The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1883-12-31

Rev. Myron w. Reeds Vigorous Indorse-
ment of the Burning of the Cribs

Rev. MyrOn W. Reed preached at the First
Presbyterian Church, yesterday morning and
evening, on the subject of the recent destruc-
tion of the cribs at at Insane Hospital. His
evening sermon was as follows:
81 am come to send fire on the earth; and
what will l, if it be already kindled2"
Fire is a symbol of the justice and holiness of
God. He showed himself to the prophets in the
midst of fire. Malachi says of the Messiah "He
is like a refiner's fire." The word of God is COM
pared to fire. The benifcence of fire is insisted
upon in the Bible. One Of the chief offices OF
fire is to consume, to take out OF the way what
is worthless There is fire always burning
oxygen is continually at work burning all things
that are But xygen is too slow. We cannot
wait for an old and worthless thing to rust
Probably there are hundred who believe In
cremation of the dead where there were ten
five years ago. Whatever its dement's, it is III
the interest of health. 1t is against an old SEN
timent, aud cannot be forced on people, but IL
can win people. 1t is not enough to lay an old
barren fig tree standing or lying down. But for
fire the earth would long since have been
blocked up with litter, with no path possible.
Here, on good street Is an old rookeTy bullt
when the city was a village. 1t is little too
good to tear down, but some night it takes fire.
Il is loss to the individual oi put
It's room is better than It's company.
Empty space, bare ground, is better than
Sodom, A thing may be so bad that it cannot be
saved and then in history the fire has fallen and
burned up the bad utterly.
DR.. Fletcher has been criticised as to what l
call his Christmas bonfire; that is good fire. OF
Christmas morning. Why did he burn the IDS OF
the cribs. the strait jackets and cart-loau OF
handouts, anRlets and leathern eollarsf Why
not put them away in the attic and save them or
sell theml Well, have found that when you
have made up your mind TO do without
thing it is not safe to have 1t handy.
1t is easier to quit smoking when there is no
tobacco within ten squares. Burning bridge
behind you adds powerful reason against going
back. We pray, "Lead us not into temptation,
and it helps the answer to that prayer very
much if we do not lead ourselves in; if we walk
away in an opposite direction.
As a teacher in the country years ago used
whip simply because had not time enough to
use kindness and persuasion. Alone with
hundred pupils, with perhaps nifty kinds OF text
books, the element of time came in, ard kind
ness was too slow for athree-monlh's school.
Besides that, the children expected to be whip
ped; it was the fashion at home. Mothers with
a large family and no help have not time for the
mild methods of persuasion. There is the wash
ing to be done and dinner to get, and short meth-
DDS of reuroof and correction seemed to be neces-
sary. Now suppose it is found out tha6 whip
is not necessary for most chidren2 should say
that it would be better not TO have one on the
mantel. If one should be necessary, the time re-
CURED to make whip will give opportunity for
reflection on the part Of parent or teacher and
reflection and meditation are indispensable
things before whipping anybody.
The reason there is SO much shooting is be-
cause there is % revolver as handy as hip
pocket. II man had to go aud buy a revolver
and load it, he would have time in which to
change his mind. Things the use of which IS
doubtful ought to be made rare and difficult to
get at A man who keeps one part of pistol
in one trunk and one III another Will probably
never shoot any servant girl in mistake for II
burglar
The present course of dealing with the people
''touched by the hand of God, the insane, is not
an experiment. Other nations have been
proving that kindness, while it re-
duires more time and more men,
works as effectively it did in Judea. If you
will read the reports you VIII see that all forms
of restraint or force have been lessened ninety
per cent. with good results. IT, then these things
-crlb-ids, camasOes, anklets, belts and thongs
are not necessary, do not put them in con-
venient place; burn them. In order to give
kindness chance to work, one must not have
too easy an alternative have never seen so
willing a fire. 1t seemed TO delight in its
work, and the insane witnesses OF the burning
were sane enough to see what was burning.
suppose these things might have been sold
for 800 pence. and the money given to the poor;
but that does not put these things out OF the
world. Now they are out OF the reach of any
body 1t will take time to replace them. and
time is the element that the methods of kind
ness need. OF course, kindness costs more than
the old method. One man, having tied all the
inmates fast, could then go to his room and go
to sleep; Or still better, on the score of econo-
my, one man with Calling gun could make the
inmates quiet The method of kindness will re-
Quire time and money.
There are lust two methods of treating the un-
fortunate. One is to kill them, and the other is
to do what may be done by persistent kindness
to make life tolerable to them. Restraint by
force provokes. Select your own room and fur
niture ali you ask, then will go out and lock
the door me room SUITS you psrIe rec; and an
10 break the door out, or, In default OF that,
smash the furniture
Man, sane or insane, does not take kindly to
force neither do horses, neither do dogs
Poor Ophelia, whose mind and heart have be-
come like sweet bells tangled out of tune-thinks
of nothing better to do than drown herself
There is nothing better to do in the Denmark of
that time. Chippewa Indians judicially SEN
tence, the insane TO be executed. Time and
thought have devised more excellent way.
I was very glad to witness the burning-and on
Christmas day, the birthday of him who said, ~
am come to send fire on the earth" Fire is such
o clean thing-nearly every thing in ashes is
sweet-and it has done SO much good in the
world l suppose that it is well enough
to have sample kept in a museum, one of a
kind of all the things that have made life pow
erful, in order that we may note our progress
out of superstiti0us cruelty to the days OF tender
hearts and sound minds. One thumbscrew VIII
do. But there is great deal that remains to be
burned.
The political prisoner who fights for life against
water and rats in Russian dungeon knows that
much remains to be burned. Many old things
are like old letters. 1t would be better for the
living and the dead il there could be more ashes
and more silence-less preserved manuscript
Christ put it strongly when he said; Let the
dead bury their dead, but go thou and preach
the good news" To do new thing is not to
make any reflection on those who did the old
thing. ''The thoughts of men are widened in
the process of the SUM- Perhaps the men who
burned Joan of Arc thought they ought to have
done it. Lord Mansfield presided, l believe, at
the trial OF a witch. Light has come into the
wOrld;' that is all.
We are beginning to understand why
Christ never tied man. He desired that he
should tie himself; that self-contrOl should take
the place of bolts and bars; that ma II should not
wish any longer TO do evil or any violence not tie
the man, but if possible, cast the devil out of him.
"Our God is a con sumDg fire" and "God is love-"
He desires that which is best and highest for You
and me, and love WORKS by fire, burning mp and
putting ont of the way that which is against u.s.
IL is hard to part with customary cruelty
or n fashionable sin, but they must go and their
associations must so.
1t is much to be desired that q slave should
forget utterly that he has ever been slave,
and to that end let all that reminds him of it be
burned up. "Let him that stole steal no more"
Make u clean slate. God forgets; sin is remem-
bered no more against penitent: it is blotted
out as thick cloud. At least. then. let
try TO forget the evil that lies
back of them and try to forgive
the evil that lies back of their neighbOrs