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Show THE TREE AND THE FRUIT. Showing Why the Wayfarer, Even Though a Disbeliever, Should be Considerate. Quite unexpectedly, but none the less agreeably, the writer recently bumped up against a former well known townsman who had been gone from our gaze for many moons A. T. Schroeder. It is not that the precincts pre-cincts of Zion became too contracted to hold him, by reason of any personal per-sonal growing importance or dimensions, dimen-sions, or at all; but because he preferred pre-ferred a more populous and gregarious gregar-ious field where the emanations from his facile pen and Ciceronian tongue would not only count for more through the means stated, but command com-mand more attention from abroad through greater and better facilities of radiation. From these introductory introduc-tory lines, it is easily if not inevitably inevit-ably discemablc that A. T. is not of those who hide their light under a bushel. Not any. Nor is he greatly if at all addicted to emulating Diogenes Dio-genes in the use of his light, by prowling prowl-ing around in quest of honest men he sets in a conspicuous place where all hands can see it, whether attracted attract-ed by it or not. During his sojourn here the cause to which he is devoting his time, talents and energies is not permitted to stand still. As has been observed by many observers, his fulminations are appearing in the columns of the Tribune in a decidedly voluminous manner. While engaged in a war against religion generally and treating treat-ing all forms of Christianity with a3 much of contemptuous indifference as is permissable with steadfast aggressiveness, ag-gressiveness, maintained his present operations are directed solely and somewhat savegely for so pleasant a person socially, against the muchly whacked at but still-in-the-ring Mormons. Mor-mons. And it does seem the most paradoxical thing out. He is such an easy-going, hail-fellow sort of person; a bon vivant, always cheerful, invariably invar-iably good naturcd, with a counten- ancc carrying the smile that never fades and an eye and color betokening betoken-ing perfect health and a keen relish of life's good provender he says things that Christians consider blasphemous blas-phemous in such a rippling, unforced, cheerful way that they don't sound half as bad as they would coming from any one else. Friendly to everybody ev-erybody but especially so to those embraced within his circle of intimates, inti-mates, disliked by no one, not even those who are most determinedly against his methods; what a figure he might have been in the world had his brain power been trained in the ways of statecraft or letters, or even been comfined to the domain of law, in which he is or was such a shining light I Well, I was really glad to meet Shroeder again, it having been over six years since the last time. The greeting was naturally cordial and devoid of the conventional commonplaces. common-places. His third or fourth question was,' "Have you got out of the old folly yet? No? Well, well! What use have you been putting your brains to, anyway? Then with an earnestness earnest-ness which approached so near vehc mence as almost to overcome his good feeling he went on at a rapid pace, explaining his location, occupation occu-pation and purposes the former being be-ing New York City and the latter using my own language the complete com-plete extirpation from the human family of that form of reverential gratitude which finds expression in one or another form of worship. In plain terms, he is an infidel, an atheist athe-ist and without intending any disrespect dis-respect a scoffer. He does all this ' regularly and continuously, just as some boys impale toads on sharp sticks, because they can do it and it affords thenu .jasure to behold the ineffectual re stance which the reptiles rep-tiles offer. It is not herein suggested that he is as cruel as that in fact, or that the toads are even remotely a symbol of religious organizations, the resemblance occuring in the feel- -u ing of satisfaction only; for behold, " he seems to fancy that he has the whole aggregation of orthodoxy wriggling and twisting on his toasting toast-ing fork. Schroeder, as per the paper aforesaid, afore-said, is of the opinion that the tithing tith-ing system of the Mormons is the most pcrnicuous graft that ever happened, hap-pened, all the rest of its principles and practices being bad, presumably, for the generic reason, because they arc upheld and carried on by a form of fratcrnial ecclcsiasticism". This $ may not be the only feature of differentiation differ-entiation regarding his opposition to all creeds, but it is apparently the principal one; for otherwise he has it in for the whole caboodle, Methodists, Metho-dists, Catholics, ally all are alike hate ful, harmful in his sight and he has his snickcr-snee sharpened for each and every one. Schroeder's and his coadjutor's views and tactics as to that matter . are as old as the Garden of Eden, ' where their originator first made himself known to the human family as a dealer in choice eating apples. The dealer and the business have both maintained an existence through all the intervening ages. Now and then an exemplar of organic chaos more crafty, cunning and active than the rest has commanded special attention and been able to hand his name along clown the procession; but what did either of them ever accomplish that was helpful and en'duringly good? Their fame is much like that of the youth who fired the Ephesian dome; it consists not in what they have done but in the enduring of what others have done end enjoyed. Religious Re-ligious blief and practices, properly considered, are the only real pleasure in life, because never-ceasing and leaving no trail of tribulation or regret re-gret in their wake. Of very many they arc the only solace, and of a much greater number the chief one in life comforters in 'distress, assu-agers assu-agers of" sorrow, an unfailing hope when all things else dwindle and disappear and yet these disturbers , of the peace, these manglcrs of high and holy purpose, these Would-be j despots would banish that inestim able boon from our race and give in its place what? Hatred of holiness, disintergration of the human heart, defilement of the temple wherein Love is the high priest, the immolation immola-tion of sacred faith upon the black alter of endless death! Schroeclcr, apart from the foregoing, forego-ing, is busily engaged in sitting on the Spaulding egg, and as usual is undaunted un-daunted by the failure which has attended at-tended the sturdy and persistent er-' er-' forts of others to incubate the rotten things, in which he suggests a frag- Imcnt of history. It has at various times, chiefly during the latter part , of the nineteenth century, occurred . to a few people who had an inclina tion that way that the poetical works of William Shakespeare were not written by him but by a contemporary contempor-ary named Francis Bacon. Just what , satisfaction or profit the agitators would have got from their efforts even if successful, it is hard to figure out; it might have been the case that they were like many other alleged humans before and since unable to be comfortable unless they arc cutting cut-ting holes in some saint's vestments or throwing mud balls at some hero's statue. The writer knows a man who some twenty years ago, was as far gone on the Bacon humbug as Bro. Schrocdcr appears to be on the other one, and he pursued his ignis f fatius with the same keen-scented persistency and untiring research. He, too, was a good fellow, but his visible rewards and square meals kept far, far apart, and his attire got to be a scandal; but tli last time he was met up with, a few months ago, he- was at work and apparently well fed, decently clad and on much better terms with the world and himself. If any one were to tell him now that it had been unmistakably disvocered that Shakespeare wrote Bacon, no doubt he would believe it; at least, he wouldn't contend with his informant infor-mant about it. Speaking of meals reminds re-minds me: Did the patient reader ever take enough interest in the genus infidel to diagnose his ailment carefully? care-fully? If so, it must have struck him (the reader, not the infidel) that the subject invariably has a good liver. Without excellent health and the buoyancy which results therefrom one cannot rise to the heights which enable en-able him to look down upon all created creat-ed things. He is ever cheery, elastic, and, unusually, profane, by reason of the foregoing. Let his liver but once go back on him, dyspepsia set in and things get so bad that the inevitable hour seems to be at hand, and how quickly does the toy balloon collapse! Please observe that this is no fancy-drawn fancy-drawn sketch; the identical thing has happened many times. But getting back to the Mormons and tithing for a moment, let this proposition b-. -put to Mr. Schrocder as a lawyer and logician: Is this a land of law under its constitution, guaranteeing to all the right to earn property and enjoy their earnings, or is it not? Answering affirmatively the first par: of the question, as of course he will, he will next be asked if the Mormons have not earned their possessions and do not hold them legally le-gally and hon-'.stly, and again the answer ans-wer yes is recorded for him. Now, it will scarcely be contended that the tithing paid by them is taken from any other possessions than their own and if they have not the right to control it as they will, to sell, trade, barter, improve add to or take from it as they will, so long as others' rights are not infringed unon, what privileges have they in such connection? connec-tion? Those who arc so clamorous for the "riehts of man, woman and child" ought to let us know whether or not they mean the whole body of men, women and children or only those embraced within the circle In which the clrmorous ones move, a circle which does not embrace the Mormons but is invariably willing to embrace their substance; and ;f the meaning is the former, whose concern is it, to speak plainly, if the saints sec fit to invest a portion ot thcr incomes in a fund which, whether whe-ther producing returns for them or not, certainly does not deprive those who do not so invest of anything at all? He (Mr. S.) may say, because somewhat addicted to saying such things, that we have courts of equity and guardianship whose duty it is to intetfere when people become feebleminded feeble-minded and get to dissipating their possessions improvidently or foolishly, foolish-ly, and this is true, because by doing .so such people become in one sense a menace, in that they are on the way to becoming public charges and this brings up the whole question.' From a few hundreds in the way of membership, the Mormons have grown in one generation to a body of 350,000 and arc still growing more rapidly than ever. The growth is not of the offscourings of humanity, but of the best in the way of intelligence intel-ligence and industry, whether native or foreign born, any community in which such people control, being fully ful-ly abreast, in all desirable respects, of any other of similar proportions and opportunities in this whole earth, and a long way ahead of the great majority. Their growth and advancement advance-ment has been the result of their own labor, enterprise, hardihood and intelligence, in-telligence, aided by faith, hope and holding on. A belief in and practice of tithe-paying have characterized their career from the beginning, and their growth has not been merely that ot the few, but of all hands and the cook. As soon as they, or a 'number of them, settle anywhere, it is distinctly dis-tinctly observable that they begin to prosper, the surroundings change for the better, the landscape rapidly improves, im-proves, conditions grow less strenuous, strenu-ous, and tithe-paying keeps steady and unfailing pace with the general forward march. Where there is one Mormon who was a steady tithe-payer who is a subject of charity, public or private, there are 10,000 who are not, and of the 10,000 at least a half if not a decided majority arc independent, inde-pendent, while a percentage somewhat some-what above the average clsew.hcre are wealthy. Perhaps Mr. S. is not familiar with pomology, therefore ho is asked a;, a logician, if it is not a sound judgment to judge of a tree by its fruits. Look at Utah now and what it was when the objects of his especial antagonism came here and without government subsidies, adventitious adven-titious aid or other visible means than brawn directed by brain and sustained as aforesaid, started up one of the greatest reclamation systems this land at least has ever known; it is not said they accomplished all that is in evidence now, but it will surely be admitted that they helped at it, their help coming at a time and in a way for which there would never have been anything else done all the while handing in their ten per cent to the general coffers. Are all these splendid consummations the logical or unnatural or any other result of the "worst graft in existence?" Do graftsmen (so to sneak), as a rule or at all, use their pillage in such bene-ficicnt bene-ficicnt ways? Meantime, Bro. Schrocdcr is welcome wel-come to Elsinorc, as much so as a plundered, down-trodden and fore-, doomed people on their part can make him. ESSAY CAIGH. |
