material from the ,google ,print        
project47        ,scientific and        
,religious ,journal4  ,,vol4 ,i4        
,,december1 #ahhj4 ,,no4 #ab4     ,,is  
,,the ,,sinner ,a ,,moral ,,agent ,,in  
,,his ,,conversion8   ,there are a great
 many questions asked upon the subject  
of conversion1 and as many answers given
 as there are theories of religion1 and 
many persons listening to men's theories
 upon this subject are left in doubt and
 darkness in reference to what is and is
 not conversion4 ,you ask the ,mormons1 
who fully believe their theory of       
conversion1 and they will refer you to  
their own experience and the experience 
of the loyal1 self-sacrificing devotees 
of their faith4 ,ask the ,roman         
,catholic and he will give you an answer
 corresponding with his theory of       
religion4 ,all ,protestant parties give 
you their experience1 and refer you to  
their loyal and self-sacrificing        
brethren for the truthfulness of their  
theories of conversion4 ,in the midst of

 this conflict and medley of            
contradictions what are we to do8 ,shall
 we accept their experience as the      
infallible rule by which to determine   
the right from the wrong in matters     
pertaining to our present and eternal   
salvation8 ,a strange rule1 in view of  
the great contrariety of opinions and   
our liability to be misled4 ,it would   
justify ,mother ,eve1 she being         
deceived4 ,but she was found in the     
transgression4 ,we may be deceived and  
found in transgression4 ,this strange   
rule would justify ,saul2 for he verily 
thought he ought to do many things      
contrary to ,jesus1 which things he did1
 and did them in all good conscience    
towards ,god and man1 yet he was a      
blasphemer and injurious4 ,the ,master1 
in view of our liability to be deceived1
 gave us a rule of conduct in reference 
to our communications in these words3   
,let your communications be yea1 yea1   
and nay1 nay4 ,it requires heroism and  
manhood1 which is the highest degree of 

moral courage1 to say nay where         
questions of personal interest are      
involved4  ,the rule in reference to    
,god's word is different1 being based   
upon his immutability and perfections4  
,he is not deceived1 not misled1 not    
mistaken4 ,paul says in reference to the
 word of ,god1 which was preached by    
himself1 ,sylvanus and ,timotheus3 ,our 
word toward you was not yea and nay1 but
 in him was yea1 for all the promises of
 ,god in ,christ are yea1 and in him    
amen unto the glory of ,god by us4 #b   
,cor4 #a1 #ah-bj4 ,let ,god be true     
though every man be a liar1 was in the  
times of the ,apostles and first        
,christians a rule which they had no    
hesitancy in affirming4 ,a moral agent  
is one who1 with a knowledge of the     
right and wrong1 exercises the power of 
action4 ,in conversion it is the        
exercise of the power that begins       
conversion4 ,if the sinner has not this 
power1 then he is not a moral agent in  
his conversion4 ,all the differences    

among men upon the subject of conversion
 grew out of their different notions of 
,god and of men4 ,it is a matter of the 
greatest consequence to have correct    
notions of ,god and of self4 ,as        
conversion relates to both1 wrong       
notions of one will create wrong notions
 of the other4 ,those who have been     
taught to debase themselves under the   
pretext of giving glory to ,god1        
consider meanness and wrong as natural  
and inherent imperfections of their     
being1 and attributable to ,father ,adam
 and ,mother ,eve1 and neglect to       
exercise the powers at their command4   
,being taught that they are unable to do
 anything to help themselves1 they are  
left to throw the work all back upon    
,god or give it up in despair4 ,if they 
throw it back upon ,god1 and regard     
themselves as passive recipients of the 
work of conversion1 then they must      
wrestle with ,god1 for there is no use  
in wrestling with the powerless one4    
,with this view of the subject the      

world's condition is incomprehensible1  
and in direct conflict with the revealed
 character of ,god4 ,we would naturally 
suppose when we read that ,god is not   
willing that any should perish1 but that
 all should come to repentance1 that    
none would be allowed to perish on      
account of any neglect upon the divine  
side4 ,but thousands do die in their    
sins4 ,do you say it is because of their
 great wickedness8 ,in what does        
wickedness consist8 ,is it the neglect  
of that which is not in their power8    
,does not the system that ,god          
interposes in the conversion of the     
sinner rest upon the idea that the      
sinner is helpless in respect to his    
conversion8 ,it certainly does4 ,then   
why should the sinner he blamed8 ,this  
view of the sinner's moral condition    
necessitates a view of ,god utterly at  
variance with his character1 viz3 that  
he is now and then on the giving hand1  
that he consents to pour out his ,spirit
 occasionally1 and does this only where 

the good people wrestle with him and    
give him no rest day nor night4 ,one    
would think that he who spared not his  
own son1 but gave him up for us all1    
would send that ,almighty ,spirit       
everywhere1 and at once bring about the 
millennial glory4 ,what is the trouble8 
,god is love6 ,tell them1 as ,i live1   
saith the ,lord ,god1 ,i have no        
pleasure in the death of him who dieth1 
but rather that he would repent and     
live4 ,this theory of the sinner's      
helplessness is the foundation of the   
entire system of mystical conversion    
through mystical operations of the      
,spirit of ,god4 ,and as for plain and  
easy conditions of pardon and peace that
 we know all sinners can comply with1   
this system of mystical conversion sets 
them all aside4 ,so you see that        
difficulties are multiplying on our     
hands1 and unless we can start off upon 
another foot1 we must be lost in the    
mystical and incomprehensible4 ,as      
reformers1 our greatest work is to clear

 away mystical and false notions of men 
in reference to themselves and their    
,god2 to make men sensible of their     
dignity and responsibility1 as beings   
endowed with ,god-like attributes4  ,we 
have succeeded1 in most communities1 in 
killing the tap-root of the mystical    
tree of conversion--i4e41 the tenet of  
total hereditary depravity1 but the tree
 still stands erect1 and men claim that 
a wonderful outpouring of the ,spirit of
 ,god has1 in many days and nights1     
resulted in #ajj or #bjj or #cjj        
conversions4 ,but what is conversion8   
,it is lexically defined to turn upon1  
to turn towards4 ,in a moral sense1 to  
turn upon or to1 to convert unto1 to    
convert from error1 to turn to the      
service and worship of the true ,god4   
,and all who dwelt at ,lydda and ,saron 
saw him and turned to the ,lord4 ,acts  
ix1 #ce4 ,the word turned1 in the above 
text1 is a translation of the ,greek    
term that is nine times rendered convert
 in its forms and thirty-eight times    

turn in its forms4 ,they1 the people of 
,lydda and ,saron1 turned1 converted to 
the ,lord4 ,did they do it8 ,then they  
were active and not passive4 ,it was an 
act of their own4 ,repent and turn      
yourselves4--,eze4 xviii1 #cj4 ,here the
 ,lord commanded sinners to convert     
themselves4 ,cast away from you all your
 transgressions1 whereby ye have        
transgressed1 and make you a new heart  
and a new spirit2 for why will ye die1  
,o house of ,israel8 ,eze4 xviii1 #ca4  
,if the wicked will turn1 convert1 from 
all his sins that he hath committed1 and
 keep all my statutes1 and do that which
 is lawful and right1 he shall surely   
live1 he shall not die4 ,eze4 xviii1    
#ca4 ,here we discover that the burden  
of conversion and the entire            
responsibility of an unconverted state  
is thrown upon the sinner4  ,the        
,apostles taught men to convert         
themselves4 ,see ,acts xiv1 #ae4 ,we    
also are men of like passions with you1 
and preach unto you1 that ye should     

turn1 convert1 from these vanities to   
the living ,god4 ,paul says1 ,he showed 
first unto them of ,damascus1 and at    
,jerusalem and throughout all the coasts
 of ,judea1 and then to the ,gentiles1  
that they should turn1 convert1 to ,god1
 and do works meet for1 worthy of1      
repentance4 ,acts xxvi1 #bj4 ,speaking  
of the unbelieving ,jews he said1 ,but  
their minds were blinded2 for until this
 day remaineth the same vail untaken    
away in the reading of the ,old         
,testament1 which vail is done away in  
,christ4 ,but even unto this day1 when  
,moses is read1 the vail is upon their  
heart4 ,nevertheless1 when it shall     
turn1 convert1 to the ,lord1 the vail   
shall be taken away4 #b;d ,corinthians1 
iii1 #ad-af4 ,here we find that the     
heart must do its own turning1          
converting4 ,poor ,jews6 ,could they    
help themselves8 ,yes1 it all depended  
upon their own actions4 ,the ,,infinite 
,,one did as much for them as for any   
others4 ,they closed their eyes and     

stopped their ears1 lest at any time    
they should see with their eyes1 and    
hear with their ears1 and understand    
with their hearts1 and be converted and 
healed4 ,why did the ,master not say1   
,and ,i should convert and heal them8   
,ans4 ,conversion is a commandment of   
,god1 and sinners must obey it or       
perish4  ,the above quotation is made   
from ,isaiah vi1 #aj1 where it reads3   
,lest they should see with their eyes1  
and hear with their ears1 and understand
 with their hearts1 and convert1 and ,i 
should heal them4 ,paul1 speaking of the
 disciples in ,macedonia and ,achaia1   
says3 ,they themselves show of us what  
manner of entering in we had unto you1  
and how ye turned1 converted1 to ,god   
from idols to serve the living and true 
,god4 #a ,thess41 i1 #h1 #i4 ,repent ye 
therefore and be converted1 is passive  
in our translation1 but imperative      
active in the original4 ,in the ,geneva 
text it reads3 ,amend your lives and    
turn4 ,so conversion is a commandment of

 ,god4 ,if there is anything necessary  
to conversion that is not in the power  
of the sinner1 why should he be         
commanded to convert8 ,if the trouble is
 in his corruption1 through inborn      
depravity1 why are some converted and   
others not8 ,if there is anything in    
conversion that is not in the power of  
the sinner1 then he must of necessity be
 saved without it1 or remain unavoidably
 in sin--doomed to misery4  ,webster    
defines the term convert to change from 
one state to another1 as to convert a   
barren waste into a fruitful field2 to  
convert a wilderness into a garden2 to  
convert rude savages into civilized men2
 to change or turn from one party or    
sect to another--as to convert ,pagans  
to ,christianity1 to turn from a bad    
life to a good one1 to change the heart 
and moral character from enmity to ,god 
and from vicious habits to the love of  
,god and to a holy life4 ,hence the     
ancient commandment3 ,make you a new    
heart and a new spirit1 for why will you

 die4 ,eze4 xviii1 #cb4 ,thou shalt love
 the ,lord thy ,god with all thy heart1 
and with all thy mind1 and with all thy 
strength4 ,is this out of your power8   
,then who is to blame8 ,does the blessed
 ,father command you to do what you can 
not8 ,are you thus lost without remedy8 
,does the ,lord mock you with           
commandments that you can not obey8 ,the
 importance of conversion is in the fact
 that it is the turning point or        
dividing line between those who serve   
,god and those who serve him not4  ,i4  
,the ,lord commands sinners to convert4 
,,ii4 ,the ,lord's commandments are     
duties that sinners owe to ,god4        
,therefore1 conversion is a duty that   
the sinner owes to ,god4 ,it is the     
sinner's duty2 then he must perform it4 
,we have seen that the ,lord commands   
it1 and that sinners did perform it4 ,do
 you say it is a work begun upon them   
and accomplished by them8 ,then sinners 
must be passive in the beginning of this
 work1 and the beginning is most        

essential1 for unless the thing is begun
 it will never be accomplished4 ,is this
 beginning the work of ,god wrought upon
 the sinner by a special operation of   
the ,holy ,spirit8 ,if this be so it    
follows that the entire ,christian life 
is of necessity1 and not of choice1 for 
the root always bears the tree1 and not 
the tree the root4 ,if the cause is the 
unconditioned power of ,god1 the effects
 growing out of that cause are the      
fruits of necessity2 and so the         
,christian is a necessitated creature1  
and entitled to neither praise or       
reward1 for it was not he that did it1  
but ,god4 ,and in this case the sinner  
is not a moral agent1 for in moral      
agency the sinner1 with a knowledge of  
the right and the wrong1 begins the work
 himself and does it himself4 ,this does
 not exclude the instrumentality of     
,christ1 the ,apostles1 prophets and    
,christians1 who1 by the words of the   
,holy ,spirit1 have placed before       
sinners all the knowledge necessary to  

give them correct ideas of duty1 and    
also the motives to be accepted4 ,an    
agent is one who has power to begin     
action1 and moral agency in conversion  
is the exercise of that power1 with a   
knowledge of the right and the wrong1   
and so it comes to pass that conversion 
to ,god always makes a ,christian1      
provided1 however1 that the man1 knowing
 what to turn from and what to turn to1 
honestly turned from the wrong to the   
right1 which is the same as to say that 
he was a moral agent in his conversion4 
,a man may turn without a knowledge of  
the right and the wrong1 but it is      
turning round and round and remaining in
 the same place1 i4e4 in ignorance of   
,god's will1 and so remaining in        
disobedience4 ,such may be and often is4
  ,in all such cases the person has been
 the creature of passion1 wrought upon  
by excitement1 and left in ignorance of 
duty in disobedience to the gospel of   
,christ4 ,a good rule by which to       
determine when such is the case1 and it 

is the ,master's rule1 is the           
unwillingness of the person to do the   
commandments of ,god1 and to receive for
 instruction upon the subject of duty1  
his word1 an unteachable disposition1   
which not only refuses to obey when the 
commandments are presented1 but         
absolutely persists in opposing them4 ,a
 man in this condition is worse than    
ignorant1 his heart is irreconciled to  
the government of ,god1 and he may turn 
around and around and die in sin and    
transgression4 ,do you object that ,god 
controls in conversion1 and1 therefore1 
the man is illuminated in a mysterious  
manner1 and necessitated aright--that he
 is a necessitated moral agent8         
,necessitated moral agency and free     
slavery are identical4 ,there is no such
 thing as necessitated moral agency4    
,what ,i am compelled to do is not mine1
 but his who compelled me4 ,all that we 
call moral or immoral1 virtuous or      
vicious1 praiseworthy or blameworthy1 in
 our conduct1 depends wholly upon the   

will4 ,it begins in us and is done by   
us4 ,it is ours and we will answer for  
it4 ,no man is to be blamed or praised  
for that which he neither had power to  
do or avoid4 ,this1 in harmony with the 
words agent and action1 is saying no    
more than that a man is to be praised or
 blamed for actions done by himself and 
not by another4 ,it is the gospel rule1 
that every man shall receive according  
to that which he bath done2 that every  
man shall give account of himself to    
,god4  ,if the sinner is to blame for   
remaining in an unconverted state1 then 
of necessity conversion is his own      
voluntary act2 a duty imperatively      
enjoined upon him1 in the performance of
 which he needs to be guided by the     
knowledge of the right and the wrong1 as
 much as in any other duty4 ,on the     
other hand1 if it is a work wrought upon
 the man by a special effort of the     
,holy ,spirit1 then the man is free from
 all responsibility in the premises1 for
 he will answer only for his own work4  

,keep thy heart with all diligence1 for 
out of it are the issues of life4 ,prov4
 iv1 #bc4 ,he taught me also1 and said  
unto me3 ,let thine heart retain my     
words2 keep my commandments and live4   
,prov4 iv1 #d4 ,hear thou1 my son1 and  
be wise1 and guide thine heart in the   
way4 ,prov4 xxiii1 #ai4    ,man1 with   
naught in charge1 could betray no trust1
   ,and if he fell1 would fall because  
he must4   ,if love reward him1 or      
vengeance strike1   ,his recompense in  
both would be unjust alike4  ,if the    
sinner is passive in his conversion he  
can claim no reward1 for it is the act  
of another4 ,all action is the work of  
an agent1 of a being who acts4 ,and     
every being who acts is the beginner of 
the motion which constitutes the action4
 ,the bullet that kills the man1 the    
explosion that makes it fly1 the        
sparkles from the cap which produce the 
explosion1 are not agents1 all being    
equally passive2 nor is it the finger   
operating upon the trigger that begins  

the motion2 that also is a passive      
instrument2 it is the mind giving to the
 finger direction and energy which is   
the mover in this business1 and as such1
 is1 properly speaking1 the agent4 ,but 
if we were super-naturally informed that
 the mind thus exerted was made to do so
 by the mysterious and irresistible     
impulse of a superior being1 we should  
instantly declare that being the agent1 
and the mind irresistibly influenced    
only a passive instrument1 and no more  
to blame than the gunpowder4 ,now1 if   
the sinner is passive he is no more to  
blame or praise than the passive        
instruments employed by the murderer4   
,and if he is not passive1 but active1  
then the thing is begun and done by     
himself as the real agent4 ,action      
implies motion1 and where there is no   
power to begin motion there can not be  
action1 but rest4 ,if the sinner has    
power to begin that action called       
conversion1 then he is a moral agent in 
his conversion1 provided that he begins 

it with a knowledge of the right and the
 wrong in their relations to the        
subject1 for action without knowledge of
 duty is not conversion to the service  
of ,god4 ,in this case the moral element
 is wanting1 the man acts blindly from  
impulse or passion2 which is no more    
than saying that men must know what to  
convert from1 and what to convert to1   
before they can act intelligently as    
rational moral agents4 ,as such1 the    
thing of first importance is to teach   
men the will of ,god upon the subject of
 conversion1 that they may know what to 
do4 ,anciently men were told what to do4
 ,and the gospel of ,christ tells men   
the same story yet4 ,if the sinner is   
the agent in his conversion then he     
should give himself no rest until he    
learns his duty and does it4 ,but if he 
is not1 then he might just as well rest 
contented1 for the passive stone that   
has no power to change its place must   
rest4 ,to say that the sinner has the   
power to change is giving up the        

question4 ,and when this is once given  
up all good people will go to work upon 
sinners to teach them their duty1 and   
persuade them to turn1 convert1 to ,god4
 ,and the ,lord will no longer be       
regarded by sensible skeptics as a very 
changeable being4  ,the ancient         
,christians did not wrestle with ,god in
 the work of saving sinners4 ,he was    
always willing that men should be saved1
 and is yet willing4 ,if we were to     
wrestle with him in solemn prayer all   
our days he would not be more willing   
than he is at this moment4  ,why is it  
that all men are not saved8 ,ans4--,the 
,lord commands men to convert1 turn and 
live4 ,turn from what8 ,ans4--,from the 
will of the flesh and from the will of  
man4 ,to what8 ,ans4--,to the gospel of 
,christ4 ,and they refuse to do it4 ,to 
say the sinner has not the power is to  
relieve him1 forever1 of all            
responsibility for his continuance in an
 unconverted state1 and throw it1       
forever1 upon ,god4 ,to say the sinner  

has not the power1 and in the next      
breath tell him that he has1 is a square
 contradiction and a self-evident       
falsehood1 only equaled by the statement
 that a thing is a round square1 or that
 ice is red hot4 ,let whatever fall that
 may1 it is true that a thing can not   
be1 exist1 and not be1 not exist1 at the
 same time4 ,the sinner is either       
passive or active in his conversion4 ,he
 can not be both4 ,if he has not the    
power to begin and convert1 it follows  
that all who have died in sin were fated
 to ruin without remedy4 ,philosophers  
have said1 that the will is determined  
by motives1 purposes1 intentions1 or    
reasons4 ,granting this to be true1 we  
can not admit that the will is          
necessarily determined by motives and   
purposes2 for it is the self-determining
 power of the mind that gives a motive1 
or reason1 that weight and influence    
whereby our course is determined4 ,in   
other words1 it depends on ourselves    
whether we will act from one motive or  

another4  ,action from motive always    
begins in ourselves4 ,and if conversion 
is the result of motive power1 it begins
 in ourselves and by ourselves4 ,let a  
man be tempted to steal1 his motive is  
the love of money4 ,but if he refrains  
from the deed1 his motive is a regard   
for duty4 ,if he suffers himself to be  
governed by the first1 he is a thief and
 deserves punishment1 but if he allows  
himself to be governed by the second1 he
 has done well4 ,the laws of every      
country suppose that men have it in     
their power to give to either motive    
that regard which will determine their  
conduct4 ,the divine laws allow the     
same1 placing motives high as heaven    
before sinners for their acceptance1 and
 warning them with restraining threats  
deep as hell4 ,and if sinners will not  
receive these threats and act           
accordingly1 they are without excuse4   
,the scriptures allow that men convert  
from ,god4 ,how is this8 ,have men power
 to cross the chasm backwards1 and are  

not able1 at the same time to cross it  
in a forward movement8 ,strange logic1  
this6 ,it is the same old philosophy    
that sinners have the power to go to    
hell1 but none to get to heaven2 that   
they are free1 like the slave1 to do the
 tyrant's bidding2 that they are free   
like the water that stands in the pool2 
that they are mechanically free1 are    
simply active when wrought upon1 the    
same as any machinery4 ,if this be so1  
why is it that so many are left in an   
unconverted state8 ,is it because the   
good ,spirit prefers the existence of   
iniquity and crime8 ,if the ,lord brings
 about the salvation of some1 through a 
mighty outpouring of his ,spirit1 then  
we shall never comprehend his ways4 ,why
 is it that he does not give us one     
general outpouring1 one grand revival   
all over our country1 and bring about   
the long prayed for millennial day8     
,answer4--,conversion is a commandment  
of ,god4 ,it must be obeyed or the      
country lie1 in direct opposition to the

 will of ,god1 in sin4 ,his will is     
expressed in the words1 ,let the wicked 
forsake his way1 and the unrighteous man
 his thoughts1 and let him return1      
reconvert1 unto the ,lord1 and he will  
have mercy upon him1 and to our ,god1   
for he will abundantly pardon4  ,to     
,israel he saith1 all the day long have 
,i stretched forth my hands unto a      
gainsaying and disobedient people4 ,ro4 
x1 #ba4 ,the ,lord strove with them by  
his ,spirit in the prophets1 and bore   
with them many years1 yet they would not
 hear4 ,nehe4 ix1 #cj4 ,they made their 
hearts as an adamant stone lest they    
should hear the law1 and the words which
 the ,lord of hosts hath sent in his    
spirit by the former prophets4 ,zech4   
vii1 #ab4 ,jesus wept over them when he 
stood upon ,mount ,olivet and expressed 
the greatness of his great heart in     
these words3 ,how often would ,i have   
gathered thy children together as a hen 
doth gather her brood under her wings1  
and ye would not4 ,lu4 xiii1 #cd4 ,their

 failure was not because the ,spirit did
 not strive with them as it did with    
others who were saved4 ,god is no       
respecter of persons4 ,neither was it on
 account of inborn depravity4 ,for if   
any were corrupted in their moral nature
 by ,adam's sin1 all were corrupted     
alike4 ,so that each one would be in    
this respect equally hard to overcome4  
,but why bring up inborn corruption and 
helplessness8 ,is not the ,spirit of    
,god able for any task which is in its  
own line of work8 ,jesus gave the true  
solution of the question4 ,he said3     
,their hearts have waxed gross1 and     
their ears are dull of hearing1 and     
their eyes they have closed1 lest at any
 time they should see with their eyes1  
and hear with their ears1 and understand
 with their hearts and be converted1 and
 ,i should heal them4 ,the words at any 
time deserve particular attention1 for  
the ,lord's time is all the time4 ,he is
 unchangeable4 ,he is not willing that  
any should perish1 but that all should  

come to repentance4 #b ,pet4 iii1 #i4   
,many people talk and act as though the 
,lord was the most changeable being in  
the universe4 ,they seem to think that  
the unchangeableness of the ,lord is in 
the idea that he is everlastingly       
changing4 ,let us imagine a perfect     
circle with a stone permanently fixed in
 the center and a man walking within1   
and every move he makes from side to    
side affecting his relations to the     
center4 ,so it is with ,god and the     
children of men4 ,he is immutable4 ,he  
is the center of the circle4 ,in the    
right hand side of this circle are the  
innocent and the obedient1 in the       
enjoyment of all its riches1 peace1     
pardon and all spiritual blessings4     
,these blessings were provided for all  
men1 and presented in the gospel of     
peace2 and in the left side of this     
circle are all the threatenings of ,god 
and all the wickedness and miseries of  
men4 ,the wicked at the left are able to
 convert around to the right4 ,in doing 

this they leave their sins and miseries 
and come around where all the blessings 
of the great salvation have always been1
 are1 and will be until time is no more4
 ,in all the work of human redemption   
there is no place for change in ,god4   
,the center has never changed4 ,man     
alone changes4 ,god has not bestowed    
special pardoning grace4 ,such          
phraseology is unknown in the gospel4   
,his grace was given us in ,jesus       
,christ before the world began4 #b ,tim4
 i1 #i4 ,all that we or any others have 
to do is to live on the ,christ side of 
this circle--the right hand4 ,if we are 
sinners it is our duty to convert around
 to the right into new relations        
containing all that is grand1 glorious  
and desirable4 ,the sinner1 led by the  
motives of the gospel1 changes sides2   
leaving the kingdom of darkness upon the
 left1 and crossing the line drawn      
through the center of the circle1 he    
passes into the kingdom of light4 ,it   
seems strange that intelligent men and  

women should be constantly throwing     
mystery around a matter that is so plain
 and simple4 ,but we are aware that1 by 
long dwelling on an idea1 and from the  
excited and abnormal sensitiveness of   
the mind1 we sometimes lose ourselves to
 truth amidst our own creations1 which  
become in the imagination stern         
realities1 producing a species of       
monomania or religious insanity4  ,long 
dwelling upon the idea that conversion  
is a special work of ,god destroys all  
disposition to convert1 and causes men  
to be at ease in disobedience4 ,we will 
to do those things1 and those only1     
which we believe to be in our power4 ,we
 are not so destitute of common sense as
 to undertake that which we know to be  
out of our power4 ,i never attempt to   
fly1 or raise a weight that ,i know to  
be far above my strength4 ,so it is in  
the question of conversion4 ,if ,i      
believe it to be a work that is beyond  
my power1 there will be a corresponding 
indifference upon my part4 ,as long as  

men are made to believe that ,god must  
convert them by a special interposition 
of his ,spirit1 so long their minds will
 be directed1 beyond the plain duties of
 the gospel1 to the realm of the        
mysterious and incomprehensible4 ,in    
ancient times1 when men were plainly    
told to convert--turn--to ,god and do   
works worthy of repentance1 when the    
mists and mysticles of the schoolmen and
 dogmatists of all sects and parties had
 not1 as yet1 beclouded the minds of    
men1 nor corrupted the simplicity of the
 ,gospel1 thousands were converted in a 
day4 ,christianity overran the inhabited
 earth in the space of a few years4     
,judaism and ,paganism trembled and     
crumbled before its mighty power4 ,but  
now the religious world is contending   
with sin and crime1 under the great     
disadvantages of a perverted mind and a 
,gospel beclouded with the smoke of     
,babylon1 and the result is that        
three-score souls brought into the      
church is a great success for the labors

 of weeks1 and even months4 ,why should 
this be so8 ,it need not be4 ,it would  
not be but for the wrong teaching       
consequent upon creeds4 ,it is said1    
,that many of the ,corinthians hearing1 
believed and were baptized4 ,their minds
 were clear upon the great subjects of  
human duty and the goodness1 love and   
mercy of ,god4 ,they had no long        
sessions1 in which they were wrestling  
with ,god as though he was insensitive  
and indifferent upon the subject of the 
sinner's salvation4  ,they were told the
 story of ,god's love1 and made         
acquainted with the great fact that all 
things were ready for their reception2  
that ,christ had finished the work which
 the ,father had given him to do1 and   
that it only remained for them to       
believe and obey the ,gospel and all    
would be well4 ,they were commanded to  
convert to the service of ,god4 ,this   
work was not given into the hands of    
,christ to perform4 ,it is the sinner's 
own work4 ,christ will not believe for  

you4 ,he will not repent for you4 ,he   
will not convert for you4 ,conversion is
 the overt action of the will carried   
out in breaking off from sins by        
righteousness4 ,it begins in the heart1 
but it does not end there4 ,murder      
begins in the heart1 but its            
consummation is the action of the will  
carried out4 ,the man first yielded to  
the temptation by saying1 in his heart1 
,i will4 ,the next thing in the order   
was carrying out the will in the deed4  
,nothing short of the deed done would   
have met the statement in the heart1 ,i 
will4 ,so it is in conversion4 ,the man 
first says in his heart1 ,i will1 ,i    
will forsake my former course of life   
and be a ,christian1 ,i will obey ,god1 
,i will do his will4 ,and nothing short 
of doing the will of ,god as it is      
addressed to him in the ,gospel will    
carry out the action of the will1 and   
meet the demands of the statement1 ,i   
will4 ,whosoever will let him come and  
take the water of life freely4 ,so the  

tree is known by its fruits4 ,he that   
saith ,i know him1 acknowledge him1 and 
keepeth not his commandments is a liar1 
and the truth is not in him4 #a ,jno4   
ii1 #d4  ,as regards the                
instrumentalities employed in persuading
 men1 ,i have only to say1 that men were
 always free as moral agents1 to        
convert--turn1 under the weakest        
instrumentality1 or refuse under the    
most powerful4 ,the ,lord himself strove
 with the ancient ,jews by his ,spirit  
in his prophets1 and they would not hear
 but resisted the ,spirit4 ,stephen1    
after he had made one grand effort to   
instruct his hearers1 said1 ,ye         
stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart 
and ears1 ye do always resist the ,holy 
,spirit2 as your fathers did so do ye4  
,acts vii1 #ea4 ,was the condition of   
those fellows unavoidable8 ,if it was1  
they were not to blame4 ,but there was  
nothing in their condition that was not 
in their power4 ,if there was1 why      
should we find these words in their law1

 circumcise the foreskin of your heart1 
and be no more stiff-necked4 ,deut4 x1  
#af4 ,the ,lord has made the salvation  
of all men possible1 otherwise those    
remaining in an unconverted state1 and  
dying in their sins1 are unavoidably    
lost4 ,and who is to blame8 ,the ,father
 so loved the world that he gave his    
only begotten son to die for every man4 
,he sent him to be the ,savior of the   
world4 ,the ,gospel is the ministration 
of the ,spirit4 ,the ,apostles preached 
it with the ,holy ,spirit sent down from
 heaven4 ,they received grace and       
,apostleship1 for the obedience of faith
 among all nations1 for ,christ's name4 
,rom4 i1 #e4 ,a great and grand law     
governed them4 ,in obeying it they did  
all that they ever did for the world or 
for the church4 ,there were just three  
duties prescribed in that law4 ,the     
first is in the word teach1 or1 the     
better rendering1 disciple4 ,the second 
is in the word baptizing2 and the third 
is in the phrase teaching them to       

observe all things whatsoever ,i have   
commanded you4 ,the whole is beautifully
 rendered thus1 ,going therefore1       
disciple all nations1 baptizing them    
into the name of the ,father1 and of the
 ,son1 and of the ,holy ,spirit4 ,and   
the whole is rested upon a declaration  
of kingly authority1 viz3 ,all power in 
heaven and upon earth is given into my  
hands1 going therefore1--you see the    
connection4  ,go to the ,acts of the    
,apostles and read for yourselves and   
see how they turned men to ,god4 ,paul  
says1 ,that he showed first to them of  
,damascus1 and at ,jerusalem1 and       
throughout all the coasts of ,judea1 and
 then to the ,gentiles1 that they should
 repent and turn1 convert1 to ,god1 and 
do works meet for repentance4 ,some     
disobeyed under the preaching and       
teaching of the ,apostles4 ,some under  
the teachings of ,christ4 ,and many     
rejected the council of ,god against    
themselves in not being baptized of     
,john's baptism4 ,jesus said1 ,go ye    

into all the world1 and preach the      
gospel to every creature2 he that       
believeth and is baptized shall be      
saved1 and he that believeth not shall  
be damned4 ,paul was preaching at       
,corinth2 many of the ,corinthians      
hearing1 believed1 and were baptized1   
and ,jesus appeared unto him in a vision
 by night1 and said1 ,speak boldly and  
hold not thy peace1 and ,i will let no  
man set on thee to hurt thee4  ,christ  
gave the commission and ,paul was       
carrying it out4 ,the ,savior's visit to
 ,corinth1 in vision1 was to encourage  
,paul to go on4 ,would all the preachers
 in this country encourage such a work  
by speaking well of it8 ,would they say1
 ,go on8 ,if ,i was preaching in a great
 city under the same circumstances that 
surrounded ,paul in ,corinth1 and the   
days of miracles were not past1 ,i might
 rationally conclude that ,jesus would  
encourage me in the same manner4 ,be    
that as it may1 one thing is doubtless  
true1 viz41 the same work is the ,lord's

 work yet1 and his visit to ,corinth to 
encourage ,paul is a great source of    
encouragement to us4 ,the primitive     
,christians were all baptized believers2
 all converted to the service of ,god2  
none of them on probation1 but all in   
the fellowship4 ,all were sanctified    
unto obedience1 all had purified their  
souls in obeying the truth through the  
,spirit4 ,many reverse the order thus3  
,get your souls purified and then obey  
the truth4 ,but ,christ has become the  
,author of eternal salvation unto all   
those who obey him4 ,heb4 v1 #i4 ,jesus 
said1 ,except a man be born of water and
 of the ,spirit1 he can not enter into  
the kingdom of ,god4 ,whatever this     
language may mean it is accomplished    
when the sinner is begotten in ,christ  
,jesus through the gospel and baptized  
into ,christ4  ,paul said of the        
,corinthians3 ,in ,christ ,jesus have ,i
 begotten you through the ,gospel4 ,and 
they1 ,hearing1 believed and were       
baptized4 ,and ,james said3 ,of his own 

will begat he us with the word of truth4
 ,consequently1 the entire meaning is in
 the power of all sinners who have      
access to the ,gospel of ,christ4       
,otherwise1 the sinner is unavoidably   
lost for his unavoidable unbelief4 ,but 
we are told in ,john's ,record1 i1 #ab1 
,that as many as received him to them   
gave he power to become the sons of     
,god1 even to them that believe on his  
name4 ,so the power of the sinner to    
become a son of ,god depends upon his   
belief on the name of the ,son of ,god1 
and if he can not believe it is no fault
 of his4 ,poor fellow6 ,is he thus      
doomed8 ,if he can believe on the name  
of ,christ he is able to reach the      
relation of a son4 ,for the divine law  
grants the privilege1 liberty or power  
to as many as believe on the name of    
,christ4 ,the primitive ,christians were
 the children of ,god by faith in ,jesus
 ,christ1 for as many as were baptized  
into ,christ put on ,christ4 ,gal4 iii1 
#bf1 #bg4 ,john said3 ,little children1 

let no man deceive you3 he that doth    
righteousness is righteous1 even as he  
is righteous4 #a ,john iii1 #g4 ,if ye  
know that he is righteous1 ye know that 
every one that doth righteousness is    
born of him4 #a ,john ii1 #bi4 ,the     
great appeal to man as a moral agent is 
in these words3 ,know ye not that to    
whom ye yield yourselves servants to    
obey1 his servants ye are to whom ye    
obey2 whether of sin unto death1 or of  
obedience unto righteousness4 ,rom4 vi1 
#af4 ,do you not know this8 ,do you not 
know that you will receive1 in the great
 day1 according to that which you have  
done1 whether it be good or bad8 ,then  
why not obey the ,gospel and enjoy its  
promises8     ,,our ,,indebtedness ,,to 
,,revelation--,no4 ,,vi4  ,,by ,p4,t4   
,,russell4   ,,the ,,nature ,,of ,,man  
,,necessitated ,,revelation4  ,the above
 proposition rests upon and is in       
harmony with all the relations existing 
between natural wants and supplies1     
being itself a supply4 ,does the power  

of vision make light a necessity8 ,yes2 
without it the eye would be useless4    
,could man create his own light8 ,it has
 taken ages upon ages to invent the     
limited artificial light which we now   
have4 ,man is endowed with the powers of
 locomotion4 ,could he create an earth  
to move upon8 ,could he create the air  
for breathing8 ,were these and all such 
matters necessities8 ,and was man       
entirely unable to provide for his own  
natural wants8 ,the faculties with which
 man is endowed call for these supplies1
 and they are necessities on account of 
the existence of these faculties4 ,think
 of a being1 if you can1 with the powers
 of vision in the entire absence of     
light1 with no air to breathe nor earth 
to move upon4 ,do you say such would be 
a grand failure8 ,so it would4 ,but the 
,creator has not given powers to man for
 which he has no use1 having nothing to 
meet their demands4 ,the existence of a 
faculty or power leads logically to the 
conclusion which all candid1 intelligent

 people have reached1 viz3 that the     
,creator has made a supply for the use  
of every faculty1 or power which was    
designed and provided4 ,do you ask1 what
 of all this8 ,i answer1 man has the    
power to become religious1 but he had no
 more power to invent a supply for this 
faculty than he had to create light for 
the eye or air to breathe4 ,so the      
necessity for this must be met with a   
supply from the ,creator as well as all 
other natural demands or powers4  ,now1 
as we have a desire for the knowledge   
that we are approved of ,god1 and as    
religion consists in this knowledge1 and
 in the knowledge of our relations1     
dependence and obligations to ,god2 and1
 as we have but one means of obtaining  
this knowledge1 and that is the means of
 his will concerning us1 then by knowing
 through that will that our actions are 
such as he desires and approves1 the one
 question remains to be answered1 ,how  
can man obtain the knowledge of the will
 of another concerning himself8         

,ans4--,only by a revelation of the will
 of the one to the other4 ,i know not   
the will of the reader of this essay    
concerning myself4 ,my style of writing 
may not please him1 but if he would tell
 me just how he wishes me to write1     
then1 by following his directions1 ,i   
should obtain the knowledge of his      
approbation as a necessary result       
experienced in my own mental nature4    
,this is plain1 but no more plain than  
,god's revelation to man and its results
 experienced in conscious knowledge4    
,,an ,,important ,,thought4  ,in order  
to man's highest happiness1 all his     
powers must be so called into activity  
by education that each faculty may act  
with energy1 but at the same time in    
exact harmony with all of its kindred   
powers4 ,there must be no clash1 no jar 
nor friction4 ,no one power must be     
highly exercised and cultivated at the  
expense of the rest1 but each must be   
brought out by its own appropriate food4
 ,material food is for the body--it can 

not feed upon thought1 nor mind upon    
bread4 ,man should not live upon bread  
alone4 ,this is an axiomatic truth      
endorsed by man's two-fold nature4 ,if  
you feed and exercise the body only you 
may acquire the strength of an ,ajax1   
but your countenance will be as stolid  
and your eye as dull as the             
,hottentot's4 ,such a fellow would be of
 almost no use whatever4 ,add to the    
education of the body the cultivation of
 the intellect only2 now the prospect is
 fearful1 for the intellect always works
 for its master1 and in this case1 the  
man being without moral and religious   
training1 the master ,will be his animal
 desires4 ,can you imagine the depth of 
infamy and pollution that is possible in
 this case8 ,the entire motive power    
that moves his intellect is carnal1     
sensual and devilish4 ,he now needs the 
sanction of a higher authority4 ,the man
 is but half educated4 ,there are two   
groups of faculties in his nature that  
are lying dormant4 ,his moral and       

religious powers have not as yet been   
brought into action--they have had no   
food nor exercise1 and without this     
there can be no development4 ,these1 as 
well as the intellect and the body1 must
 have their own appropriate food1 which 
must be in kind with their nature4      
,moral truth is for the moral powers4   
,this directs us in our moral relations 
and obligations to our fellows with whom
 we may be associated4 ,religious truth 
is for our religious faculties4 ,now add
 to all this the sanction of the        
authority of ,god1 which is like the    
balance-wheel in a watch1 regulating and
 controlling every movement4 ,man1 thus 
educated1 is prepared to act in harmony 
with his entire nature4 ,he can now     
reach a position of moral1 religious1   
social and intellectual grandeur worthy 
of his nature4  ,reader1 is all of this 
demanded by the elements of our nature8 
,then a revelation of ,god to man of the
 knowledge of his being1 wisdom1        
goodness1 power1 authority and law was  

and is a necessity1 without which man   
must have remained in part uneducated1  
not perfectly developed4  ,is the       
development of man's religious nature   
necessary in order to a full1 perfect   
and harmonious growth8 ,yes4 ,there     
neither is1 nor can be1 a harmonious    
growth while any one power is dwarfed by
 starvation4 ,without the knowledge of  
,god man's religious powers must remain 
dwarfed1 and these can not be fed       
without a revelation4 ,are these powers 
so many empty buckets1 never filled and 
never to be filled8 ,no4 ,hence my      
conclusion1 that man's nature made      
revelation a necessity1 rests upon the  
bed-rock of truth4 ,let him who feels   
able try to shake my position4          
,,revelation ,,probable4  ,our series of
 essays are such that this requires no  
argument here4 ,there are certain       
analogies that we may1 nevertheless1    
speak of1 which will not down at the    
bidding of ,david's fool4 ,the facts    
stand thus3 a supply for each and every 

one of our other faculties1 sufficient  
in quantity for all their necessities1  
is placed within our reach for their    
use4 ,now let us look at the analogy4 ,i
 have food to eat1 good water to drink1 
light for the eye1 air to breathe1 and a
 good earth to walk upon and space in   
which to move1 beauties of nature to    
admire1 its music to listen to with     
rapture1 and things with their          
combinations to perceive and think of4  
,now1 ,mr4 ,skeptic1 you know that man  
has religious faculties1 otherwise he   
could never become religious1 no more   
than he could see without eyes and hear 
without ears4 ,now1 what say you8 ,did  
the author of all things make a mistake 
here by conferring upon us a power that 
would be of no use8 ,is this the reason 
of your rejection of religion8 ,do you  
say it is of no use8 ,or do you say that
 the ,great ,creator and wise and       
merciful ,provider forgot to give a     
supply just here8 ,come6 ,you boast of  
reason4 ,give us your reason4 ,will you8

 ,to one or the other of these          
conclusions you are irresistibly driven4
 ,no other retreat is open4 ,take       
either1 and1 if true1 the harmony of the
 universe is destroyed4 ,take either1   
and your folly is so plain that it needs
 no words of mine to point it out4 ,this
 is the true conclusion2 all analogy    
points directly and clearly to the      
probability and fact of a revelation4   
,a ,,revelation ,,of ,,that ,,which     
,,was ,,necessary8  ,to answer this     
question we must keep in mind the nature
 of man's religious powers1 and from    
this deduce the nature of the supply    
that is called for4 ,would the simple   
idea of the existence of a first cause1 
or creator of all things1 be sufficient8
 ,this idea1 by itself1 could not       
quicken reverence and adoration and a   
desire to worship1 and without these    
there is no religion4 ,would a          
knowledge1 by revelation1 of the power1 
intelligence1 wisdom and goodness of    
,god be sufficient in the absence of    

anything more8 ,no4 ,what more8 ,would  
it not be enough1 in addition to what   
you have named1 to have a knowledge of  
our relation to and dependence upon him 
for all we enjoy8 ,no2 we must have one 
thing more shown to us or the whole will
 be imperfect and unworthy of ,god as   
its author4 ,religion can not be without
 something to do1 and that something    
must be done upon or by the authority of
 its author4 ,add this to all the other 
items and the system is complete1       
meeting perfectly the necessities of    
man's nature4   ,,the ,,necessary       
,,order ,,of ,,revelation4  ,the proper 
arrangement of the various parts of any 
communication designed to convey        
knowledge from one to others1 is an     
important factor in this subject of     
revelation4 ,remember the clear is the  
true4 ,this is the case in all methodic 
arrangements2 to this rule there are no 
exceptions4 ,the fundamental truth must 
first be developed4 ,a child must first 
be instructed in the rudiments of       

numbers in order to learn the science of
 mathematics1 otherwise no sensible     
progress can be made4 ,intricate        
problems in ,euclid are not to be       
presented to beginners for solution4    
,so1 in religion1 the primary thought of
 the existence of ,god is the first     
great truth made known4 ,second1 we are 
taught that he possesses power1 wisdom  
and goodness4 ,this instruction must    
also be adapted to the capacity of those
 who are to be taught4 ,we know that the
 very young mind needs more simple      
instruction than the adult4 ,as1 of     
necessity1 there was a first man1 and a 
time when that first man began to be1   
so1 of necessity1 in the beginning of   
the life of that man1 however perfectly 
developed his body might have been1 his 
mind was infantile--destitute of the    
first principles of an education4       
,object lessons were called for4 ,here  
they come in hills and dales1 dry lands 
and running waters1 in trees and vines1 
in shrubs and grass1 flowers and fruits1

 beasts1 birds and winged insects and   
creeping things1 and higher up in the   
sun with his brilliant light1 and in the
 moon with her paler rays1 and in all   
her attending1 sparkling stars4 ,here   
are the objects for man's first lesson4 
,just now the wise man of this world1 a 
skeptic1 asks the question1 ,could not  
the first man1 with all these objects   
before him1 learn by the use of reason  
the fact that all these objects         
originated from a creator8 ,and if he   
could he certainly needed no revelation1
 for1 reasoning from nature up to       
nature's ,god1 he might then1 from the  
order1 beauty and harmony of all1 reach 
the idea of his character1 and from this
 deduce a knowledge of his will1 and if 
so a revelation was not necessary4 ,this
 seems to me very clear1 and you often  
say the clear is the true4 ,this is my  
reason for rejecting the idea that a    
revelation was ever made4  ,will you1   
,mr4 ,christian1 grapple with this8 ,i  
would with pleasure if there was        

anything in it to grapple with1 but you 
will see nothing real in your premises1 
for objects teach nothing without an    
instructor4 ,there lies a brick1 pick it
 up and examine its surface closely2 do 
you1 from it1 reach the idea of its     
maker8 ,no4 ,yet ,i know it must have   
been made1 for ,i have seen other bricks
 made1 and this resembles them4 ,very   
well4 ,did you ever see worlds made1    
and1 if so1 does our earth resemble     
them8 ,but when you saw those bricks    
made were there not several men engaged 
in their manufacture1 as well as horses8
 ,there is no analogy in your premises2 
you beg the question entirely2 you take 
the whole foundation for granted2 your  
argument is as clear as mud4  ,had you  
seen others made by only one maker1 then
 and only then could you by analogy have
 reached even the idea that ours was    
made also4 ,also1 the makers of those   
bricks may have been of the most base   
and malignant disposition1 for you can  
learn nothing of their disposition from 

the bricks2 they only testify of the    
skill of their makers--this is all4 ,do 
you not see that you give me nothing to 
grapple with8 ,the truth is this1 nature
 gives you no sufficient foundation for 
religion4 ,revelation must of necessity 
furnish us with that4 ,without          
revelation no one can learn of the      
existence and character of ,god4 ,the   
knowledge of his existence1 power and   
wisdom might excite reverence1 but this 
alone could not bring man's religious   
powers into activity4 ,to this must be  
added the knowledge of his goodness and 
kindness towards1 and his love of1 those
 who are required to worship him4 ,and  
in addition to all this1 there must be a
 revelation of the divine will          
concerning human action1 for the term   
worship indicates submission and        
obedience2 without this1 very important 
elements would be wanting1 and the      
system show great imperfection and want 
of wisdom--as man could not learn his   
relation nor obligation to that great   

,creator and ,preserver of all4 ,but    
give in addition the knowledge of man's 
relation to and dependence upon ,god1   
with a knowledge of his will in the form
 of law or commands1 with promises of   
good annexed1 resting upon the condition
 of obedience4 ,such a system of        
revelation would be perfect1 fitted to  
the necessities of human nature4 ,and   
you1 ,mr4 ,skeptic1 have agreed with me1
 that the nature of man was true and    
right4 ,now1 when we find a perfectly   
straight edge1 and then find another    
edge that fits it1 we know that the last
 is also perfectly straight1 for        
straight and crooked edges do not match4
 ,having already found the kind of a    
revelation that human nature made       
necessary1 in my next ,i shall show that
 such a revelation is contained in the  
,bible4 ,then as human nature is true1  
and as the ,bible's revelation is       
exactly fitted to it1 the inevitable    
conclusion will follow that the ,bible  
does contain a revelation from ,god to  

man4     ,,where ,,shall ,,we ,,take    
,,infidels ,,to ,,get ,,them ,,out ,,of 
,,unbelief8   ,goethe says it is a law  
of the demons that they must get out at 
the same place where they sneaked in4   
,this is a very suggestive expression4  
,if a mathematician makes a mistake in  
the solution of a problem his only      
chance to get out of the difficulty lies
 just at the point where the mistake was
 made4 ,he must remain in perplexity    
until he finds the mistake and corrects 
it4 ,this law holds good in all our     
intellectual operations4 ,many men are  
professedly in unbelief4 ,how shall we  
get them out8 ,this is an important     
question and needs to be well studied by
 all ,christian ministers4 ,if we can   
find out just how they got in1 then it  
will be easy to get the honest ones out4
 ,but it is well to remember that many  
professed infidels are only skeptics in 
heart4 ,they are unbelievers at will4   
,the most effectual remedy for such     
unbelief1 as yet known1 is an attack of 

cramp colic1 or some other fearful      
affliction4 ,under such circumstances   
they always surrender4 ,there is not    
much chance for ,gospel means as long as
 a man's unbelief is simply a           
profession4 ,his disease is not one of  
the head1 but of the heart2 yet our law 
holds good here4 ,the man himself may   
repent2 may make to himself a new heart 
and a new spirit4 ,this is his way out4 
,if a man gets into unbelief through a  
misunderstanding of ,bible facts he will
 never get out short of a better        
understanding of those same facts4  ,if 
he gets in through the impression that  
science and the ,bible are in conflict1 
there is no way to get him out short of 
a removal of the impression4 ,hence the 
importance of ministers being           
scientists4 ,many unbelievers claim that
 the ,bible and science conflict1 who   
have never investigated them1 and know  
comparatively nothing of either4 ,this  
class1 too1 is in the majority4 ,they   
are men who ape certain leaders1 being  

under their influence4 ,many of them    
love to have us know that they know     
something about such men as ,strauss1   
notwithstanding their ignorance of even 
the man4 ,to have such a mind do their  
thinking is the highest of their        
ambition4 ,there is a good deal of heart
 disease about these fellows4 ,they     
really glory in the names of such men as
 ,strauss4 ,he was so far away that they
 never learned the fact that he was     
divorced from his wife1 the former      
actress1 ,agnese ,schebest1 and spent   
his days going about from place to      
place4 ,his pseudo-theology or mythology
 ended in a theatrical comedy1 and the  
comedy in a tragedy4 ,in #ahci this     
famous ,dr4 ,strauss--who resolved the  
gospel history of salvation into an     
incoherent and self-contradictory       
mythological poem1 and denied the       
existence of a personal ,god and the    
immortality of the soul--was duly       
elected professor of ,christian         
dogmatics and ethics in the ,university 

of ,zurich1 by the party then in power1 
which consisted mostly of demagogues and
 frivolous infidels4  ,but the free     
,swiss would not submit1 so the people  
of the ,canton of ,zurich rose in their 
republican majesty and marched to the   
city under the lead of an energetic     
pastor1 and with the weapons which they 
hastily collected scared the ,strauss   
clique away2 they very courageously took
 to their heels2 then the people of the 
,canton of ,zurich placed the government
 into the hands of conservative1        
trustworthy ,christian men1 and quietly 
retired to their mountain homes without 
shedding a drop of blood4 ,the new      
government elected ,mr4 ,lange in the   
place claimed1 but never occupied1 by   
,strauss2 but ,mr4 ,strauss claimed half
 the salary1 and it is said that he     
enjoyed it1 up to #aheg at least4  ,how 
much influence could such a man in our  
own country exert over the ,american    
mind8 ,for these facts touching the life
 of ,strauss1 see ,germany2 ,its        

,universities1 ,theology and ,religion1 
by ,phillip ,schaff1 pages #aja1 #chf4  
,the reader may rely upon the quotations
 given above4 ,i have taken them with   
the book referred to open before me4    
,infidels who investigate the ,bible    
honestly1 with reference to an          
understanding of its contents1 are      
unknown to us4 ,the master spirits in   
unbelief give abundant evidence of their
 ignorance of the scriptures of the     
,bible4 ,not one in a thousand ever     
investigated the scriptures of the      
,bible with pure and honest motives4    
,many have never investigated it at all4
 ,to read a chapter here and there for  
the sole purpose of finding fault and   
getting up a difficulty1 is not         
investigation4 ,an honest investigation 
requires a very different course4 ,all  
the evidence must be brought into the   
court and presented in such a manner as 
to be understood1 just as it was given1 
otherwise the court is not qualified to 
decide righteously in the case4 ,that   

all such men as ,col4 ,ingersoll have   
failed to thus investigate the ,bible is
 evident from the fact that they1 to be 
like him1 must be infidels in all their 
history4 ,it is published to the world  
that the ,colonel was born an infidel4  
,he has been hacking away at religion   
and the ,bible ever since he was a small
 boy4 ,so his infidelity is not the     
result of an intelligent investigation  
of either science or religion4 ,i will  
not undertake to say what the ,colonel's
 trouble is1 but if he was born an      
infidel it is possible1 according to our
 law1 that he will die an unbeliever4   
,many infidels1 governed by a spirit of 
fanaticism1 undoubtedly1 have labored   
with as much earnestness as if the      
world's salvation depended upon their   
efforts1 without the least hope of      
bettering its condition1 for the false  
philosophy of materialism which they    
advocate gives to a man nothing to live 
for except his own animal nature4 ,this 
philosophy says all is well as long as  

you dodge the sharp corners of the laws 
of your country4 ,if the materialist can
 avoid paying fines1 along with all     
other penalties of the laws of his      
country1 what need he care for one      
course of life in preference to another8
 ,do you say he has a conscience8 ,well1
 it may be that it is not seared so that
 he is past feeling4 ,very few men1 ,i  
know1 ever reach such a depraved        
condition4 ,and this is doubtless the   
greatest reason why all infidels1 as a  
general rule1 get into mental distress  
during great bodily afflictions4 ,many  
of them are converted by disease of the 
body1 for two reasons3 first1 they were 
unbelievers at will1 just because it    
suited their desires1 and1 second1      
because they are in possession of a     
religious nature or conscience4 ,but men
 who are converted by disease of the    
body are liable to go back to the old   
wallow as soon as prosperity and health 
crown them again4  ,many men are driven 
to irreligion through its abuses4 ,i    

have often thought it a misfortune that 
we ,americans are under the necessity of
 meeting the infidel literature of the  
old world1 for the simple reason that it
 is evolved out of the circumstances    
peculiar to state churches4 ,in ,america
 our religion is heroic2 that is1 it    
rests upon the merits of its own        
evidence1 and is supported by the       
voluntary contributions of the people4  
,but in ,europe1 where the mass of our  
infidel literature comes from1          
,christianity is not free and           
independent1 but entangled with the     
affairs of state1 and supported by the  
secular arm4 ,the result is that        
difficulties are continually arising out
 of the unholy alliance which are       
disgusting to the independent scientific
 mind4 ,the natural result is to drive  
such persons into irreligion4 ,where men
 are educated in both science and       
religion1 and have not been all their   
lives called upon to look upon religion 
in a secular light1 tangled up in the   

interests of politics and law1 there    
should be no fears on account of any    
literature that infidels may pass       
around4 ,the misfortune that ,i speak of
 is not with such men1 but with the     
uneducated in religion and science1 who 
are more than anxious to find an excuse 
for irreligion4 ,christianity fears     
nothing in the light4        99      99 
99      99      99  ,the desires that   
have only a bodily end and aim1 that are
 unconnected with the high1 holy1 and   
noble purposes of a pure1 true1 and good
 life1 are false desires1 and should be 
cast off4     ,,councils--,no4 ,,ii4    
,,unity ,,of ,,the ,,roman ,,church4    
,in our ,october article on ,councils we
 closed with the council that was       
assembled by ,mrs4 ,irene in the year   
#ghg4 ,the ,franks1 having heard that a 
council at ,constantinople had ordained 
the adoration of images1 assembled1 in  
the year #gid1 by order of ,charles1 son
 of ,pepin1 afterwards named            
,charlemagne1 a very numerous council4  

,in this council the second council of  
,nice is spoken of as an impertinent and
 arrogant synod held in ,greece for the 
promotion of the worship of pictures4   
,this council1 held at ,frankfort1 was  
composed of three hundred clergymen from
 ,england1 ,italy1 ,france and ,germany4
 ,aventin1 ,hinemar and ,regina say the 
,frankfortians rescinded the decisions  
of the false ,grecian synod in favor of 
image worship4  ,in #hdb a grand council
 was held at ,constantinople1 convened  
by the ,empress ,theodora4 ,here the    
worship of images was solemnly          
established4 ,the ,greeks still have a  
feast in honor of this council called   
,orthodoxia4 ,theodora did not preside  
at this council4  ,in #hfa a council was
 held at ,constantinople consisting of  
three hundred and eighteen bishops1     
assembled by the ,emperor ,michael4 ,st4
 ,ignatius1 patriarch of                
,constantinople1 was deposed and        
,photius elected4  ,in #hff another     
council was held at ,constantinople1 in 

which ,pope ,nicholas ,,iii4 was deposed
 for contumacy and excommunicated4  ,in 
#hfi was another council at             
,constantinople2 in this ,photius1 in   
turn1 was deposed and excommunicated and
 ,st4 ,ignatius restored4  ,in #hgi     
another council was held in             
,constantinople1 in which ,photius1     
already restored1 was acknowledged as   
true patriarch by the legates of ,pope  
,john ,,viii41 who declares all those to
 be ,judases who say that the ,holy     
,spirit proceeds from the ,father and   
the ,son4  ,in #aabb-c a council was    
held at ,rome1 in the church of ,st4    
,john of ,lateran1 by ,pope ,calixtus   
,,ii4 ,this was the first general       
council assembled by the popes4 ,the    
emperors of the west had now scarcely   
any authority1 and the emperors of the  
east1 pressed by the ,mahometans and by 
the crusaders1 held none but little     
wretched councils4 ,in this council the 
bishops complained heavily of the monks4
 ',they possess1' said they1 'the       

churches1 the lands1 the castles1 the   
tithes1 the offerings of the living and 
the dead2 they have only to take from us
 the ring and the crosier4' ,the monks  
remained in possession4  ,in #aaci was  
another council of ,lateran1 by ,pope   
,innocent ,,ii4 ,it is said a thousand  
bishops were present4 ,here the         
ecclesiastical tithes are declared to be
 of divine right1 and all laymen        
possessing any of them are              
excommunicated4  ,in #abae was the last 
general council of ,lateran1 by ,pope   
,innocent ,,iii4 ,four hundred and      
twelve bishops and eight hundred abbots 
were here4 ,this was in the time of the 
,crusades1 and the popes have           
established a ,latin patriarch at       
,jerusalem and one at ,constantinople4  
,these patriarchs attend this council4  
,this council declares1 among other     
things1 that 'no one can be saved out of
 the ,catholic church4' ,the word       
transubstantiation was not known until  
after this council4 ,it forbade the     

establishment of new religious orders2  
but1 since that time1 no less than      
eighty have been instituted4 ,it was in 
this council that ,raimond1 ,count of   
,toulouse1 was stripped of all his      
lands4  ,in #abde a council assembled at
 the city of ,lyons4 ,innocent ,,iv4    
brings thither the ,emperor of          
,constantinople1 ,john ,puleologus1 and 
makes him sit beside him4 ,he deposes   
the ,emperor ,frederick as a felon1 and 
gives the cardinals a red but1 as a sign
 of hostility to ,frederick1 and the    
source of thirty years of civil war4    
,in #abgd another council is held at the
 city of ,lyons4 ,five hundred bishops  
are present1 seventy great and a        
thousand lesser abbots4 ,the ,greek     
emperor1 ,michael ,paleologus1 that he  
may have the protection of the ,pope1   
sends his ,greek patriarch1 ,theophanes1
 to unite1 in his name1 with the ,latin 
church2 but the ,greek church disowns   
these bishops4  ,in #acaa ,pope ,clement
 ,v4 assembled a general council in the 

small town of ,vienne1 in ,dauphiny1 in 
which he abolishes the order of the     
,templars4 ,it is here ordained that the
 ,begares1 ,beguins and ,beguines shall 
be burned4 ,these were a species of     
heretics 'to whom was imputed all that  
had formerly been imputed to the        
primitive ,christians4' ,so says        
,voltaire4 ,he does not1 like the       
pitiful blaspheming infidels of to-day1 
try to heap all this corruption of the  
dark ages upon primitive ,christianity4 
,no6 ,the hull of ,voltaire's soul was  
too great for such a deed4  ,in #adad   
the great council of ,constance was     
assembled by an emperor who resumes his 
rights1 viz3 by ,sigismund4 ,here ,pope 
,john ,,xxiii41 convicted of numerous   
crimes1 is deposed1 and ,john ,huss and 
,jerome of ,sprague convicted of        
obstinacy and burned4  ,in #adca a      
council was held at ,basle1 where they  
in vain depose ,pope ,eugene ,,iv41 who 
is too clever for the council4 ,this was
 a stormy council1 and it is said that  

,eugene regretted in his old age that he
 ever left his monastery4  ,in #adch a  
council assembled at ,ferrara1          
transferred to ,florence1 where the     
excommunicated pope excommunicates the  
council1 and declares it guilty of high 
treason4 ,here a feigned union is made  
with the ,greek church1 crushed by the  
,turkish synods held sword in hand4     
,pope ,julius ,,ii4 would have had his  
council of ,lateran in #aeab pass for an
 ecumenical council4 ,in it that pope   
solemnly excommunicated ,louis ,,xii41  
,king of ,france1 laid ,france under an 
interdict1 summoned the whole           
,parliament of ,provence to appear      
before him1 and excommunicated all the  
philosophers because most of them had   
taken part with ,louis ,,xii4 ,yet this 
council was not like that of ,ephesus1  
called the council of robbers4  ,in     
#aecg the council of ,trent was first   
assembled at ,mantua1 by ,paul ,,iii41  
afterwards at ,trent1 in #aedc1 and     
terminated in ,dec41 #aefa1 under ,pius 

,,vi4 ,see vol4 ,phil4 ,dic4  ,pope     
,pius ,,ix4 convened a council in #ahfi1
 which in ,july1 #ahgj1 decreed the     
personal infallability of the ,pope in  
matters of faith and morals1 to be a    
dogma of the church4  ,reader1 if you   
will digest this little piece of        
history1 you will doubtless discover    
good reasons for asserting the right of 
private judgment and the liberty of     
conscience4 ,truth stands true to her   
god2 men alone vascillate4              
,,free-,,thought ,,in ,,germany1        
,,france ,,and ,,russia1 ,,or ,,russian 
,,nihilism4  ,,by ,,fitz ,,cunliffe     
,,owen4 ,,library ,,mag4 ,,vol4 #c4     
,rationalism and radicalism exist to a  
certain extent in every country of      
,europe4 ,but the ,social ,democrats of 
,germany and ,austria and the           
,communists of ,france and ,spain turn  
with horror from ,russian               
revolutionists1 who consider the        
programme of the ,paris commune of #ahga
 condemnably weak1 and ,felix ,pyat1    

,cluseret and their companions as little
 better than conservatives4 ,the ,social
 ,democrats and even the ,communists of 
the rest of ,europe have in view aims   
which1 no matter how fantastic1 are     
always of a sufficiently defined nature4
 ,they look forward to an entirely      
democratic form of government1 and hope 
for a recognization of the social world1
 under which all capital and property   
would be held either by the ,state or   
,commune for the equal benefit of       
everybody4 ,they are levellers1 but they
 are not destroyers4 ,take the right of 
property from the citizens of a         
government and the greatest motive to   
industry and prosperity is gone4  ,the  
revolutionary party in ,russia has no   
definite aims of either reorganization  
or improvement4 ,in its sight everything
 as it now exists is rotten1 and before 
anything new and good can be created all
 existing institutions must be utterly  
destroyed4 ,religion1 the state1 the    
family1 laws1 property1 morality1 are   

all equally odious1 and must be rooted  
out and abolished4 ,it is because       
nothing1 as it exists at present1 finds 
favor in their eyes that they have been 
called ,nihilists4 ,they maintain that  
no one should be bound by laws or even  
moral obligations of any kind1 but that 
every body should be allowed to do      
exactly as he pleases4 ,they desire to  
break up the actual social organization 
into mere individualism1 with entire    
independence for each separate person4  
,their object is anarchy in the very    
truest sense of the word4 ,they are only
 modest enough to decline the attempt to
 create a new order of things in the    
place of what they propose to destroy4  
,that they intend to leave for a better 
and more enlightened generation4 ,the   
following1 from a ,nihilist paper1      
,narodnia ,volya 7,the ,will of the     
,people71 which is published at ,st4    
,petersburg by means of secret presses1 
will set them forth in their true       
inwardness3  ,the ,russian press is bent

 almost double by the imperial          
government4 ,notwithstanding its        
disagreeable position it does its utmost
 to curry favor of its oppressors4      
,whenever thefts1 murders1 or           
incendiarisms take place in ,russia the 
press invariably attributes them to the 
,nihilists4 ,there is an old proverb    
which says1 ',slander1 slander2 some    
result will always be obtained4'        
,judging from the tone of the press some
 result has been obtained4 ,according to
 its statements the ,nihilists are      
little better than wild beasts4 ,we do  
not venture to assert that there are no 
bad men in our ranks1 but are yours     
entirely free from them8 ,the number of 
bad persons among the ,nihilists is so  
very small that we need hardly enumerate
 them4 ,since #ahfb over #ag1jjj persons
 have been exiled to ,siberia for       
political offenses4  ,you accuse us of  
adopting means of action which are      
unjustifiable in every way4 ,but what   
can we do8 ,we are reduced to silence4  

,we only adopt questionable means of    
action very rarely1 and then only in    
self-defense2 whereas you use them      
daily4  ,the money obtained from private
 individuals by means of theft and      
blackmail has not been levied by order  
of the 'committee1' but by certain      
unscrupulous ,nihilists acting on their 
own behalf4 ,however1 we are all the    
more ready to admit that such things    
have been done when we remember that    
only five such cases are known to have  
taken place4  ,do not accuse us of being
 murderers1 because of our attempts to  
take the life of ,his ,most ,sacred     
,majesty8 ,why1 we would most gladly    
accomplish his destruction1 and he has  
only escaped until now in consequence of
 the many cowards in our ranks6 ,it has 
been stated that ,solowjew's attempt in 
,april last has disturbed the rest and  
peace of mind of many harmless and      
respectable citizens4 ,some of the      
,liberal papers even go so far as to say
 that it will have the effect of        

producing a reaction in favor of the    
government4 ,why1 what idle and stupid  
talk6 ,these good newspaper proprietors1
 who love their ease and their books1   
must have been asleep not to have       
perceived that the reaction began       
sixteen years ago1 not in favor of the  
government1 but against it4  ,we are    
quite persuaded that if ,solowjew's     
attempt had succeeded1 everybody would  
talk in a different manner1 even the    
slaves and asses who surrounded the     
throne would have rejoiced4  ,do not be 
surprised at these political            
assassinations1 but rather be astonished
 that they are not more frequent4       
,unfortunately for our cause1 the       
,nihilists are too humanitarian1 and    
hence are incapable of carrying out many
 necessary measures4 ,perhaps in time   
they will acquire the aptitude necessary
 in critical moments2 perhaps it will be
 your conduct which will effect this    
change in them4 ,then in that case the  
responsibility of terrorism and         

assassination will rest with you1 and   
not with us4        99      99      99  
99      99  ,how many amusing and       
ridiculous scenes should we witness if  
each pair of men that secretly laugh at 
each other were to do it openly6        
,,axioms ,,lying ,,at ,,the ,,foundation
 ,,of ,,all ,,philosophy ,,and          
,,religion4   ,out of nothing1 nothing  
comes4 ,into nothing1 nothing goes4     
,these are foundation axioms underlying 
the entire system of ,christian         
theology4 ,the first looks backward1 and
 the second looks forward4 ,the first   
correllates with the saying1 ,so things 
which are seen were not made of things  
which do appear4 ,the converse of this  
is the following3 ,things which are seen
 were made of unseen things2 that is1   
the visible universe is the             
manifestation of the invisible4 ,the    
real universe is the invisible4 ,there  
is nothing that can not be thrown into  
the invisible4 ,even the diamond has    
been thrown into solution1 and all      

solutions may be thrown into the        
invisible by heat4 ,the question1 ,what 
is matter8 has puzzled the best minds of
 earth1 and puzzled all1 both infidels  
and ,christians1 as much as any other   
question4 ,the visible1 organic universe
 was created1 but it was created out of 
the invisible4 ,the invisible is        
eternal4 ,there is an eternal world1 and
 that is the invisible and real         
universe1 without which the visible     
would not be1 for of nothing1 nothing   
comes4 ,all matter is to be referred to 
antecedent substance--that which lies   
under and causes it to be4 ,substance1  
strictly speaking1 lies in the          
invisible4 ,matter1 properly speaking1  
is an effect1 which is the visible      
manifestation of an unseen substance1   
and this is eternal4  ,god created the  
universe by means of eternal substance4 
,he is the king eternal4 ,the time never
 was when he was the king of nothing4   
,it is said of ,leibnitz that he thought
 inert matter insufficient to explain   

the phenomena of body1 and had recourse 
to the entelechies of ,aristotle1 or the
 substantial forms of scholastic        
philosophy1 conceiving of them as       
primitive forces1 constituting the      
substance of matter1 atoms of substance1
 but not of matter imperishable1 but    
subject to transformation4 ,this view of
 the atomic theory is two-fold3 ,first1 
the atomic invisible1 as the very term  
atom indicates1 for it is from ha temno1
 which means not cut--literally         
indivisible4 ,you can't cut an atom     
chemically or otherwise1 unless you are 
working upon that which is an atom in   
the loose and more modern sense of the  
term4 ,you may reduce matter chemically 
to the invisible or underlying          
substance1 but beyond this you can not  
cut8 ,can you run it into nothing8 ,no4 
,into nothing nothing goes4 ,physicists 
are indebted to the oldest philosophers1
 who lived prior to ,democrites1 for the
 use of the term atom4 ,those oldest    
philosophers used the term to indicate  

something that was not matter1 viz3     
immaterial substance4 ,the term in its  
primary sense is applicable nowhere     
else4  ,the invisible world of substance
 is undoubtedly eternal4 ,but those men 
who try to make this fact an argument   
against the existence of ,god are guilty
 of the most stupid nonsense and        
impudence1 for1 having allowed eternity 
not only to substance1 but to material  
substance1 they have no right in logic  
to deny eternity to life and mind2      
because it is as easy1 and as rational1 
to conceive of the eternity of one thing
 known to exist as of another4 ,but the 
idea that the visible world is eternal  
is in direct conflict with the facts of 
science1 which establish beyond         
contradiction the mutable nature of all 
organized bodies4 ,aristotle1 though a  
believer in the existence of ,god1 did  
affirm the world's eternity1 and        
therefore held that there never was any 
first male or female in the history of  
any animals whatsoever1 but affirmed1 on

 the contrary that one begat another    
infinitely1 without any beginning4 ,this
 thought was so repugnant to common     
sense that ,aristotle himself seemed to 
be skeptical about it1 admitting it to  
be a disputable thing4 ,after affirming 
his notion he added1 ,if the world had a
 beginning1 and if men were once        
earth-born1 then must they have been1 in
 all probability1 either generated as   
worms1 out of putrefaction1 or else out 
of eggs4 ,but the question comes up for 
an answer1 ,from whence came the eggs8  
,old ,epicurus1 after ,aristotle1       
fancied that the first men and animals  
were formed in certain wombs or bags    
growing out of the earth1 by a          
fortuitous concourse of dead atoms4     
,here we have the last home stretch of  
all physicists in their efforts to get  
rid of the ,christian idea of creation2 
beyond it no modern infidel has traveled
 in his speculations1 nor ever will4    
,but if men were formed from eggs       
growing out of the earth1 or from bags1 

or from wombs created by a fortuitous   
concourse of dead atoms1 by chance1 why1
 the motion of atoms being as brisk and 
vigorous as ever1 should we not expect  
the same thing to occur occasionally    
throughout all the ages8  ,anaximander1 
however1 concluded that men1 because    
they require longer time than other     
animals to be hatched up1 were at first 
generated in the bellies of fishes1 and 
there nourished till they were able to  
defend and shift for themselves1 and    
were then disgorged and cast upon dry   
land4 ,so we are driven to the          
conclusion that there is nothing in the 
world too absurd for those men1 both    
ancient and modern1 to swallow down in  
their efforts to get rid of the notion  
of an intelligent creation by the hand  
of an intelligent creator4              
,,estoppels2 ,,or1 ,,fossilization4     
,in our religion we find no law         
requiring uniformity of thought4 ,think 
the same things4 ,be of the same        
opinion4 ,these and like statements are 

no part of our religion4 ,faith and     
opinion are not the same4 ,all          
,christians have one faith1 the faith of
 ,christ4 ,be of the same mind and of   
the same judgment4 ,speak the same      
things4 ,these are to be taken in their 
proper relations4 ,the made up judgment 
is the result of faith in the judgment  
of ,christ4 ,i judge nothing by myself2 
he that judgeth me is the ,lord4 ,the   
one great mind enjoined is the result of
 thought upon the one great subject of  
the life of ,christ1 which is given as  
the light of men4 ,these imperatives are
 summed up in the beautiful expression1 
,let this mind be in you which was also 
in ,christ ,jesus4 ,uniformity of       
thoughts or opinions is a very different
 thing4 ,a man would be considered worse
 than a knave who would throw chains    
around the human intellect1 so as to put
 an end to progress in thought2 it would
 be the stagnation of all in which we   
are most interested4 ,christians are not
 to be charged with any such wickedness1

 for they are using all their powers to 
produce thought2 money and talent are   
freely bestowed in many ways to get men 
to think1 and then decide1 not in       
reference to opinions but facts2 not in 
reference to things which are matters of
 opinion only1 but of the living object 
of faith1 ,christ and ,christian duty4  
,there is no system of things in which  
investigation1 liberty of thought and   
action1 upon all matters of interest to 
our humanity1 both as respects this     
world and the world to come1 is more    
encouraged and insisted upon4 ,wicked   
and unholy thoughts only are prohibited4
  ,who would paint every flower of the  
same hue8 ,who would trim all the trees 
of the forest into one and the same     
shape8 ,or1 who is so foolish as to want
 all faces cast into one mould8 ,who    
would chain human thought or mould the  
opinions of men so that they should not 
only be one in ,christ1 the greatest    
living fact in history1 but one in every
 other being known in the world's       

history--one in opinions8 ,the freeist  
thing in the universe is thought4 ,the  
liberties of thought are charter        
liberties from the ,king of ,kings4 ,the
 spirit of man is free in its normal    
state4 ,you can not chain it in slavery 
against its will4 ,no4 ,it knows no     
servitude but the voluntary4 ,but1 then1
 its wanderings are many4 ,in the field 
of search after beauty1 rectitude and   
truth1 many minds may come into         
collision4 ,but greater evils would     
result from chaining them all to one    
spot1 and thus ending progress in many  
things of interest lying in the realm of
 thought4 ,of all the varieties known   
among men those of thought are the most 
sublime and useful4  ,this variety      
causes the investigation of every       
interest2 it brings every truth and     
every error to the surface4  ,men have  
made many attempts to check the onward  
march of intellect4 ,but every attempt  
in that direction is marked by some     
great dread4 ,men are not anxious to put

 on the brakes unless they are in fear  
of being wrecked4 ,nothing is more      
dangerous in any government than perfect
 indifference to public interests4 ,men 
in places of public trust always need   
watching4 ,irresponsible power1 it is   
said1 would corrupt an archangel1 and   
is1 doubtless1 unknown among the        
inhabitants of the better land4 ,among  
men there is great liability4 ,every    
political candidate has his accusations1
 his promises1 and scheme1 with which he
 confronts his rival and agitates the   
minds of the people4 ,so we have been   
saved from that stagnation of thought   
which has retarded progress among other 
nations4 ,many men1 seeking office1 have
 been wise enough to see the danger to  
their interests of an expose of         
corruption4 ,so they have been perfectly
 willing that mechanics1 artisans and   
farmers should investigate and expose to
 public view all the questions of       
interest belonging to our government1   
but good ,christians1 and especially    

preachers1 entering the field of        
political investigation1 at once forfeit
 their right to the crown of life4787   
,but just how it is that lawyers1       
doctors and politicians will all reach  
heaven in spite of political action1 and
 preachers will sink to perdition on    
account of the same1 is a problem among 
problems that has never yet been        
satisfactorily solved4 ,are we to       
conclude that such men as ,generals     
,hancock and ,garfield1 along with a    
great many more1 had1 and have1 no      
religion to be disturbed8 ,or is there a
 double portion of sacrifice1 the       
sacrifice of principle and liberty1     
demanded at the hands of ministers of   
the ,gospel of ,christ8 ,how is this8   
,we are anxious to know4 ,are the       
politicians of the country the voluntary
 scapegoats of the nation1 who risk     
their own salvation for political toil1 
which1 from its character1 would1       
according to a very common opinion1 kill
 out the religion of all the saints in  

,america8 ,surely we ought to feel      
grateful to the political sinners who so
 willingly take all the risk of being   
shut out of ,paradise that they may have
 the exclusive right of controlling the 
offices of the government4 ,they seem to
 say to us ,christians1 ,hear us1 ye    
hard-thinking toilers and aspirants to  
the realms of bliss while we proclaim to
 you the perils of our position2 we warn
 you against the crime of accustoming   
yourselves to the investigation of the  
political and civil interests of the    
day1 and let not your devout meditations
 be disturbed by secular pursuits4 ,read
 your ,bibles and other pious books2    
attend to all your prayer meetings and  
all your philanthropic societies4  ,what
 is the object of all this pious policy8
 ,is it to keep the national mind as far
 as possible in a state of political    
stagnation1 or1 otherwise1 to ostracise 
politically the preachers of the land   
with reference to party success8 ,how is
 this8 ,are the preachers of the ,united

 ,states a dangerous element in our     
land8 ,if they are1 then the fewer we   
have of them the better we are off4 ,do 
any but infidels take that view of the  
subject8 ,it correllates with           
infidelity1 but not with ,christianity4 
,,to ,,keep ,a ,,room ,,pure4   ,to keep
 a room purified it is only necessary to
 keep a pitcher or some other vessel    
full of water in it4 ,the water will    
absorb all the respired gases4 ,the     
colder the water is the greater is its  
capacity to hold the gases4 ,at ordinary
 temperature a pail of water will absorb
 a pint of carbonic acid gas and several
 pints of ammonia4 ,the capacity is     
nearly doubled by reducing the water to 
the temperature of ice4 ,water kept     
awhile in a room is unfit for use4 ,the 
pump should always be emptied before    
catching water for use4 ,impure water is
 more injurious than impure air4        
99      99      99      99      99      
,man1 being essentially active1 must    
find in activity his joy1 as well as his

 beauty and glory1 and labor1 like      
everything else that is good1 is its own
 reward4     ,,interesting ,,facts4     
,glass windows were used for lights in  
#aahj4  ,chimneys first put up to houses
 in #abcf4  ,tallow candles for lights  
in #abij4  ,spectacles invented by an   
,italian in #abdj4  ,paper made from    
linen in #acjb4  ,woolen cloth made in  
,england in #acda4  ,art of printing    
from movable types in #addj4  ,the first
 book printed with movable types in     
#adej4  ,watches first made in ,germany 
in #addg4  ,telescopes invented by      
,porta and ,janson in #aeij4  ,tea first
 brought from ,china to ,europe in      
#aeja4  ,circulation of blood discovered
 by ,hervey in #afaj4  ,newspaper first 
established in #afbi4  ,pendulum clocks 
first invented in #afci4  ,barometer    
invented by ,torricelli in #aece4       
,steam engine invented in #afdi4  ,bread
 made with yeast in #afej4  ,cotton     
planted in the ,united ,states in #agei4
  ,fire engine invented in #afhe4       

,telegraph invented by ,morse in #ahcb4 
99      99      99      99      99      
,,cure ,,for ,a ,,felon4--,take common  
salt1 dry it in the oven1 then pound it 
fine and mix it with turpentine1 equal  
parts4 ,put it on a rag and wrap it     
around the finger1 and as soon as it    
gets dry put on some more1 and in       
twenty-four hours the felon will be as  
dead as a door nail4--,old ,mr4 ,mix4   
,transcriber's ,note  ,the punctuation  
and spelling from the original text have
 been faithfully preserved4 ,only       
obvious typographical errors have been  
corrected4