Vermont farmer. [volume] (Newport, Orleans County, Vt.) 1870-1877, 1874-06-19
For The vERnoNr FARnEn.
THE MODERN PREACHER.
The Newspaper PuIpit--No Passing Around
the Begging Box.
BY a. oAYLoisp srALpINa.

tho HekHhmN hoy.
BY A. GAYLORD sPALDING.
HH
II Is real handy, ism 7 IL, TO nut yoaIr SER
mons in printers ink, and stand in tho news
paper pulpit, let II be of rosewood, eilded,
fringod and tasseled-ior the workingmen--
the women-the common people. In the
past II has been different; but, come to think
of it,it must prove very great economy,
and why not try Up The audience Is. wide
spread and immense. and not confied to Sun
day. This style OF preaching takes five hum
dred per cent less money, and besides. It
will 90 thousand times us far. Strange
that the ministers do not adopt this superior
method. (By the way. / must secure n copy
right of my novel idea.) 1t will save the
fearful cost Of such totally dead aud unpro-
ductive property as meeting houses, and so
many socables, and strawberry, and oyster,
and ice cream festivals to support them, and
the high salaries, and the constant annoy.
ance and burden of passing around the ev-
erlasting begging box-so terribly eating on
the little pocket-books of working people.
The pith and substance of all important cs-
says and discourses should go in the free, he
roic newspaper, making Il the cheap organ
of civilization and salvation, which may be
ordained with the significant title of the mod
crn preacher.
The old fashioned popular text preaching
is cumbrous, mystical, stale, and rusty with
antiquity, and is only dealt out to little knots
and narrow sects of people. Of Puritanical
and pod-auger type, It goes back to the
bloody days of Charles III Of England, when
human heads were stuck upon high poles
over all that country-just on account of re.
ligion. Pshawl what pity 1t reminds
too, of old crusade wars, and of old Salem
witch hanging-all for church interests. In
deed, religion would seem to be mighty
curious Institution. But, somehow or other
''things amt now us they used to was BEEN
and the happy and marvellous change 1:
manly owing to the printing press aud thu
newspapers.
therefore hereby nominate and ordair
the VERMONT FARMER u modern preacher
for the workingmen and women, the Patrons
of Husbandry, and tho Patrons of Industry
Won't it be queer--a minister in the mai
bag And every day all the postmasters will
be 'letting the cat out of the bag" But thu
ever industrious and patient preacher novel
stops, but travels on his weary winding
way, rejoicing and happy, and takes by
roads and cross roads, straight roads and
crooked roads, level roads aud billy roads
sandy roads and muddy roads, snowy roads
and dirty roads, jumping, and humping, ant
humping, through all the woods and round
From my present point Of lone and seren,
repose, my anxious heart journeys out oil
tho photographic wires of thought, through TIN
groves, and fields. and farms of my gooC
and trusty old native Green Mountain state
peeping into the humble and joyous home
of the farmers and workingmen. They tax,
the FREQ and independent newspaper. Villa
angel women arc many farmers wives TO
womanly worth and character New Eng
land is full of them. They are representa-
tive women of workingmen's households
and tho fame, beauty, and attraction of tina
whole country. A world full of such woul'
make u perfect millennium.
This modern preaching is vast improve
mcnt on the old. Its mission is to hardy
honest workingmen and women, and IL
doctrine, common brotherhood, sisterhood
and equal rights. with unity and cooperation
No doleful warning about death. That oil,
idea is drying up. Let it dry. Such notiol
belongs to childish ignorance. Salvation
consists IN living, not dying. Eternity is no
beyond, but now. Tomorrow is Away
twenty-iour hours ahead, and we never fin,
1t till it gets here, and then it will be now
We never go TO that, but that Wi
surely come to us, IL we stand still as
mouse. Let no revival minister, then, eve
make u frightful bugbear of far-off etern
ty, to scare the children into church cor
vorts. 1t is no awful gulf to launch sinner
into. Mover fear. Present duty is all W
can ever do, and that is, to be honest, kint
brotherly, sisterly, and paddle your own ca
noe. That is religion. and u slight sprinklin
is wanted in politics. tE
These are most wonderful times. Tn
scene is panoramic; and rs it moves aloni
now fast, then slow, kaleidoscope beautiC
delight the eye. Reform, politics, science
railroads, monopoly, extortion, wOrkingmel
women. grasshoppers, and potato bugs, al
, on exhibition. Things are condenSed an
localized. Streaks of light appear in tn
northern horizon. Rainbow splendors strip
the dark and boding clouds, and enchaI
the prophetic beholder. What intellec
I SKILL breadth, and power distinguish II
!. mighty manipulation! Who is he? He is Il
!, profound. pungent, and eloquent modeI
I preacher, who casts all old style, old fol
| ministers entirely in the shade. lie speal
/. to everybody once week, every day, an
! all the time. Listen, o ye people!
, Now we return home. The peoples han'
4 are full this ycar--the women's and Ii
men's-(except the thousands of unlucI
r ones just now thrown out of employment
o Woman's suffrage shines on the high moul
tain's crest in the distance, md the beautf
4 land of promise lies in the rich valley b
q You'd. Cheer up, brothers; cheer, o sister
The good time is close upon us.
/ The ballot, the ballot wo hold in our hand,
a IT'S ffeedom-God-givOn 10 ALI
And women should claim II In every land,
u To raise them from want and from thrall.
i ChdnlpIin, Mt,iis., June ~, 1874. 1901
!, We see by our exchanges that there Is