The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1881-07-26

we're piain-thinkshe sober. q aSiin. III ain e,s;n.fiy
men, who, unIike Ii. In6e4solI. alwavs
under All Gifcanistnaces, and espec;ally 4,
the presence of etArnity, recognised fhs
difference between sS1antaihs and clouds
II Is inconcefvabIe kbx ANY Eaet could q
| proved by evidence more conc9asTve tai
the statements Of aaeA persons, pubIicf,
| given 1nd steAd i1itly egsistAd IN thfuaei
every kind Of persecafiou, inpfisoumel,a
and torture TO the lass aeoaiies If ! In
gering death. EonEth. ApaEt froaa sAes,
terrible tests, the more ordinary claim,
tocredIHlity are not waiting They wer,
mea Of unimp peachable, character Tha
most tiruisne 'sasuies Of she cause they
spoke and died for have never suggested
areason for Doubling their personal hon
eety. 4 But there y affEmatige proof tia
they and their fellow-disciples were held
hY those who knew them in the highest
estimatipn for trVth1illnesA WheTexeu
they made their report Is Was not only
believed, but believed with faith 90 inn
plicit that thousands were ready at once
TO seal il with their blo0d, Fifth. The
tone and temper of their narrative i'm
F-S.l sA = S~.es.a.-e.sk ~ PtokSund
respect
Il does not appear that the statement.
OF the evangelists were ever denied by
any person who pretended to know the
facts- What we can the fundamental
truths of Christianity consist OF great
public events which are sufficiently es-
tabIished by history without special
proof = II 's.'
From the facts established by this evi
dence 1t follows irresistibiy that the Cos
pei has come to us from God That 81.
lences all reasoning shout the wisdom
and justice Of It's doctrines, since It Is i'm
possible even to imagine that wrong can
be done or comm&nded by that Sovereign
Being whose wiR alone is the ultimate
standard of all justice t''iN +ei'
Judge Black, after making number of
qHotations from Col. IRgersoll, such as
- the punishment of sinners in eternal
hell is excessive" g Christians have been
guilty of Wanton and wicked persecution. -
the gospel of Christ does not satisfy the
hunger of the heart" Christianity is
pernicious in its moral effect" concludes
that Mr.. IngersoIl, a. jealous apostle of
the gospel Of dirt must throw O good
deal of mud, and adds: q When / an
swer that all we have of virtue, Justice,
intellectual liberty, moral elevation, re-
fnement, benevolenee and true wisdom
came to us from that source which he
reviles as the fountain of xll evil, am
not merely putting one assertion against
the other, for / have the advantage of
speaking what every tolerably well-in-
formed man knows to be true"
An eloquent peroration on the Chris
tian religion concludes Judge Blacks
article in this striking and fnll-souled
language: This religion has come
down TO as through the ages, attended
all the way by righteousness, Justice, tenn
perance, mercy, TRANSPARENT truthfnlness,
exulting hope and wkite-winged charity.
Never was it's influence for good more
plainly perceptibIe than now It has not
converted, purified and reformed all men,
for its first principle is the freedom of the
human will, and there are those who
choose to reject it. But to the mass of
mankind, directly or Indirectly, it has
brought uncounted benefits and blessings
Abolish it-take away the restraints
which it imposes on evil passions silence
the admonitions of its preachers-let all
Christians cease their labors of charity
blot ont from history the records Of its
heroic benevolence- repeal the laws it
has enacted and the institutions It has
built up-let its moral principles be aban-
doned and all its miracles of light be ex-
tingnished- would we come to?
need not answer this. question the ex-
pertinent has been partially tried. The
French nation formally renounced Chris
tianity, denied the existence Of the Su-
preme Being, and 50 satisfied the hunger
of the infideI heart for a time. What
followed !? Universal depravity, gar
ments rolled in blood, fantastic crimes,
unimagined before, which startled the
earth with their sublime atrocity. The
American people have and ought to have
no special desire to follow that terrible
example of guilt and misery.
" 1t is impossible to discuss this subject
within the limits of review. No doubt
the effort to be short has made me OBJ
scare II Mr.. Ingersoli thinks himself
wronged or his doctrines misconstrued
let him not lay my fault at the door Of the
Church, or cast his eensure On che clergy.
-" -AdssaDs qsti .fseis 80 NE eonoeysite fer
rasSA-" 's.ss as- ssf tl9 sf as "a