p. 16 | Signs of the Times, Vol. 28, No. 10. (3/5/1902)

Earlier text: RELIGIONS OF THE CHRISTLESS NATIONS

One of the Fruits of War.—

A friend sends us a clipping from the Durban Natal Mercury, South Africa, which contains an article crying out against the social peril. It represents the city as being overrun with lewd women plying their vocations of ruin in an open, shameless manner. The writer says: “If this is suffered to exist much longer, disintegration of society will follow, and in its wake a thousand and one evils, so graphically depicted in any manual of moral or social science.” Fearful disease is making great progress among the young men. The writer continues: “The greatness of a nation depends principally on the morals of its women.” He advises the authorities to keep them from landing if possible, as they are largely foreigners, but if not possible, to build two-room barracks, or two-room cottages, confine the women there, let them be inspected, certified healthy, and licensed. It is horrible. If it were not for virtuous women, nations would fall sooner than they do; but if the men were also virtuous, that would insure the nation’s safety. Why not shut up the men? Why should not the lewd and loose among them be treated as rigidly as the women? It is a simple, cold fact that nearly everybody will admit that there would vanish from the earth a great majority of the harlots, were it not for the demand of the baser man. Give him the treatment he deserves. He is no better than those he consorts with.

The Lord’s Day and the Sabbath

The Ministerial Association of Tulare, Cal., backed by a petition for a “rest-day” on behalf of clerks and employees as well as in the interest of good morals, “suggests” to the business men of that city to “give due notice through the town press that on and after February 16 you will cease to do secular business on the ‘Lord’s day,’ save in cases of extreme necessity. We have naught to do with neighboring towns, but we firmly believe that in carrying out this expressed will of so large a number of your patrons, you will in nowise become losers in trade. A few may for a time go to other towns for trade, but a larger number of a better class of dealers will come to you because you keep the Christians’ Sabbath.” Now the “Lord’s day” must be the day the Lord calls His, which He has set apart and honored. According to the Bible (Ex. 20:8–11; Isa. 58:13; Mark 2:28; Matt. 28:1), this day is the Sabbath, the seventh day of the week. “Christian” comes from Christ. The Christian Sabbath must be the Sabbath made, blessed, honored, observed, by Christ. But as the Creator He rested on, blessed, and sanctified the seventh day; as the one only perfect Example, He kept the day. He finally died to save the sinner from the transgression of that law of which the Sabbath was a part. If the business men will keep this day voluntarily, from the heart, it will indeed be in the interest of good morals. But would a counterfeit be? If any day is kept by constraint, it has neither credit nor blessing in it.

Reformers’ Common Fault of Exaggeration

It is said that “honest confession is good for the soul,” and that is true, provided the sin confessed be forsaken. “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper; but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.” Prov. 28:13. The Christian Statesman, organ of the National Reform Association, while commending reform conventions and pointing out their advantages, throws out this timely caution: “Reformers should guard against the very common fault of exaggerating the evils against which they contend.” The fact that the organ of these “reformers” can see their tendency to exaggerate as a “very common fault” should be a warning to the people at large against their so-called “campaign of education,” and against their representations in general.

Earthquakes Near Shamaka

Fresh earthquakes are reported from the vicinity of Shamaka, in Transcaucasia. The newspaper reports state that up to the present time 5,000 persons have lost their lives as a result of these recent seismic disturbances. During the search for the bodies of those who had perished, many have been disentombed alive, having fallen into the crevasses which opened in the earth, and been entombed when the crevasses closed again.

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