St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1899-10-18

[Continued from last week.
our city of the worst enemy known to
municipal honesty and doing what lies
in our power to do with the ballot-to
purify our civic lifeH
1.-The News is positively and without
reservation on the side of the new
movement. We shall henceforth do all
in our power to drive out the saloon
and destroy its political strength. We
shall advocate the election of men NOM
mated by the majority Of citizens met
in the first primary, and we call upon
all Christians. church members and low
ers of right purity, temperance and
home to stand by President Marsh and
the rest of the citizens who have thus
begun a long needed reform in our
city
President Marsh read this editorial
and thanked God for Edward Norman.
At the same time he understood well
enough that every other paper in Ray
mond was on the other side He did not
misunderstood the Importance and seri-
business of the fight which was only just
begun. 1t was no secret that The News
had lost enormously since it had been
governed by the standard of "What
would Jesus dor The question now
was, Would the Christian people of
Raymond stand by it ?" Would they
make it possible for Norman to conduct
a daily Christian paper, or would their
desire for what is called "news" in
the way of crime, scandal, political
partisanship of the regular sort and
dislike to champion so remarkable re-
form in journalism, influence them to
drop the paper and refuse to give it
their financial support? That was, in
fact, the question Edward Norman was
asking even while he wrote the SatuT-
day editorial. He knew well enough
that his action expressed in that edi-
torial would cost him very dearly from
the hands of many business men Of
Raymond and still as he drove his pen
over the paper he asked another ques-
ton, what would Jesus do2" That
question had become a part Of his life
now. 1t was greater than any other.
But for the first time in its history
Raymond had seen the professional
men, the teachers, the college profess
sors, the doctors, the ministers, take
political action and put themselves
definitely and sharply in antagonism to
the evil forces that had so long con-
trolled the machine of the municipal
government The fact itself was aston
ishing. President Marsh acknowledged
to himself, with feeling of humilia-
ton, that never before had he known
what civic Righteousness could accom-
plish. From that Friday nights work
he dated for himself and his college a
new definition of the worn phrase "the
scholar in politics Education for him
and those who were under his influence
ever after meant some element of suf-
fering Sacrifice must now enter into
the factor of development.
AT the Rectangle that week the tide
of spiritual life rose high and as yet
showed no signs CT flowing back. Rachel
and Virginia went every night Vir-
ginia was rapidly reaching conclusion
with respect to large part of her
money She had talked it over with
Rachel, and they had been able to
agree that if Jesus had a vast amount
of money at his disposal he might dc
with some of it as Virginia planned.
At any rate, they felt that whatever
Jesus might do in such case would
have as large an element of variety in
it as the difference in persons and cir
cumstances There could be no fixed
Christian way of using money. The
rule that regulated its use was unselfisf
utilitv
But meanwhile the glory of the
Spirits power possessed all their bes
thought Night after night that weel
witnessed miracles as great as walking
on the sea or feeding the multitude
with few loaves and fishes for wha
greater miracle than regenerated hu
manity2 The transformation of thes
coarse brutal, scottish lives into pray
ing, rapturous lovers of Jesus strucl
Rachel and Virginia every time witt
the feelings that people may have hat
when they saw Lazarus walk out o
the tomb. 1t was an experience full o
profound excitement to them.
Rollin Page came to all the meetings
There was no doubt of the change tina
had come over him. He was wonderful
ly quiet. 1t seemed as if he were think
ing all the time. Certainly he was no
the same person. He talked more witt
Gray than with any one else. He di,
not avoid Rachel, but he seemed t.
shrink from any appearance of seeming
to wish to renew the old Acquaintance
with her Rachel found it even Difficult
to express to him her pleasure at tn
new life he had begun to know. II
seemed to be waiting to adjust himsel
to his previous relations before this ney
life began. He had not forgotten thos
relations, but he was not yet able t
fit his consciousness into new ones
The end of the week found the Rec
tangle struggling hard between tw
mighty opposing forces The Hol
Spirit was battling with all his supe,
natural strength against the saloo
devil which had so long held a jealou
grasp on its slaves If the Christia
people Of Raymond once could realiz
what the contest meant to the soul
newly awakened to new life, it di
not seem possible that the election coul
result in the old system of license Blu
that remained yet to be seen. The hol
Tor of the daily surroundings of man