The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1889-12-05

meetings at North Bennington very sue
cessfully for the past two weeks.-ED.I ]
TEXT Psalms, oxLvu, 20. "He has not dealt
so with any Nation"
Thanksgiving Day is appointed once q
year by the President of the United
States. and confirmed by the Governors
Of the different States. 1t is a day, not
Of recreation and sociability, but day
Of thanksgiving and prayer. We are to
thank God for what He has done for us
as a Nation, and pray that HIS blessing,
like halo of sunlight, may still rest
upon us. l am often constrained to
quote the familiar lines
awe are living, we are moving
In grand and awful time,
In an age on ages telling
To be living is sublime"
Brethren, the last half of the 10th GEN.
tury has seen more advancement and
progress than all the other ages pu. to-
gether, and it also presents to US a crisis
which shall decide the destiny OF many
ages to come. Hence have taken for
our subject
OUR COUNTRY AND HER PERILS
1st. What progress have we made ?
Our country to. day is the leading Nation
of the world, yet she has not reached
her present height by the sword, but by
q rapid and sure growth OF civilization
But bud for many years, yet surely
swelling until it burst into flower. If
there is a man here who was born in
1900, you have seen more progress than
a man could have seen had he lived 1900
years before the present century.
Stand a moment and let the panoram-
ma pass before us.
The hitherto quiet waters OF the beau.
Iiful Hudson, are somewhat disturbed.
There is spashing and commotion
never heard of before. 1t is Fulton's
steamboat blowing its way north. When
30 years of age you could have seen the
first railroad passenger train. Fifty
years later the world had 222 600 miles
of railroad, with mile after mile still be-
ing built. At 3S years of age you could
have crossed the ocean, propelled by the
power of steam. When A years of age.
you could have sent your first message
over the wire. Thirty six years later the
world had 604 900 miles of telegraph
wires.
But not only has this been a remarka
BILE century for mechanical improve
m ants hut also for great ideas. At the
close of the 18th century, slavery existed
|
rv, Prussia, Austria, Scotland, in the
British, French and Spanish colonies,
and in North America. During the first
even years OF this century, English
hips conveyed across the Atlantic $780,
900 Africans, one half of whom persisted,
ei her during passage or 5000 after land
ing. This has been done away with by
pne great idea, which revolted against
| ,s,h
ever from the fair land of American the
awful curse of slavery.
We have grown with regard to indi-
vidual liberty, which has placed woman
here she belongs equal with man. In
other ages it was not an uncommon
thing for man TO sell his wife. We
read 10 Dorches er's Problem Of Relig-
lous Progress, hat "A well looking wo-
man, wife of John Hail, to whom she
had been married one month, was
brought by him in halter and sold by
auction, in the market, for two and six
pence, with the addition of sixpence for
the rope with which she was led. In
this sale the customary market fees were
charged-tol, one penny. pitching, three
pence" and this was in 1914 The sur
prise with which this Is received by the
We have made progress with regard
10 the value Of human life. Once in
England # you attempted to kill rab-
bit your life was forfeited. The Law
r 'cognizsd 223 capital off noes, In Mac
Kenz es' History of the 10 h Century we
read, Sin 1916 there was at one time 5S
persons under sentence II death. One
1f these was child 10 years old. Ad
vancement has brought elevation and
man is nobler than ever before. Christ
ianity, civilization, progress, have
brought us where we are. He has not
dealt so with any other Nation"
Let us study our geography for mo-
, ment. What natural resources have we.
lat. We do not appreciate our National
domlin. Spain is Nation, yet we could
have 1S States each as large as Spain.
We could have 81 States esch as large as
ItaIy, We could have 81 States each as
large as England and Wales. Not in
cluding Alaska we have 2,970, 900 square
! miles. China has 800 millions of people
yet has only 1,34S, $40 square miles, or
I less than one half Of ours.
How God has blessed us in our pro-
ducts. In 1879 after feeding our so, ,00O,-
600 we sent to other countries over 2S3,-
900, 900 bushels of grain, and still only
] one-ninth of our land is titled. If,there-
= fore, all were brought under the plow,
we could feed 450, 900, 900 Of people and
then export 1854, ,000.0 bushels of
grain. II is estimated that If our agri
cultural resources were fully developed,
! we could sustain a thousand million
= sonls.
But this is not all. We have great
God-given gifts beneath the soil. In 10
years iron ore increased 10 per cent. ;
copper, 80 per cent. coal, 66 per cent.
! petroleum 90 fold; and yet there is un-
! told quantities yet untouched. Let us
glance at our
INDUSTRIES.
Our manufactures for 1880 were, $4,.
! 440, 900 900, and under the head OF man.
1 ufactures we may put our inventions
l At the International Electrical Exposi
ton in Paris few years ago, five gold
medals were given for the greatest in
ventions or discoveries. How many
I came to US ? The 1chole tUe. Herbert
Spencer says without doubt, In re-
spect to mechanical appliances, the
L American Nation is ahead OF all Ma
LioDs."
| Truly has Matthew Arnold eaid
| AIDtIlCh
, So much about what we are, nov
about our perils. 1t is not my intent t
present figures alone in my talk, yet fig
n ures "tell the TRUTH" and a statemen
y cannot be proved without fact.
OUR PERILS.
You all well know what consider tn
greatest peril we have. 1t is intemper
dnce We can't do what our foretatner
y did. Then the life was even, and al
quiet and serene along the whole line
Now, how different. We are packed to
gether in certain localities, which is tn
natural result OF progress, and bringing
men in clost contact increases the e1
citement of life and qnlckeus our rat
of living. Isolation Is s,agnation, intel
!. course-life. We live in a year NOR
than our forefathers did IN ten years
Some one has said Abraham Llncol
cn lived longer than Methusela, in point G
experience, results, enjoyment and soI
TX. row."
- m A.a.;oor raonla ara tho rnos