The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1892-06-01
s1SUNDAY THOUGHTSbo
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MORALS ~ MANNERS
By A CLERGYMAN.

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reformatory effort on the part of
those concerned. There is here no
privileged class to consult and con-
ciliate. Public opinion is supreme, IN
questioned, irresistible. True, public
opinion has to be enlightened and d.
rected. But this is the whole task. When
this is done everything is done. In less
favored countries the people may groan
and petition; if the car is deaf, if the
kaiser is selfish, if the authorities are in
terested in the maintenance of the exist
ing regime, they groan and petition in
vain. The result is Asia carved in stone"
and Europe meeted out and trodden down
to be the dull and contented footstool of
despots.
In America, on the contrary, in both
church and state, we have government of
the people, by the people, for the people.
What the people really want they get
and speedily. Their voice is heard and
needed AS Lord Broughman said in En-
land: "The queen is in place, the house
of commons Is in power" So with US
congress may seem to rule, and ecclesisstic-
al courts may appear to decide, but tits
all pretense-the actual rulers are the
voters and the final decision is given
by the pews. In certain confectionery
shops you may see an automaton grinding
chocolate. The figure seems to turn the
crank. In fact the crank turns the figure.
If presbyterianism wants higher criticism
it will have it, and the general assembly
will reconcile it with orthodoxy-give
chapter and verse for it. II methodism
wants to be represented by women dele
cTataa ard TIGhaa allow dancing the
general conference will amend the book
OF discipline in conformity with the de-
mand-vox populi, vox del.
But this condition of things throws upon
the pulpit and the press an awful respons-
Utility. For these are the twin influences
which mold and mass public opinion in
America.
An ingenious writer suggests two meth
DDS of bible study, one of which be calls
finger study and the other heart study.
BY the first is meant such mastery of the
divine word as that any passage can De
turned to in a moment, and so any case
can be medicined then and there. This
is the study for Christian workers.
By the second is meant the reading for
self-improvoment and with personal
application. Both methods are important,
but the last is first, because We can give
out effectively only what we have taken
in. In order to be doing Christian
work we must have Christian experience.
We can teach the bible only as we know
it. and we can only know it in proportion
as we have appropriated it and lived it for
ourselves. As Cowper says:
"Here the heart
May give useful lesson TO the head.
And Learning wiser grows without his books"
Not long ago keen critic asserted that
portion of the Old Testament into
number of distinct documents composed
by different writers at various times and
afterwards reduced by redactors into their
present form, could not and would not
stop with the Hebrew scriptures, but must
inevitably subject the New Testament TO
the same analysis.
This assertion is now curiously con-
firmed by the work of Frederick Spilta,
German, still wet from the press-"Die
Apostelgeschichte; hire Quellen und
deren Geschieletlicher Vert" He is sure
that the Book of the Acts is not the pro-
duction of any one writer, and he has
painfully traced the existence of the two
separate documents, which he names A
and b, to the former attributing forty
sections and to the latter forty-two. and
finding twentv-four of each to be parallel
to one another. His distribution does not
depend upon vocabulary, but mainly on
honest and earnest attempt" but
We have as little faith in
the theory when applied to the Acts as
we have when applied to the Hexateuoh-
and as much. IN both cases itrests on the
same basis-assumption and presumption.
Mrs. f. S. P. Ward affirms that there
are several thousand woman physicians
in the United States. America is ahead
of the world here as elsewhere.
The lady referred to finds it impossible
to arrange the incomes of these physic-
ians-they are close-moutned in this mat
ter, if not in other matters. But she ex-
ercises her Yankee privilege and "guessee"
they range from $500 up to $4,000 a year.
These last figures are, of course, rare.
They are the great lights of the profession,
rare among men, who earn from $20,0 to
$50, 1000 year; and women are still cru
sades in this field. A ten-thoussnG-dolla
income for a well-educated and gifted
woman doctor is less rare. Doctors who
have S., 900 are not uncommon. Women
oOchl " 10 WCi-dNOpbOo ~ tbAc
callin9-they would have no difficulty in
spending the income. anyhow.
At Portland. where the general assem-
bly, of the presbyterians is in session, and
in Omaha, where the general conference
OF the methodists is convened, these cur
rent Sundays must be days of spiritual
gormandizing. The great lights of these
great denominations are in the various
pulpits of the two cities-a locomotive
headlight in each. In such circumstances
n choice of preachers must be difficult.
We can imagine the puzzled church-goers
as muttering the familiar lines of John
Gay:
''How happy could be with either,
We're tother dear charmer away"
The Ledger tells a good story of DR.. Jesse
Lee, an able and eloquent divine who
founded many churches in New England
and the southern states. He was noted
for his wit One day in riding from Bos-
ton to Lynn be had tilt with two law
yers. He was on horseback. Presently
the two limbs of the law, who were
also mounted, overlook him, recog-
nized him and began an attack.
Ranging themselves on each side, they
said: "Don't you often make mistakes"
ayes, do" "Well. in such case what
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