St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1886-06-29
BETTER THAN SOCIETY.
Are the Daily Newspapers, Says the
Rev. DIR. s. G. Smith.
In a Paper Read Before the Congrega-
tiona1 Club.

The Minnesota Congregational club held
its regular monthly meeting at the hotel Ryan
last evening with its usual social and intel
lectual success. Quite a number were pres
ent from points outside the Twin Cities. and
with the ladies, of which there was large
proportion, over one hundred sat down to
TO the banquet in the ladies, ordinary,
which lasted from 6 to 8 p. N.
After the banquet the party adjourned to the
parlors, where it listened to several interest
ing papers. "How Shall the Church Reach the
Working Men, was the problem considered by
Rev George FL. Cate of Minneapolis. One
difficulty, he said, in getting them into the
church was the backwardness felt by their
wives about appearing in cheap garments.
Christian ladies should dispense with 80
much fashion In the church and reserve
their courtly costumes for other occasions.
Prof George Huntington, professor Of
rhetoric in Carleton college, read a paper on
"lpteliectual Occupation for Business Men. :"
after which very interesting address was
made by DR.. S. G.. Smith of the First, NJ. E.
church, who was present by invitation. He
spoke on "The Moral Influence of the Secular
Press" Let us leave out, he said, class pub
lications and resolve the problem Into
that Of the American metropolitan press.
There are two distinct phases in every
newspaper-the departments of news and
opinion. The first rakes in with
the American appetite everything that can
be seen and heard, and the paper that whangs
the loudest is the most popular. wish the
papers would print different news and in a
diferent way, but it is merely question OF
commanding the market, and this COM
mercial aspect must not be lost sight of. AS
BAD as the papers are, they are
BETTER THAN THE COUNTRY.
AS rule. metropolitan dailies are on the
right side morally, and do much to uncover
frn 40 nr,1 Nf<NN1 No
GLOBE, as instanced in its attitude on the
Sunday question, is better than the city adj
ministration. The real point is newspapers are
made to sell. l have little faith in making the
papers better until our cities are better.
The papers are better than society, govern
ment and political influence, and until we get
some power under all these to raise them
heavenward from their lapse toward hell, we
can hope for little improvement. AS to the
Sunday newspapers, if none were bought
none would be printed They came into ex-
1stence gradually and in response to a popu-
lar demand. AS long as they pay they will
be published, and all the fusilades Of all the
clubs and pulpits in the country cannot wipe
them out. / cannot understand the mental
and moral constitution Of q Christian who
cen spend more than fifteen minutes over
one. yet we are Informed that they deplete
our pews. I read the Sunday pa
pers, and occasionally on Sunday, and
do not think it interferes with
my devotions, but il read it all it would be
a different matter. The question is related
to the Sunday problem. II the employees
have one-seventh Of the time per week for
recreation and devotion no indictment can
lie against the paper for publishing seven
issues week.
DIR. Leonard, formerly of the Congrega-
tional church Of Northf cid, now superintend-
ent of home missions In Utah, Idaho and
Arizona. was present and spoke of the work
OF the church among the Mormons.