Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1867-02-28
WHAT ARE WE TO Believe


Tnls Is an age OF progress 50 saws every
one, and according TO the old adage ..what
every one says must be true" Ii assauIting
OLD ideas and opinions. upsetting received
theories, and demoiishing me. honored ira
o;nons, indicates an intellectual ad vance, then
we are progressing rapidly Roso Bro wne, in
his sprishsiy sketch of the Island OF Juan Fer
nandez, de5crioss character who not only
refused to believe in Robinson Crusoe bu,
was ineredulous as to his man Friday and tn
goats, and even went 50 far as to doubt the
existence OF the island on which he (the
doloter) then stood. This individual is tina
type OF class which is becoming so numerous
tnat We are likely 10 have all history sacred
ana profane, oral and written, wiped ont.
ieaving the past as uncertain and misty as toe
1uture The son Of Napoleon Ill, who re-
fuses to study geography for the reasos tina,
s'the map has often changed Of late years
and papa says will soon be changed again.
might with even greater propriety refuse
10 study history, because it is likely 70 he
rewritten before he can profit by his les
SONS "thin few years past, "progres-
sionists" OF the school we refer to, have Sc,
GOWN Homer as myth, claiming that the
poems credited to him are a mere collection OF
the rhymes OF wandering minstrels: have un
crowned Shakespeare. and placed his laureIs
on the brow of Lord Bacon; have reconstructed
the crook-backed tyrant Richard III, and
made OF him type Of physical beauty and
moral excellence; have blended udas Iscariot
who they say was a much abused man, and
not accountable for his acts; have asserted
that the Bible Is not TO be relied on for matter
OF fact: have spoiled the romantic story OF
Pocahontas saving the life of Captain John
smith, and added insult to injury by saying
Smith was sblo wer'' and Posa hon tas "a little
Wanf0n Indian nd
the story of William Tell shooting the apple
on his sons head q pleasing fable
handed down from the rOnetest antiq uity
Not only Is ancient and medic val history beinv
subjected to rigid scrutiny by these doubting 2
Thomases, but events the most recent are can
vassed with vigor and determination which
calculated to deter many timid souls from
accepting anything as truth. In fact, Arch
bishop Whatcly . illustration Of how historical
1acts may be controverted 10 not 30 exaggerated
as he seemed to think, and we may expect
shortly to mad some wiselcre seriously ad-
vancing the theory that Napoleon Bonaparts
was myth; mere invention of the French
Republicans TO highten the English and
Keep the continent in order. Already the
events in our late rebellion are sharing
the fate of other historical facts more remote,
and while we know, because we have seen.
that our troops in the Held defeated and scat
tereo army after army opposed to them: as
saulted and carried stronghold after strong.
hold, In the SouEh; and won the rebellious ter
ritory inch by inch, and held IL, until all Cd.
position was crushed out, ana the Federal
authority re-estiblished on every foot of soil
yet we have philosophers of the new school
who Will demonstrate, to their own satisfaction
AT least, that NO rebel General ever Loot bat
tle; that the Sou tn was always victorious; and
that they gave up the struggle merely because
they got tired Of fighting. II history is to be
changed to suit all sorts Of theories built on
the prejudices or the wnims and caprices of
every one who sets up for a critic, we nay as
well burn mp our books, and make ND our
minds to diseelieve everything outside Of our
own experience, and not be too sure of the
verify Of what we see and hear