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THE BOOKS OUR CHILDREN READAuthor(s): DANIEL HILLSource: Advocate of Peace (1847-1884), New Series, Vol. 2, No. 20 (AUGUST 15, 1870), pp. 267-268Published by: World Affairs InstituteStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/27904758 .

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Aug., 1870. THE ADVOCATE OF PEACE. 267

their lives in their hands, and come to Washington. Another proof that they are no obstacle in the way of an honorable peace. Yet there are men at the capital who advise the treacherous holding of these Indians as prisoners, notwith

standing the fact of their being there upor? invitation of the governoient. They would betray and murder them as Osceola and Moketavata were betrayed and murdered. One may well shudder as he contemplates the power and capacity of some

prominent men for evil. But the President is a true man, and will keep his faith with &ed Clotjd at all hazards and at what ever cost.

Pish-i-lis-KA (or Spotted Tail) is a chief of the Sioux In dians. The first time the writer met this chieftain was on the

North-Platte, in 1867. We met under rather peculiar circum stances. The Indian had the best o? the situation, while the writer was compelled to stand before him, abashed with hu miliation and shame, in consequence of being forced, as one of a commission representing this nation?this civilized nation of

forty millions of people?to confess that in wars with Indians no prisoners were taken, therefore it was impossible to ex

change ; he presenting, on behalf of a tribe then at war, six white women and children that had been in the hostile camp months, yet complained not of harsh treatment. Spotted Tail said that some of the Cheyenne women and children Were missing, and these had been sent to secure them by ex

change. He was told that we did not know where they were ; that they must have been killed. Then, in a voice of sndness and disappointment, he replied, "Take these women and chil dren and send.them to their friends," which was done. One may well ask, Who were the savages? Who, if either, de served extermination ? Surely not the Indians.

For the Advocate of Peace.

THE BOOKS OUB CHILDREN BEAD. BY DANIEL HILL.

Whoever reads history, ancient or modern, must be struck with the prominence given to war. This comes not altogether from the desire of the historian to dip his pen in blood, but from the fact that the history of most nations is a history of their wars, and if these bloody items were left out there would be little else to record. But whilst this is true as to facts, much

depends upon the historian as to the effect which his record may have upon the reader. If every record of battles, sieges, and

campaigns, contained.a faithful history of the guilt, as well as what is generally termed the glory?** the pomp and circum stance of war"?a full detail of its horrors and sufferings^

as well as

glowing descriptions of ** mighty murderers," the in

fluence of their perusal might not be so pernicious upon the mind of the young reader, as when only one side is given, and that with a studied effort to make, war appear both honorable and glorious. Not only are the historical books which our children read and study at home, and at school, colored with blood, but the same is true of much of the literature, both poetry and prose, that we meet with almost everywhere, both among ancient and modern authors.

There is one class of literature which we might naturally suppose would be free from this taint. I refer to that written

especially for the entertainment and instruction of children at

tending Sabbath schools. One would think in the wide range of subjects there were plenty to choose from, without selecting military heroes, and holding them up to the fervid imagination of tbe young reader, as model Christians worthy of their admi ration and imitation.

In the series of books recently published by the American Tract Society, is one entitled,

'* Life Illustrated," being a me moir of Capt. M. M. Hammond, who belonged to a rifle brigade in the British army. This man is held^up as a model,Christian, without the l?asthint, so far as I have been able to discover, that the work of human butchery is in the least degree contrary to the principles of the gospehof the Prince of Peace.

His biographer thus speaks of him : 44 Essentially a soldier,

an ardent and intelligent lover of his profession, Capt. Ham mond wuuid have hailed, with an interest second to none, the

prospect of an actual campaign, had no other stake than his own

keen risked by the daime of war. But there were thoughts at

such a time that repressed the throb of pride which mav lawfully rise in a soldier's breast when ordered to take the field. The desolate wife, the sweet unconscious child, the broken-up home

?these might well brir?g sadness to his heart." But there is not the least hint tint he eared aught for the wife of him whom he was taught to believe his foeman, and whom he would .take

pride and glory in miking a widow ? Nothing for the ** sweet,

unconscious child," that he would gladly consign to orphanage. Nothing for the

** broken-up home" of him into whose heart

he was anxious to plunge the deadly sword. Notwithstanding he claimed to be a follower of Him who said,

" All things

whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do you even so to them."

He seems to have been very much grieved and pained-at the oaths and bad language used by his companions in arms, with out seeming to reflect that he who said *' Swear not at all," said also with equal emphasis,

** Thou shalt not kill." He was shocked that men should violate the first of these command

ments, and yet, he gloried in the privilege, and made it the

study and business of his life, to violate the second. It seems

passing strange to me that those professing to love and follow the Lord Jesus Christ should thus deliberately

" strain at gnats and swallow camels," for the guilt of killing a fellow-being, if we consider the suffering it brings upon others, is certainly as much greater than swearing as a camel is larger than a gnat.

The last act and hour of this Christian ( ?) warrior is thus described. They were storming the Redan, one of the strong fortifications of Sevastopol : "Pressing forward then himself into the heart of the work,.with a coior-sergeant and one or two devoted men who had bound up their fate in his, his sword is seen flashing far advanced in personal combat." **I saw an offi cer of the rifles," said one immediately after the action, "whose name I do not know, a fine, tall man, behaving heroically.11 Another officer said of him, that he never saw so brave a man, and that he fought desperately. And the colonel of the rifle

brigade speaks of him as " exhibiting a daring seldom equalled

and never surpassed in the history of strife." y Once or twice in that deadly fray his form appears through the embrasures, and for a few moments before his strong arm the Russian foe man retires and closes again." The closing scene is thus de scribed : "

The deadly bayonets close around him ; the sword

drops from the uplifted hand, and he sinks into the arms of an

officer. But with angels and seraphs, and the host of heaven, who were waiting on the other side of the river, there were

hymns of joy that day. Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath it. entered the heart of man, the things that God hath prepared for that happy ransomed spirit." " This storming of Sevastopol was the final conflict of the Crimean war. At midnight the enemy were seen retreating to the north, and in the morning Sevastopol was in flames."

When Captain Hammond was found after the battle, he is thus described:

" An expression of sweet peace rested on the

placid features. A very small puncture close to the heart told how instantaneous must have been his death .... And many of those who looked through their tears read in that fixed calm ness of death the seal of the promise,

* Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright, for the end of that man is peace?

" I

can conceive of nothing more palpably unchristian than the last acts of this man. See him, sword in hand, dashing amongst the Russians, as one eager for the fray. His sword gleams for a moment in the air, and then nerved by a strong arm descends

cleaving the head of a fellow-man, for whom Christ died.

Reeling with gore, it is again uplifted, and again descends,

crashing into the brain of a foeman. Men whom he had never

met before. Men who had never wronged him, and if they had he was bound by the law of Christ, not only to love, but to

forgive, " For if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will

your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses." In the heat

and frenzy of the battle, his hands and garments dyed in human

gore, striving with all his might to butcher his fellow-men, the

deadly bayonet enters his heart, and without a moment in which to prepare, his soul is summoned into the presence of Jehovah.

How awful the thought, for " Not every one that sayeth Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he that doeth

the will of my Father which is in heaven." " Men do not

gather grapes of thorns nor figs of thistles." And again, "God is love, and they that dwell in Him must dwell in love.1* And

again, " Follow peace with all men, and lioliness, without

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M8 THE ADVOCATE OF PEACE. Aug., 1870.

which no man shall see the Lord." And again, " Ye know

that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him." And again, " Now if any man have not the spirit of Christ, he is none of

His." And yet in view of all this, the .writer of this biography says

there were hymns of joy that day, with angels and seraphs, and the nosts of heaven, over that happy ransomed spirit. When we reflect that war cannot be prosecuted without violating some of the plainest and most positive commands of Christ and

His apostles, and that it is in direct antagonism to the whole

spirit of the gospel, it seems almost like blasphemy to hear men, calling themselves Christians, talk thus. If a man, with a

hungry family looking to him for bread, should be caught in the act of stealing, and shot down, no one would be so pre sumptuous as to affirm, that there would be joy in heaven over his **

happy ransomed spirit," and that it would be welcomed to the paradise of God. And yet, killing is no less a violation of the command of Christ, than stealing, and produces infinitely more suffering and misery to mankind. We pity the heathen mother, who, ignorant o? the gospel of Christ, and having no

knowledge of the plan of salvation, throws her child into the

Ganges, or willingly sees its young life crushed out beneath the wheels of the car of Juggernaut. And yet the same Christians (?) who weep over her benighted condition, and send missionaries out to labor for her conversion, are them selves bowing down to an idol equally heathenish, and wor

shipping at a shrine equally bloody. Whilst she does those things ignorantly, they do even worse, with an open Bible in their hands. May we not reasonably fear that it may be said of those who teach this bloody religion,

" It shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah, in the day of judg ment than for you." The soldier who fights and dies, is less criminal than his religious instructors, who teach that war is in harmony with the gospel, and that death on the battle-field is a passport to heaven.

It may be said this view of the subject of war leaves little

margin for soldiers who die in battle to be saved. I answer that it is for this very reason that I feel it my duty, as a friend to their never-dying souls, to warn them of their danger. I ! believe soldiers may be saved. That many of them have been saved. But it is just as all sinners are saved, by

" repentance

toward God, and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ." Parents look well to your libraries and the books your cliil- .

dren read. Religious teachers, you may plead the merits of the blood of Jesus, but let not your garments be stained with the blood of your fellow-men.

WATCHMAN, WHlT OF THE NIGHT ? The June number of the Advocate contained our own

annual report. The one for July a synopsis of that of the London Peace Society and a notice of the annual meeting of the Philadelphia branch of the Universal Peace Society.

We now publish an abridgment of the report of the Exe cutive Committee of the Friends' Peace Association, and a notice of the A nnual Meeting of the Ehode Island Peace

Society. From these various statements something may be

learned of the interest felt in the cause of peace, and of what is being done for its promotion. THIRD ANNUAL REPORT OP EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OP

THE PEACE ASSOCIATION OP FRIENDS IN AMERICA.

Since the last report we have had the following documents stereotyped, viz :

Whelpletfs Letters to Gov. Strong, of 186 pages ; Churches of Christendom responsible for the continuance of War, by Thomas Chase, . A., of 16 pages ; A Bloody Record, by John Ashworth, in Palestine, of 1 page.

As a knowledge of our Association spreads through the land, the demand for our publications increases.

Large numbers of orders have been received and filled for tracts to read and circulate by persons outside of the Society of Friends.

1,194,880 pages ofPeace matter h?ve been sent out from this

office ; more than one hundred thousand of which were Illustra ted tracts for children.

Some of these tracts have been purchased from the American Peace Society of Boston, and some from the New York Tract Association of Friends ; but most of them have been our own

publications. Feeling that ministers of the Gospel of all denominations

need to be more fully informed on the subject, an arrangement was made last autumn with the American Peace Society, by which it was agreed that our Association should supply the ministers in the States of Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New

York, New Jersey, anvd all the Southern States except Mis souri, and that Society those in all the other States. There are in the territory assigned to us probably not less than 30,000 ministers. We have obtained the names and address of large numbers of them, and are supplying them as rapidly as possible. We send to each one about 200 pages of selected matter. This number will pass through the mail for two cents. Thus far we have supplied 1,566. We should have been much further along with this work, but have been delayed by not

getting printing done as fast as ordered. Large numbers of ministers were supplied in a miscellaneous

way before this arrangement was entered into. A number have written to the Secretary acknowledging the

reception of the documents, and expressing their hearty appro val of the object of our Association, and their sympathy with the cause of Peace. Some have expressed a willingness to work for the same, and requested tracts to circulate among their members. We have heard of several instances where the minds of persons have been changed by reading our pub lications.

Deeply sensible that a living speaker is a powerful agent for

arousing and correcting public sentiment, we have employed R. W. Douglas, of Wilmington, Ohio, and W. G. Hubbard, of New Vienna, Ohio, as travelling agents and lecturers. R.

W. D. entered upon his duties on the 15th of Tenth mo. last, but owing to sickness and death in his family, and other causes, has only been*in the field a part of the time.

He has delivered eleven lectures in Ohio, fifteen in Indiana, two in Maryland, three in Virginia, one in New York, and eight in North Carolina ; one of which was, by invitation of the

members, before the Legislature of the latter State ; besides which, he has made several short addresses on the subject where there was no opportunity for a regular discourse. His

report mentions several instances of a change of opinion as a result of his labors on the part of prominent persons.

One man said, "I gave three sons to the Rebellion, and would have given six more had I had them?but you are right

?your arguments are unanswerable." A minister in Golds boro\ N. C., said, "I raised a company for the Confederate

Army, but now I see it all in a different light ; that it was all

wrong." All our agents make it a point to call upon ministers, editors, and other prominent persons* and press upon them the

importance of giving more attention to this subject, and often with good results.

A great many commendatory notices have appeared in the local papers where they have spoken. Wm. G. Hubbard, who was formerly an agent of the Ameri

can Peace Society, entered upon his duties as our agent on the 3d of Ninth month last, and has been actively at work ever since. He has delivered ten lectures in Iowa, twenty-two in Indiana, thirty-two in Ohio, nine in New York, and ten in other

places. Fifteen of these lectures have been in or near colleges. He reports that some of his most deeply interested audiences have oeen among the students of colleges, who seem glad to

get information, and disposed to investigate the subject. Sev eral college libraries have been supplied with Peace books, all of which has been thankfully received.

He has also put in circulation a large number (about 250,000 pages) of tracts, sold several volumes, and received considerable money by donation from those who were willing to give in aid of the work.

He has hid some twenty-five or thirty articles on Peace, pub lished in religious and secular newspapers, scattered through the country from Boston to Iowa. Many persons who have read those articles in the papers have written to us desiring tracts and documents to inform themselves further on the sub

ject of Peace.

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