The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1885-09-16
BEECHER AND TALMAGE.
n Wicked Newspaper Man on tho Thun-
dererB of brooklyn.

|
A Wicked Newspaper Man on tho Thun-
derers of brooklyn.
While Beecher is thinking away in
Plymouth church Talmago is not idle
in the Tabernacle. AS the BOYS saw,
"Talmago is corker." Ho draws q
much larger crowd than Bcecher, but
it is diileront crowd. 1t is the crowd
without brains, tho crowd that likes to
be amused and finds Talmago cheap
man to amuse them. He is sensational
and so is Beecher, but they do not con-
nict. Beccher's sonsationalism con-
sists in presenting startling facts about
education, or religion, or politics.
Taimage's sonsationalsm consists in o
monkcy-show, grating on tho plat
form like clown, aud by raking up
old and disputed topics for discussion,
and in roopening old sores. The
cornctist who loads tho singing helps
to attract tho crowd, and Talmago
knows the chords of the human hoart,
for ho plays on them increasingly. He
does not seek to educate in religious
matters. He selects text. and around
that he wcaves garland of words, and
hero and there he intersperscs old ancc.
dotes and stories that sometime cause
of this. lie is above it, and there arc
some things that he will not plunge
boldly into. Talmage will undertake
anything for notoriety. He would
write Biblo if hc were asked to.
Both Bcccher and Talmage have had
their tusslos with Bob Ingersoll, but
haven't you noticed that Bcecher has not
had much to say against Royal Bob
lately? Talmage, however, seldom
misses n chance to hit tho great orator.
His blow is blow of a sandbar,
though. He doesn't sharpen delicate
stiletto and stick it into his opponents 8
heart rs Beecher docs. Talmage ex-
bausts himself at ono swoop and then
lngersoll jumps on him, and if one man
ever gave another n drubbing on tho
platform Ingcrsoll certainly did Tai
mage.
A few years ago Ingcrsoll wrote o
paper on "Thc Christian Religion"
that was published in the North Amer-
can RepteW. 1t was a very ablo article
and attracted great attention. 1t was
nothing moro than the old views that
lnGcrsoll had so often expressed in
public, bat each sentence was effective,
and having been published in SO prom
incnt magazine they were given more
weight than they really deserved.
Thorndykc Rice, editor of the Re-
UteW. had engaged Judge Jcrc Black,
of Pennsylvania, to reply to the article.
Black had given the subject much
thought and study lie was tho ablest
constitutional lawyer in the country.
He was splendid speaker, mar of
rare attainmcnts, clear logician, he
was just the man to reply to Ingersoll,
and TO smash into atoms tho indict-
ment that Ingersoll had drawn up.
The church pooplo seemed confident.
They believed their knight would slay
the intidcl.
We'll, the article was published. and
candor compcls the admission it was n
lamcntablc failure.
Black seemed to have lost his grip
but ho severely denounced Ingcrsoll as
q charlatan, and in general way
scoifcd at his unbclicf.
To this lngcrsoll replied, and Black
admitted that for once he had been
worstcd. Tho great infidcl didn't
spare his man. He took off rr and
hide ut tho same time, and left his vic
tim without a word to say. 1t was ut
this juncture that BCcchcr came to tho
front, and this will establish the point
that have made, that there arc somo
contracts too big for him to enter into.
Editor Rico called on Bocchcr.
"Have you read the discussion be-
tween Col. lngcrsoll und Judge
Black?" he asked him.
Yes, very carefully" was Bcccher's 8
reply.
(Which do you think has tho best of
itp"
''Ingorsoll, decidedly"
'But the argument is not finished,
Mr. Bcccher, and | came to ask YOU to
take up the case against ITgcrsoll and
refutc his statements"
al should like to very much"
"'Thcn why not do itP will givo
you $4,000 for n paper on The Chris
tian Religion that will dispose of the
atheistic question at once and for
ever
eyes, guess you would" concluded
Bccchcr, "but won't undertake it. I
cant do 1t. No man can dc it. 1t is
an impossibility. We may believe that
lngersoll is wrong, but we can't give
positive proof of it,"
That was manly anyhow. .-New York
Cor. IN Providence Telegram.