The times., 1898-10-23
Colonel IDgersoil.

Whatever else Colonel Ingersoll. the
eloquent infidel may or may not have
done, he has, at least, inspired re-
markable article in a newspaper in this
vicinity not famed for editorial brill
liancy. Foi it cannot be denied that an
essay in which Colonel Ingersoll is ex-
plotted as "a humble bu! potential in
strument in the hands of Providence for
stimulating Christian zeal and thereby
pushing the world on toward the mil
lenium," is remarkable, whether it is
projected seriously or cynically. The
exciting cause of the article is an adj
cago during the premature peace jub-
lice, in which he said he did not thank
God for the victory over Spain, but
thanked the navy and army. 1t objects
to newspaper criticism of Insersoll on
the ground that but for his Sunday
night lectures the churches of the land
would be only sepuIchers of dry bones;
that it is not the love Of God and the
salvation of the human race that stimu-
late lie zeal of Christian workers, but
only opposition to Ingersoll; and that,
therefore, he is entitled to the gentlest
treatment at the hands of the defend
ers of the faith.
According to this original and inter-
esting idea. the Christian churches can
not do better than to encourage Colonel
Ingersoll in going about the country
Sunday nights to hold up their cherish
ed religion to the amusement and con-
tempt of his hearers. The announce
ment of this surprising discovery that
he is a humble instrument of Provi-
dence in promoting the growth of
Christianity may cause the lecturer to
retire from the platform and so allow
the country to relapse into the darkness
of heathenism. We know of but one
parallel to this suggestion of the Chris
tian value of Colonel Ingersoll An
Iowa temperance man urged the Prohi-
bitionists to go in for the freest traf-
fic in liquor because the spectacle of
unlicensed saloons and common ine-
briefly must eventually disgust man
kind and lead to the voluntary aban-
donment of strong drink
Certainly this article makes a notable
advance on the doctrine of Tolstoi, the
advocate of non-resistance to evil. The
Russian visionary processes to take the
expressions of Christ literally and as
sumes that any form of defense against
evil is contrary to the spirit of His
teachings. He maintains that we are TO
submit to abuse, outrage, and murder
and to whatever Affections the wicked
| can impose on US. turning the other
cheek to the vilest of assailants. We
are not to raise a hand TO prevent an
assault on helpless woman, but are to
| allow innocence to suffer at the hands
of the vicious But he does not say
that the forbearing Christian owes any
gratitude TO those who smite him. That
has been reserved for the writer of the
remarkable article referred to. Profess
ing TO speak from the standpoint of the
Christian. he make a plea for graft
tude TO Colonel Ingersoll for having
been the hnspiration of the church and
its chief up-builder in his ridicule of all
that the church holds sacred.
1t is only fair 10 say. however. that
this was not the calculated purpose of
the remarkable article. There is evil
dence that it originated in sincere de-
sire to defend Colonel Ingersoil, with
whom its writer is in evident sympathy
and of whom he has only good to say.
Having gone so far, he was reminded
| that the expression of honest convic-
tions in the columns of that newspaper
is sternly limited by the question of
profit. Then he ran away from himself
| in a blue funk. There is no profit in
a newspaper defense of the most elo-
| quent of infidels. but the reverse; SO
| the feeling tribute to Colonel Ingersoll
and the plea for his gentler treatment
| by Christians militant is put on the
astounding basis of Ingersoll's incom-
parable service to Christianity. The
result must be equally gratifying to
the Christian and to IngersoT. AS an
| instance of a man chasing himself
away from an explosive bomb 1t is
worth all the attention we give to it.