The daily morning journal and courier., 1907-10-24

men together on a cooperative basis
 "The recent growth of socialism has been so great as to cause alarm among the more conservative. Statistics show that in the last thirty years in Ger many, Austria, France, England and the United States it has increased by leaps and bounds. In England great non-partisan movement to combat it has been started.
 'It is certain that socialism is with us, and is making converts every day. Behind the movement are men of ex- traordinary capacity. Socialism can not be laughed away; it cannot be sneered away. It demands our serious attention. If it contains possibilities of good, it should be purified and di- rected along the right lines; if it is bad, it will have to be fought with all ones might It cannot be ignored"
 The Rev. MT. Starr was followed by Dr. w. H. Gardner of West Haven, who Rival to Christianity?" Dr. Gardner disposed of some of the fallacies which are held in current thinking concern ing socialism, and presented a detini- tion of Christianity and of socialism. Christianity is the persistence of Christ's thought and life in the indiv- idual and social life, touching man at every point, and always on the side of a higher moral and spiritual life It is the divine power in human history and experience, and is best known by becoming conscious of it as a new life- prevailing thought and feeling Social ism was defined as 2 "civil polity that aims to secure the reconstruction of so~ ciety and more orderly and harmon ious arrangement of social relations than now exist, and the equitable dis tribution of the products of labor through the collective ownership of capital as distinguished from property, and the democratic management of in- dustry." After showing the historical and moral basis of socialism, and dis cussing individuallsm, the particulars in which Christian teaching and social ism are identical were considered as: Atrulsm, emphasis on the dignity of la bor and worthiness of man; the ethi- cal and religious character of socialism; the psychical experience of socialists and their emphasis on fraternity and racial unity; their opposition to war as wasteful; their insistence on co-opera- tion as better than competition in in dustry, were presented as essentially Christian and tending to show a sim liar spirit pervading both and reveal HE uO dnldBOHlSTl or TlVdlFN
 The subject of Rev. B. M. Wright of Orange was Socialism as a Remedy for Social Evils" The speaker presented social evils, as incompetence and cer- tain vices for which socialism has no word. Utopian socialism may be at- tractive, but scientific socialism, insist ing on changed environment is doubt ful as remedy for social evils The great need is for changed men. Not so much the spirit but the methods of so- cialism are at fault. The danger to the family life was emphasized by Rev. Mr. Wright. The fundamental princi- pies of life can not be hastily ignored
 At the evening meeting new officers were elected as follows: Moderator Deacon Albert Holt of Church of the Redeemer; registrar and treasurer Rev F Lincoln Davis of Westville; member of Missionary Society of Connecticut and trustee of ministerial fund, Rev. Dr Watson L. Phillips of this city; stand ing committee, Rev. J. N Pierce of Day. enport church; Rev. Frederick Persons of Woodbridge; Deacon Albert Holt committee on polity and cooperation tc consider recommendations of national council, Dr. William McLane, Dr. W. w Leete Charles F. Clarke, Esp, Henry c. Newton, Esq, and Levi T. Snow Ii was decided to hold the next conference with the Whitneyville church. the date to be announced by the standing com. mittee.
 The evening meeting wSls attended by 8 considerable number of socialists who gathered in groups after the meet. ing to discuss the subjects presented.