The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1897-10-11

| and other ancient celeorlties-al Oh
which is good as memory test and In
tellectual drill. But where are they
taught anything in any large way about
the tremendously important political and
social movements OF our own genera
ton? They can tell you perhaps, which
Duke of Clarence was drowned in a butt
at Malmsey, and which English king
died OF eating too many lampreys, and
which French queen set all Paris agog
by her personal cruelties rather than by
her personal virtues; but how many oil
them could tell you anything about the
Reform Bill. the Repeal OF the Corn Laws,
or define the difference between govern
ment by way OF Constitutional Monarchy
and Representative Democracy?
Much OF the education OF today Is
musty with age. 1t deals too mnch with
the buried past. The dead hand is in the
air. 1t is really more important that
our boys and girls should know what
the Chartist riots were about in Eng
land than that they should know the
exact date OF the Battle OF Marathon. lt
is more important that they should
know why George went out OF Office, IN
this country, and George Washington
came in, why our nations constitution
was modelled after the teachings oil this
old Book OF God. rather than rapid
,oou.h;no,a oF Volt a;ra m Ithomaa Paine q
why the administration OF Mr.. Cleveland
gave place to that OF Mr.. Harrison and
that in return to Mr.. Cleveland and MIR.
Mckinley; and why, if there is any why
in the case. it requires twenty-one full
years for a free born American TO
acquire the rights Of American citizen
ship, while hordes OF ignorant, and not a
few una merican foreigners can acquire
theirs in two or three or five. | say il
is vastly more important that our young
men and women should know these and
similar things than that they should be
able to figure out whether it was one
Cheops or someone else that built the
Pyramid!
It.is only men and women who have
understanding OF the times"-these
tineS-men who can put this and that
together and forecast the probable re-
sult-men who know how TO interpret"
the trend and tendency of things-only |
such men who can tell what the United |
States Ought TO do"
The same principles apply in the relg-
ious world. All too often in the church |
we breathe the musty air OF dead !
centuries, rather than the fresh, tonicby |
atmosphere OF today. Dead hands :ormu
lated all our great creeds. We are apt |
to forget that a generation is growing
up among us that cares nothing for
the questions that have divided the
sects that is profoundly Indifferent to
deacon, elder and bishop and even TO the
fierce controversy OF Calvinst and Arm
mi. But they are not therefore, ire
igious. Within the last three or four de.
cades the church has come perilously
near losing the ear of living man and
woman around her, because she has
kept on stamping her ministers aud peo-
pie with regulation dies ard turning
them out small images OF their ancest-
ors and haunted by the ghosts OF extinct
What does man care
about the great surplice question, or the
great organ question, or the question of
Apostolical succession, lor any other ques-
tion OF a like sort, when he is agonzed
TO determine whether the world il ruled
by blind force or by a just God; or
when he stands by the grave OF sweet
wife or a loved child whom he buried yes
terday, doubtful whether they are living
In better world or have disappeared,
like the beautiful cloud OF the morning,
and gone out into blank nonentity? Be
fore questions like these all controversy
about mere church order aud creed max
ing sinks into a kind OF sentimental trii-
ling. IL you'd perhaps be ungenerous /
To call such questions fdding while |
Rome is burning, but they are at least a |
nursing of pleasant fancies and a singing |
of melodious hymns while we ought to |
be rescuing living men from the bitter
ness of devastating unbelief and sin, The |
great danger OF the church today is tn |
the world outside pass it by with indif
ference, and that, because the church is
quarrelng or dreaming about trifles, |
while general society il graphing with |
the problems of life and death and etern !
ity. Aud 40 also OF methods in church !
life and work.
Many OF these would be more interest
ing and quite as useful in n museum OF |
antedeluyian fossils than they are effica-
cious for the needs OF the hour. Stua-
tons have 80 changed within recent time
that to keep in the old lines-to preach in |
the old style-to work along the old |
grooves-to cling to ancient methods. is
TO the full, az much OF an anachronism |
as it would be to navigate an Atlantic |
liner by an Old charp, or to eros, the |