation aboard, and in this way the hermit man- ages to sustain life. 'When questioned he says he belongs to. “The Order of the Messiah,” and that in his day he preached “The Gospel of Freedom.” Every morning, rain or shine, he is up before sunrise. %limbing a ladder raised against. an impromptu mast he reaches a small platform. On this he kneelsand be- gins his- morning orisons. First he sin; & hymn, Sometimes his voice can heard chanting the melody at Black Point and at other times he can barely be heard by the fishermen who are waiting-the turn of tide in Black Point Cove. Then he will read a chapter from the Bible, gener- ally irom the epistles written by St. Peter, 1 after that he prays that the kingdom of the Messiah may come and that heaven be established on earth. If it is a fine tunities. They say ‘Come to JeSus,” ‘Come to Jesus,’ all the time, but they are blind leaders of the blind, and the whole pack | of them are lost in the wildermess of sin. Now, if they only had faith ahd bad given themselves soul and body to Christ they could feretell shipwrecks, railroad acci- dents, shooting scrapes, wars, insurrecs tions, and thus all those calamities could be avoided. They could tell a man just what woman he ought te marry, and they would be able to advise him just what to doin order to make an. honest living and lead an upright and honorable life. As the result of their teachings and example it would not be long before the devil in us would be conquered, and at first death, the last great terror, would be just a fall- ing asleep, and finally there would be no more death. “‘All our sufferings come from the devil. If we conquer him we conquer ‘all bodily ills. . Once rid of him, our heaven on earth begins. This is the doctrine I have preached for years, but I am afraid with indifferent success. Iam now too old to trundle my wheelbarrow, so I have retired from ti;s world to end my days in peace. I have no bodily ills, and I know I shall fall asleep as peacefully as a child, and ‘when one of the boatmen has the curiosity to look into the cabin to see what has be- come of ‘the old crank’ they will find ail that is left of me with a smile on ‘its face.” The hermit is well known in the vicinity of Black Peint, particularly among the children. Every time he goes ashore for water the youngsters gather around him The Wheelbarrow in Which the Old: Hermit Carried His Bibles Over 7000 Miles. [Sketched by a “Call” artist.] morning the sun by this time is well up in the heavens and the sunrise gun has been fired half an hour previously. The her- mit descends from his lofty perch and pumbs out his frail craft in order to keep her afloat for another twenty-four hours. At an early hour yesterday morning the scow_schooner Katie drifted down ou the old hermit’s boat, and at one time it seemed as though the latter would go under. He called and called, but no as- sistance came. Finally a voice yelled through the night, “Why don’t you pay out some more of your anchor chain?” The old man called back, I haven't any more chain to pay out.”. The scow cap- tain answered, “Why in — didn’t you say 80 before?” and then he gave orders to heave in the slack on his own best bower.: The old man was yery much upset over the occurrence, and a few "hours later_he told Mr. Fitzgerald, the Merchants’ Ex- change reporter, who went out to see what dnm;fe'hld been done, that he néver ex- pected to see daylight again after the bumping the Katie gave his home. The hermit’s name is Richard Smyth. The man has forsaken the world becauge ‘|it will not listen to his message of peace on earth. Years ago he was a preacher and had the title “Reverend”’ attached to his name. Then he came to believe that the days of miracles could be brought back, and that, like the apostles, those especially ordained could heal the sick, raise the dead, restore sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf and spéech to the dumb. * Imbued with this. belief he. for- sook his pulpit and started outon an evan- gelizing tour. He took along a gupply of bibles, which he peddled from kouse to house, and at every place he called the gospel of freedom from the thralldom of atan was preached. 3 The venicle in which the hermit carried his stock of bibles is still preserved on board his ark.’ [t is nearly all hand-made, and looking at it one is conipelled to admit and he tells them stories from the Bible. . They call him ‘‘The Preacher,” and he is a great favorite with them. Smyth is between 75 and 80 years of age and his beard 18 white and “full, while his head is almost bare. He sleeps on the bare floor of his little cabin and uses a piece of old cloth for a covering, while a gunny-sack forms his pillow. Driftwood he uses for fuel and on the deck of his old-fashioned craft is a bartered whaleboat with two holes knocked in the bottom, which he rescued from the bay. The step-ladder mast'is made to be lowered and when cov- tent in which religious meetings were to be held. Old age has spoiled these plans, however, and now the ancient preacher and the old craft are gradually passing out of existence together. It is very seldom that Smyth will talk toanybody except the children, and on Sundays he will not even talk to the little ones. His only occupaticn is an occasional drift up the bay in his skiff and his only boris keeping his frail craft free from ‘water. ' 3 A Dog’s Adopted Family. Edward Addison ol 937 Sharp street has a female Newfoundland dog which for sev- eral weeks has been nursing four kittens. The dog’s family of puppies died recently and she seemed to become wild over her loss. She wounld howl at night until it was thought she would have to be killed. Afterward Mr. Addison received two Kit- tens from the country, which he intended to raise for the purpose of catching rats, and two more were added ro this number. Soon after the kittens arrived he noticed that the dog was much more composed, and later he found that she had adopted the kittens as her own, caring for them as she had cared for her puppies. Now the dog has become so-attached to the kittens that she will not allow a the perseverance of a man who trundled it over 7000 miles to propagate what he_eon\ siders to be the truth. It has for a wheel one of those articles used in a bicycle when stranger to touch them, and will not.even allow her master to take one of them from her. The kittens are thriving.—Balti- more Sun. finally overcome death itself ana that | ered with canvas was' to have formed a PRESS CLUB SMOKER, The Destroyers of Graphite Will Meet Informally To-Mor- row Night, A LADIES' RECEPTION SOON. The Club in a Highly Prosperous Con- dition—Over Sixty New Mem. bers Lately Admitted. An informal smoker is to be given to-. morrow night at the Press Club which it is expected will be well attended. Pipes and tobacco will be provided in abundance along with other refreshments. There will be no programme whatever, except that which may happen to develop inadvert- ently. - The Press Club has an abundance of exceptional musical talent and there will be vocal and instzumental music in plenty, : 5 On Thursday evening, February 20, an informal reception will be given to the ladies. There will be no stage and no set programme either at this entertainment. The guests.and their escorts may come and g0 as pleasure may dictate, and while in the rooms may roam about at will, The club lately renéwed its membership with the International League of Press Clubs, an institution to which most of the Press clubs belong and which hasgrown very strong. It will -be remembered that the league four years ago visited this City and was handsomely received. Many new and handsome pictures have lately been added to those already in the clubrooms. Thomas F. Prendergast, who was formerly the librarian, was instro- mental in adding many books and pic- tures. J. C. Donald, the present librarian, has obtsined some fifty new volumes in addition lately, the books being contributed by members. = Besides these W. A. Carnes, & member, has lately contributed ten mag- nificent volumes of ‘‘California Illus- trated,” with many beautiful plates, cost- ing’ $250. W. K. Briggs, chairman of the art committee, has lately-added a num- ber of paintings, among them being a beautiful picture by Miss Binckley. Thomas Hill, C. D. Robinson and others also contributed to the club not long since some very fine paintings of mountain scenery. i Last night was the occasion of the reg- ular meeting of the members of the Press Club, which takes place four times a year. It was shown that since September 1, when the present administration took hold, the indebtedness had been reduced from $2700 to $1100 and that sixty-two new members had been admitted, from whem in initiation fees alone $800 had been received. The financial condition of the club in other ways, it was also shown, was in every way excellent. OHUMS NO LONGER. This Separation Decreed by the Army Regulations. The old saying that truth is stranger than fiction is most truly exemplitied and | the inexorable army regulations most per- fectly illustrated by the odd case of two young men now wearing the blue at Fort Thomas. The strangeness of their posi- tions would give, in the hands of an adept at story building, an excellent theme for a good story. The army regulations provide that any young man under 28 years of age who has served for two years in -the ranks and who passes the prescribed morat, mental and physical examination shall be commis- sioned & second lieutenant. Last Septem- ber there were at Fort Thomas two young men who had enlisted for' the purpose of obtaining this coveted position. During the two years preceding these two young men had been inseparable. They roomed together, were ‘‘bunkies,” in soldier parlance, ate and studied to- gether—in fact, they shared each other’s leasures and worries. They reported fore the Examining Board and returned together to the fort'to await the report of the result of their examinations. A day or two after their return an official letter was_handed to each. With trembling hands each opened his Jetter, for he knew how much depended upon the contents. From one envelope was drawn a com- mission as second lieutenant and from the other a notice that the candidate had been found physically disqualified by being un- der weight, and, therefore could not be commissioned. Picture the happinessand the disappointment of these two young men. They knew from that moment that a wide breach was between them, and that their companionship of two vears was at an end, for in one moment one had be- come a commissioned officer and the other remained a sergeant, and between the ‘| rank and file the regulations allow no intercourse, except in an official way. The - new lieutenant, the sergeant, returned alone to his. room where he | the 22d day of October, 1864, and his ‘bunky’ . had lived for two years over .the officers’ quarters, and the sergeant returned glone to his room where his old chum could not visit him, and he ' could not visit the rcoms of the lientenant unless he catled upon official business. They had togethersaluted every officer who had passed them during their life together. Now the sergeant must sa- Jute his old *bunky’”’ every time he passed him, must stand at attention and answer *Yes, sir,’” when spoken to, and never sit down in the presence of his now .superior officer. Such is the queer status of these two young men, who are still attached to one another, but by the inexorable army regulations so widely separated. Their case has probably never had a parallel in the history of the service. It frequently happens that two young men go from the same station to be examined by the same board of officers. Oue may pass and the other fall, but the one who passes is sent to fill a_vacancy in some other regiment. In this particular case there happened to be g vacancy in the regiment and at the same station, thus bringing about this peculiar state of af. fairs, and a very trying state, indeed, to the young men in question.—Cincinnati Enquirer, ——————— HE SAVED LEAVENWORTH. The. Perilous Adventure of a Union Scout in 1864. The man who saved Fort Leavenworth in 1864, recei sing physical injuries whicly have incapacitated him for the support of his family, is now a suitor to the United States Government. He desires reasonable compensation for the privations,perils and injuries which he suffered in his coun cause. He was not an enlisted man at the time he performed this patriotic and ex- traordinary service, having served three years in‘the army and been honorably dis- charged. He was then acting as a volun- teer scout, and his services can only be re- quited by the bill for his relief now pend- ingin Congress. 3 Itwas in 1864, when Price, the rebel gen- eral was threatening Fort Leavenworth and all of Eastern Kansas. That State and Missouri were both under martial law. Governor Carney and General Deitzler, at the head of the Kansas State militia, had their forces in the field on the Missouri border under Gene:al Curtis. General Pleasanton, the Federal commander, was near Indepeadence, Mo., separated from Curtis by Price and doing nothing. If Carpey could not communicate with Pleasanton and get him to co-operate with Curtis, Kansas was at Price’s mercy. At _this juncture the Governor sent for D. W. Bontwell, an honorably discharged Union seldier, who had frequently done scout duty and knew - the country thoroughly. A concise statement of the sitnation, giving the position and strength of Curtis’ command in detail, was written out by Governor Carney and committed to memory by Boutwell, as it would not do to trust such dangerous information to aper. The rest of the story is best told in r. Boutwell’s own words: “I went to Kansas City and took a skiff about 6 o'clock in the evening. This was When I ar- rived at the mouth of the Little Blue my skiff got behind a sand bar and I had to abandon it and swim ashore. When I wentup the bank of the river the pickets of General Price shot at me, but it was so dark that they could not follow me. I went up the Blue until I cameto a narrow place, where, by throwing in rails and poles, I effected a passage, but in doing so slipped from the rails and went into the mud up to my waist. “Being somewhat- acquainted with the country, I avoided the roads and went through the woods, and wher daylight caime I could see right into the rear of Price’s command. In a few moments I had passed it, and soon arrived at the crossing of the Big Blue, where I found General Pleasanton’s command. He questioned and cross-questioned me untit he was satisfied of the correctness of the statement. “While being questioned by General Pleasanton, General McNeal was present and said ‘that he (meaning me) onght to be tried and executed for being a spy.’ After a dialogue between the-two it Was decided in my fayor, and in less time than it takes to tell it Pleasanton’s troops were in motion and action, and the battle raged all day and nearly all night. ““That night I passed to the rear of Gen- eral Price’s command, captured a prisoner, arrived at Kansas City, and turned my prisoner over to Colonel D. Brockway, who was provost marshal at Kansas City. Mr. Boutwell suffered severely from hun- ger and exposure during his perilous ad- venture. Beyond a complimentary joint resolution of -the Kansas Legislature, he has received no official recognition of his patriotic service.—New York Commercial Advertise:. -—— ® Mixtures -of air with less than 7.7 per cent of acetylene burn completely to water and carbon dioxide, according to M. Le Chotelier’s experiments, reported to the Academie des Sciences; with between 7.7 and 17.4 per cent of acetylene the products consist of water, carbon monoxide and dioxide, and hydrogen; with a larger per- centage of aceiylene free carbon and un- burnt acetvlene are found. With oxygen mixtures . containing between 2.8 and 93 per cent of acetylene will catch fire with air; the limits are 2.8 and 65 per cent. In tubes these limits are narrowed down, till in tubes of one-half a millimeter or less it is impossible to propagate a flame, e An expedition under Professor Sollas will leave Sydney soon for the South Sea Islands to make deep borings in coral atolls. NEW TO-DAY. X : To develop a lfimp like that on your arm—a lump of hard muscle—you have to tall forth all the vital energy in your body to the témpering of this one feature. robs the vital organs of much nutrition. That That is why so many people grow weaker in vital strength as they get stronger, bigger and fatter in tissue. The big, red-faced man is often depleted in vital power because it takes all his vitality ta feed his large body. The structure calls for more animal vitality than the nutritivé glands can supply. Such men need Electricity, They need SR . It Soaks the weakened system with Electricity every night while you sleep. Electricity is the life of the vital forces, and it will build the vital ene with the muscular vigor. rgy up to an equality It makes. manhood complete. Testimonials—Dr. Sanden hardly finds it necessary to quote them any more, but his book, ‘“I'hree Classes of Men,” gives the names of many hundreds who have been ‘made new men. SAINIDEIN ; BELECTR: 632 MARKET ST., OPPOSITE PALACE nfi:etl.. s Office Hours—8 to 6; 7 to Portland, Oregon, ho_:?:;’n W Get it, free. ¥ < CO. AN FI;ANCISC(L 8:30; Sundays, 10to 1. ashington Street