THE TORCH OF REASON, SILVERTON, OREGON, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 1S!F is soon to take place between the hosts of superstition and the child ren of liberty. Do what you can The Only Secular Paper Published on the friends, hut we do not want the pennies of the needy, for the mas Pacific Coast. ter we serve is humanity and we do Published Weekly by the Oregon State not wish to rob our master. w;.. ,;i.f h- ve in “devouring, widow’s houses and for a show J . E . H O S M E R ....................... E d ito r. making long prayers ’ hut we do P. W. G E E R - - - B u sin e ss M a n a g e r. want all w’ho are able, and can see the great necessity of constructive E n tered a t th e jx,8toffice at Silverton, Freethought work, to place a- large O regon, as second class m ail m atter. a stone as they can easily carry in KJ Pl ION RATES. a great living monument of liberty, One Year, in advance......... .........................SI O) a Liberal University. Six M onth», in a d v a n c e .......................... ........ •*'.* Torch of Reason T h re e M onths, in a d v a n c e ..... ...................... ‘-*2 In Club» of •» or m ore one year, in advance. > "> Money ahonld be sent by registered le tte r or m oney order. . . . . u Please send us the nam es and addresses of Sec u larists who are n o t regular subscribers. How W e M ay C onquer. For years Freethinkers have been tearing down the orthodox ideas of THURSDAY.... FEBRUARY 11, E. M. 297. the churches and have demon strated beyond a doubt in the minds of reasoning people that Hold T he F o rt. there are no reasons for believing If we had more money out work in the mythical stories of the bible; would move much faster, but we hut this kind of work, necessary as must keep good-natured and be it has been, must now give place to willing to work a long time if nec something better if we wish to en essary without any other reward tirely put to Hight the powers of than the satisfaction that we are ignorance and superstition. “ holding the fort,” for our friends We must do constructive work. will surely rally some time and We must teach temperance. We then we will see our beloved work must insist on our members being move as it deserves to move. pure, clean, uptight, honorable We need more teachers; we need men and women. If we do this scientific apparatus; we need help on the new building. It takes! the battle is won. It may he quite a struggle for some of (is to let go of money to get these things hut we some old fogy notions we have must keep up g >od cheer, do the gained from the old methods ot best we can with what we have and warfare, hut victory is within our when enough of ns get thoroughly reach; shall we refuse to accept it converted to secularism the work because the plans of battle are will become easy, for “many hands somewhat of a surprise to us? Ah, make light work.” That we are no. We will, we must show the doing well is a fact, and when the best people of the orthodox churches world that Secularism is its savior its savior from drunkene«s, from thoroughly understand that our work stands for everything that is the tobacco habit, from the opium good and that at the same time we habit, from libertinage, from ignor are free from that old serpent, the ance, from poverty, from supersti tion, from crime. People must see devil of superstition, they will he that we will soon empty the peni- with us and that to bless. We who understand just the con tentaries, the insane asylum, and the reform schools; that we will ditions, should live lives spotless close the doors of the dives, the and thus by our example as well as gambling hell» and the schools of by our tongues and pens help to infamy. hasten in the glorious day of hu 0, friends it has been demon strated that Jesus aud his love can not do this, and if we once show T he D ifference. In our constructive work we that we can, the world will be at must have help in order to succeed, our feet. The greatest weapon that the and we, without a blush, ask every Secularist to help us all he or she children of superstition use against can without doing themselves or us is that we are not a moral peo family an injury. But if we call ple and although this is not true, for help in what respect are we yet it is our opinion that as far as better than orthodox churches? organized work against the great evils of our time is concerned we We are quite different in several are not much better than the important respects. The money churches. ft we ask for is not to be sent across Catholic or Protestant We can do better than they the sea. It is not to pay a princely have and we will do better. We salary. It is not to he used to are young as far as organization is teach children as truth that which concerned and it may take some is not known to he true. We only ask those who are able, time to g e t our plans completed, those who will not suffer bv con- hut that the work may not he de tributing, to help build a school layed we call upon every human that will l>e theirs when it is com being who loves humanity to step and do what he or she can pleted—a school that will educate forward to perfect this glorious plan of sal- workers for the great struggle that i vation. the whole of humanity, hut just The altove is a heading which 1 thinks of helping this sick brother may he found in the Christian or that unfortunate sister. The Herald of January 27, and the fol broad-gage worker understands lowing words <<n the subject show! that the way to do the most good is about the way leading Christians | to remove the causes of suffering, look upon other people. The Her- and then so many brothers will not ....... •• . p r w p t he sick and so many sisters will month, many letters have been re not be unfortunate. A person who ceived approving of the suggestion is working on this broad gage plan of Evangelist D. L. Moody, that may help his neighbors fully as the C h r is tia n churches of America much as his narrow-gage friend generally should devote Sunday and is apt to help him more but he evenings to the presentation of the sees that what little he does in plain gospel lor the purpose of this wav isof hut little consequence reaching the common people.” compared with the broad-gage Then follow short letters which ex work. One who is a narrow-gage worker plain the conditions of churches in th e different country towns of t h e should not he condemned for not different states and of course like being able to see farther, in fact he good common people ought to do, should be encouraged in his work, they all agree with the uncommon for as long as a man is a worker at Evangelist. With what contempt all there is great hopes of his de a man who has formed an appetite veloping into a broad-gage worker for something better than the mis and one real worker of this kind erable slu'ii that is dished up by may do wonderful things in a these dealers in ignorance, looks short life. There are manv noble men and upon such words as, “plain gospel for the purpose of reaching the women who have the broad gage idea but whose environment makes common people.” How long will people allow these it impossible for them to carry out men who know no more than “com their plans, but these grand would- mon people” do in regard to divin be-workers often do the world ity and immortality, lead them great service by inculcating their grand ideas into the minds of their around by the nose? “Common people” indeed! The associates and thus many times wily priests may he able to hood their ideas are carried out even wink the people a while longer but after they are dead. Life is very some of the “common herd” are short at best and every human be having their eyes opened and if ing should see to it that he or she our public schools could be kept does something in this great work secular it would not he very long of making happy conditions. Along every line of every real re before this damnable business of making stock of the “common peo form then let Secularists be found. ple’s” ignorance would give place Let us help each other to develop iuto broad-gage workers that can t<> something better. How many thousand times bet comprehend that the sufferings of ter it would be if every preacher our brothers and sisters all over would talk no more about gods, the world may he lessened by our saviors, harps and crowns and righting the great wrongs that are teach the “common people” the destroying and holding hack free many, many things they are dying dom of thought, ami keeping up to know and help them to be some the pious robbery that is now prac thing besides “common.” My dear ticed in the name of a mythical Christian reader, how long will you redeemer. he “common,” and feed on the Moody. trash your self-imposed masters, Mr. Moody said: “As for a deal out to you? How long will minister who does not believe in all you call your best friends harsh of the bible, I don’t think he is names and shun them as you worth thesnap of my fingers. I tell would something unclean? you, my friends, when you cut out Let us study the sciences in the tale of Jonah you have got to stead of trying to understand theol cut out God.” ogy. Let us work to make each According to Mr. Moody’s creeds other happy instead of trying to and childish ideas, God is a personal please the imaginary angels anthropomorphic being, probably etc., that these uncommon preach not bigger than the fish that swal ers pretend to know about. lowed Jonah. Fantastic stories like Come, now is the time to work thishavea fascination forboys, and for better conditions, for “the night to the mind of Mr. Moody, though is coming when man’s work is physically he is fully developed, is done.” a boy’s mind in its inability to raise _ _ _ _ _ ------ thought and in its Two W a y s of W o rk in g . » abstract proneness toMwell upon incredible stories like that of Jonah and the There are two ways of working for humanity. One wav may he whale. But Mr. Moody is only one called the narrow gage and the of many who have attained to the physical stature of manhood, but in other, the broad gage. The nar thought are still in a state of in row-gage worker can only see a tellectual childhood, being victims short distance and never thinks of of arrested development. R eaching P lain People.