Earlier text: FRUITS OF SPIRITUALISMJesus said to His own people the Jews: “I am come in My Father’s name, and ye receive Me not; if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive.” John 5:43. The next verse tells why. How many times since has history demonstrated the truth of these words here and in Matt. 24:5, “And many shall come in My name, saying, I am the Christ; and shall lead many astray.” Again He warns: “If any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is the Christ, or Here; believe it not. For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. Behold, I have told you beforehand. If therefore they shall say unto you, Behold, He is in the wilderness; go not forth; Behold, He is in the secret chambers, believe it not.” Verses 23–26. And yet how many have been deceived. Not less than a score of deceivers arose in the early centuries, and in these days they are multiplying rapidly. The earlier deceptions were largely among the Jews; the later is largely among the Christians. Spiritism and kindred cults declare that Jesus comes in the secret chambers, and millions are deceived. Mormonism and Dowieism declare that His headquarters are here or there; or He is here, or Here, believe it not. All this is contrary to the teaching of His Word. Yet there are multitudes that follow the signs and the wonders as preferable to truth and character because they do not know the truth. Gentile Christians are not alone in these deceptions. There is now (we obtain information from the Voice of Israel) taught that the prophesied Redeemer is now in Persia, having the name in the flesh of Abbas Effendi. He has a representative in this country, Merza Abdul Fazel. The editor of the Voice of Israel tells us that this Persian prophet has his residence in a fashionable quarter in Washington, where he was found sipping his tea, with pipe at hand. It is claimed that about 30,000 Jews in Persia, Assyria, and Russia, are now the followers of this false messiah, and 10,000 in the United States. He is now gathering out the 144,000, his prophet tells us, and with them will enlighten others. The prophet makes great promises to those who will become one of these. And thousands will be deceived here also. Yet no one need be led astray. Christ does not come the second time in that way. “For as the lightning cometh forth from the east, and is seen even unto the west; so shall be the coming of the Son of Man.” Matt. 24:27. “Behold, He cometh with the clouds; and every eye shall see Him.” Rev. 1:7. “Shall so come in like manner as ye beheld Him going into heaven.” Acts 1:9–11. “Amen, even so come, Lord Jesus.” The Greed of Modern Trusts
Garrett P. Serviss, the scientist, likens the rapacity and greed of the modern mill men, who grow rich upon the labor of “stunted-bodied and stunted-minded children,” to the great prehistoric saber-toothed tiger, whose tusks reached the enormous length of twelve inches. But he seems to think the ancient and horrible cat the preferable. The monstrous maws of some of the trusts seem sufficient, as their unnatural hunger is, to devour the world. These are but the evidences of the increasing greed which will destroy the world. The Cost of the Coal Strike
The cost of the first eighteen weeks of the coal strike is estimated at $112,020,000. The loss in wages to striking employees is put at $24,000,000; to employees, not strikers, $5,300,000. The loss to business men not in anywise involved in the differences between the operators and miners, is $21,700,000. And yet how easily the operators could settle it, not by defeat, but by doing a just thing! GAMBLING in the homes of the well-to-do is no longer a novelty, and it is not a rare thing for a guest to find himself or herself even embarrassed over losses at the social gaming table. Dr. Washington Gladden has related the following incident as an illustration of one of the ways “society” finds to amuse itself and “entertain” guests in its homes. “A young lady from my own city recently visited New York, and found herself in an elegant home, where a card party, with this spice, playing for prizes and money, for its diversion, was to assemble in the evening. The girl had scruples against gambling, and begged to be excused, but her hostess insisted that she must play, making her feel that she would violate the obligations of hospitality if she refused. With a great reluctance, she yielded, and lost during the evening considerable money. The hostess offered, the next morning, to make good her loss, but the girl had spirit enough to refuse that reparation; since the greater wrong she had suffered would not be undone, she would not permit the lesser to be(649)repaired. The essential vulgarity and brutality of a society in which a thing like that can happen does not need to be pointed out.”—Union Gospel News. “LONDON'S ROMANCE.”
By M. Ellsworth Olsen
“DISGUISED as eight hundred pages of statistics and balance-sheets, the London County Council yesterday issued its annual true romance of London.” So writes the London Daily Mail, and the document in question certainly contains matter of sufficient interest to justify the appellation. First, let us endeavor to form a clear idea of the vast population massed together on the banks of the Thames. New York is the city of next size, and yet it contains only a little more than half as many people. Greater London now shelters the enormous total of 6,581,372 souls, equal to the entire population of Belgium or Morocco, far exceeding the combined populations of Chicago, Paris, and Berlin, and with half again as many as Ireland or Scotland. Moreover, the city continues to grow. The increase during the last decade has amounted to nearly a million, or more than the total population of Dublin, Edinburgh, and Bristol. What are the conditions of life in London? Unfortunately, the answer is not favorable. No inconsiderable portion of the inhabitants are living in filth and squalor. The overcrowding problem is engaging the earnest attention of thoughtful people; but the difficulties standing in the way of its radical solution are many and great. It is easy enough to say the old, unsanitary houses should be torn down. “What will you do with their present occupants” is a question which comes immediately to the front, and demands an answer. When, owing to intemperance combined with low wages, the laborer can scarcely buy bread and clothes for his family, it is not to be expected that he can pay fancy prices for a house to live in. So it happens that one finds large families living in a couple of small rooms, and families of four or five actually crowded together in one little room, under conditions which make decency impossible. Is it at all to be wondered at that pauperism, drunkenness, and insanity threaten to engulf the city? Jan. 1, 1901, the indoor and outdoor paupers of London numbered 123,520, or one to every forty persons in what we may call London proper; namely, that portion under the control of the London County Council. The cost of maintaining each of these paupers is nearly $150, amounting in the aggregate to some $18,000,000. In fact, out of every one hundred men over sixty-five years of age, nineteen are paupers, and out of a hundred women, twenty-two belong to this class. Insanity is worse, for it is increasing at an alarming rate, while pauperism is practically stationary. The total number of insane is 16,960. The increase in twelve years has been more than fifty per cent. Alcoholism, the parent of pauperism and insanity, is said to be “making rapid strides.” In 1890 the arrests for drunkenness amounted to 537 to each hundred thousand people. In 1899 it had risen to 846, the growth being steady and well-maintained. To the dweller in London, who sees persons daily in various states of offensive intoxication without so much as a suggestion of police interference, the thought naturally suggests itself: What would the proportion be, if all cases were dealt with according to law? The most distressing feature is the increased prevalence of drinking habits among the women. Saloons, known in this country as public houses, are patronized freely by both sexes, and it is hard to tell which loves the bottle the most, the poorly-paid, illiterate navvy or his slatternly spouse. “If drunkenness continues to increase among our women, then the death knell of England is rung,” said a prominent bishop recently. Would there were many more high-church dignitaries who took an earnest, active interest in temperance matters. It is true that the Archbishop of Canterbury is a strenuous advocate of temperance; but in the main the established church has lent its influence to the nefarious traffic. A considerable part of the brewery stock is in the hands of church officials. Edward VII., the titular head of the church, visited a leading brewery a short time since, and helped to brew some ale. Another large brewery presented each of its employees with a new Bible as a coronation gift. These things merely show the hold that strong drink has upon the people of this country, and how it has come to be regarded as a blessing, used in moderation. Returning again more particularly to London, we note that the marriage rate has slightly increased in recent years; but the birth rate is the lowest that it ever has been. The death rate, less than it was some twenty-five or thirty years ago, is nevertheless greater than three years since. Sanitary science has done marvels in the way of preventing epidemics, or at least cutting them short, but the constitutional strength and vitality of the race is not by any means what it was in the fifties. This is generally conceded. On the whole, the outlook for London, and for practically all the great cities of the world, is a dark one, regarded in the light of the real welfare of the people. “The dark places of the world are, indeed, full of the habitations of cruelty.” In spite of earnest, faithful, persistent effort on the part of all manner of philanthropic organizations, social conditions grow worse and worse. The city people would die out entirely, if they were not continually being reinforced by the sturdy country folk, who foolishly sacrifice pure air, plain food, and wholesome surroundings for the unsavory, disease-producing slums and the uncertain labor-market of a great city. No Compromise with Sin.
By James R. Day
[From baccalaureate sermon preached in Syracuse, N. Y., on Sunday, June 8, 1902, by James R. Day, LL.D., Chancellor of Syracuse University.] “For what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?” 2 Cor. 6:14. The Lord never has made compromise with sin that holiness might become more effective; never has made concessions to forms of iniquity that He might get a right of way for forms of truth. He gave in the beginning and always has given unmixed truth. The commandments are unqualified and for all. His people were a peculiar people and separate. They were not allowed for purposes of what sometimes seemed wise expedients to join with outside peoples, or to partake of anything heathen at whatever profit. Again and again they were miserably slain for forgetting this. It was a long discipline of undeviating, uncompromising truth. In the new kingdom the principle is laid down clearly, “Be ye separate.” “What fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?” The great expounder of that kingdom, who illustrated its spirit in His life and set forth its teachings with a greater fulness than any other, said, Shall we do evil that good may come? God forbid. Doctrine That the End Justifies the Means Repudiated.
Righteous people are still a peculiar people. Their code is a high and holy one. It is not one of expediency. They are to do right, and only right. They are to do nothing, have nothing, go nowhere, that is not right. Intelligent Christians always have repudiated the thought that the end justifies the means. Christ did not practise it. He did not teach it. His Gospel squarely antagonized the evils of the world, and that was what made it unpopular. It was an age in which many religions were tolerated at Rome. Christianity was not. It was uncompromising. It did not try to conform to usages or to incorporate them if they had any mixture of evil. It faced them with a bold front and overthrew them. It was only when its teachers became sunken and corrupted and blinded by personal ambition, power, luxury, that it affiliated with the world. And you know the history. The story of darkness, the Middle Age story, is a familiar one. The church got in a hurry and incorporated heathenism, and brought in as a compromise many of its views, tastes, and forms. Instead of being content to let the leaven work, it took the coarse meal unleavened and tried to work it without leaven. It got in a hurry for the mass of mankind—rulers, tribes, nations, whose peoples were accommodated with a place in the church of Christ, without its spirit or character, with no affinity or likeness or sympathy. Was it a wise and prudent policy? It seemed to pay. It made converts. Christianity seemed to succeed marvelously. The heathen became heathen Christians. There were plenty of them—heathen priests at the altars and heathen worshipers. But they all called Christ, Lord. That was the gain. They were the same old characters, but they called themselves by the Christian name. You know the result. Civilization was set back a thousand years. We have learned that Christianity must have the Spirit of Christ. It can not compromise. It must stand for purity, for separateness. For nineteen centuries a minority has uttered its protest against compromise with sin. Its voice has rung out in unmistakable tones, at the price of life and reputation and this world's goods. The Christian Church to-day stands for that principle, is that protest. Its mission is to purify the world. Not to lessen evil, but to extirpate it; not to change its form, but to annihilate it in all forms; not to mix it in, in moderate quantities, and absorb it, but to destroy it root and branch. Its Golden Text is, “Be ye not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind.” The attitude is absolute. The power is not an adjustment of worldly prudence and expedients, but the regenerative life and light of the divine Gospel, in a soil cut through and turned up and torn apart by the gleaming plowshares of the commandments. These prohibitions are sent ahead. And the commandments and the regenerating power of the Gospel co-operating, clean of all forces and forms of sin, are the hope of the world's salvation. Christianity Can Not Compromise with Sin.
Christianity as compromise with sin, even a little of it, even a modified form of it, is impossible to your thought. That is not the Christianity which you have been taught. It must be all clean and separate institutionally from all uncleanness of every kind. It must not institutionally bear the name or take on any form of those things which harm men. It must avoid the very appearance of evil. You insist that it shall stand far and away and apart from those practises that are tracked through the ages by wrecked homes, ruined manhood, graves of shame, lost souls. From all this it must be as widely separate to your thought as heaven is from hell. As well put spots on the sun to overcome the darkness of midnight as to mix into Christianity the institutions and practises that curse the race, in order to relieve the race of such curses.—Christian Advocate. MORE MUNICIPAL CORRUPTION.
“Against spiritual wickedness in high places.” Eph. 6:12. Now MINNEAPOLIS must endure the scandal of having the lid temporarily removed from her kettle of municipal rottenness. The mayor and chief of police appear to be the leaders in the corruption. The mayor was elected on a “wide-open-town” platform, and when the governor of the State removed the county sheriff for cause, the mayor sought to control the appointment of a successor by attempted bribery of the county commissioners who have the appointing power. The chief of police is brother to the mayor, and is to be tried for accepting “graft” money. Some of the relations are worthy of Tammany in its palmiest days. With the startling revelations of municipal corruption in New York, Philadelphia, St. Louis, Minneapolis, and other cities, American city government is an institution of which we can scarcely be proud.—Homiletic Review. Temperance Neglected in the Presbyterian Church
Speaking of temperance, the Christian Work says: “Notwithstanding the great activity of the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union and of the Prohibition Party, it is hardly unfair to suppose that the mass of American people utterly fail to see the seriousness of the need of temperance reform.” There is nothing new in this utterance, for very few people would think of disputing it. The statistics of liquor consumption fully sustain the statement. But the same paper (which is Presbyterian) tells something else that might surprise some. Through it we learn that the treasurer of the General Assembly’s Permanent Committee on Temperance “calls attention to the fact that this subject was grievously neglected at the recent meeting of the Assembly.” He laments that “financially also, the temperance cause is losing ground in the Presbyterian Church.” We can not say how it is in other churches as they have not issued an official confession. Bible Study Books at Special Prices
By Editor
The great religious book offer comprising ten valuable Bible Study Books, made by the S. S. Scranton Co. of Hartford, Conn., in this issue will surely appeal to Bible Students who are in need of works of this character. This old established publishing house is conferring a great benefit upon the religious students of this country in furnishing Biblical literature of such a high character, at prices so low, and on terms so easy, that very few, if any, need go without the best helps to Bible study. We commend the books to our great army of Bible readers. The New Testament as a Language Aid
At the American Tract Society’s office in New York there is constant demand for the New Testament in various languages, from persons who use it less for religious instruction than as an aid in the study of foreign tongues. Some students buy the smallest and cheapest Testaments printed by the society in French, German, Italian, Spanish, Greek, or one or another of the Oriental languages, and, armed with a single leaf cut from a small Testament in English, use the two together in studying the foreign tongue as they go to and from business. A still simpler method employed is to cut a single leaf or a chapter from each Testament and thrust them folded together into the waistcoat pocket against the journey to or from business. Many foreigners in New York improve their English in this fashion, and incidentally extend their acquaintance with the Gospels. Some students buy Testaments with the English text and that of some foreign language printed in parallel columns. This form is extremely convenient, but the books are necessarily rather large, and on that account are not in favor with those who study in public. There is a pretty steady demand for Latin and Greek Testaments with parallel texts, and there is now an increased demand for the New Testament in Spanish for use in the study of that language. German, French, and Italian Testaments are also considerably called for, and Testaments even in the languages of eastern Europe are occasionally asked for.—New York Sun. The Growth of Electrical Manufacturing
The extent to which electricity is coming into the affairs of the present age is indicated in the recent report of an official of the census office on the manufacture of electrical apparatus and supplies. The amount of means employed in such manufactures is $83,130,943. These manufactures gave employment to 40,890 wage-earners. The cost of material used during the one year was $48,916,440, and the value of the products, including custom work and repairs, amounted to $91,348,889.—This in the United States alone. Venezuelan Warship Misuses American Flag
It has come to the knowledge of the State Department that the Venezuelan war ship which recently sailed up the Orinoco River and bombarded the city of Bolivar, sailed under the American flag until within range of the city, in order to be free from molestation by the insurgents on the way. The bombardment of the city resulted in many deaths and the destruction of considerable property. The American minister demanded an apology and a salute to the American flag. The demand was complied with, a salute of twenty-one guns fired, and the incident is regarded as closed. Two more American warships have been ordered to the isthmus to assist in guarding American interests. in guarding American interests. At a meeting in London on September 25, which was being addressed by John Kensit, the noted anti-ritualist, a chisel was thrown at the speaker by someone in the audience inflicting a deep gash in Mr. Kensit's face. The crusade headed by Mr. Kensit is a crusade against the strong drift in the Church of England toward Roman Catholicism, and the weapons used against him are characteristic of the spirit which rules in those who are drifting, and those toward whom they are drifting. The Spirit of the Christ is something altogether different. Russia Moves to Destroy Finnish Liberty
The St. Petersburg correspondent of the London Times, referring to the new ordinances soon to be promulgated by Russia in Finland, says they will completely destroy all Finnish liberty, and that unless the czar intervenes at the last moment, Finland will be struck off the roll of European nations, and become a mere province of a semi-Oriental empire. But the czar has shown no disposition to interfere with the destruction of Finland’s liberties, notwithstanding the promises made by his predecessors. Duke of Abruzzi Proposed for Spanish Throne
CONSIDERABLE excitement has been caused in Madrid by the discovery that influential malcontents are organizing committees with the object of proclaiming the Italian Duke of Abruzzi, a candidate for the Spanish throne. He is now visiting Mediterranean ports in an Italian cruiser, and is received everywhere with enthusiastic demonstrations. In view of the conditions, the government has requested him to hasten his departure from Spanish waters. The Fastest Warship in the World
The fastest warship in the world, outside of torpedo-boats and torpedo-boat destroyers, is the new first-class, armored cruiser Drake, of 14,100 tons displacement. Her speed is 24.1 knots per hour, or very nearly 28 miles. Altho a cruiser, her armament, size, speed, and armor make her one of the most formidable fighting ships afloat. Her length is 500 feet, her width 71 feet, and she is able to carry coal sufficient for a 12,500 mile cruise. Trade Unions Oppose Capitalistic Combines
The convention of British Trade Unions in session at London passed unanimously on August 5, a resolution against “capitalistic combines,” declaring that unless the State shall take control of the trusts at once, the State would soon be controlled by them. The resolution advocated the municipal ownership of these combines as the only solution. The convention went on record as opposed to the Boer war and against all wars of foreign aggression. Wall Street Clerks Turn Bookmakers
SINCE the fight in New York against the pool-rooms has increased the difficulty of the gambling element in making bets, hundreds of young clerks in the Wall Street offices have turned book-makers, or professional gamblers, for the accommodation of the gambling propensities of the other clerks in those establishments. This shows how completely the gambling mania is saturating the society of the present time. Chinese Ship-Carpenters Strike
THE recent strike of 5,000 Chinese ship-carpenters at the Hong Kong shipyards is thought by many to indicate the beginning of an industrial awakening in China. These skilled ship-carpenters were receiving from 40 to 50 cents a day for their labor. They are striking for an increase to 65 cents per day. The strike is under the direction of the Carpenters' Guild of Hong Kong, which is said to be master of the situation. Earthly Losses and Heavenly Treasure
In the three days closing September 25, speculators in Wall Street lost between $7,000,000, and $10,000,000, and the limit of the losses had not then been reached. In several instances the entire holdings of speculators have been swept away. To the treasures laid up in heaven there come no losses; the investment is sure. The eternal Father is its security. Earthquake Destruction in Eastern Turkestan
PARTICULARS are beginning to come in, in regard to the destruction to life and property in the recent earthquakes in Eastern Turkestan. The shocks continued from August 22 to September 3. One hundred persons were killed at Kashgar, 400 in the village of Astyn, and 20 at Jango, while the town of Aksuksitche was completely destroyed. Peary Ends His North Pole Attempts
LIEUTENANT PEARY, the Arctic explorer, who has just returned from the North, reports that he will make no more attempts to reach the North Pole. He declares that the Pole can be reached; that it is simply a matter of adequate equipment; and that he could have reached the Pole on this voyage if his outfit had been sufficient. Charlemagne Tower Appointed Ambassador to Germany
CHARLEMAGNE TOWER, the present American ambassador to Russia, has been appointed to fill the place left vacant by the resignation of the present ambassador to Germany, Mr. White. England and Venezuela Near Breaking Point
DIPLOMATIC relations between England and Venezuela are reported to be again perilously near the breaking point. Meat Packers Abandon Trust Plan
A REPORT from Chicago states that owing to the attitude of the President toward the trusts the great meat-packing houses of the country have abandoned their proposed American meat trust. It is said they feared if the packing concerns were merged into one combine, some action might be taken by Congress at its next session which would be detrimental to their interests. A NEW kind of brick which is coming into use quite generally in Germany and France is made of a composition of sand, lime, and clay, molded under great pressure into regular and hard prisms after having been moistened with a sufficient amount of water. The proportion of the different ingredients is such that the brick is practically a solid stone. Roosevelt Abandons Northwest Trip
PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT has been compelled to abandon his contemplated trip through the North-west, and also a portion of his trip through the South on account of a surgical operation made necessary by the injury sustained in the accident at Pittsfield, Mass. The operation was not a serious one and no complications are expected. Increase in Internal Trade
THERE seems to have been a great increase in the internal trade of the United States within recent months. This is seen in the railroads having to re-employ many of their abandoned freight cars because they were not able to meet the demands of the increasing traffic, altho new cars are being manufactured as fast as possible. Unrest Keeps Marines in Panama
The unsettled conditions on the isthmus of Panama will be likely to keep the American marines employed there for some time to come. Commander McLean reports that the present forces there cannot be withdrawn or diminished. Some minor clashes between the marines and the insurgents have already occurred. Americans Delayed Returning from Europe
So many Americans have gone to Europe this summer that 17,000 are yet unable to return on account of the annual homeward rush of summer tourists. These will be compelled to wait for a number of weeks before they can secure passage, the great numbers have been coming second class and steerage rather than wait. Attempt to Wreck the Czar’s Train
An attempt was made to wreck the train on which the czar returned from Kursk, on September 22. Rails were removed from the track on the two routes which the czar might travel. In one instance the plot was discovered; in the other the train was wrecked; but the czar reached St. Petersburg in safety. New Gold Fields in Alaska
With the decrease of the mining interests in the Klondike there seems to be an increased interest in mining matters on the American side of the line. Reports from the Nome region indicate that extensive operations are being carried on there, and new gold-fields are being opened up in the Valdez district. Coal Depot for New York’s Poor
New York philanthropists have opened a coal distributing depot in the tenement districts of New York, where coal purchased at wholesale is being distributed to the poor at cost or less. This will mitigate to some degree the distress being caused by the high price of fuel in New York City. English Steel Mills Modernize
In order to compete with the steel manufactures of the United States, many English steel companies are now at work remodeling their plants on the lines of the American mills. It is estimated that many millions will be spent in the next two years in this work. The World’s Telegraph Lines
THERE are now 1,750 submarine telegraphs in operation, the united length of which is 200,000 miles, the cost $275,000,000. The total length of the land lines is 1,180,000 miles, representing 3,800,000 miles of single wire. Spiral Moving Staircase for London Subways
A SPIRAL moving staircase is to take the place of the elevator in the London subways. There will then be no waiting for the return of the elevator, the staircase moving up steadily with its load of passengers. New Volcano Erupts in Peru
In harmony with volcanic activity in other parts of the world, a new volcano has broken out in Peru. It has been in active operation for two weeks, throwing out great volumes of smoke and volcanic dust. New Telephone Company Challenges Bell
A NEW telephone company, with an immense capital at its back, has been organized to compete with the Bell Telephone Company. The new company proposes to reduce the present telephone rate. Rich Copper Hill Discovered in Mexico
Miners who have been prospecting in the State of Guerrero, Mexico, claim to have discovered a hill of almost pure copper, worth, according to their figures, the enormous sum of $536,000,000. Chile and Argentina Exchange Treaties
A FORMAL exchange of treaties has at last been effected between Chile and Argentina which it is hoped will dispel the long-standing feud existing between these two South American States. A SEVERE conflagration occurred in Stockton, Cal., on the afternoon of September 28, consuming, in whole or in part, seven blocks of buildings. The loss is estimated at $500,000. Stromboli Volcano Renews Activity
The volcano on the island of Stromboli, off the coast of Italy, has renewed operations on a more active scale, and is pouring out furious jets of flame, smoke, and lava. Shah of Persia’s Paris Hotel Bill
The shah of Persia is reported to have greatly enjoyed the way he was treated in Paris until he was presented with a hotel bill of $25,000.