The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1895-09-17
DIR. THOMPSON MAKES NO
APOLOGY.

Dr. Cyrus Thompson has three
column article in this weeks Progressive
Farmer in which he writes about his re-
marks at Cary. He said in his speech at
that place:
THE CHURCH TO-DAY STANDS WHERE
II HAS ALWAYS STOOD ON THE SIDE OF
HUMAN sLANERY-AND NOT ON. THE SIDE
OF LIBERTY"
In the Progressive Farmer he says;
Il have no apology to offer on account
Of the speech / made at Cary | said
nothing unadyisedly The same speech
| would make again tomorrow before
any audience. My judgment Of the at
titude of the church is either correct or
Incorrect | BELIvE THEN, AS l BELIEVE
| NOW, THAT MY ESTIMATE is TRUE. 1t was,
therefore, what | ought to have spoken
If it is true, indeed, it is what any man
| should have said, and did, in that case,
absolutely right in declaring it. Am |
to be cenSured for right-doingW
The balance of the article is devoted
to synopsis of his address at Gary in
which he says he was pleading in be
half of Christianity, Christly living" 1t
was against the church, which he likens
to those who 'steal the livery to heaven
to serve the devil in" that he was speak
ing.
We confess to great regret at this ex-
PLANTATION. We had hoped that DR..
Thompson, when he came to explain,
would say that he spoke hastily and was
too sweeping in his denunciation, and
would apologize for his w&nton attack
upon the church of Christ. Instead of
humbly confessing wrong, this misguided
man glories in his shame, saying Il said
nothing unadvisedly," and again, Il be-
Iieved then as / believe now, that my
estimate is true" Mores the pity.
a few days after the Cary speech, the
Christian Advocate, organ Of the Meth
odists of the State, was unwilling to be-
lieve as i'll of DR.. Thompson as his Ian
guage justified, and said:
CDR. Thompson is now the president |
Of the State Farmers Alliance. We feel |
sure that the bulk of the sturdy farmers |
of the country who compose the mem
bership Of this organization do not en-
dorse these hasty words of their leader. |
In the first place, nothing is wider of the |
truth than the statement that the church |
has always stood on the side of human
slavery. A man who will coolly make |
such a statement, without qualification,
exhibits ignorance too dense to be la
bored with. The church, more than all |
other forces combined, has contributed |
to the freedom of men. Human slavery |
has kept continual retreat before the |
all-coDquering power of the church of |
Jesus Christ. Mr.. Thompson spoke this !
in the heat of extemporaneous discoa /
and did not realize how it would look in |
cold type. This is the charitable con
struction which we feel constrained to
place upon such an utterance under all !
the circumstances
DR.. Thompson is not the first man to |
denounce the church, but he is the only
man in North Carolina we have known
who has gone out among the true
hearted sons Of toll to teach them that the
old church of their fathers has stood |
on the side Of human slavery" and that |
it does not represent Christianity, is not |
Christ-ike, and therefore of course, they |
ought to get out of it. We have no fear
that, under the guise of seeking higher
and more Christ like condition, DR.. Thomp-
son will convince the plain people to
give up their connection with their
churches, or c4use them to lose conf
dence in them as the organized power of |
Christianity.
We publish elsewhere DR.. Thompsons |
article in full. The question raised by |
him is the grayest one that the people |
of North Carolina have ever been
called upon to consider. If DR.. Thomp
son is right, we ought to stop the waste
of money in building churches and pay
ing preachers, and convert our churches
into cotton factories and Put the preach
ers to blowing. II they do not teach
Christ living, the preachers are hypo
critics and the churches are dens of |
hypocrisy.