The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1897-03-06
What a Baptist Minister Has to
Say About the Present
Hard Times.
Wealth Has its Duties to Perform
as Well as impoverished
Humanity.
If the Republic Shall Continue
Justice Must be Done
to All.

Coming from the East and from O.
following arraignment of the money
power is worthy Of consideration. We
regret that we have not space to quote
Dr. Batten's article in full, but the fol-
lowing extracts taken from his last let
ter to the Minneapolis Kingdom shows
that he is alive to the needs of the hour.
He says:
We must seek to remove all the social
and industrial causes which provoke
men to lawlessness. In 1867 the people
Of England were Mortified at the out
RACES committed at Sheffield. Parlia-
ment was appealed to for help. There
were some wise men in that parliament;
so instead of sending troops down to in
III, idate the law breakers, they inquired
whether there were not some wrongs
which had provoked Englishmen to fall
back on barbarous practices of assassin
CATION was made; wrongs were discov~
cred by appropriate legislation; these
wrongs were removed, and the lawless-
ness ceased forever. When men are rest
less and turbulent 1t Is useless to cry
peace, peace" where there can be no
peace. kno~y how 1t is; we fear the re~
suits Of wrong far more than we fear
wrong itself. A short time ago in a
great American city there was trouble
some trolley strike, and some lawless-
ness prevailed. In one of the pastors
conferences a committe was appointed
to hear both sides, and to ascertain the
inside facts of the trouble. This COM
mittee did it's work and found that this
trolley company had an actual stock
capital Of some nineteen million dollars,
but it had issued stock to the extent of
some one hundred and twenty million
dollars, and was paying dividends on
this enormous amount of water. To do
this the men were scaled down to the
lowest cent, and were not given proper
accommodations and protection. The
committee was not allowed to present
this report Of simple facts to the con-
ference. Why not? The probable ex-
PLANTATION is this: One of the most
prominent officials of that trolley COM
pany is a leading member of one Of
the churches of that denomination.
The cause OF the strike and the accom-
panying lawlessness was not removed,
and another strike with greater law
lessness may occur at any time. Re-
move the causes of social reetlessness
and discomfort, and much of the lawless-
ness Of our time will disappear. We
condemn the dwellers In the tenements
with their schemes of social plunder
and their anarchistic organizations;
while all the time colossal fortunes are
being made by buying franchises, water
ing stock, wrecking railroads, cornering
breadstuffs and gambling In the neces-
saries Of life. If one man may be an an
archist on big scale it is difficult to see
on small scale. Anarchy in the tene-
ments is the correlate of the anarchy Of
Wall street.
We must testify against every form of
evil and must seek to have justice done
to all classes. 1t Is an old saying that
We need an applied gospel. Preach the
&ha% jc o;v %H<s
man to his pastor who has expose: and
criticised some of his tricks of trade, po-
liticai practices and questionable pleas
ures. To such man preaching the gos-
Pei means preaching doctrines which
have no relation to sentimental ofations
or theological doctrines which have no
relation to the every day sins OF men.
The gospel of the Kingdom of God is the
most real and practical thing in the
world. And that gospel needs to De
brought home to the souls and consct-
ences of men along the lines of their
characteristic shining. Nov, don't
bring Jesus into this thing" said a
prominent member Of New York
&
church to some one who questioned
some Of his business methods, "he has
nothing to do with the way make my
money" Ours is an age Of authorizations
and false pretenses. Of business and So
cial hypocrisies. The Old Testament law
read: Thou shalt not wear q garment
OF divers sorts, as>of wooden an linen
together. . Today VIC have great facto-s
zries working up cotton to initiate wool,
and stamping jute for silk. We have
great factories in which the WORKING
men are taught to adulterate goods, to.
ke one thing to initiate another. ~
Stis as one caa, sily see, is most