In demonstration of the Mohammedan's conception of God as One with whom our terms "small" and "great" have little meaning, who seeth all and loveth all, it is written with the invocation:

"O Thou, whose love is wide and great,"

Say Ar-Raheem! call Him "Compassionate,"

For He is pitiful to small and great.

'Tis written that the serving angels stand

Beside God's throne, ten myriads on each hand,

Waiting with wings outstretched and watchful eyes

To do their Master's heavenly embassies.

Quicker than thought His high commands they read,

Swifter than light to execute them speed;

Bearing the word of power from star to star

Some hither and some thither, near and far.

And unto these naught is too high or low,

Too mean or mighty, if He wills it so;

Neither is any creature, great or small, Beyond His pity, which embraceth all; Because His eye beholdeth all which Sees without search, and counteth with Nor lies the babe nearer the nursing

are;

out care;

place

Than Allah's smallest child to Allah's

grace;

For at this hour my servant doth a thing

Unfitting: Out of Nisibis there came

Silently Gabriel left The Presence, and prevented the king's sin,

And holp the little ant at entering in.

A more striking association of duties great and small than that of combining in a single journey the divine commission to the king, and the errand of help to the toiling and suffering ant can scarcely be conceived. The imagery of the Orient was necessary to such a conception of the divine attention to small and great. Note the impressive couplet:

"Nor lies the babe nearer the nursingplace.

Than Allah's smallest child to Allah's grace."

(To be Continued.)

"The mothers and daughters need to realize that woman's life and liberty do not consist in the multitude of avenues that lead from the home to the outside world, but in the num

a-flame

And limbs of swiftness, prizes of the fight;

Lo! these are led for Solomon's delight

Before the palace, where he gazeth now,

Filling his heart with pride at that brave show;

bring the best from the outside world into the home."-W. F. Richardson.

The study of the ancient Scriptures is a fascinating one; its historic features, its marvelous recitals, its heroes and Prophets, its ceremonials and customs and its nomenclature of places and persons, both male and female.

It is significant of the early times that many names were given by revelation or had attached to them special and permanent meaning, so that new names according to conditions and circumstances were continually being created. This is not uncommon in our day, particularly among the aborigines of our country, but generally, persons are named from fancy, and fashion, as they are repeated and modified at the whim of the giver.

Some Bible names are popular in our times, but the most expressive and lengthy have become obsolete, yet even the most antiquated are less objectionable than names given by the Puritans of the New England States, whose history is as if it were yesterday by comparison.

Of course, men's names predominate in the Bible and Testament, but the names of the female sex are numerous, some of them beautiful as to meaning and musical as to sound, others would be deemed oldfashioned and are generally discarded by the mothers of our day; still, many cling to such names as Hannah, Rebecca, Ruth, Sarah, Lydia, Martha and Marv. Mary was eminently a favorite in New Testament times, and curiously enough, contrary to modern usage, sisters would often have the same name, as Marv the mother of the Savior, and Mary, her sister, who perchance resided in the same house after the death of Joseph, or in close proximity; seeing that they

both, with Mary of Magdala, stood not far from the cross of the sorrowful crucifixion of our Lord.

The virgin Mary, of whom it was said that "all generations should call her blessed," was of the tribe of Judah and of the lineage of David. Though the name and occupation of her parents is wholly unknown, she was evidently not an ostentatious woman, yet she was, according to the history, present at the "marriage in Cana of Galilee" and interested in the beautiful social ceremonies of the ancient people. Mary, her sister, was married to Cleophas, and had quite a family; she was likely married. when her sister Mary was quite young, seeing that she had four sons, James, Joses, Jude and Simon, and four daughters, whose names are unknown. Of the sons two became enrolled among the twelve Apostles of their crucified Brother and Redeemer.

Mary Magdalene. is nearly as prominent as the two sisters. The Savior probably became acquainted with her in the course of His minis try, when He journeyed across the lake of Gennesareth, after that stupendous miracle of feeding the five thousand, for she was a native of Magdala.

This Mary must have been a person of some means, for it is said that "she ministered of her substance unto Him," and no doubt something of the spirit of gratitude as well as of faith prompted her devotion and love, for the "Master" had delivered her "from evil spirits and infirmities;" "seven devils having been cast out of her" by His word and power. She was among those who "brought sweet spices" to anoint the body of the Savior on the evening of the Sabbath. She, in the early

dawn of the following day, was first at the sepulchre, and had found it empty, and she, it was, who, returning with Peter and John, waited when they retired; she, still remaining, was the first to be accosted by the risen Jesus. At the utterance of her own name in spite of her stupor and grief, she threw herself at the feet of her Lord, hailing Him by the strongest word, "Rabboni," which could be uttered in reverence by a woman of Israel.

Mary, the mother of Mark, was also one of the earliest disciples of Christ, and was sister to Barnabas, who introduced the newly converted Saul to the Apostles at Jerusalem; he subsequently became an Apostle of the uncircumcision along with

Paul.

Mary, the sister of Lazarus, is spoken of, with her sister Martha, as being "one whom Jesus loved;" whether His love was one of pure friendship, begotten of sympathy and faith, or whether there was a more intimate relationship between them we are not told. Upon this subject the Scriptures are silent; but some have concluded, seeing that Jesus had so warm a welcome at the quiet home in Bethany, that connubial love had there its favored dwelling place, and because Jesus was

called "the Master of the feast" at Cana, it has been inferred that His own marriage was celebrated then and there.

There is mention made of another Mary, a Roman Christian woman to whom Paul sent his greeting. This is her only historic fame, but enough has been said to show that from Mary, the mother of Jesus, and from thence to Mary, the mother of Washington, the name has been held in distinguished honor. Its meaning (in both Hebrew and Greek) is "exalted," but now fastidious modern society modifies it into May, Maye, Maria, Marie and other forms, which mar its significance and beauty. A few Marys of the olden type would be a benefit and blessing, in this age of corruption and change.

We may not worship, as does the Catholic church, the mother of our Lord, or pray to her, or salute her as, "hail Mary, Mother of God;" but there are lessons in her history, trifling though that may be, as written, which do not need the sanction of popes, council or tradition, to appeal to the universal mother heart, and to that great mystery of redemption which was destined to be brought out and consummated by Jesus of Nazareth, the only begotten of the Father and the Son of Mary!

I drift upon a trackless deep,
And all is night before,

And all around the shadows creep-
I cannot see the shore;
Thy ways I may not understand,
But still I do not fear,

For though I cannot feel Thy hand,
I know that Thou art near.

From land of unbelief I come,
And hope is alien there,
Where sorrow's cry is stricken dumb,
And voiceless is despair;

But there is death with cold embrace,
While here I do not fear,

For though I cannot see Thy face,
I know that Thou art near.

Her opal tints and softening skies,
When daffodils begin to sprout
And spread their yellow sunshine out,
While lilac trees do so delight
In gowns of lavender and white,
And apple blossoms pink and fair,
With locust blooms perfume the air;
And sego lilies whiten

All the ground where they have birth,
Why, then it seems that Utah
Is the fairest spot on earth."

Again are we surrounded with the beautiful sight of the earth awakening in all her brightness and glory. Everything is regenerated and rejuvenated, reminding us of Longfellow's lines-

"There is no death; What seems so is transition."

April, the tearful child of the season, is pouring showers upon the earth; and although we may scold and scowl at the wet and the rain, still our Father knows better than we, and continues to pour His blessings upon all.

Let us for a few moments study this moisture, for we will surely have enough of it at this time of the year. Water is of great consequence to the earth. Were it not so, our Heavenly Father would not have ordered that three-fourths of the surface of the earth should be covered with it; nor would about seven-tenths of man's body be water. Let us wander for a while in cloudland whence come the showers. Teach the children to observe the sky as well as the earth, to look upward, not always downward, to view the sky in storm as well as in sunshine. In order to see oceans of clouds, to catch glimpses of billows on billows wildly chasing each other across the heavens and making fantastic pictures by the way, one should dwell

in the lake region. Utah skies are usually so fair and blue, that it is difficult to find much cloudland. However, the clouds may be found, beautiful and fleecy, like islands in the heavenly blue, or swinging like cradles suspended in mid-air.

Let us trust that there is not a mother in Utah, who lives in sight of the mountains, and what mother of Utah does not, who will not draw the attention of the children to the clouds as they hang about the mountain sides or droop around the summits. Such change of color within a few moments from gray to white as they scatter; or as they gather moisture, from white to gray again! And then, what magnificent colors when tinted by the rays of the setting sun! Above all things, do not fail to have the children notice the colors then. It takes such a few moments of a mother's time. Tell them that when the clouds have gathered considerable moisture from the great bodies of water on the earth's surface, they burst their bonds asunder and let it fall to the earth in the form of rain, if the atmosphere be warm enough, or snow or hail, if it be cold.

No matter how dry the air may seem to us, it always contains some watery vapor or steam, as we might say. The sun, so useful to us, has lifted the water, bit by bit, particle by particle, into the air, until the particles are lifted high enough to be cooled, not made cold, when they collect and form clouds. The cold air strikes the warm clouds and they give up their particles again in the form of rain.

Clouds protect the earth like a warm mantle. They keep the heat from leaving it, consequently we oft

en hear the expression, "It is too cloudy to freeze." Tell the children that the only difference between a mist or fog and clouds, is this: when the vapor of moist air is condensed high above the ground, it forms clouds, when it is condensed near the ground, it forms mist or fog.

The rain, so beneficial to us, falls upon the land, to be drawn into the air again by the sun; or it soaks into the surface of the earth to reappear again in the form of springs, which go to make brooks, creeks, rivulets, rills, and rivers, to be swallowed by the ocean, which is again drawn upon by the sun to give up a part of its water to make the clouds. And so the round continues day after day.

Water, to be pure, should be colorless and tasteless, although not all water that is colorless and tasteless is pure.

Try to impress upon the minds of the children and youth that water is health-giving; the ale which our Creator is said to brew for all His children. Without it we could not exist for any length of time, all plant life would perish. Utah needed only to turn the streams on her waste places to make the desert bring forth bloom. Then thank God for the rain as well as for the sunshine. It will be needed, else the flowers cannot put forth their tender leaves and the seeds and the grasses will wither and die in the ground.

Let us, too, consider the rain as it collects in the bosom of the earth and gushes forth with all its might to form a running stream. There is magic in it. What traveler has not hailed with delight, and quenched his thirst in the desert at the faint flow of running, living water, having avoided the pond near it, fearful of the stagnant pool.

It is an old tradition that no evil spell can cross running water. Perhaps, tired mother, you can find time to read to the young folk Robert Burns' poem of "Tam O'Shanter," showing how Tam's good horse Meg saved herself and her rider by reaching and crossing a bridge over running water. The creatures of the forest, or man, even, when hunted, if led to running water, have only to plunge in; the trail scent is lost, and their pursuers, baffled and enraged, can only listen to the gurgling of the merry stream.

In olden times the Greeks and Romans made use of water as the rough measure of time. The dropping of water through a small hole in a jar was thus employed, the water being measured either in the jar from which it flowed or else by means of a floating piece of wood in a receiving jar.

So let Jupiter Pluvius rage during the rainy season and let us watch for the rainbow as the sunshine appears, keeping in mind God's promise to Noah.

The mother and father had simply been careless about it at first, neglecting the prayer in the morning when the time was short, or beginning the meal without first asking the blessing. But gradually the sense of this neglect ceased to shock them, two or three days or a week would pass

by and these little things were neglected; and so it was not long till they were omitted altogether.

Sometimes the wife would reflect on their increasing prosperity, and then her better self would tell her that she should feel thankful and teach her child to be grateful to God