Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1915-03-08
PUBLIC OPINION.
To The, Editor:

Have you ever noticed how inconsistent
and unreasonable some of the most noted
and intellectual of men can be- while try
ing to argue some theory or other!
a few days ago while reading a small
book by Robert lnger~oll, entitled. .'Nyhat
a. Religion We ran across the following
line of reasoning which shows TO what ex-
tent a theory can be builded upon false
premises and how blind some people can
be 10 the logic of things. Mr.. lngcrsoll
starts out with the statement: "lf We
nave a theory We must have facts for the
foundation. We must not build GA guc--e~.
%fancics. analugics or micrencc~,' and then
continues, II have a theory and | have
tour corncr-toncs Cor fact~.) First. mat
ter can not be- destroyed: second. force
can not be- destroyed; third. matter and
force can not exist apart: fourth. that
which can not be destroyed could not nave
been created. III these curnCr~tonc~ are
facts. II follows that matter and force are
from and % enicruiiy and that nothing haS
been or can b. created and that there
never has been or can be 4 creator. II
follows that there could not have been any
intelligence VI design back of matter and
force. There j. no Intelligence without
force and no force without matter. cun~e-
qucntly there could not have been any IN
tclliecnco. any force. back of matter. In
therefore follows that the supernatural
doe not and can not exist and that Nature
has uo master. II matter and force are
exists. Ii matter and force are from
eternity, then We can -ay that man had no
intelligent creator. We now know II ~
know anything, that jehovah. the divine
potter, did not mix and mould clay into
he forms Of men and then breathe IA,
breath of lives INTO them"
We have minated that the above i, III
Inconsistency. therefore. first. wish to call
attention ~ the fact that Mr.. lngrr~nll
refuses to recognize any fancie~ but must
have facts for hi premises. Notwith-
tandin" this, he later says. III these cor
n%er~t"ne~ are facts" the 80 and 80 fol-
lows. liut We know hi- corncr~tonc~ are
not ali proven facts, therefore hi dcdnc-
iion~ are merely gue~>work and hi~ whole
theory \ f%uIlacy.
For instance, take fact NJ. 3-NIattcr
and force can not exist apart. Does this
earth not receive force ~ heat from the
nn without any known matter between
ihrm ~ art ~ \ conductor for this force.
II this force reaches the earth without
amy Intervention of matter To- act as cnn-
dnrlnr. does not this force exist without
matter while on it, journey t. a.!
Yes. bui y"u say. science assumes mat
ter called ether IN pcrvadc thc Who'll.
universe. Very true. bat Mr.. lnecr~oll
tarird out IN saving hc would not accent
any assumptions: h. demanded facts and
-c.cnce ha~ never proven the '.cthcr" IA
'r 4 Tact there arr nu chemical nor ~nnr-
tr"~copIc tests for II ~ there are for an
other elements constituting matter. con
"qucnily wc are a. reasonable III a~.um-
mg the absence of ''ethcr" ~ YOU are To-
assume ~ presence.
AGAIN. we are told. "If matter and force
I'M" from and g. cntcrnity then man had
A." intelligent CREATOR We are not com
potent 20 discuss whether God created
matter or not hnt man j. not one of the
elements ~ matter. ~ u 4 mixture ~ cle-
mrni~. ~ Mr. lngcr~oll admits further ON
when hr says: I'VE know that Jehovah
did not mix and mould the clay." etc. /.
~ such am impossible thing fn think of Je-
huvah mixing the materials ~ make man
when We poor murtal~ daily mix the same
materials ~ our creation nf building
houses and the myriad~ 1T other pruduc-
tion~ OF man! Do We not mix iron and
Steel - produce engines and then I'M furcn
or steam into them! Nature never evolved
n house nor am engine without the i~ntrlli,,-
cnre ~ man and We can zee NV evidence
mat It will ever do -. They are created
where they did not exist before and - ~
claim that Mr.. lneer~oll ha. ~ yood
grounds Tor stating that God conld not
have created a man.
II the force or ifc IL intelligent man
can place steam or force into an engine. il
= surely within the bounds VI reason ~
say ihat God could place the force or life
n man. particularly ~ It has never been
di~proven that force can exist without
matter.
Inc question IL not ~ ID the creation
oi matter but ~ Ia the creation ~ man
and We contend that Mr.. Inecr-olr. Io.io
a~ above given 4 very far from CONVINCING
q. ID. FAIRBANKS.
Brownsville. Texas. March q. 1918.
Twin Colts.
From the Mexia NewS.)