The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1910-02-19

the way a Methodist Sunday school
is formed:
To attract the children a prize was
offered every Sunday; 1t might be a
pair Of shoes, or stockings. cap. a
handkerchief, some fruit or eonfec-
tionery. AS prize for every schol-
ar would be rather too expensive a
species of lottery was instituted and
the fortunate or unfortunate, one got
the prize. year later the practise
was discontinued and Immediately
the children began to inquire Are
we not to have our prizes?' Per
haps at Christmas time, but not
every Sunday" was the reply.
Then we won't come to Sunday
school, they said, and the following
Sunday not one of the forty children
appeared. There has been no Sun
day-school in this Methodist church
from that day to this.
The real victims of the Protestant
propaganda in Rome are the starving
and ill-clad children OF destitute
parents. The poor mother strug-
Cling with her poverty, with her chill.
dren around her crying for bread, is
offered home and education and
eventually good situation for her
children. Although nothing may be
said to these poor captives about re-
ligion, entrance into Protestant homes
and schools means loss of faith to
those children. and thus the seed of a
Protestant generation is sown in
Rome.
Would Mr.. Fairbanks or any other
decent Protestant approve this de-
ceitful, un-Christian method of pro-
selytism-a method first introduced
so. far as we know. during the fam
inc in Ireland by the soupers. 1t is
safe to say that Mr.. Fairbanks does
not know these things, or he would
not identify himself with a cause
sought TO be promoted by means so
disreputable
But this is not the worst. Mr..
Stackpole proves that those Italian
missionaries are a bad lot. They are
mostly ex-priests. who, he shows, do
not care button for Methodism.
For leading un-Christian lives they
had been disciplined by their Bishops
and became Methodists for revenue
only. They are virtually the Metho-
dist church in Italy. Honest Mr.
Stackpole has no use for such men
He says
THE ex-priests. then, on the whole
have done us very little good and
very much HARM"
He claims that the Methodist Bis
hop Mallalieu was OF this same opin
ion. But the average Methodist, and
especially the Methodist official loves
more than aught else an ex-priest
even though he be reeking with NOR
al slime. Would ex-Vice-President
Fairbanks associate with such men!
We think not
Dishonesty, however, Is the most
damaging crime Mr.. Stackpole fast
ems on the Methodist church in Italy
The annual salaries and all kinds Of
expenses paid by the authorities IN
America are in proportion to the
church membership. The reports o.
converts and church members are
doctored accordingly. He SAYS
y We once asked one of the preach
It ers why he did not cut down thu
}, statistical Report for the Minutes t,
1. actual facts, and he replied: tina
would not please the Presiding III
der" Every preacher in the Italian
mission knows that all the author
ties on both sides of the ocean wan
to see every year in the Reports al
increase of membership, probation
ers, conversions, etc, and they ar
r accommodating enough to make tn
desired increase.
To such lengths has this dishone'
n ty gone in Italy that the preacher
are known, according to Mr.. Stacl
pole, to have borrowed members froI
neighboring missions so as to be abb
e to make good showing when tn
l. superintendent should visit their mil
sion. Is 1t not strange that no TIA
u ian convert" to Methodism has eve
h given a dollar to the cause.
AS a final warning Mr.. Stackpol
, says
J. Our churches are growing, our mi
sionary operations extending, on
benefactions swelling, and we COZ
graduate ourselves upon our pr
~ gress; but we have only to continu
- making the same kind OF progres
= long enough, and our destruction
sure.
= The above somewhat enigmatic,
sentence needs some explanation
This, Mr.. Stackpole probably furnisl
es In these two sentences:-
of II is of course, quite improper
nd state in public print all the fact
nu that the authorities need to knoy
They would be disgraceful to all co
cerned.
The Holy Father. as we know fro