Image provided by: Silverton Country Historical Society; Silverton, OR
About Torch of reason. (Silverton, Oregon) 1896-1903 | View Entire Issue (Sept. 9, 1897)
the TORCH OF REASON, SILVERTON, OREGON, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 1897. The H ighest Types. may be complete. There are people those noisy Christians know that , . r. ... 1 who have that degree of trust in he don’t approve of their talking The words Liberal, Freethinker, 0 to him right out in public when his Infidel and Secularist are used each other that noth.ng but abeo- The Only Paper of Its Kind. boy, that is fully as old as his father, many times as synonyms, but this lute proof would cause even the Published W eekly by the Liberal U n i told them to go into their closets is erroneous for there is a great least shadow of distrust. I his state versity Conipany, in the In terests of when they had any business to difference in their meaning. There of honor and trust should exist he- C onstructive, Moral Secularism . transact with his masculine parent. are many good Freethinkers, hut tween all men. It is possible for J. E. Hosmer, Editor We can’t help thinking that God the fact that a man has “no string» it to exist and it is not ae far away P. W. Geer,.....................Manager made a mistake, however, for he on his thoughts” does not neces- as some suppose, for when the grand seems to have overlooked the fact sarily make him a good man. His work of Secularism gets fully under E ntered at th e postoffice at Silverton, that thousands and thousands of thoughts may be free but far from way it is going to accomplish some- Oregon, as secom l-class mail m atter. dollars worth of hops would be being true, beautiful or good. This thing better than the miracles of SUBSCRIPTION RATES. spoiled by hie foolish notion of is also true of an Infidel. Disbe- “holy writ.” One year, in a d v an c e .......................... $1 00 Six m onths in a d v a n c e .................... 6C , punishing a few’ fanatical Chris lief in the Christian religion does A few people are beginning to T hree m onths, in a d v a n c e ................ 25 , tians for not obeying his only be not necessarily make one good nor catch the thought that the religion In clubs of five or m ore, one year, gotten Jewish offspring. What bad. Some of the meanest men— “to do good” means something, and in ad v an ce.......................................... Money should be sen t by registered difference could it possibly make men who have the very lowest, as soon as a few people get in dead letter or m o n e y order. with the hoy, now’ that he has gone meanest thoughts possible, are In- earnest about this matter it will he- to his home in the sky and is hav fidelsand hate the Christian ehurch come contagious and grow rapidly, Notice! ing a good time with the angels, more for the good there is in it The very first thing one should do A pencil m ark here denotes th a t your whether they prayed in their closets than for its evil, superstitious teach- is to eliminate all deception from subscription will ex p ire w ith th e next n u m b er. You a c earn estly requested or not? And just think of the fine ings; hut there are people who are his or her character, for when the to renew so th a t you m ay receive th e pa lager beer that “cheereth the heart Freethinkers, Infidels and Liberals average person is deceived a few per w ithout in te rru p tio n . We have de cided th a t it is l>est for all concerned of the dutchman,” that will he cut who are honest, kind, and interest- times by those pretending to be th a t we do not send papers longer th an But ed in theirfellowmen as individuals Secularists, they loose confidence, tiie tim e paid for unless so ordered. off if the hops are not saved. T his will p rev en t any loss and we will then again, perhaps the governor and as a race. These are Secular- a'«1 c»nnot do the grand work they know ju st w here we stan d . might have Jone; and as we said We request you to semi us the nam es of the skies happened to think . of Secularists who m ight become suh- that one of his old-time friends said 18 A true Secularist is willing that '«tore, there are so many ways of scrilxTs ami we will m ail sam ple copies. something about strong drink being all should think as they choose being deceived that one must be T H U R S D A Y , S E P T . 9 , E . M . 297 raging, and concluded that the hop without persecution but he is not continually on his guard. If we lice he had sent wasn’t quite suffi litierai to that extent that he is «re thrown into the society of a per- Prayer. cient to spoil the Willamette crop willing that hie friends (all men con it is natural that an interchange ' ’ ” take place. Now if will The most ignorant performance and so let it pour. It is clearing are included in his friendehip) of ' ideas wc have heard of in some time is up now, which again complicates, think evil or remain one is deceptive he withholds some the union prayermeeting which was the matter and with feelings of i in 1OU darkness to their own and of his ideas until he learns what held in Oaksdale, Washington, a meekness (this may help us to in the world’s detriment. Although the other’s ideas are and then few days ago. There was much herit the earth) we gi ve it up and con liberal, a Secularist will never be shapes his deceptive medicine to grain down in that locality and clude that we’ll let God run his own heard to say, “if people will let me suit the patient. Suppose, for in God didn’t seem to realize that the business. We’ll take what comes, alone, they may believe as they stance, that one was radically water that was below the firma let it be rain or hail, good crops or choose.” Secularists do not believe opposed to the freelove doctrine, ment was wet and coming down, poor crops, the lies of our enemies, in letting things alone that are evil and the other finding this out, thus spoiling thousand» of bushels or a liberal donation to our Secular and preventing the happiness that although a radical freelover, very . may he enjoved by the useof reason ™ely avoids the issue ami deee.ves of wheat that was up to 98 cents University. and still on the raise; so the good and taking thought for the morrow. ''is friend by saying tl.at he believes Look in T h e G la s s . Christians concluded to jog the old In fact, the genuine Secularist is a as Ingersoll does on the sub- fellow’s memory by a good old- A,though one may be perfect in re[0rl0er of reformers and we hope ject. Now this may be true, but it fashioned prayermeeting. The wanting to do just right, yet n o ' and beUeve that the words Liberal- is not the whole truth, for although words of the father’s eldest son one is perfect; hut if we wish to at- ism, Freethought and Infidelity the deceiver believes just as Inger- that they should go into the closet tain to the highest degree of per- may be U8ed more properly, and so11 doe8> he believes and practices wasn’t heeded this time. You see, fection that we are capable of as tbat we Inay have more occasion to things that Ingersoll scorns. So the dear old Santa Claus fellow is Dr. Franklin tried, it might be a U8e the word which includes all of our work demands much thought getting so feeble that he can’t see good plan to not only examine our tbege and mucb Inore. if we can to be able to detect mere selfish de- into closets as he used to and it is thoughts with our mind’s eve become Secuiari8ts we will receive ceivers from those who honestly lo o k the reward that always goes with have the cause of Secularism at necessary to talk right out loud in occasionally hut also to look meeting. Great times these! The at ourselves in a good mirror every upward step on nature’s great heart, and are frank and open ad women of Oaksdale didn’t “keep once in awhile. Look at your fore ladder of evolution and that is the vocates of the true principles of silent in the Churches,” as Saint head. Is it broad or narrow? Is ability to organize and stay or progress. We believe in freethought and Paul thought was the proper thing it very low and sloping? What do ganized. Liberal, Freethinker, for “old ribs” to do but they also the best authorities on this subject Jnfidel—-these are too hetrogeneous hold that everyone should be given - . . . zv.. « ■ « i i - n v lr . n n l . d l , AAvro i n a .. V. hearing, hut we do not y believe in used all their influence with Jehov say • in regard 1 to your kind 1 of a - I to do good - work, hut take from ah to save the 98-cent wheat from forehead? What does your exper- tbe8e their highest types and the deception, and our work now de the wet water that wa» coming ience with yourself say? Look at extractions are homogeneous and mands that the old blocks be re from below the firmament. your nose. Is it wide and flat and of the best possible material out of moved from the wheels of our char But the important question is are your lips thick and protruding? which to form the advance guard iot of progress. “ Knowledge is power,” let us have a knowledge of whether the rain celled or not. Of Have you anything to guard against of the human race. each other and the mistakes of the course it would stop sooner or later in regard to what scientists say about the nose and lips? Have past will be avoided. With preju as it always does. But did God you a large, heavy jaw? Are you D e c e p tio n . dice toward none and charity for turn the stopcock as soon as he was stubborn? What do your eyes I here are so many different ways aj^ we pray you to help in the grand notified of the trouble. No, and sav? How is your temper? Self- W()rjc 01 securing ior for me the woria world 1 the perhaps the reason is that a good examination may be made a very of deceiving people that oik almost wont man up in the mountains of Oregon profitable investment of the time 1 looses confidence in everybody and priceieB8 jewel of simple honesty, ' needed water to run his sawmill. used, provided we have the power everything; but one extreme evil should not drive us to another ex- Friends of Secularism, yon must The small stream on which the t«> apply the know ledge t l ^ mill is located was almost drv •r and teachers m a^ be Io the children if fem e th lt mav become “ «reat an ren.en.Iwr that we have been very this good man wanted to get out a they will take a little thought of evil. The right thing to do in bold in advocating what we believe little more lumber for the Liberal their future and study their capabil- selecting the objects of our oon6- Secularism means and therefore we ities and natural weaknesses. The dence is to be careful and prove enemies who would >e our University and as God loves peo Qiivtliintr altnnf u . . , , , friends had we been willing to go then, after being thoroughly 1 t tbe <<goft „ business We ple who mind their own business onlyangelR we know any thing about h he just concluded he’d send rain to help ourselves and the hoys and satisfied, we should throw away all need the help and encouragement of enough to raise the creek and let girls to become messengers of good, suspicion, that the companionship^ ever\ true Secularist. Torch of Reason a -