The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1895-04-12

appreciate what there is in the
church.
"Ihe influence of young men upon
young ladies'" was responded to by
Miss Robbins. She said that it is an
erroneous idea that Christian influence
should come solely from women. She
could not see that othe Christian in
luence of n young woman is greater
than that of one young man. In the
character forming age the influence
upon each other is mutual between
boys and girls, young men and young
women. She was sorry for the young
woman who has not had the sincere
and close friendship of some true,
Christian young man. The only perfect
character in life vas that of a man
and not of a woman.
Mr.. Beattie explained that DR..
Pleasant Hunter, of Minneapolis,
could not be present on account of an
other engagement, and introduced
DR.. Carson, who spoke ''along the line
of fraternity, good fellowship,
good citizenship and all the good
things among young men," He said
that the time has come when the
young ladies are leaving their homes
and winning positions in all the walks
of life the same as young men are.
The church is doing all it can for
them, but more young men have gone
out from their homes, and they have
more temptations in the cities and
towns than ever before. 1t is surpriS-
ing what temptations Satan sets at
every corner and crOssroad. On every
hand and every where are these in
fiuences and agencies, and we must
c~ounter-act them. While evil is wax
ing stronger on every hand, the
church is improving and is doing
more than ever before. The speaker
favored many sports to develop the
body and soul under noble influences
that would make the participants
better men. By means of them the
church would come in touch with
young men and relieve them of the
evils beseting them. He would
throw open the church social rooms
every day in the week, and establish
writing and music rooms there. We
have allowed the Devil to take posses
sion of many sports that we ought to
have used. We pile millions of dol
lars into magnificent blocks of stone
and lock them up. They should be
opened and made the center of frater-
ternity and good fellowship, and the
day is coming when this will be
done. Soon the young men will not
have to walk along the street and
find only the saloon or the place of
more damnable influence open. There
will be places where they can sit
down and rest and listen to sweet
music. This is the mission of the
church, especially toward young men
who are away from home and home
influences. The spirit of fraternity
and love are good impulses that make
men develop themselves and make
good citizenship. Unity is needed by
men having a common aim in this
line.
There are fraternal organizations
out of the church, and some say they
do more real good, as their attention
to the poor, for instance. Although
not to be decried, they are more or
less selfish, and the only unselfish one
is the church of Jesus Christ. There
never was a fraternal organization in
the world that did not believe in a
personal God and took the oath to him
at the threshold that ever lived. The
church is infinitely broader and nobler
and truer than any of these organiza-
tions. All selfishness goes out of it's
heart. When a man has had his last
penny taken from him and
is broken hearted, he does not look for
aid from those who took him down,
but to the church of God. Be men Of
the truest, highest ideals; follow
Christ as a pattern. There is no man
but will trust you when he is on
scious of the fact that you are doing
so as best you can conceive. Be men
that are firm to the right.
w. G. Wilson responded to the last
toast and said that newspaper men are
perhaps as fraternal a class as any
that exist, Dana says a man cannot
be a good writer and a good speaker.
He spoke of his meeting and travels
with DIR. Schlieman, the a~rchaeologist,
in the Orient. The doctor became an
American citizen, and his researches
are therefore owed to an American.
Had he lived and followed his plans
many things in the Bible would have
been clearer today. He discovered
the temple of Diana at Ephesus, and
the library that told of Nebuchadnez-
ger and his kingdom. His wife found
him CRYING one day and he eXplained