stroyed, Divine Law, absolute Justice, will and no more dying,” because there shall be enforced.-1 Cor. 15:24, 28.

be no more sin. The Scriptures, properly enough, then, There may be some unwilling to believe show us that immediately following this in the Millennial Kingdom, because unturning over of the Kingdom by Messiah able to grasp by faith so remarkable a to the Father, the reign of Mercy, giving Divine supervision of human affairs for place to the reign of Justice, will be fol- the uplifting of our race from sin and lowed by a period of trial to the race. For death conditions. These are not to be a brief period, Satan will be loosed, and specially blamed, for, as the Apostle says, an opportunity for sin will be permitted, “All men have not faith.” (2 Thess.3:2.) with a view to testing the loyalty of those All men, however, who have faith to bewho had been rescued from the reign of lieve in the Divine promises can realize Sin and Death. A conspiracy of self-will the justice as well as the love and mercy against agents of Divine authority will be connected with the Divine scheme of repermitted—to test, to prove, all dwelling demption. It began with our Lord's givupon the face of the whole earth, whose ing himself as a ransom for all, to be tesmembers will then be as the sands of the tified in due time. It has continued durseashore—innumerable. How many of ing this Gospel Age in the selecting of the these will succumb to the temptation and "little flock," the "jewels,” to be Messiah's thereby prove their heart's disloyal, is not associates in the work of the Millennial stated.

Kingdom. It will operate during the MilBut all who do thus yield to the lenjal Age most gloriously, and the results temptation will be accounted worthy of will be all that can be desired. Then shall the Second Death and will be utterly de- come the time when every creature in stroyed. By such strenuous tests the Lord heaven and in earth and under the earth will prove, test, the hearts of men and shall be heard praising and honoring the blot out of existence all who with full great Prophet Priest and King, whose knowledge and opportunity to the con- righteous dealings will finally have been trary still entertain any disloyalty to the made manifest, and whose creatures will principles of truth and righteousness. It have been brought to the highest degree is because of these strenuous tests which of blessing—the "little flock” on the heavwill be applied to every creature that the enly plane, mankind on the earthly plane, Lord is able to guarantee to us that “there and the incorrigible to Second Death-deshall be no more sighing, no more crying struction.

01

THE MIRACLE

BY ONEY FRED SWEET

Where yesterday, fell but the cactii's shade

'Midst all the glare of desert's stretch of sands,
Behold the green-patched sweep of huddled farms

And yonder where a rumbling city stands !
The thirsty land has quaffed the cup we gave

And where was dreary waste, we revel now.
Through miles of vines, there clings the purpling grape

And temptingly the orange bends its bough.

THE VINTAGE IN CALIFORNIA AND ITALY

BY ARTHUR INKERSLEY

T

HE CULTURE of grapes for noma County, where grapes were planted wine making was introduced in- so extensively that the price fell to a point to California by the Catholic at which it did not pay the grower to pick

missionaries from Spain and them. The “Mission grapes" produced a Italy, who found the soil and climate of heavy, highly alcoholic wine, which did their new home very similar to those of not meet with much favor among winetheir native lands. They observed that drinkers. In spite of these untoward wild grapes grew in profusion, and, de- circumstances the importance of establishsiring the wine which they had been ac- ing viticulture as one of the leading induscustomed to use in church and on the tries of California was recognized, and table, they asked their brethren who were between 1860 and 1865, Arpad Haraszthy assigned to the Pacific Coast to bring cut- was sent to Europe with a commission to tings of vines suitable for wine-making. get cuttings from the best wine-producing The "Mission grapes," they were districts of Europe. The cuttings were named, were planted near the Missions in brought and the kind of soil best suited various parts of Southern and Central to each variety of grape was ascertained California. · They took kindly to the soil, after many experiments and costly failone of the vines, reputed to be a century ures. Later a viticultural commission old and to bear a ton of grapes each sea- was established, and C. A. Wetmore, a son, living till a few years ago at Santa well-known grower, was sent to Europe Barbara. The first vineyard was in So- to gather cuttings of grape vines and val

as

One of the great vineyards of Californu established at Asti, through the thrift

and industry of the Italian-Swiss of California.

Italian women workers in the vineyard. Transplanting seems to have a like effect on the women and the grape. The Italian woman of California is the

mother of some of its best and sturdiest citizenship.

was

uable information about soils and wine- quin and San Diego. No fine dry wine making.

can be made from grapes grown on irriAs experience became wider, the quality gated lands, and south of the Tehachapi of the wine produced in California showed irrigation is necessary. steady improvement. The dreaded phyl- The largest vineyard' in California was loxera did much damage in some counties, planted by the late Senator Stanford at but it is now the practice to plant resist- Vina in Tehama County. Now, though ant vines, which are not affected by the the Senator a successful moneypest. In the last year of the nineteenth maker and founded a large co-educational century it was estimated that there were school, he did not know everything. His 80,000 acres of vines, producing 250,000 vineyards produced great quantities of tons of wine-grapes, which yielded about grapes, but good wine could not be made thirty million gallons of wine. Grapes

Grapes from them. When this became clear, the can be grown nearly everywhere in the idea of wine-making was abandoned and Golden State, but the dry wines, such as the product of the vineyard turned by disZinfandel, Burgundy, Mataro, Sauterne, tillation into excellent brandy. Reisling, Hock, etc., are produced best in The next largest vineyard in California the northern counties, especially Sonoma, is owned by the Italian-Swiss Agricultural Napa, Santa Cruz, Contra Costa, Ala- Colony in Sonoma County. The colony meda and Santa Clara. Sweet wines, was formed in 1881 on the model of the such as Port, Sherry, Muscat, Angelica, building and loan associations with which Tokay, Madeira and Malaga types, Mar- Andrea Sbarboro (the leading spirit and sala, are grown. best in the Southern coun- secretary of the colony) had been conties—Madera, Fresno, Kings, San Joa- nected. The co-operative association issued 2,000 shares of stock, each paying Cloverdale in Sonoma County; and sweet one dollar a month into the general fund. wine vineyards in Madera, Fresno and When $10,000 had been accumulated, a King's Counties. At all the vineyards committee of men who had had wide ex- of the Italian-Swiss Colony the viticulturperience of wine-growing in Italy was sent ists and wine-makers are Europeans, who out to inspect the State. After examining brought their families with them from the many districts, they selected a tract of Old World, so that many dark-haired, 1500 acres near Cloverdale in the Valley olive-skinned women and handsome childof the Russian River. The tract was a ren with laughing, mischievous eyes are sheep ranch, but eminently suitable for a to be seen there. vineyard, the hills having a southern ex- But the colony owns not only the greatposure and the soil being volcanic. The est vineyards and wineries in California, place was named Asti from the famous but also the largest wine tank in the world. district of that name in Piedmont. This tank at Asti is cut from the solid Though the colony experienced much hard rock and is lined with Portland cement, fortune and put a severe strain on the having a glazed surface. It is 84 feet long, courage and resourcefulness of its found- 34 feet wide, 25 feet high and has a ers, it lived through all, and became a capacity of half a million gallons. In the brilliant success. The original vineyard center of its flat top a small pagoda-like has been enlarged to 2,000 acres,

and

structure of rock-work supports an urn, scores of families find a happy home on which forms a cover of the stairway leadit. The colony has a school-house, a rail- ing down into the tank. At times, the road station, a post-office, telephone ser- great vat is pumped dry and cleaned. On vice and other modern conveniences. Its one of these occasions it was illuminated, winery is one of the largest in the State. and a hundred couples danced on its floor The colony has grown and possesses dry- to the music of a military band. The tank wine vineyards at Fulton, Sebastopol and stores the wine, safe from external influ

a

ences, until it matures; keeps it till the pickers seek the shade, the men chatfavorable time for putting it on the mar- ting and smoking the inevitable cigarette, ket; serves to blend large quantities and to while the women and children take a little maintain from year to year the same type siesta. The grape-pickers are a happy, -a most important consideration in ac- cheerful tribe and while away their leisure quiring and keeping a reputation for the evening hours with laughter, gay talk and products of a vineyard.

music—for among their few possessions The vintage in Southern California are some guitars. Their drink is the takes place in October, frequently after the native wine, pressed from the grapes they first rain has fallen and the brown, helped to pick in by-gone seasons. When burned-up hillsides have begun to turn the vintage is over, they turn to gathering green again. Many of the pickers are walnuts or pampas plumes; and later may Mexicans, who bring their families and get a job at picking oranges or lemons. camp in tents in or near the vineyards. In the winter, some of the men chop Men, women and children join in the pic- wood in the mountains. But, whatever turesque work. Each is armed with a their occupation, they take life cheerfully knife and drops the purple clusters into a and with much innocent gayety. box, which, when filled, holds sixty In Northern and Central California, expounds. Even a girl, if strong and indus- cept in the Sonoma vineyards of the Italtrious, may pick a ton of grapes in a day. ian-Swiss Colony, the vintage is not so No climbing is necessary, for the vines, picturesque as in the South, most of the not being trained on trellises, are bushes pickers being Chinese, Japanese or Amerinot more than two or three feet high. cans, animated by no sentimental interest When a large number of boxes has been in their occupation. One of the most infilled, a wagon takes them to the winery, teresting vineyards in California is on the where the grapes are pressed. At noon island of Santa Cruz, twenty miles across