The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-05-16
STARVING MINDS AND BODIES
HUNGEp STUNTS THE GROWTH OF
UNTOLD THOUSANDS.
Sunday IN the Great Cities an Abso-
lutte Curse, He DecIares-Why
Divorce increases.


lecture at Tomlinson Hall last night
which was sermon stripped of all trite
tommyrot There is precious little theology
OF the ''tp-in-the-clouds'' kind about Mr..
NIcNutt, for he talked about men In the
raw. and his own peculiar experience-an
experience quite remarkable as that of
Walter Wyeon or Josiah F'lint-has taught
him that even men in. the raw need other
things before they are given theological
baths
Mr.. McNutt Is human rapid-fire ma
chine gur shooting a dozen commonsense
shots into the center Of the target every
minute of his lecture. He looks about as
unlike a preacher as one could possibly
imagine. Dressed in a dark sack suit,
rather in need of the tailor's pressing iron,
utterly minus the sombre gloomy. rigid,
neutrality-suspicious. ensemble of the con-
ventional man of God, Mr.. McNutt acts and
talks as man who knows men not from
hearsay but from the actual rubbing OF
elbows He has rubbed elbows with all
sorts and conditions OF men-in cheap lodg-
ing houses with the breath OF a thief fan
ming his Cheek; in iron mills. straining and
sweating with scores Of toiers; on the road.
counting ties with other hobos; in the
streets of great cities under white lights,
with a stpmach only "a little more yacuous
than these of other starved sinking
wretches; In factories, brickyards. docks,
wherever ;men slave and sweat. 1t is not at
all unnatural that some OF the SNUG theor-
les Of life have been knocked out of him,
and still less unnatural that he found the
fiery eloqIence TO tell people what he has
seen and known.
PROBLEMS TO BE SOLVED.
His lecture at Tomlinson Hall last night
was on THE DInner-pail Man." 1t was
pity so few people heard that lecture. At
the most sthere was scarce a hundred but
that made difference to the ''dinner-pail
man" who was there to talk. He was as
earnest. as interesting, as vivid. as if there
had been zen thousand instead Of five score.
Mr.. AcNutt was introduced by the Rev.
George L. Macintosh, present pastor of the
Fourth Presbyterian Church. Mr.. McNutts
lecture dealt with incidents of his own ex-
perience chat have opened his eyes to the
grave social and labor problems that the
One OF the greatest difficulties that
stands In. the way of progress" said Mr..
McNutt, us that men OF one class know
little about men OF another. The amount of
Ignorance and misconception is absolutely
appalling. Do you know how certain kinds
IN Zig ;barrellike cylinder, which shakes
them up until every nail has had a direct.
personal contact with its neighbor. II
comes out mt, smooth. clean and ready for
business would like to see Baer and one
OF the brfaker boys from his mines, black
and grimy, Morgan and one of his firemen
all put tr. some big contrivance that could
shake them up and place them in the sort
of contact that would mean something.
The werld to-day is surrounded by dyna-
taken, will explode. There is nothing more
dangerous than starving man, and the
have TO go far 10 find them they are here
there. everywhere. They are not only starv-
ing in body, but their minds, their love of
beauty, tleir souls, are absolutely hunger
ing for things they ought to have. Fac
tories are. full of men who toll day after day
In certain little prescribed circle, like SO
many automatons. Their minds are given
nothing to do. They become stunted Is it
any wonder that they listen to demagogic
utteraneef. and are quick to ignite at fiery
words that appeal TO their undeveloped in
tellects? From these the danger will come
MEANING OF HUNGER.
do any OF you know what 1t means to
be hungry? No. do not thing you do
Yours mas simply been an appetite for a
meal. Well, you try real hunger once and
you VIII not soon forget 1T. One day in
New York city / walked the streets for
hours trying to figure out how 1 was to
satisfy the horrible craving in my stomach
Finally 1; went into saloon To the man
behind The bar explained by case, telling
him I WIS ready to drop. Can 1 have a
bitter 1 ,asked. Certainly he replied.
Now do not know how the voice OF the
angels will sound, but if they any
more ser$phic than the voice OF that bar
tender 1t: will be heaven indeed. J. drank
three glasses OF milk, ate great hunk of
cheese and he made me fill my pockets with
bread from the free lunch counter
There is where the saloons are far
ahead OF rs. One day good old Methodist
bishop said to me: Why don't you preach
against the saloons and warn these poor
fellows against their danger? / told him
that as things are they were driven to
the saloops even for the bare privilege of
wasting their hands. He laughed at me
and said they could go TO the hotels Il
go there whenever L want to wash he told
me- OF course, he did. But suppose that
he should take of his clerical vestments
and go iIsto one OF those palatiaI places as
hopo. Before he would get five feet into
the looh! he would find out the uses of
that institution known as the 'bouncer
and. Ne reached the sidewalk his ears
would be assailed by some very forcible
language. IL is not the man the hotels
grant the privilege TO. IL is the bishop.
The other day went into place kept
/ had supposed by man OK Christ /
asked hira for the privilege of writing a let
ter I'm rear ROOM He looked at mel was
not yefy handsome object at the time
and told me gruffiy to get out. Finally
asked the bartender IL could use a back
room TO write letter In Why. sure he
rep1ed. tie look me into a wfnerOom. got
some pen and ink and paper for me- and
there ON a card table / wrote a letter for
a religious paper If ever a man was
furnished the opportunity TO be eloquent /
was that man. The-saloons know far more
about the art of reaching men than the
churches.
SUNDAY A CURSE.
The osher day / heard OF an organiza-
ton in New York which is trying to pre-
vent people going in bathing Sunday.
Do you sknow that In most great cities
Sunday is not a blessing. but an absolute
curse? Everything is closed UP and there
Is no place for men who are cooped up all
week TO go. For heavens sake. let them
go in bathing or do anything else within
the law they can. It's too bad to think
or men being forced to spend Sunday aft
ernoons IN saloons or In halls over saloons
DISCUSSING matters which are the most
vital things IN the world TO them, but
where else have they 10 go?
I'VE are trying to save men from the
top Ard imen cannot be saved that way
They cannot be saved IN classes. A woman
said 20 me the other day: You would be
Just fne IMAM To start a workingn1an's
church. She felt offended. think, when
/ showed her how little l thought OF the
supuezffou There cannot be work In gu1en'<