material from the ,google ,print        
project47        ,scientific and        
,religious ,journal4    ,,vol4 ,i4      
,,july1 #ahhj4  ,,no4 #g4     ,,the     
,,fountain ,,of ,,happiness4   ,the     
source and fullness of created good is  
the knowledge and enjoyment of ,god4    
,give what thou wilt1 without thee we   
are poor2 and with thee rich1 take what 
thou wilt away4 ,the wicked are like a  
ship's crew at sea1 carried by the winds
 upon unknown waters1 without peace or  
safety until they can renew             
communications with the shore4 ,a man   
alienated from his ,god is without his  
proper relations1 and separated from the
 fountain of happiness1 is like a child 
unconscious of his father--an orphan1   
forced along1 the sport of accident1    
with no hope for the future1 but        
darkness that may overshadow his pathway
 to the tomb4 ,if we were at once       
deprived of all knowledge of ,god where 
would we find hopes for support in the  
gloomy hours of adversity8 ,what sadness

 would reign over the world6 ,what black
 despair6 ,o1 what a chasm it would make
 to strike the ,infinite ,one out of    
existence6 ,the angels might retire in  
silence and weep1 or fly through        
infinite space seeking some token of the
 ,father they had lost4 ,with unbounded 
grief and despair they might wing their 
way farther and farther1 with their     
harps all unstrung1 and every song      
silent1 and the soul-harrowing words1   
',we have no ,father1 no ,god1 a blind  
chance rules1' might be all that would  
break the awful silence of heaven4 ,let 
the glorious words once more be heard1  
',god reigns1 he lives1 he reigns1' and 
what joy would fill the heavens and the 
earth4 ,the child of sorrow would lift  
up his head and say1 ,our ,father who   
art in heaven4 ,the heavenly songsters  
would string anew their harps1 and send 
the good news far and wide1 ,he lives1  
he reigns1 ,god over all1 blessed       
forever4  ,we are not able to estimate  
the effect it would produce to blot the 

knowledge of ,god from the universe4 ,we
 can not appreciate the state of that   
mind which labors under the impression  
that ,god is retiring4 ,perhaps we have 
one momentary example of the sad gloom  
that takes possession of the man under  
such circumstances4 ,it is seen in the  
,savior's dying words1 ',my ,god6 my    
,god6 why hast thou forsaken me8'  ,in  
our nature and condition there are two  
sources of misery--the mind1 or         
conscience1 disturbed by sin1 and the   
body affected by disease and death4     
,sinful emotions cause disquietude1     
uneasiness1 sorrow and misery1          
bitterness1 recrimination1 reciprocated 
treachery1 infuriated rage1 malignant   
and stormy passions2 envy1 jealousy1    
suspicion and unlawful desires distract 
the mind and quench its joys4 ,who can  
be happy in such a condition8           
,disquieted and corrupted affections    
cause the greater part of the           
unhappiness or misery of the race4 ,the 
angels of light could not be happy in   

such a murky sea4 ,our great ancestors  
were doomed to toil in a world of       
disappointment and sorrow for yielding  
to such a guide4 ,haman occupied a high 
position at the court of ,persia1 yet he
 made himself miserable because         
,mordecai the ,jew sat at the king's    
gate4 ,and ,ahab1 on the throne of      
,israel1 refused to eat bread because he
 could not get possession of the        
vineyard of ,naboth4 ,men can not be    
happy with such passions reigning in the
 mind1 and yet they are found in almost 
every bosom1 unless it has been purified
 by the influence of the gospel of      
,jesus the ,christ4 ,the great idols of 
this world are fame1 pleasure and       
wealth1 and the love of these is the    
strong passion of the heart4 ,but it is 
the most prolific source of individual1 
social and public misfortune1 the most  
mischievous1 contentious and            
demoralizing passion4 ,the ambitious1   
the voluptuous1 the rich and the great  
are not necessarily happy4 ,alexander   

wept upon the throne of the world       
because there was not another world for 
him to conquer4  ,in the midst of       
seminal pleasures and corrupt passions  
men are always miserable4 ,the influence
 of the ,gospel of ,christ is the only  
remedy for such diseases4 ,it saves men 
from aggravating selfishness and holds  
in check their fierce passions until    
they are extinguished4 ,virtuous        
affections are invariably the great     
sources of human happiness4 ,they are   
fountains of living waters1 which purify
 the mind and make their possessors     
happy4 ,they are as rivers of water in a
 thirsty land4  ,in the teachings of    
,christ we learn all that pertains to   
true happiness1 in what it consists and 
how to obtain it4 ,there we are         
admonished of mere worldly blessings1   
because the desire for them is generally
 so intense that it becomes a source of 
corruption1 and in our successes we     
often forget our highest interests4 ,the
 ,savior left in the background the     

commonly received notions of men        
touching the sources of true happiness4 
,he said3 ,blessed are the poor in      
spirit1 referring not to those who are  
temporally poor4 ,the wicked are poor as
 well as the righteous4 ,o1 how         
dreadfully miserable are the wicked     
poor6 a miserable life here1 followed by
 a miserable hereafter4 ,many poor      
persons are haughty1 ungodly1 dishonest1
 profligate and unhappy4 ,neither does  
it mean voluntary poverty1 or to turn   
mendicant monks and friars4 ,it means   
the humble1 those who are deeply        
sensible of their spiritual or mental   
and moral wants2 in other words1 those  
who feel that there is a place in their 
spiritual nature for the blessings of   
the ,gospel of ,christ4 ,it is opposed  
to self-righteousness4 ,the poor in     
spirit come to ,god through ,christ1    
and1 putting all their trust in him1    
submit to the divine will under all the 
trying dispensations of his providence4 
,the poor in spirit are always sensible 

of their need of salvation1 but the     
proud in spirit are clean in their own  
eyes4 ,their goodness is like the       
morning cloud and the early dew1 yet    
they say1 ,stand by thyself2 ,i am      
holier than thou4 ,blessed are the poor 
in spirit4 ,blessed are the meek4       
,blessed are they who hunger and thirst 
after righteousness4 ,blessed are the   
pure in heart1 for they shall see ,god4 
,what a sublime rebuke to the spirit of 
this world6 ,it is a grand contrast to  
the uneasy desires of greedy            
covetousness2 to the disposition of the 
gay2 to the degradation of the impure2  
to the senseless pleasures of the       
ambitious1 when new fires ignite their  
hopes only to plunge them into deeper   
darkness4 ,the ,bible's happiest soul is
 he who has most of its peculiar mind   
and character4 ,not on account of       
earthly riches1 for he may be one of the
 ,lord's poor1 who1 like his blessed    
,master1 has no place to lay his head4  
,not because he has sought and obtained 

honor from men1 but because he sought   
and seeks the honor which cometh from   
,god only4 ,not because he has much of  
this world1 but because he is a         
,christian4 ,he may not have the        
greatest capacity1 but he has a state of
 mind that prepares him to rightly      
estimate and enjoy all that is worth    
enjoying4 ,to the upright there ariseth 
light in the darkness4 ,they are wisely 
guided1 comforted and encouraged in the 
most gloomy wilderness4 ,they are not   
oppressed with doubts2 sorrow does not  
crush them4 ,darkness gives place to    
light1 and the seeming evil turns to    
good4 ,they often sip honey from the    
most bitter flowers4 ,they yield not to 
fear1 for they believe in ,god1 and are 
assured1 by a thousand contrasts1 that  
all things work together for good to    
those who love ,god4 ,one of the        
never-failing sources of happiness for  
which we are under obligations to ,jesus
 the ,christ is the mind and character  
which he requires of us4 ,a good man    

shall be satisfied from himself4  ,man  
was created for an active life4 ,effort 
is the true element of a well regulated 
mind4 ,undisturbed soil becomes hard and
 unproductive4 ,its bosom is shut up    
against the dews and the rains1 and also
 against the warm rays of the sun4 ,so  
it is with the mind when it is closed up
 and deprived of healthy action2 this   
man lives for himself alone1 and only   
the baser passions spring up in his     
breast4 ,his soul is too narrow for     
,christian benevolence2 sympathy and    
emotion are disabled and all his nobler 
faculties languish4 ,action1 from       
intelligent and benevolent principles1  
is a great fountain of happiness4 ,few  
streams of bliss equal those which flow 
from charitable exertions4 ,benevolence 
and well-doing are great inducements to 
future exertions1 because of the fact   
that they are their own reward in a     
thousand different ways4 ,the seed thus 
sown brings back an hundred fold1 and a 
rich harvest to others1 which adds to   

the abundance of our own happiness4 ,but
 where shall we go for those principles 
of action8 ,shall we search for them in 
nature8 ,can reason alone discover them8
 ,are they found in the teachings of    
philosophy8 ,are they gathered from     
observation8 ,does not our world need   
,revelation to make known the true aim  
and end of our being8 ,cicero said1     
,those who do not agree in stating what 
is the chief end1 or good1 must of      
course differ in the whole system of    
precepts for the conduct of human life4 
,he also says there was so great a      
dissention among the philosophers1 upon 
this subject1 that it was almost        
impossible to enumerate their different 
sentiments4 ,so it came to pass that    
exertions for benevolent ends were      
seldom1 if ever1 put forth by pagans in 
pagan lands--they knew nothing of the   
happiness springing from such a source4 
,great efforts from great motives are   
the glory and blessedness of our nature4
 ,in the ,bible only men have learned   

what great motives and efforts are4     
,there we find food to sustain them and 
wisdom to guide them4 ,nowhere in the   
pages of infidel philosophy can we find 
such an injunction as this3 ,whether1   
therefore1 ye eat or drink1 do all to   
the glory of ,god4 ,where else do we    
find this ,christian maxim3 ,none of us 
liveth to himself1 and none of us dieth 
to himself2 but whether we live1 we live
 unto the ,lord1 and whether we die1 we 
die unto the ,lord4 ,he or she alone is 
the happy one who is taught to consider 
the nature and tendencies of human      
conduct1 and whether it will stand the  
test before ,god1 and advance the ends  
of his truth and love in the world2 who 
makes the ,lord's will the ends of his  
or her life and lives to please ,god and
 show forth his praise4 ,such a life is 
necessarily a happy one1 because it is  
one full of goodness4 ,there is daily   
joy in such daily activity4 ,no man can 
be wretched while acting from the       
principle of communicative goodness4    

,such are happy whatever their sphere or
 occupation may be4 ,their aims are     
high4 ,their objects sustain them and   
their impulses encourage or strengthen  
them4 ,their anticipations are joyous   
and their reflections are tranquil4     
,they look backward with delight and    
forward with hope4 ,their conscience    
approves them4 ,they have not buried    
their talents4 ,they are not encumberers
 of the ground4  ,they live to bless the
 children of men4 ,when they die they   
will to them their counsel1 their       
example and prayers4 ,benevolent habits 
are a great source of happiness1 for    
which we are indebted to the religion of
 ,christ4  ,it is vain to attempt to    
persuade ourselves that human misery    
does not exist4 ,we can not get away    
from it by arming ourselves with stoical
 insensibility4 ,evils lie all about us2
 we ourselves are made to feel them4 ,if
 we open our eyes upon the pages of time
 we see a continuous series of beings   
who appear for a short time and then    

pass away4 ,their beds are bedewed with 
tears1 and soon the emblems of death are
 hung about their doors4 ,o1 what       
wonderful scenes lie between the cradle 
and the grave6 ,what hours of sadness   
and gloom6 ,here1 in the midst of life1 
we realize disappointments1 losses1     
painful diseases and heart-rending      
discouragements1 defeated hopes and     
withered honors4 ,here are good reasons 
for the interposition of redeeming love4
 ,does the ,god who loves us sympathize 
with us in our woes8 ,we are liable at  
every step in life to great individual  
and domestic calamities4 ,no hour can be
 free from the fear that what we value  
the most on the earth may be snatched   
away to-morrow4  ,trees and flowers grow
 to their full stature1 fill up their   
measure of time1 and pass away4 ,beasts 
and birds are more rarely cut off with  
disease4 ,their lives are not embittered
 with the expectation of death2 the     
knowledge of the past and the present is
 all they have2 they have no knowledge  

of the morrow2 they live contented in   
their ignorance and indifference1 and1  
at last1 sink into the deep1 unending   
night1 being made to be taken and       
destroyed4  ,but this is not the history
 of man4 ,he perishes from the cradle to
 the tomb--suffers a hundred deaths in  
fearing one4 ,he is conscious of the    
dangers that beset him4 ,he is hedged in
 on every side4 ,death is constantly    
destroying his fondest hopes and causing
 him the sorest grief4 ,it bursts the   
ties that bind heart to heart1 and the  
dearest fellowships are severed1 and the
 joys of a blessed life are wrapped in  
the gloom of death4 ,all there was of   
earthly bliss in the bygone now makes up
 his anguish4 ,is it possible that life 
and death walk arm-in-arm8 ,yes2 even   
while we are happy in the enjoyment of  
one1 the other comes and casts the      
fearful mantle over all our earthly     
prospects4 ,seal up this blessed volume 
of life1 and ,i know not from whence the
 light is to spring which would cheer   

this gloomy picture4 ,without this1 man 
would be in a grade of blessedness      
beneath the brutes that perish4 ,it     
would be better to be anything than     
rational without the religion of ,jesus 
,christ and the intelligence of the     
,bible4 ,the ,scriptures inform us that 
these things have a cause1 that they    
come from ,god's dealings with his      
creatures1 that the unseen hand which   
permits these trials is benevolent and  
wise4 ,sorrow has its design1 and it is 
neither unkind nor malignant4 ,these    
things have a moral cause2 they are the 
great rebuke of ,god for sin4 ,they are 
also a part of the discipline of a      
,heavenly ,father1 designed to          
co-operate with the ,gospel in bringing 
back all those who are intelligently    
exercised thereby to their forsaken     
,god4  ,the antidote for all these ills 
culminating in death was the tree of    
life4 ,when man sinned against his ,god 
he was put away from the tree of life4  
,if he had remained with it he would    

have been beyond the reach of the motive
 of life1 and beyond the restraining    
power of the fear of death4 ,he would   
have lived forever1 subject1 like fallen
 angels1 to mental suffering during the 
ages to come4 ,but being placed beyond  
the reach of the tree of life he may be 
redeemed by the love of life to a higher
 state4 ,when the rebellious see and    
realize this great truth1 being         
exercised by the chastening hand of     
,god1 they are often subdued to         
submission1 to peace1 and under the     
heaviest calamities they often look     
upward and say1 ,it is the ,lord1 let   
his will be done4 ,and this1 of itself1 
is a source of unbounded bliss4  ,we    
often submit to present pain when       
counseled to do so by those in whose    
wisdom and goodness we trust4 ,as       
,christians we extend this principle to 
all the sufferings of this life4 ,doing 
so1 we have that feeling of quiet       
submission growing out of permanent     
confidence in ,god which supports us    

under all the trials to which we have   
been subjected by an all-wise ,father4  
,this principle is wonderfully fruitful 
in consolations to the bereaved and     
mourning--it is the joy of all          
,christian hearts4 ,the ,lord reigneth1 
let the earth rejoice4 ,what shall we   
say of the hopes and prospects of       
bereaved souls8 ,is it blind conjecture 
that there is an existence beyond the   
shadows8 ,is there no life to come8 ,no 
great resurrection8 ,no comforter to    
arrest the current of mourning and      
lamentation8  ,how natural it is1 when  
reminded of our loss1 to exclaim1 ,shall
 we not meet them again8 ,is this       
parting to last forever8 ,is there a    
,god8 ,has he not answered this         
agonizing inquiry8 ,when we sit down    
upon the brink of those waters which    
have swallowed up our living treasures  
and weep and call upon the waves of     
eternity to give back our dear ones1    
when1 from the shores of time1 we look  
and gaze and listen1 does no voice reach

 us8 ,yes6 ,to the ear of faith there is
 a voice4 ,it is the voice of our ,god4 
,we listen4 ,the words come ringing in  
our hearts1 ,for if we believe that     
,jesus died and rose again1 even so them
 also which sleep in ,jesus will ,god   
bring with him4 ,our grief is allayed4  
,we believe and are comforted4 ,we look 
forward to a happy meeting4 ,a reunion  
for eternity hovers before us like a    
bright star1 lights up our pathway1 and 
leads us forward in a living hope4      
,nowhere in the ,bible is human sorrow  
clothed with cold indifference4 ,the    
counsels of that book and its promises  
are so adapted to the sorrowing that    
those who have passed through the       
furnace of affliction know best their   
value4 ,there is no such relief from    
sorrow found away from the faith of ,god
 and the ,bible4  ,there is an hour when
 we ourselves must die8 ,shall we trifle
 with the will of ,god till then8 ,can  
we trifle with death when it comes8 ,the
 sting of death is sin4 ,death never    

fails to bring along with it a keen     
sense of guilt to the guilty unless they
 are cut off in a moment1 and then who  
knows the anguish that may be           
experienced just beyond8 ,what is there 
to soothe the sorrow of the dying       
sinner8--of that wicked soul who never  
obeyed his ,god nor did anything to make
 the world better for his existence8    
,let none of us live at a distance from 
our ,god4 ,let none of us approach death
 without the necessary preparation for  
mutual association with him4 ,let none  
of us bear the burden of a guilty       
conscience in that hour4 ,may none of us
 be so cruel as to leave the hearts that
 love us in doubt respecting our        
condition in death4 ,may we never tread 
its dark waters without the light of the
 glorious promises and facts of the     
religion of ,jesus the ,christ4 ,let us 
keep our souls pure in obeying the truth
 through the ,spirit4 ,let us live with 
and obey ,god1 do good and be happy4    
,,indebtedness ,,to ,,revelation--,no4  

,,ii4  ,,by ,p4 ,t4 ,,russell4          
,thought1 ,thinkers1 ,things--realities 
with their qualities or attributes4     
,these are all connected4 ,if the first 
and second are present the others are   
not far away4 ,we only think when we    
perceive1 and only perceive realities4  
,nonentities are not perceivable1 and   
therefore not thinkable4 ,thoughts may  
be1 and are1 transferable from one to   
another by words1 or signs equivalent to
 words1 yet we are only able to impart  
to another ideas already in our         
possession4  ,we have no thoughts of our
 own but those which are the result of  
our perceiving4 ,we have no thought of  
color without the eye1 nor of sound     
without the ear1 etc4 ,now1 if we have  
in our possession thoughts of persons or
 things beyond the reach of our powers  
of observation1 i4e41 beyond the reach  
of the five senses--seeing1 hearing1    
feeling1 tasting and smelling--then     
those thoughts can not be ours2 we could
 not be the first to think them2 they   

were too high for us2 they were out of  
our reach4 ,who1 then1 could and did    
reach them and give them to us8 ,this   
ought to be the question of questions   
with us4 ,thoughts of foreign countries 
have been given to us by the men who    
have seen those countries4 ,but they    
could only give us ideas of what they   
had seen or others had told them4 ,a man
 visiting ,england only could give us no
 thought of ,russia1 unless instructed  
by some one who has seen that land2     
then1 and not till then1 could he give  
us thoughts of ,russia4 ,i am now ready 
for the statement of this proposition1  
viz3 ,the following trio of thoughts are
 beyond our reach4 ,they are not our    
thoughts2 we did not think them1 but we 
have them2 then1 some being who could   
see higher and look farther than we must
 have given them to us4 ,those thoughts 
are the following3 ,first1 the existence
 of ,god2 second1 the use of words2     
third1 the origin of religion4 ,these ,i
 will examine in the order given above4 

,,the ,,existence ,,of ,,god4  ,whence  
came the idea8 ,this is now the         
question4 ,in answering it ,i shall     
assume no ground but that which all     
parties say is true4 ,the ,christian1   
the ,deist and ,atheist will admit that 
we have learned all we know1 and that we
 have learned only through the aid of   
the five senses3 seeing1 hearing1       
feeling1 tasting and smelling are the   
porters of the mind4 ,one or another of 
these bring to the mind every thought   
that it receives4 ,we obtain thoughts of
 odor only by the sense of smell2 of    
flavor only by the taste2 of color by   
the eye alone4 ,in these matters we have
 no intuition4 ,we brought no ideas into
 the world with us4 ,in all these things
 we are creatures of education4 ,simple 
or single ideas1 like simple words1     
represent simple thoughts or realities1 
and compound ideas represent compound   
thoughts or realities4 ,therefore it    
follows that every thought comes from a 
corresponding reality4 ,to deny this is 

equal to the affirmation that we can    
clearly see objects in a vacuum1 that we
 can see something where there is       
nothing4  ,having stated premises in    
which all are agreed1 ,i now state my   
first proposition3  ,,there ,,is ,a     
,,true ,,and ,,living ,,god4  ,in       
sustaining this proposition ,i shall    
introduce no witnesses but those whose  
perfect reliability is vouched for by   
the ,atheist himself2 so we shall have  
no dispute concerning the credibility   
and perfect reliability of witnesses4   
,for the ,atheist1 claiming to be a     
votary of reason1 as well as a boasted  
free and fearless thinker1 certainly can
 not impeach the testimony of his own   
mind4 ,and1 being a free and fearless   
thinker1 he will not try to conceal or  
prevent the witness1 when on the stand1 
from telling the whole truth4 ,i am now 
ready for the evidence4  ,the scene     
changes2 ,christian is alone in his     
studio1 and a rap is heard at the door4 
,it is opened1 and ,mr4 ,atheist is     

invited to enter1 and being seated1     
,christian addresses him thus3  ,mr4    
,atheist1 ,i am glad you have called1   
and if you have the leisure time and are
 perfectly free to do so1 ,i would like 
to talk with you on the evidence of the 
existence of ,god4  ,atheist--,i am not 
only willing1 but as anxious as you can 
be to examine this question4            
,christian--,very well4 ,i suppose you  
have examined the evidence in the       
premises1 and from all the testimony1   
carefully analyzed1 made your decision4 
,atheist--,you do me justice in thus    
supposing1 for ,i claim to be a         
reasonable being1 and to follow         
fearlessly the lamp of reason2 and1     
doing this on scientific and philosophic
 principles1 ,i have become satisfied   
that there is no ,god4                  
,christian--,will you allow me to state 
my analysis of the mind and ask you if  
it is correct8  ,atheist--,you1 ,mr4    
,c41 are approaching from a singular yet
 a pleasing stand-point2 will you please

 give me your analysis8 ,if it is good1 
,i will say so2 if defective1 ,i will   
point out its errors4  ,christian--,it  
is this3 ,the mind of man may be divided
 into ten parts or powers2 five         
external1 or the five senses2 and five  
internal4 ,the external ,i need not     
name4 ,the internal may be presented    
thus3 ,first1 perception2 second1       
reflection2 third1 memory2 fourth1      
reason2 fifth1 judgment1 or decision2   
each of these entirely dependent upon   
its immediate predecessor for support   
and action4 ,we can not judge of that   
upon which we have not reasoned1 nor    
reason where we have not remembered1 nor
 remember that of which we have not     
first thought2 neither can we think of  
that which we have not perceived1 nor   
perceive without the action of some one 
of the five senses4  ,atheist--,i admire
 your analysis--it is scientific2 but1  
,mr4 ,c41 ,i should not think that you1 
with your present belief in the         
existence of ,god1 would adopt this     

system of mental philosophy4            
,christian--,why8  ,atheist--,did you   
ever see a ,god8  ,christian--,if you   
please1 ,i will test the question with  
you1 and1 in order to do so1 ,i will    
personify these powers4 ,i will suppose 
them to represent ten men1 all of whom  
are ,atheists1 and we will rely upon    
their testimony4  ,atheist--,that is an 
honorable offer2 ,i will accept it most 
cordially4  ,christian--,then1 we are to
 consider the powers of the mind as so  
many men1 and hear their testimony8     
,atheist--,yes4  ,christian--,will you  
examine the witnesses8  ,atheist--,you  
would more properly do that2 ,i wish to 
hear you4  ,christian--,very well2 ,i   
will1 then1 call on ,mr4 ,judgment1 and 
ask1 ,have you given a decision on the  
question of the existence of ,god1 and  
if so1 what is your decision8           
,judgment--,there is no such being4     
,christian--,tell us whether you created
 the idea of a ,god1 or brought it into 
the world with you1 and how you obtained

 the material from which you            
manufactured your verdict8              
,judgment--,did ,i bring the idea into  
the world with me1 or create it8 ,what a
 question6 ,had anybody but a ,christian
 asked it ,i would have thought it an   
insult2 but1 then1 ,christians are never
 thinkers4 ,you ought to have known that
 the thought could not have been created
 by me4 ,to say ,i created it would be  
an endorsement of your foolish idea that
 something was made of nothing4 ,i have 
no creative power1 much less the power  
to make something out of nothing2       
neither did ,i bring it into the world  
with me4 ,we have no innate ideas4      
,christian--,then where did you get the 
material from which you made your       
decision that there is no ,god8         
,judgment--,where6 ,i have but one      
porter1 ,mr4 ,reason4 ,he gives all the 
material upon which ,i ever act4 ,if you
 doubt this try and judge of anything   
upon which you have never reasoned4 ,if 
you can not do this you must agree with 

me that judgment can only act and decide
 by the aid of reason4                  
,christian--,your argument is           
conclusive4 ,now1 as you have decided   
that there is no ,god1 and also claim   
that your only aid1 ,mr4 ,reason1 gave  
you the material out of which you made  
your decision1 will you call him and    
allow me to ask him a few questions8    
,judgment--,most willingly4 ,we all are 
free thinkers1 and delight in           
investigation4 ,brother ,reason1 please 
call in2 ,christian is here and wishes a
 little information of you4             
,reason--,mr4 ,christian1 ,brother      
,judgment informs me that you wish some 
information from me4 ,please state your 
question4  ,christian--,did you present 
the idea of the existence of ,god to    
your brother ,judgment1 and if so1 where
 and how did you come by it8            
,reason--,i received it from ,brother   
,memory1 and opened it out and held it  
up so that ,brother ,judgment could scan
 it thoroughly1 and he decided there was

 no such being1 and ,i agree with him4  
,christian--,will you call ,memory1 that
 ,i may learn where and how he obtained 
the idea8 7,memory enters47             
,christian--,mr4 ,memory1 are you an    
,atheist1 and did you give ,reason the  
idea of a ,god8 ,if you did1 how did you
 get it8 ,did you bring it into the     
world with you8  ,memory--,bring it into
 the world with me4 ,what an absurd     
question6 ,i never had an idea only as  
it was given me by ,brother ,reflection4
 ,if you doubt this1 try and remember   
something you have never thought of1 or 
think of something you never perceived4 
,this1 then1 is the truth3 ,reflection  
received the idea from ,perception and  
gave it to you1 and you gave it to      
,memory1 and he held it up to the eye of
 ,reason1 who1 with your aid1 spread it 
out before the mind of your brother     
,judgment1 and he gave the decision1    
that there is no ,god2 so we are all    
,atheists4 ,have you any more questions8
  ,christian--,yes1 one more at least2  

,i wish now to know how your brother    
,perception obtained the idea of a      
,god--will you tell me1 or call him8    
,memory--,oh1 ,i can tell you2 he has   
five porters who bring him all he ever  
gets1 and they1 with us1 are all        
,atheists4 ,but one or another of these 
must have brought him the idea4         
,christian--,will you ask them which one
 gave it to your brother ,perception8   
,memory--,you1 for some reason1 are very
 particular4 ,i will1 however1 to       
gratify you1 call them1 or at least some
 of them4 ,brother ,eye1 ,christian     
wishes to know if you gave the idea of a
 ,god to ,mr4 ,perception8  ,eye--,what 
a foolish question6 ,you1 an ,atheist1  
ask me1 another ,atheist1 if ,i have    
ever seen a living ,god where there is  
none to look at--you have let ,christian
 lead you out until he has almost drawn 
from you the proof that ,david told the 
truth about us when he called all       
,atheists fools4 ,i have seen all       
visible things1 but nothing is too small

 a mark for me to discover6             
,christian--,mr4 ,eye1 don't be in a    
hurry2 just let me ask1 do ,free        
,thinkers get scared and refuse to      
think8  ,eye--,i will leave you now1 and
 tell the other porters what a fix your 
philosophy has led us into4             
,christian--,good-bye2 ,i will call one 
month hence and hear your conclusion4   
,,do ,,we ,,need ,,the ,,bible8   ,the  
only creed consistent with the rejection
 of the ,gospel of ,christ is an eternal
 tomb1 with the heart-shivering         
inscription1 ,death is an eternal sleep4
 ,americans who reject the ,scriptures  
are as uncertain about the future as the
 poor heathen of other lands4 ,some of  
our unbelievers have gathered the       
information from heathen oracles that   
the future consists in being a poor1    
empty1 shivering1 table-rapping spirit1 
flying to and fro over the country in   
response to the sigh of some silly      
waiting-girl1 or at the bidding of some 
brazen-faced1 unscrupulous free lover4  

,and this1 ,o1 ye gods6 is all that ever
 shall be of the noblest spirits that   
ever left human flesh6 ,others1 to gain 
rest from this horrible and unsatisfying
 fate1 fly to the theory of everlasting 
silence1 as a result of the idea that   
mind is simply brain action1 and ceases 
to exist when the brain ceases to act4  
,their appropriate motto is1 ,let us eat
 and drink1 for to-morrow we die4 ,it   
has been said that even this brute      
philosophy is reasonable compared with  
the dogma of a large portion of         
unbelievers1 to wit41 that blasphemers1 
thieves1 profane swearers1 murderers and
 adulterers1 will all go straight to    
heaven when they die2 that men with     
their hearts steeped in blood will sit  
down with ,abraham and ,isaac in the    
kingdom of ,god4 ,but ,spiritualists1   
,pantheists1 ,atheists1 and ,deists     
inform us that an external revelation is
 useless4 ,their common exposition of   
the sentiment is too well known to need 
comment4 ,we hear them saying1 ,you need

 say nothing about the ,bible to me2 ,i 
know my duty well enough without it2 and
 as for miracles1 they will never prove 
anything to me4 ,can thunder1 repeated  
daily through centuries1 make ,god's    
laws and his wisdom and goodness more   
,god-like8 ,no6 ,i am grown1 perchance1 
to manhood1 and do not need the thunder 
and terror4 ,i am not to be scared4 ,it 
is not fear1 but reverence1 that shall  
lead me6 ,revelation6 ,inspiration6 ,and
 thy own ,god-like spirit2 is not that a
 revelation8 ,see ,carlyle's ,past and  
,present1 page #cjg4  ,now1 if ,mr4     
,carlyle was in no need of the fear of  
,god1 somebody else may be in a         
different mental and moral condition4   
,there is nothing in which men differ   
more4 ,if one man is above the weakness 
of fearing ,god 787 all men are not4    
,say what we may of fear1 it is         
nevertheless true that we are greatly   
influenced by fear4 ,we are greatly     
indebted to the fear of sickness for    
health1 to the fear of poverty for      

wealth1 and to the fear of death for    
life4 ,fear is to caution what knowledge
 is to a wise choice4 ,where there is no
 fear there is no caution4 ,the love of 
life and bliss is natural1 therefore we 
fear sickness1 poverty and death4 ,why  
say with your lips1 ,i am above fear1   
while away down in your heart you know  
it to be a lie8  ,love and fear1 like   
the ,siamese twins1 live and perish     
together4 ,do we not need revelation8   
,where is the shadow1 and where is the  
sunshine8 ,may we not contrast them8    
,the very wisest of heathen legislators 
approved of vice in some of its most    
heinous forms4 ,the ,carthaginian law   
required human sacrifices4 ,when        
,agathoclas besieged ,carthage two      
hundred children of the most noted      
families were put to death by command of
 the ,senate1 and three hundred citizens
 sacrificed themselves to ,saturn4 ,see 
,diodorus ,siculus1 b4 #bj1 ch4 #ad4    
,the laws of ,sparta required theft and 
the death of unhealthy children4 ,the   

laws of ,rome allowed parents to kill   
their child1 if they pleased to do it4  
,at the headquarters of heathen         
literature it was recommended that      
maimed infants should be killed or      
exposed to death4 ,aristotle's          
,political ,library1 #g1 chapter #ag4   
,in ,plato's ,republic we discover an   
advance of society1 but a community of  
wives continues1 and what was termed    
woman's rights was maintained upon the  
condition that the women were trained to
 war4 ,in war times the children were   
led out to look upon the struggle1 and  
become accustomed and hardened to blood4
 ,the teachings of the best minds were  
immoral4 ,he may lie1 says ,plato1 who  
knows how to do it4 ,profane swearing   
was enjoined by the example of their    
best writers4 ,oaths are of common      
occurrence in the writings of ,seneca   
and ,plato4 ,aristippus taught that     
adultery and theft were commendable in a
 wise man1 and ,cicero plead for the    
last dreadful tragedy--suicide4 ,such   

immoralities are eulogised in the       
writings of ,virgil1 ,horace and ,ovid4 
,when ,rome was in her glory and        
greatness1 ,trajan had ten thousand men 
to hew each other to pieces to amuse the
 ,romans4 ,in the face of all these     
facts1 modern ,spiritualists advance    
along with ,deists1 ,atheists and       
,pantheists1 and gravely inform us that 
we have no need of any external         
revelation--that men are wise enough    
without it4  ,they argue1 that as we    
have physical senses to take hold of    
earth's material blessings and          
appropriate them2 so we have            
intellectual faculties to take hold of  
all else that is necessary to supply our
 mental and moral wants4 ,it is most    
certainly true that we have physical    
senses and intellectual faculties4 ,i   
can not tell how it is with all the     
infidels of our country1 but ,i do know 
persons having physical senses who are  
in great need of some of the            
substantials of life4 ,i have also known

 persons who have destroyed their       
physical senses to such an extent as to 
be miserable objects of pity and        
compassion1 needing some external help  
as well an internal4 ,now1 if1 in spite 
of physical senses1 men and women do    
starve in this world on account of want1
 it is certainly allowable that persons 
may fail of the enjoyment of needed     
mental and moral culture in spite of    
intellectual faculties4 ,and if it is a 
matter of charity for men to put forth  
their hands and assist their fellow men 
when they are in want of material       
blessings1 surely it is a matter of     
love1 the love of ,god1 to present to   
weary1 burthened souls mental and       
spiritual blessings which correlate with
 man's spiritual wants4 ,do you deny the
 existence of such wants8  ,tyndal said 
there is a place in man's soul-nature   
for religion4 ,this fact is acknowledged
 by all leading writers in unbelief4 ,he
 who calls it in question experiences   
the fact4 ,why say it is not true       

against the testimony of your own       
conscience8  ,tell me1 said a rich      
,hindoo who had given all his wealth to 
the ,brahmans surrounding his dying bed 
that they might obtain pardon for his   
sins1 tell me what will become of my    
soul when ,i die8 ,your soul will go    
into the body of a holy cow4 ,and after 
that8 ,it will pass into the body of a  
divine peacock4 ,and after that8 ,it    
will pass into a flower4 ,tell me1 oh6  
tell me1 cried the dying man1 where will
 it go last of all8 ,where will it go   
last of all8 ,aye1 that is the question 
reason can not answer1 said the poor    
,brahmans4  ,where there is no vision   
the people perish4 ,life and immortality
 was brought to light through the       
,gospel4 ,without a revelation from     
,god1 men know neither how to live or   
die4 ,our ancestors trusted to the      
powers of magic1 to incantations1 for   
health1 for success in tilling the      
ground1 for finding lost articles1 for  
preventing accidents1 etc4 ,they        

superstitiously regarded certain days of
 the week4 ,if an infant was born upon a
 certain day it would live2 if upon     
another it would live1 but be sickly4   
,do you unceremoniously reject the      
,gospel of the ,christ8 ,yes1 you say1  
if it depends on ,jesus it is not       
eternally true1 and therefore is not    
true at all4 ,but1 ,i ask in all candor1
 is eternally true and sufficiently     
revealed one and the same8 ,are we under
 no obligations to the man who first    
informed us of vaccination as a         
preventive of small-pox1 simply because 
it would always have prevented it8 ,are 
we under no obligations to men on       
account of scientific discoveries1 just 
because the truths discovered are       
eternal truths8 ,nonsense6 ,you know it 
is nonsense4 ,then we may be under      
lasting obligations to the ,christ for  
the revelation of the ,gospel1 with its 
sublime precepts and principles1        
consolations and promises1 which fill up
 the human spirit with undying love and 

the hope of eternal glory4  ,let parents
 look well to this question4 ,let       
infidels set themselves to work and get 
up some law of man capable of           
regenerating the hearts of those men    
who1 at their bidding1 renounce the law 
of ,god and his authority1 and also with
 it all human authority4 ,will they do  
it8 ,can they do it8 ,oh6 ,there are no 
means outside of the sanctions of       
religion by which the heart may be      
reached and purified from the love and  
practice of sin4  ,what right1 says the 
,pantheist1 the ,atheist1 the ,deist1   
and ,spiritualist1 have you to command  
me8  ,the rejectors of the ,bible made  
an experiment1 an attempt1 in trying to 
govern ,france without religion4 ,shall 
the scenes of ,paris and ,lyons be      
repeated1 re-enacted in our own beloved 
,america8 ,no1 we don't want it1 and we 
do not think we shall experience it1 for
 the framers of our ,declaration of     
,independence laid the rights of ,god in
 the bed-rock of our republic1 believing

 that the rights of ,god are the basis  
of human rights4 ,all men are born free 
and equal1 and are endowed by their     
,,creator ,,with ,,certain ,,inalienable
 ,,rights1 ,,among ,,which ,,is ,,life1 
,,liberty ,,and ,,the ,,pursuit ,,of    
,,happiness1 ,,etc4  ,nations destitute 
of the ,bible ever were1 and are1       
ignorant and wicked4 ,there are peoples 
in the world decently clad1 well fed1   
and living in comfortable mansions1 with
 well tilled lands1 who make powerful   
streams turn powerful wheels and run    
great machinery2 who yoke the iron horse
 to the market train and drive their    
floating palaces against the floods2 who
 erect churches in every village1 and   
make their children more learned than   
the priests of ,egypt1 or the           
philosophers of ,greece2 even many of   
their criminals are more decent and     
upright than were the sages1            
philosophers and heroes of lands        
destitute of the ,bible4 ,these peoples 
have that wonderful book2 and they claim

 that it contains a revelation from ,god
 to man2 and that it teaches us how to  
live1 and how to die4  ,,every ,,tree   
,,is ,,known ,,by ,,its ,,own ,,fruits4 
99      99      99      99      99  ,the
 fool hath said in his heart there is no
 ,god4 ,he claims1 however1 that        
something without life or intelligence  
produced organic nature4 ,that ,,blind1 
,,dead1 ,,something ,,is ,,the ,,fool',s
 ,,god4     ,,the ,,way ,,infidels      
,,treat ,,the ,,language ,,of ,,the     
,,bible4   ,the unreasonableness and    
unfairness of infidels1 or otherwise    
their ignorance1 is manifested in their 
unwillingness to interpret the          
literature of religion as they do the   
language of the sciences4 ,in scientific
 literature we speak of the earth as a  
sphere1 and infidels never think of     
objecting that it is pitted with hollows
 deep as ocean's bottom1 and crusted    
with protuberances high as the          
,himalaya1 in every imaginable form4    
,there is not an acre of absolutely     

level ground known on the face of the   
earth1 and yet when we speak of land1   
saying it is level1 no infidel demurs4  
,the waters pile themselves in waves and
 dash in breakers1 yet we say1 ,level as
 the ocean1 and none object4  ,the      
smallest formations present the same    
regular irregularities of form4         
,crystals approach the nearest to       
mathematical figures1 but they break    
with compound irregular fractures at    
their bases of attachment4 ,nature gives
 no perfect mathematical figures2 they  
only approximate mathematical           
perfection4 ,infidels do not trouble    
themselves with science on this account4
 ,the utter absence of any regularity or
 assimilation to the spheroidal figure1 
either in meridianal1 equatorial or     
parallel lines1 mountain ranges1 sea    
beaches or courses of rivers1 is fatal  
to mathematical accuracy in the more    
extended measurements4 ,it is only by   
taking the mean of a great many         
measurements that an approximate        

accuracy can be obtained4 ,where this is
 not possible1 as in the measurement of 
high mountains1 the truth remains       
undetermined by hundreds of feet2 or as 
in the case of the earth's spheroidal   
axis1 ,bessel's measurement differs from
 ,newton's by fully eleven miles4 ,see  
,humboldt's ,cosmos1 vol4 #a1 p4 #g1    
#aef4 ,the smaller measures are         
proportionally inaccurate4 ,all these   
irregularities and imperfections in     
science are overlooked1 considered not  
in the least objections to the use of   
language which would1 upon the most     
rigid application1 cut them out as      
fables on the one hand or destroy       
science upon the other2 but no sensible 
man thinks of either as a matter        
allowable4  ,on the other side1         
,infidels are eternally mouthing about  
irregularities in the lives of the      
ancient men of the ,bible1 which are    
exceptions to the general rule1 just as 
though religious persons could live     
lives of absolute perfection4 ,the      

language1 also1 of the ,bible1 which1   
like the language of science1 takes no  
notice of irregularities that must be   
expected in the lives of the very best  
men upon the earth1 is by them abused4  
,for instance1 ,be perfect as your      
,father in heaven is perfect1 is        
construed to mean that ,god is a man    
,god1 clothed with human imperfections1 
or1 otherwise1 man is imperatively      
required to be absolutely perfect4 ,all 
such abuse of language is contemptible4 
,many other examples might be           
adduced--such as the irregularities in  
the words employed by the witnesses of  
the resurrection of ,christ1 which do   
not affect the evidence of the fact to  
be established in the least degree1 and 
which are just such irregularities as   
are witnessed in evidence given in court
 rooms almost daily1 and passed without 
so much as being noticed4 ,for example1 
one witness says ,mary ,magdalene came  
very early to the sepulchre1 and another
 says she came about sunrise4 ,if all   

,christians were to treat the literature
 of science1 and science itself1 as     
these would-be wise ,infidels treat the 
literature of religion1 and religion    
itself1 it would be surprising to run   
over the absurdities as well as         
irregularities of scientific history4   
,there are irregularities in nature1 and
 their name is legion2 they all belong  
to that wonderfully boasted harmony of  
nature so much talked of in our day4 ,as
 for the mistakes made in religion since
 the days of the apostles of the        
,christ1 they are many2 but what have   
they to do with the genuine8  ,how many 
mistakes have scientists made in the    
same period of time8 ,i shall not try to
 ape the infidel1 but ,i must be        
permitted to call attention to a few of 
the many scientific blunders4  ,perhaps 
the greatest blunder of the present day1
 upon the part of scientists1 is their  
attempt to bring into disrepute the     
cosmogony given in the ,bible by a      
scientific cosmogony1 which leaves off  

as unknown the only active world-forming
 force4 ,they arrogantly assume to be   
acquainted with the entire history of   
our planet from the atoms to the globe4 
,yet they acknowledge that the force    
which was and is in operation was and is
 unknown2 that unknown force had its    
influence in framing the world1 and its 
omission is always fatal to the theory  
which knows nothing about it or neglects
 it4 ,there are laws also far-reaching1 
whose omission must be equally fatal4   
,infidels1 being sensible of this truth1
 have endeavored to simplify matters to 
the level of our ignorance1 by reducing 
all primordial elements to one1 or at   
most two1 simple elements1 and all      
forces to the form of one universal and 
irrational law2 but the progress of     
science utterly blasts the effort4 ,no  
scientific man now dreams of one        
primordial element4 ,chemistry reveals a
 great many different elements1 which   
can not be reduced or changed from their
 simple forms1 much less identified as  

one and the self-same substance4 ,the   
idea of one substance only is a very    
great error1 which grew out of an abuse 
of language in confounding the two      
words1 matter and substance4 ,the latter
 word is equally applicable to matter1  
or spirit1 but the former always        
contrasts with spirit2 so to confound   
the two is to ignore a distinction upon 
which everything depends in any1 except 
the materialistic1 philosophy4 ,when the
 term substance is used in the currency 
of the term matter it admits of the     
plural form as well as the singular4    
,indeed1 all the primordial elements    
known in chemistry are known as so many 
different substances4 ,it is            
unscientific and absurd to confound all 
these elements by claiming the          
one-substance theory4 ,it has been      
called the hog philosophy1 on account of
 its swallowing down so many different  
substances in the single form of the    
word4  ,eighty theories1 hostile to     
,christianity1 developed in the course  

of forty or fifty years1 were brought   
before the ,institute of ,france in     
#ahjf1 all of which are                 
repudiated--dead4 ,it is useless to go  
further into details4 ,science has been 
as much abused as religion4 ,what       
benefit would accrue to the human family
 from an effort upon our part to bring  
to the foreground all the blunders made 
in scientific researches which are      
to-day numbered with the old effete     
errors in religion8 ,and where is the   
propriety of infidels making a set of   
asses of themselves by playing upon the 
little irregularities of language and   
character in religion1 as they          
themselves allow no man to do in science
 and morality4  ,,equal ,,handed        
,,justice ,,to ,,all1 ,,is ,,our        
,,motto4     ,,geology ,,in ,,its       
,,struggles ,,and ,,growth ,,as ,a      
,,science4   ,the science of ,geology in
 its early history is like all other    
sciences1 an infant4 ,it was not a      
,hercules at its birth4 ,on the         

contrary1 it was childlike and rather   
crooked in many of its ways2 but        
chastisement and criticism have brought 
it very far toward real manhood4 ,its   
early nurses were standing continually  
on the dark line separating the         
comprehensible from the                 
incomprehensible1 without any guides4   
,they were out upon an unexplored sea in
 the mere twilight of the morning4 ,they
 were opposed at every step by the      
combative tendencies of human nature1   
which are ever seeking too much for     
their own gratification to admit any    
strange1 startling propositions as      
intruders among old and long cherished  
ideas4 ,in its history it appears before
 us1 first as an enemy to religion1 and 
then as an unobjectionable science1 a   
neutral4 ,but since the publication of  
,the ,footprints of the ,creator1 by the
 lamented ,hugh ,miller1 it appears in  
front as a fast friend and abettor4 ,and
 now1 since it has approached so near to
 its manhood1 we do not see how we did  

without its aid so long4 ,its first     
grand position touching the immense     
masses of the rock formations as results
 of second causes1 in operation away    
back yonder before organic life appeared
 upon our planet1 was looked upon by    
intelligent ,biblical scholars of those 
times with suspicion1 as a system at    
variance with the records of the ,bible4
 ,this1 along with difference of        
sentiment among its friends1 has been   
the means of a very rapid growth towards
 perfection4 ,curiosity was aroused and 
observations multiplied1 errors         
corrected and the untenable removed1    
until the science now stands before us  
with its bases settled in unquestionable
 facts4 ,let us all learn from this     
circumstance the bearings of the times  
in which we live1 for a double process  
of elimination is now going on under the
 providence of ,god1 by means of which  
both ,christianity and science will have
 more beauty and strength of manhood to 
command the respect of our children4    

,geology is exercising a wonderful      
influence on the side of religion in the
 minds of those who are acquainted with 
its facts4 ,in the hands of ,miller it  
gives a very decisive answer against the
 evolution hypothesis1 which is by no   
means a new speculation4 ,it was1 in its
 general form1 a very prominent doctrine
 of the ,epicurean philosophy4 ,the     
author of the ',vestiges1' with         
,professor ,oken1 regarded the          
experiment of the formation of cells in 
albumen by electric currents as the     
leading fact of the system4 ,they       
claimed that currents of electricity in 
the earth's surface generated and       
vitalized the cells1 and that all       
organic life thus originated4 ,there is 
nothing to save this speculation1 when  
it is undressed1 from contempt4 ,the    
only patronage it ever received grew out
 of the fact that there is a species of 
superstition which causes people to take
 upon credit whatever assumes the name  
of science1 and is opposed to the old   

superstition of faith in witches and    
ghosts4 ,with this speculation before   
us1 seemingly plausible1 yet false1     
being fraught with error1 we are        
reminded of the fact that it has been   
eagerly embraced by many who seem to    
think that it has a firm foundation in  
the science of ,geology1 which they     
regard as presenting the order in which 
created beings appeared4 ,the author of 
the ,vestiges claims that the first step
 in the creation of life upon our earth 
was a chemico-electric operation1       
forming simple germinal vesicles4 ,page 
#aee4  ,this is an item wholly unknown  
in the geological record and lies before
 the beginning of any kind of similitude
 alluded to in this article4 ,the idea  
which ,i form of the progress of organic
 life upon our earth1 says the author of
 the ,vestiges1 is that the simplest and
 most primitive type gave birth to the  
type next above it1 and this again      
produced the next higher1 and so on to  
the very highest4 ,page #agj4  ,on      

account of the mere similitude existing 
between the doctrine of progressive     
creation1 as it is set forth in the     
geological record1 and the idea of      
progressive evolutions1 as claimed by   
the advocates of the speculation1 we    
deem it our duty to scrutinize severely 
the teachings of geology4 ,but in doing 
this we do not concede that there is no 
other ground upon which such authors may
 be successfully met4 ,there is no one  
point in their system which is not      
hypothetical4 ,it is a system of ifs4   
,there is no proof1 in any single       
instance1 that a higher has been        
developed from a lower species2 but the 
question1 in proper shape1 is this3 ,has
 there been a succession of improvements
 from one geological period to another  
in the several divisions of the animal  
and vegetable kingdoms amounting to a   
change of species8 ,species are very    
similar in structure and capable of some
 improvement1 but this is no evidence of
 the higher being developed from the    

lower4 ,it is well known that the lowest
 forms are those found lowest in the    
geological series4 ,commencing at the   
bottom and running up we find1 first1   
mollusks1 then fishes1 reptiles1 birds1 
quadrupeds1 monkeys1 and at last man4   
,but this does not1 by any means1 settle
 the issue4 ,the question naturally     
arises whether one of those divisions1  
on its first appearance1 was of the     
lowest organization of its class and    
reached the highest by a gradual        
development through successive          
geological periods4 ,the geological     
testimony is this3 ,first1 there were no
 animals having any structural          
resemblance to the fishes prior to their
 creation1 and when they appear they are
 already in possession of the highest   
organization and the largest cerebral   
development4  ,during the long periods  
of geological history there has been no 
advance in this class of animals4 ,the  
science testifies to no successive steps
 here4 ,they stood at the head of the   

icthyic division at the outset2 but     
there has been1 during these periods1 a 
progressive degeneracy1 so that though  
all possessed a high organization at    
first1 there is found in the after      
creations a succession of lapses until  
the division of fishes now contains     
species ranking little above the        
earth-worm4 ,a single well defined      
placoid fossil in the ,bala limestone as
 fully proves the existence of placoid  
fishes1 during the period of its        
deposition1 as if the rock were made up 
of placoid fossils1 for it is not a     
question of numbers1 but of rank4 ,the  
question1 now1 comes home to us with all
 its force1 how did fishes of this high 
order come to exist before any of the   
inferior class8 ,let some of our        
evolution savans answer4  ,the same     
thing may be said of other organic      
divisions4 ,it has gone to record that  
the shell-fish of the ,silurian system  
are the lowest division of the          
molluscous animals4 ,while the statement

 is received as true1 it must be        
remembered that there is some diversity 
of structure in this lower division1 and
 that the earliest molluscs are not the 
lowest1 but the highest in the division4
 ,the most important point1 however1 is1
 that while ,brachiopoda were most      
abundant1 the highest molluscs existed  
also1 their remains being found in the  
,bala limestone1 which is the lowest bed
 of molluscous fossils4 7,see ,silurian 
,system1 p4 #cjh47 ,the number of these 
higher species is not important4 ,they  
existed1 few or many1 as early as any   
other of the mollusca4 ,if the lower had
 not an anterior existence1 the higher  
were not developed from them4 ,it is    
also a conclusive argument against the  
system1 that while the intermediate     
mollusca are very numerous1 the         
cephalopoda1 which were so early        
introduced1 and are the higher forms    
that were so numerous at certain times1 
are now narrowed down to a few species4 
,lyell was the first to drop a word of  

caution against inferring too hastily   
from the absence of mammalian fossils in
 the older rocks that the higher class  
of vertebrata did not exist in those    
remote times4 ,the remains of vertebrate
 animals are already found in the lowest
 fossiliferous rocks1 and1 in addition  
to that1 the highest forms of each class
 appear first4  ,there is nothing so    
well evinced in all the realms of       
scientific investigation as the utter   
impossibility of getting1 by the light  
of nature1 away from the idea of the    
,christian's ,god4 ,everywhere we trace 
his footsteps4 ,traveling through the   
ages to the beginning1 in thought1 our  
first view is that of an unlimited      
expanse of unoccupied space1 or1 if     
aught exists1 it lies hidden in the     
invisible state4 ,but all at once1 as if
 by magic1 and in obedience to the will 
of the ,eternal ,intelligence1 the      
invisible becomes visible1 worlds exist 
and become obedient to law4 ,the divine 
perfections are to be displayed through 

future ages4 ,and now1 if we look out   
upon the surging billows of the ocean1  
our mind swells with the thought that   
,god is there in all his majesty4 ,with 
our thoughts confined to our earth we   
pass from age to age tracing the divine 
power from the laws of motion to        
chemical action and crystallization1    
until we behold a wonderful change upon 
the face of nature4 ,and now1 for the   
first time1 a new principle is          
manifested1 a new order springs into    
being--it is vegetable life and being in
 all its lovely grandeur4 ,it matters   
not to us whether it came about         
gradually or all at once1 for wisdom is 
there4 ,all nature seems to turn to this
 new principle4 ,the elements of the    
inorganic world are subserving the      
purposes of organic life4 ,the ,creator 
has bound them to organic life4 ,every  
plant selects its food from the elements
 of earth by a chemistry of its own4    
,the atmosphere around us is no less to 
the vegetable kingdom than a great      

pasture field4 ,every leaf is feasting1 
and every fiber is touched by the light4
 ,what wonderful correlations meet us at
 every turn6 ,what adaptation of means  
to ends6 ,above all the beauty and      
grandeur of the vegetable kingdom we    
find the glorious animal1 with man at   
the head1 as lord over all below him4   
,with man the moral government of ,god  
begins2 physical creation is over4 ,the 
subsequent manifestations of the divine 
glory are to be realized in the training
 and discipline of men and women as     
moral beings2 and their mutual          
association with him1 in the eternal    
world1 is the ultimate4    ,c4 ,r4      
,,pantheism ,,is ,,deception ,,and      
,,hypocrisy4   ,understand1 ye brutish  
among the people2 and ye fools1 when    
will ye be wise8 ,he that planted the   
ear1 shall he not hear8 ,he that formed 
the eye1 shall he not see8 ,he that     
chastiseth the heathen1 shall he be not 
correct8 ,he that teacheth man          
knowledge1 shall he not know8--,psalm   

xciv1 #h1 #i4  ,pantheism1 personified1 
is a hypocrite1 a deceiver4 ,the name   
,god1 as a proper name in the ,english  
language1 means the ,divine ,being1     
,jehovah1 the ,eternal and ,infinite    
,spirit1 the ,creator and ,lord of the  
universe4 ,pantheists say they believe  
in ,god1 but they tell you1 when        
pressed1 they mean by that name         
everything--,god is everything4 ,the    
term ,pantheist is from pan1 all1 and   
theos1 ,god4 ,webster defines the term  
thus3 ,one that believes the universe to
 be ,god2 a name given to the followers 
of ,spinoza4  ,has any man the right to 
pervert language1 fixing new meanings to
 words in common use which are in direct
 opposition to established usage8 ,the  
man who knows the meaning of a word and 
uses it in a contrary sense is guilty of
 an abuse of language2 and if he fails  
to make known the fact that he is using 
the term in a sense differing from      
established usage1 he is1 then1 a       
deceiver4 ,pantheists are simply        

,atheists in disguise1 the only         
difference being in their professions4  
,the ,pantheist says1 ,i believe in a   
,god2 but this saying is only a         
distinction without a difference4 ,the  
atheist is the frank1 outspoken man of  
the two4  ,what must we think of the man
 who says1 ,i believe in ,god1 and then 
explains himself to mean1 by the name   
,god1 heat1 steam1 electricity1 force1  
animal life1 the soul of man1 magnetism1
 mesmeric force1 and1 in one word1 the  
sum of all the intelligences and forces 
in the universe1 at the same time       
denying the proper currency of the term 
,god by denying the existence of a      
personal ,god4 ,all ,christians should  
demand that ,christian terms be used in 
their own proper currency4 ,but infidels
 will always do as they have hitherto1  
will often get out of their own ruts1 by
 the most perfect abuse of language4    
,they can not1 it seems1 leave off the  
use of language which is only           
appropriate to the ,christian idea4     

,their divinity1 by their own           
confession1 differs essentially from    
,god1 and let them use a different word 
to describe it4 ,let them do like their 
heathen brethren in ,india1 call it     
,brahma1 or whatever else they please1  
and cease stealing ,heaven's livery to  
serve the devil4 ,let them cease to     
profane religion and offend common sense
 by giving the name of the glorious     
,father of ,spirits to their            
million-headed nondescript4 ,pantheism  
dethrones ,jehovah and places no other  
intelligence in his place as ,creator   
and ,ruler of the universe2 and1 being  
conscious of the odium that necessarily 
attaches itself to ,atheism1 on account 
of its everlasting foolishness1 they    
steal the name of ,god to cloak their   
,atheism4  ,pantheism is demoralizing4  
,it cuts a man loose from all the       
sanctions of moral law1 by denying the  
resurrection1 the judgment and the      
future retribution4 ,it annihilates from
 the mind of its votary the idea of     

,god's moral government4 ,if man1 as it 
avows1 be the highest intelligence in   
the universe of worlds1 to whom will he 
render an account8 ,who will call upon  
him to answer8 ,if men and women are    
simply developments of ,god1 will ,god  
be offended with himself8 ,evil is good1
 we are told1 in another way1 we are not
 skilled in4 ,see the author of         
,representative ,men1 ,festus1 page #dh4
 ,evil was held by some of the old      
heathen philosophers to be good in the  
making4 ,they argued that it was the    
carrion in the sunshine1 converting into
 grass and flower4 ,and then1 to apply  
their figure1 man in the brothel1 jail1 
or on gibbets1 is in the way to all that
 is lovely and true4 ,such reminds us of
 the ravings of lunatics4 ,it is the    
climax of profanation of the moral      
government of ,god4 ,let those who fear 
no ,god1 but have wives and children and
 property to lose1 reflect upon the     
propriety of lending their influence to 
a system fraught with such consequences4

 ,the system positively denies the      
distinction between good and evil4 ,it  
declares that we can not sin2 that we   
are ,god1 and ,god can not offend       
against himself2 that sin is all simply 
an old lie2 that impiety1 immorality and
 vice of frightful mien are wedded in   
eternal decrees1 and that man can not   
sever them4  ,pantheism is veiled       
,atheism4 ,it is not necessary to argue 
this proposition at length4 ,pantheists 
often speak of the great being1 which1  
according to ,pantheism1 is composed of 
all the intelligences of the universe4  
,can any man conceive of such a being8  
,can intelligences be piled one upon    
another1 like brick and mortar1 and thus
 be compounded8 ,and if my spirit be the
 highest intelligence in the universe1  
did it create itself8 ,does it govern   
itself8 ,did it create the universe8    
,does it govern it8 ,some ,pantheists   
have gone to this length6 ,m4 ,comte    
says3 ,at this present time1 for minds  
properly familiarized with true         

astronomical philosophy1 the heavens    
display no other glory than that of     
,hipparchus1 or ,kepler1 or ,newton1 and
 of all who have helped to establish    
these laws4 ,establish these laws6 ,they
 were laws governing the planets        
thousands of years before these         
astronomers were born4  ,pantheists     
often express very high respect for the 
,christian religion4 ,some of the more  
vulgar sort1 however1 speak of it as a  
superstition4 ,but the wiser ones have  
reached the perfection of ,jesuitism1   
that is to say1 they indulge in         
hypocrisy and deception to effect a     
purpose4 ,they grant that the ,christian
 religion is the highest development of 
humanity yet attained by a majority of  
the race4 ,the heathen of every grade of
 character1 and the ,christian1 with all
 others who may not be classified by us 
with either1 are all1 in their scheme1  
so many successive developments of      
humanity4 ,it is a trick of their trade 
to clothe their abominations in ,bible  

language by wresting the ,scriptures4   
,they speak of the beauty of holiness in
 the mind1 that surmounted every idea of
 a personal ,god2 and of ,god dwelling  
in us1 and his love perfected in us1    
when they maintain that he dwells in    
every creature and thing4 ,they say they
 can accept the ,bible--that is their   
phrase--notwithstanding it pronounces   
death upon the fools who1 professing to 
be wise1 change the truth of ,god into a
 lie1 and worship and serve the creature
 more than the ,creator1 as a mystic    
revelation of the ,pantheism which      
leaves us to erect everything into a    
,god1 provided it is none1 inasmuch as  
every product of the human mind is a    
development of ,deity4 ,so the ,bible1  
in the conclusion of their system1 is on
 a level with ,thomas ,paine's writings 
as respects inspiration and origin4 ,the
 great ,pantheistic divinity is spoken  
of by ,pantheists as the great soul of  
the universe1 while the more            
materialistic look upon it as the       

universe itself1 body and soul4 ,with   
them the soul is the fountain of all the
 imponderable forces1 vegetable and     
animal life1 the mesmeric influences1   
galvanism1 magnetism1 electricity1 light
 and heat2 and the body the sum of all  
the ponderable substances2 in one word1 
,god is everything1 and everything is   
,god4 ,this system is called            
,monotheistic ,pantheism4 ,it is a vast 
generalization of everything into a     
higher unity1 which exalts men and      
paving stones1 and cats1 dogs and       
reptiles1 and monkeys1 to the same level
 of ,god-head1 or divinity4 ,man1 the   
soul of men1 as the system would term   
it1 is the greatest manifestation of the
 divine essence4 ,yes6 ,,divine         
,,essence6 for1 with ,pantheists1 there 
is no personal hereafter4 ,this system  
of ,pantheism is an old1 worn-out       
theory2 it has putrefied and rotted with
 the worshippers of cats1 monkeys1 and  
holy cows and bulls1 and pieces of      
sticks and stones on the ,ganges more   

than two thousand years ago4 ,it is now 
dragged up from the dung-hill and       
presented as a new discovery of modern  
philosophy1 sufficient to supplant the  
,ruler of the universe4 ,how strange it 
is that men of ordinary intelligence    
will embrace the idea1 rather than      
submit to the dictates of conscience and
 the ,bible6 ,this world of ours is not 
an abstraction in philosophy that       
consists of one simple substance called 
matter1 nor yet of one substance1 for   
there are many different material       
substances1 such as oxygen1 carbon1     
hydrogen1 sulphur1 aluminum and iron1   
and more than fifty others already      
discovered4  ,now1 let us suppose that  
all these elements or substances existed
 as a cloud of atoms millions of ages in
 the past2 are we1 then1 any nearer the 
solution of the great problem of world  
making than we were before8 ,the atoms  
must be material1 for a material world  
is to be made of them2 and they must    
have extension2 each one of them must   

have length1 breadth and thickness2 and1
 as inertia is a property of each and   
every atom1 the ,pantheist has only     
multiplied the difficulty by millions1  
for matter can not begin1 of itself1 to 
move4 ,did the dead atoms dance about   
and jumble themselves together as we now
 find them8 ,is the one substance theory
 correct8 ,monotheistic ,pantheism is   
scientifically false in fact4 ,some of  
these men who tell us of a world without
 an intelligence in the past1 who have  
such implicit confidence in the powers  
of matter1 tell us1 that millions of    
ages in the past the world existed as a 
great cloud of fire mist1 which1 after a
 long time cooled down into granite2 and
 this1 by dint of earthquakes1 broke up 
on the surface1 and washed with rain    
until1 after ages upon ages had passed1 
clays and soil were formed1 from which  
plants1 of their own accord1 sprang up  
without a germ2 in other words1 germs   
came into being spontaneously and grew  
up1 as we see them1 developed in all    

their grandeur4 ,this chance life1      
somehow1 chanced to assume animal form  
and fashion until1 in the multitude of  
its changes it reached the fashion of   
the monkey2 and then1 at last1 the      
fashion of man1 both male and female4   
,truly1 the ,atheists and ,pantheists of
 our country need not complain of any   
want of power to believe while such is  
their basis of faith upon the subject of
 world making4 ,but they1 to avoid the  
difficulty that nothing made something1 
tell us the fire mist was eternal1 that 
it did not make itself4 ,very well1 let 
us have it that way2 then we must be    
allowed to ask1 how an eternal red hot  
mist cooled off8 ,and also what there   
was to cool it1 when it was all there   
was1 and it was red hot1 and always had 
been8 ,in other words1 how could an     
eternal red hot cool down without       
something else in existence to cool it8 
,why should it cool at all8 ,and why did
 it begin to cool just when it did8 ,the
 utmost that any scientist can do is to 

show that such a change took place1 but 
he can not tell you why it took place4  
,change it did6 ,but change is an       
effect1 and requires a cause4 ,and1     
according to their theory1 there could  
be no cause outside of the fire mist2   
for they say there was nothing else in  
the universe4 ,then the cause was inside
 of the fire mist4 ,but how can red hot 
cool when all there is1 is red hot8 ,had
 this first mist1 to say nothing of     
organic life1 a mind8 ,did it become    
sensible and resolve to cool off a      
little1 and settle itself into orderly  
worlds8 ,what became of its mind8 ,did  
it divide1 and a part go to each planet8
 ,has each planet a great soul of the   
world1 as well as our earth8 ,if so1 had
 we not as well build an altar to each  
planet and go back to the religion of   
our banana-fed ancestors1 who burned    
their children alive in sun worship8    
,the ,christian religion is so fearfully
 demoralizing 787 that it is a great    
pity that these ,godless1 ,christless   

souls called ,pantheists and ,atheists  
can't get some solution of the great    
problem of world-making that would      
dispense with the ,bible4 ,how well they
 could get along if--if--if--they only  
had this great question settled4  ,,in  
,,god ,,we ,,trust4     ,,substance ,,or
 ,,substances--,,which8  ,,or1  ,,the   
,,origin ,,of ,,life ,,and ,,mind4      
,substance is that which is and abides2 
that which subsists of or by itself2    
that which lies under qualities2 that   
which truly is--or essence4 ,it is      
opposed to accident4 ,in its logical and
 metaphysical sense it is that nature of
 a thing which may be conceived to      
remain when every other nature is       
removed or abstracted from it2 the      
ultimate point in analyzing the complex 
idea of any object4 ,accident denotes   
all those ideas which the analysis      
excludes as not belonging to the mere   
being or nature of the object4 ,it is   
said that our first idea of substance   
is1 possibly1 derived from the          

consciousness of self1 the conviction   
that1 while our sensations1 thought and 
purposes are changing1 we continue the  
same4 ,we see bodies also remaining the 
same as to quantity or extension1 while 
their color and figure1 their state of  
motion or rest may be changed4 ,it has  
also been said that substances are      
either primary1 that is singular1       
individual substances2 or secondary1    
that is genera1 and species of          
substance4  ,substances have been       
divided into complete and incomplete1   
finite and infinite4 ,but it is to be   
remembered that these are merely        
divisions of being4 ,substance is       
properly divided into matter and spirit1
 or that which is extended and that     
which thinks4  ,the foundation principle
 of substance is that law of the human  
mind by which every quality or mode of  
being is referred to a substance1 or the
 consciousness of a cause for every     
effect4 ,in everything which we perceive
 or can imagine as existing1 we         

distinguish two parts1 qualities        
variable and multiplied2 and a being one
 and identical2 and these two are so    
united in thought that we can not       
separate them in our intelligence1 nor  
think of qualities without a substance4 
,so it is a self-evident or first truth1
 that there is a subjective or inner man
 which thinks1 reflects and reasons1 for
 memory recalls to us the many modes of 
our mind2 its many qualities and        
conditions4 ,what variety of mental     
conditions have we not experienced8     
,these are all so many evidences of an  
internal substance that we call spirit4 
,that spirit is to be distinguished from
 thought as cause is from effect is     
evident2 and also from matter lying in  
the accident or quality of body1 is     
certain1 from the fact of its being     
subject to such rapid and instantaneous 
changes of condition4 ,amidst all the   
different modes1 qualities1 or accidents
 of mind1 we believe ourselves to be the
 same individual being2 and this        

conviction is the result of that law of 
thought which always associates         
qualities with things4  ,in the world   
around us phenomena1 qualities or       
accidents are continually changing1 but 
we believe that these1 all1 are produced
 by causes which remain1 as substances1 
the same4 ,and as we know ourselves to  
be the causes of our own acts1 and to be
 able to change1 within a moment1 the   
modes of our own mind1 so we believe the
 changes of matter1 which take place    
more slowly1 to be produced by causes   
which belong to the substances of       
matter4 ,and underlying all causes1     
whether of the qualities of matter or   
mind1 we conceive of one absolute cause1
 one substance1 in itself persistent and
 upholding all things in nature4 ,this  
substance we are pleased to call spirit2
 and this spirit we call ,god4 ,to deny 
this is to strike down a grand law of   
thought1 the foundation principle of    
substance1 and make the testimony of our
 own consciousness ,a ,,lie6 ,the       

inorganic forces1 about which           
unbelievers have so much to say are     
altogether operative in the realm of    
substance2 that is to say1 they belong  
to the invisible4 ,organic and inorganic
 are the same as visible and invisible4 
,we know matter by its qualities1 and we
 know mind by its qualities4 ,these two1
 in qualities or attributes1 contrast   
with each other like life and death4    
,one is extenuated and the other        
extended2 one is invisible the other is 
visible4 ,of the existence of these     
substances and their laws we have       
evidence in conscious knowledge1 in that
 we know that we have no control over   
the involuntary or sympathetic nervous  
system1 and have the most perfect       
control over the voluntary nerves4 ,the 
forces controlling are as different as  
these qualities themselves4 ,if man is  
simply a material organism1 why this    
contrast8 ,we are told that life itself 
is a group of co-ordinated functions4   
,but what correllates that force8  ,it  

is very common for the advocates of the 
evolution hypothesis to measure the     
period between this and the origin of   
life by the phrase1 ,millions and       
millions of years4 ,the only object that
 such writers have in view in so doing  
is to bridge the gulf between the       
assumed origin of life and mind and the 
evidence necessary to its establishment 
as a fact in science4 ,they tell us that
 life is a property which certain       
elements of matter exhibit when united  
in a special form under special         
conditions4 ,but when we ask them to    
give us those certain elements of       
matter1 they immediately inform us that 
matter has about sixty-three elements2  
that each element has special           
properties1 and that these elements     
admit of an infinite variety of         
combinations1 each combination having   
peculiar properties4 ,this1 as a fort1  
is a stand behind the dark1 impenetrable
 curtain of an infinite variety of      
combinations4 ,it is just as dark and as

 destitute of proof as any pope's       
assumed infallibility4  ,mr4 ,hckel     
says3 ,as a matter of course1 to the    
infinite varieties presented by the     
organic forms and vital phenomena in the
 vegetable and animal kingdoms1         
correspond an equally infinite variety  
of chemical composition in the          
protoplasm4 ,the most minute homogeneous
 constituents of this life substance1   
the protoplasm molecules1 must in their 
chemical composition present an infinite
 number of extremely delicate gradations
 and variations4 ,according to the      
plastic theory recently advanced 787 the
 great variety of vital phenomena is the
 consequence of the infinitely delicate 
chemical difference in the composition  
of protoplasm1 the sole active life     
substance4 ,what a multitude of         
infinities4 ,but then1 an infinite      
number1 and an infinite variety of      
infinitely delicate gradations and      
variations1 with millions and millions  
of years1 do not remove further from    

sight life in its origin than does the  
materialistic philosophy of one         
substance4 ,they constitute the web and 
filling of the blanket of oblivion used 
by materialistic doctors to cover up    
their ignorance of life and its origin4 
,a half dozen ,,infinities1 and         
,,millions ,,and ,,millions ,,of        
,,years6 ,what6 should ,i care if my    
ancestors were tadpoles1 when they are  
,,hid ,,away ,,in ,,the ,,center ,,of   
,,infinities1 and laid away back yonder1
 so far off as ,,millions ,,and         
,,millions ,,of ,,years8  ,when we ask  
our friends for the proof necessary to  
establish this speculation as a fact    
among facts1 they find it very          
convenient to betake themselves to      
infinities1 and millions and millions of
 years4  ,but we ,christians do not ask 
them to give us an infinite variety1    
etc41 but to give us the certain        
elements of which life is a property1   
and the special form in which these     
certain elements were united1 and the   

special conditions that existed when    
life first made its appearance by       
spontaneous generation4 ,when we do this
 we are immediately carried away into   
the infinities4 ,the result is that the 
solution of the problem of the origin of
 life by spontaneous generation1 as a   
property of certain elements of matter1 
united in a special form1 under special 
conditions1 is buried forever out of    
sight4 ,this same definition of life is 
found on page #fi of a work entitled1   
,the ,system of ,nature1 published by   
,d4 ,holbach1 a ,french ,atheist1 in    
#aggd1 in these words3 ,experience      
proves to us that the matter which we   
regard as inert and dead assumes action1
 intelligence and life when it is       
combined in a certain way4  ,voltaire   
answered3 ,this is precisely the        
difficulty4 ,how does a germ come to    
life8 ,is not this definition very      
easy--very common8 ,is not life         
organization with feeling8 ,but1 says   
,voltaire1 that you have these two      

properties from the motion of matter    
alone3 it is impossible to give any     
proof1 and if it can not be proved why  
affirm it8 ,why say aloud1 ',i know1'   
while you say to yourself1 ',i know     
not8'  ,our ,atheistic friends say3 ,the
 forms of life vary because of the      
difference in their molecular           
construction1 resulting from different  
physical conditions to which the various
 forms have been subjected4  ,wonderful 
discovery6 ,does it explain the evidence
 of design which is presented in pairing
 off male and female in the same form of
 life8  ,dr4 ,parvin is often referred  
to as frankly admitting that the        
doctrine of the evolution of species is 
accepted by three-fourths of the        
scientific men1 and that this doctrine  
has1 in their minds1 rendered nugatory  
the hypothesis of a vital immaterial    
principle as a causal factor in the     
phenomena of life and mind4 ,allowing   
this statement its full force1 it is    
still true that none but ,atheists can  

possibly be included in the             
three-fourths4 ,so much the worse for   
them4 ,but it is an ,atheistic trick to 
try to succeed by a misrepresentation of
 facts4 ,one of their number recently   
said1 ,it is now almost universally     
believed by those who have investigated 
the subject that life originated from   
natural agencies without the aid of a   
creative intelligence4 ,then those who  
have investigated the subject are almost
 universally ,atheists8  ,it is said    
that vital activity1 whether of body or 
mind1 is a mode of motion1 the          
correllate of antecedent motion4 ,but   
what correllated the force8 ,according  
to this logic life came from the        
antecedent motion2 that is1 from the    
motion of dead atoms4 ,but motion itself
 is the manifestation of energy1 and    
there must of necessity be something    
behind it to which it belongs as an     
attribute4 ,do you say it was dead      
atoms1 or matter without life8 ,then    
dead atoms set dead atoms into motion   

and produced life6 ,can you believe     
this8 ,if you can1 you need find no     
trouble in believing in the most        
orthodox hell4 ,can you get more out of 
a thing than there is in it8 ,we don't  
think so4 ,but we do think that there is
 credulity enough1 even blind credulity1
 in the advocates of spontaneous        
generation to enable them to believe    
anything they may happen to wish true4  
,we are told that life in its higher    
forms is not an immaterial entity1 nor  
the result of a special form of force   
termed vital1 but1 that it is a group of
 co-ordinated functions4 ,then what     
correllated the force8 ,if it was not   
vitality what was it8 ,but this is just 
equivalent to saying that life does not 
proceed from life4 ,so1 in the realm of 
inertia or death1 without a ,god and    
without life1 some kind of a mechanical 
operation among dead atoms took place   
which produced a certain                
chemico-physical constitution of        
amorphous matter--on that albuminous    

substance called sarcode or protoplasm1 
which evolved more than was involved1 or
 brought organic life out of dead       
inorganic matter4 ,but life is simply a 
mode1 or degree of motion8 ,but we are  
curious to know just here whether the   
advocates of this system of things do   
not believe that there always was a     
degree of motion4 ,perchance they do1   
but then they certainly can't believe   
that this particular degree or mode of  
motion which they called life was       
eternal4 ,so1 then1 a degree of motion  
is life1 and a degree of motion is not  
life4 ,this thing of confounding life   
with motion ,i'm thinking leads to      
difficulty4 ,i can see how motion may be
 the result of life1 but just how it is 
life itself ,i can't see quite so well4 
,is cause and effect the same8  ,we have
 a most remarkable1 and yet a natural1  
concession made in the way in which men 
who feel the weakness of their cause    
generally make concessions4 ,it is a    
statement said to be made by ,baron     

,liebig2 it is this3 ,geological        
investigations have established the fact
 of a beginning of life 787 upon the    
earth1 which leaves no doubt that it can
 only have arisen naturally and from    
inorganic forces1 and it is perfectly   
indifferent whether or not we observe   
such a process now4 ,this statement is  
untrue as respects geological facts4    
,but the concession is1 that spontaneous
 generation is not to be an observed    
fact4 ,perfectly indifferent whether or 
not we observe such a process now8      
,well1 it never was observed4 ,mr4      
,liebig's statement doubtless proceeds  
from the conviction that the system is  
never to be established by observation4 
,it is simple imagination4 ,virchow     
says3 ,we can only imagine that at      
certain periods of the development of   
the earth unusual conditions existed1   
under which the elements entering into  
new combinations acquired in statu      
nascente vital motions1 so that the     
usual mechanical conditions were        

transformed into vital conditions4 ,in  
this statement it is well for us to     
remember that it is not only simple     
imagination1 but also that vital motions
 were the cause1 bringing about vital   
conditions1 that is to say1 life1 before
 life was1 transformed mechanical       
conditions into vital conditions4 ,so1  
in this very singular imaginary         
hypothesis touching the origin of life  
we have the usual circle suicide of the 
system4 ,vital motions transform        
mechanical conditions into vital        
conditions1 and vital conditions fill   
the world with vital motions1 and life  
itself is only a degree or mode of      
motion4 ,such is their travel around the
 circle4        99      99      99      
99      99  ,can you believe that vital 
motion transformed mechanical conditions
 into vital conditions1 without life    
being the cause of those vital motions8 
,,difficulty ,,with ,,fire4   ,la       
,place1 in his solution of how our      
planet was made1 supposed that the      

cooling1 and consequently contracting   
rings of the fire cloud planet1 earth1  
did not break up into pieces1 but       
retained their continuity2 but1 in      
opposition to all experience and reason1
 he supposed that the cooling rings kept
 contracting and widening out at the    
same time4 ,according to the nebular    
hypothesis--or guess--the fire mist was 
cooling and shrinking up1 while the     
rings of the same heat and material were
 cooling faster and widening out from   
it3 a piece of disorder equal to a      
miracle1 for it can not be duplicated   
among solids or fluids in heaven or     
earth1 or under the earth2 for          
everything narrows down upon            
cooling--contracts6        99      99   
99      99      99  ,,the ,,infidel',s  
,,offset4--,an unbeliever once said to a
 man who advocated the doctrine of total
 depravity3 ,the ground for my rejection
 of all responsibility for belief is the
 acknowledged necessitated nature of    
belief4 ,show me1 said he1 that it is   

not necessitated1 and ,i am answered4   
,when you show me that it is controlled 
by a will1 equally necessitated1 ,i am  
not answered4 ,if a necessitated faculty
 or operation can not be responsible1   
then neither will nor volition can be   
responsible4 ,you1 said the infidel1 go 
through the whole circle of mental      
faculties1 and find necessity everywhere
 and responsibility nowhere4        99  
99      99      99      99  ,through the
 kindness of ,brother ,j4 ,m4 ,mathes we
 are in possession of a copy of the life
 of ,brother ,elijah ,goodwin4 ,it has  
the merit of being mainly ,brother      
,goodwin's own production4 ,his many    
friends will regard it as a grand       
keepsake4 ,it is neatly bound in cloth1 
contains #cad pages1 and is in beautiful
 type4 ,send #a4ej by postoffice order  
to ,elder ,j4 ,m4 ,mathes1 ,bedford1    
,lawrence county1 ,indiana1 and receive 
a copy in return4   ,transcriber's ,note
  ,the punctuation and spelling from the
 original text have been faithfully     

preserved4 ,only obvious typographical  
errors have been corrected4