Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1894-09-15
One Of the most terrible things In all

the DfedQ lDE the cLltl uiuttltIy ttl4
the man who used the knife for that
purpose was butchered That whimsical
ity of Tapu has left its victims all up
and down New Zealand. The fact is
that barbarisms arc SO repulsive in ev-
cry form that there is nothing admira-
bic about them, and the only thing to
do is by the influence of Christian civil
hzation to extirpate them, and they are
going, and for the most part have al
ready gone Cannibalism in New Zea-
land is dead. The funeral pyres in In
dia have been extinguished- The Jug
gernaut has been put aside as curios-
ity for travellers to look at. Instead Of
the cruelties that once cursed these
lands / ,ffnd our glorious Christianity
dominant-all over New Zealand the
highest culture, tho grandest churches,
tho best schools and citizenship than
which the world holds nothing nobler.
hereby report to the American lee
turers that New Zealand is grand
place for their useful work. Only two
or three English and ono American lee
turer have ever trod these platforms.
But the opportunity here is illimitahle
Not in all the round earth are there
more alert, responsive or electric au
diences. They are quicker than Ameri-
can or European assemblages to take
everything said on platform or in pull
pit They call out all there is in a
speaker of instruction OF entertainment.
And the church and the world have yet
to find out that audiences for tho most
part decide whether sermons or lectures
shall be good or poor. Stolid and unre-
sponsive audiences make stolid and
stupid speakers. Wendell Phillips, one
of the monarchs of the platform, told
me something very remarkable concern
ing himself while we were standing in
a Boston book store and hewas Gliding
me for not appearing at Ann Arbor,
Mich, from which place he had just re-
turned, and where / had tried to get a
few days before, but was hindered by
snowbanlSs, and my offer Of $3.50 for the
use of locomotive had been declined.
Mr.. Phillips said that the audience in
one of the eastern states nearly killed
him. He said: 81 stood for nearly an
hour without seeing or hearing anything
by which l could judge of the effect of
what I had said. If they had only Missed
or applauded, l do not care which, l
could have gone on with some comfort. =
Mr.. Phillips surprised me by this state
nlent as to the effect wrought upon him
by phlegnlatic assemblage.
The audiences decide the fate of SER
mons or lectures. A half dozen men
might, if they wished TO engage III SO
mean q business, take contract to
break down any speaker, il they would
sit right before him, cape, take out their
watches and cough with mouth wide
open and then suddenly go sound asleep.
An eloquent American preacher, stand
ing before me in former pulpit, de-
livered the first half Of his sermon with
great power, and his words had wings,
and his countenance was aflame with
holy enthusiasm, when Suddenly his
wings of thought and utterance drop
ped, and he stammered on his way and
got entangled in metaphor and lost his
thread of discourse and failed TO prove
that which he said at the start he would
prove and then sat down. While the
congregation were singing the last hymn
he said: '.Who is that distinguished
looking gentleman right in front Of the
pulpit? The sight Of his somnolency and
lack of interest completely upset me. 4"
"Oh," / said. that is the Hon. Mr..
So-and-so, one of thc ablest men of tho
nation, and he was deeply interested IN
all you said He is not asleep, but is
suffering from weak eyes and is COM
PEELED to keep them shut while listen
ing" The uninteresting appearance of
tho auditor had ovorthrown master
of assemblies. "
say to the men who preach and lee
ture, come to New Zealand But should
ministers ever lecture? Ought they not
always preach? My answer is that the
intelligent lecture hall is half way to
the church, and | notice that men who
have been hating the church and all sa-
cred things, if they come and hear one
lecture, are sure to come and hear him
preach. Besides that there are important
things to be said, and things that must
be said, which are more appropriate to
lecture hall than to pulpit. The three
mightiest agencies for making the world
better are the pulpit, printing press and
platform. Side by side may they always
stand in the battle for righteousness.
But for them the Indians warwhoop
would yet be sounding in America and
on the Atlantic coast, the morning meal
of human flesh would still be going Oh
in New Zealand, and the Gauges would
still be horrible with infanticide. Let
all the nations reconstruct their notions
of New Zealand. write this at Dane
din, imposing in its architecture. pictur-
esque in its surroundings, unbonnded i'll
its hospitality and another Edinburgh,
after which, I understand, it is named
Dun Edin being the Gaelic for the
northern capital of intelligence.
The Scotch founded it, and what the
Scotch do they do well. They believe in
something, and it is almost always some
thing good that they believe IN. High
toned morality characterizes everything
that they do or touch; solidity. breadth,
massiveness and religiosity are the types
of the men and cities and nations they
build. No country is well started that
has not felt the influence of the Scotch,
with their brawny arm and high cheek
bones.
The seaport of this place is called
Chalmers Port, named after, have no
doubt, Thomas Chalmers, the greatest
of Scotchinen unless it was John Knox,
and the largest church in this place,
where I preached last night, is Knox
church, called. / have no doubt, after
the man who at Hollywood made queen
tremble Here / am in the midwinter
of this colony, for July here corresponds
with our American January, but there
are no such seventies Of frost or snow
Envelopes, with your card neatly
printed thereon, for no more than the
naked goods cost at the stores. IF
~ IN m DE0