Now and then the venturesome mountain climber in the upper heights of the Alps chances upon a row of small stones nearly the same in size and uniform in color, usually red or blue, extending across the body of a glacier and well up the bank at either side. These stones are set in place by some student of glaciology for use as a basal line, the better to enable him to measure the rate of movement, that is, the flow of the ice river. In some instances the progress of a glacier is very slow, scarcely more than a few inches in a week; yet however slight it may be, if the stones are carefully placed, a glance along the original line will reveal the general extent of the movement by the "fault" in the alignment, while the exact distance is quickly and easily determined by measurements. In the world of physical phenomena in general, in order to measure any forward movement, a basal line of some sort with which comparison may be made, is always a prerequisite.
A student of Christian Science may sometimes pass through periods of depression,—the deep valleys lying between the mountain peaks of spiritual exaltation, wherein are encountered the shadows of doubt and discouragement,—chiefly because he fails to recognize and to rejoice over the progress he has made, the forward movement accomplished toward the ultimate goal, salvation; that is to say, safety. He has no basal line of old beliefs from which to measure his growth, no row of little stones to mark his former position, a glance at which, revealing his progress by the break in the alignment, would through the very stimulation and zest of accomplishment, dispel the clouds of apprehension in the mental skies.
Without some adequate means of comparison it does not seem easy to realize just what vagaries of belief have been outgrown, what false positions abandoned, what shadows dispelled, as the results of a student's earnest desire and honest endeavor to express more of the Christ, Truth; for, having been destroyed through reduction to their native nothingness, false concepts cease to have place in human consciousness and disappear, leaving no trace behind. Once their falsity is seen, that moment do they yield up their seeming existence.
