Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1885-05-04
THE MILLENNIUM STILL IN THE DISTANCE.

about Christianity and war recently, was
forced to come to the conclusion that the
day is still far off when, as the 1sraelitish
seers prophesied, the nations would beat
their swords into ploughshares and learn
war no more"
Christian France has only just come to
peace with heathen China after the useless
slaughter Of thousands of human beings
Christian England is still fighting the Mo.
hammedans of the Soudan. In Central
America hostilities which may more and
more involve this country are now going Oh
In Canada the Riel rebellion of Christianiz
ed Indians against those who had converted
them, is to-day in progress, and the war may
be long aud bloody. France makes threat.
ening demonstrations against Egypt. Ireland
is peryaded by spirit Of bitter animosity
against England, which would delight to
express itselfin q bloody conflict. All Eu-
rope is armed to the teeth, and tho military
preparations of the powers are on " scale OF
magnitude never before equaled. Finally,
England and Russia, two great Christian ma
tions, make ready for probable war, in
duced by the greed of conquest of the one
and the determination of the other to hold
fast to conquests made long ago.
The prophecy Of Isaiah, therefore, is not
likelv to be fulfilled in the nineteenth CEN
tury, and war has been and still is about as
much the business of Christians as it was of
the pagans before the day when Christ
preached the brotherhood of man and cele-
brated the virtues of meekness and humil-
ity. A few years ago people were fattering
themselves that so stupid method Of set
Ting differences between nations was about
to give place to peaceful arbitration, and
that the time was near at hand when two
countries would no more think of resorting
to arms against each other than two great
merchants would propose to engage IN
slugging match to settle dispute about ac-
counts. Yet since that time European ar
maments have been extended to an unpre.
cedented degree, and wars have been in
continual progress. Krupp's gun foundry
has become the greatest industrial estab-
lishment in Germany, and the most active,
inventive and scientific minds the civilized
u orld over are devoting themselves TO the
perfection of the engines of warfare, so that
they shall be more destructive. To-day
the busiest industries in this country are
the manufactures of munitions of war, and
they are turning out cartridges by the hun
dred million to be used in killing human
beings.
Russia is ready to fall on English CON-
merce in case of war, hoping TO drive thou
sands of peaceful ships from the seas. She
is planting torpedoes in her harhors to blow
up the great vessels Of her enemy and de-
stroy the lives of their crews, and in the
dockyards and gun shops of the empire the
hours of labor upon the engines of war are
heightened by the use of the electric light
which Christian civilization has introduced.
Night and day the workers arc ceaselessly
at their toll completing all sorts of Internal
machines. Like preparations for wholesale
slaughter are going on in England, where
the government has thousands of men at
work TO get ready ships and munitions of
war, and is giving orders for the building of
great numbers of other vessels, more guns,
and more torpedoes. and more shot and
shell. Hospitals for multitudes of wounded
men are going up on the borders of Afghan
istan, ambulances are manufactured by the
thousand, lint is scraped, and surgeons are
sharpening their knives.
All these horrible preparations for com.
ing slaughter are going on in the sight of
the civilized and Christian world, and they
are made by nations which daily send up
their prayers to the Lord of peace and
righteousness. They are made not only in
contravention of the teachings of Christ,
but even in contemptuous disregard of
them; and yet Christendom is not shocked,
is not surprised, any more than we are sur
prised to see two bull dogs snap at each
other in the street. Christendom rather
stands by wondering that the fight has not
already begun, and ready to visit with its
derision either power which refrains from
war because it would avoid bloodshed. We
hear, at least, Of no general assembling of
the Christians of Europe and America to
protest against the awful struggles crime
against the religion of Christ. A few advo-
Gates of peace on principle have begged the
English government to desist, but they are
laughed at as cranky Missionaries even by
the clergy, who declare that it is craven for
an Englishman to obey the precepts OF
Christianity and not retaliate for blow.
All this may seem very commonplace, but
why is it commonplace Is it not because
such q thing as genuine Christianity has al
most no existence in the world People do
not expect to see the teachings of the Ser
mon on the Mount obeyed, but treat them
as impracticable, as beautiful poetry merely.
In their Individual dealings they do not pre-
tend to be governed by them, and collective
ly they disregard them as matter of course.
N. Y. Sun.
ADVICE TO MOTHERS.