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Review and Herald, Vol. 84, No. 1.

Inspired Resolutions

Review and Herald

Jan 3, 1907

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Jan 3, 1907

Inspired Resolutions

“They that regard lying vanities forsake their own mercy. “But I will sacrifice unto Thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that which I have vowed.”
“I will dwell in Thy tabernacle forever: “I will take refuge in the covert of Thy wings. “For Thou, O God, hast heard my vows.”
“Because Thy loving-kindness is better than life, my lips shall praise Thee. “So will I bless Thee while I live: “I will lift up my hands in Thy name. “My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; “And my mouth shall praise Thee with joyful lips.”
“I will sing of Thy strength; “Yea, I will sing aloud of Thy loving-kindness in the morning.”
“I will meditate on Thy precepts, “And have respect unto Thy ways. “I will delight myself in Thy statutes: “I will not forget Thy Word.”
“Teach me, O Jehovah, the way of Thy statutes; “And I shall keep it unto the end. “Give me understanding, and I shall keep Thy law; “Yea, I shall observe it with my whole heart. “And I will delight myself in Thy commandments, “Which I have loved. “I will lift up my hands also unto Thy commandments, which I have loved; “And I will meditate on Thy statutes.”
“I will extol Thee, my God, O King; “And I will bless Thy name forever and ever. “Every day will I bless Thee; “And I will praise Thy name forever and ever.”
“While I live will I praise Jehovah: “I will sing praises unto my God while I have any being.”

Our Publishing Work

The Lord gave the word: great was the company of those that published it. Psalm 68:11.
See last paragraph on this page for instructions where to order.
“MY GARDEN NEIGHBORS” was written especially for our young people as a substitute for the harmful fiction and vicious literature that is being prepared for the young. It is full of beautiful illustrations and true stories. Every parent and friend of the youth, who is interested in keeping them away from fiction and harmful stories, will be interested in seeing that this book is placed in the hands of all our young people. Besides presenting something that will fill profitably the time, its stories of birds and other of nature’s creatures, give an outlook on nature that will enlarge into a world of pleasure and profit. It is impossible in this limited space to make mention of all you will find in this book. It is for sale by the Review and Herald, but you may order it through your tract society. 256 pages. Price, $1.
“THE NEW TESTAMENT PRIMER” is a new book for children, composed of simplified nature and Bible topics, and sparkling with bright, two-colored illustrations — one of the most attractive children’s books ever published. Arranged in four graded departments, beginning with a Scripture alphabet, the first letter of the Scripture text being printed in two colors, and decorated with vines that grow in Palestine. The second department is a nature display of trees, flowers, animals, birds, and insects, with a slate exercise in writing, drawing, and stick laying. The third and fourth departments contain simple stories of Christ and some of the leading disciples. The entire book is admirably adapted to attract and to teach children — clean, cultured, and convincing. Beautifully bound in board and cloth covers, 25 and 50 cents.
The new Year-Book for 1907 will be ready to mail in a short time. It contains many improvements over previous editions, and will serve as an excellent reference to denominational affairs. All the usual matter heretofore comprising our Year-Books is arranged in a more convenient form, and the new statistical records of our institutions are greatly enlarged and appropriately grouped with the other matter. It will also contain the fundamental principles of Seventh-day Adventism which were printed in the 1905 Year-Book. This feature will be of great service in missionary work, for there is a constant demand for a statement of the belief of our people which can not be supplied in any other publication. The rapid growth of the denomination as revealed in the 1907 Year-Book, placed by the side of the fundamental principles, will render this edition of the Year-Book very desirable for placing in the possession of interested persons. It will be very convincing, and will doubtless help them to gain a comprehensive view of the great work being done. Not only every worker, but every family, should have a copy for reference and study, and thousands of copies should be used in missionary work. It can be ordered of any State tract society or of any publishing house.
Our new commandment chart just printed by the Review and Herald Publishing Association is 36 inches wide and 51 inches long. The type is large enough to be easily read in the largest hall or tent. It has the words, “The Law of God,” printed in large type at the top. It is in all particulars a decided improvement over the old chart, yet the price remains the same,—$1, post-paid.
BELL’S “Guide to Correct Language” has been revised and reduced in price. It is one of the best works on the proper use of the English language ever printed. The author was an acknowledged authority on all matters pertaining to the English language. His book, “Guide to Correct Language,” maintains his reputation. An educator says of the work: “It certainly is a work of merit, one to which many of our workers and other people should have access. I believe our speakers and writers should seek a higher standard in language, and the ‘Guide’ would certainly prove helpful to them.” Bound in durable cloth, 50 cents.
“THE GREAT SECOND ADVENT MOVEMENT” is a work written by Elder J. N. Loughborough. It accurately describes the progress of the denomination from its beginning to the present time. The author has been intimately connected with the progress of the denomination from its beginning, and is prepared to speak with authority. There is no other work circulated at the present time of such thrilling interest to our readers, as “The Great Second Advent Movement.” The faith and confidence of every individual who reads this book will be strengthened. He will have more perfect knowledge of the dealings of God with this special people, and will be better prepared to unite his efforts in advancing the third angel’s message. Let all not only read it, but study it. Price, $1.50.
“HERALDS OF THE MORNING” reveals the dawn of a desirable era to be ushered in by the coming of the Lord. The prophecies being fulfilled in the world to-day, and attracting the attention of the public, are interestingly considered in this work. The wonderful increase of knowledge and the marvelous development of the last century, the rising tide of crime and evil, the conflict between capital and labor, the increasing anger of the nations, the prevalence of the war spirit, the awful struggle to excel in the invention and manufacture of the most destructive weapons, the increase of storms and disasters of all kinds, are treated in connection with the prophecies which foretell the coming of these events. It is a work especially adapted to the needs of the people at this present time. Price, $1.75.
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Editorial

By Editor

Acceptable Righteousness
THE righteousness which is acceptable with God is “that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith.” This is not a mere odor of sanctity, a mere sentiment, but is rather a living principle which reveals itself in the life. In order that this power for righteousness might be made available for humanity, God gave his Son to take the flesh. “For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.” Thus the righteousness required is wholly the gift of God. “For if by one man’s offense death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.” In view of this abundant and free gift of heavenly righteousness it is not a hard requirement which demands that this genuine revelation of the character of God should be found in every one who is admitted into the heavenly kingdom. And so Jesus said, “Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.” The modern Pharisee differs in no essential respect from the Pharisees in the time of Jesus. The righteousness which he attempts to substitute for “that which is through the faith of Christ” may manifest itself in a somewhat different way, but the essence is the same. Education, culture, philanthropy, eating and drinking, penance,—all these works of the flesh may be in evidence, and may be thought better than the righteousness of the old-fashioned gospel, but they do not insure one a part in the kingdom of heaven. Some of these substitutes for righteousness may be transformed by the vitalizing power of the divine life so that they may become the fruits of godliness, but even then they are in no sense the price of salvation. They are the results and not the cause of the renewed mind. The righteousness of Christ is the only acceptable righteousness.
“My hope is built on nothing less Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.”

The Shameful Miscarriage of Justice

Through the prophet Isaiah a time is described when “justice is turned away backward, and righteousness standeth afar off; for truth is fallen in the street, and uprightness can not enter.” Those who are willing to face the facts as they exist in this country are forced to the conclusion that this indictment applies with peculiar accuracy to our own times. In justification of this statement we call attention to a significant article which appeared in the November number of The World’s Work, with the title which we have quoted above. This article is of considerable length, and is a scathing arraignment of the present system of administering justice, opening with this sentence: “The figure of Justice blindfolded seems eminently fitting in this day, not that she may distribute her favors with even hand, but that she may be spared the sight of the crimes committed in her name.” In order to give our readers an intelligent idea of this remarkable contribution to an influential magazine we quote quite a portion of it as follows:—
The rules of procedure and our system of appeals, together with the ingenuity of counsel in cases where the accused possesses means, have served to prolong issues through a series of trivial questions and consequent delays, with the result that justice, when not actually defeated, is shamefully retarded. In this country the cases of prompt justice are well-nigh limited to instances of mob violence—frightful protests against the delays and disappointments due to the intricacies and defects of our legislation and the follies of our justice.
What with demurrers, continuances, appeals, reprieves, and pardons, the guilty man with cash and “pull” so disfigures justice as to render her unrecognizable. By such means cases are dragged along for months and years, even after conviction, before the actual execution of the sentence. Criminal justice is thus robbed of much of its terror, for speed and certainty of punishment do more to prevent crime than does severity of punishment. Thus we find that crimes multiply at an astounding rate, and convictions decrease in disheartening ratio.
It is the custom among powerful corporations in this country, especially those whose business subjects them to personal-injury suits, to “wear out” their opponents. This is a comparatively easy matter under the present system of court procedure. Take the case brought by a poor man, the sole support of a family, against a street railway for injuries received at its hands. His creditors press him for payments which he can not make. His suit is “passed” from term to term of court. When brought to trial, in the course of two or three years, let us suppose he secures a verdict. The railway company promptly carries the case to the court of appeals, and often to the still higher courts. Meanwhile the demands of the plaintiff’s creditors and the exigencies of life force him to accept a settlement wholly out of proportion to the damages. Examples of such oppression, under the mantle of the law, might be offered by the score.
The prisoner without money or friends, and the prisoner rich in both, present striking contrasts. Our courts and officials seem less inclined to proportion justice to the magnitude of the offense than to considerations of the “previous estate” of the criminal. The “third degree,” the “sweat-box,” and other barbaric methods of modern police are habitually visited upon the prisoner destitute of money and friends. None of the “aristocracy of crime” is ever subjected to these forms of torture. On the contrary, the members of the “upper class” are treated with consideration, even deference, and sometimes by courts as well as by police. If the “third degree” were applied to a thieving financier, the whole country would cry out in rage, and that feature of police practise would soon follow into oblivion the “boot” and the rack.
In October of last year, two federal courts were in session—one in the city of Chicago, another in a small town of western Kentucky. A case in each court was called for trial.
In the Kentucky court before the bar of justice stood a tall, lithe, bronzed mountaineer, stolid and sullen. In the back of the room was seated his wife, a pale woman, her face pinched and drawn, with four thinly clad, disconsolatelate children—awaiting the climax of the tragedy. In some little valley back in the cold, hard mountains, the year before, this man and woman had struggled bravely with the problem of existence. The expense of transporting their small crop of corn to market was great; so it had been turned into whisky, in a still hidden in a mountain recess. No bond had been executed to the United States for the operation of this industry; the government tax had not been paid. The nation had been deprived of a few dollars of revenue—that was the burden of his offense.
In Chicago, the vice-president of a large packing company was on trial for conspiracy to violate the interstate commerce law against the granting or accepting of railroad rebates. He had violated a criminal statute. He had connived with railroad officials. He had taken criminal advantage of his competitors, as a result of which they were compelled to forego the business of slaughtering cattle or handling dressed beef. An entire nation had been defrauded. This defendant had left his palatial home in New York the day before, had traveled in a Pullman car, and had stopped at the most exclusive hotel in Chicago. The ablest lawyer of the Chicago bar stood ready to plead his case. The attorneys representing the United States had held a “conference” with the prisoner’s counsel the hour previous, and “matters had been arranged.” His wife and children were under no necessity of altering their daily routine. Yet the United States had spent thousands of dollars to bring him before the tribunal. Such cases furnish eloquent testimony of the inequity of justice that threatens our national career.
On the twelfth of January of this year two prisoners were received at the penitentiary at Columbus, Ohio—Mrs. Cassie Chadwick and John Shannon. Mrs. Chadwick wrecked banks, stole over one million dollars, and forged notes for thirteen million dollars. Poverty, suicide, and disgrace followed in the wake of her crimes. Shannon stole a duck last Thanksgiving day that he might have a good meal. To commit the theft he had broken into a store. Shannon must serve until Jan. 13, 1911. Ten months later Mrs. Chadwick is to be discharged.
In one of our largest penitentiaries are confined twelve former bankers. Apart from the disgrace and the restriction to the vicinity of the prison, there is small difference between the banker convicts and the man outside the walls. They go about with much the same liberty as the officials; they chat with each other and their keepers, while the “ordinary prisoners” are forbidden to open their mouths except to receive the prison food. They move about the prison in an authoritative manner; they dictate not alone to the other prisoners, but even to the officials. These bankers who were “big men” before their infamy, are still big men in their relations to the prison officials, respected rather than subjected, feared rather than fearing. They all fill clerical positions and enjoy numerous privileges. One is clerk in the office of the secretary, others are clerks in the office of the warden, in the post-office, in the hospital, in the steward’s office, in the cigar shop, and so on throughout the list.
There can be no question that intellectual crimes, as opposed to mere coarse, brutal violations of law, are on the increase. I mean forgeries, embezzlements, and huge swindles requiring brains, resources, and nerve. The dangerous tendency of crime in these days is toward oppression and murder by a system under which no one can be held responsible by law. Professor James, the eminent psychologist, has said: “Though education frees us from the more brutal forms of crime, it is true that education itself has put even meaner forms of crime in our way. The intellect is a servant of our passions, and sometimes education only makes the person more adroit in carrying out these impulses.”
The educated lawbreaker is capable of doing infinitely more harm than the ignorant criminal. His power for harm is multiplied by his knowledge. The educated man who constantly transgresses the moral law and ignores the ethics of his relations to the state is the worst enemy of society. Burglars and highwaymen prowl about the streets and prey on citizens, but they always run their chances of being captured, and organized society is not greatly harmed—its existence is not even threatened.
The spirit of this condition was well expressed by the remarks of Judge Foster in sentencing a man for complicity in stealing a policy from the vaults of a certain insurance company: “Your methods were very crude and bungling. If you had, instead of colluding with an outsider, colluded with an insider, and thereby had your salary raised to fifty thousand dollars, and then divided with the other man, the result would not have been more hurtful to policy-holders, but possibly you would not have been at the bar of justice.” . . .
Statistics of crime reveal startling truths. They show that the United States stands pre-eminent among the civilized and progressive nations in its catalogue of lawlessness. A tabulated series of such sinister statistics, recently prepared, shows that in seven years, beginning with and including 1894, there were more than 62,000 murders and homicides in the Union—nearly 9,000 a year—and only 871 legal executions. Less than 2 per cent of the whole number of lawless slayers has paid the extreme penalty of their crimes. In the period between 1881 and 1903 there were 129,464 murders and criminal homicides, balanced by but 2,611 judicial executions. These figures show a rapid increase of murders in proportion to the population, but no appreciable increase in the number of executions.

The Mexican Meeting

By William Ambrose Spicer

THE conference just closed in Mexico City has been a successful meeting. Naturally, with the growth of the last year or two, it was the largest meeting we have ever held in Mexico. In the closing session, workers and believers dedicated themselves to more earnest service, and separated with words of courage and thankfulness. On the last Friday of the meeting, just before the Sabbath, seven souls were baptized by Professor Caviness. It gladdened all hearts to see the sight in Mexico, where it means a large number to go forward at one time in baptism.
At the ordinance meeting Sabbath afternoon several stood up with the testimony, “I was a Catholic.” How earnestly and touchingly these and others bore testimony to the great blessing and joy this truth has brought to them. The broken and contrite spirit among these believers in Mexico shows that the message is bringing forth the same fruit in Mexico as in all the world.
Mexico is a difficult field, and we have found it so in our work, even as other Protestant societies have done before us. But there are signs in recent growth that may well cause us to rejoice, and to resolve never to faint nor be discouraged with any field while waiting to see this message win decided victories. To hear these brethren and sisters tell what the truth is to them, and to see their earnest interest in carrying it to others, may well bring satisfaction to our workers in Mexico, who have toiled long in sowing the seed.
With the coming in of Mexican believers able to do good service as colporteurs and Bible workers, the sowing and the reaping must surely go forward more rapidly from year to year. Brethren Colunga, Godinez, Harzman, and Schultz have been pushing the literature in many parts.
The need of schools for children and of training facilities for workers is already pressing upon this mission. Well may the field and its needs draw upon the sympathies of our churches in the States. The work in Protestant lands can not be finished until the message has been carried through the dark Catholic and heathen fields.
The small printing house, equipped by a little company of brethren in Mexico to supply the mission literature, was able to report its year's work done without a deficit.
A good number of medical workers were present, and helped strongly in counsels and discussions of all phases of the work. There were the Drs. Swayze, from Guadalajara, who were among the pioneers of our work in Mexico, Dr. J. W. Erkenbeck and his wife, from Ameca, Mrs. Dr. Colunga, of Torreon, Dr. John, of Cuautla, Dr. Fattebert and his wife, of Celaya, and Dr. Myers, who plans to continue a medical dispensary and mission in Guadalajara, in co-operation with the Mexico Mission. Brother Paulson, who has a bakery business at San Luis Potosi, and Brother Cooper, who has a fruit-canning enterprise in Mexico City, aided in the councils in a way that emphasized how great a help the influence of brethren in business may be in such a Catholic field. Every earnestbeliever engaged in business, living an upright, honest life, is a light that shines most helpfully where workers are few and the darkness is dense.
I found a spirit of unity in all the work, and Elder Brown, the superintendent, has the support and co-operation of all. Earnest hearts are bearing the burden of Mexico before the throne of grace, and faithful workers, Mexican and American, are searching to find the Lord's lost sheep over these mountains and valleys.
W. A. S.
Mexico City.

Doubting Pulpit and Empty Pew

By C. M. S.

For years the religious press has been discussing the empty pew, its cause and remedy, and the discussion still goes on, with all causes named but the right one, and all remedies suggested save the one remedy that will alter the condition. Ministers have thought they must preach sermons deeper in philosophical research in order to hold the attention of their male membership. They have done so, and the condition has been aggravated. They have expounded the Higher Criticism, and still the flock continued to stray. They have delved in mythology, and the pews refused to fill. They have brought Darwin and Spencer and Huxley to their rescue, and are still unrescued from their plight.
In view of this condition, the question naturally arises, Are men growing tired of religion? or is it the manner of its presentation that has left so many openings in the ranks? That men do not attend church as in former days does not indicate that their heart hunger has been satisfied. It would rather indicate that they are not finding in the church what God designed they should find there. It not infrequently happens that when the congregation has come together to be fed, the article of food placed before them is the husks of pantheism and “science falsely so called.” From what should have been the citadel of truth the shafts of the adversary are flying out into the mass of the people. In many cases these fiery darts impinge upon the armor of a true Christian, and then they fall harmless to the ground. But all do not carry the true shield of faith, the sword of the Spirit, and the helmet of salvation. Such ones are vulnerable at every point of attack, and by every agency of the adversary.
Many a clergyman who has mourned the emptiness of the pews to which he preached could have found the cause in the fact that he had spurned the pebble and the sling backed by the prayer of faith, and had gone forth to meet the adversary clad in the unwieldy armor of a faithless Saul. Ages on ages the battering-rams of error have swung their brazen heads against the Christian's battlement, the Word of God. Many a faint-hearted Christian has lost hope because the cries of the would-be victors have made him believe that they were actually battering down the wall; and many a preacher has thought he could save the situation by admitting the vulnerability of the wall, and teaching men they could be saved without its defense. So salvation without Christ, and Christianity without the Bible, have come about through this yielding of truth at the clamors of its enemies. Faithless preachers boring from within and avowed enemies boring from without have caused many a layman to doubt the Word. Then, when they had learned to doubt the Word, it was the most natural thing in the world to question why they should attend the meetings of the church, which was founded upon that Word—which never would have existed but for that Word. The only logical conclusion is that if they have no use for the one, they should drop the other also. And thus the vacant pew. The only cause for astonishment is that they who have brought this about should wonder at the result of their labor. They have planted thorn shoots, and have been pricked by the briers when they looked for figs among the branches. They have scattered alkali upon the soil, and because the wheat could not grow, they bewail the empty fields. They have called God's Word a myth, and then wonder that souls are not converted and churches filled under their preaching.
But even thus have we been forewarned that it would be. Scoffers were never so prevalent as now. They are even paid high salaries while preaching their doubts from the very pulpits dedicated to the service of God. These are they who, “having a form of godliness,” are “denying the power thereof.” These are they whom the Saviour saw in the end of the age when he asked the question, “When the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?” The greatest business under the direction of Satan to-day is that of destroying faith in the Word of God. It is an indication that we are reaching the fulness of time, and that the culmination of the controversy is near at hand.
C. M. S.

God's Aged Prophets

By Stephen N. Haskell

It is a mistaken idea to conclude that because one is old, the Lord can not sustain him. It is also a greater mistake to conclude that if the servants of the Lord have been faithful in their past lives in the work of God, God does not and can not sustain them in their old age. It is contrary to reason and in direct opposition to the Bible to conclude that he does not.
The apostle to the Gentiles says, “Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.” 2 Cor. 4: 10-12. He then adds, “For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.” Verse 16.
The apostle Paul must have been a man of great infirmity, for a physician always accompanied him, and we might reasonably conclude that some of his brethren thought he was a burden to them physically. When he uttered the words quoted above, it is reasonable to conclude, although we can not state his exact age, that he was at least sixty or seventy years old. The most of his writings were written after he was sixty years of age, and yet he says, “Though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.”
His spiritual discernment was more acute, his judgment was more valuable, and his life more beneficial to the church of God, than when he had more physical strength and youth. David says, “Thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.” Again the prophet Isaiah says, “Keep silence before me, O islands; and let the people renew their strength: let them come near; then let them speak: let us come near together to judgment.” Isa. 41: 1. When are they to come near and speak?—When their strength is renewed. They had “put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created.” Col. 3: 10. There is such a thing as being renewed by the Spirit of God and the mind growing stronger while the body grows weaker. “They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” Isa. 40: 31.
Ahijah prophesied that Jeroboam would be king of ten tribes of Israel, and Jeroboam reigned over Israel in fulfilment of this prophecy; but he departed from the Lord, and led Israel into sin. When Ahijah was old, Jeroboam was in trouble; because of his sins he feared to go to Ahijah in person, so he thought he would deceive him. His son was sick, and he told his wife to disguise herself and not let it be known that she was the wife of Jeroboam, and go and consult the prophet in regard to the child. But the Lord defeated the plan of Jeroboam and his wife, saying unto Ahijah, “Behold, the wife of Jeroboam cometh to ask a thing of thee for her son; for he is sick: thus and thus shalt thou say unto her: for it shall be, when she cometh in, that she shall feign herself to be another woman. And it was so, when Ahijah heard the soundof her feet, as she came in at the door, that he said, Come in, thou wife of Jeroboam; why feignest thou thyself to be another? for I am sent to thee with heavy tidings. Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Forasmuch as I exalted thee from among the people, and made thee prince over my people Israel, and rent the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it to thee: and yet thou hast not been as my servant David, who kept my commandments, and who followed me with all his heart, to do that only which was right in mine eyes; but hast done evil above all that was before thee: for thou hast gone and made thee other gods, and molten images, to provoke me to anger, and hast cast me behind thy back: therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, . . . and will take away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, . . . for the Lord hath spoken it.” 1 Kings 14: 5-11. Then, before the woman had an opportunity to ask any counsel, he said to her, “Arise, . . . get thee to thine own house,” and told her that the child would be the only one of the house of Jeroboam who would go into the grave, because in this child there was found some good thing toward the Lord God of Israel. Verses 12, 13.
This wonderful prophecy against the house of Jeroboam was fulfilled to the very letter. God did not leave the old prophet to be deceived. A very wise and shrewd scheme was planned, with the idea that because the prophet was old and blind, he would not perceive the deception.
This is the God of the Bible. Let none think that God can not take care of his aged prophets, or that he ceases to guide them and speak through them because of their weight of years.
S. N. HASKELL.

The Japanese in the San Francisco Public Schools

WHAT seems to us the most reliable and fair-minded setting forth of the San Francisco-Japanese school imbroglio we give below in a clipping from one of our exchanges. This clipping is based on an editorial in the California Christian Advocate, printed at the seat of trouble, and gives some inside facts in reference to the animus of the agitation which it is well for us to bear in mind. The article appeared under the heading, “The Japanese in the San Francisco Public Schools,” and reads as follows:—
Under this head the California Christian Advocate gives some interesting statements. We are assured that the writer is careful and reliable, and that what he says may be accepted as true. The number of Japanese in attendance in all the schools of the city is “just ninety-three—no more, no less.” In grade they range from the first to the eighth. In age they are below the average of their grades. Only two are so much as twenty years old; four are nineteen; six, eighteen; twelve, seventeen; nine are sixteen; and the others are all the way down to five. They are scattered in twenty-three different schools. Of the whole number, sixty-eight were born in Japan, and twenty-five in this country; sixty-five are boys, and twenty-eight are girls. That is the extent of the peril and the danger of contamination. To bring all these from all parts of the city into one school is as wrong as it is impracticable.
The Advocate says further: “The class of Japanese pupils which attend these schools are well dressed, well cared for, and almost without exception they are favorites with the teachers. The pupils also like them. They are bright in their studies, and charming in their manners.”
The anti-Japanese movement had its origin in an association formed a year and a half ago, composed largely of the rougher foreign element. The danger of the “yellow peril” was exploited until some good men were drawn into the movement. The labor unions took up the movement, and soon inflamed the public mind to such an extent that the school board adopted the order for separation. The better elements of the people do not support this policy. The protest of Japan gave the question a national importance.
Certain San Francisco newspapers have for the last two years been currying favor with the labor unions by demanding the exclusion of the Japanese. This element is largely responsible for the present trouble.

Note and Comment

By Editor

WE have been taught to expect that before God’s Spirit would be finally withdrawn from the earth, its drawing powers would be manifest in an unusual degree; that while the forces of evil seemed steadily gaining the ascendancy, the Spirit would in many places be found doing a wonderful work in pressing upon honest hearts the saving truths of the gospel. While the great controversy is fast closing, there is no reason why we should not now expect to see some of that mighty working of the Spirit wherever men are sensing their need of a Saviour. It may be manifest even in some of the fashionable churches, out of which God will call converted souls to join his elect. Many such will heed that call in the culmination of the controversy. Concerning the immanence of a great revival work, the Ram’s Horn says, editorially:—
The United States seems on the eve of a great national awakening. One of the most significant signs of the times is the changed tone of the American religious papers. A few months ago there was only an occasional reference to revivals. To-day the main theme of the editorials and contributed articles seems to be soul-winning, personal work and how to bring about a revival.
It is true that very frequently after earnest revival effort, a reaction sets in, and the condition of many seems more hopeless than before; but this only proves the intensity of the conflict that is being waged between the powers of light and of darkness. Jewels are won for the kingdom; but many who start in the race yield to the tempter and fall lower than before, for they are made the objects of Satan’s special attention. As the conflict deepens, we shall see more and more of this counterworking of the adversary in the ruin of souls who return to their former bondage after turning their face toward Christ.

Gambling Among Women

When a besieging army begins to scale the walls of a city, all but the stoutest hearted of its defenders lose hope. We look upon the home as a citadel of defense for the growing generation; but Satan has massed his strongest weapons against that citadel, and his minions are trooping over the wall of many a home. The matter of drinking and whist parties for stakes, participated in by mothers in their homes, has excited startled comment on both sides of the Atlantic; and men of the world have asked one another what moral anchorage a child has who is brought up in such an atmosphere. The blighting influence of such examples is seen in the increase of crime, intemperance, blasphemy, vice, and lack of all moral restraint. Now comes a correspondent of the London Sunday-school Chronicle with the avowal that “gambling among women is spreading with alarming rapidity.” He says:—
In many industrial centers, women are more severely tempted to gamble than men. The operatives in workshops and factories go to the book-makers, but the book-makers go round the workmen's houses when they are absent at work and collect money from their wives.
The committee of the House of Lords elicited much information about betting women. Mr. Robert Knight, who was for twenty-nine years general secretary of the Boiler-makers' and Iron and Steel Shipbuilders' Society, testified that it was within his personal knowledge that house-to-house betting had become a terrible evil—one of the worst that he knew of in the Newcastle district. He could give the names of many mothers who had taken things out of the house and pawned them to get money to bet with.
What Mr. Knight said of Newcastle, Mr. F. W. Tannett-Walker, speaking as a large employer of labor, confirmed with respect to the Leeds district. As a rule, the workingmen, he said, only betted with their pocket-money, as they called it, while the women very often risked the money their husbands had given them.
The gambling mania which is now flourishing in the homes of the people, is being strengthened by the use of intoxicating liquors, which benumb the conscience; and these twin children of the evil one work hand in hand to destroy the souls and bodies of young and old alike.
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