he heard on every side, he was tossed about like a feather by all the winds of doctrine.—William J. Long, "English Literature."
(2642)
REFORMERS, ERRATIC
On the farm there grows a weed called
the tumble-weed. When October comes, the
wind breaks the stalk. As round as a dandelion
puff-ball, the tumble-weed is as large
as a bushel basket. When the wind blows
from the north the tumble-weeds start across
the field, toward the fence-corners. That
evening, when the wind changes, the tumble-weed
starts rolling across the meadow
toward the same fence from which it started
in the morning. With the new day, the tumble-weed
takes up fresh journeys. At night
the wind rises, and tho the farmer and his
flocks sleep, not the tumble-weeds. They
are still traveling. We all are familiar, alas,
with the career of Mr. Tumble Weed, the
false radical, tumbling into every public
meeting, Sunday-afternoon-gathering reform
club. The moment the meeting opens he unrolls
his fad and reform, and away he goes—now
toward this extreme, now toward that,
driven every whither by the new wind, issuing
from the puffed-out cheek of any new
faddist in reform. (Text.)—N. D. Hillis.
(2643)
Reforms not Sudden—See Impatience of Reformers. REFRESHING SPRINGS Prof. C. D. Hitchcock writes interestingly about fresh-water springs that rise under the sea, and near the sea-*shore in Hawaii: Powerful streams discharge millions of gallons of water through the artificial openings very near the seashore. If not intercepted, they must continue a considerable distance out to sea, and hence must well up to the surface amid saline billows. Inquiry about these springs during the past summer in the territory of Hawaii has resulted in the discovery of several upon Oahu; there is one off Diamond Head, a second off Waialae. At the east of Maui, in Hana, there was a fortress named Kaimuke, occupied by soldiers in the ancient times. As it was almost an island, communication with the mainland was not feasible in the time of a siege, and for the lack of water it could not have been held except for the presence of submarine springs. The natives would dive down to collect water in their calabashes, which supplied all the wants of the garrison. (Text.)—The Popular Science Monthly.
(2644)
Refreshment—See Oases.
REFUGE
The old sanctuary of the abbey and palace
of Holyrood House was an interesting institution.
The debtor was free from arrest during
the week. On entering the sanctuary he enrolled
himself in a formal manner and obtained
a room—that is, if he could pay for it. There
was a public house within the boundaries,
and it was not uncommon to see the debtor
in the inn playing dominos and his creditors
standing looking in at the window with wistful
eyes. The debtor was safe, and he knew
it, and the face of the creditor told the same
tale. Sunday being a dies non, the debtor
could leave his sanctuary and visit his family,
but he had to be careful to get back to Holyrood
on Sunday night. Sometimes a debtor
had the temerity to leave on a week day, but
he did so at his peril.
Once in the ark, God himself having
shut in the occupant, the latter could
not be safer. A city of refuge, indeed!
(2645)
REFUGES OF SIN
Caves are found along the sides of the
banks of the Jordan that are at first one
story high, then two stories and, as the river
increases in depth, three-story caves are
found.
At certain periods of the year the river overflows its banks. The wild animals native to that country seek a refuge in the one-story caves for a time. As the river swells and grows more turbid, the wild creatures seek shelter in the two-story caves. When the river attains to high-water mark, the animals run for their life to the third-story caves. When these overflow, then these beasts at bay are caught and killed.
How many men are hiding away
from God in the caves and strongholds
of their transgressions. But when the
high tides of misfortune come, their sin
will find them out.
(2646)
Refused in Need—See Need, Refused in the Hour of.
