Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1886-09-01
&eadiug.
VIRTUE THE FOUNDATION OF NATIONAL
WELIrBEING,

There is many a stately structure beau
tiful to look upon, and destined apparent
ly to stand unharmed by the storm or
flood for many years, but which in reality
is on the brink of ruin because the invis-
ible tooth of time eats away the founda-
tions. And the records of history tell the
tale Of many a great state which, when
seemingly destined to be lasting as the
imperishable mountains, met with unex-
pected and disastrous overthrow because
of the moral corruptions which had de-
stroyed that virtue which is the founda-
tion of every prosperous nation. The es-
sential relation of virtue to civilized So
ciety is forcibly put by a recent writer in
these expressive words: "CivilizatiOn is,
first and foremost moral thing. With
out honesty, without respect for law, with
out the worship of duty, without the love
tue-the whole is menaced, and falls to de-
cay, and neither letters nor art, nor indus
try, nor rhetoric, nor the policeman nor the
custom house officer can maintain erectand
whole an edifice of which the foundations
are unsound." The substance of this COM
prehensive passage is compressed in a
terse question by David, who was both a
statesman and king. That astute and
ancient monarch asks: "1f the fOunda-
tions be destroyed what can the righteous
do pa query which implies that when
the rules of justice and truth are openly
and generally violated there is nothing
in society for an honest man. Might
then takes the place of right; violence
supplements order; the security and we'll
being of society are replaced by anarchy
and ruin.
To a pessmist the future of American
society appears gloomy, if not threaten
ing and disheartening. On every side he
sees moral corruption eating its way into
its political, commercial and social life.
Almost everywhere injustice is furiously
trampling upon honesty, talsehood is sup
planting truth, organized selfishness is
Struggling to put its foot of iron upon the
neck of law, and the greed of men hasten
ing to be rich is heedlessly working to
destroy the sanctity of the Sabbath and
to set the seal of contempt upon Divine
law. TO the pessimist these things are
portentious clouds big with indefina5ie
calamities and with destruction to our ma
tional prosperity.
To the pessimistic apprehensions the
Optimist replies with lightsome words.
While not denying the presence, growth
and power of many evil elements in the
land, he insists that they are only as scum
on the surface of society. Below it, he
argues, is a substratum of national virtue,
of fidelity to moral principles, and of
respect for law, which will assuredly
triumph over the abounding outcrcppings
of immoral principles characteristic of the
passing epoch.
Which of these judgments is sound {?
Probably neither of them is to be accept
ed without due qualification. Things are
not as bad as they appear to the pessimist
because, as a matter of fact open to cam
did observation, the evil is nowhere en-
tire or unmixed. Neither are things so
clearly hopeful as the optimist believes,
because the good is nowhere so all pervad-
ing as to he unmixed with evil, and there
fore beyond reach of destruction. The
wheat and the tares are everywhere grow
ing side by side. Neither has full posses
sion of the field. While, therefore, the
lover of his country and of goodness sees
no reason for yielding to the despair of
the pessimist, he does perceive strong
reasons why he should not sleep with the
optimist on the pillow of drOWSy indiffer-
against the spread of the tares. The cry
ing sins which curse society must be de-
nounced. The propagation of vicious
principles must be checknated by vigo-
rous exposures of their fallacy and danger.
The light of Gods truth must be made
to shine on the national conscience, so
that its perceptions of ethical truth shall
be made clear as crystal and it's tendency
to moral laxity corrected.-N Y. Chris
tian AdUocate.