The daily morning journal and courier., 1898-03-21
THE ARGUMENTS FOR PEACE
ABLE SERMON BY REV. ". F
 DICK FIREMAN.

Warlike Conditions of the Hour-A Test of Our Civilizatiou-Lessons Draw From Previous Wars-Burden of war-The Millions slain-what Makes n Nation Great.
 At the Church of the Messiah yester- day morning Rev. w. F. Dickerman preached on the subject, "Let Us Have Peace" The arguments for peace were clearly and forcibly presented. The sermon, which is given in substance below, was preached from the text My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight" John xviii, 2e.
 70 war! thou son of hell, whom an- gry heavens do make their minister, throw in the frozen bosom of our past hot coals of vengeance" ."-Henry VI.
 Wars and rumors of war perturb the air on land and sea. The entire zone of earth's highest civilization vibrates with military movement. Never be- 1OlC Icto ouCil elll GAlCllSlNC eli Ceb Ol SiiS worlds territory been invaded by the spirit of hostility It would seem that Max Nordeaus indictment against our civilization might shortly be justified. Evidently the lust of power, the greed of territorial dominion and race hat red, not only survive, but ever grow in the very midst of modern enlighten- ment. A rational and peaceful settle ment of these international difficulties would prove the redemptive pow CT of our civilization: but the culmin- ation in war of the present attitude would demonstrate how much of sav- age barbarity remains in our veins. The nations thus involved may be call ed Christian, a name quite as flexible as the word gentlemen, but in no con- sstent sense can they be called the followers of the Prince of Peace. The standing armies, military schools, naval equipment, the pride of station and parade, to say nothing of the starva- ton, slaughter and desolation incident to these, are maintained in open repu- diation of the religion of the Nazarene. And now shall we have war? We pray not. Great credit is due our president for the calm, judicial temper manifest in our strained situation. Among the three or four provocations for war under warrant of international law, only one, to our mind, should be enter tained, namely, that of humanity. Even in this we should be careful to main- tain defensive rather than an ag- gressive warlike position. If unhappi- ly we should be drawn into bloody strife in the discharge of duty, we should, of course, fight like modern Christian soldiers"
 Tn 1731 an English vessel, under com mand of Captain Robert Jenkins, was boarded by the Spanish Guarda Costa, near, Havana. Not finding the muni- tions of war expected, the captain was strung up to the yardarms and slashed with sword to extort confession of concealed treasures The poor Jenkins resented the injuries in the name of his king, but the Spanish officer, pull ing off a partly severed ear from the captains head, offered it to him, say ing: "Carry that to your king" Thus the ear of Captain Jenkins drove Eng land to war with Spain. In October, 1739, the bells were ringing upon dec laration of hostilities against Spain. They were ringing in April, 174S, upon the conclusion of the treaty by which not a single point was gained for which England had been fighting with Spain and France for eight years. England declared the war The seven years war between the elector of Saxony and the king of Prussia ended in 1763, leav- ing both parties in exactly the same position In respect to territory; nearly the same result attended the Franco Prussian war and the Greeko-Turkish war.
 Aside from the Humanitarian consd- erations, the United States have noth- ing to gain, commensurate with the cost. It would be a poor satisfaction to humiliate crippled and infatuated people. wonder if our wild, hysteri- cal jlngoists have any realizing sense ot what war means to our national treas ury and the homes of the people? wonder if these reckless incendiaries and merciless war speculators would be willing to serve on the gunboats most likely to be in the thickest of the fight?
 We should ponder well the financla burden that war imposes on posterity the almost perpetual handicap on prog ress that retards for ages the virtue industry and general well-being 0 community. One hundred years afte the seven years war every one of Eng lands twenty-five millions of popula tion paid two shillings annually to tn taxation created by that war, and i continues to this day. The number o human beings slain during the las century in civilized states of Europ and America amounts to 20,000,000. Tn cost of each life was $7000. Every yea Europe spends S1,200 000,0 GOO in prevent ing Christians from killing each other France alone wastes $400,0OO a day il cultivating the barbaric graces. We too, are paying the price of blood. Evel at this remote period of thirty-thre years from our last war we are draw ing out of the toll of our citizens $1S3, 100000 year. And this is as nothing compared with that deep undertone o woe which vibrates in sorrowfuI heart all over our country. Let us not con found the stirrings of the ancestra beast in our blood with patriotism Now is the trial of our nobility as son of God, in which we shall choose be tween the aboriginal paint and feather 4tnnf nlnoc ch hn