Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1906-01-12

past generations In olden times al
most all gentlemen were supposed to
gamble and set drunk and be licentious
IL they so wiiled. The words of Paul.
III meat make thy brother 10 offend /
viii eat no meat while the world stand
eth. lest 1 make my brother to offend"
have far different Interpretation now
from that of few years ago. No
one would dream of erecting a college
building now by n lottery. as one OF the
first buildings was erected upon the
Princeton campus No one would
dream OF party of ministers adjourn
Ing from presbytery and then sitting
down 10 dinner. each with a glass of
liquor danking his plate, as the minis
tiers used to do. No one would dream
or our present president of the United
states playing a game of cards with
his minister, as George Washington
was accustomed to do with his Episco-
palian rector. These men of the past
generations should not be judged by
our moral standards. Every year the
moral criterions of the human race are
lifted higher and higher. But, my
ought to do in a moral sense. We
know whether dancing and drinking
and going TO vile shows and having
lewd conversations and playing games
of chance are depicting to our spiritual
life. IL is no excuse for us to say we
are excused from condemnation be-
cause we live on the fashionable boule-
wards. Where could be found more
beautiful palaces and temples than In
old Athensi And where was the NOR
al tone OF people lower than there?
Paul Is speaking to us the same as he
spoke to the Athenians of old: IRE
pentl Repent Except ye repent OF
your moral sins ye shall all likewise
perish"
Our BROTHERS, Keepers.
But I find God bearing with the so
cial sins OF our fathers, as we'll as their
theological and moral faults. find
that he comes to us, as he did to Cain
OF old, and says, Thou art thy broth
er's keeper" And when God speaks
thus he means even more than when
Christ spake the parable of the good
Samaritan 10 the Jews as well as to
the Greeks. You cannot Judge the
Greeks who assembled about Mars
hill to listen to the eloquent words OF
Paul by our social laws any more
than you can judge them by our theo-
logical or moral criterions.
In the first place. you must remem-
Der that the cocks for generations
had. been sla ling people. You
remepber how 1, matchless orator
Of Massachusetts. Wendell Phillips.
tried to make the Haitian martyr,
Toussaint rOuverture. the acme Of all
virtues and human perfections. In his
peroration he used these words: "I
would call him Napoleon. but Napoleon
made his way to the empire over bro
ken oaths and through n sea of blood.
j would call him Cromwell, but Crom-
well was only soldier. and the CON-
monwealth he founded went down
with him into his grave. I would call
him Washington, but the great vir-
gilman held slaves" oh, Wendell Phil
lips, is that right? Is that honest? Is
that fair? Had Toussaint rOuverture
grown up on the banks of the Potomac
with white skin, would he have done
any differently from our Washington
or our jefferson. both OF whom held
slaves? For centuries the law of con-
quest In olden times meant enslave-
ment. You should Judge the Greeks by
the standard of their time. but not by
ours. God has declared that we have
another duty TO our brothers than TO
put the yoke OF bitterness about their
necks and make them sweat hlo>1 IN
the factory or upon the plantation.
Hear IL, ye capitalists. Ye are your
brothers keepers. Blood money can
stick TO your hands rs we'll as to those
OF Judas. A mark OF Gods condemna-
ton for financial sins can be upon your
brow as well as upon Gains for kill
Ing his brother with n club.
Not only are we our brothers keeper
In financial or in n merceaary sense,
but also in n physical sense and in
mental. Aye, we walk In wonderment
among the beautiful columns of Ath-
ems. We can think OF the charioteers
driving their flashing eyed chargers
over those hillsides. We can see the
runners, with the speed OF the winds,
coming back to that capital telling of
victories wop- We can picture the al
tars or gold and silver. We can see the
palaces filled with the richest art treas
ures and see the vast amounts OF mon
eys sQuandered for the worship or the
god OF Wine called Dionysus. But right
under the shadow of the. prison I'm
which Socrates was compelled to GUAM
the poisonous hemlock ignorance and
Nth were everywhere. And when the
poor became sick they were not cared
for as we care for our sick; but they
were left alone TO starve and die. Or
they were driven out upon the noun
tain sides as the Hebrews drove their
iepers to the tombs OF the dead, cry
Ing: "1he leper, the leper! Room for the
leper! Room! Roomr All, yes. the
Greeks In social sense had duty to-
ward their poor fellow men. Have we
not as great IL not greater dutyf
Thou art thy brothers keeper" Thou
art his keeper in financial way-you
must give him work; in q mental way
you must build for him schools; in a
physical way-you must care for him
when he is sick and helpless. Are you
doing 1t? And the times OF this igno,
rance God winked at. but now com.
mandeth all men everywhere to re-
pent"
But God has borne with our past mis-
sionary ignorance as well as our past
social ignorance. We have a duty TO
fulfill in reference to the kind of homes
In which our brethren sleep and eat.
we must see that they have tho rirbt