Junge 15, 1917 The more I scrutinize paragraph 3, the more-am I convinced that divine wisdom guided in the insertion of that clause. There is an unfathomed mine of truth and wisdom in those words. Some day in the Lord’s providence I hope to tome up to the standard there set forth. A retrospective view convinces me of the need of scrutinizing carefully one’s thoughts, words and acts. All these helps are beneficial to the new creature in his efforts to be conformed to the image of God’s dear Son, by the renewing of the mind. Praying Jehovah’s blessing on the Bethel Family, and in the fellowship of his Sca and the saints, I remain Your brother in Christ, Ernest H. WALKER.—Ont. HEAVENLY FATHER’S WISDOM MANIFESTED Deag BRETHREN IN CHRIST:— Our heavenly Father has, in his infinite wisdom, seen fit to call our beloved Pastor to his long-needed rest. Most naturally we now turn our attention, our sympathies and our prayers toward THe Watcn Tower and the déar brethren upon whose shoulders has fallen the responsibility of carrying on the work from which our Brother Russell has been taken, and that of the I. B. S. A. in general. We have felt that we could see significance and wisdom in the expressed wish of our Pastor, several years ago; namely, that THe Tower be regarded as the Lord’s servant, rather than himself. The earnest, heartfelt prayers of our class, dear Brethren, are being offered up to the God of all THE WATUH TOWER (178-195) grace on your behalf and on that of the tender interests of the Lord’s “little flock,” scattered throughout the world. ‘The Eternal God is our refuge; and underneath are the Everlasting Arms.” Shall we not “speak to the children of Israel, that they go forward?” May we not prove henceforth that our dear Pastor has succeeded in accomplishing the greatest desire and effort of his life-work—the leading of all truth-hungry hearts coming under his influence to Christ and the Bible instead of to himself? Your brethren in Christ, WaAuKESHA ECCLESIA.—W1s. HASTENING COMPLETION OF BRIDE OF CHRIST DeaR BRETHREN IN THE Lorp:— We convey to you and all the dear volaborers our mutual sympathy in the passing of our beloved Pastor from his labors of love in the flesh to a full realization of that divine, immortal nature which awaits those who have made their calling and election sure. Our sorrow is turned into gladness ag we realize that he whom we have every reason to believe was true and faithful has passed beyond the veil, thus hastening the completion of the “bride of Christ,” who will soon rejoice with her Lord in bringing deliverance to all the captivea of death. We assure you, dear brethren, of our hearty co-operation in all your efforts and labors of love, trusting that whatever is done in thought, word or deed may be done with an eye single to the honor and glory of God. With Christian love, MeaAForD Ecc.ps1a.—Canada, PICTURES OF BROTHER RUSSELL FOR CLASSES September 10 last, about two months before Brother Russell’s death, Brother Mitchell, of Los Angeles, made some photographs of Brother Russell which have been much appreciated by those who have seen them. Brother Mitchell now advises us that he desires to present each class of the INTERNATONAL BIBLE STUDENT’s ASS’N with one of these photographs, provided the class is organized and has a definite meeting-place. All requests must be sent by the Class Secretary, and addressed to the Warck Tower BIBLE AND ‘TRACT Soorrrr, Brooklyn, N. ¥Y. The picture is a splendid likeness. Von. XXXVI BROOKLYN, N. Y., JULY 1, 1917 No. 13 VIEWS FROM THE WATCH TOWER ‘“‘WHAT SHALL BE THE SIGN OF THY PRESENCE?”’ “AND THERE SHALL BE FAMINES’’ One of the leading economists in the United States, Arthur R. Marsh, recently wrote in the NV. Y. City World regarding the earth’s food supply as follows (the article speaks for itself) : “If there be any virtue in publicity, the people of this country are now completely informed of the seriousness of the present and prospective food situation throughout the world. it may perhaps be doubted, however, whether they have as yet really passed from the stage of intellectual apperception of the facts to that of personal realization of what these facts will ultimately mean for themselves as individuals. “The people of the United States have to face, certainly for the coming twelvemonth, and in all probability for more than one year thereafter, a condition of things with respect to their supply of food the like of which has not been seen on the North American Continent since its earliest colonization by the white race, unless exception perhaps be made of the first winter of the Pilgrim Fathers. GREAT DRAIN UPON OUR OWN GRAIN STOCKS “The American crop season of 1916 was relatively one of the most unpropitious experienced in this country within the memory of any persons now Jiving, Two of our major food crops, wheat and potatoes, were short of a comfortable provision for our own population; a third food crop, corn, fell three or four hundred millions of bushels below the aggregate of the natural domestic demands upon it. The production of vegetables was scanty in proportion to our own needs, Of only two or three of the minor crops could it be said that they gave a full yield. Taking all our crops together and adding to them the food reserves brought forward from the previous year or years, the total food supply for the crop season 1916-1917 was a close fit against our domestic requirements for consumption, seed and carry-over, and afforded nothing in the way of a surplus out of which a reasonable amount of exports could be drawn. “With such a crop out-turn for 1916 in the United States for the period up to the harvesting of the crop of 1917 it was obvious that the important food-importing countries af the world should look elsewhere than to us for their supplies. This, however, was not to be; on the contrary, the needs of these countries are greater than ever before, while the production of the other food-exporting countries has been disastrously smal? in comparison with that of recent normal years, while at least two of these countries—Russia and Rou mania—are to a very large extent cut off from any exportation of foodstuffs by reason of the war situation. Accordingly we have been subjected to an insistent demand for considerable portions of this supply for export, and under conditions such that we could not well refuse to let it go. SITUATION MOST THREATENING KNOWN “It is unnecessary to dilate upon the .eally appalling -eriousness of the situation—a situation so threatening that no one now living in a civilized country has ever known its like. On the basis of the most trustworthy statistics and estimates obtainable, we have been forced to the conclusion that, with every elevator in the world drained of its-contents, with every bin and crib in the world scraped to the bottom, the world’s supply of the grains usable for human food, whether directly or in the form of meat, not only would not suffice to meet the requirements of the unblockaded countries from April to August, but would fall 130,000,000 bushels short of those requirements, “With the severest restriction of their consumption by multitudes of people somewhere, the last weeks of the period must be weeks of positive privation in some or all of the countries affected; and, except by chance here and there, not a bushel of these grains would remain at the end of the present crop year to serve as a surplus to supplement any possible deficiencies of the production of the coming year. FAMINE THREATENS PREMATURE AND INCONCLUSIVE “The case presented by the International Institute of Agriculture, was by no means as bad as the actual facts. In its calculations the Institute undoubtedly assumed that the winter wheat crop of the United States would be at least of normal size, as its acreage was record-breaking and it was not known, even as late as the end of March, that the average condition of the growing crop had been extensively impaired. When. however, the Department of Agriculture, on April 7, estimated the condition of the crop at practically 23 per cent. lower than the past ten year’s average, and indicative of a production of only 430,000.000 bushels of winter wheat, as compared with 481,744,000 bushels last year and 673,947,000 bushels in 1915, it was seen at a glance that but an infinitesimal chance remained that the total wheat production of the United States in J917 would even fairly come up to our own normal re [6107]
Folosim fișiere de tip cookie pentru a vă oferi o experienţă mai bună online și pentru a îmbunătăți acest site. Continuând să utilizați acest site, vă dați consimțământul asupra utilizării cookie-urilor. Dacă doriți mai multe informații sau nu acceptați folosirea acestor fișiere când utilizați site-ul nostru, vă rugăm să accesați paginile Politica de ConfidențialitateCondiții de utilizare.