The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1897-08-07

spirit vi equality. OnlY the OdD-
bath can give us as people, the in
telligence and the conscientiousness
and the spirit of equality that are the
three necessities of life in a republic.
What is the matter with the Spanish
republics and the French republic7
When you read news, hope you have
the habit of looking behind the news,
for the philosophy that underlies the
facts. France has more cabinet
changes than all the rest of Europe
together. 1t is republic good for
this day only" lying in the crater of
a not extinct volcano. Look at the
Spanish republics south of us. | was
an editor recently, for two years, and
read one hundred and fifty newspa-
pers week. think there was never
week during those two years, and l
think that there has never been a
month in the last five years, when
there have not been from one to FIVE
revolutions going on down there.
Whenever election time comes, they
get out their guns. Let those who
think written constitution makes a
safe republic remember that these
Spanish republics have got just as
good constitution as we have, for
they have copied ours.
What is the matter with these re-
publics? The matter is that they
have no Sabbath. The toilers spend
their Sabbaths in labor, and the leis-
ure classes in british dissipation and
childish play, and, therefore, they
cannot develop manhood enough, not
enough of the spirit of equality, not
enough of conscientiousness and in
telligence to govern themselves. Rob
Burdette said very significantly, and
it takes in this whole question of the
continental Sunday as against the
American Sabbath, from the political
and civic standpoint: THE Declare
ton of Independence was not born in
beer dive on Sunday afternoon-not
by long shot"
Another need of our country, be-
sides this one of citizenship, and the
outcome of it, is Christian stateman-
ship; and here let me recur to that
same monument of Washington, as 1
saw it from most picturesque point
of view. [ think it has never been
brought to the public notice, but /
believe that the Washington monu-
ment was placed where it is with re-
ference to the window in the White
House back of the presidents desk.
When in the presidents room this
flashed upon me, for right back of
his desk in an arched window, which
he looks through as he comes in; and
all the presidents, one after another,
as they come from their private apart
ments; each president seeing every
morning before he takes his seat. as
if framed in that arched window, a
picture of what president ought to
be, monument of the first president,
which, like him it celebrates, is sim
pie and lofty and strong. We want
statesman like Washington in all
those respects.
Recently New York has built a
centennial arch in honor of Washing
ton, and selecting from all his writ
ings single sentence to put upon it,
New York has cut into it these words
in which Washington rebuked the
substitution of expediency for right:
Let us raise standard to which the
wise and the honest may repair. The
event is in the hands of God" ZAP
plause.) How New York can write a
license law under the shadow of that
arch l do not understand. l would
like to write across every liquor
license those words of Washington,
and the words of James Russell
Lowell: "They enslave their chill
dren's children who make compromise
with SIM"
The panels as we put them up,
Washington on the one side, and the
average politician of to day on the
other, do not make pretty pair. 1
was reminded when all the people
were so relieved and satisfied at the
adjournment of the last Congress, of
a funeral where a passer-by said to
the sexton, "Who is dead3" The
name was given of cross, Grabbed,
unpatriotic citizen. "What did he
die off, What was the complaint"
The old sexton replied, "No COM
plant. Everybody satisfied"
But why were we so short of states
man, just when great commercial
and monetary crisis made them nee
essaries of life7 The answer to that
question is, that good men cannot be
elected at the polls unless good men
are selected at the primaries, and
that good men will not usually be
4.