Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-05-31
Able Memorial Sermon by
Rev. |. ". Coons
Before Seth Williams Post,
No. IS, G. A. R.
Speaker discusses Great Problems
Settled by the War.

lions was preached Sunday evening at
the Universalist church by the pastor,
Rev. Leroy w. Coons. Several of the
other city congregations united in this
Memorial service and the seating capac-
ity of the large auditorium of the church
was taxed to its utmost.
A special musical program was render
ed by the choir and the organist. Miss
Higgins. The musical part OF the service
included the anthems FESTIVAL TIE
Deum" by Dudley Buck and Il Will Love
Thee. o Lord by Harvey B. Ganl. The
congregation was led in the reading OF a
responsive psalm by Rev. c. G. Mosher,
pastor Of the Penney Memorial Free Bap-
fist church, the Scripture lesson was read
by Mr.. Coons and prayer offered by Rev.
e. p. Hope, pastor Of the Winthrop
Street Baptist church. The choir and
congregation sang Wallace's National
Anthem previous to the sermon and
America" at its close. The benediction
was pronounced by Rev. c. G. Mosher.
The subject of Mr.. Coons' sermon,
| which was very able effort and much
appreciated by the special guests of the
evening and the entire audience as well,
was Things That Were Settled by the
Civil War ana Things That Remain I'm
| settled" The speaker named as some
of the things that We're settled by the
Civil War. the solidarity, unity. heroism
| and military power Of the North: the dis
| posing once for all of the presence of
| African slavery; the Interpretation of the
| constitution and its application through
out the land; the disclosure as it was
| never had before of providentid1 r0wer
watching over this nation
Continuing. the speaker said: You
settled the fact that the North was q
united people. sturdy. brave and power
full. The South underestimate us be-
| cause they misunderstood The North
hated the war so badly that they put it
away from them as long as possible and
put Mp with many compromises, and so
the South called them cowardly. The
North although they put war away as
long as they could. demonstrated by that
war that they were united as one man.
| That war was wonderful revelation of
| great men, on the battlefield, in Con-
gress, in the cabinet and in literature
| THE Civil War settled the question OF
African slavery once and forever. We
| should never lose sight of the fact that
slavery was the great cause of the war
Some tried to trump up other causes.
but they were make believe causes-ex-
cuses. The North could not stand it any
longer to see the presence of the degrad-
ing and demoralizing custom Of human
slavery. The South upheld slavery be-
cause the invention Of the cotton gin
made it profitable and event went so far
as to preach it from the pulpits as one
Of the beatitudes.
Slavery was really defeated because in
1860 the South lost its power in the ma
tional government, but slavery was not
annihilated merely because the govern
ment changed hand: 1t was annihlated
upon the bloody battlef1elds of the Civil
War; And in reviewing this period of
history We ought not to lose sight of that
first and greatest American who was
made expressly to fit into the niche in
history which he occupies-Abraham Lin
coin. (Applause.)
abraham Lincoln was a prOvidential
man if ever there was providential
man in American history. He was great
in his day. but he becomes greater and
| more precious to us as we recede from
him. Through the Civil War we settled
the completion and correct Interpretation
of our national compact. The South con-
tended for many years before the break
ing out of the Civil War that the United
| states was simply cOnfederacy; that
there was no such thing as a nation The
| North said that this was not the meaning
| OF the constitution and that the compact
was formed by all the people rather than
! by the states, and the North decided by
their victories that their view was right
You demonstrated and settled the fact
that the American nation is Gods expert
| ment. We are working out problem
here that concerns the civilization Of the
world
I'm settling the problems which you set
tied upon the battlefields of the Civil
War you bequeathed to us other prob
lens. You gave us the problem of Negro
education and development You did
your part nobly. but you gave to genera
tons to come the Negro problem There
were but 4.O0O.ON Negroes at the time of
the war. but that number has now in
creased to 1l.OO0.O0O and a great part of
these are still degraded and ignorant.
We have also another problem given
to us by the millions coming TO us from
other shores-the immigration problem
those who shall come to us in the future
hut the great question is: What shall we
do with those who are now here?' l he
lieve the greatest power in solving this
problem lies with our common school
teachers.
Another great pressing problem which
confronts us is the conflict between cap
ital and labor. This is the greatest
problem which America has yet been
called upon to solve. 1t does not take a
great prophet to foresee that if some So
luton is not found of this great problem
another civil war will confront us in the
future, an internecin strife which will he
n hand to hand conflict. But we hope
that 4 solution of this problem will be
&c und without strife. 1t is the duty of
the Christian church more than any 9TH
err force to stand impartially between la
Dor and capital and say: There is no
other way to come together except that
you talk the matter over in the spirit of
brotherhood and in the terms of the
Golden Rule enunciated long ago by the
prophet of Nazareth.
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