p. 512 | More Dishonesty by Editor

International Tract and Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Aug 19, 1886

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 12, No. 32.

More Dishonesty.

By Editor

By the dishonesty of two of its book-keepers, the American Baptist Publication Society came short $30,000 at the close of its last fiscal year. This is the fourth instance of the kind that has lately been brought to light as having happened to religious societies. It appears that this thing is becoming about as frequent among the religious societies as it is in the secular institutions, in proportion to numbers. In this case not the least disgraceful feature is the fact that the principal thief cannot see that he has done any wrong. He says: "I have done many injudicious things, but never a dishonest one."

The facts are these: William P. Pierson was head book-keeper of the society. He had an assistant named Felzberg. These two men have been together systematically robbing the society, and carrying on stock speculations with the money for four years. At the close of each of these four years, the Board has employed a special accountant to audit the books, but the rascality was not brought to light till the close of the fourth year. Here then are clearly the two crimes of robbery and conspiracy, and it looks as though bribery might be added. For it is difficult to see how that for three years, accountants from the outside could do their duty and discover no error, while the fourth one could find not only robbery in the fourth year, but also for the three years before. All this time, too, they were not only playing the thief, but the hypocrite as well;

for the official report says: "They are both heads of families, and professors of religion." When in the face of all this a man can assert that he has never done a dishonest thing, it argues a degree of moral turpitude that is impossible for an honest man to conceive of, and that is terrible to contemplate.

How anyone can fail to see the fearful necessity of a reform on the ten commandments we cannot understand. If the great body of the Christian ministry would give their undivided attention for awhile to the vigorous, old-fashioned exposition of the law of God, we might reasonably expect an improvement at least in the morality of the church. If the ten commandments were studied and discussed from the pulpits, instead of the so-called sciences, and art, and literature, and the higher criticism, and the new theology, and everything else but the ten commandments and the real religion of Christ, there might be expected a vast improvement in the condition of things. But alas! we see no hope. Too many of the preachers are ready to denounce the commandments rather than their transgression. And "they that forsake the law praise the wicked." And if the wicked be praised in that way, he will proudly practice his wickedness. Now the Lord says, "Here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." Sound it aloud.