The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-12-16

Rev. DR.. Josiah Strong is general sec
retary, has issued the following state
ment
The greatest marvel Of the century just
drawing to a close is the unprecedented
development of the material side OF CIV
ilizaton. There has been no correspond
ing moral and intellectual growth The
multiplied and closer relations into which
we have been thrust have created new
problems which the popular intelligence
does not understand. and new obliga-
tions which the popular consc cncc does
rot accept. The greatest need of the
times-a generic need which includes cv-
cry desirable reform, moral, social, polit-
ical, and industrial-is the education of
public opinion and of the popular con-
| science.
Every new reform divides society into
| three classes, viz, its friends who are
few. its enemies who are few, and the
Indifferent who are many. If the reform
| Is ever victorious, it must win its VIC
| tory from the many who are indffer-
ent. How can they be adequately
reached? Not by the pulpit, for less than
one-half of the people attend any church,
| Protestant or Roman Catholic; not by the
press. because reform literature is
| bought only by those who are already
converted to the reform, and fails to
reach precisely those who need 1t most.
| If the Indifferent must be educated by
| the truth and are too Indifferent to buy
| IL or go after It, they must be reached
| by those who are sufficiently Interested J.
| to carry it to them.
DISTRIBUTION.
The various young peoples organiza-
| tions of the United States such as the
| Christian Endeavor societies, Epworth
| leagues, etc, now include between four
and five million members. Some of these
| young people are already doing much,
| but their organizations represent a vast
| power, as yet largely latent, which can
| be easily utilized. 1t is now proposed to
! the pastors of every community to dis
| trict the same to enlist their young peo-
| pie as messengers, and to assign one to
each district for the monthly distribu-
| tiOn of leaflets. The bicycle makes 1t
entirely feasible to reach the scattered
houses of country districts. IF one in
| ten of these young people should distri-
| butte Il dozen leaflets a month, they
| would scatter 600OO,OOO in a year, at
| least one-half of which would reach fam
! lilies who never attend church, who take
| no religious paper and who presumably
| see no reform literature.
OF course the value of the work will
| depend on the value of the literature.
II is to be no goody-goody stuff, more
! likely to reach the waste-basket than
| the conscience and the heart: but strong,
/
ly healthy. The Evangelical alliance is
now preparing such leaflets under the
general heading of Truths for the
| Times" There will be series on good
| citizenship for foreign Americans, dIs-
cussing such topics as the following: 1.
! The Meaning and Value of Naturaliza-
| tion; 2. The Rights of the Naturalzed
Citizen; 8. The Duty of the Naturalized
Citizen; 4. The Value of a Vote; s.
Fundamental Principles of American In
| stitutions and the like. These will be
| translated into as many languages as
naS be necessary. There will be another
good citizenship series for native Ameri-
cans Other series will be prepared in
the interest of Sabbath reform, temper
ance reform social purity, etc, etc. We
| find that the first demand is for leaflets
in the interest of good citizenship. Five
are now in hand, prepared by Bishop
Huntington, President Il. Benjamin An
drews, Professor John r. Commons. DIR.
Washington GLADDEN. and DIR. Josiah
Strong.
Others in the same series may be ex-
pected from Hon. Carl Schurz, Professor
Woodrow Wilson, Richard Watson Gid
er, Dr. Albert Shaw. r. L. Godkin, Pro-
fessor Jesse Macy, Professor L. ]. James,
DIR. E. T.. Hale, Hon. Theodore Roose-
welt, Dean George Hodges, Bishop NAL
lalieu. Charles Dudley Warner, and DR..
Charles II. Parkhurst.
PURPOSE.
1t may be added that at present VIC
have no means by which the conscience
of a commonwealth can be brought to
bear quickly and effectively upon the
state legislature. Hence bills which out
rage the moral sense of the people are
often enacted into law. and good bills
fail because there is no medium through
which the pressure of public opinion can
be brought to bear. Through the med
ium proposed above, public opinion can
be not only educated, but also expressed
by means of petitions and protests, so
that it would amount i'm effect to the
referendum, and he morally certain to
determine the action of the peoples rep
resentatiVes
This scheme for the education of pub
lie opinion and the quckening of the
popular conscience contemplates the best
brains in the country to prepare the lit
erature, the pastors knowledge of local
needs to decide the line of work and to
select the literature, and the hands and
feet of the young people to distribute
it. The cost of the literature, divided be-
tween the churches of the various young
peoples societies, is insignificant
Within the last few months the plan
has been approved and adopted by the
pastors of more than score of cities.
Last month a convention was held |
at Harrisburg, Pa, for the purpose of |
effecting the organization of a State |
Evangelical alliance, with a view to |
pushing this work into every commun-
ity in Pennsylvania. A committee OF |
thirty prominent laymen and clergy |
men, representing the state geographi- |
cally and denominationally was ap-
pointed, Among them are such men
as Ex-Governor Beaver, Ex-Governor |
Pattison, Biship Foss, Mr.. A. B. Far |
quhar, and President George L. Reed,
Of Dickinson college.
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