The colored American., 1900-06-02
AGNOSTICISM DEFINED.
Mr.. Chilcoat Turns The Light on Religious
Mountebanks Who Take the Livery of
Heaven to Serve the Devil In.

Editor The Colored American-We
had thought at least by this time all
persons of ordinary intelligence and ia
life and character of the late Col. Rob
ert G. Engersoll. 1t is strange that
honest men Will sometimes resorh to
iDiudioiouS methods in their eudeavor
to promote an otherwise laudable and
worthy object. A visiting gentleman to
our ely recently related 10 his hearers
apparently little personal history OF
himself. Our informant quotes the
reverend gentleman a. Say ing that he
once met the late Mr.. IngsrsolI In open
debate and that Mr. Ingersoll on meet
fore such store house of facts (win) as
he (the reverend geatlemaa had packed
away for him. And furthed it ap-
pears that this man 10 usiag such argu-
ment In collecting money for some OBJ.
ect 40 one seemstsknow. Persons whe
have seen and head Mr.. IugeTs )ll are
fu ly aware Of the utter lack of veracity
contained In suoh statement. Iti 10.
true and no one of oommon intelligence
will for a moment tolerate such stu
psndole lies. If any one wants to know
wba5 MIR Ingersol's real position was,
what be really said himself and not
what some person who never took the
pains to inform himself says he said we
would refer such persons to his master.
full addresse es which can be had ct many
of the book stores ard most Of the
News Stands, and read for Themselves.
The intellectual pigmy above referred
to reminds one Of the doleful braylng
of . disheveled jackass hepeiessly tied
to q sinking ship doomed to the inevIta'
BILE condition where all such must at
last DO consigned.
Under the caption of q "New Re.
formation" appearing Monday morn
Ing May %, IN one of the local dailies,
is contained food for thought calcuiat
ed to shed large light on the problems
of life and destiny. One idea which
has doubtless dominated In the intel.
ieetual realm Of the Anglo'Saxon is
that the source Of his great growth Is
the brain. That great race has learned
as all races must learn that every refsr.
nation of whatever character or kind
is germinated and developed by the
genius of mans brain. That all ereeds,
all cults, all dogmas, all books, no mat
ter how sacred men may held them to
be are the product Of mans origination.
And sensible people are coming to un.
derstand this. Just as men used to
mkquote and put words In ME-. Ingex
soils mouth and then attempts to
answer him, falling to answer his argu'
tc uay1IA alton fn nolIs
ing names as If names were arguments.
1t was not the Mr. Ingersell, bus the
d gm attic and inconsistent religion that
was on trial. Truth is always safe. All
that Christ really taught is safe. But
his real meaning has been distorted
ann changed 80 that we hardly think
he would know his owa words If he
were TO again appear. The fact is,
a question is always new until 10 is
answered. Mr.. IpgerselPs arguments
have never been answered and Ia the
nature Of things we feel safe in the
statement that they never will And
any person who will study both sides
and carefully compare, will inevitably
reach similar conclusions as all gone
before. Mr.. IngeTsoll was not an inf
del and any one whv says SO certainly
ex hlbits small information. He was an
Rgnostio. The term agpostic comes
from two Greek words which mean
there are some things man does not
know. And we should like to ask Is
not this about the true condition OF
things? Man knows more In this age
than perhaps at any otheE period Ia
the history of the world, and yet there
are still 10 the dim distance other aid
may be larger victories awaiting the az.
proRch and mental grasp Of nan's
brain.