A COLORED MAN ABROAD.
Mention has already been made of the fact that while Dr. Walker was
traveling abroad he wrote weekly letters to the Augusta Sentinel, which
were compiled on his return and published in book form, under the name
and style of “A Colored Man Abroad.” Extracts from that publication
will serve not only to show Dr. Walker’s literary style, but will also
be of interest, instruction and entertainment to the reader.
Dr. Walker’s letters from the Holy Land were written for the most part
from notes taken on the ground, somewhat as one would keep a diary or a
sailor’s log. The second day out from New York, he paid the following
TRIBUTE TO THE SEA.
“The sea is a revelation of the omnipotence of the Almighty! It
carries with perfect ease upon its bosom the greatest ships that
circumnavigate the globe. It is the home of numerous animals, small
and great, as well as the pathway of Jehovah. It is also the tomb
of hundreds of thousands of human beings; for the sea has wrecked
hundreds of vessels and sailing craft, and holds entombed the bodies
of countless shipwrecked people. As we look at the sea, we are
reminded of the grand old words of Byron:
‘Roll on, thou deep and dark blue ocean, roll,
Ten thousand fleets sweep over thee in vain;
Man marks the earth with ruin,--his control
Stops with the shore,--upon the watery plain
The wrecks are all thy deed, nor doth remain
A shadow of man’s ravage, save his own,
When for a moment, like a drop of rain,
He sinks into thy depth with bubbling groan,
Without a grave, unknelled, uncoffined and unknown.’”
In the following words, Dr. Walker describes his
FIRST SABBATH AT SEA.
“It is Sunday morning. The day is calm, and the sun is shining
brightly. Divine services were held in the chapel at 10:30 a. m.,
conducted by the captain, who read the Episcopal service. A Sabbath at
sea is a sad day to those who love the house of God. No church bell
is heard calling the people to their respective places of worship.
No soul-inspiring anthems are sung. No heartfelt prayers are heard
ascending like sweet incense from the altar of praise. We miss the
pulpit ministration and the Christian greeting that come from the
gentle throbbing of loving and affectionate hearts. We miss the Sunday
school, where the little folks are singing their many beautiful songs,
expressive of our dear Saviour’s life and love. In place of all this,
we observe men drinking and carousing and engaged in all kinds of
frivolity; we see many women and girls reading novels, but not one
perusing the Bible. Give me no more Sabbaths in mid-ocean.”
The first Sunday in London, Dr. Walker visited Spurgeon’s church.
Following is his description of
SPURGEON’S TABERNACLE.
“Spurgeon’s Tabernacle is the greatest church on earth, and its
pastor is undoubtedly the grandest preacher in the universe. Eternity
alone can tell the good this man of God is doing. Seven thousand
people hear him twice on each Lord’s Day. He has a Baptist College,
perfect in its every appointment, a missionary society, a tract
society, a place for the poor, an orphan home, a mission station
conducted by the young men of his congregation, a printing press,
and everything else in the line of an active, live and progressive
church. Here the ‘rich and the poor meet together; and the Lord is
the maker of them all.’ The doctrine of the fatherhood of God and
the universal brotherhood of man is taught with all the earnestness
of which this good man is capable. In this Tabernacle, you will find
men and women who are worth thousands and ten thousands of pounds
sterling out in the streets and alleys of London, bringing the poor,
the wayward, the blasphemer, the halt and the blind to hear Spurgeon
preach. We heard him on the Sabbath, occupying a seat near him. What
a privilege! Two rows of galleries extend all round the edifice. Just
below the pastor’s stand, there is a gallery for orphan children from
the home and those who manage the home. The people are rushing for
seats--thousands are already seated, having been admitted because
they held quarterly tickets. At five minutes before eleven o’clock,
the signal bell is tapped, announcing to all persons who have not
secured seats to get them anywhere they can find them, as the holders
of tickets have no claim on seats after the tap of the bell. Mr.
Spurgeon comes in, followed by his assistant pastor and deacons who
take seats near him. He then opens the service with a short, earnest,
eloquent prayer that moves many to tears. No organ is used; the
chorister stands near the pastor, and the multitude rises and sings
a soul-inspiring hymn. The pastor then reads, with exposition, the
Scripture lesson. He announces this morning that he will preach the
annual missionary sermon. When he begins preaching, seven thousand
pairs of eyes are looking steadfastly upon him. He leads the vast
audience step by step as he unfolds to them the word of God. Every
hearer’s heart burns within him. It is a grand sight. I wept as I
looked on such a vast throng of people seated in breathless silence,
catching the words as they fell from the mouth of God’s prophet.”
In the month of May, 1891, Dr. Walker spent five days on the
Mediterranean Sea en route to Alexandria. While on this sea, famous for
its storms, he encountered a storm which he said must have been similar
to the one that Paul wrote about in the 27th chapter of the Acts.
Following is Dr. Walker’s picture of
A STORM ON THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA.
“The sea had been turbulent all night. The fury of the sea continued
until noon to-day, when it reached its climax. For nearly an hour
the waves united and lashed the steamer in a fearful manner, as if
chastening it for disobeying some sea law. We closely watched the
treacherous water during the contest. The ship at first seemed to
think itself invincible, and had a perfect right to move in its own
chosen route, despite the ocean’s objection. It was then that the
hottest part of the contest took place. The ocean gave one command,
and, at that summons, dashing, foaming, giant waves came from every
direction to reinforce those already at the scene of battle. When
they had combined their forces, they struck the steamer a few times;
she cracked, reeled, bowed, tossed herself to and fro, shook up the
passengers, made them sick, and put some to bed. Each time the vessel
attempted to move out of her tracks she only lifted herself up and
came back in the same place. The man on the bridge turned the wheel,
but the steamer shook her head. The wind blew, the tempest raged,
the captain came from his room, ascended the bridge, took charge of
affairs, called up the sailors, gave orders to turn the wheel and
let her drive, but she could not go. The sea continued to assert its
rights, and when the crew confessed that they were defeated and at the
mercy of the waves, they cast anchor, stood still, and waited on the
sea to obtain a permit to move forward. The Mediterranean seemed to
recognize that the whole crew were baffled, confused and beseeching
mercy; so she called in her waves, sent them back to their several
stations, each bearing a spray of snowy whiteness as an emblem of the
victory they had won. And now all is serene on the water.”
Speaking of the people of Syria and other Eastern countries, Dr. Walker
wrote the following about the present
MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE EAST.
“The manners and customs of these people are about the same as in the
days of Moses, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Men work for years to pay for
their wives; lead their flocks as David did; dwell in tents; plow oxen
as did Elijah; water their fields; sow grain among thorns and rocks;
wear the same kind of costumes with the old-time sandals on their
feet; use donkeys and camels as beasts of burden--all as in the days
of yore. The majority of the Mohammedans and Arabs have no chairs,
tables, knives and forks, with no bedsteads in their houses. They eat
with their fingers, stretch out on the floor or ground, sleep by the
roadside, just as Jacob did when he had his vision. The Mohammedans
believe that a person who goes crazy becomes holy. The Turkish
government does not allow its subjects to embrace Christianity. To ask
a Mohammedan to change his religion is to endanger one’s life.”
Following is Dr. Walker’s notion of
THE TESTIMONY OF THE MOUNTAINS.
“Having made a study of the mountains in this country, they seem to
me to wear an air of dignity at once charming and attractive. Lofty,
stately, queenly, they look like silent but impressive heralds,
standing as reminiscences of the far away past and as landmarks,
preserving and perpetuating the history of notable events. Immovable
and unchangeable, like their Creator, they have stood while the mighty
have fallen; they have witnessed the enthronement and dethronement of
kings; the captivity and extermination of nations, and to-day they
are almost the only places in Palestine that the searcher after truth
may feel safe in pointing out the identical location of Scriptural
occurrences. Too lofty and unchangeable for tradition, they are the
true historians of past centuries and for ages to come Sinai, Moriah,
Carmel, Ebal, Gerizim, Tabor, Beatitudes, Zion and the Mount of Olives
will bear witness to the Scriptures in a manner that will be obvious
and convincing to the most sceptical mind. Well may Jehovah liken his
church to the mountains. And why should not the snow decorate the
mountains; the clouds circle about them; the sun linger and play upon
their summits; the moon and the stars gaze smilingly upon them, while
the lightnings race and prance up and down like electricity from a
galvanic battery? Why not the sea crowd the mountain’s base, bathe its
feet, and perpetually sing sweet anthems to its praise? ‘How beautiful
upon the mountains are the feet of them that publisheth peace, that
say unto Zion, Thy God reigneth.’
Here is Dr. Walker’s idea of how some people are heedlessly
DRIFTING ON LIFE’S OCEAN.
“I have been thinking how humanity is drifting on life’s ocean. For
seven days on the Atlantic, our steamer never stopped. The passengers
ate, slept, walked, talked, got sick, some died--but we sailed on. The
ship passed other vessels; it was often cloudy; the winds blew; the
rains fell; storms and gales were often encountered; the ship caught
on fire--but we sailed on. Men gambled, drank whiskey and champagne,
cursed and spent their hours in frivolity--and so they sailed on,
apparently little dreaming that they were rapidly sailing to that
eternal shore from whence no traveler returns.”
In view of the recent sad assassination of President McKinley, how
like prophecy and solemn warning will the following words, which were
written ten years ago, seem. At last, the American congress, at the
dictation of President Roosevelt, is turning its attention to this
great question which ten years ago Dr. Walker declared must be given
some attention. Following is the extract:
ANARCHY--A WARNING.
“In the first-class saloon, there are seventy-six passengers;
in the second, sixty; and in the steerage there are about eight
hundred--nearly all emigrants. Some are Jews from Russia, fleeing from
persecution; others are Belgians, Swedes, Germans, Italians, Irishmen,
Welshmen and Scotchmen, all going to our home of freedom--America.
Many of them are very immoral, and utterly oblivious of modesty. As
a rule, they are a dirty lot, some actually nauseating; and hundreds
of them have not washed either their hands or faces on this voyage,
so far. Yet these very people come to America to supercede the
Negro, and to boss him! These immigrants have extended to them the
rights of citizenship in every particular, and yet these inalienable
rights are denied the colored man who has helped to make America
what it is. Many of these foreigners are of the very worst element
in their own country. They are ignorant, treacherous, uncivilized,
and many of them heathen. They have no respect for the Sabbath; they
have no respect for the law; they have no regard for Christianity;
they are antagonistic to the principles of liberty as laid down in
the Declaration of Independence of the United States. Mark this
prediction: So sure as we live, America is fast getting a Jumbo on
her hands. She is nestling a Vesuvius in her bosom that may remain
dormant for a long period; but when the volcanic eruption breaks
forth, seventy times seven streams of lava will be shot out at one
time, and the main pillars that support and uphold the whole fabric
of our American institutions will be undermined, uprooted, and
partially, if not wholly destroyed. Chicago and New Orleans should
be held in remembrance by our whole people, East, West, North and
South. The outrages perpetrated by these villains in those cities were
comparable to the firing of the first gun on Fort Sumter. Let the
American congress spend some time in legislating against these holy
terrors, instead of needlessly discussing schemes to deport the poor
unfortunate Negro.”