The Portland daily press., 1899-04-20

every time. Read the sad history Of the
dark ages: of that old mother church
whenever the power was gained to make
the experiment. The inquisition. The
tears and blood and ashes Human ashes
Read on through English history. and
Into colonial times, and see the grim
enginery of law invoked to make men;
better. The end was good one. They
needed to be m ade better.
THE MISTAKE WAS IN THE MEANS
that they did not succeed. The perfect
law of liberty has not yet been fully I'M
derstood. Law IL good In the right place
and method; but 1t Is the gospel. with It's
moral and spiritual influences, that up
lifts and improves and purifiss men.
planting the power within that works Oil
benefcent changes.
Yet once more: The attempt to secure
great moral reform by the coeroive
means Of law ignores n deep, far-reacn-
| ing, ultimate principle of the divine gov
eminent. He is n backward scnosr VINO
| has not found that Gods CHIEF obJect IN
| this world of man Is to bring out, cuiti-
vate and perfect character; moral onarac-
ter In free beings. All other betternent
waits on this. His method Is Dy ihnuenoe
| within the soul to strengthen all nopiest
| virtue for the ages to come; and ne
would do this, not in the absence, but IN
the presence of temptation. IL is quite
evident that our Divine Father Is not en-
gagged in raising hot-house plants In this
world Of trial. Every thoughtful educa-
tor comprehends that character, which is
worth anything, which you can lean on,
must be produced by seif--nsstery In the
| presence of temptation. (Iemptation in
| itself is not necessarily an evil. The evil
is in yielding to It Our Lord VINO
knows us through and through, ana zoo
design with his disciples prsys N no' INA .n1'
but that they form their steadfast char
actefs in IL. While the Sovereign OF the
universe does not contemplate the re.
moyal of temptation In his metnod OF
government, she prohibitory law proposes
| Just the reverse > to remove all cnahoe OF
| temptation. 1t Is not Coils method, and
| IL doesu't workwell-has not worked well.
And you and are mourning that Port
| land is worse of than ever, and has been
growing worse for generation.
There Is still another condition worthy
| of more than passing notice, as we con-
clude our brief review OF the results OF
this reign of law which have been so
ldjsappoiuting; the bitter, censorious
spirit that it has engendered. While this
| essay has been in preparation, an ola
citizen who ought to he a friend. met
| the writer on the street, and In an angry
tone commenced his Remuneration OF the
churches and ministers: You ministers
are to blame for the liquor selling here In
Portland" Your essayist ventured to
repel the imputation as false and UNJUST,
but the accusation was vehemently relter-
ated. Often during the past thirty years
we have heard the same unfounded asser
tIon, 1.-The ministers and churches could
put stop to this iniquity Just as easily
Is can turn my hand over.
Repressing the censorious retort, and
appealing the case to careful inquiry or
| facts. we find about two thousand. be-
fora the annexation of Deering.) OF these,
perhaps eighteen hundred are voters, out
| of a total Of some eight thousand voting
population. The most of them are not
only temperance men, but conscientious
total abstainers. These figures show what
| their chances are In an open political
! fight. But, besides this, there Is a spirit
ual instinct in the soul OF many Christian
people that the working OF moral In
| fluences and the enforcement OF the criIni-
nal law are not equally in harmony with
the design of the Christian Church. And
we fancy that the general public mas
certain vague sense OF the same dishar-
mony,) 1his has resulted In doubt and
hesitsncy that has been lsmented as
| fatal apathy which has prevented the sue
cess of the law. May it not rather ihui-
| cate that spiritual ana carnal weapons IN
| The same hand are quite unsutted to eacn
other. That the Christian common
wealth-the kingdom oi God-ls not YET
| SO perfectly established in the community
| that God and Caesar ara one. Ihere is
this irrepressible instinct of oongruity
| also in the mind of the public that the
ministry of Jesus Christ are out OF place
| in leading the execution of civil law.
| That they are not fitted or called to uss
| such weapons. From such conditions we
b lieve tn At when the final Inquest Is held
the cause of failure will be found not
with the church and ministers, but In u .
hu llawful use OF law.
At this point it Is asked. What shall We
do. answer frankly, ] don't know
| whit to do. And here one OF my most
honest critics enters his vigorous protest.
you have no right to pursue such an
argument to such a conclusion ana leave
| il there" and one of my sharpest says,
| "UnIess YOU go further. you are not pray
| ing at the corners of the streets, but ours
| ing" Therefore, treading softly where
| SO many bright and loyal minds have
failed, let me suggest a few thoughts in
conclusion.
Let US ind where we are. As the
Arab traveller having pushed through the
| deepening twilight. pitches bis tent, and
rising carly to resume his journey, got &
out and "orients himself finds whet &
the sun rises over the painless desert and
shapes his course, let US. the friends CT
| temperance, orient ourselves.
LET Us TELL THE TRUTH,
and recognize it whenever told. 1t cost:
something, indeed, to tell the truth; but
1t costs more not to tell 1t. Acknowledge
the truth about the defects of the law te
serve the ends of high and effeotual ne
form; that we are too apt to 90 to the
legislature fer help; that. while we are In
principle opposed to license. we have fast
ened upon us in the workings of the law
the most bungling and pernicious llcens'
| law conceivable. from which the public
get no benefit; but a many sided curse.
| Let the truth be told atoGt alcoholic
products, and the place they actually
hold In the sphere Of human life; theii
place in medicine, and the arts and scien
ces as factors Of utility.
Tell the trlth about the limitations o1
human responsibility, that We are con
cerned with great moral issue to be set
tied on the lines of freedom, and not OF
those of force; and that "nothiLg Is evel
settled TIL it is settled right" Eudeav
orins always to lind the golden mean o
liberty regulated by law.
Avoiding extremes, let us be disposition