Morning journal and courier., 1886-12-22
NEWS Dy ltl6gTdpfl FROM ALL QUARTERS. BLAINE TAKES 4 HAND In The Celebration of Fore
 fathers Day. THE NEW ENGLAND RAILROAD Seeking A Man For Gene
 ral Manager. MATTHEWS TO BE RECORDER His Nomination Again In
 The Senate.
TO BE RECORDER
FoREFArHERs DAY AT BOSTON

MT. Blaine Makes an Address Before the Congregational Club.
 l BOSTON, Dec. 21.-The annual meeting O | the Congreg ational club was held as usua 1 tonight to celebrate Forefathers' day The | banquet was in Music Hall. Among tn, I speakers were Hon. J. G. Blaine, Governor
 Robinson, Rev. E. B. Webb, president of the club, Professor H. Lincoln of Newton an6 l President Robinson of Brown. MT. Blaine's SD sech was as follows:
 MT. President, ladies and gentlemen of the Congregational club-In notable paper from Lord Bacon, he defines the rank in which men connected with States should be held in 1 history. One of the most eminent New Eng land ministers not many years since in quot ing that paper from Lord Bacon gave ] l think, with great justice to the Puritans and Pilgrims of New England the classic title of Conditores Ref Public@--the actual founders of the republic; and I have often thought l since have made personal acquaintance of the Puritans and Pilgrims, of their descen- dants, not sharing their blood myself, that if the civil influence can be separated from the religious, the Puritans and Pilgrims have made far deeper impression upon civil and patriotic America than on even religious America. They had divisions and sects. They had their share of differences. They were troubled with damnable heresies. They quarrelled with neighbors and had exactly that kind ot trouble that belongs to the aggressive theologian, but when their de-
 scendants put into the cause of liberty the
 real teachings of their religion they then had for forces the Baptists of Rhode Island, the
 Dutch reformers of New York, the Presby-
 terians of New Jersey, the Quakers of Penn sylvania, the Catholics of Maryland, the royal Episcopalians of Virginia, the Hugue-
 nots of Carolina and the Methodists of Geor- nl fhnvr oo,1I ,ot hox1o
 that union upon single tenet of creed
 with the exception of their belief in God-so
 that when Dr. Bushnell spoke of the Puritans
 as the Conditores Ref Publica, he spoke the
 verdict of history, for according to Jefferson coming from religion that did not have
 an over degree of admiration for New Eng
 land men-but for the Adamses, and him
 specially named John Adams, they could not
 have conducted the revolutionary war and
 could not have made the declaration of inde
 pendence. [Applause.] Now, as I have
 said, do not share the blood of the Puri-
 tans exceE5 as an Irish bull would have it in
 certain birthright have from my children
 Qaughter) for they are of good Puritan de-
 scent in the ninth generation. Laughter. l
 As am in the club-and in the club you
 may always be personal-I claim descent
 from a class of aggressive Christians who
 have not lived in region as facile and elo
 quent in speech, and who have not always
 QaQ 6X6cCly CQclr Sudr0 OI tuo OrdtOry OI au-
 niversary days.
 I have done a good deal of talking in
 Pennsylvania for the Puritans of New Eng
 land in the thirty five years have been 8
 citizen of New England, being myself New
 Englander by adoption, and am going to do
 little talking on behalf of the Presbyterians
 of Pennsylvania. Our distinguished friend
 the president of Brown university,
 arrested my attention by his suggestive re-
 mark on Christian unity and I would like to
 ask the Presbyterians of Pennsylvania and
 the Congregationalists of New England why
 in particular these two denominations of
 Christians should stand apart now. Have
 we any trouble between the Baptist cranks
 to whom the president of the theological
 seminary at Newton alluded and the Presby-
 terians? There is not certainly 8 difficulty
 between those two great bodies. They stood
 shoulder to shoulder in the contest for civil
 and religious liberty, not only after they be-
 came Americans, but when they fought
 through the same dynastic and theological
 trouble in the old world. Is there a differ
 ence between them? It happened to me twenty years ago to be in Scotland and in the general assembly of Presbyterians, who
 at that time were divided as Old School and New School, the union between which has
 been affrsted, and in the general assembly a Scotchman who was very keenlv inquiring into differences of creed asked some American delegates to tell the difference be- tween the old and new schools. and a dele gate from New York went into theological explanation involving hours of time, and when he was through new school member
 arose suddenly and said: 'I think can ex- plain that 8 little more promptly and quickly than my brother has done. It is just this the old school Presbyterians believe that fin Adams fall we sinned all, and the new school believe that fin Adams fall we all sinned'" [Great laughter.
 And that is where the difference lies-the new school are not so fond of doctrine as to of it, the old school and the new school could come together. Presbyterians and Congregationalists ought to come together. It seems to me while the president of Brown and the president of the theological semina- ry at Newton might see some difficulty in join ing the Congregationalists want to know just where I stand and what particular change of theology is contemplated and who is to be installed over the church I was connected with for over third of century. and what these renowned when they went back and took Presbyterian pulpits again, and therefore I wished if l could by the slightest possible impulse to start that ball in motion. I agreed gladly with the president of Brown univ ersity that you cannot make perfect union and it is not desirable. You cannot plane men to an exact length, height and breadth. But when
 
 unsettling and the same preachers are talk ing the same theology and the same kind of doctrine every day confess it looks to me ike-if am permitted, thus being 8 club and not a church-like child plays. (Ap- plause.) I went to one church all through when came to New England went into the Congregational church. Iwould rather have kept in the Presbyteran church. I am frank to say therefore I address myself to both. Now do not think the members of the Con
 eregational club, the president of Brown university or the distinguished friend whom I admire for many reasons, the president of the teological seminary, I hardly think any of these gentlemen of the ministry or any of us in the pews with paying degrees of
 piety, and, at times, 10 piety, can believe
 that the preaching of the word to-day is as effective as it ought to be-. Now l have my
 theory, and if there is anything Yankee
 has a particular right to it is to have theo
 " or take out patient Qaughter). Now my
 theory is that literally speaking the gospel
 is not preached. The command was Ego and
 preach the gospel" Well, I will undertake
 to say that when you put non conductor
 like pile of manuscript between you and
 your audience you are not preaching the
 gospel, you are reading it. Applause
 What would you think of lawyer at the bar
 with a mans life depending on what he
 could say to the twelve jurymen who were to
 decide the fate of that prisoner if if he should haul out pile of manuscript and begin to
 read to thema What would you think of man in legislative assembly who wanted to convince his fellow members of the policy or impolicy of any measure if he began to read at them? Everyone knows it would empty the hall immediately. Now I want to guard myself. Heaven forbid I should want extemporaneous sermons. There is a vast difference in speaking ex-tempore and the absence of notes. Nor do mean l that a man should commit sermon to mem ory, but no man ever got hold of an audi | encs in this world that was trying to remem- | Der the phrase in which to address them, and ! no one saould address an audience who does | not know when he begins what he is going to | say and where he will end, and ask any one | of you if it does not take about four times as much reflection and labor to prepare speech or sermon that is to be delivered without notes as it does to write one so easily read. | Concluding Mir. Blaine said: l want ex- | tempore speeches in the pulpit that a minis Il ter of eloquence has been six weeks prepar- | ing and if you should go to all the great places in which they have been gathered uI you will never see the interposition of man
 uscyipt would have such influence as
 Whisefeld had in the open field, 1would