p. 16 | Signs of the Times, Vol. 43, No. 30. (8/1/1916)

Earlier text: IS THERE LIFE BEYOND THE GRAVE?

OTHER AUGUST LEADERS

By Editor

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The Craze for Pleasure

MORE than 2,000 delegates attended the "Motion Picture Exhibitors' League of America," in Chicago. The convention lasted for something like ten days. Among the striking statements made in some of their open meetings was one to the effect that an average of 25,000,000 people in the United States attend the motion picture shows each day. There are 21,600 of these shows, and they represent an investment of $2,000,000,000.

One of the subjects to receive prominent discussion was "The Curtailment of the Rapidly Mounting Salaries Paid to Players by Film-Producing Companies." Some of these players receive salaries as high as $650,000 a year. It was thought that the only way to curtail them would be for the exhibitors to combine, and thus crush out competition.

The Amusement Trust

It is a very interesting thing to those who are studying world conditions, to note the tremendous craze for pleasure and fun that characterizes our time. True pleasure and real enjoyment is a natural condition for the human being, and may properly be sought in any legitimate and sane way. But the amusement trust is working to create excitement and to form habits and dispositions among the people that will intoxicate them with the ideas of pleasure.

When the records show that one out of every four of the people of the United States attends the moving picture shows each day, the fact is superabundantly clear that this form of amusement has become an alarming craze. The statistics given out a year ago indicated that about 18,000,000 a day were attending the motion picture shows; but it would seem that during the last year, there has been an increase of some 6,000,000. Such things have a tendency to increase; and the more rapidly they do so, the more do individuals become intoxicated with the thought of pleasure, and the less taste they have for the real substantial and necessary things of life.

As Nations Go to Pieces

ANY one who has studied the history of the various civilizations of this world has observed that as a nation is going to pieces, one of the strongest and most prominent symptoms is the passion for exciting amusements of various kinds.

The populace of Rome, during her last hours, while the barbarians from the north were breaking her up, was clamoring for the theater, the chariot race, the gladiatorial fights, and other exhibitions of that sort. The people in great droves moved from the country to the cities, and demanded of the rulers that they be permitted opportunities for these exciting pleasures, which were often in the form of gross, debasing follies.

Yet, while Rome was thus engaged, she was persisting that she had stood so long, and was such a tremendous power, that she could never go down. Rome continued to point to her past glories, and to the great principles that she had held when she was a powerful nation, not realizing that "Ichabod" had already been inscribed across her portals, indicating that her glory and power were departed.

Not Awake to the Danger

MEN who are making their millions out of amusing the people, become so overwhelmingly interested in that one thing as to fail to take into account that they are undermining the foundations of society, and preparing the world for inevitable ruin. Men ought, from the sheer philosophy of history, to see these things. And those who have confidence in the divine Book of God, will know, from its prophetic utterances and inspired warnings, that the conditions which are so rapidly developing in our time have been foretold, and furthermore, that they mean disaster to those who are looking to this world with the thought that the conditions of the present time may continue indefinitely. God has most plainly pointed out, in His inspired Book, that one of the perils of the last days will be the placing of the love of pleasure above the love of God. Please read carefully the first part of the third chapter of 2 Timothy, and allow this warning to have its full weight.

God does not condemn pleasure. On the contrary, one of the most beautiful promises in His inspired Book reads, "In Thy presence is fullness of joy; at Thy right hand there are pleasures forevermore." Ps. 16:11. God promises "fullness of joy" and "pleasures forevermore"; and the true joys that He gives, and the real pleasures that He promises forevermore, are upbuilding, refining, and ennobling. But in order to keep men from receiving these, Satan invents counterfeits that lead to follies, vices, and degrading, degenerating debaucheries. It is against these counterfeit pleasures with which Satan is flooding the world, that God has warned us. They are prominent among the things that will fill the last days with peril. Men who are intoxicated with greed, or pleasure seeking, or any other consuming passion, may not be able to see these things; but wise men and women will keep sober, and open their eyes wide. Men should see these things in the light of God's word, for the great day of the Lord is bursting upon an unprepared and wicked world.

Warring for Commercial Supremacy

By Editor

THE Chamber of Commerce of the United Kingdom of Great Britain is busying itself extensively now with "the subject of the defense of trade and employment within the empire after the war."

The conference of the allies recently held in Paris was for the purpose, in the main, of discussing the question of commerce, and of forming an offensive and defensive commercial alliance.

Speaking of the meeting just before it convened, Premier Asquith called it a conference

The submarine Deutschland, which recently entered Baltimore harbor after crossing the Atlantic with a cargo of dyestuff. The photograph shows her beside the tug that is taking her to her berth. The entrance of a submarine into the occupation of commercial shipping is causing international discussions, and bids fair to lead to international complications and strifes.

"at which all the allied states will be represented, and at which the whole of this question of the economic and commercial relations inter se, and as between them jointly and individually on the one side, and our present enemies on the other, will form the subject of debate and deliberation."

The French government took the initiative in convening this conference; and upon the subject, the parliamentary correspondent of the London Times in a recent issue said:

"It is understood that the French government some time ago took the initiative in advocating an unsparing commercial war against Germany. It is only within the past week that the British government have given their adhesion to the proposal."

Another paragraph from this same article in the London Times reads: "The obvious method is that the allies should agree that at the end of the war, none of them should make commercial agreements with the enemy without the consent of the others. There is, however, a party in the British Cabinet which is willing to go further than this. Some ministers, it is understood, are ready to decree an absolute prohibition against trade with Germany for a specified period. Whatever may be the outcome, it can be asserted with confidence that Germany will shortly feel the rigor of a commercial alliance."

We take no interest whatever in discussing the right or wrong of these proposals, or whether they are expedient or inexpedient. There is a far greater question involved. Men generally recognize that the war which is now in progress in Europe really has for its foundation the great question of commerce. It is a war as to whether this nation or that shall dominate trade, and shall drive railroads in this direction and that, and whether or no they shall control certain waters and harbors for the use of commerce.

And now, rising up in the foreground, so strongly as almost to shut out the vision of everything else, is the question of commercial supremacy, which is to enter into the discussion of the proposals of peace following the great struggle.

Any one with half an eye ought to be able to see that the conflict is in reality not being settled. The great bone of contention is still there. The love of self and the love of money, which the apostle said would make the last days perilous, is still one of the prominent features in the controversy. This war will without doubt temporarily cease, but it will leave feuds and international hates and complications that will further prepare the world for the great Armageddon that lies just ahead. He who is standing under the clear light of God's prophetic word will not become confused by the conditions of this time, but will understand clearly each step in the great program of this last controversy with sin and evil.

Permanent Peace Between Nations

IN his speech before the recent Lake Mohonk Conference on International Arbitration, the president of the Naval War College at Newport, Rhode Island, among other things, said: "A great peace conference lies ahead of the world, in which the United States will desire to have a part. Still other conferences, and more significant ones, will deal with a multitude of plans for securing permanent peace between nations."

One of the greatest dreams of the time is to secure "permanent peace between nations"; and without any question, "a great peace conference lies ahead of the world." The time will come when the great mass of humanity will think that it has secured permanent peace, but that will be just before destruction visits this wicked world through the great glory that will shine forth from the presence of Christ at His coming; for does not the Book tell us, in the plainest language, that it is when they are saying, "Peace and safety," that "sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape"? 1 Thess. 5: 3.

Before this war broke out in Europe, men everywhere were presenting their theories that we would never again have a clash between two first-class powers. A general war, they assured us, was an impossibility. But to-day Europe, on a far-flung battle line, is soaking her soil with the blood of men that have come hither to fight from practically all parts of Europe and Asia, as well as other portions of the earth. The United States is embroiled with Mexico. China is trembling before the revolutionary spirit. The Arabs are in rebellion against the Turks. There is practically no section of the world but is gripped by the war demons. Certainly we are having enough war at present time to shatter all the theories of the past. Still men theorize still further.

The prophets, however, have all the time been telling us plainly that the war of Armageddon will involve all the world. We are getting a little foretaste of it, and are seeing, as the revelator told us, that when the Judgment day was imminent, the nations would be angry.

Where will we stand,—on the side of truth and fact, with God and His divine word as given to us by His prophets, or on the insecure theories and speculations of mere men? It is well that we take care lest we be deceived in this great time of turmoil and strife. We need a stronger foundation than the doctrines of men. Nothing short of the Eternal Rock will endure the stress.