Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1901-07-20

tory ef England?" You know that
there are a thousand men who would
die in the defense of this book where
there is not more than one man who
would die in the defense of any other
book You try to insult my common
sense by telling me the Bible is fading
out from the world. 1t is the most
popular book of the centuries
How do know it? 1 know it just as
I know in regard to other books. How
many volumes of that history are
published? Well, you say 5000. How
many copies of another book are pub
Ished? A hundred thousand. Which
is the more popular? Why the one that
has the hundred thousand circulation.
And if this book has more copies
abroad in the world, if there are five
times as many Bibles abroad as any
other book among civilized nations.
does not that show you that the most
word of God?
oh say people, "the church is
collection of hypocrites. and it is los
ing its power, and it is fading out from
the world" Is it? A bishop of the
Methodist church told me that that de-
nomination averages two new church
es every day. In other words, they
build 73O churches in that denomina-
ton in year, and there are at least
l 800 new Christian churches built in
America every year. Does that look
as though the Christian church were
fading out as though it were defunct
institution? What stands nearest to
the hearts of the American people to-
day? 1 do not care in what village or
what city or what neighborhood- you
go. What is it? Is it the postoffice?
Is it the hotel? Is it the lecturing
hall? All, you know it is not. You
know that that which stands nearest
to the hearts of the American people
is the Christian church.
In the Hour of Distress.
You may talk about the church being
a collection of hypocrites, but when
the diphtheria sweeps your children
off whom do you send for? The post
master, the encouragement, the ho-
telkeeper, alderman? No. You send for
a minister of this Bible religion. And
if you have not a room in your house
for the obsequies, what building do you
solicit? Do you say, "Give me the fin
est room in the hotel?" Do you say,
Give me that theater?" Do you say
''Give me that public building where 1
can lay my dead for a little while we
say prayer over it?" No. You say.
''Give US the house Of Cod And if
there is a song to be sung at the obse-
quies, what do you want? What does
anybody want? The rMarseillaise
Hymn?" God Save the Queen2' Our
own grand national air? No. They
want the hymn with which they sang
their old Christian mother into her
last sleep, or they want sung the Sab
bath school hymn which their little
girl sang the last Sabbath afternoon
she was out before she got that awful
sickness which broke your heart 1
appeal to your common sense You
know the most endearing institution
on earth. the most popular institution
on earth today is the church of the
Lord Jesus Christ. A man is a fool
that does not recognize it,
The infidels say: There is great
liberty now for infidels; freedom of
platform. Infidelity shows its power
from the fact that it is everywhere toll
Grated, and it can say what it wiz
Why, my friends, infidelity is not half
so blatant in our day as it was in the
days of our fathers. Do you know that
in the days of our fathers there were
pronounced InuuelS III puDllc duInOr-
ity, and they could get any political
position? Let a man today declare
himself antagonistic to the Christian
religion and what city wants him for
mayor; what state wants him for gov
ernor; what nation wants him for
president or for king? Let a man
openly proclaim himself the enemy of
our glorious Christianity. and he can
not get a majority of votes in any
state. in any city, in any country, in
any ward of America.
What Christianity Does.
A distinguished infidel years ago
riding in a rail car in Illinois said.
An old Christian woman said: 1T
has done one good thing anyhow 1t
has kept an infidel from being govern
or of Illinois" As stood in the
side room of the opera house of Peoria,
Ills. prominent gentleman of that
city said. 81 can tell you the secret OF
that tremendous bitterness against
Christianity" Said !, What is it?'
Why said he, Gin this very house
there was a great convention to nomi-
nate a governor. and there were three
or four candidates At the same time
there was in a church in this city a
Sabbath school convention, and it
happened that one of the men who was
in the Sabbath school convention was
also a member of the political con-
vention In the political convention
the name highest On the roll at that