TH E TORCH OF REASON, S IL V E R T O N , OREGON, T H U R S D A Y , OCTOBER 28, 1897
the thing started, hut they couldn’t of Liberalism were acting as huge until after she was m arried. The
see just how it could be done w ith stones around the neck of true Sec lecture tour was made, and by col
out money. There was one person ularism : and so we were deceived, lections for the lectures, subscrip
The O n ly Paper of Its K in d.
in the ranks, however, who agreed and in spite of the w arnings of our tions to the T orch and L ittle C au
The
Published Weekly by the Liberal U ni with us th at now is just as good a friends, and what th a t tireless but dle, etc., we received $85.
versity Com pany, in the In terests of
tim e to start as any; and that per- unfortunate worker, K atie Kehm school, m eanwhile, had started with
C onstructive, Moral Secularism .
I son was P. W. Geer, our present co Sm ith, had said before her death, tw enty pupils and rap id ly increased
we, in our enthusiasm for the cause, to thirty -n in e.
J. E. H o s m e r,........................ E d ito r worker and friend.
Mr. Geer, president of the O. S.
After discussing how best to com made our worst m istake, and took
P. W . G eer........................ M a n a g e r
mence sueh a great undertaking, into the work one whose ideas of S. U n ca lle d a con vention, and after
E ntered a t the postoffice at Silverton, we decided th at the first th in g to Secularism are as far from what w e1 the usual advertising, it was held
Oregon, as second-class mail m atter.
do was to get a Secular newspaper think is right as the liberty of the here at Silverton. Although it was
SUBSCRIPTION RATES.
started. In order to raise money savage is from the liberty of a civil not as well atten d ed as the hoard
had hoped, yet it proved a very
One year, in ad v an ce..........................$1 00 I for the proposed university, we con ized A m erican citizen.
Six m onths in advance..................
^0 i cluded to get some blanks printed,
E verything seemed in our favor im portant one, for at this meeting
T h re e m o n th s , in a d v a n c e ..................
26
calling for help from the Liberals at this tim e, however, and after the Secularists took the most im
In clubs of five or m ore, one year,
in a d v an c e ..........................................
76 everywhere. This was done, a l calling the convention at Silverton, p o rtan t step in the history of the
Money should be sent by registered
though we were advised by a then and discussing the m atter with the organization; and th a t was the
letter or m oney order.
high official in our ranks th a t there Liberals in the meetings, we were adoption of the ethical basis. But
Notice!
was no use trying, etc., etc. We induced to put the whole work into although it was passed with a large
A pencil m ark here denotes th a t your got the blanks printed, and having the hands of th e Oregon State Sec m ajority, it was b itterly opposed
subscription will expire w ith the next only enough money to pay for half ular Union, and offer our ser by Miss Olds and one or two others.
n u m b er. You are earnestly requester!
to renew so th a t you may receive the pa the printing we induced the Liberal vices one year free, excepting actual This b itter opposition did not cease
per w ithout in te rru p tio n . We have de p rin ter to donate the other half. necessary expenses. T his was ac with the convention, and
Miss
cided th a t it is best for all concerned The next thing was to see about
cepted ami we four were given full Olds and those of her belief have
th a t we do not semi papers longer th a n
th e tim e paid for unless so ordered. getting the blanks signed, and to charge of the educational d ep art since done everything in their
T his will ¡»revent any loss and we will
get possession of a printing outfit. m ent of the Oregon State Secular power to prevent the work going
know ju st w here we stan d .
We request you to send us th e nam es i After much searching and m any Union. The p rin tin g press and on. They declared the convention
of Secularists who m ight become sub- j
a m b e rs and we will mail sam ple copies. interview s with printers who wished outfit was bought and about $»35 illegal; claimed th at because it was
to sell out, we had alm ost concluded donated to help pay for it. The decided best not to hold an election
T H U R S D A Y , OCT. 28, E. M . 297 to run in debt for a fine large o u t T orch of R eason was started and of officers u n til the next convention
fit in a good location in the city of we worked very hard to do even a s ' th a t the ¡»resident railroaded the
A R E V IE W .
Portland; but we finally concluded, well as we did, working under the thing through in order to hold his
Thin issue of the T orch of R eason and we think wisely, th at the o u t great disadvantage of not having office, etc., etc. Of course, this h it
is the last of the first volume, and fit was too large to sta rt with, and the money to get what we needed, ter opposition called forth some
it is well for us and our friends to th a t the johwork necessary to keep and m any times w orking nearly thing in self-defense, and Miss
review the year’s work, ascertain the num ber of presses going and all night to get the paper out on O lds’ license to lecture having e x
w hat m istakes have been made, the necessary workmen hu<y would tune; worrying for ieai our inexper pired, sue was notified hv the ¡»res
what victories have been won; and detract from our other W'‘rk rath er ience in newspaper work would ident of the exam ining hoard th a t
then decide, as best we can, what th an help it So we waited, and cause serious m istakes and knowing under the present am ended by-laws
shall he the plan of our future cam Mr. Geer, thinking that Silverton, full well th a t if in our h u rry even she would be obliged to take an ex
paign against ignorance, supersti being a very liberal town, would a comma should he m isplaced our am ination in order to lecture further
help perhaps more than any other orthodox friends would he glad to for the organization. This she re
tion and their resultant evils.
There have been many Secularists place, we concluded that it would m ake it known to the world. Well, fused to do, saying she could not
who have thought that it would he pay to investigate a little before de the work went on; friends brought stand on the new by-laws, thus os
a grand thing for our cause if we ciding definitely to undertake our us potatoes, Hour, vegetables, a good tracizing herself from the organiza
could sta rt a school, and thus d em work in P ortland. Many of the cow, ¡»aid our rent, etc., hut no tion. But still the work of opposi
o n strate th a t a higher educational citizen» of Silverton encouraged the money was yet raised for the u n i tion went on, and a num ber of let
institution could he built and m ain enterprise, and Mr. J. D. Guisg, versity, although quite a goodly ters from S piritualists and Free-
tained by Secularists, and at the president of the Silverton Secular num ber had promised to pay, some b'vers, quoting largely Miss Olds’
same time educate young men and C hurch, said th at the people of his ten, some twenty-five, some fifty, words, came in criticising our work,
women for the coming struggle city would raise the »$5,000 th at we and »ome one hundred dollars. claim ing th a t we were narrow , etc.
against hypocrisy arid greed—edu thought necessary before startin g
About this lime Mr. Win. H aight, Some, of whom we had never heard,
cate them free from the prejudices the building. Meanwhile we had a S piritualist, came from Chicago, and who m ust be very poor Secu-
of the old creeds; for m any of us decided to make Miss N e ttie Olds a whom, having been recommended lists, took pains to write us friendly
realize th a t in order to save our visit at her home about two miles by Miss Olds, we thought of engag (?) letters, in which they used la n
selves from a future slavery, the from M cM innville, and see if she ing in our work, bin the m ajority guage we to<»k as an in su lt, and
people m ust he united, and nothing would help 11s. Personally we op deciding th a t it was not best io re consigned to the waste basket.
But our work moved right along,
keeps us so far ap art as the priestly posed the proposed visit, for m any tain Mr. H aig h t, im agine our aston
creeds and narrow , castiron dogm as of our warmest friends in P ortland ishm ent to hear Miss Olds declare and although we had some trouble
of the old religions. We, in com had told us th a t Miss Olds was a their engagem ent. They were to settling about where to locate, we
mon with m any others, thought Freelover, and believed ami put in he m arried in six m onths, but the a t last were ready to buy the land;
th at sueh a school would he a grand practice m any ideas th a t we do not majority did not fancy the idea of but those who opposed the e th i
thing, and the establishm ent of consider Secularism; but knowing lhe engaged couple undertaking to cal basis, and others who were led
such a school having been one of th at m any workers, and especially work at the business of being en into tak in g up the w arcry against
our fixed purposes in life, even long in the Freetlm ught ranks, are mis gaged and our work at the same us, seemed hound th a t we should
before we heard of the Oregon State represented, we concluded th a t per time, in the sam e house, and so we not build a school at all, and when
»Secular Union, we were very much haps after all we had no proof that urged im m ediate m arriage, and we went to collect the money th at
enthused over the idea, when, after Miss Olds was not in perfect h a r failing in this we thought it best had been prom ised, the parties said
joining this band of Secular work mony with the true ideas of Secu that Miss Olds should sta rt out on th a t certain stories had been told
ers, we found th at there were m any larism , and as she was a good lec a lecturing tour. The fact is, we them th at m ust be straightened up
others of the sam e opinion. But turer and able to help us m uch, we hardly knew what to do, for we before they could pay the money.
while m any thought it would l>e a should not let prejudice or hearsay needed her help in the school, but »Some said th a t Miss Olds had told
grand thing, not many thought it hinder the progress of the cause. it was decided th a t it was better them th at we were anarchists.
said
they had heard
could lie done now . “ Too hard It m ust he rem em bered also th at for the cause, go they went to her O thers
times to start ju s t now,” said some. we were then very young in the home where she was to rest awhile th a t the university was working in
O thers thought th at it would he all work ami scarcely realized w hat and then sta rt out on her trip. opposition to the public school»’,
right if some rich old Infidel would dangers beset S ecularorganizations. She intended to come hack in a few others th a t we were getting up a
die and leave a million dollars, We did not know th at many creeds weeks, hut we insisted th a t it was scheme to sell Liberal H all, and
or at least a few thousands, to get claim ing to he foremost in the ranks best for our work for her to stay
( C ontin lied on »even th p a g e .)
Torch of Reason