The times., 1899-08-09
TALMAGE AND 1NeERsoLL.
Caustie Criticism of Recent Utter
ances of the Reverend Doctor.

Caustic Criticism of Recent Utter
ances of the Reverend Doctor.
To the Editor of The Times:
With your permission. l want to do what
little l can, in a few short paragraphs, to
rescue the reputation of the great and he
roic lngersoll from the cruel and ignorant
ISLANDERS of orthodox malice.
In his sermon of yesterday, the Rev. T.
Dewitt Talmage, with characteristic zeal
and disregard for historical and philosoph-
lcal truth, gave utterance to statements
concerning Voltaire, Franklin, and Paine,
which ought to bring the warmth of shame
to the cheeks of the average Fiji Islander.
In spite Of somewhat close acquaintance
with the methods and record of the Brook
Iyn oracle, 1 had of late been led, by the
spirit OF tolerance which seemed TO animate
| him in his comments upon the death of the
great agnostic, to think that he had sud-
denly acquired not only acceptable mental
manners, but some regard for accuracy Of
staIement-eyen concerning unbelievers. l
frankly plead to error. His latest asser-
tions are enough TO make the dry and pulse
less ashes of fngersoll feel again the throb
and thrill OF insulted and indignant man
hood.
Before proceeding to refute any of the
good doctors present statements, however.
1 commend to your judgment the follow
ing parable, as fair sample of the kind
of veracity to which he is addicted. In
1886 Talmage said:
Last August a man Hourished knife toward
heaven and dared God TO come down, threaten
| ing to cut him if he did. That himself
was cut down, smoke poured from his mouth and
nostrils and he was dying for days, while nobody
could go near him.
Is it not probable that this happened in
the City of Churches and trolley cars
The man had most likely stepped by ac-
cident upon broken trolley wire which,
in addition to being alive" bore the sur
plus calorifc vehemence acquired by SYM
pathetic induction in passing church in
which DR.. Talmage had preached on the
previous Sunday.
AS to the Paine reeantation, DR.. Tai
mage says that lin his dying hour he
| (Faine) begs the Lord Jesus Christ for
| mercy" The late Colonel Ingersoll, who
offered as gift a thousand dollars in gold
! to anyone who would prove the truth
of this childish story, and who many years
ago effectually silenced the New York
Observer on the subject, said:
! The truth is he died as he had lived. Some
ministers were impolite enough to visit him
| against his viii. Several of them ne ordered
! from his room. couple OF Catholic priests, IN
| might enjoy the agoriies OF a dying friend OF
man. Thomas Paine, rising in his bed,
! had the goodness to curse them both. HIS phy-
/ sician Whispered in the dull of the
| dying patriot: '.Do you believe, or do you wish
to believe, that Jesus Christ is the Son of Godg'
] And the reply was: Il have no wish to believe
/ on that subject These were the last remen-
| bered words of Thomas Paine.
| The writings Of Moncure D. Conway. the
eminent scholar and writer, who has told
the only reliable story of the Author
! Heros'' Iife are in complete accord with
these statements, and, moreover, they
furnish such mass of authentic evidence
+, that the assertions of DR.. Talmage must be
set down, by intelligent and rejudiced
persons as either deliberate slander OF
/ the dead or as the natural result OF ignor-
| ance And let me add that this applies
with equal force to all that has been said
! by DR.. Talmage concerning the alleged re-
cantation, and the moral and domestic life
of that splendid thinker and patriot,
/ Thomas Paine.
AS to Voltaire, the good doctor states
that lin his last hour he asks for Chris
| tan burial and asks that they give him
/ the sacrament of the Lord Jesus Christ. "
/ This is just as true as the story OF Paine.
| Let me tell you, in the words of the his
torian, how Voltaire recanted:
Two days before his death his nephew went to
seek the cure of Saint Sulpice and the Able
Cautier and brought them into his uncle's sick
| chamber who, being informed that they were
/ there, said "HAh well, give them nay comph-
| rnents and my thanks The able spoke some
| words to him exhorting him TO patience. The
cure of Saint SHlpice then came forward having
announced himself, and asked yoltaire, eley9tlng
| his voice. il he acknowledged the divinity OF our
| Lord Jesus Christ. The sick pushed one OF
! his hands against the cures Golf, showing him
/ back, and cried, turning abruptly to the other
5sd sfcf 1ia IN 10
! ingly considered his, person soiled and his coli
| dishonored by the touch of the philosopher. He
| made the give him little brushing, and
| went out with the Able Gautier. Ten minutes
before his last breath he yoitairel took the hand
| of Morand. his valet de chambre, who was watch.
/ ing by him, pressed IT, and said: "Adiea, my
| dear Morand, gone" These were his last
| words.
1t would be scarcely more foolish to
claim that Colonel Ingersoll reeanted.
] But if the tale of Voltaire's repentance is
! foolish. DR.. Tafmage's attempt to claim
Franklin as a Christian is idiotic. He says:
BENJAMIN Franklin surrendered TO this delusior
| Christianity, il you may judge from the letter
| that he wrote 10 Thomas Paine, begging him tc
| destroy the age of Reason" in manuscript and
never let it 60 into type.
Now, Benjamin Franklin died on April
IT, 1880. Part first of the Age of Rea-
son" was not written until 1894, and Con-
| way is authority for the statement that
Paine never wrote a word that Franklin
could have taken for an attack on .elig-
ion, NOR anything in the way of relig-
ious controversy, until three years after
| Franklin's death" More than this, it Is
not claimed in the works of Franklin that
| the letter in question, which was never
directed to anyone, was written to Paine;
| it is simply supposed to have been. >
But the letter itself offers the best possible
! evidence that it was not written as q
criticism of the Age of Reason This
and many other points, I shall be glad to
consider il DIR. Talmage is sufficiently in
terested to arrange for newspaper space
| In his conclusion. our reverend friend
with irresponsible zeal. ironically cries
"Oh, what a delusion christianity
submerge me with it, fill my eyes
and ears with it." etc. How fortunate fol
Christianity that he did not say: Fill
my mouth with it.
HERMAN z. KITTREDGE.
Washington, August z.