Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1883-09-03
THE FREETHINKERS.
A Trinity of Women Address the
Convention.
Equality the Worlds Panacea- evolution's
Reply to the Champion Of
Christianity.

ROCHESTER,, y. Y, September AT the
closing OF the Freethinkers convention
DR.. J. Stoltz, of Chicago, delivered long
aud philosophical address on The Origin
OF Evil" He pronounced the orthodox
story of the fight of the angels in heaven
and the fan of Lucifer as too absurd to
merit even q denial, and characterized the
theological notion that evil was sent into
the world by a special ediCt OF God as
equally false, and the whole plan OF sal
vation had the same origin. There is no
evil in nature" he SAID. "A normal man
or woman cannot do wrong. Evil is con-
ceptlon of the mind, traCeable to the facul-
ties of comparison and reflection. All
things being equal every Child is on the
straight road TO heaven. The very fact that
the tendency to do wrong may be outgrown
proves that evil is not immoral nor an in
nate principle. A common standard of
right must exist somewhere. Evil is
temporary condition, but goodness is i'm
mortal"
Woman's Idea Of God.
Mrs. Amelia H. Colby, of Buffalo, spoke
in the afternoon. She was announced for
the morning, but Mr.. Stoltz had taken up
al the time. She set forth the duty OF the
Freethinkers Association. She thought
the more they believed the less they knew
and the more they knew the less they be-
Iieved. The doctrine Of Christ was to love
your enemies and hate your friends, The
-, 600 ministers in the land were better
than the God they worship, and il they
were to write a Bible it would be better
than the one they have. DR.. Harvey 100
years ago must have known more than the
Jewish Jehovah, for there is nothing in
the Bible about the circulation Of the blood,
and Fulton knew more than the God we
have been taught to worship. How came
to be finite if / came from an infinite"
Mrs. Colby asked. Who knows anything
il we are Gcaava6RHOfE Ne, ACCENT truth
a fact and belief won't change it, Mrs.
Colby said that the notions oi
Heaven and Hell Are Not True.
Heaven is place to put our God in ana
hell a place for our devil. Heaven IS local
lied; il is above us; and You must be care,
ful when you start to 80 there or you Will
get in the other place. She spoke OF the al
legged birth of Christ and wanted to know
what kind OF God that was who, instead OF
taxing care of the mother OF His child, would
let her be driven TO Il stable. The speaker
had no use for such a sod. She had no
time to take care of Him She closed by
urging the freethinkers TO go forward IN
their work of purifying the world OF It's
Mrs. Judge Krekel, of Missouri, spoke
on the
.GrOuth Of Liberalism"
She claimed that the time OF the coming
of man was at hand. She urged freethink:
ers to orgsniza by States, counties and
school districts, and be liberal with their
money in the direction of education. she
did II OF want charitable institutions oulit.
Said She Educate men so that they will
become self reliant and we will then have
no paupers and no miilionaires.
President Brown next introduced Mrs.
julius Severance, Of Milwaukee, Wis,
whose subject was The Industrial and
Financial Problem" She solved it by
giving to woman her equality with man
before the law.
Evolution Defended.
Mr.. Wakeman'S S answer TO the arguments
of Mr.. Mitchell, at the evening session,
was entitled Evolution or Creation He
referred in a mplimentary manner to the
presence of Mr.. Mitchell, spoke OF the
great change in the treatment by the
Church of the Freethinkers, and thanked
him for the square issue he had raised Pc
tween tbs Bible explanation OF creation
and the scientific solution by evolution.
Mr.. Wakeman strove to show that the lat
te. had been substantially made, and it en-
tirely replaced the Old theories and proved
them to be fallaCies. Following Mr.. Nit
chell, he explained the nebular and accre-
| ton hypothesis of the solar system, claim
! ing it to be only an hypoththesis, and yet
| one that should stand; because the crea-
| lionists had not been able TO show one
| single fact or instance OF creation in the
earth or heaven above. They had not been
! able 10 show how their idea of a personal
| Creator was possible in an infinite world
and were finally themselves driven to ac-
cept it as religious mystery. An
Explanation OF the World
! by a mystery, Mr.. Wakeman contended,
was no explanation at all. The evolution.
| lists had been able to show that beyond
mere hypothesis the surface or crust OF
the earth had attained its present point,
and that the science of geology as repre-
entsd by Sir Charles Lyell and others
was directly in the teeth OF the
theory Of creation. proving the immense
antiquity Of the world and OF the human
race. As to the organic world OF plants,
evolution was no longer an hypothesis, but
clearly accounted for the origin and dis
tri5ution Of all living things and beings,
including man, while the crsationists had
| DO instance Of organic creation whatever.
| In the soCiologic world evolution was also
beyond hypothesis. 1t had shown the
origin Of human tribes, peoples and races,
aud their distribution on the face OF the
earth. II had shown that it was alone the
true logic OF human history, accounting for
the rise, nature and success OF all the relig
ions of mankind.
The session closed with
A Remarkable Scene
for a convention Of this character. Mr.
Mitchell was allowed twenty minutes tc
snswer Mr.. Wskemsn. He claimed ths
| none OF his arguments bad been answered
or weakened, and continued to speak fol
half an hour. defending Christianity Wig
Orousy snd attacking evolution witt
much force. Mr.. Wakeman sgaiu replied
saying that he bad presented facts, hot ar
sumtnts and claimed that all OF Mr.
MirChelrs syllogisms were false. BJtt
>peakerS were much app!auded.
Smuggling Chinamen OvIr the Borde,
PoRT TOWNSEND, W. T., September p
Colonel May to day informed the authori
ties of having seen beat containing nine
teen Chinamen pass Areas Island, heading
for Washington Territory. A resident G
WhitLy Island says he saw six canoes, cor
tanning some Indians, but mostly Chins
men, try 10 effect a landing on Sunda