The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1891-04-28
RELIGIOUS.

But if morality has hitherto been
based on religion, there must be reason
to fear that the foundation being with
drawn the superstructure will fall.
That morality has hitherto been based
largely on religion, so far at least as
the great majority of mankind are con-
cerned, will hardly be doubted, how
ever, wanting in definiteness or vivid
ness the notions of a moral governor
and of retributiOn in many minds may
have been, and however men may have
sacrificed to immediate impulse that
. which on serious appeal they would
have acknowledged to be their real
good. Virtue" says Paley, in his
clear and decisive way, "is the doing
good to mankind in obedience to the
will Of God and for the sake of ever
lasting happiness" So surely thought
even the men of the world in PaIey's
day. All but the members Of the He'll
fire Club-and perhaps even they
would have said, LET mt die the
death of the righteous, and let my last
endb be like his" Besides, such genuine
Christian characters as there were ex-
erted an influence beyond themselves
as practical warrants for the observ-
ance of Christian morality and pledges
of the happiness attending it.
The presence of the theistic sanction
has been especially apparent in all acts
and lives of heroic s~elf-sacrifice or self
devotion. The man who has led a for
lorn hope, taken an IA in a life-boat,
risked his OWL life to save the lives of
others, or given up all his personal en-
jOyments to the service of his kind, if
he has not definitely placed before
himself the appreciation of God and a
reward in Heaven, has felt assured
that in losing his life he saves it, and
that it would be well for him in the
sum of things; an assurance which i'm
piled the existence of a supreme moral
power. We are told that acts of heroic
s~elf-sacrifce and s~elf-devOtion will be-
come of less consequence to mankind
when all is regulated by a scientific
sociology. 1t may be so, but hitherto
humanity could hardly have advanced
without them.-Pr0f. GOIdoCin Smith,
IN the April Forum.
Pulpit Review of Current Events by Rev; Thos.
Dixon, Jr, for Sunday, March 8, 1891.
COMPULSORY VOTING.
Rev. ThOs. Dixon, Jr., pastor of the
Twenty-third Street Baptist Church,
preceded his Sermon at Association
Hall. this morning, by the following
review of Current Events.
A kind Providence has watched over
the American Nation in many a rash
experiment. We still live. We still
= grow. One of the miracles of special
Divine mercy has been that we are
alive and growing, to-day, in spite of
the widest experiments in ballot tink-
ering that ever cursed a republic of
this planet. What may have happened
on some other planet we do not know.
At length, the debauchery of the ballot
has reached such a depth, that we are
forced to make the effort to save our
selves. The conviction is growing
upon thoughtful men, North, South,
East and West, that we must have
radical electoral reform, or else &C
knowledge sooner or later that the
ballot is a failure. There is a pro-
nOunced movement in nearly every
State of the union to accomplish such
reform. This is a healthful sign of the
times.
Governor Hill, of New York, in his
last message to the Legislature, urged
that a law be enacted making the
exercise of the ballot compulsory. I
was amazed at this message for two
reasons. [ marvelled that an actual
Governor of a great State should boldly
demand so sweeping and radical a re-
form. l was amazed that the first
Governor to send this message should
be the famous Governor of this State.
had learned to look upon this man as
a daring, shrewd and successful poll
tician, the friend, champion and crea-
ton of the saloon. If these hard saw
ings be true of him, we must still be
just. In that message Governor Hill
rose to the high standard of aggressive,
creative craftsmanship. His recon-
mendation is worthy of the bravest
and brainiest statesmen we have pro-