Evening star., 1897-01-04
~ DiSC0RD
Inl
Members Of the.Secular League Talk
iIs
About \ Nl|ewsboys.
RESOLUTIONS IAD ON fHE TABLE
7Ezf
:IHn
Conservative members Condemn
E. IA
Extrera&sHaiMeasures.
MANY DIFFERENT VIEW S

MANY DIFFERENT VIEWS
The Washington Secular League held a
/ mass meeting at Typographical Temple
yesterday afternoon for the purpose of
taking action on the Commissioners order
prohibiting newsboys from calling their pa
pers on the streets of this city on Sundays.
and also to protest against the exemption
| of church property from taxation.
| There was good deal of talk about the
"evils that follow in the train of priest
| craft" there were many speeches in de-
| Eunciation Of laws that exempt church
property from taxation, and every one
| touched upon the question of the Cor1mis-
! sioners' order forbidding, the newsboys
| from calling their wares. Finally, when
| resolutions expressing the sense of the
| meeting were drafted, they were tabled, be-
cause they were declared to contain toe
much irrelevant matter, and to be toe
| illibera1 to be approved by liberals. The
resolutions called forth heated discussion,
and the action in tabling them caused the
| member who drew them to declare their de-
feat to be the result Of cowardice, and
that he would never again frame resolu-
tionS for the league,
ct o'clock, each arrival was presented
with yellow dodger announcing a meet
ing Of the National SpiritualistS Associa-
| tion in Baltimore during the coming week,
and half of the audience. which filled the
hall were of the spiritualistic persuasion.
Slightly more tnan one-tenth of those pres
ent were ladies'
Mr. Maurice Pechim, president of the Sec
ular League, presided and after a piano
and violin solo had been rendered, d. Web
ster Groh came forward.
Some of say said Mr.. Groh, that
the church is dead, but after the tyranny
we have witnessed during the past few
days it doesn't look that way"
The speaker went on to say that he had
| free thought publications with which to
supply the audience at the publishers
prices, and that he was selling them mere
ly to get Ieople to read them
Besiding the presiding officer on the plat
form there were three speakers, all men,
bers of the National Spiritualists' Asso-
| citation. They were. President Harrison D.
Barrett, l.. v. Moulton, president of the
Michigan State Associa ton, and DR.. Geo.
A. Fuller. president cf the Massachusetts
State Association.
Clergy Do Not Favor 1t.
Mr.. Barrett was the first to speak. He
| tho, ght that nine-fenths of the people in
| this city had condemned the Commission
| ers order against the newsboys. and he
did not believe af'Ehe more intelligent
clergy" believed II sappressing the news
boy en- Sunday.
press liberty" said Nr. Barrett. at does
| not follow that ali who wear the same
coats are of the same opinion"
The speaker then referred to the ques-
| ton of the taxation. of church property.
| He said the spirHualsts of Boston had
built temple at a cost of $250,OO0 twelve
| from taxation as church property, but
| lately 1t has been .assessed at $4,000, and
| taxed accordingly. He believed 1t was
right to tax this property, but If it should
be dealt with IN 7th6 same manner. He
said this action had aroused the greatest
opposition to- the7f exemption Of church
property from taxatioh and, quoted Presi-
dents Jefferson and Garfield In opposition
| to such exemptions, He said that in 1870
there was untaxed church property in this
country amounting to s35A,OOO,0OO. in 1890
such property amounted to 5000 OOO, ,O0D,
and in 1900 the aggregate would be 5000
100000, the revenue from the taxation of
which at the rate of tax levied in New York,
would be $75.OOO,0O0 annually. The exemp-
| ton Of that property from taxation, he
said, made every workngman in the coun-
try pay higher tax on his home
DR.. Fuller of Massachusetts spoke of the
| ncwsboys as the '.heralds OF progress" !"
which sentiment was greeted with pro-
longed applause.
The Bell Rang.
| AL tIllS moment the DellS OF 81. Mary
Catholic Church, just around the corner
| from the temple, rang for vespers.
Listen to that bell disturbing our meet
ing," said some one in the audience.
DR.. Fuller continued to say:
The minister earns his living on Sun
day by using his voice. and 1 don't know
why the newsboy should not have the
same privilege
He said that at his home in Massachu-
| setts the street railroads hal been forced
| to take the bells off their horses on Sun
day. and he thought there might later be
| crusade against the ringing of gongs on
electric cars on Sunday.
Il stand with the newsboys,'' he said,
against these men, who have outlived
their usefulness; who are a stencil in the
| nostrils of all decent people,"
He said he could not think he was living
| In the country of Washington and Jeffer-
son, but felt that he was in the country
| OF Jonathan Edwards ana Calvin.
What Calvanism has asked for" he
said. "she has generally obtained, because
or the political power on her side"
He urged members of the Secular League
| and all other liberals to organize. in
order 10 meet the organized church on the
other side. Applause was frequently given
| the speakers remarks.
L. V. Moulton opened his address by the
| recital of poem ridiculing all the creeds
and concluding with the lines,
There's no use for the Lord to send drum
mers around
When he wants to do business with me-"
if we are to suppress the newsboys."
| SAID Mr.. Moulton, why should we not
| suppress the news NE sells, and If we sup
| press the news why not suppress the
schools, so that people cannot learn to
read the news. If the newsboy is a nuts-
| ence on Sunday morning he is a nuisance
on Monday morning. This outcry against
the neWsboy Is not because he dlsturbs
anybody. That is all pretanse and hum
| bug. The ministers are not disturbed by
the cries of vha nawSbOvS Int
| alarmed because their pews are rot filled
The dime paid for the Sunday paper Goes
not go in the contribution bcx. This IS
| the reason they persecute the newsbcv,
Why don't they tell tt1e truth? The news
papers are The adyaTtife guards Of clviliza-
. sion. and sunday R9rning is about the
| them" . 10 :" 'eao
Mr. Pechim, the president of the league.
announced that both sides of the uuesfion
should be heard: sHe:said any one in the
audience could give; his views. He was not
disturbed by the newsboys or by the church
| t.oila hnt 10