The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1892-07-09
The s.I.land C,ty,, Chausauqua.
FERNAND1NA, Fla July 2, 1892

ADA0MO VASy" N41VSAu4U1'
i FERNANDINA, Fla, July 2, 1892.
To the Editor Of the FLoR1D1AN:
/ Yesterday the Island City Chautauqua
was formally opened by Mr.. H. E. Dot
terer and will continue through this
month, and, if circumstances demand,
into August.
doubtless it will be matter of interest
to your readers throughout the state to
know OF the successful opening of this
summer chantauqua, 90 pleasantly sit
uated upon the shores Of the Atlantic on
Amelia Island, upon which is situated
the beautiful home city Of Fernandina.
The opening lecture was given by Maj.
Albert ]. Russell, state superintendent of
public instruction. His theme was 'sOur
Civilization" :" and was replete with fresh
thought and instruction, in which the
large audience was deeply interested
from beginning to end
He said when God called Abraham to
get out of his native land and 60 into a
strange country, which he would give to
him and his seed as an inheritance, tn Q
spring source of the civilization of this
country was struck and began its flow.
All people, tribes and families were idol
aters. Stocks stones and hideous beasts
were worshiped, and to them was made
sacrifice OF human beings Evidently the
plan was tn build out of the stock of
Abraham nation Of men whose life and
government should, in the midst of all
this idolatry, illustrate the fact that there
was true, living God over all interested
in the development of man, his redemp-
ton and exaltation, and active with him
in all his activities.
| The speaker traced this flow of religious
civilization down through all it's stages,
stopping to consider it's zenith in the
reign of Solomon, the building of God s
first artificial temple, showing the wide
spread influence exerted upon all the
known world, in the matter of scientific
and substantial as we'll as ornamental
building, and on down through the suc-
ceeding ages, until the advent Of the
Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth, when he
triumphan.ly declared that the flo odgates
of christian civilization were thrown wide
open and human thought was liberated,
invsntivo genius was unfettefed, the law
Of universal brotherhood and the father
hood of God was established and unveiled,
and he declared that the world of man
kind had never made such growth, such
advancement under any or all the civili-
cations under which it had lived.
He compared our civilization with that
of Buddhism, Brahminism, Ancient
Egypt and Greece, and in his burning
words it was all but painful to contem-
plate the contrast, sympathizing with
these false systems.
| Buddhism and Brahminism, he said,
were conceived in imagery and melted
into dream-life of inactivities. Egypt,
while having beautiful localities and a
Trinity, had her Nemesis, whose wor-
shippers ever feared her remorseless pur
suit was upon their track; while Greece,
with her magnificent philosophy and
splendid art, with these at last reached
an impenetrable wall, dark and to them
impenetrable because Of the want Of the
knowledge of the unknown God, whom
Paul for the first time declared unto
them.
| None Of these gave to the world an
iron horse, with limbs of steel, and joints
of brass, and breath Of steam; no print
| ing press, with which the truth might be
multiplied in every language and dialt CT; ;
they never dreamed of the electric wi'e
| (here the speaker p.id an intensified
tribute to the telephone); the Buddhist
trembled in great fear when the angry
clouds flashed vivid forks of fire, because
of the goddess of evil, Riva. The Chris
tian philosopher caught the fluid from it's
dread vault, and brought it tanned to
earth for mans use and co Lfort.
| To the development Of our own coun-
try the speaker paid an enthusiastic tri-
butte. He spoke of its gifts in inventions,
discoveries and adaptations, during the
short period Of its governmental life and
history as more than all the world had
given before. He spoke of the conquest
of new world, so to speak. discovered
and settled by all types and classes of re-
ligion and socialities-the Puritan, the
Quaker, the Romanisf, the Huguenot,
and the Cavaliers; the English, the Swede,
the Dane, the German, the French, and
yet out of this motley citizenship had
come country the most free, and lib
eral, and most tolerant of religious con-
victions. and political and so cial creeds.
Said he, Tonight We sit gathered in one