The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1888-05-06
HOW TO BOOM A CITY.

Pay Some Attention to the Moral and Re.
ngious Fixtures of the Place.
Rev. Dr. Munhall to Business Men of st. Paul. Re-
He started out with the assertion that Chris.
tianity lay at the foundation of all com mercial
and industrial prosperity as it was the fountain
spring OF social purity. This was demonstrated
in the high attainmepts of our modern civiliza-
tion St Paul is to-day among the most pros
porous cities OF the continent. but take away its
churches and it's schools and it would i'm
mediately become place Of desolatiou only ct
for the hsoitatou of bats and vampires "Your
railroads. and your jobbing houses, and your
manufactures DR.. Munhall said, ''all minister
to your prosperity and are noble monuments of
your enterprise, yet take Christ out OF your
community and your population would melt
away"
In this age OF industrial progress and social
refinement people will not live where they can
not have an air Of Christian influence within
which TO rear their families A man may be
debased in his own instincts and practices; still
he longs for pure surroundings for his family
At Ocean Grove, the most popular summer re-
sort on the Jersey coast, not drop Of liquor is
allowed to be sold within three miles of the
place. there is no card playing. no horse-racing,
no prize-fghting and the most Puritanical re-
striciions yet he knew Of fifty saloon keepers
of Philadelphia who owned cottages at Ocean
Grove and sent their families there every sum-
mer because they wanted them to be under the
healthy moral influence Of this quaint Puritan
resort.
'You business men," DR.. Munhall said. las .
rule. do not give enough attention to the care of
your children. You leave that to your wife TO
look over while you are absorbed in your bust
ness pursuits. forgeuul of the fact that poor
tired mother has more than her hands full al
ready. / sec a great many bows On the street
here at night. They are not all of the rif-raf.
Many of them well dressed and are the sons
Of business men. They are learning moro devil
ment in one night on the streets here in St
Paul than the Suuday-schools can take out of
them in o whole year. will take the liberty
to point out TO you business man how you are
making a mistake in booming your city. You
are good boomers and have good results. Still
you can improve your methods a little For IL
lustration, you depend on the East as the
source from whence you draw your
population. The most the Eastern people know
of your great Northwest is what they read in
their newspapers And what is that They
read items of prize fights Sunday baseball
games and scandals That is what the press
agents are instructed to send out, aud nothing
more. They hear nothing of your churches aud
your colleges and your great Jobbing houses,
your railroads and your manufactures. Patsy
Cardiff. the prize fighter, is about the only
Northwestern man our Eastern people ever hear
of. Casting aside all sentimentality and iooking
at this matter in the light you business man are
supposed to see things in-on the line of dollars
aud cents-I submit to you the question, is this
o good boom methodl Don't you think you
could bring some Influence to bear on the East
ern press to give You more judicious advertis-
ingf IL Is my mission To preach q free salvation,
and do. yet even by the business standard o.
measuring everything by dollars and cents. YOU
must be convinced that Christianity 10 . good
investment"