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A |4\fcftiwC'^^*"*^^'i^^^^^^^^^BSES ßß ft BB^'y ' B^BBBBBWaMaV a^Bßai Bb^BbT^ .y^^aHw^^^^^WaH Lb^Bßbv *^H Haal^asßßau, J-jfJ jj BTai / fc^Jl A~T S^/l .vj -. _^=^bmi*b* *jfr"~'|* vj»''^3 AvisV fiw3RSiv m J** **00kW^Jr^^&&m5m. --^p-^r^r tomniwr^air wsaaw aw /^n fer r~N BrSftn W ■ MniiU f! a •a^BwaW^^^ W^""»"^"^"^"w^^Bw -^ar .« .**--, ,»- . aWtaata* -<i 1 BBasaWa*vaS—A. * JMw HbwA awSV-—^' —~3a^BwaWßwpawawa».. laOTaaW •a^y a^ *^SV- - » II J | l^^^^'"aa-^TO *¥-?" T< T^ aaf"\ T^aT t^Ts^S 1 iUsJaL^JaatSLj Lw**K 1^ r^ | | | l^r ■ I Jg^w*, Xg^l $ Ki^naGeasX JrVJaw^i-r'l-l Vsl 1 X«safesaß **^^' ft^nwaw awawawsaawaa7 aafiawßßOaaf OawaKHsaaw^ sawaVaW tawawßßl ' Vol. I Political Sermon From a Scriptural Text. suhject: firmness OF purpose. Text: Hut as for Die and my house, we will serve the Lord—Joshua xxiv: 15. I I Joshua was about to die. His was a varied history. Sixty-four years be fore he had left Egypt under the leadership of Moses. With his own eyes had he witnessed the miraculous deliverance of Israel's hosts and the ntt'.'r destruction of Pharaoh at the Red Sea. He had stood at the foot of the Mount and heard the thunderlngs of Sinai when Moses went up to meet the Lord. He, with his own hands, had gathered the manna in the wil derness and had drank of the waters of Horeb He had also witnessed the ravages of the serpents of fire as thousands of his people fell for their disobedience. In fact, he had attend ed the funeral obsequies of every Israelite who had left Egypt with him save his faithful companion Caleb, Including the death of Moses himself, who died in sight of the promised land. At the death of Moses Joshua was chosen the leader of Israel, and it was he who led them across the dor dan and into the "land that flowed with milk and honey." Joshua's career was about to end. but before his death he "gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechein, and called for the elders of Israel, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers; and they presented themselves before God." Although only about a quarter of a century had passed since their triumphant en trance into Canaan, the children of Israel ; had forgotten the mighty works of God, and some of them had gone off and were serving "the gods which their fathers had served that were on the other side of the flood." while others were serving "the gods of the Ammonites." Old Joshua was much grieved at this state of affairs, and he entreated them to "fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in truth; and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt: and serve ye the Lord. And if It seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose ye this day whom ye will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of '.he Am minutes in whose land ye dwell. Rut as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." The lesson that we desire to draw from the above i- that of firmness of purpose. The story In which Joshua am* a prominent character, whether a divine history or a fiction of the human fancy, portrays the character and life of a firm old man. His ruling passion was strong, even in death. Believing, as he did, that he was right, In- tenaciously stuck to it to the end. Although all Israel had de serted him and his God and had gone ell after other gods, we hear hill feeble old voice, just before it was silenced in death, after trying to dissuade them from the error of their I way, declaring "Rut for me and my house, we will Ml ye the Lord." Might did not make right with Joshua any more than It does now. nor were ques tions of morality settled by majori ties. It was the same spirit that In spired the statement expressed by a modern statesman when he declared that he "would rather be right than to be president." The Bible history is full of such heroes. Many centuries before Joshua, Noah had stood the jeers and «neers of a multitude while he preached righteousness and built the ark. Converts were few. In fact, he made noil-.'. His hearers, if he had any, were all firm believers In the doctrine that questions of fact could be decided by numbers. They wanted to go with the crowd; and so they did. It was not until "the windows of heaven had been opened and the fountains of the great deep were broken up" that they realized the awful truth of their situation. It was then too late. Noah was right, but he had no following. Hl* whole career was in harmony with our text, a living example of the words, "But a* for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." l'asslng by many prominent charac ter* La the L'lUi. ii-tiory *« wUii. I* that of Jesus. He was the son of an humble carpenter.and though cradled in a manger he preached a new doc trine. He upset many of the old theories and promulgated new* ones. He abrogated the law of "an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth and substituted one of forbearance and love. Single-handed and alone he "went into his father's house and drove out the money changers, who he declared had converted a house of prayer into a den of thieves. Bis only following was that of twelve lowly disciples, one of whom proved a traitor. He found fault with the condition in which he found things. He was a "calamity howler" of the most pronounced order. He attempted to better things, but he only suc ceeded in founding "a sect that .vas everywhere spoken against," and was finally nailed to a Roman cross by a lot of political heelers who feared that his doctrines would lead to a ruction in their party, and that the post-otlices in Jerusalem might pass into the hands of the followers of the meek and lowly. Jesus, the reformer of nineteen hundred years ago, was not a crown ing success. He taught the golden rule. He taught his disciples to love one another, but judging from his following he was a dismal failure. In matters of finance he was equally un successful, for at the age of 33 years we hear him declaring that "the foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the son of man hath not where to lay his head." A tramp. Yes, a tramp that could not pass through Salt Lake City today without getting into the "cooler" on the charge of vagrancy. He did not even have a box car to sleep in. Yet he "went about doing good," and al though mistreated from the first day of his ministry to the day of his cruci fixion, yet above the rustle of the Roman soldiery, the clanking of the spears and shields, and the jargon of those who cast lots for his vesture, we hear the same forgiving voice calling on his Father to "•forgive them for they know not what they do." He had a firmness of purpose. He sanctified it with his life and sealed it with his blood. He. like many others, was ridiculed all his life and had a monument reared to his memory after his death. Let us get closer home. One hun dred and twenty-five years ago there were great questions that confronted tin- people of this country. We were I thee under the English government. Great wrongs were being committed and the people were made to undergo great injustice. Certain bold men attempted to get redress for wrong* committed, That was found to be impracticable and not attended with any good results. There were a lew- ho were bold enough to declare that nothing short of a complete separa tion of the tie* that bound us to the mother country would solve the vexed problem or-give relief. Such utter ances were treason, and those who : made them were treated as traitors. We see one man rising above all the I rest and declaring "These are times that try men's -mil-.' Rut, In spite of all these obstacles, he declaring the "world to be his country, to do do good his religion," Thomas Paine wrote "The Crisis." Others read it. A nucleus was formed around which the more feeble Hocked: the war was ' waged, peace was -ought and granted, and the original thirteen colonies were declared "free and independent States." All the result of one man having the courage of his convictions; who was nerved by a firm purpose. Washington, Jefferson, Adams, and every signer of the Declaration of Independence; yes, the valiant sol diers who died on the field of battle, or passed a living death at Valley Forge, were each actuated by the same spirit that led old-Joshua to say "Rut as for me and my house, we will .serve tho Lord." Nearly a hundred years later, we find 1,000.000 hum.in beings bound with the chains of slavery. They were dark of skin and simple in mind, but human beings withal. Prom the pul pit was preached the doctrine. "Serv ants, obey your masters." The press openly favored It or tacitly endorsed it. The public generally approved It. It was popular to oppose It. Many, no doubt, could see the wrong, but few ,wav aaic« »*j »->, We see William EDISON, SKAGIT COUNTY, WASH., SATURDAY, OCTOBER 8, 1898. Lloyd Garrison dragged through the streets of Boston for expressing his sentiments upon the subject. Others were served In the same manner. Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stowe penned Uncle Tom's Cabin. The world was shaken. Ossawatomie John Brown was hung at Harper's Ferry far treason. Then again followed "times that tried men's souls." The country was del uged In blood for four long years, Right triumphed. Peace was de clared, and the four million slaves became four million American citi zens "endowed by nature with cer tain inalienable rights, among which are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." To whom belongs the credit and glory of this achievement? Shall we give glory to Grant, to Sher man, to Sheridan and others who won renown on the field of battle?" Yes, but not all the glory, tor the greater share belongs to the Garrlsi ns. the ('bantlings-, the Browns and the Stowes. Those are they "who come up out of great tribulations*," men and women who had a firm purpose: men and women who could have joined old Joshua's sweet refrain, "But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." The time has come when the people need another Joshua to stand up and demand that "they choose this day whom they shall serve." The people are homeless. The voice of the op pressor and the cry of the oppressed is heard in the land. The great pub lic utilities of the country that should bless the people are being used to rob them. The government is In the hands of men who pilfer from those they are sworn to protect. Corruption runs rampant throughout the country. "Right is forever on the scaffold and wrong on the throne." The spirit of '70 seems to have taken its flight to return no more. Here and there we find a faithful Joshua who stands out almost alone, fighting for the right, while the masses of humanity are going off after strange gods, following the crowd, with no singleness of purpose, hurrahing for the man who whips. Like Noah, like Joshua of old, like Jesus, like Paine, like Garrison, these modern Joshuas are not popular: their following is small. The people are cowards. They would rather be popular than to be right. They would like to have others bear the burden and heat of the day, while they come in at the eleventh hour and reap the rewards. They don't want to throw their votes away. They prefer to save their votes and get what they don't want. These pigmies make us tired. Give us men who have attained their full statin. men who, knowing the right, dare maintain it: men who have minds of their own; men w: 0 have brains to think and the courage to act: men who In spirit can join with Joshua of old, and declare from the house tops and the market places. "But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord,"— [Living Issues. DON'T SHIRK. l know not whence I came, l know not whither 1 go, Rut the fact stands clear That I am hero In this world of pleasure and woe: And out of the mist and murk Another truth shines plain — It is In my power Bach day and hour To add to its joy or pain. 1 know that the earth exists. It is none of my business why. I cannot find out What it's all about — I would but waste time to try. Mv life is a brief, brief thing, lam here for a little -pa. . And while I stay 1 would like, if 1 may, To brighten and better the place. The trouble, I think, with us all Is lack of high conceit; If each man thought He was sent to the spot To make it a bit more sweet, How soon we would gladden I hi- world, How easy right all wrong, If nobody shirked And each one worked v To help his fellows along. —Klla Wheeler Wilcox iii Lucifer. Lincoln said; ''Let us have faith that right makes might, and in that faith let us, to the end, darn do our duty as we understand It." An equal distribution of property Is the foundation of the republic. [Noah Webster. Socialism From a Metaplujsical Point of View ALTRUISM AS A FACTOR IN EVOLUTION. I DV W. C. □. RANDOLPH. Evolution may ne defined as that i grand sweep of ail things from primal ] and invisible causes to the adequate < consequences from the germ to the i full grown organism, from the simple . to the compound or complex. As the j objective world presents to our vis- . ion a pleasing variety of objects in j all conceivable and even inconcelva- ■ able combinations, so is it also in < th* world of causes or forces. Evo lution is carried forward by millions , of causes, In the man, but as the largest fractions a thing can be divi- ; ded into are halves, thus it is that the evolution forces in taeir largest differences, are divided into two— in- ; i divldualistic and collective or altru istic, i Evolution seems to be a process of : the abstract or impersonal becoming Concrete or personal, at one part of its grand career and then for the con crete and impersonal to again be come abstract and impersonal plus Individuality and immortality, thus gained for all its parts. This is the Great Wheel of Nature, a circle constantly revolving and re turning unto its source. Ideas and principles have a tendency to become as we say real, that.we realize or use them when they evolve themselves onto our plane of existence as insti tutions, laws, customs, machines, de vices, etc. Rut that part of evolu'ion just now referred to as ideas becoming objec tified, is the result of the conscious effort of intelligent humanity to pic ture forth in living forms the forces of evolution as they are felt by indi vidual intelligence. We, as thinking entities, putting our ideas into prac tice, building, inventing, etc., are do ing nothing different to that which is done on what we may call the uncon scious—to us— planes of nature. At the beginning of a system of worlds the whole plan of the work be gun is projected in detail by Divine Ideation into the most subtle order of matter first, and then presses on into all forms of matter with which that particular scheme of evolution i- to deal. And as soon as thinking entities are evolved, their own thought power and individual choice of the quality of their acts becomes a factor In the accelerating or retarding of evolu tion. Now the first half of evolution from the general to the particular, '. carried on mainly by what may be termed the great Individualizing force which tends always to get Ideas, forces and principles to say and feel "I am." The abstract is to become the concrete —concrete only means gotten together, organized. Number i,. the abstract becomes a definite figure an integer, etc. This "I am" force tends toward the center— it la the process of receiving, not giving. It means thinking and doing for one's -elf in order to become a self. As .1 man thlnketh, so i- he. Human thought is staggered by such an ex pression as this— a principle, by think- Ing of itself, becomes what it was not before, a "Self." Rut that is probably very near the facts. With the object of bringing forth selves, it i- obvious that evolution will be best promoted by acts that are in their very nature selfish. Act* of this character, at that stage of evolution, will be considered "good" just because they promote that part of the general evolutionary scheme. All those act- and desires which ate universal and sacrificial. will be "bad" for that stage of progress, as they point backward on the road from which the impersonal force has pro ceeded, rather ban toward its imme diate aim, that Is, It is a hindrance to the work then going on. This plan of evolving the separate and individual out of the general and then back to the impersonal is sev eral times repeated, and with all va rieties of life, so that we find an in finite variety of 11, es and all possible stages of progress on th • same globe ' at the same time. As we might ex • i ess It, one class of entitles going 'down toward individuality and anoth- er class going upward toward the uni versal. This is a fact in nature that has been mostly overlooked by our materialist friends. They see the war going on in the lower forms of life, and as we our selves are a part of nature, they con clude that we, too, must evolve by warring on each other. The law of . the survival of the fittest is a real law, but is only met with In a wave of evolution that is sweeping down toward individuality, as is the case with all forms of life with which man is now surrounded, at least on the physical plane. This individualizing force, as important as It is. is not left to work alone, even in the first half of evolution. .While it is unques tionably the dominant force, and the : one most apparent and obvious at that time, yet it always quires at', least two forces to carry on the un folding of life and form. That other force is altruistic. In the downward ' arc of the evolutionary circle, there is just enough of the altruistic or Christ principle In force to keep the [ sellish force from playing the devil ! with the whole business, if 1 may use the rough but accurate expression. This altruistic principle is in evi dence in all those animals and even plants that herd, flock or cluster, coming together for better protec tion to the individual and for more formidable offensive operations. The survival of a fittest is sometimes se cured by his own Individual prowess, but most generally by aid of the very .opposite principle of altruism by which he associates with his kind and gets and gives Increasing help as numbers increase. An individual animal that has sur vived his kind in single combat will go down before a herd of his own inferiors. Of course the altruism that obtains among animals can only deserve small praise in comparison with the reality as it would appear in all its beatific fullness as exemplified by intelligent conscious beings on the altruistic planes of being. In the evolution of life on any globe. that which is going on at any one time is but a repetition of what has been done' before and what will be done again. Take an example— a class at one grade of school studies reading, spelling, writing,arithmetic, etc., and yet when promoted to a higher grade still pursues the old studies, among some other new ones, but this time these old studies are gone Into more thoroughly and pro foundly. This is exactly the plan nature adopts. Entities appear on a globe in their most universal aspect, pro ceed toward the Individualizing point, to the degree it is to be attained on that globe at that trial, and then evolve thus much of individuality back toward divinity, and then after a rest, beginning again at the new point of the universal, a little in ad vance of the previous beginning and again becoming individualized, a Ut ile more thoroughly than was previ ously done, and so on ad infinitum ' Now man is the highest being so far as we are Informed, that is evolving by means of the physical conditions provided by this earth, and it is said I by those who are in position to ob-] serve accurately, that be has reached and just passed the middle point in the downward curve of the circle of evolution. He is now on the up grade, begin ning to again unfold the universal in himself; and so the law of progress now for him is altruism, as the main force, with just enough of the self principle to steady him and build into himself as an individual the wisdom t3 be extracted from his altruistic ex periences. When the turning point is reached in man it is found that he becomes unsuccessfully involved in all sorts of complications with his kind, waxes poor as to the many.too rich a- to the few. By degree.- the wisest Owes, gen erally the unnoticed, discover that there is something radically wrong j with the so-called wise saying* that I have been guides for act 0:1 lot untold ages. These wise ones see that es pecially business max!mi do not work out as they have been expected to or as they used to, and by a careful an alysis of their terms, and a better knowledge of the nature of man es pecially his higher nature, all taken' No. 23 Into consideration with the charac ter of his changing material condi tions, they find that even if they were once true they certainly can be true no longer. The vast majority of people today have one set of rule- to guide them in religious and Individual pri vale con duct, and another set totally different in character to guide them in busi ness. This is a curious phenomenon, The reason for it. 1 think is this: Ideas get hold of us on our mortal marie tip, and are something for us to think about long before we at tempt to do them, or to [ml it another way, evolution proceeds from the sub tie to the palpable, from the invisi ble to the visible. In our business we are still going on the ethics found good on the downward arc. That is on the physical plane, am the new ideas of altruism have not as ye! fil tered down from the mental plane to be put in practice or objectified. Religion and morals are thus set to one side of the philosophy of life and business on the other. They are an tagonistic. Business cannot be car ried on by religion, and as we must II re and that by other than religious methods, and also as religion is seen to be a necessity in another way, they must be separated. Thus is business made devilish and religion abortive. "Business is business," says the Christian merchant, as he cuts the wages of his hired men In order to compete with a shrewd and unscrupulous rival. "Business is bust ness," sings the money lender as be evicts a sick widow who owes him a month's rent. "Trade is trade," says the speculator, as he circulates a false report calculated to make him money on his Stocks and bonds. "I must have a living," says tbe pulpi teer, as he eases the conscience* of his wealthy patrons by polished ser mons on the weaknesses of the flesh and the atoning grace of a vicarious Saviour. All these people m;:> be very con scientious, really believing that they come as near fulfilling the law of Christ as it is given for man to do . here belov. They only need to know that we have passed the turning point,and the way to progress and consequently in dividual and genera! Buccess and hap piness is now In altruism, Contrary to the almost universal opinion, altruism, instead of kill ing industry, must most enormous ly inert ate it. It is not that the Christ principle is antagonistic to business, per se, butonlv antagonistic to the kind of business we have evolved on the downward road. All -y-temsof industry and Commerce and the laws-of nations ami social customs, are products of the individ ualistic era, and so tenacious of life are they that they have Intruded themselves Into what should be the altruistic regime, and as any other thing In nature that has fulfilled Its purpose, to still linger around, causes misery. Hut nature knows this quite well, and an over-aged system is al lowed to remain only to kick the dul lards into their senses. Profound thinkets, hundreds of years ago, accurately predicted the results that would foil >w from the selfish bo-1 a* methods of the down grade half of evolution, but Itl»only die very few that can discern by men tal vision the path of future genera tions; most of us must Iread on the thorn* so as to be brought to know that we are sowing thistles. Ati exceedingly interesting phe nomenon is the fact that those rules, plans of action and laws instituted under the downward regime for the welfare of the individual, fail of any satisfactory result, although the rea sons in their favor seem perfectly flawless. "Look out for No. I." This is meant In such a way that we might properly add "and the devil take the rest of you.'' Now this is a maxim that is j clearly individualistic. Nothingsecnii no tain as that If we would only [ act out that principle,each md every one would be successful, and indeed at a time when it was applicable it did less all. There was ■ me when each one's wants were supplied by his own un aided effort*; and such primitive I beings can actually cartv out that aim. I __ ___ »To be Inl-lllMku j