The Conservative. (M'connelsville, Ohio) 1866-1871, 1870-12-02
tFor the C~onservative.l
Shall Truth and Science, or
Tradition and HifetkS, Rule
the Desflnfes of Mankfndf

your synoptical report of Mr.. Cooper's
feceht Thanksgiving Sermon, the a.
! Dove enquiry was strongly impressed
upon my mind. And without occupy.
ing time and space to scrutinize the
whole philosophy and influence of Ho-
" Days, and their habits and customs,
handed down to US from the Pagan "a
ces, anG dark days OF the worlds in
telleetual twilight, which, however it
may have been in the past, is in our
time, undoubtedly, much more an oc-
casion Of feasting and dissipation than
thanksgiving and prayer, allow me to
hastily glance at a dogma prominently
put forth b. the speaker on that ocea-
sion, which, however ancient it may
be, certainly should not continue to
dsrken the councils of the Teachers Of
the afternoon of the Nineteenth Cen
fury.
The speaker says, "Oxen and horses,
unlike men, always recognize in the
food and comforts they receive, their
masters hand, and evince their graft
tude when kindness is meted out to
them. They live their thanks TO own
er and master in obedient toll and
here they teach as that THANKSGIVING is
much better than Thanksgiving. Express
sion of lips is nothing. Heart mus. feel
and life utter the grateful sentiment,
if Ompiscience is to be satisfied"
Thus the speaker seems TO assert, or
at least implies, that there is aperson
power, N influence, which supplies
Tictaals and raiment 10 man, indepen<
dent of his own exertions, as man sup
plies food and shelter TO cattle, and so
clearly and demonstrably, that man
should perceive and recognize the fact,
clearly as al OK might recognize a
fork.full of hay or basket of com
Yet, any raar who dares TO reason must
quickly perceive that the doctrine is
superstitioIs and false in fact, and
banefri and degrading in its influence.
And l challenge any mar to point his
to a single .faetin his " exper-
fence, though he be as old as the IA
BLEED Methnselah. which sustains such
doctrines or justifes such conclu-
sions.
But does some one say, man ought
not to erpeet his wants TO be supplied.
human exertions, judgmeET
and skill ! Then ask, who, or What,
he nationally thank for his enjoy
nents, except that same eSertioD, judg-
and shilf2 There has been no
aes law or principle, instituted for his
benefit. but only a discovery of
The old laws, existing from enternitie's
morn, and an application, through hu-
nan exertion, of their Omhipotene
To illustrate:
Forty years ago there were hundreds
IF acres of land in the State of Penn.
which were thrown ouF to
the commons" and barren which
ire now fertile fields and bloomingI
awns. How was this salu'ary change
produced By prayer by faith, by
providence No, these were
never known to succeed on poor seik.
But education, enlightenment asa
Chemical Science had demonstrated
hat the elements of vegetable growth
be artiicially applied to this
surface, and hence their own
shipped Guiana and Bone-dust from
isles, discovered and quarried
he Limestone rock, mined the Coal,
ind cdt the Wood, and piled them TO-
and decomposed the rocs By
he seton of heat, then spread the
rime,. Guano, and Bone-dust in proper
,roportioas, which Science had to de-
upof' those sterile acres,
hen sowed Clover seed, which sprang
Up and grew, because Of the fertilizers
which had been applied, and, in'itS
urn, was plowed under while in its
argest growth, for several successive
ears, when wheat is sown, and the
lusbandman reaps an abundant har-
lest to bless his ~expectant wife and
with a bountiful supply of
read, Strange nhetamorphosis ! Wor4
lerful changel Now tell me, We advo-
ates of "Divine interpretations, where
loes the Especial Providence come in,
n this Ease ?-or any cause OF inAu-
nee outside of the eternal Laws of Ma
dre, the uncaused eause, Of ail'tiiing5
lse besides, and the cultured and en-
ightened mind Of man: ''Aud echo
nswers where T. And the intelligent
modern observer exclaims, II can't see
TT
The whole law Of c~ausation is beau
fully expressed in the terse language
f the Hon. Horace Mann, in his meni- =
rable speech at the dedication of An
ioch College, when he says: ale who
ill not study Natures Chemistry, and
hey her laws, her l~ightnings blast,
er waters drown, her fires consume,
er pesti,ences extinguish, and she
ould crush the whole human family
her wheels, nor feel shock or
ibration at tie contact And when
assume a power beyond those
l~ws-wLich are ~inseperaele rom mat
er-they assume that which they car
ct demonstrate, and of which there
not q known evidence in The Uni
erse. DR.. W. y. HAMBLETON. /,
Tux p~nnishing ofhabitual drunk
rds;aRdthe liberation of the dram
eiier is all wrong. Why punishth
Does not his-drunkenness
unish him much worse than che