Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1906-07-06
Calnase
Sermon
By Rev.
Frank De Witt Talrnase. D. d.

Los Angeles, Cal. July LIN this
sermon. appropriate to the Independ-
ence day festival. the preacher makes
powerful appeal for further indie
pendence which shall result In the re-
demptioa OF our cities from official
corruption. The text is jeremiah vii.
II. "Seest thou not what they do In the
cities OF JUDAH"
This Is the Sunday preceding our ma.
uonai holiday. During the coming
week we shall commemorate the time
when our forefathers signed the Decla.
ration Oh Independence. which declares
that all men are born free and equal
This Is The hour when thousands OF
patriotic sermons are being preached
over this land. most of them In euio-
CYSTIC strain. to prove that this country
is the greatest OF all countries. our peo-
pie the best of all people and this mar
yelous national condition OF afrairs the
direct result OF the work of the Con-
uhentai congress which assembled In
independence hall at Philadelphia July
4, 1I16. But though L allow no man to
stand before me in admiration Of the
immortal document penned by Thomas
JEFFERSON, yet am not one who would
cry. Peace. peace, when there Is no
peace" i am not one who would as
sert that our government and our
people have reached the acme of per-
fection, for as our ancestors bad
wrongs to right in 177G we have gov
ernmental wrongs TO right in 1905.
want this morning to place my finger
upon the most fiagrant weakness of
our national life. This is not the weak
ness OF national or state legislation.
1t is the weakness of municipal cor
ruption, which we find in most Of the
large cities scattered over our land.
The cancer which is gnawing and
eating toward the vitnls Of mans phys
ical body Is even more fatal I'm its re-
suits than the dangers which are threat
ening him from without. Indeed, the
only enemies which are threatening to
undermine our national foundations are
domestic foes and not foreign invaders.
Mr.. Lincoln in one OF his addresses well
said: "At what point shall we expect
the approach OF national rdanger7
Shall we expect some transatlantic mill
itary giant to step across the ocean and
armies of Europe, Asia and Africa
combined, with all the treasures OF the
earth (our own excepted I'm their mill
tary chest, and with a Bonaparte for
n commander. could not by force take
n drink from the Ohio or make q track
on the Blue Ridge in trial of a thou
sand years. At what point, then, is this
approach OF danger to be expected?
IL 1t ever reaches us. 1t must spring up
among us. 1t cannot como from abroad.
IL destruction be our lot, we must our
selves be its author and fnisher. AS n
nation OF freemen we must live through
all time or die by suicidew That state
ment is literally true. No foreign foe
can subjugate us. England could no
more conquer us upon our own ground
tben we could land at the Liverpool
docks and conquer England. The At
iantic and Pacific oceans are two great
moats, thousands OF miles wide. which
say 10 foreign foes. keep out" and
also to Americans. Keep In" No
drawbridges will ever be made big
enough to span those moats. AS long as
an invading army has to come to Amer
lea by ship that army Is doomed to de-
The Horrors of War.
Most great statesmen are as loath TO
enter an international controversy as
Is the present head OF the German en-
pire- Some years ago the young emper-
or was looking at the Yereschagin pic
lures depicting Napoleon's invasion of
Russia- he said. "vereschagin, never
did the Judgment OF God SO plainly
strike man as it struck Napoleon at
Moscow" Then he looked n little lon
ger at the pictures ana said, "veres-
chagin, your, pictures are an excellent
corrective OF warlike appetites." Then
he looked q little longer and again said,
"Verescha9ins the statesman who
would nsedlsssly plunge his country
Into an international strife is fool"
Emperor William shudders at the
thought 'of war The great statesmen.
both trans and els Atlantic, have the
same dreads The one great purpose of
their lives Is to prevent International
complications. So. In all probability
You and will never live to see tho
day when this -Hation SHALL DO warning
against another first class nation.
Thus In our present patriotic sermons
let us turn our attention to the internal
rather than external dangers. By the
help OF God let US 60 forth as bravely
and herOically rs. did. onr forefathers
ut Concord and Bunker Hill to eradi-
cate the greatest weakness of our ma
tionai iife-'namely, corruption In our
municipal or city governments. These
evils OF our great cities are to be seen
everywhere Either we must conquer
them on they in turn will completely
overthrow US.
: The civic problem OF our land will
never be successfully solved until the
American voter has intelligence and
manhood enough TO divorce national
and state politics from municipal at
fairs. The two politics, the national
and civic. are entirely distinct, The
one to great extent does not repre-
sent personalities. but principles, while,
on the. other hand, Civic politics does
not represent principles SO much as
personalities. Let me try to illustrate
the demarcation In few words.
Principles, Not Personexities.
Come back with me to the year 1896.
Major Mckinley OF Ohio Is the candi-
dates upon the Republican ticket FOR
president of the United States. He is
the logical representative OF his party
upon the sole issue that he was the
author OF the famous Mckinley bin,
WHICH established high tariff. Now. IL
Mr.~nfcKinley is elected to the presi-
dencyshe can do absolutely nothing to
forward his ideas Of protection unless
he has a congress behind him which
VIII pass protection laws Thus ali
over the country, the Republicans Of!