Show NUMBERS BY GASKELL Written lor TUB HERALD Dr Johnson once said in his dictatorial dictator-ial way patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel This saying though sweeping and denunciatory is not in all cases true yet has a leaven of truth as applicable now as it was in the days of George III We find many times that those who make themselves most prominent and are loudest in their professions pro-fessions of love and loyalty to their government who talk of and parade their patriotism before all who will look on or listen to them and often insincere insin-cere in their professions and corrupt at I heart and are only waiting an opportunity I oppor-tunity to aggrandize themselves at the expense of honor honesty and the rights of others It is not in multitudes that moral worth exists and spiritual regeneration is born The madness ot crowds is proverbial The multitude or the populace pop-ulace led by interested demagogues condemned a Socrates to the poisoned cup and led Jesus to the cross Improvement Im-provement and advance are generally EroTement first made by individuals and from their teachings or practice they become known and spread among the multitude multi-tude The voice of the multitude may coutrol governmental atfairs yet may not be directed by nor discover truth That may be in the profession of the few or of one individual aloneand only as Providence guides and controls vents does it come blight or die with himTo To say that thousands believe and practice certain principles do certain acts is no proof of the rightfulness or wrongfulness of underlying motives and principles Columbus spoke of and maintained the certainty and thoughtfulness thought-fulness of a western way to India for lone and weary years though learned and unlearned almost universally derided de-rided him Galhlco maintained that the earth moved in regular orbit though the voice of science of that day and the still stronger voice of religious bigotry accounted it as heresy and error of the rankest kind Yet the world moved on and the ridicule of the many loud as it was voiced became hushed into silence when the truth came pictured in the experience of succeeding I agesA majority can make a law and enforce en-force a law but cannot control the opinions of a free man Bolts nor bars nor chains nor stripes can do that though bodily teVror may numb active resistence and paralyze research enforcing en-forcing a semblance of unity of idea Yet deep down in the soul the divine lamp of truth still burns its light hidden from outward gaze yet clear and steady in its glow ready when propitious times come when the storm of hatred and persecution has ceased and the sun of mural promise has arrivcdto add its quota to the sum total of human enlightenment en-lightenment What an aggressive animal man Ho is satisfied in his ambitious moods with nothing less than the rule or ruinof all others And while crushing out their very life would moralize grandiloquently grandilo-quently on the benefits of his severity and strictures As the painter Parashu looked unshrinkingly upon the dying agony of his bound captive seeking to detect and determine and reproduce upon his canvass the very moment of dissolution and death so would evilly ambitious men seekto dissect the minds and moral nature of their fellow men and bind them for evermore to the chariot wheels of their progress They glory in their power to inflict agony and to work injury to bend the will of others to their own nor as a Napoleon be satisfied with less than slavish obedience obedi-ence of men and nations The majority rules and it is right and proper that it should rule so the rights of the minority are respected but the saving qualities which bind together society may exist in the minority and not with the greater number The Lord promised to spare the cities of the plains from destruction if but ten righteous men could be found therein Isaiah speaks of a remnant being saved from perishing the Savior and His apostles each speak of the inferior numbers of the saints of God as compared with the innumerable multitude of those who believed not the message of peace and salvation c Thus we see that in all popular governments gov-ernments though the majority rules the majority is not divinely inspired infallible in judgment nor is it always merciful in its dealings with the few who honestly differ from it in belief It seldom moralizes upon effects though it is unbending and inflexible in the enforcement of its laws Bend or break all must do unless favored by a special Providence who claims or asserts a principle the majority has condemned con-demned And happy the fate of the opposer if be is not maliciously charged with greater faults than those of a mere honest difference of opinion if he is not charged with dishonestyor aselflsh motive and desire to gain a notorietyor fame so upbuilding himself upon the ruins of the hopes of others and treading tread-ing vandallike upon the graves of their desires |