The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1880-08-25

Australia,
Canada
France, lOs0 Sells
Sp'n anu
Port, l3O 10000, 10000, l2o 900.
Switzd., 4es
Italy, l51
United states.........s ss6,S2s, 6e2Slz4 7.5o9,i52
1t will be seen that the United States is
ahead. having more teachers and scholars
than all other countries put together and il
affords me great pleasure 20 say thar Penn
sylvania l. FIRST in the United States in the
number of schools, having 7,79S. New York
has the largest number Of scholars, Ohio the
greatest enterprise, Massachusetts the bes,
prepared teachers, Connecticut the best or
der, Illinois the more rapid growth. There
arc only five States with every county or
ganized, viz: Connecticut, Illinois, Mary
land New jersey and New York.
From one school this work has increased
to thousands from a few ragged scholars it
has grown 10 millions, enlisting those of all
CLASSES and conditions oflite in its favor
SECOND. PRoGEEss ~ EXTENT OF TERRITORY.
It's natural to supposcthata work having
50 much power for good would rapidly
spread from Gloucester, the city where il be-
gan, TO all parts of the enlightened world.
But instead of this it took fifty years to cross
into Germany, and more than twenty-five
years to get across the Atlantic into Amcri-
ca, and even then did not meet with very
cordial welcome. The first Suuday-school
in this country was established in Massa-
chu>c;ts. That You may understand the
difficulties It's advocate, had 10 encounter,
and also appreciate the progress made since
that time. ] will state the objections urged
against the first SunGav-school:
/. It was an innovation. "It was bad
thing" says an historian, ''becausc it was q
new thing. Who could fail TO see that
Neither they nor their fathers had been used
to a SUNDAY school, and what their father,
could do without they could do without.
Their church had lived well nigh hundJed
years without Sunday-school If it had
been a good thing would it have taken a
hundred years to find it out2 No.
>. 1t was a school ON Sunday. 1t was an
educational business on the Lords Day, and
it was not right to take up holy time with a
business OF that sort.
g. Il intertercd with the parents work
t. The church would be de~crra.cl hy a
crowd of children
). The sexton would have to ring tine bell
.,t 10, 1tr,trgfto1 L,lrr
6 It was too much Of social lcycicr.
Families of different social rank would hc
all mixed mp
Thus amidst much lisbopposition sun
day-schools began in this country, and have
spread until every village and nook and cor
ner of the land has lis school In the Old
World, however, Sunday->chools mademuch
slower progress, because there has never
been any Sunday in Europe. I'm Protestant
Germany the civil government has always
been somewhat untayorable 70 the sunday
school idea; and even the clergy, from whom
this cause has a right to look for support,
are not fayorably inclined because they do
not Ike for the laity to interfere with their
work. On account of these causes so slow
has been the progress that all the schools pat
together do not number more than one third
of what we have in Pennsylvania alone.
The best news that comes from Germany is
that Sundav-sch0ul has been recently e.
tablished in Wittenbcrg, in the very church
to the door of which Luther nailed up hi,
ninety-fye theses protesting vigorously
against Roman Catholic abuses and thus in
augurating the Reformation.
France has q great many Protestants ant
among them are found many schools doing
excellent work; bus among the Catholics
who compose the large body of the Frend
people, no such plan for making the people
wiser in the scriptures is tolerated for mo
mcnt
In Spain and Portugal there yet lingcr
too much Of the cruel spirit Of the lnluisi
ton to allow free Smday-schools to diiiu~
Bible light. The Catholics burn their Bi
bles destroy their papers, and impri,ou tn
workers. Still such men as Flieducr, Arm
strong, Duncan, and Empcytaz have NC
cccded I'm establishing many schools
Italy, in harmony with Popish instincts
strongly opposes every step of progress.
In Austria the work is just beginning
The American Foreign ). 5. Association ha
established a paper in that country ant
hope for considerable interest by and by.
Russia has no Smday-school. except
few among foreign residents The who'll
Greek church. To which the Russians belong
is hostile 70 the Sunday-school idea. OF al
the countries claiming civilization and en-
lightenmcnt, Russia. next TO Turkey, stand
lowest in the scale; and, in my estimation
far below some Of the countries we cal
hcathcn Russia has no Sunday
Japan has many Russia has dcspotism
Japan has liberty fashioned after orr owI
country. The one, on account OF its tyran
nv. sleeps over the muttering volcano o
Nihilism; the other enjoys the stability an'
perinanency that freedom and education
confer. Russia stretching from cold steril'
Siberia on the north to the sunny valleys @
Circassia on the south, includes in this ox
tent of latitude sufficient brute force {,
snatch the possessions of the Turks and maxi
the Black Sea and Bosphorus channels (,
mcompromising despotism. and thus per
petuate the barbarsm of the dark ages ia
pan seizes hold of all modern ideas Of pro
gress, morality, and religion, and thus an
nounces to the world the beginning Of anew
era in the East.
THIRD, PROGRESS N MORAL POWER.
Robert Raikes was the John the Baptist o
Sunday-schools. voice crying in the vii
derness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord
He began work, the moral power of whiel
has increased until it has become the bal
wark of our free institutions, the promote
lf s4rt,tt5r l-np1xleflra tba Ialp.r ~ mora !