The Wichita daily eagle., 1897-11-28
HE STIRS THEM UP
BOB INGERs0LL DEsEORATES THE
GREAT NATIONAL holiday.

On the Day For the Rendering of Thank
He Arises In the Auditorium In Chicas,
and Attacks the Churches-Deciare
That the Worldly Have Given the Peo
pIe Of the Earth Their Benefits-H,
Thinks That the Arabs Should B,
Thanked Also For the Many Blessing.
They Gave Humanity
Chicago, Nov. 27.-Robert Ingersoll':
sermon ir the Auditorium here Thanks
giving evening is attracting a great dea'
of unfavorable comment:
Colonel IngersolPs sermon was in three
subdivisions: what Has the Church
Done?" What Have the Worldly
Done?" Whom Shall We Thank?" In
speaking of the first, ne said in part:
From the very first the church taught
the vanity-the worthlessness Of ali
earthly things. 1t taught the wickedness
OF wealth, the lblessedness of poverty
was to prepare for death. 1t insisted
that a certain belief was necessary 10
salvation, and that all VINO failed TO
believe or DOUBTED in the least would
suffer eternal pain. According to the
churc 4, the natural desires, ambitions,
and passions of man were all wicked, all
depraved.
ITO love God, to practice self-denial,
m
hate prosperity, 10 desert wife and child
rem, to Mve on roots and bewies, to re-
peat prayers. 10 wear rags, TO dive in
filth, and to drive love from the heart
these for centuries were the highest and
most perfect virtues and those VINO prac-
ticed them were called saints.
STORY OF SAINTS.
''The saints did not assist their fellow
men. Their fellowmen assisted them.
They did not labor for others They
were beggars-parasites-v They
were insane. They followed the teach
ings Of Christ They took no thought
for the morrow. They mutilated their
bodies-scarred their flesh and destroyed
their minds for the sake Of happiness in
another world. During the journey of
life they kept their eyes on the grave.
They gathered no flowers by the way
they walked In the dust of the road
avoided the green fields. Their means
made all the music they wished to hear.
The babble OF brook, the songs of birds,
the laughter Of children were nothing to
them. Pleasure was the hid Of sin
nd tia7 71oT 1ad Of h.aa W
They were sinless and miserable, but
they had faith; they were pious and
wretched, but they were lirnping to-
wards heaven
But after all the gods have not sup
ported the children Of men, men have
supported the gods. They have fed and
clothed their priests, BUT the gods have
given nothing in return. Hidden in the
shaows they have answered no prayer,
heard no cry. given no sign, extended no
hand, uttered no word In vain the
steeples rise, in vain the prayers ascend.
DEEDS OF WORLDLY.
'Iet us see what the worldly have
done-wilat has been accomplished by
those not called not set apart not
inspired not filled with the Holy Ghost
-iby those who were neglected 10y all the
gods Passing over the Hindus, the
Egyptians the Greeks, and Romans,
their poets, philosophers and metaphy-
sicians-we will come TO modern times.
I'm the tenth century after Shrist the
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. of a vast empire
established colleges in Mongolia, Tar
tary, Persia, Mesopotamia, Syria, Egypt
north Africa, Morocco, Fez, and in
SPAIN The region owned by the Sara
Gems was greater than the Roman en-
pire. They had not only colleges-but
observa tories. The sciences were
taught They introduced the ten nu-
merals-taught algebra and trigono-
metry-understood cubic equations
knew the art of surveying-they made
catalogues and maps of the stars-gave
the greater stars the names they still
bear-they ascertained the size of the
earth-determined the obhqufty of the
ecliptic and fixed the length of the year.
They circulated ecfipses, equinoxes, sol !
stices, conjunotions of planets, and oc-
culations of stars. They constructed !
astronomical instruments. They made |
clocks of various kinds and were the in |
ventors OF the pendulum. They origin |
ated chemfstry-discovered eulphuric |
and nitric acid and alcohol
PRACTICAL THINGS DONE
What have the worldly done? They I
have investigated the acts of nature. /
They have invented ways to use the /
forces of the world, the weight of fall /
ing water-of moving air. They have !
changed water to steam, invented en- !
gines-tlle tireless giants that work for i
man. They have made lightning n mes
senger, slave. They invented movable /
type, taught the art OF printing and .
made it possible TO save and transmit |
the intellectual wealth Of the world. |
They connected continents with cables, |
cities and towns with the telegraph
brought the world into one family-ma5e
Intelligence independent of distance.
They taught us how to build homes. to
obtain food, TO weave cloth. They COW
cred the seas with iron ships. and the
lands with roads and steeds Of steel.
They gave us the tools Of all the trades
the implements Of labor. They chisel-
e3 statues, painted pictures, and witch
ed the world with form and color. They
have found the cause of and cure for
many maladies that affiict flesh and the
minds of men, They have given us the
Of music and the great COM
posers and performers have changed the
air 10 tones and haTmCaies that
intoxicate, exalt, and purify the soul
RESCUED FROM FEAP
'sTrhey have rescued Us - Ts-is-
pms of fear. and snatched our souls from
the fangs and claws OF supersiti0n's
!aathsome. crowli1g, flying breasts.