CHAPTER 11
CHAPTER 11
“Your sermon today made clear to me what I have long been feeling I ought to do,” Donald Marsh, president of Lincoln College, said as he and Mr. Maxwell walked home. “‘What would Jesus do in my place?’ I’ve asked the question repeatedly since I made my promise. I’ve tried to satisfy myself that He would simply go on as I have done, attending to the duties of my college work, teaching my classes. But I’ve been able to avoid the feeling that He would do something more. Something I don’t want to do, as it will cause me genuine suffering to do it. I dread it with all my soul. But I shall never be satisfied until I carry this cross.”
“Yes, I think I know. It is my cross, too. I would almost rather do anything else.”
Donald Marsh looked surprised, then relieved. “Maxwell, we’ve lived in a little world of literature and scholarly seclusion, doing work we have enjoyed and shrinking from the disagreeable duties of citizenship. Our city officials are a corrupt, unprincipled set of men, controlled in large part by the whiskey element and thoroughly selfish so far as the affairs of city government are concerned. Yet I’ve been satisfied to let them run the municipality and have lived in my little world, out of touch and sympathy with the real world of the people. ‘What would Jesus do?’ I have even tried to avoid an honest answer. But my plain duty is to take a personal part in this coming election, go to the primaries, throw the weight of my influence, whatever it is, toward the nomination and election of good men, and plunge into the very depths of the entire horrible whirlpool of deceit, bribery, political trickery, and saloonism as it exists in Raymond today.”
“You have spoken for me also,” replied Maxwell with a sad smile. “All my parish work, all my little trials or self-sacrifices, are as nothing to me compared with the breaking into my scholarly, intellectual, self-contained habits of this open, coarse, public fight for a clean city life. The answer to the question, ‘What would Jesus do?’ in this case leaves me no peace except when I say Jesus would have me act the part of a Christian citizen. We can do no less than take up this cross and follow Him.”
The two men then walked on in silence for a while. Finally, President Marsh said, “We do not need to act alone in this matter. With all the men who have made the promise, we certainly can have companionship and strength, even, of numbers. Let us organize the Christian forces of Raymond for the battle against rum and corruption, a campaign that will mean something because it is organized righteousness. Jesus would use great wisdom in this matter. He would employ means. He would make large plans. Let us do so.”
They talked over the matter a long time and met again the next day in Maxwell’s study to develop plans. The city primaries were called for Friday, a public meeting at the courthouse.
In its Saturday edition the evening News gave a full account of the primaries, and in the editorial columns Edward Norman spoke with a directness and conviction that the Christian people of Raymond were learning to respect.
Never before in the history of Raymond was there a primary like the one in the courthouse last night. It was a complete surprise to the city of politicians who have been in the habit of carrying on the affairs of the city as if they owned them. A large number of the citizens of Raymond who have never before taken part in the city’s affairs entered the primary and controlled it, nominating some of the best men for all the offices to be filled at the coming election.
It was a tremendous lesson in good citizenship. President Marsh of Lincoln College made one of the best speeches ever made in Raymond. The consternation deepened as the primary proceeded and it became evident that the old-time ring of city rulers was outnumbered.
Scores of well-known businessmen and professional men, most of them church members, were present, and it did not take long to see that they had all come with the one direct and definite purpose of nominating the best men possible. Most of those men had never before been seen in a primary. They were complete strangers to the politicians. But they were able by organized and united effort to nominate the entire ticket.
As soon as it became plain that the primary was out of their control, the regular ring withdrew in disgust and nominated another ticket. The News simply calls the attention of all decent citizens to the fact that the line is sharply and distinctly drawn between the saloon and corrupt management, such as we have known for years, and a clean, honest, capable, businesslike city administration, such as every good citizen ought to want.
The crisis of our city affairs has been reached. The issue is squarely before us. Shall we continue the rule of rum and bribery and shameless incompetence, or shall we, as President Marsh said in his noble speech, rise as good citizens and begin a new order of things, cleansing our city of the worst enemy known to municipal honesty, and doing what lies in our power to do with the ballot to purify our civic life?
For the first time in its history, Raymond had seen the professional men—the teachers, the college professors, the doctors, the ministers—take political action and put themselves definitely in public antagonism to the evil forces that had so long controlled the machine of the municipal government.
Saturday afternoon as Virginia stepped out of her house to go and see Rachel, a carriage drove up containing three of her fashionable friends. They wanted Virginia to go driving with them up on the boulevard. The day was too pleasant to be spent indoors.
“Where have you been all this time, Virginia?” asked one of the girls, tapping her playfully on the shoulder with a red silk parasol. “We hear that you have gone into the show business. Tell us about it.”
Virginia colored, but she frankly told something of her experience at the Rectangle.
“I tell you, girls, let’s go ‘slumming’ with Virginia this afternoon. I’ve never been down to the Rectangle. I’ve heard it’s an awful, wicked place and lots to see. Virginia will act as guide, and it will be interesting.”
The other girls seemed to be of the same mind with the speaker, and Virginia suddenly saw an opportunity. These girls had never seen the sin and misery of Raymond. Why should they not see it, even if their motive in going down there was simply to pass away an afternoon?
“Very well, I’ll go with you, but you must let me take you where you can see the most,” she said as she entered the carriage.