LETTING THE CAT OUT OF THE BAG.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XII, Issue 47, 13 March 1885, Page 16

LETTING THE CAT OUT OF THE BAG.

Mb. Geralb Massey recently lectured in Wellington under the auspices of the Secular Society, which, by a process of evolution, has usurped the Freethought Association, by combining within its folds infidels of varied character, such as Freethinkers, Spiritualists, etc. We care little by what name this society wishes to be denominated, their object being alike hostile to us ; but we confess to a pieference for the new nomenclature, as it at once draws a distinctive line between them and Christians, and this narrows the issue between secularism and denomiaationalism. Mr. Massey was, to use the words of the chairman of the evening, Mr. J. C. Harris, scathing in his remarks, that is, unutterably blasphemous ; but, wretched as was the twaddle, there is one sentence which will bear repetition in your columns — a sentence which should be carefully studied by every person in New Zealand, not because of its transcendent beauty ; but, rough and uncouth as it is, it clearly conveys the ideas and intentions of the secularists of the day. Listen, oh, you ministers of religion who are supporting secularism 1 Hear from the prophet of the system what is coming 1 Know all you fathers and mothers who support secular education that " The kingdom did not come, because men themselves atood in the way of its coming ; and these men must be S9vept away, so that it might come. They must get up and turn on the devil boldly, weapon in liand, not singly, but associated togetlier to do so, instead of believe, and talk, and pray." Lest any of our readers may be misled by the reference to the devil, we must say that the lecturer fully explained to his own satisfaction that the devil of Christianity was a myth, and consequently Christianity a devil ; so that if our readers substitute Christianity for devil, the lecturer's meaning is clear. With bis beliefs or unbeliefs we are not at present concerned ; but when we read that paragraph, visions of the Reign of Terror rose before our minds — streams of blood ran rushing along the gutters, shrieks filled the air, a very demon was in the wind, conflagrations lit the scene, and we saw the dreaded commune before us, plunder and rapine everywhere, Justice dead ; Virtue and Honour, Love and Truth flying for refuge, or hiding in the caverns. Worse still, the dream of to-day may become the reality of to-morrow. If any there be who think the picture overdrawn let them study the period I have named. Let even those moderate believers study the pictures painted by Lytton in "The Parisians," and contrast the works and actions of the Secularists and Christians during the siege of Paris in 1871. But the warning conveyed by Maesey is put into proper trim and shape by the genial, outspoken chairman, Mr. Cliantrey Harris, of the New Zealand Times : "He hoped the address they had heard that evening would lead tliem to atand by a liberal system of education, for by that alone could they hope for salvation." Here, again, we are compelled to translate. We know that by " liberal system of education " he means the present one-sided, secular, godless system. We are, however, extremely puzzled how to translate salvation in the mouth of Mr. Harris except it means an escape from dynamite, of which he is more afraid than . On the whole, we think Mr. Massey and his brusque chairman have done good service. They have put the whole matter in a nutshell, and no Christian who henceforth supports the system can plead ignorance of what it is leading to. Kitten.

Messrs. Findlay and Co., Dunedin, are prepared to furnish contractors and others with timber, ironmongery, and everything connected with the builder's trade, at moderate rates.

His Holiness, with characteristic generosity bas sent 40,000f . to the Spanish Government in aid of the sufferers hy the earthquakes. The subscriptions are pouring in with encouraging liberality. Besides the 20,000 pesetas from the King, Don Carlos and the Duchess of Madrid have contributed 15,000 pesetas, and the Duke de Montpensier 5,000 pesetas. A London telegram announces that the subscription opened by the Consul-General has already reached nearly £2,000. In Dublin also a subscription list has been opened. It seems that the example of Lord Beaconsfield in creating the Queen of England Empress of India has not been lost on the docile statesmen of Russia. According to a statement in the Vienna Zeitung, the Czar proposes to be solemnly crowned " Emperor of Central Asia," in the Sacred City of Samarcand, some time in the autumn of 1887. The most influential political and court circles in St. Petersburg are now eagerly discussing the project : and if it be canied out on the proposed scale, it will certainly be a different thing from the .Beaconsfield burlesque. However this may be, there can be little doubt now of Russia's anti-Bnglish designs in the East.— - Dublin Freeman.