ADDRESS ON SCCIALISM.

Press, Volume LXIII, Issue 12975, 30 November 1907, Page 12

ADDRESS ON SCCIALISM.

Commencing a series of addresses on Socialism in the Linwood Congregational Church last Sunday evening, the Key. I. Sarginson referred to the want ot agreement among Socialist*. Ho said that with some Socialism was a programme of the most thorough-goin? despotism, which was prepared to msort to every species of violence to secure its ends. But the Fabianists discountenanced such an attitude: ho did Marx aand Liebknecht. The more thoughtful among the Socialists had ever recognised that their battle was necessarily a political battle. The people must be enlightened and convinced. Society was not a machine, but an organism, with its own inherent laws, which nothing could defeat.There could be no violent transition The future must grow out of thn present, as the present had grown out of the past. Some Socialists, again, | identified Socialism with Communism. ' t Others utterly repudiated euch an idea, and none more categorically than Gron--1 lund, who declares thorn to be ''two radically different systeme." Communism would abolish private property and crush out individuality. Socialism would develop individuality and "enable everybody to acquire property," while taking good care that no man used it "as an instrument for fleecing his fellow-creatures." "If we define Capitalism," continued that authority, "as the fleecing of the weak by the 1 strong, Communism might be defined as the fleecing of the strong by the weak." Some Socialists made sinister references to the family, institution; 1 i while others declared that , they "want iI to enable every man and woman to form • a happy family. Wβ emphati ■ cally hold that it is the husband's pro- > vinceto provide for the necessities of ' his family." On the subject of reli- • gion, there wee hopeless disagreement. , within the ranks of Socialism. One » affirmed: "The true root of liberty, , equality and culture is Atheism." Another, that Socialism had nothing what- . ever to do with _ religion. Another that neither Socialism nor anything . else could exterminate religion; thai. ; "some theory of life is needed to give ; harmony, purpose nnd vigour to active i fife," and that in | spite of the troublous times through which religion was , passing, "our race will again be prac- . tically unanimous on some religion." i Other points of difference were dealt , with, and the speaker saiu' he agreed j with the prediction nf the "British [. Weekly" that, owing to the aggressive [ Atheism of Blatchford and his school, j British Socialism, already divided , against itself on the most vital of all r principles, would be unable, to avert a serious eplit in its organisations throughout the country. [ JOTTINGS.' I The enthusiastic reception of Gene- - ral Booth in Boston, Massachusetts!, » -bvas one of the most interesting feai I tiiree of his recent tour in America. i ; Vehicular and pedestrian traffic was 3 stopped. Thousands and thousands ot - people went frantic with delight the > moment the snowy head of the- Salvaj , tion veteran appeared, in company i with the Mayor, on the stand which f ! had been specially erected by the Cor--1 poration. The [Mayor's oration lasted , twenty minutes. His Worship, who - belongs to the Roman Catholic Church, - ; declared that the Salvation Army had . ' made Christianity and humanity underi I stood even in the kingdom of ■ the > ! slums. The General, who was visibly » affected, uttered his thanks in moving t terms, and pledged the- Army to do I still more to justify these affectionate > receptions. • A company of more than fifty Wes- > leyan Methodist Missionaries were re- ' cently entertained at the Loysian Hall, i London, prior to thoir departure to - various parts of the foreign field. The t farewell gathering was presided over i by Mr W. Lnmplough, treasurer of the I I Wesleyan Missionary Society. The , j Revs. W. H. Findlny, Dr. Moulton, and Marshall Hartley delivered farep well addresses. Several of the departing missionaries 6poko in reply, and a meeting of a deeply interesting and in- \ spiring character was brought to a : close by a hearty singing ot the well- ' known hymn, "God be with you till we • meet again." There has been a "Wee Free ,, case 'I in connection with the Presbyterian Church of America, though it ended • j differently from tho famous Scottish > case. A year ago the Cumberland f Presbyterian Church united with the • Presbyterion Church of tho United • States; but a considerable number of ■ the former protested against the union, > claimed to toe tho true representatives lof the Cumberland Church, and as t f eiich claimed the ownership of the 1 I Church's publishing house, colleges, 1 I and universities. In the law courts I I of the States, where the claim has been - lodged end considered, it has been r waived aside. The Court of Illinois ? declared that the question of the i identity of the Confessions of the two • Churches "is a question solely for the ecclesiastical courts to determine. 9 This court should not attempt to place i any construction upon thi» meaning of i the two Confessions of Faith, or either 8 of tfhem, or compare one with the r other. The civil courts of America as- '• eunie no right or power to settle clbT putes upon religious or ecclesiastical h subjects, but follow the construction *- which the Church' courte put upon *• euch matters." • The Rev. William Hewitson, of • Knox Church, Dunedin, has left New c Zealand for a two months' visit to y Australia. During his absence his ie pulpit is being supplied by the Rev. i. lErneefc Guthrie, 8.D., a former mem-

ber of Knox Church, now the minister of a large congregation in America. The Church Property report presented to the Otago t»ynod of tne Methodist Church by Mr E. Roseyear showed the total amount of liabilities on £40.000 to be not more than £4000, and of this £2000 had been lent free of interest by the Church Building and Loan Fund. Additional property, representing an expenditure of £139/, had been acquired during the year. Several circuits were highly commended for work effected since the last Synod. The revised edition of "Church Praise,'" which has been waited for by congregations somewhat impatiently for months past, was published early in October by Messrs Nisbet and Co., of Berners street, London. It is announced as "a new edition, freshly compiled and edited, end greatly enlarged." The hymns, including Dismissions and Doxologiee. extend to No. G24. These are followed by 75 selections from the Metrical Psalms, with their places in the Psalter duly indicated, but numbered consecutively with the hymns, as 620 to 699. The rest of the book (700-784) is made up of prase psalms, canticles, anthems, etc. The changes are so great as to make the book practically a new hymnal. It would be too much to affirm that all the changes are changes for the better, but undoubtedly the great bulk of them are such. The editing has been done with unusual care and skill, and the get-up of the book is a great improvement on th:it of the 01.l edition, which was first published in 1883, and was regarded at the time ono of the best hjmnals in the market.

or a large congi-i-sat'"" »»» -»—■ The Church Property report presented to the Otago fc>ynod of tne Methodist Church by Mr E. Roseyear showed the total amount of liabilities on £40.000 to be not more than £4000, and of this £2000 had been lent free of interest by the Church Building and Loan Fund. Additional property, representing an expenditure of £139/, had been acquired during the year. Several circuits were highly commended for work effected since the last Synod. The revised edition of "Church Praise,'" which has been waited for by congregations somewhat impatiently for months past, was published early in October by Messrs Nisbet and Co., of Berners street, London. It is announced as "a new edition, freshly compiled and edited, end greatly enlarged." The hymns, including Dismissions and Doxologiee. extend to No. G24. These are followed by 75 selections from the Metrical Psalms, with their places in the Psalter duly indicated, but numbered consecutively with the hymns, as 620 to 699. The rest of the book (700-784) is made up of prase psalms, canticles, anthems, etc. The changes are so great as to make the book practically a new hymnal. It would be too much to affirm that all the changes are changes for the better, but undoubtedly the great bulk of them are such. The editing has been done with unusual care and skill, and the get-up of the book is a great improvement on th:it of the 01.l edition, which was first published in 1883, and was regarded at the time ono of the best hjmnals in the market. For a second time the Bishop of London preached to New York financiers on October loth. On his first arrival a great crowd of them—including Mr Pierppnt Morgan—listened to him for 40 minutes in Old Trinity Church, as he preached from the text, "Give an account of thy stewardship." The second service was in the open air, and business in Wall street was practicaliy suspended for the time. The crowd included clerks, girl-typists, and office boys. Tho Bishop arrived in a motorcar, and spoke from a soap-box on the steps of the old Customhouse. He was first presented with an handsomelybound Prayer-book, which he told his congregation should have a place ot honour in the drawing-room at Fulham Palace, alongsido tho Prayer-book presented to him by the working men ot East London. '"What would Jesus do in WaJl street?" was the topic of the Bishop's address. He did not directly answer that question, nor criticise Wall street methods. He spoke in his customary simple, frank, straight-forward •way. Ho enforced the need for Christian humility and forbearance in all business, and urged the men of Wall street to resolve to pray every day to God. He understood they worked pretty hard down there. That was the only thing to do. He had come over for a holiday, and had preached 23 sermons in five weeks. At the close of the service the crowd cheered loudly, and hundreds came forward to shake hands with the Bishop.