The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1895-05-31

which bids fair to be long hard struggle at the
realization of the brotherhood of man the
achievements OF the civil war stand out clearly,
| marking an epoch.
For once the seal of manhood and Of brother
| hood was put upon the black slave. No more Is
such crime possible as binding and impress
| sing rinto enforced slavery any human being
! And while there are countless ways whereby
one man may bring another into bondage the
| fact that this one form of slavery is forever
| made impossible as one of the results OF the
| war holds in itself the prophecy and the potency
of future entire emancipation OF man from man
and gives promise OF that reign OF love and
| peace which Christ came to bring.
But go ON to say that incidentally another
| great result has been wrought out by the war;
| 1t was decided through the arbtrament, OF war
J that from Maine to California, from the lakes to
the Gulf this is one great nation And having
been decided in that way the question will not
come up again very soon to trouble us. Now
| you know what high hopes we have all along
| cherished for this nation. 1t is the first and
only conspicuous example OF democracy.
Here the people govern themselves in way
| that is not true OF any other nation. And then
| how we have calculated the vastness and the
richness Of our territory. We have grown elo-
| quent over the variety Of our climate and Judg-
| ing from our experience this past month all our
| eloquence has failed to set forth the facts. We
| have gotten down our lightning calculators and
| shown what vast population tn country with
its fertile SOIL its wealth ofmineral can sustain.
| And we have let loose the wings of imagination
| for fight out into future greatness And then
too, we who have been of religious turn of
mind have somehow relegated to ourselves the
function of interpreting history in the light
Of Gods great purposes for the world. We
have thought that God was building here might
lily his Kingdom, that from us as q people there
might 60 forth to the ends of the earth the
knowledge of his love. We have not always
been very L Oldest in our claims, and John Bull
along with some other sleepy Europeans has at
times laughed atus. Our enthusiasm may have
run away with us at times. We were to have a
literal kingdom of God in selfish way right
here in this United States And 1 presume
some people have felt little toward us as
some churches felt toward an aged brother
minister in Chicago.
He is kind of superannuated minister whose
work had been in and near Chicago, now he has
settled down without parish but DESTROYS of
| going out to preach as supply, and of course
wanted to help him and did what could. And
to further his interests called on one of the Sec
retaries of our benevolent societies to stir him
up to do more for my friend, but to my surprise
he met me with the statement that he would
gladly help the man, but says he do you know
the man has sermon on the new Jerusalem in
which he maintains strongly that Christ is to
set up his Kingdom here on the earth, and in
which he also maintains that the seat of Christ's
reign the capitol city of his new Kingdom, is to
be right here in Chicago. And says he, the
churches round about knowing of our
''sweatshops'' and six or seven thousands sa
looms, and our gambling and corruption just
wont stand It, They say that If that is the kind
of heaven he is going to have (like the little girl
in the story they don't want to go there And
they send back word every time don't you
send that man any more" Now suppose ii has
gotten little so with us in the larger world OF
things. We have been going to have King
dom of God set up right here within these United
States. But in these later years it is noticeable
fact that our expectations have been somewhat
dashed. We have had so many unassimilated
foreign peoples to flock into us, and we have had
strikes and hardtimes, and the bloody anarchist
and the doctinaire socialist have put in their
appearance, and we have unearthed so much
corruption in civic and political life, and our
great cities have grown so rapidly uncontrol-
able that somehow our attitude toward the
future has somewhat changed. Our Fourth of
July orator is not so spread eagle as he used to
be- we are not now quite so cock sure Of things;
there is an atmosphere of sober thoughtfullness
as il we were not quite so sure where we were
coming out. But now all this is perhaps good,
we need this soberer thought and feeling. But
in far the danger of disunion goes, it is not
imminent nor is IL likely to ever come. We
have once for all decided that this is one nation
and to remain one nation.
Sectionalism may show its hand in the halls
OF congress and to the disturbance of political
parties; the silver-producing west may combine
on the free coinage of silver against the united
front OF the east committed to the gold standard;
manufacturing north may forever differ from
rural south upon the question of protective
tariff; mems prejudices and feelings may rise
to a high pitch and seem ready to carry every
thing to ruin before them, yet 1t will be found
that all these questions will be solved without
recourse to disunion.
The power Of enlightment and public opinion
will dissolve and dissipate the most threatening
clouds, for 1t has been once for all decided in
the thick Of battle that this is one country, that
these states are linked by common interests too
strong to be broken. That is the great result of
our civil war. 1t has done more to secure our
future than any event that has yet happened
It has endrcled US oil the way round the oceans
the lakes, the Gulf, the mountains, and all with
ribs of steel. And with our unity secured to US,
what mighty things the future holds From
the comminging of races on our soil there is to
come hardy American race, combining the
best qualities OF all From the development OF
our resources in material things and through
the powers of electricity and steam we shall
grow into fabulous wealth. And IL faithful to
God and his truth we may build here such q
federation of free men as the world has never
known. There are times when IL you only hold
things together they are bound to come to great
issues That incalculable service has been
done for this country by the war of the rebel
lion. No section or party will soon again so
much as mediate the ACKNOWLEDGMENT of the
nation. So the victories that you have gained,
secure to us our future integrity as nation
1t is our memorial reminding our children's
children that disunion will not be permitted and
can never succeed If the institution of slavery
which had rooted itself in the virgin soil of this
land and had inwrought itself into every fiber