TH E TORCH OF REASON. SILVERTON, OREGON, APRIL 6, 1*99 2 F eeding th e M u ltitu d e.* h o u rs’ stewdy work, and in that definite about it. There is no man- Palestine is a mass of m ountains, tim e Jesus would have been ohlig- w- uscript • or . part of a m unuscript of hills and desert places; it would be H E R E are two accounts in 1° “ break’ five tons of food, the New Testam ent th a t was writ-1 as great a m iracle to get the people the New Testam ent of mir- f hen they m ust have passed around ten during the first three centuries, there and aw ay again as it was to aculously Reding a vast where the people sat and gathered as is adm itted by all C hristian feed them . m u ltitu d eo f people with an exceed- up the fragm ents that were not scholars. In d e e d .it is doubtfull if Again we are carried back to the eaten, of which there were twelve there is a single word of the New ingly sm all am ount of food. The hero worship. Again we find o u r­ T estam ent in existence th at was selves face to face with the people first we find in M att. 14:15-21, baskets full. These baskets were sm a ll ones written previous to the twelfth cen- who ascribed such rem arkable pow­ Mark 6:35-44, Luke 9:12-17, John 6:5-13. The second will be found th at were carried on the arm , and tury A. I). There is no evidence ers to th eir leaders. In the Apoc­ held probably about a peck. As th a t either M atthew, M ark, Luke ryphal New T estam ent are a n u m ­ in M att. 15:32-39, M ark 8:1-10. Jesus went across the sea of G al- original supply of food would or John wrote a word of the gospels ber of wonderful stories of Jesus. ilee to a desert place where he was not •'ave filled one of the baskets bearing th eir names. Even “ Helps According to one of them , he was followed by a vast m ultitude. He half full, they fed 5000 men and to the S tudy of the Bible” says, playing with a lot of children who healed their sick and in the even- doubtless as m any women and chil- “ This was supposed to have been were m aking clay images of birds ing the disciples came to him and dren, giving them all they wanted written by and probably and anim als. He made some and it is not claim ed they walked and flew off. entreated him to send the m ulti- to eat, and had about twenty-five a b o u t------ Of tude away in order th a t they m ight times as much when they got th at a single word of the New’ Tes- course the A pocryphal New T esta­ go and get f »od. But Jesus said through as they had when they tam ent was w ritte n until tw enty to ment is not considered canonical, they need not depart, and instruct- started. 300 years after the events are said but as the canon was decided by a But how d id th e people get th e re ed the disciples to feed them. to h av e ta k e n place, a n d th e n no lot of bishops (who could not agree The disciples told him th a t all Thw «ays they knew wbe-e <>ne knows who wrote it. am ong them selves) by a m ajority the food they had was five loaves J^«us was — going, and when they saw ' The Old T i « estam ent is in I much vote, one is as likely to be the true x n v v /iu r t a i i i r u v in III H U C ll him take ship’ they ran along and the sam e condition. The internal and two sm all fishes. They were one as the other. L u th er and others told to bring them to him , and he a »,ea(l °f him . 1 he sea of G al- evidence show _ s th .......................... a t M oses h .... ad claim ed books were accepted th a t commanded the m u ltitu d e to sit a ^out eight miles wide by nothing to do with the w riting of had no rig h t in the canon. If they down. They sat down in ranks o f j f*fteen long, and from all accounts f the P entateuch; Joshua did not p u t books in th a t have no right fifty and one hundred. H e then (there was a trip half way around it write the book th a t bears his name; there, who knows but they left out took the five loaves and two fishes, for the people to make on foot, J ll(lge8 was w ritten 500 years after some th a t should have gone in? “ broke” them and gave them to the then up through the m ountains the Judges had m ouldered into Like some of the other stories, it the disciples, who passed them to the vicinity of B ethsaida (Juli- dust. In fact, th e scholars of the illu strates the n atu ral inclination higher criticism claim th a t the old- of m an -- tow ------------ around among the people. The lls)> a good day s walk for the best ards the m ysterious; not est hook was w ritten not earlier °nl.Y in past ages, but up to and in- m u ltitude ale all they wanted and of them and more than th a t for ea rlv all. a ll. gQQ 3 q j n a j j j t jon to th is, . eluding the present time. the disciples gathered up twelve n nearly It takes considerable calculation in most cases even the com pilers of baskets full of fragm ents. “ And they th a t had eaten were on the part of electric railroad th e hooks a re u n k n o w n E v il E ffects of S m o kin g . m anagers to handle an extra crowd ------------------— about 5000 m en, beside women and It will not seem strange, then, if ♦ of 10,000 people. They have cars I rep ea t, ¡is location w as supposed ; Dr. E. Stuvers gives some in ­ ch ild ren ” (M att. 14:21). This is the substance of the four in plenty, men who are trained to to h av e been G e n e sa re th It w as structive statistics illu strativ e of the their work, and come and go like ab o u t tw en ty to th ir ty m iles from ■ effect of tobacco on the developm ent reports of the first feeding. W heat flour was a luxury in P a l­ clockw ork; but frequently, when th e scene of th e first feeding. In of the young. From th e m easure­ estine, and their bread consisted of an extra crowd of 10,000 people are this case we are told th at Jesus had m ents of 187 of the class of - 1891 - to be handled, the patience of the compassion on the people because a G found th a t the non-amok- little cakes m ade of barlev meal. , prR gained in weight during thecol- I t was m ixed in a kind of trough, crowd and the good n atu re of the th«y had continued with him three lege course 10.4 per cent, more than m anagers has a severe strain to was not leavened, and five of these days and had nothing to eat. They the regular smokers, and 6.6 per How, then, did such a were again instructed to sit down. cent, more than the occasional smok- cakes was a very lim ited supply endure. for five men, w ithout women and m ultitude, w ithout previous a r " and the disciples hunted up “ seven height the non-users of to- " te loaves and a few sm all flgl.es” and !,,aCCO j ner‘‘as«d 24 P*r cent, more children. Y et this was all the food rangem ent8 being made, congregate , , .... , ,, than the regular users and 12 per there was am ong this vast m u lti­ at a place from one to three day s’ ., they were fed. I hey also ate all cent. more tha(1 the occa8;„ 1*’a | tude. walk from their homes, and how they w anted, the disciples gathered In increase of chest girth the non­ If there were 5000 men, besides could they have been so im provi- up the fragm ents and they were user had an advantage of 26.7 per women and children, it is reasons- dent as to int0 ,he desert with seven baskets full. They were large cenf- an d 22 percen t. , and an in- ble to estim ate their entire num ber out food or any knowledge of how packing baskets; nut .he email ret- Cr<‘“ 8e " h 1“ " 8 <'a Pacit-v of 77.5 per . . . . i cent, ano 49 per cent. respect- a t not less th an 10,000. How it was to be obtained? icules used in the first case. ivelv. The m ost rem arkable p art of the strange th a t so m any people should A person who bad been w ithout These observations, with respect go to a desert place, m any miles story is th a t the people congregated food for three days and then ate all to the dw arfing effects of tobacco, w ......................... ithout food or he wanted would eat not less than are corroborated by observations from home, not knowing where in th a t desert place < T h at would ? n ^ « c la sH o f 1891 A m herst, made they were going, or how long they any ¡.lea how they were to get it. two pounds of food. Then th a t five loaves and two small ic n n a .1 • , hy I)r. E dw ard H itchcock. He would be gone, and, last but r o t fishes .......... .......... .......... ... u ,“ Hke lfi.000 P -m n d s-e .g h t t o n s - found th a t in weight non-sm okers w iounn m at in weight non-sm okers least, w ithout tak in g an y th in g to f fishes su n n litd t h t m w i t h ' «11 i h o of r food to feed * ............ the m ultitude. All increased d u rin g their course 24 per f food o o d t they hev w W anted a n t e d I to n p a l and Q .til 1..O . * , u io r ;i.- r p r i eat with them . eat left m ade out ol seven 1 loaves and 1 a few cent, more th an th e smokers; in in- • « • a — The people had been there all twenty-five tim es as much as there sm all fishes. crease in height they surpassed them was in the first place, is a little too day ; and it was then ------------------ late in the ev- i • ' - n w u u iu n a v e been oeen quite I)er cent. , in gain of chest 42 per It would have quite a a strain strain ening, and they would have been much for thw plain, m atter-oi-fact on the discinles t o h a v e s e r v e d cent. , and in gain of lung capacity n quite n ilo h u n g ry from , heir Io, ,g jo u r- I t «»¡..ker h i n t u r of the nineteenth ..... .............. io nnunds na ve serv. the century J aver " macipies of 3334 of d f an “ d 75 per cent. Again, in F * rance, • » < * «>« , n i l t . r , l n n r o v o w m ’ u » , A , , « J .1___ to a c c e n t . W • l t h , n i l t t . l n r o n r n o f . . J average or pounds of food difference between the n n stud ts O 1U — - - w u u v en I in U n p v and a n d outdoor . - 7 . . ------------------------ . . . v u u v U u V t B ney exercise. Y et they to accept w ithout more proof than each to the m u ltitu d e, as they had the polytechnic schools who smok- were all fed by the disciples from has thus far been produced. to feed an average of 6 6 6 | people ed cigarettes and those who did not, « _ in anlinlurchin «xo u_ ▲ i_ • the five loaves and two sm all fishes. But this is not all. Scarcely had each. One per m inute would m ake in scholarship, as shown by their respective If they had done this, it would the echoes of the first deed passed eleven hours- steady work, serving great th a t class the g o standings, ^ m e u t p r was X i G so have required not less than five »w ay when we read of another, at the rate of over 120 pounds of ed absolutely the use of tobacco in tons of food— 10,000 pounds—as an This tim e there were but 4000 men, food per hour. Any one who has »H governm ent schools. average of one pound each would besides women and children, to be acted as a w aiter can appreciate the , , ^ r’ says, speaking of the be little enough for hungry people. i fed. job. effect of tobacco on the m oral na- . , I tu re: “ I he use of tobacco has a ne- The twelve disciples would have The location of this feat was sup- had to serve 333J persons each. I f posed to he G enesareth. T his i s ’a of how the ^ p k g o t t h e ^ n d how m o m l 'L t u T o U h " v o l T ° In id ? r - --------------------- ----------------- W W W r T they waited upou one each m inute, good place it would have taken over fourteen ; w “ supposed •From “ Big Bible Stories” , bvperm is-:?0 ” ' , ri,e 81 .n of the author, W. H. Bkch, Lily I haT e be” n D“ le' N’ Y ' a l- 1“ to say th a t everything they got away. It m ust not be con- dition to m aking bovs tired stupid to be” in Biblical his- founded with our own country, as an