Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1884-11-04

.Lsssess saen TuE sAlEsr-ssx. :
ksv. l. A. Baaka. paxtor az R.ssnrv
strsst n T. Church, prsacbed % 4 isrcs
congregation On Sunday u,oruinc a go
above topic. The speaker tsok for his
sexs Matthew l6, 3: sCAn VI not Siis-
covsr the si1ns Of the times r The
IoDswIng is brief summary Of the dis
tod reveals his will not only in the
Volume OF inspiration, bus in nature and
"a nmsory. Is - our duty TO study the
agus OF she times" and learn wiss1om
Srom the book Of events. There i 4
mistaken idea abroad that questions Of
ponsaoai eoonomy and civsi government
are oufslde Of the range Of legitimate
pulpit discussion Religion il NOT sep
hfase food tor one pars or parcel OF
mans nature; 70 10 % be the nourish-
ment Of the muscles and sineus Of the
vnole robust system Il il not q cloak
iof the church and the Sunday alone.
y y the ducktnG for the field and the
anvil the 0omunon cloth for the shop
ana tne store the tinsey and the calico
Ior the Kitchen Il 10 TO be the supreme
innuence which controls the whole life
and couduot of tie individual.
Any eubjoct which has IN iniluence
On the charaDtex q men and women.
tnas tends 10 make men strong OF weak.
comes properly under the domain Of the
First-Ths ballot box ID a great sdu-
cafor. Our election psriods with THAR
stimulus 70 thought and conversation,
their campaign literature and public
discussion all serve TO give the masses
of American citizenship intelligent
ideas on questions Of government.
Seoond-There Is danger in the prev
aient carelessnees IN acceptance Of cam
paiRn siander concerning candidates fer
since. Il confuses the public mind as
70 the worth Of personal character. Ii
destroys all proper distinction IN the
mind Of the masses between the good
and the bad candidate. We grow SO
accustomed to hear men maliRned and
abused Who run for office. and We find
90 many times that these charges are
false. that many bad men creep into
public position ander this common
cloak Of invectivs. Many excellent men
remain out Of public position who would
be highly useful, because they are not
willing to run the disgusting gauntles.
Third--There is an Imperative de-
mand for Increased diligence and ear
nestness. among good citizens in politi-
cal matters. Our national existence
rests on the idea Of self Rovernmeut-
that it is safer to trust the intelligence
and prcdence of the masses than any
privileged class. This will prove safe
experiment just in proportion as the
people exercising the elective franchise
are industrious and virtuous. There Is
this danger, that the vicious elements Of
society are always more active and alert
In political matters than tho good.
Good citizens frequently get disgusted
with political corruption. and say 81
will have nothing more TO do with it,
But the scoundrel never gets disgusted.
The elements that prey upon s0oioty
follow the political machinery with
hungry watchfulness at every revolu-
ton. In this way men with neiher
brains nor character, with only animal
cunning and brazen ceuntenanoe. at
tain often great political influence. es-
pecially In the cities, whore the worth
less classes ccngregate. This Is illus.
trated IN she present election in the
city OF Chicago, where So cut of l65
polling places have been designated in
the liquor saloons. Such a state of
things could not have been brought
about IL Christian men did their whole
duty as citizens.
There Ia the same demand In our
courts as in other political conventions.
Men whs pay large taxes, men who have
large interests in the community. seem
constantly unwilling to assume the du
ties of citizenship In the jury box. or
ten this most sacred duty Is given over
to class OF semi professional iurymen
who hang about the courts, and through |
the Incidence or cenuivance Of officers. |
sit on nearly every cause tried before |
the courts.
Fourth-We may well congratulate
ourselves, whom We contemplate the COR |
ruptioD IN politics, that in this Terri |
terry We are to introduce a new and pure |
factor into our political problen.
Bat We are plead With not to degrade |
our wives and mothers by drawing them |
out of the purity Of the home into the |
filth Of politics. But observation re- |
veals that contact with evil in efforts TO |
redeem and save il does not pollote the |
earnest worker. There have been civil |
izttions where women have been vsiled |
from the light of day where they have |
been carefully withheld from contact |
WIN s1o botttsc&t WoEtQ. uhS woman |
reached her highest moral and social |
position under such treatment? No, |
indeed. Under such circumstances she
has either been piaything whose per-
son and character we're held no more
sacred than a child's toy, or beast of
burden, 70 be bought and sold like an
OK. Woman, like man, reaches her
highest position and truest destiny
where she takes her place as a positive,
intelligent factor in the worlds work.
As such 9 man a. Webster could never
be produced in Russia, ruled by an ab-
solute Czar, and where the individual
citizen Is not factor in government, so
such woman as Frances Willard can
only be produced in an era of intellect
ual and comparative social freedom.
And surely on the great questions of
government which relate to the home in
which her children are reared, no one
has better right 10 the ballot than the
mother. She gives to the cradle her
days of care and nights Of watching.
when misfortune lowers about the
young life, il shadows the mothers
heart with deepest gloom, and when il
dies she carries the coffin forever in her
desolate heart. Surely, il anybody has
the right 10 say whether there shall be
schoolhouses or saloons on the street
where her boys are growing to manhood
il 10 the mother.