Fisherman & farmer. [volume] (Edenton, N.C.) 1887-19??, 1901-07-18

The fittcst'' and Huxley's protopa~m and
TIE nebl'ar hypothesis. The fact is tat
: me ,natura. lists, just as soon AS they iiGd
out the difference between the fce,ers of
a wasp and the horns of a hectic. begin
to patronize the Almighty, while Agassiz,
glorious AGassiZ. who never made any pre-
tension to being Christian, put both his
feet on the doctrine of evolution and says:
Il see that many of the naturalists of our
day are adopting facts which do not bear
observation or have not passed under OBJ
servation.' These men warning with each
other-Darwin warning against Lamarch,
Wallace warning against Cope. even Her
fchel denouncing Ferguson. They do not
cree about anything.
Then You have noticed more significant
f'ct if you have talked with peop'a on the
b;ect-that they are getting dissatisfied
'ritl worldly PHILOSOPHY as Il IIatter OF
comfort. They say it docs not amount to
anything when you haze a dead child in
the house. They tell you when they were
sick and the door of the future seemed
opening the only comfort they could find
was the gospel People are having dem
cnstrated all over the land that science
and philosophy cannot solace the troubles
and woes OF the world. and they want
some other religion, and they arc taking
Christianity, the only sympathetic rcii-
gion that ever came into the world. You
just take scientific consoiatio into that
room where a mother has lost her child.
Try in that case your splendid doctrine Of
the survival OF the fttest." Tell her
that child died because it was not worth
IS much "a the other children. That is
your Survival of the fittest." just try
your transccndentaiism. YOUR philosophy.
your science, on that widowed soul, and
tell her it was geological necessity that
her companion should be taken away from
her, just az In the course OF the wor Ids
history the megatherium and the ichthyo-
saurus had to pass out OF existence. and
then you 60 on in your scientific consoia-
ton until YOU get to the sublime fact that
50,O00,C00 years from now we ourselves
may be scientific specimens on The geo
logic shelf, petriied specimens of an e1-
tinct human race, and after you have got
all through with your consolation, If the
poor afflicted soul is not crazed by it, we
will send forth from any of Our churches
the plainest Christian we have, and with
one half hour OF prayer and reading of
Scripture promises the tears will be wiped
away, and the house from floor to cupo,a
will be flooded with the calmncss of al
Indian summer sunset. There is where L
see the triumph of Christianity. Peop'c
are dissatisfied with everything else. They
want God: they want Jesus Christ
The fact is that iniidelity and agnosti-
cism are founded on ignorance geological,
ignorance chemical, ignorance aStro9omi-
cal, Ignorance geographical. We have
heard what the enemies OF Christ ianity
have had to testify: Now | put before
YOU the testimony of the church on earth
and the church in heaven. Not fifty, not
thousand, not a million, but all of the
church on earth and all of the redeemed
III heaven.
Will you take the evidence OF those
who have witnessed rs we'll felt the
power OF religion, will you prefer the
testimony Of those who begin by dcc'ar-
ing that they have never witnessed o. felt
its power! You tell NE that on a certain
4th OF March. twenty years ago, Pccsi
dent OF the United States was inaugu-
rated. How DO | know il; You tell me
there were $4,000 persons who distinctly
heard his inaugural address. ] deny both.
| deny that he was inNngurated. ! deny
that his inaugural address was delivered.
You ask why? | did not see it. / did
not hear ii. But YOU say that there were
10000 people who did see and hear HIM.
Is not the testimony of the 10000 WHO
were present worth more than the test
mony of one who was absent? Now, there
are some men who say they have never
seen Christ crowned in the heart, and
they do not believe it is ever done. There
is group OF men who say they have never
heard the voice of Christ. that they have
never heard the voice of God. The - do
not believe that anything like it ever &C
Cured | point to twenty, hundred
thousand or million pcopc who say;
"Christ was crowned IN our heart $ aztec
IS.
in orr soul, and we have heard His voice.
We have heard it in the storm and dark
ness. We have heard it again and again.
You say morphia puts one to sleep.
YoI say in time of sickness it IL very use
full; L deny it. A7Iorphia never puts any
body to sleep. 1t never alieviatcs pain.
You asl, why | say that. l have never
tried it. | never took it. | deny that
morpha is any soothing to the nerve O.
any quiet in times of sickness. | deny
that morphia ever put anybody to scep.
But here are twenty persons who say they
have all felt the soothing effects of ply
sican's prescribing morphine.
Young man. do not be ashamed to he Il
friend OF the Bib;e. Do not put voir
thumb III Your vest, as young men some.
the glorious light of nature and of there
being no need of the Bible. They have
the light of nature in India and China
and in all the dark Places Of the earth.
Did You ever hear that the light of nature
gave them comfort for their troubles?
to crush but no comfort. All. my friends,
you had better stop your skeptlcism. Sap
pose YOU arc pnt in 4 crisis like th2t OF
Colonel Ethan Allen. saw the account
and at one time mentioned 1T in an aG-
dress. A descendant of Ethan Allen, who
is an infide', said it never occurred, Soon
after | received Il letter from professor
in one of our colleges. who is also a de-
scendant OF Ethan Allen and is Chris
tan. He wrote nc that the incident is
accurate; that my statement was authen-
tic and true. The wife of Colonel Ethan
Allen was a very consccrated woman.
The mother instructed the daughter in the
truths of Christianity. The daughter sick
encd and was about to die. and she said
to her father. Father, shall | take your
instruction, or shall l take mothers in
struction* ] am going to die now. |
must have this matter decided That
man who had been loud in his infide'ty
said to his dying daughter: My dear. you
had better take your mothers religion"
NY advice il the same to YOU, . Young
man! YOu know how religion comfortc,!
her: you know what she SAID &c you when
she was dying. You had better take Your
mothers religion.