New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1894-03-21
S0MEOF DON NEILY'S IDEAS.
Expr sslons Used by the Sage in his Lee
ture on the A. p p A.

The following are portions Of Ignatius
Donnelly's address delivered IN Minnea-
polls last Wednesday evening:
What is The spirit of the age2 Why,
doubt, unbclief, skepticism. It is pre-
:cisely what Saint Paul said: "Try all
things, and hold fast to that which IS
true" Is there any man so base, SO de-
graded, that he wants to remain in the
wrong? Is there any man who wishes
to cherish beliefs because of their an
hqulty, simply because they were taught
to HIM in chlldhood?: Who is there that
would insist that his children grow up:
to manhood believing in Kris Kringle be-
cause it was a touching and beautiful
little thing, the picture of the jolly little
saint coming down the chimney loaded
down with toys for the children? Wby
my friends, no. What has the spirit of
the age undone? We all of us know
what terrible thing that physical di-
sease OF insanity is. If it invades one of
your families and takes dearly beloved
child, or wife, or husband from yours
arms, raving maniac, how do you treat
them! Why, under the skillful care of
physicians, in seven cases out of ten they
are restored to health and happiness and
brought back to the homes that cherish
them. What was it before the spirit Of
the age attacked the old opinions? Why.
the belief was that the man or woman
who wasinsane had BEEN invaded by
devils, by demons, and they punished
the demons through the victim. 1.-The
poor insane subject, instead of being
carefully tended and nursed. and cared
for with the highest skill of the age, was
thrown into stone cell or in. rags,
cha1ned.to the floor, cup of water and
loaf of bread given to him and daily
Or weekly scourged to whip rhe devil
out of him. And they died in awful
asonles. Is there anybody to-day that
would like to reverse these particular
workings of the spirit of the age and
bring us back to that condition? Is
there anyone of you that would like to
be the victim of that old system? Not
one.
What else has this spirit of the age
done? Why, it has swept away vast
horde of misconceptions that had moth
ing.t do with the real essence of Chris
tianity or religion. When was Young
man or boy it was universal belief that
this. world was made in six calendar days,
morning, noon, and night to each day
although the record there showed that it
wasn't think until the second or third
day that the sun and the moon appeared
and there could have been no calendar
days before those great markers of time.
Well, what was the result2 Why, science
has gone to work and they have proved
that the sedimentary of the rocks laid
down in the still waters of the past.
slowly, piecemeal in the course of ages.
are 40 miles in thickness. and of course
the six days business had to be done
away with. Many clang to It with fierce
ness. They believed if they sacrificed
that and gave it up the whole Christian
dlspensation was gone. Not at all. Men
came forward and said, "Why, this is a
misconceptions and religion remained
even stronger that it was before. Take
the treatment Of persons for witchcraft.
An old woman who owned black cat,
and was in the habit of gathering herbs
by the full of the moon, was very likely
to be held responsible for any twitches
of rhuematism that might aff1ict her
nelghbors, and thereupon she was seized
and stripped, and then they took pin
and with committee Of most of the
greatest dignitaries Of the place they pro-
Eceeded to stick the pin all over her, and
if they could find a place where the old
woman didn't vince, why, that was con
elusive proof that she was witch ana
thercupon she was burned. Or they
took and threw her into pond. IF she
drowned, she was considered innocent; ];
i she swan she was guilty and they took
her out and burned her, so they had the
old woman either way. Well, nov, my
friends, is there anyone who would un-
90 this operation Of the spirit Of the age2
Imagine the beliefs aad.the doctrines
and the thoughts and the mode Of ideas
Ct that time 2! II back On us ont here in
Minneapolis Imagine that at four city
hall sQme peor did wretch withshrr nose
and chm alrnos needing, spread = out up
"a 3 table with Mayor Eustis and Rev.
49,; II o,,d (Ixv 1 nc