Today's Republicans do in fact have Christian values

[Marcuse]

48. Interesting

[excerptIngersoll passed away on July 21, 1899 at a home in Dobbs Ferry, NY. The New York Times reported it the next day, and a rather lengthy article about his death followed by his accomplishments appeared with the following titles over the article:

Robert G. Ingersoll Dead
The Famous Agnostic Passes Away Suddenly at His Summer Home
Religious Views Unchanged
No Evidence that He Abandoned Agnosticism, Though He Expressed Hope of Immortality

One would think that that the statement “Religious Views Unchanged” would be sufficient to dissuade people from thinking otherwise. However, stories regarding a ”conversion” on his death-bed began circulating, and, finally having enough of these rumors (mostly spread by highly evangelical clergy), Eva A. Ingersoll, RGI’s wife, with two others who were present (Sue M. Farrell, RGI’s sister-in-law, and Sue Sharkey, the housekeeper) signed an affidavit on March 17, 1906. This notarized affidavit restated and confirmed everything that was mentioned in the New York Times newspaper article.

In June, 1909, David Eugene Olson, an evangelical preacher from Oregon, published another affidavit, this one signed by an Archie E. Berry, which stated Berry’s father, Joehiel, heard Ingersoll’s confession on his death bed and that Joehiel was Eva Ingersoll’s brother! A refutation of these falsehoods followed with a second affidavit by Eva, and one by Maud, Ingersoll’s daughter, who was mentioned in Berry’s statement. (“Lying About Ingersoll” by George MacDonald, Blue-Grass Blade, Lexington, Kentucky, February 27, 1910, page 4.) This notarized statement indicated that not only were no outsiders present, but Eva was not related to Berry. An offer of $1,000 was made to anyone who can prove the statement by Berry as true.