The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1919-01-18

ministry largely uneducated in the
schools, with the spirit of individual
ism which characterizes our denomi
nation strong and aggressive. making
the business of mobilization and or
ganiZation for common purposes very
difficult. and faced the opposition not
only Of he world and its allies but
of Christian bodies as well, whose hos
fility. the then recent activity of Bap-
fists against the union of Church and
State, had excited.
Looking back once more at that
early time We must dofr our hats 10 a
group OF men among our people who
gave many and striking evidences of
their faith and courage. Hidden away
! in the Virginia Baptist Annual for
1916. but to be found at page 1872. Is
4 the brief and informing historical
note made by committee, of which
DR.. George ". Beafe was chairman,
and evidently the work of his own
careful hand. A sentence or two taken
out OF the body of this report will IL
lustrate the courage and faith OF
some Of the leaders OF our people.
They were bent on trying to bring our
folk together for common action and
as one attempted organization would
break down they would project an
other. So the Virginia Separate AS
ISOLATION lived from l7T1 TO 1888 and
a General Committee succeeded it. liv-
! ing till 1893. to be succeeded in its
turn by Committee of Correspond
ence. This last had a somewhat long
er tenure of life, but in 1922, after
more than score of years they
had present at their annua, meeting
how many do you suppose? Just
/ three. two preachers and one layman.
! Ordinary folk would have given up
/ the business but those Baptist faith
ers back there We're not ordinaryapeo-
| pie On the way from this most dis
eouraging meeting Edward Baptist
and James Fife determined to try
again and proposed the General As
| soctation, and their project. as We
, nave already seen, resulted in the or
ganizatiop of what has since grown
/ into one of the most Important Wig
orous and growthful religious bodies
OF its type to be found anywhere.
j We must honor also the wisdom
and foresight of group of our men
or this period and of our denomina-
tIonal leaders in the generatio i'm
mediately succeeding theirs Atten-
ton has been drawn to the fact that
the Baptists did not have in Virginia
at the date of the Heralds birth a
single school or college OF any kind.
yet we must not suppose for a mo-
ment that our brethren then We're in
/ different to this great business In
! deed long before the General associa :
ton was organized they had appointed
committees 10 look into the practi-
cability of creating and maintaining
"A seminary of learning and fou
years after the Herald was born III
Virginia Baptist Seminary was or
sanized and located at whd, is now
| Hloomingdale Dairy Farm. on the
Lakeside line. about five miles from
Richmond, and this in 1870 grew into
; our great and noble Richmond Col
lege. Sometimes 1t looks as if our
brethren of that day and time had al
most preternatural wisdom
We have been drawn aside by these
. incidental UNCONVENTIONAL matters and
have gossipped so long about them
s mat httie space is left for any further
reference to the Herald. We are con-
soled. however, by the thought that
? II this has happened IN our editorial
celebration of our own anniversary
IL is typical of the whole career OF
the paper. For from the day when
its first neat and modest issue came
wet with Ink from the old fashioned
nat bed press to tfie present nour all
the spirit and temper of the paper
, nave oeen OF TINS sort 1t fills US with
pride and heightens our own self re-
spect In ways that cannot be denied
TO us and ought not to be condemned
that the Religious Herald. though
owned by individuals and edited with.
out formal or legal responsibility tc
the denomination, has put first
throughout its career the kingdom OF
God and His righteousness. and first
. among the agencies and institutions
, formed for the promotion OF this
, kingdom those which have grown ou
Of our own Christian body 1t re.
tfreshes ITS now, too. to think that the
, paper throughout its long history ha.
: steadily and uniformly promoted the
peace, the fraternity the fellowship
, of those whom it served
= William Sands came to TIE Herald
t at its beginning and superintended it.
first issue He stayed with 1t unit
1865. when j. b. letter and A. Il
Dickinson bought it. DIR. Dickinson
remained until his death, in Novem
Der. 1905, when the present editor
i who had already been in practica
: f'eharge IN the Office for eighteen years
/ became the senior editor. Thus tn,
:, - itorial terms of service of three mel
r cover the whole life of the paper ant
t two of these terms those of DIR. Dick
y
, more than eighteen years.
The present editor of the paper il
now fully embarked upon his thirty
i, first year as the paper goes into it,
ninety first year Counting the
months OF his thirty first year which
have already passed, he has been
upon the STAFF for little more han one
third Of the entire life OF the paper
For all the kindness, patience, gooc
; will and cooperation which have beer
given to him in this responsible place
he makes now his grateful acknowl-
edgments. Why should not the whole
Virginia Baptist bro ht raood make
this gala year in the history OF the
old paperP
Large scandals often grow from
small talk.