The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1882-05-17
The Sham SAMPLE Swindle.

The New York Times characterizes Col.
Ingersol's assertion that "if Christianity be
true Longfellow and Emerson are now in hell, !"
as remarkable specimen of the "sham SAM
pie swindle,' and says:
1t may be unhesitatingly asserted that Chris
tianity does not teach in regard to the final
condition of men like Longfellow and Emer-
sen what Mr.. Ingersoll says that it teaches.
The Roman Catholic Church, which undoubt-
edly does make the broad, general assertion
that outside of its pale there is no salvation.
comedies that men who have been baptized and
who hold the essential doctrines of Christianity
may be save d, although they have never form
ally become members of the Church of Rome.
and Mr.. Ingersoll will not find single intelli-
gent Roman Catholic Priest who will assert
that if Christianity is true Longfellow and
Emerson are in hell. The Anglican Church,
which includes among its priesthood men who
disbelieve the Athanasian doctrine OF the Trim.
ity and others who deny the existence OF hell,
certainly does not give Mr.. Ingersoll any au-
thority for his assertion as to the fate of Long
fellow and Emerson. Among the numerous
sects of Professionalism may be found an occa-
sional Presbyterian, Methodist and Baptist,
who. mistaking his own prejudices for Chris
tianity, may crafty Mr.. Ingersoll by conced-
ing that because Mr., LoDgfellow was not be-
lever in the doctrine OF the imputation OF Ad-
am IS sin, or because Mr.. Emerson had not boon
immersed, or because neither the poet nor the
philosopher had been formally converted at
a camp-meeting, they could not escape eternal
punishment but Mr.. Ingersoll will meet with
extreme difficulty in finding an intelligent
minister of any Protestant sect, of any numer-
ical Importance, who will declare that unless
Longfellow and Emerson are in hell Christian
ity Is an I'M posture
The "sham sample argument has always
been Mr.. Ingersoll's favorite weapon. He re-
cites the horrors perpetrated by certain fanatics
in connection with the Inquisition in Spain,
and says that they are fair sample of what
Christianity teaches. He repeats the story OF
Jonah and the whale, and tells his hearers that
unless the story is literally true Christianity is
false he cites the Roman Catholic doctrine
of characterization and calls it an essential
doctrine of Christianity, and he refers to some
crime committed by David on Uriah and init
mates that Christianity requires all men to 90
likewise His method is the "sham sample
swindle" in its most offensive and DISHONEST
form What would his opinion be of the man
who would maintain that because an OCCASION
al camp-follower of the federal army stole
watch from non-combatant citizen of the con-
federacy the war for the Union was organized
highway robbery? How would he character
ize the man who should assert that lawyers
have no object in life than to enable public
robbers to escape with their booty?. Mr.. lnger-
soil knows perfectly well that every Christian
church in existence recognizes the posties
creed as a summary of Christian doctrine.
When he can find in that creed that either
belief in the Trinity or in every single asser-
ton of the creed is absolutely essential to SAL
walton, he can honestly claim that 'if Chris
tianity is true, Longfellow and Emerson are In
hell'-and not until then.