Evening journal., 1899-10-16
LErrE FROM T HE PEOPLE
The Hon John Wana makers Non
Secular Speech at Reading
Q The Editor OF the Eveii ing journal.

olls Inc hptech ol tuse hOh. JOhn
Wanamaker, recently delivered at
Reading on the occasion of the annual
Convention of the Pennsylvania State
Sabbath School Associat ion, of which
religious organization Mr. Wanamaker
is the President, is worthy Of note, in
that The speaker gave CLEAR and con-
else account OF the pro sress, during
the closing century, Of be great and
good work peculiar to the Association
in question.
Mr. Wanamaker prefac ed his speech
by saying: 1t is fact yell known to
me that the senior part ner Of an ex-
gtensive business house in New York
CITY has laid upon his desk every
morning a check on the, bank for the
amount of the profits Of his business Of
the preceding day. That business man
every day knows exactly where he
stands" "That city, tlaat home, that
Business, that church, that individual
continued Mr.. Wanama ker, that lives
under the law of daily inspection is
certain to have the most successful de-
lvelopment" The hon. speaker then
proceeded to expatiate upon the gi-
gantic strides made by the Associa-
ltion, CHASING it as "an organization
which falls in line with the vast indus
tries OF this country and century"
land" said Alr. Wanamaker, Il make
bold to declare that the noblest de-
velopment OF this closing century is the
Sunday school, in it's many various de-
partments, buildings and literature, be-
cause of the touch it has had upon tho
civilization Of the century"
Mr.. Wanamaker also paid a fitting
and glowing tribute to Sir George VIII
iliams. of England AT the beginning
of the century" said Mr.. Wanamaker,
there was but handful Of corn in
the tops of the mountain, and now
there is a shaking like the forests Of
? Lebanon. This has been the Y. M. c.
"A. century. Young men with Bibles
a in their hands. gathering about George
Williams, now Sir George Williams
z knighted because of his noble, godly
and philanthropic life-still living as
the father of the thousands Of Young
Mems Christian Associations that bless
. cities, towns and hamlets throughout
two hemispheres." Mr.. Wanamaker has
, not overrated the great work accom-
plished by Sir George Williams in the
days when he was plain George Will
= liams, and possessed no handle to his
name-for it was plain George Will
liams who. in a small room in London
and with an initial membership num-
bering some eight or ten young men
founded the vast organization known
throughout the English-speaking world
e as the Y. NJ. c. A.
We have referred to Mr.. Wana-
o makers recent non-secu1ar speech al
Reading for two reasons: first, because
of it's intrinsic value: second, because
of the exceeding rarity of a man i'm
l. mersed in the multitudinous and dis
= tracing details OF a commercial life, as
e is Mr.. Wanamaker, devoting a large
e portion Of his life TO interests higher
q nobler and altogether antithetical to
the canons Of the commercial world. II
is seldom that the superlatiye man OF
business is found busying himself in
matters foreign to his particular trade
. 1t is seldom indeed that that type OF
, man concerns himself with aught else
than the mere daily accretion of dol
7 lars and cents In this ultra-material
age, when the great majority Of men
bow down and PROSTATE themselves be.
. fore King Gold. it becomes a positive
"a pleasure to note the non-secular efforts
. Of either this or that more than aver.
l. age man OF commerce. The late George
Moore, of the great English firm oi
IS Copestake. Moore and Champion
: busted himself in the Sunday schoo
work of London just as Mr.. wana
r. maker now busys himself in the sam,
f. identical work of Philadelphia AND
N the name of George Moore is to-day Z
\ household word in England not be
s cause he was once connected with on,
n of the very largest mercantile house
of London, but simply by reason Of thu
,r fact that the man himself was better
IN known in the religious world than il
n the avenues Of trade. The same car
IN be said of the late George Peabody-t'
a. whom the Queen offered a Baronetcy
= only to have it refused-and who Il
never referred to as having been a ricl
II banker but as a man whose feet eve
10 trod the Appian Way of Philanthropy
a. man who gave, in two installments
half-a-million sterling for the erection
10 of homes for the working-classes o
London. And if George Peabody hal
merely been rich banker, with nj
! other backing than that AFFORDED b,