第11章

类别:其他 作者:G。 K。 Chesterton字数:11203更新时间:18/12/13 16:43:17
Tome,unfortunatelyperhaps(forIspeakmerelyofindividualtaste),acatisawildanimal。AcatisNaturepersonified。LikeNature,itissomysteriousthatonecannotquitereposeeveninitsbeauty。ButlikeNatureagain,itissobeautifulthatonecannotbelievethatitisreallycruel。Perhapsitisn\'t;andthereagainitislikeNature。Menofoldtimeworshippedcatsastheyworshippedcrocodiles;andthosemagnificentoldmysticsknewwhattheywereabout。Themomentinwhichonereallylovescatsisthesameasthatinwhichone(moderatelyandwithinreason)lovescrocodiles。Itisthatdivineinstantwhenamanfeelshimself——no,notabsorbedintotheunityofallthings(aloathsomefancy)——butdelightinginthedifferenceofallthings。Atthemomentwhenamanreallyknowsheisamanhewillfeel,howeverfaintly,akindoffairy-talepleasureinthefactthatacrocodileisacrocodile。Allthemorewillheexultinthethingsthataremoreevidentlybeautifulthancrocodiles,suchasflowersandbirdsandeats——whicharemorebeautifulthaneither。Butitdoesnotfollowthathewillwishtopickalltheflowersortocageallthebirdsortoownallthecats。 Noonewhostillbelievesindemocracyandtherightsofmanwilladmitthatanydivisionbetweenmenandmencanbeanythingbutafancifulanalogytothedivisionbetweenmenandanimals。ButinthesphereofsuchfancifulanalogythereareevenhumanbeingswhomIfeeltobelikeeatsinthisrespect:thatIcanlovethemwithoutlikingthem。Ifeelitaboutcertainquaintandaliensocieties,especiallyabouttheJapanese。TheexquisiteoldJapanesedraughtsmanship(ofwhichweshallseenomore,nowJapanhasgoneinforProgressandImperialism)hadaqualitythatwasinfinitelyattractiveandintangible。Japanesepictureswerereallyratherlikepicturesmadebycats。Theywerefulloffeatherysoftnessandofsuddenandspiritedscratches。Ifanyonewillwanderinsomegalleryfortunateenoughtohaveafinecollectionofthoseslightwater-coloursketchesonricepaperwhichcomefromtheremoteEast,hewillobservemanyelementsinthemwhichafancifulpersonmightconsiderfeline。Thereis,forinstance,thatoddenjoymentofthetopsoftrees;thoseairytraceriesofforksandfadingtwigs,uptowhichcertainlynoartist,butonlyacatcouldclimb。Thereisthatelvishloveofthefullmoon,aslargeandlucidasaChineselantern,hunginthesetenuousbranches。Thatmoonissolargeandluminousthatonecanimagineahundredcatshowlingunderit。Thenthereistheexhaustivetreatmentoftheanatomyofbirdsandfish;subjectsinwhichcatsaresaidtobeinterested。Thenthereistheslantingcat-likeeyeofalltheseEasterngodsandmen——butthisisgettingaltogethertoocoincident。Weshallhaveanotherracialtheoryinnotime(beginning\"AretheJapsCats?\"),andthoughIshallnotbelieveinmytheory,somebodyelsemight。Therearepeopleamongmyesteemedcorrespondentswhomightbelieveanything。ItisenoughformetosayherethatinthissmallrespectJapsaffectmelikecats。ImeanthatIlovethem。Ilovetheirquaintandnativepoetry,theirinstinctofeasycivilisation,theiruniqueunreplaceableart,thetestimonytheybeartothebustling,irrepressibleactivitiesofnatureandman。IfIwerearealmysticlookingdownonthemfromarealmountain,IamsureIshouldlovethemmoreeventhanthestrongwingedandunweariedbirdsorthefruitful,ever- multiplyingfish。But,asforlikingthem,asonelikesadog——thatisquiteanothermatter。Thatwouldmeantrustingthem。 IntheoldEnglishandScotchballadsthefairiesareregardedverymuchinthewaythatIfeelinclinedtoregardJapsandcats。Theyarenotspeciallyspokenofasevil;theyareenjoyedaswitchingandwonderful; buttheyarenottrustedasgood。Youdonotsaythewrongwordsorgivethewronggiftstothem;andthereisacurioussilenceaboutwhatwouldhappentoyouifyoudid。Nowtome,Japan,theJapanofArt,wasalwaysafairyland。Whattreesasgayasflowersandpeaksaswhiteasweddingcakes;whatlanternsaslargeashousesandhousesasfrailaslanterns!……but……but……themissionaryexplained(Ireadinthepaper)thattheassertionanddenialabouttheJapaneseuseoftorturewasamerematterofverbaltranslation。\"TheJapanesewouldnotcalltwistingthethumbsback\'torture。\'\" THECHARTEREDLIBERTINE IfindmyselfinagreementwithMr。RobertLyndforhismostjustremarkinconnectionwiththeMalatestacase,thatthepolicearebecomingaperiltosociety。IhavenoattractiontothatsortofatheistasceticismtowhichthepurertypesofAnarchismtend;butbothanatheistandanasceticarebettermenthanaspy;anditisignominioustoseeone\'scountrythuslosingherspecialpointofhonouraboutasylumandliberty。Itwillbequiteanewdepartureifwebegintoprotectandwhitewashforeignpolicemen。IalwaysunderstooditwasonlyEnglishpolicemenwhowereabsolutelyspotless。Agoodmanyofus,however,havebeguntofeelwithMr。Lynd,andonallsidesauthoritiesandofficialsarebeingquestioned。Butthereisonemostgraphicandextraordinaryfact,whichitdidnotlieinMr。Lynd\'swaytotouchupon,butwhichsomebodyreallymustseizeandemphasise。Itisthis:thatattheverytimewhenweareallbeginningtodoubttheseauthorities,wearelettinglawspasstoincreasetheirmostcapriciouspowers。Allourcommissions,petitions,andletterstothepapersareaskingwhethertheseauthoritiescangiveanaccountoftheirstewardship。Andatthesamemomentallourlawsaredecreeingthattheyshallnotgiveanyaccountoftheirstewardship,butshallbecomeyetmoreirresponsiblestewards。BillsliketheFeeble-MindedBillandtheInebriateBill(veryappropriatenamesforthem)actuallyarmwithscorpionsthehandthathaschastisedtheMalatestasandMaleckaswithwhips。Theinspector,thedoctor,thepolicesergeant,thewell-paidpersonwhowritescertificatesand\"passes\"this,that,ortheother;thissortofmanisbeingtrustedwithmoreauthority,apparentlybecauseheisbeingdoubtedwithmorereason。 InoneroomweareaskingwhytheGovernmentandthegreatexpertsbetweenthemcannotsailaship。InanotherroomwearedecidingthattheGovernmentandexpertsshahbeallowed,withouttrialordiscussion,toimmureanyone\'sbody,damnanyone\'ssoul,anddisposeofunborngenerationswiththelevityofapagangod。Weareputtingtheofficialonthethronewhileheisstillinthedock。 Themeremeaningofwordsisnowstrangelyforgottenandfalsified;aswhenpeopletalkofanauthor\'s\"message,\"withoutthinkingwhomitisfrom;andIhavenotedintheseconnectionsthestrangemisuseofanotherword。Itistheexcellentmediaevalword\"charter。”IremembertheActthatsoughttosavegutter-boysfromcigaretteswascalled\"TheChildren\'sCharter。”SimilarlytheActwhichseekstolockupaslunaticspeoplewhoarenotlunaticswasactuallycalleda\"charter\"ofthefeeble-minded。Nowthisterminologyisinsanelywrong,eveniftheBillsareright。Evenweretheyrightintheorytheywouldbeappliedonlytothepoor,likemanybetterrulesabouteducationandcruelty。A womanwaslatelypunishedforcrueltybecauseherchildrenwerenotwashedwhenitwasprovedthatshehadnowater。FromthatitwillbeaneasystepinAdvancedThoughttopunishingamanforwine-bibbingwhenitisprovedthathehadnowine。Riftsinrightreasonwidendowntheages。 Andwhenwehavebegunbyshuttingupaconfessedlykindpersonforcruelty,wemayyetcometoshuttingupMr。TomMannforfeeble- mindedness。 Butevenifsuchlawsdogoodtochildrenoridiots,itiswrongtousetheword\"charter。”Acharterdoesnotmeanathingthatdoesgoodtopeople。Itmeansathingthatgrantspeoplemorerightsandliberties。 Itmaybeagoodthingforgutter-boystobedeprivedoftheircigarettes: itmightbeagoodthingforaldermentobedeprivedoftheircigars。 ButIthinktheGoldsmiths\'CompanywouldbeverymuchsurprisediftheKinggrantedthemanewcharter(inplaceoftheirmediaevalcharter),anditonlymeantthatpolicemenmightpullthecigarsoutoftheirmouths。Itmaybeagoodthingthatalldrunkardsshouldbelockedup: andmanyacutestatesmen(\"KingJohn,forinstance)wouldcertainlyhavethoughtitagoodthingifallaristocratscouldbelockedup。Buteventhatsomewhatcynicalprincewouldscarcelyhavegrantedtothebaronsathingcalled\"theGreatCharter\"andthenlockedthemalluponthestrengthofit。Ifhehad,thisinterpretationoftheword\"charter\" wouldhavestruckthebaronswithconsiderablesurprise。Idoubtiftheirnarrowmediaevalmindscouldhavetakenitin。 TherootsoftherealEnglandareintheearlyMiddleAges,andnoEnglishmanwilleverunderstandhisownlanguage(orevenhisownconscience)tillheunderstandsthem。Andhewillneverunderstandthemtillheunderstandsthisword\"charter。”Iwillattemptinamomenttostateinolder,moresuitableterms,whatacharterwas。Inmodern,practical,andpoliticalterms,itisquiteeasytostatewhatacharterwas。AcharterwasthethingthattherailwayworkerswantedlastChristmasanddidnotget;andapparentlywillneverget。Itiscalledinthecurrentjargon\"recognition\";theacknowledgmentinsomanywordsbysocietyoftheimmunitiesorfreedomsofacertainsetofmen。 IftherehadbeenrailwaysintheMiddleAgestherewouldprobablyhavebeenarailwaymen\'sguild;anditwouldhavehadacharterfromtheKing,definingtheirrights。Acharteristheexpressionofanideastilltrueandthenalmostuniversal:thatauthorityisnecessaryfornothingsomuchasforthegrantingofliberties。Likeeverythingmediaeval,itramifiedbacktoarootinreligion;andwasasortofsmallcopyoftheChristianideaofman\'screation。Manwasfree,notbecausetherewasnoGod,butbecauseitneededaGodtosethimfree。Byauthorityhewasfree。Byauthoritythecraftsmenoftheguildswerefree。Manyothergreatphilosopherstookandtaketheotherview:theLucretianpagans,theMoslemfatalists,themodernmonistsanddeterminists,allroughlyconfinethemselvestosayingthatGodgavemanalaw。ThemediaevalChristianinsistedthatGodgavemanacharter。Modernfeelingmaynotsympathisewithitslistofliberties,whichincludedthelibertytobedamned;butthathasnothingtodowiththefactthatitwasagiftoflibertiesandnotoflaws。Thiswasmirrored,howeverdimly,inthewholesystem。Therewasagreatdealofgrossinequality;andinotheraspectsabsoluteequalitywastakenforgranted。Butthepointisthatequalityandinequalitywereranks——orrights。Therewerenotonlythingsonewasforbiddentodo;butthingsonewasforbiddentoforbid。 Amanwasnotonlydefinitelyresponsible,butdefinitelyirresponsible。 Theholidaysofhissoulwereimmovablefeasts。Allacharterreallymeantlingersaliveinthatpoeticphrasethatcallsthewinda\"chartered\"libertine。 Lieawakeatnightandhearthewindblowing;hearitknockateveryman\'sdoorandshoutdowneveryman\'schimney。Feelhowittakeslibertieswitheverything,havingtakenprimarylibertyforitself;feelthatthewindisalwaysavagabondandsometimesalmostahousebreaker。 Butrememberthatinthedayswhenfreemenhadcharters,theyheldthatthewinditselfwaswildbyauthority;andwasonlyfreebecauseithadafather。 THECONTENTEDMAN Thewordcontentisnotinspiringnowadays;ratheritisirritatingbecauseitisdull。ItpreparesthemindforalittlesermoninthestyleoftheVicarofWakefieldabouthowyouandIshouldbesatisfiedwithourcountrifiedinnocenceandoursimplevillagesports。Theword,however,hastwomeanings,somewhatsingularlyconnected;the\"sweetcontent\"ofthepoetandthe\"cubiccontent\"ofthemathematician。Somedistinguishthesebystressingthedifferentsyllables。Thus,itmighthappentoanyofus,atsomesocialjuncture,toremarkgaily,\"OfthecontentoftheKingoftheCannibalIslands\'StewpotIamcontenttobeignorant\";or\"Notcontentwithmeasuringthecubiccontentofmysafe,youarestealingthespoons。”Andtherereallyisananalogybetweenthemathematicalandthemoraluseoftheterm,forlackoftheobservationofwhichthelatterhasbeenmuchweakenedandmisused。 Thepreachingofcontentmentisindisrepute,welldeservedinsofarthatthemoralisreallyquiteinapplicabletotheanarchyandinsaneperilofourtallandtopplingcities。Contentsuggestssomekindofsecurity;anditisnotstrangethatourworkersshouldoftenthinkaboutrisingabovetheirposition,sincetheyhavesocontinuallytothinkaboutsinkingbelowit。Thephilanthropistwhourgesthepoortosavingandsimplepleasuresdeservesallthederisionthathegets。Toadvisepeopletobecontentwithwhattheyhavegotmayormaynotbesoundmoralphilosophy。 Buttourgepeopletobecontentwithwhattheyhaven\'tgotisapieceofimpudencehardforeventheEnglishpoortopardon。Butthoughthecreedofcontentisunsuitedtocertainspecialriddlesandwrongs,itremainstrueforthenormalofmortallife。Wespeakofdivinediscontent; discontentmaysometimesbeadivinething,butcontentmustalwaysbethehumanthing。Itmaybetruethatapar-titularman,inhisrelationtohismasterorhisneighbour,tohiscountryorhisenemies,willdowelltobefiercelyunsatisfiedorthirstingforanangryjustice。Butitisnottrue,nosanepersoncancallittrue,thatmanasawholeinhisgeneralattitudetowardstheworld,inhisposturetowardsdeathorgreenfields,towardstheweatherorthebaby,willbewisetocultivatedissatisfaction。Inabroadestimateofourearthlyexperience,thegreattruismonthetabletremains:hemustnotcovethisneighbour\'soxnorhisassnoranythingthatishis。Inhighlycomplexandscientificcivilisationshemaysometimesfindhimselfforcedintoanexceptionalvigilance。But,then,inhighlycomplexandscientificcivilisations,ninetimesoutoften,heonlywantshisownassback。 ButIwishtourgethecaseforcubiccontent;inwhich(evenmorethaninmoralcontent)Itakeapersonalinterest。Now,moralcontenthasbeenundervaluedandneglectedbecauseofitsseparationfromtheothermeaning。Ithasbecomeanegativeratherthanapositivething。Insomeaccountsofcontentmentitseemstobelittlemorethanameekdespair。 Butthisisnotthetruemeaningoftheterm;itshouldstandfortheideaofapositiveandthoroughappreciationofthecontentofanything; forfeelingthesubstanceandnotmerelythesurfaceofexperience。 \"Content\"oughttomeaninEnglish,asitdoesinFrench,beingpleased; placidly,perhaps,butstillpositivelypleased。Beingcontentedwithbreadandcheeseoughtnottomeannotcaringwhatyoueat。Itoughttomeancaringforbreadandcheese;handlingandenjoyingthecubiccontentofthebreadandcheeseandaddingittoyourown。Beingcontentwithanatticoughtnottomeanbeingunabletomovefromitandresignedtolivinginit。Itoughttomeanappreciatingwhatthereistoappreciateinsuchaposition;suchasthequaintandelvishslopeoftheceilingorthesublimeaerialviewoftheoppositechimney-pots。Andinthissensecontentmentisarealandevenanactivevirtue;itisnotonlyaffirmative,butcreative。Thepoetintheatticdoesnotforgettheatticinpoeticmusings;herememberswhatevertheattichasofpoetry; herealiseshowhigh,howstarry,howcool,howunadornedandsimple——inshort,howAtticistheattic。 Truecontentmentisathingasactiveasagriculture。Itisthepowerofgettingoutofanysituationallthatthereisinit。Itisarduousanditisrare。Theabsenceofthisdigestivetalentiswhatmakessocoldandincrediblethetalesofsomanypeoplewhosaytheyhavebeen\"through\"things;whenitisevidentthattheyhavecomeoutontheothersidequiteunchanged。Amanmighthavegone\"through\"aplumpuddingasabulletmightgothroughaplumpudding;itdependsonthesizeofthepudding——andtheman。Buttheawfulandsacredquestionis\"Hasthepuddingbeenthroughhim?\"Hashetasted,appreciated,andabsorbedthesolidpudding,withitsthreedimensionsanditsthreethousandtastesandsmells?Canheofferhimselftotheeyesofmenasonewhohascubicallyconqueredandcontainedapudding? Inthesamewaywemayaskofthosewhoprofesstohavepassedthroughtrivialortragicexperienceswhethertheyhaveabsorbedthecontentofthem;whethertheylickedupsuchlivingwaterastherewas。Itisapertinentquestioninconnectionwithmanymodernproblems。 Thustheyounggeniussays,\"IhavelivedinmydrearyandsqualidvillagebeforeIfoundsuccessinParisorVienna。”Thesoundphilosopherwillanswer,\"Youhaveneverlivedinyourvillage,oryouwouldnotcallitdrearyandsqualid。” ThustheImperialist,theColonialidealist(whocommonlyspeaksandalwaysthinkswithaYankeeaccent)willsay,\"I\'vebeenrightawayfromtheselittlemuddyislands,andseenGod\'sgreatseasandprairies。”Thesoundphilosopherwillreply,\"Youhaveneverbeenintheeislands;youhaveneverseenthewealdofSussexortheplainofSalisbury;otherwiseyoucouldneverhavecalledthemeithermuddyorlittle。” ThustheSuffragettewillsay,\"Ihavepassedthroughthepaltrydutiesofpotsandpans,thedrudgeryofthevulgarkitchen;butIhavecomeouttointellectualliberty。”Thesoundphilosopherwillanswer,\"Youhaveneverpassedthroughthekitchen,oryouneverwouldcallitvulgar。 Wiserandstrongerwomenthanyouhavereallyseenapoetryinpotsandpans;naturally,becausethereisapoetryinthem。”ItisrightforthevillageviolinisttoclimbintofameinParisorVienna;itisrightforthestrayEnglishmantoclimbacrossthehighshoulderoftheworld;itisrightforthewomantoclimbintowhatevercathedraeorhighplacesshecanallowtohersexualdignity。Butitiswrongthatanyoftheseclimbersshouldkicktheladderbywhichtheyhaveclimbed。Butindeedthesebitterpeoplewhorecordtheirexperiencesreallyrecordtheirlackofexperiences。ItisthecountrymanwhohasnotsucceededinbeingacountrymanwhocomesuptoLondon。Itistheclerkwhohasnotsucceededinbeingaclerkwhotries(onvegetarianprinciples)tobeacountryman。 Andthewomanwithapastisgenerallyawomanangryaboutthepastsheneverhad。 Whenyouhavereallyexhaustedanexperienceyoualwaysreverenceandloveit。Thetwothingsthatnearlyallofushavethoroughlyandreallybeenthrougharechildhoodandyouth。Andthoughwewouldnothavethembackagainonanyaccount,wefeelthattheyarebothbeautiful,becausewehavedrunkthemdry。 THEANGRYAUTHOR:HISFAREWELL Ihaverepublishedalltheseoldarticlesofminebecausetheycoveraverycontroversialperiod,inwhichIwasinnearlyallthecontroversies,whetherIwasvisiblethereorno。AndIwishtogatherupintothislastarticleavaledictoryviolenceaboutallsuchthings;andthenpasstowhere,beyondthesevoices,thereispeace——orinotherwords,tothewritingofPennyDreadfuls;anobleandmuch-neededwork。ButbeforeI finallydeserttheillusionsofrationalismfortheactualitiesofromance,Ishouldverymuchliketowriteonelastroaring,ragingbooktellingalltherationalistsnottobesoutterlyirrational。Thebookwouldbesimplyastringofviolentvetoes,liketheTenCommandments。I wouldcallit\"Don\'tsforDogmatists;orThingsIamTiredOf。” Thisbookofintellectualetiquette,likemostbooksofetiquette,wouldbeginwithsuperficialthings;buttherewouldbe,Ifancy,awailingimprecationinthewordsthatcouldnotbecalledartificial;itmightbeginthus:-(1)Don\'tuseanounandthenanadjectivethatcrossesoutthenoun。Anadjectivequalifies,itcannotcontradict。Don\'tsay,\"Givemeapatriotismthatisfreefromallboundaries。”Itislikesaying,\"Givemeaporkpiewithnoporkinit。”Don\'tsay,\"Ilookforwardtothatlargerreligionthatshallhavenospecialdogmas。”Itislikesaying,\"Ilookforwardtothatlargerquadrupedwhoshallhavenofeet。”Aquadrupedmeanssomethingwithfourfeet;andareligionmeanssomethingthatcommitsamantosomedoctrineabouttheuniverse。 Don\'tletthemeeksubstantivebeabsolutelymurderedbythejoyful,exuberantadjective。 (2)Don\'tsayyouarenotgoingtosayathing,andthensayit。Thispracticeisveryflourishingandsuccessfulwithpublicspeakers。Thetrickconsistsoffirstrepudiatingacertainviewinunfavourableterms,andthenrepeatingthesameviewinfavourableterms。Perhapsthesimplestformofitmaybefoundinalandlordofmyneighbourhood,whosaidtohistenantsinanelectionspeech,\"OfcourseI\'mnotgoingtothreatenyou,butifthisBudgetpassestherentswillgoup。”Thethingcanbedoneinmanyformsbesidesthis。\"Iamthelastmantomentionpartypolitics;butwhenIseetheEmpirerentinpiecesbyirresponsibleRadicals,\"etc。\"Inthishallwewelcomeallcreeds。Wehavenohostilityagainstanyhonestbelief;butonlyagainstthatblackpriestcraftandsuperstitionwhichcanacceptsuchadoctrineas,\"etc。 \"IwouldnotsayonewordthatcouldruffleourrelationswithGermany。 ButthisIwillsay;thatwhenIseeceaselessandunscrupulousarmament,\"etc。Pleasedon\'tdoit。Decidetomakearemarkornottomakearemark。Butdon\'tfancythatyouhavesomehowsoftenedthesayingofathingbyhavingjustpromisednottosayit。 (3)Don\'tusesecondarywordsasprimarywords。\"Happiness\"(letussay) isaprimaryword。Youknowwhenyouhavethething,andyoujollywellknowwhenyouhaven\'t。\"Progress\"isasecondaryword;itmeansthedegreeofone\'sapproachtohappiness,ortosomesuchsolidideal。Butmoderncontroversiesconstantlyturnonasking,\"DoesHappinesshelpProgress?\"Thus,IseeintheNewAgethisweekaletterfromMr。 EgertonSwann,inwhichhewarnstheworldagainstmeandmyfriendMr。 Belloc,onthegroundthatourdemocracyis\"spasmodic\"(whateverthatmeans);whileour\"reactionismissettledandpermanent。”ItneverstrikesMr。Swarmthatdemocracymeanssomethinginitself;while\"reactionism\"meansnothing——exceptinconnectionwithdemocracy。Youcannotreactexceptfromsomething。IfMr。SwannthinksIhaveeverreactedfromthedoctrinethatthepeopleshouldrule,Iwishhewouldgivemethereference。 (4)Don\'tsay,\"Thereisnotruecreed;foreachcreedbelievesitselfrightandtheotherswrong。”Probablyoneofthecreedsisrightandtheothersarewrong。Diversitydoesshowthatmostoftheviewsmustbewrong。Itdoesnotbythefaintestlogicshowthattheyallmustbewrong。IsupposethereisnosubjectonwhichopinionsdifferwithmoredesperatesinceritythanaboutwhichhorsewillwintheDerby。Thesearecertainlysolemnconvictions;menriskruinforthem。ThemanwhoputshisshirtonPotosimustbelieveinthatanimal,andeachoftheothermenputtingtheirlastgarmentsuponotherquadrupedsmustbelieveinthemquiteassincerely。Theyareallserious,andmostofthemarewrong。Butoneofthemisright。Oneofthefaithsisjustified;oneofthehorsesdoeswin;notalwayseventhedarkhorsewhichmightstandforAgnosticism,butoftentheobviousandpopularhorseofOrthodoxy。 Democracyhasitsoccasionalvictories;andeventheFavouritehasbeenknowntocomeinfirst。Butthepointhereisthatsomethingcomesinfirst。Thatthereweremanybeliefsdoesnotdestroythefactthattherewasonewell-foundedbelief。Ibelieve(merelyuponauthority)thattheworldisround。Thattheremaybetribeswhobelieveittobetriangularoroblongdoesnotalterthefactthatitiscertainlysomeshape,andthereforenotanyothershape。ThereforeIrepeat,withthewailofimprecation,don\'tsaythatthevarietyofcreedspreventsyoufromacceptinganycreed。 Itisanunintelligentremark。(5)Don\'t(ifanyonecallsyourdoctrinemad,whichislikelyenough),don\'tanswerthatmadmenareonlytheminorityandthesaneonlythemajority。Thesanearesanebecausetheyarethecorporatesubstanceofmankind;theinsanearenotaminoritybecausetheyarenotamob。Themanwhothinkshimselfamanthinksthenextmanaman;hereckonshisneighbourashimself。Butthemanwhothinksheisachickendoesnottrytolookthroughthemanwhothinksheisglass。ThemanwhothinkshimselfJesusChristdoesnotquarrelwiththemanwhothinkshimselfRockefeller;aswouldcertainlyhappenifthetwohadevermet。Butmadmennevermeet。Itistheonlythingtheycannotdo。Theycantalk,theycaninspire,theycanfight,theycanfoundreligions;buttheycannotmeet。Maniacscanneverbethemajority;forthesimplereasonthattheycanneverbeevenaminority。Iftwomadmenhadeveragreedtheymighthaveconqueredtheworld。 (6)Don\'tsaythattheideaofhumanequalityisabsurd,becausesomemenaretallandsomeshort,somecleverandsomestupid。AttheheightoftheFrenchRevolutionitwasnoticedthatDantonwastallandMuratshort。 InthewildestpopularexcitementofAmericaitisknownthatRockefellerisstupidandthatBryanisclever。Thedoctrineofhumanequalityreposesuponthis:Thatthereisnomanreallycleverwhohasnotfoundthatheisstupid。Thatthereisnobigmanwhohasnotfeltsmall。Somemenneverfeelsmall;butthesearethefewmenwhoare。 (7)Don\'tsay(Odon\'tsay)thatPrimitiveManknockeddownawomanwithaclubandcarriedheraway。Whyonearthshouldhe?Doesthemalesparrowknockdownthefemalesparrowwithatwig?Doesthemalegiraffeknockdownthefemalegiraffewithapalmtree?Whyshouldthemalehavehadtouseanyviolenceatanytimeinordertomakethefemaleafemale? Whyshouldthewomanrollherselfinthemirelowerthanthesowortheshe-bear;andprofesstohavebeenaslavewhereallthesecreatureswerecreators;whereallthesebeastsweregods?Donottalksuchbosh。I imploreyou,Isupplicateyounottotalksuchbosh。Utterlyandabsolutelyabolishallsuchbosh——andwemayyetbegintodiscussthesepublicquestionsproperly。ButIfearmylistofprotestsgrowstoolong; andIknowitcouldgrowlongerforever。Thereadermustforgivemyelongationsandelaborations。IfanciedforthemomentthatIwaswritingabook。