The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-11-27
FIRST BAPTIsTs' ANNIVERSARY.
DIR. Jordan Discussed the willing
ham Bill in His Sermon.

ham Bill in His Sermon.
The celebration of the ninety-ninth an
niversary Of the Savannah Baptist Church
yesterday morning drew a large congre-
cation.
After the offertory, which was sung by
Mr.. s. P. Snow, accompanied by Mr.. John
| Wiegand. the pastor, Rev. j. D. Jordan,
D. D., offered q prayer suitable to the oc-
casion, and as a preface to his sermon,
referred to the history of the church, and
the noble work that 1t had done, and
urged each member to strenuous efforts
to make the one hundredh year of its his
tory the most glorious of any of the CEN
tury.
The subject of DIR. Jordan's morning
sermon was THE TRANSPORTATION of Our
Lord" At night he preached on 1.-THE
Church and the Home"
OF all institutions on earth he said, the
two most sacred are the nome and the
church, and the man who has no home
life and no church life is to be pitied, in
deed. 1t is possible some times to be with
out home life, but the man is without
excuse If he has not a church life for
even when not able to attend the church
service he can keep In touch with the pas
tor and congregation of his place of wor-
snip and thus in a measure overcome the
disadvantage of irregular attendance.
This question Of a home, he continued,
ought to receive more consideration. The
place of ones birth has always ones ten
derest remembrances, for 1t is home a
place for refinement and repose, a secret
place and confidential nook where love
and condolences flow most freely.
What is needed said Dr. Jordan, is
revival of the good old-fashioned home
life, when discipline was more rigid and
when children spent more of their time at
their own tiresides Make the home at
traetive, he said, and let their time be
spent there. Il am not so much in ia
Yor of public reading rooms as some are,
because l believe that the home is the
proper place for reading, and that the
books should be taken there TO be read.
Another evil of the public reading room
is that it gives the boys and girls an ex-
cuse for being out at night. Home should
be made so pleasant as to attract the chill
dren and make them prefer it to other
places of amusement. 1t is sad COM
mentary on home when the children must
go outside of it to have a pleasant time.
Il have heard music of all kinds from
the voice of the great Patti. through a
descending scale to the music of the Mid
way-heard outside of the walls-and I
know that there is no music like a moth
ers voice, whether it be in song or prayer
in exaltation or rebuke.
"One of the most potent destroyers of
homes is the saloon, which is described by
celebrated minister as "A foul nest
where foul birds gather" Much is being
said by the city fathers of this and other
cities who think that the town will go
under if the Willngham bill becomes a
law. Well let 1t go under for If any
town Is 50 constituted that 1t depends for
its existence upon the saloons it ought to
go under. l have seen the effects of pro-
hibition and of anti-prohibition, and while
the ti-prohibitionists claim truly that
such laws create blind tigers, l say let it
create them, they are easier to fight than
tigers that have both eyes wide OPEN 1
am like the old negro who, hearing a
prayer that the Lord would curtail the
power of satan. fervently calculated, YES
Lord, and while you're about 1t, cut his
tail clean Off"
Whether prohibition would De the best
thing for Savannah, l don't know" said
Dr. Jordan, But l do know that some
thing ought to be done against the saloon
evil, either by high license or in some
other way"
DIR. Jordan gave some advice to parents
regarding the treatment of children, and
particularly cautioned them not to give a
child a penny for the Sunday school and
a quarter for the theater, for, said he
take what stand you please about the the
ater. if the child, countenanced by the
parent, gives more time, thought and
money TO the theater than to the church,
you may expect to see grow up a world
ly-miuded and giddy generation.
Owing to the lateness of the hour Dr.
Jordan refrained from discussing the
church side of the question. This Will be
taken up later.