West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1888-06-28

by reporters Put all journalists into our
prayers and sermons. OF all the hundred
thousand sermons preached 10 day, there will
not DO three preached TO journalists. and
probably not one. OF all the prayers offered
for classes OF men innumerable the prayers
offered for this most potential class will be so
few and rare that they will be thought
preachers idiosyncrasy. This world will
never be brought TO God until some revival
or religion sweeps over the land and takes
into the Kingdom OF God editors and re-
porters, competitors, pressmen and news
boys. And II you have not faith
enough TO pray for that and toll for that,
you had better get out of our ranks
and join the other side, for you are the un-
believers who make tas wheels OF tho Lords
chariot drag heavily. The great final battle
think will not be fought with swords and
shells and guns, but with pens, quill pens,
steel pens, gold pens, fountain pens, and, be-
fore that, the pens must be converted. The
most divinely honored weapon OF the past
has been the pen, and the most divinely hon
ored weapon OF the future will DO the pen;
prophets pen and evangelists pen and apos-
ties pen followed by editors pen and re-
porter's pen and authors pen. God save the
penl The wing of the Apocalyptic angel will
be the printed page The printing press will
roll ahead OF Christ's chariot 10 clear the way.
But some one might ask would you
forcementp Yes. would. / have learned
TO take things as they are. 1 would like 70
see the much scoffed at old Puritan Sabbaths
come back again. do not think the modern
sunday viii turn out any better men ana
women than were your grandfathers and
grandmothers under tho old-fashioned Sun.
day. To say nothing OF other results Sun.
day newspapers are killing editors, reporters,
coinpositors and pressmen. Every man,
woman and child Is entitled To twe1tv- fonr
hours of nothing TO do. III the newspapers
put on another set OF hands that does not
relieve the editorial aud reportorial room OF
It's cares and responsibilities. Our literary
men die fast enough without killing them
with Sunday work. But the Sunday news
paper has come TO stay. It will stay
good deal longer than any of US stay. What
then, shall we dof Implore all those who
nave anything TO do with issuing IL 60 fill IL
with moral or religious information; live
sermons and facts eevating Urge them
That all divorce cases be dropped, and in
stead thereof have good advice as TO how
husbands and wives ought TO live lovingly
together. Put In small typo the behavior OF
tine swindling church member. and in large
type the contribution Of some Christian man
toward an asylum for feeble minded children
or seaside sanitarium. Urge all managing
EDITORS TO put meanness and impurity in type
pearl or agate, and charity aud fidelity and
christian consistency in BREWER or bour-
geois. III we cannot drive ont the Sunday
newspaper let us have the Sunday newspaper
converted. The fact is that the modern Sun
Gay newspaper is great Improvement on
thing was the Sunday newspaper thirty years
agoi lt was enough 20 destroy a mans re-
spectability to leave the tip end of il stick
ing out OF his coat pocket What editorialsl
what advertisements What picturesl The
modern Sunday newspaper is as much an
Improvement on the old time Sunday news
paper as one hundred is more than twenty
hve; in other words, about as per cent. i'm
Proyement. Who knows that by prayer and
kindly consultation with our literary friends
we may have it lifted into positively re.
ligious sheet printed on Saturday night and
only distributed. like the american Msssen-
gsr, or the Missionary journal, or the sun
ddB Schoot Adrocdte, on Sabbath morningsi
All things are possible with God,
and my faith Is up until nothing
inthe way Of religious victory would SUR.
prise me- All the newspaper printing
presses Of the earth are going 10 be the
Lords, and telegraph and telephone and
type VIII yet announce nations born in day
The first book ever printed was the Bible by
FAUST and his son -in-law, Schoeffer, in 1860
and and that conservation of type to the Holy
Scriptures was prophecy OF the great mis-.
Sion OF printing for the evangelization OF all
the nations. The father of the American
printing press was a clergyman, Rev. Jesse
glover, and that was prophecy of the re-
hgious use that the Gospel ministry in this
country were To make of the types.
Again, we shall secure the secular press as
a mightier reinforcement OF religion and the
pulpit by making our religious utterances
press will reproduce them On the way TO
church some fifteen years ago, a Journalist
said a thing that has kept me ever sincs
thinking ainsi g, Are you going to give us any
points to-dayF What do You meanp L
asked. He SAID; 81 mean by that anything
that viii be striking enough to DO remem-
bered." Then l said to myself: What right
have we in our pulpits and Sunday schools TO
take the time of people if we have nothing to
say that is memorabilia David did not
have any difficulty in remembering Nathan's
thrust: " Thou art the man;h nor Felix
In remembering Pauls point blank utter
ance ON righteousness, temperance and
Judgment 10 comet nor the English King
any difficulty in remembering what the
court preacher said, when during the SER
mon against sin the preacher threw his hand
kerchief into the kings pew TO indicate whom
he meant. The tendency of criticism in the
theological seminaries Is to file OFF from our
young men all the sharp points and make
them too smooth for any kind of execution.
w hat we want, all OF us, is more point, less
humdrum. If we say the right thing in the
right way the press will be glad 20 echo and
re-echo 1t. Sabbath school teachers, reform.
eFs, young men and old men in the ministry
what we all want If we are to make the
printing press an ally In Christian work Is
that which the reporter spoken OF suggested
points, sharp points, memorable points
But If the thing be dead when uttered 10y
living voice, IL will be a hundredfold more
dead when it is laid out in cold type.
Now, as you all have something TO do with
the newspaper press either in issuing paper
or In reading IL, either as producers or pa
irons, either as sellers or purchasers OF the
printed sheet. | propose on this Sabbath
morning, June II, 1883, n treaty 10 be signed
between the church and the printing press.
treaty TO be ratified by millions Of good peo-
pie IL we rightly fashion 1t, a treaty promis-
ing that We will help each other in our work
Of trying TO illumine ami felicitate the
world, we by voice, you by pen, we by
speaking only that which is worth print
ing. you by printing only that which is
ht 70 speak. You help US and we will help
you Bde by side be these two potent agencies
until the Judgment Day, when we must both
Do scrutinized for our work, healthfu or
blasting. The two worst Off men in that
day viii be the minister Of religion and the
editor N they wasted their opportunity.
Both Of Us are the engineers Of long express
trains Of influence, and we will run into
a depot OF light or tumble them of the en-
bankment
What a useful life aud what n glorious do
parture was that of the most famous Of all
American printers Benjamin Franklin,
whom infidels in the penury Of their re-
sources have often fraudulantlY claimed for
their own, but the printer who moved that
the Philadelphia convention be opened with
prayer, the resolution lost because a ma
JOrity thought prayer unnecessary, and who
wrote at tho time he was viciOusly attacked.
My rue IL b go straight forward iD doing
what appears % m6 % be- right, leaving the
consequence 20 Providence. and who wrote
this quaint epitaph showing bis hope Of res
direction, an eptaph that 7 hundreds o.