us approval, not only of the pious, but also of the most
skeptical. At a literary gathering at the house of the Baron von
Holbach, where the most celebrated atheists of the age used to
assemble, the gentlemen present were one day commenting on the absurd
and foolish things with which the Bible abounds. The French
encyclopedist, Diderat, a materialist himself, startled his friends by
his little speech: "But it is wonderful, gentlemen, it is wonderful. I
know of no man who can speak or write with such ability. I do not
believe that any of you could compose such narratives, or could have
laid down such sublime moral laws, so simple, yet so elevating,
exerting so wide an influence for good, and awakening such deep and
such reverential feelings, as does the Bible." Diderat spoke the
truth. Place the most celebrated systems of philosophies or the most
famous code of ethics, into the hands of the masses, and see whether
the subtleties of their learning, the elegance of their diction will
touch their hearts as deeply as does the Bible. All the genius and
learning of the ancient world, all the penetration of the profoundest
philosophers, have never been able to produce a book that was as widely
read, as voluminously commented on, as dearly loved, as this book,
neither have all the law-givers of all the lands, and of all ages, been
able to produce a code of law and ethics that was universally and as
implicitly followed as that of the law-giver, Moses.

The Bible is an emblem of Odd-Fellowship, because it is the
Odd-Fellows' text-book. Here we get our doctrines for faith and our
rules for practice in all the relations of life. As Odd-Fellows, we
believe the Bible is the word of God, because in their enmity humanity
has never been able to destroy it or rob it of its power; nor have any
who reject it given us a book to take its place. The intellect and
culture of our day can not improve the teachings of Christ, nor set
before us a nobler ideal life. As Odd-Fellows, we believe in this
beautiful emblem, because our hearts attest its truth. We need not be
told that the landscape is beautiful, or that the song of birds is
sweet. When we see the one and hear the other, we know it. As the eye
discerns the beautiful, and the ear discerns sweet sounds, so the heart
of man discerns the divineness of the Bible teachings and sets its seal
to their truth. As Odd-Fellows, we believe in the scriptures, because
the experiences of al