The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1919-02-03


Jesus was ushered into hts presence
| and PLATE turned to Him and said:
Are thou the Son of God?' and
Jesus said. 81 am"
! He was either the Son OF God.
conceived by the Holy Ghost, born OF
, the Virgin Mary. suffered under
| Pontius PLATE, crucifed. dead and
buried. or He was a bastard, for He
was born out OF wediock He was
either conceived by the Holy Ghost
or He was an iliesitimate offspring
s,S's IN 3s,si s,axy sss<e 4, q n 81, X
| Away with your darnable rni-
tartan theory that makes Jesus a oas-
tard. Ny mother taught me that the
Good Book didn't lie. and IL Jesus
Christ wasn't the Son Of God, 1t does
/ lie. My mother taught me that good
man didn't lie. and If Jesus Christ
wasn't the Son OF God, he was
| liar ana all the teachings OF the Bible
are false.
: II would take an unearthiy imag-
nation. something like that OF jules
. Verne or II. G, wells. to imagine
and picture the way history might
have been different IL a strong press
had existed since the beginning OF
:, time. And have often tried to
imagine how different the early his
, tory might have been II there had
| been IN Jerusalem a great Jewish
daily, string Of popular newspapers
down through Asia Minor at that time.
say, Hebrew Lord Northcliffe OF
Jim Kcelcy. OF the Chicago Tribune,
or Pulitzer or a Hearst--Jesus
would have been the newspaper eensa-
tior OF His day. I know newspaper
men as well as any man in America
today, and there is no crowd on this
planet so quick to detect a fraud
or that will rise more quickly and
| stand by righteousness and loyalty
and sincerity than the newspaper men.
And the way that Jesus Christ saw
throug, the shame and the veneer
and the straight from the shoulder
blows He struck against the vested
| wrongs OF His day and His biting,
sarcastic epigrams and transparent
| sincerity and FITS big open-hearted
mannerism would have won the heart
and the love Of every reporter IN
Jerusalem II they had been there
| And a reading of the New Tesla
ment makes IL mighty clear to the
ordinary mind that Jesus at the time
of His cruciAxion Was mighty popu-
lar with the masses. The common
/ people heard Him GLADLY. Only a
little while before His cruciffxion.
Jerusalem turned out enmasse to
hear Him. and they gave Him pop
ular reception that looked like a
1917 wake Up America" parade
| when they went down the streets.
And tho only way that that miserable
little clique OF Jerusalem politicians
| and high priests could escape the
wrath OF the masses was to railroad
Jesus Christ through under cover OF
] darkness-thats the way. They
knew that the proposition to cruel
fy Jesus would never have stood the
referendum test on Gods earth. They
knew that Jesus would have beaten
them to a frazzle If they had ever
put The thing to vote.
! Just imagine what a hard time
those high priests would have had II
there had been a syndicate or news
papers that played up on the front
page three-colunan display head
! line about the villiany OF that little
crowd Of religious b.gots and crook
| ed politicians who were intent on
numbering Jesus Christ. who stood
for the common people as no man
in history had stood. or no man In
history has stood, or no man In his
tory ever viii stand.
So old PLATE called for oasin
of water. He walked out before the
crowd and washed his hands, and be
said: II wash my hands OF his blood.
find no fault in him"
Wouh Have Been Clean.
n he had washed his old black
heart at the same time, he would
have been clean man.
, There has come TO us from across
the sens book bearing the strange
title. Letters from He'll" the in
PRODUCTION to which was written By
George Mcdonald And In that book
plate is represented In the lost
world bending over a stream OF water.
II think the author must have got
his wires crossed. stream of water
In Hell would have been the limit
| 20 far as my idea goes That Is Just
/ like the average foot novel writer
anyway And Pilate is represented
bending over. dipping his hands in
ne water. and some one touches him
on the shoulder and says:
! will they never be clean And
they were a. red as the blood OF
Jesra could make them. and with n
shrek Of agony that rang through
the lost world, ne cried: ''oh, will
they never he clean! NO."
| Poor PLATE! The blood Of Iesus
has been on you for nineteen hun
dred years In hell 1t will be on you
had your chance that day in front
OF that gang in Jerusalem and YOU
were willing to let them nail Him
on the cross rnther than stand pat
by the side of Jesus Christ and for
Ills truth.
What shall do with Jesus, which
is called Christi"
He didn't have the courage OF his
convictions. He was convinced that
Jesus was right Oh. II plate had
barred his back and said: This man
Is on the level; you can take me
and cruelty me. but you can't touch
one hair OF His head"--he would
| have taken his stand in the same
hcompany with Joseph Of Arimathea
and other famous men. We would
have been glad to have named our
children after him, while tonight we
speak his name with ignominy and
repufsion. He had his chance. He
was miserable whit-livered coward.
+ Now, when old PLATE heard that
Herod was IN town he was glad to
get rid Of Jesue. 80 he showed Him
over to Herod. Herod thought that
Jesus was a sort OF sieight-of-hand
performer. iegerdemain, Chautauqua
entertainer and had a bunch OF high
rollers. and he asked Jesus 70 come
W and perform a few miracles just
to entertain the crowd.
I, Jesus answered the old fox never