Torch of reason., April 19, 1900, Page 4, Image 4

4
THE TORCH OF REASON, SILVERTON, OREGON, APRIL 12, 1900.
parlor heaven, or to depend on
of
either an anthropomorphic or an
aeolian god for our daily bread?
The Only Paper of Its Kind.
Those who are e mancipated must
build the Liberal University, or it
P ublished W eekly by th e L iberal U n i­
versity C om pany, in the In te re sts of
will never be built. Those who are
C onstructive, M oral Secularism .
still in the fog of mystery and mir­
acle would not if they could, and
Hosmer. . ....
...14
, • ? , , j .v ,.. ii ( . • _ ’ .... . . .
—»-T.*’ ■— ""i""-*
‘’’aLxiuUS tv
P. W. G eer,...................... M anager
gain patronage. We want students: it” is a cross between a jack rab­ iB no agreement among them, and a
school built on the principles(?) of
we must have students in order to bit and a musk rat.
E n te red a t th e postoffice at S ilverton,
The Liberal University is not an either spookism or cowardice would
have a school, hut any of us can get
Oregon, as second-class m ail m a tte r.
students in public schools and get organization of cowards who are be nothing new nor of much force.
SUBSCRIPTION RATES.
The Liberal University is non-
good pay for our work if we choose afraid to speak their honest thought
to teach as other teachers are pleased for fear of losing a student. Let sectarian, but not in the sense that
One year, in a d v a n c e .......................... $1 00
it does not know or does not dare
Six m o n th s, in a d v an c e ....................
50 or forced to teach. If we were com­ those who are afraid to investigate
T hree m o n th s, in a d v an c e ................
25 pelled to say nothing on the ques­ go to other schools, or stay at to stand firmly on a scientific foun­
In clubs of five or m ore, one year,
dation, and that it does not dare to
in a d v a n c e ...........................................
75 tions that affect the lives of our home, read their Bibles and learn
M oney should be sen t by registered students more than any other ques­ how God made a dirt(y) man in combat everything that is unscien­
le tte r or m oney order.
tions, and leave them to the tender his own image; those who do come tific. The lielief in gods and dev­
mercies of the preachers and other will not only
learn
about ils; the belief in ghosts and holy
Notice!
religious fanatics, of what value the great laws of Nature, but will ghosts; the belief in an immaterial
would be a Liberal University? also be taught the absurdities of entity called spirit, and the belief
A h a n d poin tin g to th is notice denotes We must have the privilege when the old dogmas which have so long in a heaven or a hell, are perfectly
th a t y o u r su b scrip tio n h as e x p ire d .
You are earn estly req u ested to re ­ teaching the causes of things (the hindered the truth from being unscientific. Not because we say
new so th a t you m ay receive th e p a ­ very foundation of Science), that known. To be sure, the younger they are, but because they contra­
per w ith o u t in te rru p tio n . W e have d e ­
cided th a t it is best for all concerned there is no proof whatever that students will not be burdened with dict the best established laws of
th a t we do n o t send papers longer th a n there is either a man-like or a questions too profound for their Science and can only be taught by
th e tim e paid for unless so ordered.
young mindH, but parents who send deductive reasoning with the poor­
T his will p rev e n t any loss and we w ill spirit god.
know ju st w here we sta n d .
There is not an emancipated their children to the L. U. O. for est kind of a foundation fora basis.
We request you to send us th e nam es
Nor must it be supposed that
of Secularists who m ig h t Incom e sub- person in the world who is afraid any length of time may consider
scriliers and we will m ail sam ple copies. ! to think or who is afraid to have them lost to all forms of spookism being free from the old dogmas
their children think that the idea and saved for the great work of takes from life one iota of useful­
T hursday , A p r il 91, E. M. 300. of a god is a myth, and we expect Science and Humanity; for it is a ness or happiness. In place of the
to get patronage only from those most encouraging fact that when old conception of a god we have the
OUK N E X T BATTLE.
who are not afraid to have their one is thoroughly emancipated, awe-inspiring yet elevating thought
children think and know that all which takes only a short time after of the great boundless universe of
Perhaps many of our friends do the old priestly notions are not he becomes willing to search for the which we are a part. Yes, we are
not realize what influences are only uutrue but very unscientific truth and accept it whenever and a part of this great, wonderful cos­
brought to bear upon our work in and injurious.
wherever it may be found, he can mos, and the same laws govern us
order to thin us out, scatter us
How can we teach the great law never go back to his old, stale diet as govern it. In place of the Christ
abroad, and wool us around to tire of the indestructibility of matter of the five loaves and three small who, in a little country of Western
us out and make us ready to quit. and its consequent eternal existence fishes of Christian myth.
Asia,in a little life,during a time of
Sometimes we wonder how, under as far as man’s mind is able to
We who are free would be cow­ little knowledge,performed( ?) a few
the Christian and Infidel bush­ graKp the eternal thought, or bow ards indeed to close our lips and little miracles, we have the great
whacking fire, the realFreethought can we teach the correlation of for­ let our beloved students think we Humanity, of which we are also a
cause has prospered at all. We are ces without disputing the popular believe as the priests do, or that part, to love and work for—Hu­
fools, as far as what most people notion of matter being created and we are afraid to say what we hon­ manity, whose country is the world,
call self interests are concerned, or governed by a god? The notion of estly believe and what we do know. whose life is indeed immortal com­
we would have abandoned the field a god destroys the very foundation
Our students will always be urg­ pared with that of one man, and
of battle long ago.
principles of Science and is account­ ed to investigate for themselves, whose miracles of industry, inven­
If in our Thought Exchange we able for the slow progress of Sci­ and that it is as wrong to take our tion and abstract thought fill the
would say nothing about spooks ence and the still unreasoning con­ word as conclusive evidence as it is world with delight and happiness.
and the old religions, some think dition of the majority of human to take the word of a priest or a
Instead of the selfish immortality
many would patronize us who now minds, with the awful results of holy book. The books are open to of the individual we have the un­
stand aloof. “Just teach Science crime, hypocrisy and disunion.
all. The facts of Nature stand ready selfish, altruistic and progressive
and don’t offend any of the audi­ “Rut you do not know that there to be proven. That which can hope of an immortality of our
ence,” says a timid one. Dear is no god, that there is no heaven, neither be demonstrated nor made thoughts, of our words and of our
friends, do you not know that those and that the soul is not immortal; to harmonize with her great laws works in the race itself, that is far
more beautiful and inspiring than
who are offended at the truth come and you ought to confine your must be considered untrue and an the
hell-born hope of a golden
for that purpose? They want to be teachings to what you do know. enemy to Progress. Why, then, streeted heaven. And the best part
offended, and they would find some­ If you would, you would get many should there not be one University of it all is that it is true.
This then is our next battle, and
thing to be offended at even if a more students,” is the burden of in the world that «lares correct the
speech was proof read by every a number of songs which have late­ errors in the demonstration of the we enter it with the greatest hopes
of a glorious victory.
We will
orthodox preacher in the country, ly been sung.
causes of things, the demonstration emancipate soldiers as we march
and if we endeavored to please them
This is a great mistake. We do of the nature of the mind, and the along, who in turn will volunteer
instead of presenting the truth it confine ourselves to what we do whence and whither of man, as in this the greatest battle of the
ages, and make the old dogmas of
would soon result in our own dis­ know. If we have no foundation
well as to correct the errors in a darkness seek shelter among the
gust and retreat, with the respect but to just try to please, in order demonstration of an algebraic or
caves and crags of heathen lands
of no one. No one can teach to get students, we will fail. geometric problem?
If a pro­ until finally the sunshine of truth
Science today and not teach evolu­ We do know that Science has fessor in any Christian or public will cover the whole earth and all
tion, and no one can properly teach at last driven from the world school should show the absurdities nations will rejoice in the emanci­
proclamation which we are
evolution without contradicting the every spook and devil
We in the silly beliefs of the ancient pation
dogmas of Christianity and the “im­ do know, fully as well as the Chris­ Egyptians, or in the beliefs of the now beginning to write.
This glorious crusade, to wrest
mortal” nonsense which blocks tian knows that there is no god in modern Kanackas, no oue would
from the hands of hypocrites, cow­
the gateway of the first princi­ the Hindoo’s white elephant, that object. Why, then, should any one ards and weaklings the tomb of
ples on which our modern Science there is no god in the sky or any­
object to our showing how absurd Science, offspring of the virgin
is based.
where else. Of course in one sense a thing it is for us any longer to minds of Humanity, demands every
One friend thinks that we ought no one knows anything; but we do expect an eternal home in spirit or lover of Truth to the frout. Here
is our torch—R eason ; and here our
to say nothing in the University, know, in the sense that it is absurd with a resurrected body in a sky- watchword—Luo!
Torch
Reason
about religion. That we will lo&e
patronage if we teach that there is
no future life and that there is no
God. While it must not be thought
by any that we teach nothing else,
we feel it our duty to say that the
promoters of the Liberal University
are more anxious to get and more
to think otherwise, that when a
man is dead he is dead, and that
the idea of an immortal spirit in
is entirely without proof. That a
heaven is a myth does not need
proof, for it has never been proven
to exist at all; but its absurdity is
as easily shown as that of the In-
ji
4