Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1886-06-17
An Lrtract from DR.. Tdlmdge's Sermon
on the Newspaper Press.

1dhO any PiOhiisOuVuS ""uiNhNS III ''N
land, or in any land, and how many
treatises on constitutional laws have they
read? how many books of science, how
many books in regard to navigation, in
in regard to geology, in regard to bota-
ny, in regard to any intricate subject?
How much have they heard of Bayle, of
Xenophon, of Herodotus, of Percival ?
The people of the United States do not
average reading one book a year to the
individual. How, then, do account for
the change and the fact that people are
able to talk on all questions Of science
and art, and intelligence is everywhere as
the light, and men are intelligent on all
subjects? How do you account for itY
Next to the Bible, the newspaper, swift
winged and everywhere present. Flying
over the fence, showed under the door,
put on the work bench, tossed into the
country room, hawked through the cars.
All read it, white, black, German, French,
Italian, English, American, Swiss, well,
sick, Monday morning, Saturday night,
before breakfast, after tea, Sunday, week
day. declare that the newspaper prin-
ting press is to be the mighty agent by
which the gospel is to be preached, crime,
extirpated, oppression dethroned, the
world raised, heaven rejoiced, God glori-
fed. To the clanking of the printing
press, as the sheets fly out, | hear the
voice of the Lord God Almighty saying
to the dead nations of the earth "Laza-
rus. come forth ~ and TO the retreating
surges of darkness Let there be light
How many of the newspapers of city and
town during the past ten years have had
mighty pleas in behalf of the Christian
religion and have given some Of the most
effective interpretations Of Gods provi-
dence among the nations There are on
ly two kinds of newspapers. The good, the
very good-the bad, the very bad. When a
newspaper starts it may for a while have
no especial reputation either for virtue
or infamy but in little while people
decide for themselves, and they say, "it
is good" and it is good and "it is bad,
and it is bad. The one newspaper is the
embodiment of news, it is the ally Of vir-
tue, it is the foe of crime, it is the delec-
tation of elevated taste, it is the mightiest
agency for saving the world. The other
is brigand among moral forces, it is the
mightiest agent of earth for battling the
cause of God and driving back christian
ity, if it could be driven back. The one
influence is an angel of light, the other
influence is fend of darknes, and be-
tween that archangel and that fury is tC
he fought the battle that is to decide the
destiny of the human race. The Ar
magedde of nations is not to be fought
with swords but with steel pens not with
bullet but with type, not with cannon but
with lightning-perfecting press, and the
Sumpters and Moultries and the Glbral
ters of that conflict are to be the editoria
and reportorial rooms Of our great news
paper establishments. Men Of the pres
and men interested in its prosperity, up
on YOU come down the most tremendous
responsibilities of the earth. Men IN al
! departments need to be good, and most Of
all, men of the press. Oh, how great the
change from the time when Peter Shoei
, fer invented cast-metal type, and because
two books were alike they were pronounc
ed to be the work Of the devil-booki
were printed on strips Of bamboo, anc
the Common Council of the city Of New
York solemnly voted the offer Of forty
pounds to any printer who would come
and live there, and the Speaker Of Hous'
! of Commons Indignantly denounced th'
printing press because it had dared to no
tice their proceedings-on to this time il
. which we live, when the printing pres
5 is welding such a vast power for good o
for evil. The telegraph and the printing
press 90 down into the harvest field ant
the telegraph says to the printing press
'I'll rake while you bind" and the tele
t graph puts It's iron teeth down at one en-
of the harvest field and they are draw
r clear across and then the information
gathered up in sheaves, and the Printin