Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1900-03-01

attention OF that hail tuU OF diseased
and sinful humanity The bishop and
DR. Bruce sitting there. looking on,
seeing many faces that represented scorn
of creeds, hatred of the social order,
desperate narrowness and sel6shness,
marveled that even so soCn, under the
influence Of the settlement life, the
softening process had begun to lessen
the bitterness of hearts, many of which
had grown bitter from neglect and in
difference
And still, in spite of the outward
show of respect Of the speaker, no one,
not even the bishop, had any true con-
ception of the pent mp feeling in that
room that night. Among the men who
had heard of the meeting and had re-
sponded to the invitation We're 90 or 80
out of work, who had strolled past the
settlement that afternoon, read the no
tice of the meeting and had come in
out of curiosity and to escape the chill
cast wind. 1t was a bitter night, and
the saloons were full but in that whole
district of over 80, 000 souls, with the
exception of the saloons, there was not
a door open to the people except the
clean, pure Christian door of the settle
mcnt Where would man without
! home or without work or without
friends naturally go unless to a saloons
1t had been the custom at the settle
ment for a free and open discussion to
follow an open meeting of this kind,
and when Henry Maxwell finished and
sat down the bishop, who presided to-
night, rose and made the announcement
that any man in the hall was at liberty
to ask questions, to speak out his feel
ings or declare his convictions, always
with the understanding that whoever
took part was tc observe the simple
rules that governed parliamentary bod
les and obey the three minute rule
which, by common consent, would be
enforced on account of the numbers
present
Instantly a number of voices from
men who had been at previous meetings
of this kind exclaimed, Consent, con-
sentr'
The bishop sat down, and immediate
ly man near the middle of the hall
rose and began to speak.
Il want to say that what Mr.. Max
well has said tonight comes pretty close
to me. l knew Jack Manning, the fell
low he told about, who died at his
house. | worked on next case TO his in
printer's shop in Philadelphia for two
years. Jack was "A good fellow He lent
me 50 once when l was in hole. and
l never got chance to pay it back. He
moved to New York, owing to a change
in the management of the office that
threw him out, and / never saw him
again. When the linotype machine
came in, | was one of the men to go
out, just as he did. / have been out
most of the time since. They say in
ventions are a good thing. | won't al
ways see it myself, bat l suppose I'm
prejudiced. A man naturally is when
he loses a steady job because machine
takes his place. About this Christianity
he tells about, it's all right, but never
expect to see any such sacrifice ON the
part of church people. So far as my OBJ
serEation M ti " eeTb5dh Except the 6iafop
and DIR. Bruce and a few others, but
never found much difference between
men of the world, as they're called, and
church members when it came to busl-
ness and money making. One class is
just as bad as another there. "
Cries of ''That so" ''You re rightl'
"Of coursel" interrupted the speaker,
and the minute he sat down two men
who were on their feet for several sec
onds before the first speaker was through
began to talk at once.
The bishop called them to order and
indicated which was entitled to the
floor The man who remained standing
began eagerly:
''This is the first time l was ever in
here, and maybe it II be the last Fact
is, I'm about at the end of my string.
I've tramped this city for work until
I'm sick. I'm in plenty of company.
Say, I'd like to ask question of the
minister if it's fair May ?"
That's for Mr.. Maxwell to say,
said the bishop.
''By all means" replied Mr.. Max
well quickly. "Of course | will not
promise to answer it to the gentleman's
satisfaction
"This is my question" The man
leaned forward and stretched out long
arm, with a certain dramatic force that
grew naturally enough out of his CON
dition as human being. 81 want to
know what Jesus would do in my casef
| haven't had n stroke of work for two
months. I've got wife and three chill
1ren, and i love them as much as If |
was worth million dollars. I've been
living off little earnings | saved up
during the World S fair jobs / got. I'm
q carpenter by trade and I've tried ev-
cry way | know to get job You say
we ought to take for our motto, What
would Jesus doY What would he do If
he was out Of work like me? | can't be
somebody else and ask the question.
want to work. I'd give anything to
grow tired of working ten hours a day
the way | used to. Am l to blame be
cause / can manufacture job for my
self? I've got TO live and my wife and
my children. But howY What would
Jesus do? You say that 8 the question
we all ought 10 ask. -
Henry Maxwell sat there staring at
the great sea Of faces all intent on his
and no answer to this mans question
seemed, for the time being, to be possi-
BILE. go Godp" his heart prayed. This
| is n question that brings up the entire
social problem in all its perplexing en-
tanglement of human wrongs and its
| present condition, contrary to every de-
sire of God for human beings wei
| fare Is there any condition more awful
| than for man in good health, able and
eager TO work, with no means OF honest
| livelihood unless he does work, actually
unable to get anything to do and driven
to one Of three things begging for
charity at the hands of friends OF
strangers OF suicide or starvation
What would Jesus do? 1t was II fair
question for the man TO ask. 1t was the
only question he could ask, supposing
him to be a disciple of Christ, but what
question for any man TO be obliged to
ask under such conditions"
! All this and more did Henry Maxwell
| bonder. All the others were thinking in
the same way. The bishop sat there
with look so stern and sad that it was
not hard to tell how the question moved
him. DR. Bruce had his head bowed
! The human problem had never seemed
to him so tragic as since he had taken
the pledge and Aft his church TO enter
the settlement. What would Jesus do?
tA...