The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1896-09-24
The Bryan Pharisees.


IAN interesting phase Of the present
tampaign is the use that the free sill
herites make of the bible toward boil
Ifeering up their dishonest cause. 1t
har sad fact that the scriptures have
TO en- been perverted to an unholy
Nerpose, as witness the religious per
& buttons of the middle ages - the
Horrible atrocities perpetrated by
the Spaniards in the conquests of
and Peru; the Salem witch
Draft delusion, and last but not least,
the desperate effort to uphold slavery
under sanction of the holy writ.
There is good reason to doubt, owing
to the imfirmities of the human heart,
the Justice OF any cause whose follow
ers rely upon their Interpretation of
biblical authority as a confirmation
offhat cause. The great Examplar
H mself recognized that spiritual gov
erpment and civil government were
entirely two different affairs. He
e&horted his disciples to obey the
laws of the country and to render
unto Caesar the things which are
Cesar's, and unto God the things
which are Gods"
! There is not a passage in the scrip
K 1res that justifies the payment of an
a1Iaest debt With a debased or less
valuable commodity.
The scriptures teach right and JUS
tiee, and all true government aims to
follow that teaching and to that eX-
tent only has scripture amy warrant
in human affairs Divine night and
justice is one thing and mans idea of
right and justice is OF an entirely diff
ferenJ texture. Man at BEST is but
weak and helpless creature, and the
victim Of the inlfrmities Of his mind,
soul and body, and to that extent is
intirm and Wavering in
his purposes and desires. Il is only
given TO a few great souls to be well
grounded in the everlasting essence
of divine truths, and to make their
lives a shining example OF q serene
and composed conformity to those
truths.
The free silver demaGogues are
justly to be condemned for stirring
up sectional strife and hatred il a
matter that SO virtually concerns the
welfare, honor and stability of our
country. If the guarantee Of the
constitution that every man shall
have the right to life, liberty and the
pursuit OF happiness, means THAI any
set of men shall have the right 10
subvert the ends of good government
and destroy the nations credit, then
the trainers of the constitution did
not build for all time, as all true pa
triots have firmly felt and believed.
Wrongs exist under all forms of
government, and always will exist 50
long as man remains the weak mortal
that he is. Law is pOwerless to regu-
! late the human passions, at best it
can only seek to restrain them and in
its way provide the greatest good to
| the greatest number. All good citi-
zens or, rather, all well thinking citi-
Zens will rather obey bad law than
seek to evade it, for the reason that
the divine law of obedience is para
mount to all else. If law or laws
are odious there is, in our country, a
proper channel to have them can
celled or corrected.
The free silverites in their blind
zeal to bend everything to their pur-
pose are using Washington farewell
address as y campaign document. Oh
blind leaders Of the blind.-there is
not a word in that admirable address,
taken in the sense in which Washing
ton wished TO be understood, that
viii give you any aid. The life, char
acter and aims OF General Washington
were entirely foreign to the doctrines
Of the populistS, anarchists and free
silverites A reasonable mind, well
| acquainted with The life and charac-
| ter of the Father Of his Country,
would justly conclude that he would
frown upon any and all attempts to
create sectional strife and bitterness
to foment discomfort in the hearts Of
the people, and to destroy the credit
and honor of the nation.
To Mr. Bryan and his followers
| would respectfully refer them to the
following passages in the New Tesla
ament, st Luke 10, 1926, and Romans
10, 1-8, for an entire refutation OF
their doctrines Of dishonesty and
hostility to good government. Thus
the use of scriptural quotations is as
two edged sword that cuts both
ways, and everyone must look to it
that he interprets rightly lest he be