THE TORCH OE REASON, SILVERTON, OREGON, TH URSDAY, .11 NE 17, 1897.
result of foolishly try in g to mix Board of the Oregon State S ecu lar speaking appealed to him ami now
elem ents th a t c a n n o t possibly a f­ I nion do hereby sell to Pearl W. is a stanch C hristian. This, he
filiate.
(leer, the paper known as the said, was a m iracle of m odern d ay s.”
•
T h e O nly S e < i i . ak P a p e r P i bi . h h e h on
T
orch
of
R
eason
together with all
t h e P a c ific C oast .
Now Secularists it is time we have
At w hat point did the “ M iracle”
Published W eekly by the Liberal t ’ni- learned the lesson.
We should the m achinery, type, stock and come in? W hen the m an d ran k
versity Com pany.
profit by the past and if every one m aterial belonging thereto; also ihe the whiskey under the influence of
Editor who understands the situation will Liberal U niversity together with which he reels into the church, or
J. E. HOSMER
Manager take right hold of tin- work of all properly, books subscriptions, when he heard the music which
P. W .iiE E R ........
firmly establishing Sunday schools donations ami accounts belonging helped to sober him , o r w hen he
E ntered at the jxistotfiee at Silverton,
and churches on our by-laws as thereto; in and for the consideration had com pletely recovered from the
Oregon, as second-clans mail m atter.
they now stand we will sojii have th at Pearl W. Geer assumes all the condition produced by liquor, when
SCBSCKIPTION KATES.
the most prosperous ami progres­ indebtedness of the said Oregon “ the speaking appealed to h im ,” or
One year, in a d v an c e ..........................$1 (MJ sive organizations in the w orld.
State Secular Union com ra iled since afterw ards when there had been
Six m o n th s, in a d v an c e ....................
6C
October 15 189? am ounting to time for him to consider more fully
T hree m onths, in a d v an c e ................
25
In C ubs of live or m ore, one year,
Three H undred an d T w enty O ne the folly of his cause?
in a d v an c e ..........................................
75
Rally!
Dollars ($321.)
M oney should be sent by registered
Mr. Henson is very indefinite
le tte r or m oney order.
im m ediately alter the adoption W hat reason is there for believing
( htr friends should remember that of this resolution a com pany was
N otice!
our work here is an entirely new formed to he known as the Lil>e»‘al th at the change in the conduct or
A pencil m ark here denotes th a t your
associations of the man from the
subHcription will e x p ire with the next enterprise and th a t our success I niversity Company. This com­
time he became a “ stanch C h ristia n ”
num lier. You are earnestly requested depends largely upon the num ber
pany will have full control of the had an y other
to renew so th a t you m ay receive the pa­
than n atu ral
per w ithout in te rru p tio n . We have de­ of subscribers we get for our paper, T orch of R eason and U niversity.
antecedents?
cided th a t it is best for all concerned lor, wherever our paper goes there
It
consists
of
P.
W.
Geer,
Pres,
of
th a t we do no t send papers longer th an
It looks as though Mr. Henson,
th e tim e paid for unless so ordered. will he a chance of getting someone (). 8. 8. I , M. P. H osm er, 8 c<»nd
T his will ¡»revent any loss on th e ¡»art of interested in constructive Secular­
in order to get rid of objections to
\ ice Pres., ami J. E. Hosm er Pres,
th e Union and we will know ju st where
m iracles which he cannot answ er
we sta n d . We request you to semi us ism. Everyone then should rally of the U niversity.
th e nam es of Secularists who m ight be­ at once ami help us get a big list
would have people regard a m iracle
W efeel that a great victory has been
com e subscribers and we will m ail sam-
of subscribers.
Make a grand won for purity, justice and tru th ami as a n a tu ra l event hut one of ex-
j»le copies.
charge all along the line! Do all th at there is positively no danger of aptional character or unusual oc­
THURSDAY, JUNE 17, E. M. 297 you can and keep it up and we will
currence. But the alleged m iracles
our work ever going in to the hands
of the bible, to which theologians
do the same.
of
the
enemies
of
Secula
ism.
Let
Factions.
have appealed as evidence of the
us work w uh a will and get our
divine ch aracter of th eir religion
Alive!
building ready as soon as possible.
We hope th a t everyone who
were events, like the m iraculous
does not believe in spooks nor
birth and resurrection of Jesus,
Last week we were som ewhat
Our
Best
Thoughts.
superstitions of any kind and who pessim istic hut this week we feel
which involved, if they occurred,
believes in m orality will do every­ very optim istic and there are good
su p ern a tu ral interposition in the
In order to give to the world o u r
thing in his power to firmly establish reasons for it. Last week our
n atu ral order. The birth of a
best thoughts we m ust he free.
the (). 8. 8. U. on the ethical basis. enemies were doing all in their
child who had no father, arid his
If
a
teacher
has
enemies
and
is
U ntil we do this there can he hut power to stop our work and they
com ing to life after his d eath could
afraid of being injured by their in ­
very little constructive work done have succeeded in delaying and
not have occurred, theologians have
fluence,
this
fear
will
d
etract
from
by us as an organization. M ethod­ hindering us to quite an extent
said w ithout special exertion of
ists are M ethodists and can build hut, whatever be our other faults, we her work, and the world will be divine power in ways different from
Universities and so it is with are not at all “ weak in the knees” robbed of the good that m ight come the operations o f n a tu re .
Catholics and other societies h u t at ami we will use the enem ies’ work from her being free to think and act
This argum ent has led m any
her
very
best.
present the contending, opposite as stepping stones and cross the
who believed th a t the events record­
Now, just as soon as it is known
factions in the 0 . 8. 8. U. make it raging to rren t of opposition. We
ed in the New T estam ent true, to
th
a
t
a
teacher
is
not
orthodox
that
im possible to do th e constructive are very sorry for the delay in the
accept C hristianity as a su p e rn a tu r­
work th a t can he done as soon as building, but it will be only for a instant she has enemies who will al religion.
But if theologians
not
rest
until
her
position
is
filled
our organization is really secular short time and when we do go on
now’, when m iracles have been
and the factions th at do not belong we will he in better shape than ever. with some good sister who is more chased out of the known world,
to the Secular ranks have content­ Triends of purity and common ! credulous; so we see that there is a claim th a t a m iracle is an event as
ed themselves with their own sense, we m ust not let this education­ premium placed upon superstition, n atu ra l as any other, only unusual,
indifference and hypocrisy. W hat
societies, or until we firmly settle !
such as a drunken m an going to
al work he crowded out by our is the effect?
upon our ethical basis. This is our I enemies, for it stands for the com­
church listening to the music and
The
schools
are
filled
with
C
hris­
great future work and m ust he our plete overthrow of superstition and
tian fanatics, indifferent people who to the preaching and becoming
thought by day and our dream s its kindred evils. Come to our aid grow im lifierent to o th e r things and converted, with w hat consistency
at night.
in this giand work and the children only work for pay, and the hypo­ or force can they continue to ap ­
In a com m unication from our co­ of com ing generations will “ rise up crites, who perhaps do more harm peal to alleged m iracles as evidences
than either of the other classes. of the su p e rn a tu ra l origin and
worker Mr. W. J . Dean of T alent and call us blessed.”
0 , how the poor children suffer on
the following is quoted: ‘‘You see
W e must rem em ber th a t th is is account of the m ental slavery of our ch aracter of th eir system ?
years ago we m aterialists went in not a local affair, neither is it for a teachers!
In the past the clergy has too
with the sp iritu alists and built a few years only; hut the University
We hope th a t our Liberal U n i­ often Uf-ed their influence to im ­
hall. It was soon discovered that is to he a fort, erected by the united versity will he a great factor in free­ prison, to rtu re and destroy those
the two isms d id n 't mix well and efforts of the freethinkers of the ing the world from this horrible oc­ w’ho have had the tem erity to
topus of superstition.
the result was th at our hall was world, and is to he a base of sup­
criticize their teachings. Now they
“ to let” for several years. A few plies for freem ens’ sons and
show readiness and facility in revis­
A H iracleof riodern Days.
m onths ago we bought out the daughters as long as this war
ing ami in terp retin g th eir doctrines
spook elem ent and are now bend­ against ignorance, superstition and
so as to harm onize them with the
Rev. P. 8. Henson a prom inent tacts of science and to escape the
ing all our efforts to get out of debt crim e is waged.
Chicago preacher, spends consider­ force of the critics' objections.
and improve the hall. We have
able time in try in g to ¡»rove th a t A nything in this age of doubt and
now a fine prosperous S unday
The Work (Joes On.
the bible agrees with science. Here disbelief, to get a new lease of
school.”
is a sam ple of his profound reason­ life for th eir theology and a
In tha city of Portland the same
At the m eeting last Tuesday ing: “ The speaker used the arc prolongation of th eir influence as
teachers of the true faith and
th in g i. e., the m ixing has been evening the Executive Board, in
lig h t—a break in the n atu ra l order gu ard ian s of the peoples’ m orals.
tried and the result has been very order to save our work from further
of things— as a parallel for miracles. Meanwhile the decay of creeds goes
unsatisfactory.
The
result
in interruption and final capture by
He cited the case of a man who on, and the sunlight of science and
Forest Grove is well known and the enemy passed the following
reeled into hi- church one day in ­ freethought is dispelling the d a r k ­
ness of superstition and en lig h ten ­
the American Secular Union is resolution :
toxicated, but, hearing the music, ing the priests as well as the people.
another excellent exam ple of the,
Resolved, th a t we, the Executive was sobered to the point where the
B. F. U.
Torch of Reason