Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1897-06-03
INTER NORMHL D6BRTE.
platteyiIIe and River Falls Meet in Forensic
Contest


discussion was, Resolved that modern
civilization owes more to Hebraic
than to Greek and Roman influences.
Platteville had the affirmative. Her
speakers were Messrs. Cook, Fielder
and Hornbeck. The negative was sup
ported by Messrs. Rogers, Enwrlght
and Swartz of River Falls.
Hon. j. G. Monahan of Darlington
was the presiding officer and intro
duced the debate and the speakers by
an able and appropriate brief address.
The talented editor has the rare facul-
tv Of being able to always say the
right thing at the right time and the
still rarer gift of knowing enough to
stop when he is through.
Mr.. Cook of Platteville opened the
debate. His manner was easy, his de-
livery good, and his speech worthy OF
commentator. Some of the leading
points Of his argument were that He
braic influence includes all that comes
from both the old and the new dispen-
Stations. that it was Hebrewism that
Inspired Greece and Rome and that
much of their best influence is indi-
rectly Hebraic, that the civil law in
herited from the Romans was inferior
to the moral law of the Hebrews and
that to compare Greek influence with
that Of the Hebrews was placing aes-
thetics on an equality with morals.
He claimed Christianity the greatest
heritage of modern civilization and
that it was directly a Hebrew intiu-
ence. Christianity, he claimed, is
the basis of science and culture, and
superior to all things else in the
4 world.
Mr.. Rogers opened the debate for
Che negative. He was not 50 eloquent
as Mr.. Cook but he produced better
argument.
He denied that we are indebted
specially to the Hebrews for the So
called laws of Moses as all ancient ma
tions recognized and observed the
same principles of right and wrong
He denied that Greek and Roman
civilization were indebted to the He
brews. because both of those nations
attained their highest development
before the introduction of Christiani-
tv. His argument was that the
greatest gift of the past was the sys-
tenn Of laws inherite1 from Rome
the power to organize society into
government bv law, that Greece fur
nished a language that preserved and
transmitted the knowledge of the
pasta language that was the vehicle
that carried Christianity even to the
minds of Europeans; that in Greece
liberty Of thought and speech first
FUND recognition.
Mr. Fielder championed ably the
Jewish race and their contribution to
history He claimed that they have
given the world, 1st the Christian re-
ligion. End the Bible, rich inherit
lance from literary standpoint
merely. 3rd the morals of the ten
commandments, 4th the highest mod
els of men. naming John Matthew,
Paul, James and others, and Christ,
the perfect man.
Mr. Enwright ably defended his side
OF the question and quoted the opin-
ions of numerous learned writers on
philosophy and civilization in support
of his position. HI claimed that
Greece instituted true marriage and
should be credited with organizing
the family. the most important insti-
tuition of our civilization; that to
Greece we are indebted for the Undue
tive method Of scientific inquiry which
has given rise to the marvellous growth
Of scientific knowledge and its appli-
cation to practical affairs. Perhaps
the strongest argument made by the
speaker that while Christianity could
not be called a Roman product the
Christian church was distinctively 50
and that without the ecclesiastie or
ganization OF the Roman church,
Christianity would have been power
less
Orvi,le Hornbeck closed the debate
for the affirmative and his argument
was the strongest If the Platteyille
side. He contended that the Hebraic
influences were more permanent. i'm
portant and Of higher type than
those Of Greece and Rome and in