Brookings weekly register. (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1898-1903, 1900-01-18


part Of the town as the churches or
schools. and l tell you 1t is a powerv'
What" cried Philip. in unbounded
establishment, do you tell me, you, a
leading citizen Of this town Of $4,000
infinite souls, that the saloon power
has its grip to this extent on the civic
and social life Of the place, and you
are willing to sit down and let this
devil Of crime and ruin throttle you
and not raise a finger to expel the
monster? Is it possible? 1t Is not in
Christian America that such a state of
affairs in our political life should be
endured"
Nevertheless" replied the business
man, "these are the facts. And you
will simply dash your own life out
against wall of solid rock If you try
to fight this evil. You have my warn
ing"
"May not also have your helpY'
cried Philip, hungry of soul for COM
panionship In the struggle which he
saw was coming.
'It would ruin my business to come
out against the saloon" replied the
man frankly.
"And what Is that" cried Philip ear.
nestly. 1T has already ruined far
more that ought to be dear to you.
Man, man. what are money and busi-
ness compared with your own flesh
and blood? Do you know where your
own son was two nights ago? In one
of the vilest of the vile holes in this
city, which you, father, license to an
other man to destroy the life Of your
own child! | saw him there myself,
and my heart ached for him and you.
1t is the necessary truth. VIII you not
Join with me to wipe out this curse in
society,"
Tie nj trembled and his Iips
quiyt ,npntion Of his son, but he
replied
IL cannot do what you want, Mr.
Strong, but you can count on my SYM
pathy if you make the fight" Philip
finally went away, his soul tossed on q
wave of mountain proportions and
SloN iliS lHOIt IlloIc SItStcu Will
foam and wrath as the first Sunday of
the month drew near and he realized
that the battle was one that he must
wage single handed In a town of 50,-
900 people.
He was not so destitute of support as
he thought. There were many mothers
hearts In Milton that had ached and
prayed in agony long years that the Al
mighty would come with his power
and sweep the curse away. But Philip
had not been long enough in Milton to
know the entire sentiment of the peo-
pie. He had SO far touched only the
church through its representative pull
pits and few Of the leading business
men, and the result had been almost to
convince him that very little help
could be expected from the public gen.
orally. He was appalled, to find out
what tremendous hold the whisky
men had on the business and politics
of the place. 1t was a revelation to
him of their power. The whole thing
seemed to him like a travesty Of free
government and a terrible commen-
tary on the boasted Christianity Of the
century.
So when he walked into the pulpit
the first Sunday of the month he felt
his message burning in his heart and
on his lips as never before. 1t seemed
beyond all question that IL Christ was
pastor of Calvary church he would
speak out In plain denunciation Of the
whisky power. And so, after the open
ing part of the service, Philip rose to
speak. facing an immense audience
that overfiowed the galleries and in
vaded the choir and even sat upon the
pulpit platform. Such a crowd had
never been seen in Calvary church be-
fore.
Philip had not announced his sub
ject, but there was an expectation on
the part Of many that he was going to
denounce the saloon. In the two
months that he had been preaching in
Milton he had attracted great atten-
ton. His audience this morning rep
resented a great many different kinds
OI Dttplc. CoHC NdblC out VI NuA AoSi-
ty. Others came because the crowd
was going that way. So it happened
that Philip faced a truly representative
audience of Milton people. AS his eye
swept over the house he saw four Of
the six members of his church who
were up for Office at the coming elec-
ton In two weeks.
For an hour Philip spoke as b had
never spoken In all his life before.
His subject. the cause 1t represented.
the immense audience. The entire occa-
sion caught him up In genuine burst
of eloquent fury, and his sermon swept
through the house like q prairie fire
driven by high gale. At the close
he spoke of the power of the church
compared with the saloon and showed
hc'y easily 1t could win the victory
against any kind Of evil II 1t were only
united and determined.
.Men and women Of Milton, fathers.
n