The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-03-15
A REHASH OF OLD IDEAS
MIR. INGERSOLL's NEW LECTURE
HAS LITTLE IN WAY OF NOVELTY.
Rciterates "a Number of His Old Say
ings in Telling How to Reform
Mn1kind'-Fair Audience.

form Mankind" at the Grand Opera House
last night TO a fair-sized audience. Above
stairs the balcony and gallery were crowd
ed. but the lower floor not more than
half filled. Many distinguished men OF the
city were present however one OF the
federal judges occupying box. and promi-
nent business and professional men were
scattered through the audience.
Although the theme of this lecture does
not Indicate that Ii deals with religious
subjects. the lecturer could not refrain
from his customary amount of soothing and
iconoclasm. to the evident delight of the
galleries, Judging from the mirth and APP
plause with which they were received. Mr..
lnSersoll does not seem TO lose force and
power as speaker as the years pass, but
at times there is a monotony in his style
that is a trifie tiresome. Then the ideas he
presents are not new. One of his lectures
is much like another. His audience seems
to forgive this, however. and the one last
night went away evidently satisfied.
The first part of the lecture was ar
gument by comparison against the super
natural in the common affairs of life. The
speaker took up successfully the search of
the ancients In many lines for a super
natural agency To control things now
known to be controlled by only natural
laws and Interchangeable. He spoke of the
old belief in the elixir of life, the efforts
to find the philosophers stone and the old
alchemsts efforts to transmute the baser
metals into gold and silver. This was the
seeking for a supernatural agency. The
fact that the ancients endeavored to cure
disease by incantatOns. amulets and sacri-
tices was indicative Of their belief that dis
ease was supernatural. Closer relation to
these things taught the people gradually
that these things are subject only TO nat
ural laws.
There are very many who have reached
the conclusion that the supernatural Hds
nothing TO do with real religion. ReliEun
does not consist i'm believing without evil
dence or against evidence. 1t does not con-
sist In worshiping the unknown or In try
ing to do something for the infinite. Cere-
monies. prayers and inspired books. mira
Giles, special providence and divine interfer-
ence all belong TO the supernatural and
form part of real religion. Every sci
ence rests on the natural. on demonstrated
facts. So morality and religion must find
their foundations in the necessary nature
of things.
THE UNIVERSE IS NATURAL.
Ignorance being darkness, what we need
is intellectual light. The most important
things TO teach. as the basis of all prog
ress, are that the universe is natural; that
man must be the providence of man; that.
by development of the brain we can avoid
some of the dangers. some of the evils,
overcome some of the Instructions and take
advantage of some of the facts and forces
OF nature; that by invention and industry,
we can supply, to a reasonable degree the
wants of the body, and by thought, study
and effort, we can in part satisfy the hum
ger of the mind.
Man should cease to expect any aid from
any supernatural source. BY this time he
created wealth, and that prosperity is not
the child OF prayer. He should know that
the supernatural has not Succored the op-
pressed, clothed the naked fed the hungry,
shielded the innocent, stayed the pestilence
or freed the slaves. Being satisfied that the
supernatural does not exist, man should
turn his entire attention 20 the affairs of
this world, to the facts in nature.
And first of all. he should avoid waste
waste or energy, waste OF wealth. Every
TO Go away with war. to stop the appeal
| to savage force. Man in a savage state re-
| lies upon his strength and decides for him.
self what is right and what is wrong. Civil
| lized men do not settle their differences by
a resort to arms. They submit the quarrel
| to arbitrators and courts. This Is the great
| difference between the savage and the civil
| lized. Nations, however. sustain the rea-
| ton of savages to each other There Is no
| way of settling their dispute. Each nation
| decides for itself and each nation endeav-
| ors to carry its decision into effect. This
| produces war. Thousands OF men at this
moment are trying to invent more deadly
4 weapons to destroy their 1ellOW-men OF
| eighteen hundred years peace mas Deen
preached and yet the civilized nations are
| the most warlike of the world. There are
| in Europe to-day between 11,OOOOO and IL,
| 600 600 soldiers ready to take the field. and
| the frontiers of every civilized nation are
| protected by bTeastworks and forts. The
| sea is covered with steel-clad ships filled
with missiles OF death. The civilized world
| has impoverished itself and the debt of
| Chrstendom. mostly for war. is now nearly
| thirty thousand million dollars. The inter
| 81 sim
| to be paid by labor. much or IL by the
| poor by those who are compelled TO deny
1 themselves almost the necessities OF III
| This debt IS growing year by year. There
| must come n change or Christendom Will
| become bankrupt.
MILLIONS FOR WAR.
! 'The interest on this debt amounts at
least to nine hundred million dollars year
| and the cost of supporting armies and
| navies. of repairing ships. OF manufacture
ing new engines of death, probably amounts
including the interest on the debt TO al
| least 100000 a day. Allowing ten hours
for a day, that is, for working day. the
waste of war is at least 100000 an hour
that is TO say. $4,000 minute
| Think of all this being paid for the pur-
| pose of killing and preparing to Kill oul
| fellow-men. Think OF the good that could be
| done with this vast sum or money; the
| schools that could be rebuilt. the wants tina
| could De Supplied 4 ulllh VI thI -
| would build the children il would clothe.
| IF we wish to do away with war We
| must provide for the settlement or natlona
| differences by an international court. rms
| court should lie in perpetual session: IL
| members should be selected by the various
| governments to be affected by its decisions
| and at the command and disposal. the res
| of Christendom. being disarmed. ther'
| should be a military force sufnclemt u
| carry it's judgments into erect Iher'
| should be no other excuse. no otheI , Dusl
ness for an army or a navy IN clVlnZe'
mo man has imagination enough Z
| paint the agonies the horrors ana crueltle
of war Think of sending shot ana sne,
| crashing through the bodies or men IhiIi
| of the widows and orphans Think OF tn
MANNED. the mutiiated the mangled
Mr.. Ingersoll considered the expense U
maintaining churches under the present.
system and for the present purpose a srea
waste of money that might be put 10
better use. He figured out that the Valu
of church property in this country Is slWo,
600 000 and that on this account lher
| could he earned $50 600 900 interest. while TN
cost of maintaining the churcnes 60 aI noo doa
ing ministers, etc. amounts 10 sOVV'W~
| wear n total expense Of $2.OOOOOO n Weel
| or $500 a minute considering day Tel
| hours. He spoke of the fact tnat tner
| are many more churches IMAM the aclu,
| population demands and then continued
| Nov IL seems to me that II would d
| far better for the people or town haNih
! a population of 600 or 5.O0O 10 nave on
church and the edifce should be OF use
| not only on Sunday. but on every DAY @
the week. In this building should be III
libarary of the town. IL shouid DE IN
| clubhouse of the people where they coul
| find the principal newspapers ana petiodi
Gals of the world. Its auditorium shoui
sented by home talent; an orchestr
! formed music cultivated The peopl