The Portland daily press., 1900-02-03
Experiment 10 Be Made in a Kansas
Papers Office.
Opinions Of Portland
Clergymen Thereon.
They Think His Task Is Hard
One.

A great many people all o yer tbs coun-
try ars looking forward with interest TO
src tbs result OF an experiment which
IL TO be tried In Topeka, Kansas, during
tho week beginning on the 18th Of March.
| A brief Statements Of the case may serve
to Introduce what some OF our Portland
clsrgymen have TO say about 1t.
The Rev. Charles NJ. Sheldon Of Topeka
10 the popular and successful pastor of .
CONGREGATIONAL church. He 10 New
England man, . graduate OF Brown uni
vsrsity, and held In high esteem In the
community. He has written several
stories or religious novels. which he has
read to his people sunday evenings In
place of sermons The drst and most
popular was entitled "In HIS steps"
IL was the story Of . suocessfui clergy
man who was moved to start movement
among his people and obtain their pledges
to ask themselves before performing any
act Of any consequence, what would
Jesus dor and to try to do likewiss. In
| the story he ims gined the consequences
Of such pledge honestly fulfilled to vsri
Gus sorts of people. One was the clergy
4
Chicago church, others were business
and professional men, and one, Edward
Norman, was q newspaper Editor who
soon found himself involved in oonsidera-
BILE trouble as a result OF his Efforts to
carry out the promise he had made 90
himself. He WAS obliged to refuse his
most profitable advertisements and felt
com PEELED to leave out the most Interest
| ing news Of the day.
Somehow Mr.. Sheldon seems to havs
attached more importance to Norman
than to most of his characters. At re-
| iigious meeting In Detroit a few months
ago the Topeka clersy lyman made an ap-
peal for the raising Of million dollars
| to he used for the Embellishments and sup
port Of just such newspaper a. he
thought jesus Christ would be likely to
publish In this age OF the world. he
received no particular encouragement
| until the editor Of the Topeka Capital
| saw his opp ortunity and offered MIR.
Sheldon the absolute management and
control OF his paper, one OF large circu-
latiop and influence, for any week he
| In the we ek above named. Mr.. Shsldon
will be 10 entire charge. Naturally there
| is much curiosity as to how he will carry
out his scheme and show his conception
Of the ideas of Jesus Christ applied to a
modern newspaper.
Rev. DIR. Henry Blanchard Of the Con-
gress Square Universalist church
thought he saw q way In which Mr..
Sheldon's weeks work might prove OF
public benefit. DR.. blanchard ssid In
Substance: II have read with great In
steps, has very: little literary finish.
| but 1t Is filed with . passion for right
eousness. The ideal which be presents
should receive earnest consideration. In
his plan Of editing an ideal paper he
will need great wisdom. de may be
Of the country. That needs deliveranoe
from the bondage Of the counting room.
Even religious papers think more OF
dollars than of duty. II MIR. Sheldon can
succeed In giving US paper whichl shall
not cater to the lower desires Of men Nc
in the reporting fully Of prize tights. for
Instance, he will render great service TO
the press and the people"
The Rev. DIR. j. l.. Jenkins OF, the State
Street Congregational church was not
anxious to express an opinion upon the
affair until after he had seen the result
| use," be said, 1.-THE thoughts OF Jesus
Christ Concerning God. man and duty
in modern conditions Is commsndable
and useful. That thousands are trying
| to do 1t IL as hopefui a sign Of the times
as there is. But to announce before and
| to call public attention to an instance OF
| the kind contradtcts q primal teaching
| of Jesus Christ which forbade preceding
q righteous act with blars of trumpets.
| APPLYING principles Is most difficult.
Misapplioation most hurtful. Expert
ments are test made In secret. protecting
| principles from possibly sinking In
popular esteem and 80 losing popular
/ po wer."
The Rev. Joseph B. Shepherd. rector
| OF st. Paul's church, regarded Mr.. Shell
don's attempt rs an experiment regard
| ing which he did not think it wise to
express an opinion until 10 had been
tried. The impression derived from his
conversation was that he thought Mr..
| Sh aldon was assuming considerable re-
sponsibility In undertaking to say just
what Jesus Christ would or would not
| do In every given case. The conditions
| from what they were In Judsa 1900 years
ago and evidently Mr.. Shepherd thought
there might be room for two opinions In
some cases which Mr.. Sheldon will be
called upon to decide.
The Rev. Il. p. Woodward of the SEQ
ond Advent Church had read with inter
est what he had seen In references to Mr..
| Sheldon's experiment.. 1t seemed to him
there was q certain incongruity about she
matter and he could not say he liked the
Idea. He had read MIR. Sheldon"s hooks
and while he very much liked Sin His
Stepsh which dealt more with general
izAtions, he was not as well pleased with
| those which followed wherein was made
au attempt to show more 81 politically the
answer TO the question ''What would
Jesus dor" In the various situations which
confront q man In our day. Mr.. Sheldon,
he thought, was assuming q good deal. In
our modern civilization the relations OF
things are so involved and complicated
that an answer to the question Mr.. Shell
don proposes 10 exceedingly difficult.
Where, for instance, will he draw the
ltne regarding advertisemsntsf His task
would be easier II he were omniscient.
Mr.. Woodward exprssssd regret at the