The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1898-05-02

The war furnished the thought for
the sermon preached last night in the
North Main Avenue Baptist church by
the pastor. Rev. w. G. Watkins.
Mr.. Watkins read from Ephesians,
sixth chapter, beginning with the tenth
verse for the scripture lesson. He
termed 1t as something bearing upon
spiritual warfare. The opening prayer
by Mr.. Clark, one of the church Off
GERS, was a plea for divine aid in the
prosecution Of the war.
The text was a portion Of I Kings.
Xii:1G, To your tents, o
Israel: now see to thine house, David.
So Israel departed unto their tents"
Mr. Watkins remarked upon the beau
tiful spectacle of a united nation and
described the revolt among the Jews
and their division from the rule of
David, which suggested the words of
the text. Never since had the Jews
been united with any other people.
Neither tongue nor pen, he said had
been able to describe the horrors of the
division of our own government in the
early sixties. The fearful cost to all
concerned would never be known; it's
terrible features were expressed in
Sherman's war is He'll"
CAUSE OF THE PRESENT WAR.
Brief reference was made by the
speaker To the causes leading up to the
present war with Spain. He referred
to the murder" of 266 Maine sailors
and in describing the uprising to re-
spond to the call for volunteers ap-
piled the evenings text but with the
a 1,.I, -
for "Israer and David"
The country had had industrial and
political differences: wars of oratory
and personal encounter on the floors
of congress; religious differences, two
SO serious as to result in a threatened
disruption of the Evangelical and Pres
hyterian churches. There were other
differences, but it is one of the coun-
trys characteristics that when it is
threatened it rises in unity. As Henry
Watterson says, "Our differences are
not skin deep; we are really a homo
geneous people in spirit, characters
tic brought about by the peculiar con-
victions of free government in which
all have an interest"
The speaker agreed with a Scranton
parent who said he would rather his
son would go to Cuba with the Thir-
teenth and fight there, hundreds of
| miles from home, than to carry a loaded
| rifle against people in his own state.
Many expressions had come to him
from mothers and fathers who dreaded
the parting but were willing to let their
boys go to the front against "A COM
mon foe. He agreed with them.
THEY FIGHT TOGETHER.
Labor and capital differed at times.
Each had been at fault. Now, labor is
enlisting to fight with capital and not
against it. Capital is raising regiments
at it's own expense, furnishing bat
teries, money and boats, as shown in
the proffers of Wanamaker, Miss Gould,
Astor and others. Capital and labor
are now joining hands, wondrous
| union and a beautiful spectacle.
Religionists have forgotten their diff
| ferences and gone to the war shoulder
| to shoulder and worshipping one COM
| mon God. The pastor of a Green Ridge
| Catholic parish has given his elegant
| saddle horse to the Protestant colonel
| Of the Thirteenth regiment for use as
| long as the command shall be away.
North and south who bathed in each
| others blood thirty-fiVe years ago are
now facing the same front from the
same ranks. If there had been any
| doubt about the spirit of reunited
union it has been manifested in the
| last three weeks that such doubts have
| been removed. AS the Rams Horn
| said, the states are marching forty-five
abreast without any north, south, east
| or west and Spain has done us the
favor of roofing deep a feeling of
| brotherhood that was said to be toe
| slowly coming about.
In conclusion Mr.. Watkins said each
| patriotic heart could feel one good sem
| timent in connection with the war. and
| this was that while the country is
| threatened all differences would be
| buried, all factions, religious, political
| and otherwise, would die, while the
| country is arrayed as a unit against
| a common foe. Parents whose boys
| We're in the army or among the volun-
teers should have satisfaction in the
knowledge that they had made a per-
| sonal sacrifice for their country and
| their flag.