Newspapers / North Carolina Christian Advocate … / Oct. 15, 1890, edition 1 / Page 1
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fM iifir fit V a v I II ESTABLISHED 1855. RALEIGH, N. C, WEDNESDAY, OCT. lr, 1890. VOL. XXXV., NO. 4!. (inT WW . - $2.00 PER ANNUM. THE ORGAN OF THF north PAPni ikia nnMrcDCMPc nc tuc m c oumdou qaiitu dcw r- i nrm r.:. vnnvuinn vvm t i i 1 1 w u. vi i nu iti. . vnuiwii) uvu i 11. rvu.Y. r. L-. : L-1 , UUIIUI POETRY. Luther's Snow Song. L ad of Heaven ! lone and sad, I would lift my heart to Thee ; pilgrim in a foreign land, "Gracious Father, look on nie I shall neither faint nor die, While I wink beneath Thine ej e. I will stay my faith on Thee And will never fear to tread Where the Savior Master leads ; He will give me daily bread. Christ was hungry, Christ was poor He will feed me from His store. Foxes to their ho'es have gone, Every bird unto his nest ; But I wander here alone, And for me there is no re; it. Yet I neither faint nor fear, For the Savior Christ is here. If i, live, He'll be with :ne ; If I die to Him I go, He'll ii' i t leave nie, I will trust Him, And my heart no fear shall know, Sin and sorrow I defy, For on Jesus I rely. Mail anl Express. COMMUNICATIONS. For the xVdvocate. Letter From Japan. The Advocate comes regularly, and is always anxiously perused, sometimes with pleasure, sometimes with pain, when as has recently been its sad duty, it has had to re cord the deaths of so many of your greatest and best men. But it is a comforting reflection that when the Lawgiver had finished his work God buried him, and raised up in his stead a general a man for the oc casion. Thoughts of the home land dispose me to gossip. I remember, Mr. Editor, hearing your father deliver an address at the dedication of a Masonic Hall at Oak Ridge, in Guil ford county. I was but a mere boy at the time, and have forgotten his subject and can call to mind no part of his discourse. But I remember that when he ascended the stage he took off his regalia, and handing it to some one standing by remarked, "I'm not accustomed to trappings." But if I may interest your readers at all it would be by telling them something about this country. I have never had the pleasure of meet ing any of your missionaries to Ja pan, their chief station being some two days run South of Yokahoma. The American Baptist Missionary Union has a church and a Theologi cal Seminary here, and has nine Missionaries on roll. The American Methodist Episcopal Mission (M. E. North) has a church and a girl's school. The Woman's Union Mis sion has a school for girls. The Christian Alliance has one Mission ary in the city, a very devoted young lady. The American Reformed (Dutch) Church has a Seminary for girls, and a number of resident Missionaries. The Methodist Pro testant Mission has a cnurcn, a school for bovs, and a school for girls. Our boy's school has twelve teacners, ana enrolled, last year one hundred and fifty-two students, none under twelve years of age be ing admitted. & Nearly all the mis sions have mission Sunday-schools one of the most delightful features of the whole work. The American Presby terianMission has a children's school and a church. The vener able Dr. Hepburn, of this Mission, also resides in this city. He is now seventy-six years old, fifty years a Missionary, the oldest Missionary now in the East, took a leading part in translating the Bible into Japa nese, is author of a splendid diction ary of the language, and is now en gaged upon a Bible Dictionary. Just after his recent visit to- America he purchased a site for a church in this city, for wilich he paid, in the neigh borhood of, ten thousand dollars.The church is to be of brick, and its erec tion will be a fitting close of his career. By the way, Mrs. Hepburn is a North Carolinian, and was formerly a Miss Leete, of the vicini ty of Fayette ville. Her father's name was Harvey Leete, who was for many years an active Elder in the Presbyterian Church in Fayette ville. Miss Isabella Leete, of Tokyo, and Mrs. Hepburn are the only sur viving children. The English, Scotch, and Ameri can Bible Societies have consolidat ed their work under one agency located in this city under cha,re- nf . i . Rev. H. Loomis, a most accommo dating gentleman. Here everything in the book line, necessary to the Missionary, so far as published, can be found on m st reasonable terms. Matthew's Gospel is sold at one sen (cent) for gratuitous distribu tion, otherwise two sen. Japanese books and book making are remark able cheap. I recently had six books well and strongly bound in cloth for sixty-five sen. This makes up our mission force (excepting the Seaman's Mission, Union Church, a German Church, The Episcopal Church, neither of which is really Missionary) as I re call it at present. Of course there are Catholics here. And with all this on occasions of temDle faasta (Matsuri) Christianity appears very small in comparison with the thou sands that black the streets leading to the temples. Yokohama is the great clearing port of the empire, the "Liverpool of Japan." We are soon to have Electric lights, the wires are going up now. But this letter has already grown too long. With best wishes, I am truly and fraternally. A. R. Morgan. Ybkahama, Japan, Aug. 26th, '90. For the Advocate. Women and Children. BY E. L. PERKINS, M. D. We often meet with assertions, made by public speakers, which sound very well and elicit applause from unthinking audiences. But when such assertions are, put the test of sound logic they are as hol low as a drum, and as destitute of sound reason as the giberish of a driveling idiot. Bob Ingersoll, in one of his most popular lectures, in timated that a religion which de pended on women and children for its existence and perpetuity was not worthy of our respect or confidence. Now let us put the sentiment thro' the riddle of common sense and see how it works. A nation that depends on women and children for its existence and perpetuity is not worthy of our re spect or confidence. There is no nation on earth, but what depends on women aud chil dren for existence and perpetuity. Therefore there is no nation on earth that is worthy of our respect or confidence. Again. The individual who de pended on women and children for his existence is not worthy of our respect or confidence. Bob Ingersoll was dependent on women and children for his exis tence. His mother wras a woman and his father was once a child. Therefore, Bob Ingersoll is not worthy of our respect or confidence. Again. A race of people depend ing on women and children for their existence and perpetuity, is not worthy of our respect or confidence. The human race was and is de pendent on women and children for their existence and perpetuity. Eve was as necessary as Adam. Therefore the human race is not worthy of our respect or confidence. It is a great pity that large audi ences can be found who will swal low, like young birds, whatever is dropped into their gaping mouths, anything that looks like food, with out the ability to distinguish be tween what is good and what is evil. The mother sows the first seeds of thought in the young mind, hence children are largely what their mothers make them. No nation ever rises higher in the scale of civi lization than its women. Men may legislate, but if the women train not their children to respect authority, the laws are silent letters and statute-books are as dumb as death. It is well said that, "The hand that rocks the cradle rocks the world." When a nation or community goes to decay, the degeneracy invariably begins with the mothers of the peo pie. The moral cancer begins its evil influence at the firesides of the homes of the people, and thence spreads abroad to its deadly work. Nations rise or fall just in propor tion to the purity or impurity of home influences. We should never cease to cherish those influences without which there is no advance, either in national or moral prosperity. That blatant qratory which seeks to cast a stigma upon the holy influences of our mothers, wives, sisters and daughters, should always be - met with that withering scorn whicli would drive ir, into its merited ob livian. For the Advocate. Our Washington Letter. (From our Regular Correspondent.') Congress received a well deserved rebuke when Vice President Mor ton presented to the Senate resolu tions adopted by the annual confer ence of Methodist Episcopal Church, requesting both Houses of Congress to refrain from holding any session for legislation on the Sabbath day. A little more than a week m-evimis to the receipt of these resolutions, to be exact, on Sundav. SeDt. 21st. the conferees on the tariff bill, com posed of some of the most eminent Senators and Representatives, de voted the greater portion of the Sab bath day to legislative work. Ther-- was no valid excuse for thus dese crating the Lord's day, and I am glad the rebuke has come so soon, and from such an influential body. The Senate bill forfeiting the pro perty of the Mormon Church in Utah has been favorably reported to the House, and from talks with a large number of members, I am cer tain that it will be passed if it can be gotten before the House during the short session, which is somewhat doubtful, owing to the shortness of that session and the large number of bills upon which the House will be compelled to act. v ice 1'resident Morton has stop ped the sale of liquor in his new hotel here. He says he had no idea that it was being sold there until last week. Every Temperance organization here has been invited to join the Catholic Total Abstinence Society l celebrating the one hundredth anniversary or toe D:nn or rat) Matthew, which takes place Oct. 10th, 1890. The details of the de monstration have not been definitely settled, but it is the intention of those having the celebration in charge to make it the most memora ble Temperance event that ever took place here. Pool selling is no. longer legal in the District of Columbia, except during the races and upon the race track. The exception was by no means palatable to the ladies and gentlemen who have been working to break up this evil, but when they learned that unless they accepted the amendment, which was offered by a Senator who possesses great political influence, the bill could not be passed, they remained passive, believing it better to drive out the gamblers who remained here all the time, and trust to the growth of a healthy moral public opinion to stop the gambling on the race courses sometime in the near future, than to kill the bill by active opposition to the amendment. The pool sellers have now located on the Virginia side of the Potomac, just opposite Washington, and the evil done to the young men of Washington will not be greatly lessened unless the Virginia authorities are more vigi lant in enforcing their laws against gambling than they have been in the past. It has been decided by the At torney General, for the Post office department, that the anti-lottery law will exclude from the mails news papers printing advertisements of raffles at church fairs or announcing the results of such raffles. It is regarded as a good healthy sign indicating moral improvement to find members of Congress taking an active part in our local Temper ance work. Representative Morse of Massachusetts, delivered an able address on "Gospel Temperance" an evening or two ago to a large meet ing held under the auspices of the Army and Marine Corps depaitment of the Nonpartisan W. C. T. U. He advised his hearers to practice total abstinence from tobacco as. well as from intoxicating liquors. On the same evening Representative Kerr, of Iowa, was the principal speaker at a meeting held by the Good Templars. Mr. Kerr made an elaborate argument showing total abstinence as the underlying princi ple of the prosperity, not only of the individual but also of the state. The Reci bites are fully abreast with the other Temperance organi zations of Washington, and prepar ations are now being made for the formation of a number of new tents in various sections of the city, and all of the old tents are increasing rapidly in membership. The first session of the Fifty-first Congress which ends this week, has been unusually long, and a very large number of new laws have been enacted; but to the shame of Ameri can statesmen be it said, the num ber of bills passed in the interest of moral reform may be counted on the fingers of one hand, and it will not require all of them. Why is this ? Surely no one will undertake to say that a great majority of the people of the United States are not earnestly in favor of the enactment of laws to aid in teaching the minor ity the value of moral reform, both to individuals and to the country at large. Why is it then that Congress has not done more in this direction ? It is not my purpose to answer this question, though it would not be dif ficult to do so. Let every man and woman who reads this ask himself or herself "Am I in any way to blame ? Have I, done my, duty in bringing good influences to bear up on Congress?" Washington, D. C. For the Advocate. Our Georgia Correspondence. BY REV. G. G. SMITH, D. D. I thought I would give you a change last month from my usual bill of fare, by sending you an article rather than a letter, on the theology of the days of Chaucer for a news paper ought not to be only a news paper, but ought to have a boundless variety of viands. I have just laid down Xer:ophon'j Anabasis, and have been reading, among other things, the defence of Socrates for going coatless, and shoeless,, and t?ng cni the simplest food, t think the old Optimist may have been a Philosopher, as well as the old Cynic, who wanted Alexander to get out of his sunshine; but that does not make me want to go barefooted, or live in a tub, and eat only beans. Mr. Wesley published, he really thought, the cheapest and best Mag azine in all England, but its table of contents were generally: "A long chapter on Arminianism," a ser mon of his some rather poor poetry, and some disquisition on Science by himself. The modern religious newspaper, however serves up a rich variety of dishes. I get all the Advocates nearly, and I read most of them, all through. The Raleigh has no superior as a Conference newspaper. It is an organ. It does not aim to supply the Southern Methodists everywhere, with such news, and such advice as they need, but to give the North Carolina Methodists, such help as they need. Its editorials are religious, its news columns full of local interest, and it has a corps of correspondents from abroad, which give it a sufficiently general character. Our Advocate is now without an Editor, "de jure," though we have a very good one, "de facto." The Rev. W. C. Lovett, P. E., of the Eastman District, by Doctor Potter's request fills his place till the meeting of the Board of Pub lication in November, when a suc cessor to Dr. P. will be chosen. Bro. Lovett is a grandson of Bishop An drew, and a son of Dr.R. W. Lovett, and has been for a dozen years, or more,a preacher in theSouthGeorgia Conference. He writes with grace, and force, and is industrious and ju dicious in his gleanings. He is very much esteemed among his brethren, and may be chosen to take Dr. Pot ter's place- Bro. Burke, of J. W. Burke & Co., is Assistant Editor. He is the head of the house, which publishes the paper, and does his work for the naner 'eon amore'. Dr. Potter is on his tour as Mission ary Secretary. As yet I have not heard from him, but we will hear. Few men are so devoted to the work of Missions as Dr. Potter. He was President of our Board for many years, and has been a long time on the Central board, and was Vice President, when he was chosen Sec retary. Dr. Morrison, I see, is stir ring things in the West. This hand some Kentuckian, we had hoped to have corollated and kept in Georgia, but I hardly think he had been with us long enough to lose his taste for the blue gi ass, and although he has a sweet and attractive home in At lanta, I shall not be surprised if he does not fold his tents and quietly glide away over the Mississippi. My good friend Rev. W. M. Hayes has taken the flag, Dun lap so bravely bore, and is now trying, as Commis sioner of Education, to help forward the school enterprises of the Colored Methodist Church. These people deserve encouragement. They ure the only avowed adherents of the Southern whites, among all the re ligious bodies working for the color ed people. I do not think, politically they differ from their race, except that they are much less offensive,, and much less aggressive. The African Methodist Church is their great rival. It, like the C. M. E., is an exclusively negro church, but its papers and reviews, being under the control of the Northern members of the body, have all the virulence and none of the moderation of the extremest statement of New England or Minnesota. I did some little work forDunlap last year on this line, and know something of the uphill work the Commission er has to do, but Billy Hayes does not easily yield to discouragement, and he will make friends whither he goes. We were much surprised when we heard Dr. J. P. McFerrin had taken his place. He is not Dr. J. B. McFerrin's son, but is the son of his brother Rev. A. P. McFerrin who is a local preacher. While this is a surprise it is by no means a dis agreeable one to us. Dr. McFerrin is one of the most attractive and popular preachers in the Holston Conference. He has been in Chat tanooga for several years and has been very popular there. There are numbers of transfers from our Conference to the North Georgia, which will make some revisals necessary, in order to keep the equilibrium. . The.GoEference which, allows a few appointments to search over the whole connection, and to choose each preacher, and which receives them as birds of passage, who have come only to flit when the time conles,and makes no protest,is doom ed sooner or later,to give up its itin erancy. The rank and file of the Con ference will never submit, for any length of time, to obey without ques tion the orders of the Cabinet, and see, at the same time, a favored few come and go at their own option. Nor will Post Oak circuit long con sent to be put into a different cate gory with Big purse station, and take anybody who comes, while Big purse gets its own choice. This is true, but it is also true, that nothing is so offensive to lay men, as for a Conference to put up its bars and say, "choose among us or go unsupplied, for no strangers shall come in here." We must have transfers, but to transfer all to, and none from, makes it hard for the Conference and the transfer. Anoth er1 Conference is thought to be desir able, say the North Georgia, and Texas, Coiorada, Ala., Tenn., Fla., Arkansas brethren pour in. Th3 appointments they receive are not such as they deserve, but certainly the best they can get till the ple thora is relieved. A transfer, however has a weary time of it. He cannot get settled for years and a N. C. br6ther told me that though he had been in one of the more Southern Conferences from his young manhood, he had not yet been recognized as fully naturalized. This is a sublime selfishness in Con ferences, some times a dog in the manger spirit, which says, "We can't, and you shan't." I certainly would advise no old man to trans fer. The young may safely do so. The old man had better die on his native soil. We will need to bring some new men to the front in both Conferences, in order to supply our work, and great preachers are grow ing scarcer with every decade. This will be called Pessimism, but it is true. Our most brilliant men leave the pastorate for Editorships, Sec retaryships, Professorships, etc. Think of Candler, Hopkins, Morri son, Potter, all out of the pastorate in one Conference, and Hoss, Rich ardson, Atkins, Bays in another, and you need not wonder at the difficulty of supplying pulpits. But enough for the now. The Ideal Church. Boils over with zeal. Pays dues promptly. "Talks up" the minister. Has class-leaders with snap. Has a hand shaking battalion. Receives members every week. Has a consecrated membership. Has a wonderful Sunday-school. Does not try to be "aristocratic." Lends a hand to people in trouble. Has a janitor with common-sense. Does business in business-like style. Has glorious congregational sing ing. Is especially attentive to poor peo ple. Captivates the stranger at first at tack. Is not frightened at an occasional shout. Says "God bless you" to the young people. Has Sunday school teachers, not preachers. Be True to Your Own Church. (Anonymous.) Don't run down either its pastor or its members; either its doctrine or its policy; either its ordinances or its usages. Give it a hearty and loyal support by word and deed. Re member that it belongs to you; that it is a part of your religious life; that in it and by it you are being trained for usefulLess here, and im mortality hereafter; that its honcr is much in your keeping; that its growth and purity are affected to the extent of your influence by what you say and do; that people who have faith in you will look upon it largely according to your represen tation; that you have promised to advance its interests; and that with its good name and prosperity are bound up the glory of the blessed Jesus. Then do nothing to injure its reputation, or to weaken its pow er for good, or to mar its peace and fellow ship. Short, Sensible Sayings. Rev R. G. Stuart : There are often petty jealousies and ill will among our ministry. Brethren, brethren, let us not attempt to stand in the sacred desk, and preach the Gospel of our God which is the very embodiment of love, and let there live anywhere in our hearts one iota of malice or ill will against any hu man on earth. God deliver us from this wrangling, this cruel backbit ing, this criticism and evil speak ing, everything of the kind that is evil and malicious and ruinous in its effects. Mid- Continent : "It is not philosophy, but the Gospel that the world needs, ft is not the tread of pompous sentences, but the breathing of the Holy Spirit in words which the H ly Ghost teaches which we ought to seek in our preachers. I can easier under stand how some foolish shepherd could put his hay too high for the lambs, than I can understand how the foolish lambs could stand and admire the shepherd and starve while they stared." Bishop Key's Presiding Elders : I believe that the presiding elder ship is the center wheel in Metho. dist economy. A live presiding elder can make what he wants to make out of his district. He can do anything with it he makes up his mind to do. But there is no sine cure; no nominal position, and you may well believe it. The presiding elder ought to have the qualities of a general in him. lie ought to be able to plant captains and squadrons in the field and to lead them to vic tory. His position is that of a super intendent and overseer, and he ought to impress himself on every charge and every preacher on his charge, and if he makes up his mind to do it, he can do it. I have seen some wonderful re sults brought about by presiding elders, who -mere presiding elders; wonderful. I see so far we have three new ones to make. (That re mark was interjected for the bene fit of any brother who may be drawn in the selection of presiding elders.) If you are called to this field you un derstand you are not accepting an empty compliment, but the hardest working place in the Missouri Con ference. You may kiss your wife and bid her good-bye. I am sorry for her and you may give her my sympathy.
North Carolina Christian Advocate (Greensboro, N.C.)
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Oct. 15, 1890, edition 1
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