Image provided by: Silverton Country Historical Society; Silverton, OR
About Torch of reason. (Silverton, Oregon) 1896-1903 | View Entire Issue (Sept. 30, 1897)
T H E TORCH OF REASON, SILV ER TO N , OREGON, T H U R SD A Y , S E P T E M B E R 30, 1897. Mental Poison. grades our hreaili Beamed to be get- m ountains besides this one, and ting short and everything turned m any other thing* contrary to o u r There are various sorts of poison k i black A peculiar h elin g came holy religion; they are getting —#onie physical, some m ental; The Only I ap er o nVer us. We seamed to he shrink- bolder and l*>l«ler ami have forced gon,e are retailed from dispensaries Published VVeekiy by the l.m eiai I ni- j r,g t d e g e n e r a t in g a n d t im e seemed our holy p rie s t b u g s into some veiy m ^ d m ^ g ^ r e H j a n d s o t n o f r o m p a m - ''^ S w t r u c ti w / M o r a l Secularism . m be ru-hing backwards and carry- ridiculous positions. H e i e c o m e s phlet and magazine, folio and peri- in g us with it at a trem endous rate, one of the oeaihen, infidel herencc odical. The form er species of poi- J. E. Hosmer, ...................E d itor Hll(j „ „ lo o k in g i t o u r b o d ie s we n o w an d I ’ll not stay to hear bis gon jM t |,e more deadly, the latter P. W. Geer, ..................... Manager found th a t like “ Sh«'” in H. Rider blasphem ous talk one second, ’ and m o re injurious. The former- H a g g a r d ’s novel we had withered, off he m arched with his queer little commonly puts his victim out of E ntered a t th e {»ontoffiee at Silverton, and while w «ere wondering what eyes turned u p to the space above pain in a few hours; while the la t Oregon, as sv o n d -c la s- m ail m atter. it all m eant we heard liitle voices the fern ami sa al hru.-li where he ter, even though adm inistered in SUBSCRIPTION RATES. supposed the big bug, who made the strongest doses, frequen ly tor il 00 ¡dl ar<*un»i us, and strange t«» say One year, in a d v a n c e .................... This conduct ture- for twenty, forty, sixty years ô( although at first we could i.ot un- the m ountain lives. Six m onths in a d v an c e .............. T hree m onths, in a d v an c e ................ 25 d< rstand w hat was said, we soon on the part «»f our first acquaintance before death ensm s. .Judging ac In clubs of five or m ore, one year, amuse«! us, but we weie well repaid tions by their effects, it is more in advance.................................... ,ri onnd th at we hail degenerated int<» Money should tie sent by registered little black bugs and the other bugs for tin* loss of bis conversation by crim inal to poison the mind th an letter or m oney order. were trv V in e f’ t«> make us understand at once receiving a hearty antenna it is to poison the body, inasm uch th a t we w ire welcomed back to th e shake from the new comer. \\ e as the evil inflicted is vastly greater. Notice! former comlition from which we were ju.-t becoming much interested Pei haps the worst species of m e n A pencil m ark here denotes th a t your sprung. One fine, gentlem anly in an account <f how the bugs of tal poison is that which eaus«-s subscription will expire with the n ex ’ num ber. You are earnestly req le-ted looking bug reached out his a n science were finally overcoming the panic qualm s, superstitious fore to renew so th a t you may receive th e pa hum bugs of theology, when we h l ’ bodings, and supernatural im agin per w ithout in te rru p tio n . We have de tenna, at.<1 shaking « urs most heart cided th a t it is best for all concerned ily, said th a t lie would be glad to a stinging sensation in our low« r ings of the various forms and th a t we do not send papers longer than extrem ities and aw akened, found sym ptom s. This terrible drug at th e tim e paid for unless so ordered. furnish Us aii\ inform ation th at This will prevent any loss and we will would a-sist u in getting back into that we bad gone to sleep in the once destroys a m an ’s usefulness know ju st w here we stan d . our old ways after being “ away bottom <»f the hack, and th a t on< and his comfort. It renders him W e request you to semi us th e nam es of Secularists w h o m ight become suh- from the fold” so long, as lie call« d of those pesky hugs, a flea, had b it at the sam e moment slave and o p serihers ami we will mail sam ple copies. it. We all bad to confess that we ten us. pressor, the victim and the propa THURSDAY, SEPT. 30, E. M. 297 could rem em ber nothing at all in It was now getting late', and find gator of a debasing disease, which regard Io their custom s, and ing a convenient place to sleep in a saps the very life-springs of tru th couldn’t even rem em ber of ever be ran ch er’s barn, we camped for the and of freedom and en tailson the suf Ho! For th e Î P a c fic . ing bugs ourselves although we night; hut in our dream s and when ferer days of restlessness and nights T hinking th a t a trip to th e sea- ; have believed in the theory of evo- continuing our journey the next of terror. If we can judge our ow n shore would do us good, and hav- . ¡ution for a long time, ami true to dav to the great ocean we often ch aracter aright, it is not one which ing some business m atters to attend uU1. infidel nature we began to ask thought that we would like to live is easily roused to anger or violent to a 1 Tillam ook City, we started tHi* goodnature«! bug questions in with the bugs on the m ountain displeasure; yet we would n«»t choose out with a team to drive across the regard t<> the things that naturally awhile, for we believe th a t their ex to have it tried by bearing a ghost Coast Range last T hursday. The interest a Secular pilgrim : “ W hat periences would furnish our people story related to a child of ours, if distance by the North Yam hill is the prevailing religion of your who think they are so highly civil- we had one. We know of several route, the one w h ic h w e to o k , is realm ,” said we, our m inds g o in g ' iz«'d m any a useful lesson, anrl if instances in winch youthful minds, about seventy miles and a v« iv back to the last subject of our anyone, be he bug, hum bug or liu- otherw ise of power and talent, were pleasant route it is, although in thoughts before we began to de- man thinks this account is not in- weakened forever by one supersti m any places after reaching the generate. “ W ell,” said our com- teresting or th at it is not true, we tious fright. m ountain, the grades are rath er panion, “ the tribes of hugs th a t will only ask him to rem em ber th a t It is very rare to find a boy or steep which com pels a conscien- five a ]j around us on this m ountain m any great religions are founded girl who has not been frightened tious person to walk, on account of 1 are heathens and their gods are all <>n dream s th a t are considered by more or less by foolish “ ghost stor- * * 1 t >urdt 1. hum bugs, hut out h«d\ religion is some people fully as absurd as our ies;” and it is also a fact, th a t such After leaving Silverton we trav- founded upon the word of the great attem pted descent t<> hugdom. is the strength of early impressions, through thiity-live miles wonderful Bug th at made this H aving arrived in Tillam ook, we th a t they are h ard ly ever destroyed, of beautiful valley country to M e-, beautiful m ountain and everything foviufi th a t our friends there had Hence alm ost every man and woman M innville, crossing the celebrated that grows. He even made us.” , been suffering from the epidem ic is to some extent infected with th is V ¡Barnette rivci at W heatland, Ibis little speech so pleased us known as a religious revival, and superstitious virus. W ho is re- where theie is a stole and postoflice. that we pioeecded to draw out his ^ e Secularists being anxious to sponsible for it, or with whom did O ther sm all villages are passed on hugship by a few questions th a t give the ppopje our a „ t idot«‘, we it originate? Not with Infidels, the way, but w hat strikes one most astonished him , for w hat seemed have consented to speak in the for they do not believe in such favorably is the gre.it fields of gold- h ard tot us to u n d etstan d was very , Opera house next Sunday evening trash; and if all children were edu- en grain, hops, and beautiful tiuit easy for him because ne had “ nothing in providence prevent- cated (as they ought to he, in order which is SO a b u n d a n t this year as brought up to it you see. So in ing.» to m ake them w hat they should be) to break down m any of the young answ er t<> our questions he went on in Infidel principles, they would trees unless th ey are propped up. to explain th at his tribe of hugs never believe in the m iserable non L ib e ra l U n iv e rs ity . After passing through the thriv- was trying to beetleize the other sense of ghosts, by which their ing city of M cM innville we camped tribes th a t live on the m ountain, At a special meeting of the Silver- m inds are stulified in youth and at a farm house and as it was a and as their m ethods for m any gen- ton Secular church last Sunday the torm ented in after life. We repeat, beautiful moon-light night wc arose erations had been to kill all other L ib elai hall was leased to the L ib -' this m ental poison does not come nt 2 a. in. and journeyed on, get- h u g -w h o disagr«*ed with them , as e ra j U niversity Co. for the purpose from Infidelity. It is the legitim ate ting to the mountain-« about 6 f<i.-t as they could catch them , quite of holding school this w inter. The offspring of religion, the prolific o clock where we camped again, had ¡1 large numhei had been converted; ha ji wj|| be pn| jn ^he best possible source of m ental debasem ent. In a good r«*st, and ate our breakfast, hut, said he, out holy men made rep ajr a n fi school will be held there the old testam ent we find it pervad- 1 hen came the clim bing, up, up one gie.it m istake. W hen they i u n m (he U niversity building is ing the entire book; and in the new the m ountains. I he fresh tnoun- captured a heat hen ti ibe they kept reafiy for occupancy. School will we meet with it in the very in- tain air, the exercise and the in- alive the young female hugs and open W ednesday, November 3rd, D eduction to C hristian ity . (S eethe a firing scenery all conspired to th eir offspring having grown up, a n fi we already have the assurance first chapter of Matt.) The preach- w««rk one of n atu re’s m iracles and and, being very num erous, are of a much larger attendance than ing, the education, the lite ratu re of w e feel th a t after all there would be causing trouble right in our own ja st year, quite a num ber of students the day, all acknowledge the mon- some advantage in being a bar- « amp, ami although we have put com ing from a distance. Much has strous idea of ghosts. WThat won- harian if we could he rid of civili- m any of them to death for teaching been added to the facilities for der is it, then, while th e C hristian zation’s duties and roam about like th a t this m ountain w asn’t m ade in teaching, and everything points to teaching has everything its own the Gypsies. six m inutes as our holy beetleism a very successful year in theschool’s way, th a t young and old, generally W hile toiling up one of the steep j teaches, and th a t th«T«* are other history. ¡speaking, should believe in ghosts? - TOr"Cll « OI U svC^ASO