Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1894-11-15

he properly said. They are heart and soul
in sympathy, as | am. with our progressive
American life. But they are still prepared
to confess that it has not been an onward
step to replace, as has been done in SO
many upright households, the gathering
about the family altar, by the Sunday
police reports, and the froth of secular
politics, and while they believe in free
press, even at the risk of corruption, on
week days they will say with us, to the
Sunday paper, leave our homes in peace
when the hallowed Sabbath hour
dawns y
He was followed by Richard H. Dana of
Cambridge.
Rev. II. p. Nichols of st. Mark :
church. Minneapolis, spoke as follows:
Il feel constrained to avoid the tempta
ton to use defamation against the sun
day newspaper. That may secure applause,
hut is immoral and profitless. We are
| fucing grave present day problem, the
/ widespread influence of the sunday news
paper. Our duty is to appreciate. to cor
rect and to offset.
The real danger Of the Sunday news
/ paper, in may view, springs from the fact
that the Sunday newspaper is so good.
/ My arrangement of the sunday newspaper
touches two points, sunday and news
/ pnper II is sunday issue. 1t is news
/ papcr The first danger in the Sunday
newspaper is the Decentralization of sun
day Sunday, as humanity's day TO dis
/ tinguish man from things, is an inestim-
able treasure. The Sunay newspaper is
! the most dangerous rObbcr Of that treas
ure Il is not that it is bad in itself, but
that it is repetition OF the week day
/ Busy all the week. men doyour, sunday
morning the whole weeks happenings
spread out, dishcd up. commented on, made
,nvory or unsavory as the like, and rush
to church. The gospel has no chance at
IL man so stuffed with Il sunday morn
ing haShing of Il whole week : wordli-
ness For most of men the church s min
istrations are all the soul medicine he gets,
and he has just taken n powerful antidote.
For those who are not church gCuFs ii is
more in their interest that we dcprecate
the existence of the sunday newspaper.
We warn the lah0rer that il is 4 short step,
and one already taken. from reporting
Saturdays doings TO doing the sunday
from thinking and reading about bust
ness to TRANSMITTING il.
The second danger of the sunday news
poDcr is that inherent in all newspapers.
The dwariing of manhood by light and sup
cr!icial reading till there is neither appetite
nor digestion for better. The business man
demands Il sunday paper rs the inebriato
demands his opium. That he is tired il
no excuse. As busy men as he kecpa good
book on tap He lacks II sense OF respon-
slbility for himself. He keeps on grow
ing worse. The Sunday newspaper helps
lrf,+ read
nothing else. into whose ranks he is fast
falling, must be helped TO a higher level.
Perhaps the sunday newspaper itself, may
) be Il temporary ally in his cause for its
own destruction by aud by.
The danger of the attractive Sunday
paper being that it sccularizes Sunday
and frittcrs away even on the holy day,
powers of mind and heart, the summons
is: First let the sunday newspaper bt
absolutely hauished from the hands OF
Christian people They do not need it.
An. they too much welded to the luxury
TO make the sacrifice Can we shame
Christian people out of this abuse of sun
day If we cannot stop church folks from
such standardization. there is little hope
of making non Christian people give uI
that to which they are so welded, is there:
| SECOND. pau III It's pltCt, VII NhiIsti'ti III
bles thoughtful reading from a Christian
standpoint. People are eager for it, as
witness the reading of Drumnond and
Kidd. No need to make the day hard and
, barren because there is no sunday news
paper And for non Christian PEG
Die. we may work along these
same lines, inviting at first the
cooperation of the Sunday news
paper itself converted. Brochuers treat
ing social subjects, scientific, ethical, Their
religious in a popular way, are sure to bt
an educative power for manhood and right
: eousness and the church of Christ.
The summons is to fill Sundays life with
something better than the Sunday news
paper.
The last speaker was Rev. William Kir
kus. LII. d., New York, who believed the
Sunday newspaper was calculated to raist
, the moral tone of its readers. He said the
{ people were not compelled to read it.
. NJ. Gull, E>r,nt1;,, Sunday School Cn,,