UNTIL THE DAY BREAK.
The events related in the foregoing chapter were interesting to us all,
in one way and another, but the doctor and I felt that the real purpose
of our visit to Mars, if anything so unpremeditated could be said to
have a purpose, was to learn all we could of the planet, and especially
of its people. And as we did not know how soon our visit might be
brought to a close, we lost no time in urging Thorwald to continue his
instruction whenever he could find it convenient. Thorwald’s answer to
this was, that he hoped nothing would occur to hasten our departure, but
that it was his convenience to heed at any time our wishes, and he would
resume his talk as soon as we pleased. So it was not long before we were
seated, and Thorwald began again as follows:
“It is now my privilege to speak to you, my friends, of that part of
our history which differs from anything you have experienced, and I
anticipate much pleasure in doing so. I must say again that we have
found the parallel remarkably close between your career and ours up to
the time when you left the earth.”
“We have indeed,” remarked the doctor, “and that makes us all the
more anxious to learn what came to you next and how you escaped the
threatening storms.”
“There were certainly many clouds upon our horizon at that day,” resumed
Thorwald. “The people were full of unrest. The worst part wanted to
replace organized society with anarchy, but this extreme party never
succeeded in their purpose. The world had progressed too far for that.
There were too many churches and schools and printing presses. The
anarchists should have begun their efforts in a ruder age.
“There was more danger from the jealousies and mischievous tendencies
among the great industrial class, because their number was so large. But
even here the same influences which saved us from the nihilist had their
effect. As time went on, men came to think more, and the result of this
was that both conscience and reason began to govern men’s actions.
“The workmen had looked about them and had seen many corporations
increasing in wealth and power, and individuals rolling up enormous
fortunes, and they had felt that they were not getting a fair share of
the money their labor was earning. But then a little thought enabled
them to realize that these evidences of great prosperity came from the
successful few, while a large proportion of all business ventures were
failures; and in these the employees received more of the profits than
the owners did. Then the wage-earners had the benefit of much of
the money accumulated in large fortunes, by having the free use of
libraries, trade schools, reading rooms, and an increasing number of
philanthropic institutions, which were equipped and endowed by the rich.
Such a use of wealth became an ordinary thing, so that it was not a
matter of wonder and wide notice when a man spent a liberal share of his
fortune in educational or other humanitarian work.
“All this had a great effect on the mass of the people, gradually
raising the average of character, and placing before the mind a higher
incentive for right living. Ignorance had always been to the race a
twin enemy with sin, and the growth of intelligence meant the general
elevation of mankind.
“Another chief item in the reformation of men in that age of improvement
was the general abandonment of the drinking habit. You will understand,
of course, that the mainspring of all these reforms was the gospel of
Christ, under which man’s spiritual nature was gradually developing.
But, at the same time, there was always a secondary cause, and through
human instrumentality such blessings came to us. What do you suppose
brought about the overthrow of intemperance?”
“I suspect,” answered the doctor, with a glance at our hostess, “it was
the growing influence of woman, who, by that time, according to Zenith’s
account, ought to be taking quite a leading position.”
“Doctor,” said Thorwald, “you take in the situation completely. If
there was one thing woman had always been sure she could do, it was the
breaking up of the liquor traffic. In the old days, when she had been
treated as man’s inferior, she had declared that, if she had the power,
she would stamp out the manufacture and sale of intoxicating drinks, and
make it impossible for men to get them at any price. And when power came
to her I am glad to say she proved that her boast had not been in vain.
Not that she fulfilled her threat in any such dramatic way as she had
had in mind, but the end was accomplished just as surely by the force
of her high character, working itself out in many ways. It was chiefly a
crusade of education. The children of one generation after another were
taught the value of right habits and purity of body, and in time the
change was wrought, a victory for woman more precious to the race than
any army of mailed warriors had ever won.
“With temperance came better manners, more self-respect, a kinder
spirit, a more tender care for others, and, along with these things,
better hearts and better homes.”
As Thorwald had invited us to interrupt him as often as we pleased, I
took advantage of a pause here by saying:
“I see, Thorwald, you are making the people all too good to leave any
fear in the mind of a social convulsion, but I would like to ask how
politics were smoothed out. During that period of industrial war, which
you described to us, you said the workingmen and ignorant classes
found they were in the majority and were beginning to use their power
unjustly. We are threatened in a similar way on the earth at this time,
and I am anxious to know how the cloud in your sky was dispersed.”
“I will endeavor to make it plain to you,” replied Thorwald, “but you
must remember I am trying to condense the history of a great many
years into as few words as possible. It was found that there had been
a mistake in making the right of suffrage universal without universal
education, and that the ignorant and vicious were so numerous as to make
the average unsafe to rely upon in a crisis. It was a difficult matter
to remedy this state of things. Some attempts were made from time to
time to confine the privilege of citizenship to the intelligent part of
the community, but many of the best people thought this was taking the
wrong course, and that the only safe cure was in educating all classes
up to a full appreciation of their higher duties. There was a growing
faith, the world over, in the virtue of the people at large, and
wherever they had been given full power to govern themselves, or had
taken it from their former rulers, they were exceedingly jealous of any
abridgment of this power.
“Here, again, we see the effects of the beneficent influence of woman.
The more her dominion increased the more was intelligence diffused, and
although she yielded to the subtle temptation of power and reigned alone
for a while, yet the world had, on the whole, great cause to be thankful
for her signal advancement. With education made compulsory, and with
society brought gradually under the sway of woman’s finer nature and
more lofty ideals, communities were molded to a higher form of life, and
saved from the evils which threatened them in their former state.
“Let me tell you briefly how war was banished from our world, that
monster whose hideous presence would be so utterly out of place here
now. At the beginning of the age I am describing, the foremost nations
kept powerful armies and navies, all ready for their deadly work. Wars
were frequent and bloody. The best of the young men in nearly every land
were forced to bear arms and fight for their country at the command of
their rulers, while the conscience of mankind was dulled and stunted by
the spectacle or constant menace of war.
“The lives of millions of men were actually in the hands of a few
irresponsible autocrats, who were possessed with exaggerated or false
notions of national honor. Now came a time when the world stood hushed,
as it were, on the eve of a mighty conflict. Every nation had increased
its army and strengthened its defenses to the utmost limit. Every day
threatened to see the match lighted--a hasty word, a fancied insult, any
trivial thing, which would bring on the struggle and put the world in
mourning. And what was it all for? No one could tell. It seemed to be
nothing but the selfish ambition of the rulers and their innate love
for supremacy. As for the real actors, those who were to do the actual
fighting, they had no love for their work. However it may have been in
the past, the world was older now and better, and war was abhorred with
all its accompaniments both by the army and by the people at large.
“It was a time of great inventions, looking not only to the saving of
life but to its destruction. Even while the nations were standing, arms
in hand, waiting for the signal to begin the conflict, their weapons
were rendered useless and the strength of their fortresses reduced to
nothing by the working of one man’s brain. Yes, by a single invention,
inspired by God for the good of his creation, inhuman war received its
death-blow and the world obtained a mighty impulse toward its final
goal.”
The doctor became somewhat excited by these words and asked with
eagerness:
“What wonderful invention was that?”
“The perfection of the air ship,” Thorwald replied, “by which any
required weight could be taken into the air, and carried with ease and
certainty by currents of air or force of gravity.
“You no doubt see what such an invention implies. It means that powerful
explosives could be dropped from the sky in quantities sufficient to
annihilate an army or utterly destroy a city. Experiments were made,
and engineers learned, with surprising rapidity, to cast the bombs with
great accuracy from any desired height.
“At once every government hastened to build air ships and manufacture
explosives. There seemed to be no limit in sight to the production of
either, and soon power enough was stored in this way to extinguish
half the life of the world, when rightly applied. The entire system of
warfare was revolutionized; but, while all were preparing for offensive
operations, there appeared to be no adequate plan of defense under the
new system. It therefore became apparent that, should the threatening
cloud burst, it would be difficult to imagine the extent of the
destruction it would bring. This feeling, which filled all hearts with
dread, delayed the catastrophe, for no one was ready to assume such an
immense responsibility. So matters stood for a long time, the fear
of the dire consequences preventing an outbreak, while the sentiment
against war was rapidly growing. In nations of the highest civilization,
where the Christian character of the people was reflected in the
government, some serious disputes had been settled by arbitration, and
every time this humane method was adopted a precedent was created which
made war appear more and more useless and barbarous. The world was now
becoming so much changed that such a good example was contagious, and
the result was that the aerial warships and the deadly dynamite did not
have to be used.
“Among the legends of the time is the improbable one that, when these
air fleets were at their highest point of efficiency, and the world
was literally lying at their mercy, one hot-headed young monarch, whose
selfish pride had stolen away his senses, gave the command to fire
the train which would ram destruction upon his foes, when, wonder of
wonders, not a man would obey his order. Angered beyond measure by
such an unwonted experience, he seized with his own hand the electric
apparatus arranged to give the fatal spark, but with such violence
and indiscretion that, instead of sending the current on its appointed
mission, it turned from its course and destroyed the angry youth
himself.
“This is undoubtedly a myth, but the rest that I have told you is
well-authenticated history.
“The abolition of war seems sudden, but it never would have taken place
as it did had not the people been prepared for it by a radical change in
their character. For many years the spirit of peace had been quietly at
work on the heart of mankind, until it came to be realized that warfare
and strife, whether between individuals or nations, were bound to die
away under the growing appreciation for the higher law.
“It was one of the supreme days in the history of Mars, when grim war
passed and became but a memory. The effect was instantaneous. At once
the people of the different nations were drawn together to their mutual
advantage. Commerce became world-wide, one language was adopted, and the
arts of peace flourished as never before. Men began to feel that they
were one family, national distinctions were made little of, and the
world drifted gradually toward universal brotherhood.
“I must now draw your attention to the work of the church and show you
how it was carrying out its great commission. First, to prepare for
the highest usefulness, it quite early freed itself from the sectarian
spirit. As the magnitude of its mission became more apparent the points
of difference between the denominations grew constantly smaller, and, in
time, all Christians found themselves united on the fundamental truths
of the gospel, and working together to bring the world to the light.
With this union fully accomplished, Christianity became more than ever
the dominant force in the world, and the church the chief center of all
work looking to the elevation of the race.
“The progress of the world was along the line of the brotherhood of
man, and that doctrine was the church’s own Christianity taught the true
socialism, which, however, could not be realized till the heart had lost
its selfishness, and each one had learned to care for the interests of
his neighbor. Although such a condition was not in sight at that day,
there was a mighty awakening which set the current of men’s thoughts and
desires strongly in the right direction.”
“Do you call yourselves socialists now?” asked the doctor.
“No,” answered Thorwald, “but you can call us so, if you please. It is
a good word, but our condition is much more perfect, since the coming of
the kingdom of God in every heart, than any dream of socialism, in the
olden time, ever contemplated.
“I was speaking of the increasing power of religion. Where the church
had been weak and dependent on a few half-earnest, timid believers,
it was now strong and active, and supported by all the self-respecting
portion of society. Instead of being forced to beg for its meager
subsistence, it now received in abundance the money that was poured out
voluntarily. Men did not wait for death, but gave their fortunes away
during their lives, and enjoyed the blessing which followed. The church
went down to the people, and in so doing lifted them up to itself.
It showed them how to make much of life, gave them instruction and
recreation and social enjoyment, fed the hungry, clothed the naked, and
visited those in trouble. It strengthened family and neighborhood ties,
encouraged peace and good-fellowship, and taught men to love each other
as a preparation for loving God.
“A local church of that day was not a feeble body of men and women, with
an overworked and underpaid man at their head, who was expected to do
all the varied work required, except what he could get done by a small
number of his members, themselves worn out with the labor and business
of life. No, I will acquaint you with a then modern church. It was an
institution rich in resources and men, male and female, reaching out
into the community in every direction, helping the people in every
imaginable way to live as well as preparing them to die, a beauty and a
joy to all. It appealed to every side of man’s nature, first supplying
physical wants, not by indiscriminate largess of money, but by teaching
sobriety, industry, and thrift as virtues necessary to a rounded
character. Such teaching was not confined to pulpit precepts, but there
was no lack of good souls who took delight in going into the homes of
the people and showing them by example the best ways of living, and how
to make even the homeliest duties a loving and beautiful service.
To provide further for the needs of the body, there were gymnasiums,
bath-houses, swimming schools, playgrounds, riding schools, and the
like.
“More numerous still were the means offered to meet the intellectual
and social desires--club-houses, lecture halls, conservatories,
museums, picture galleries, libraries, reading rooms, observatories,
kindergartens, manual training and trade schools, besides games and
sports, spectacular and dramatic exhibitions of a high order, and
many other things, designed to compete with attractions of a debasing
character.
“Then, rising high over all, both in outward form and inward grace,
was the church edifice itself, set apart and strictly preserved for its
sacred purpose. In the noble lines of its architecture, in the beauty
of its artistic adornment, and in the character of its service,
intellectual and musical, it represented the highest culture of the age.
The structure included under its roof accommodations for the various
departments of religious work, and its doors were always open, inviting
every passer-by to enter and seek for spiritual refreshment.
“Imagine, if you can, an institution employing all these agencies, every
one of them fully equipped and manned, and with streams of money flowing
in to their support; no barren appeals from the pulpit for funds to pay
expenses, and no auctioneer’s hammer profaning the sacred aisles.
“This was the church of the period. Can you wonder that God’s rich
blessing was on such work and that his kingdom made rapid progress?
There was an ever-increasing number of God’s ministers, men and women,
imbued with Christ’s own spirit, working in all these various activities
to elevate and save their kind.
“In the life of the people there was nothing in all the world that so
surrounded them as the church. They could not escape from its influence.
It touched them from one side or from another, calling upon them, by
every manner of appeal, to lead less sordid lives, and seek the highest
good. Whereas in the olden time they seemed to be set in the midst of
evil influences, which imperceptibly molded their characters and too
often wrecked their lives, their condition was so changed that their
environment was now a help and not a hindrance, and so the gospel found
easy entrance to their hearts and lives.
“This much the church had done by giving its money and itself, with
new-born zeal, to the work of the Master. And from this time you may be
sure its victories were rapid and notable.
“While this great change in society had been going on among nominal
Christian people, hand in hand had gone the work of the gospel in
heathen lands. The faster the money was poured out for the church
at home, the more plentifully it was offered for the foreign field.
Sometimes it was feared there would be more money than men and women for
the work. Then the laborers would come forward in such numbers that the
money would be exhausted, which, however, gave no concern, for it was
sure to come again as soon as needed. Where one missionary, in the
former days, had had the courage to take up the work, now thousands
sprang forward and with eager hearts went into the field.
“Going to the heathen in the same spirit of brotherly love and
helpfulness which had been so successful at home, the church was almost
overwhelmed with the happy results. One people after another threw away
their idols, and became followers of the gentle Savior, whose disciples
showed so much of his spirit. In every part of the world the gospel
was gaining fast over superstition and ignorance. In Christian lands no
other news was so sought after by all as the reports of the progress of
the cross, at home and abroad. Enthusiasm is a small word with which to
describe the burst of genuine interest in this great cause. Nor was it
a transient show of feeling, but so steady and constant that there was
never any doubt of its enduring till the final victory was won.
“Where now were the dangers that threatened society? What had become
of the labor troubles, the schemes of the anarchists, the menace of the
unemployed, the risk of a plutocracy, and all the evils that darkened
the sky of that former day? How far away, how trivial these things
seemed, now that they had passed, and men were learning to dwell
together in peace.”