Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1914-02-11
LETTER FROM PRISONER
CONTINUED FROM PAGE ONE

places of worship, according to their
belief. The majority of those who are
required to attend worship in the
manner last mentioned have not the
clothes suitable to go to town" and
associate with those strangers. where
as if the idea of the community church
was fully established the neighbors
would get together regardless of the
''Sunday suit" as they are all &C.
quainted with each other and then the
very spirit of the community church
should instil into their minds the fact
that it is not clothes that count but
desire to hear Gods word and to profit
thereof.
We find in the book of Luke. 4th
chapter, 18th verse "And He came to
Nazareth where he had been brought
up: AMI he entered as his custom was,
into the synagogue on the Sabbath
ay and stood up to read and there
was delivered unto him the book of the
prophet Isaiah, and he opened the book
and found the place where it is writ
ten, The spirit of the Lord is upon
me, because he Amounted me to preach
good things to the poor.
The possibilities are unlimited for
accomplishing good results from the
community church idea. Great credit
should be given the young Rev. Mr..
Douglass for it's inception. also to you,
Mr.. Editor, for attaching to it the
commendable name which you did and
the publication thereof which has re-
suited in widespread discussion through
out the state in the columns of Ver-
mont state press.
What the writer desires to bring to
your attention is this fact that was
stated at the beginning of this COM
munication if some influence of this
nature had been brought to bear on
his mind in earlier years, his life up
to date, would have been a vastly
different life, as by hereditary in
stincts his nature was such that the
good in him would have predominated
providing such an avenue of education
had been open to him. This state
ment is made after months of study
and absolute conviction upon the part
of the writer and knowledge of the
fact that there are hundreds of others
in Vermont penal and other Institutions
who are of the same mind.
Vermont farmers for years have been
crying out that they could not get
sufficient help and that their sons and
daughters would not stay at home
Let the community church and kindred
so desirable in a Cody and social way
that there will be no desire on the
part of our young people to wander
off to the cities perhaps to be led into
temptations path-the early end of
which is states prisoner perhaps
worse.
How many fathers and mothers are
there in Vermont today who do not
know where their boys and girls are?
And if they do, what of the life they
may be leading? Or, the cells they
may be filling in other states prisons?
Uncalled for questions you say. but no,
Mr. Editor, it is facts we are consider
ing. and the writer knows whereof he
speaks.
1t is to prevent such happenings as
these and to assist those who are al
ready down to regain their places in
society that 'tThe Prison Monit tor" has
been given birth. of which the writer
has the honor of being the Managing
Editor. Facts we were considering.
Well there is one more fact and that
is absolute fact and that is, that none
of this work can be carried out without
Christianity in some form or other. For
almost two thousand years Christianity
has been the heartbeat and has con-
trolled the pulse of the World, and it
has got to continue to do so or all is
lost. To meet the 10th century needs
it has to dc it by Goth century meth
DDS. namely, on some such broad
minded basis as the community church.
In conclusion. the writer would say,
sir, that he thanks you for the time
given in the personal perusal of these
lines and, further. that if their publ
cation would serve in any way to help
the people to whom they refer, in
their struggle for the better unde r
standing of God, coming as they do
from the humble pen of one who has
transgressed the laws of both God and
man. simply through the lack of knowl-
edge of Gods law, you are at liberty
to publish them and over the sigma
ture of
Yours ve"y sincerely,
Prisoner No. az,
Vermont States Prison,
Windsor, Vermont
! Feb s 1914