Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1869-09-10

disciples of the origin of mes-be admitted
MS true, II would not be difficult to trace the
line by which some men came along.
OF foxes, wolves and bears, we haha SUI
preme and proper horror, as also of'lions
and tigers, and all other bloody and dan
gerous animals. But mover having seerkjno
until we were well grown, we could only
exercise destroying Imagination toward
them. a snake invariably reused the de-
structvo impulse to a flame. To sieze stick
or stone, to pound, lacerato mash item. to
stamp on them, and grind them under our
heel after they were dead was furious
pleasure. Not TO kill suake-even tbe
most harmless kinds, the common sse,.ad
snake, the green grass snake-wasinh
Every child of Adam was in honor nd
to avengo the mean treatment whirU
great ancestor received at the serpents ID.
My share of this Religious duty wad HI
performed.
Woodchucks, weasels and rabbit
though utterly unlike, had one pon'
iinity, In that, as boys, it was our d Do
hunt and kill them whenever we con
Honeybeos were sacred. But We q
up on Bumblebces don't spell tha
blebeeD the self-denial practisct
honey-making cousin. Wasps anu
had no right to live moment. ~
quisito forms and colors, their end
courage, their harmlessness whcr
Tested, created for them no I'M
Mosquitoes of course we destrOye
lament the limited power which
that direction. With less excuse
at all, we made flies an object
We pursued butterflies and capt.
and though not conscious of any '111s''
we seldom allowed them TO
Grasshoppers had no rights W
were bound to respect. Anglewor y
caterpillars and worms of every
viewed with repugnancc, and quit
patched.
There was curious inconsistcnc
treatment of creatures. If we snw}
endeavoring to swallow a frog, it h
our zeal to fury. We smashed up -
rant, and let the frog go free. But Nrcp
without snake, after him we pcltcd with
stones remorsclessly! In like manner. ila
fly was minding his own business, we kill
ed nm; but if he had become entanglcd in
] SPIDERS web, we carefully extricated it,
rubbed OIL the web, and turned against the
old plotting tyrant of the web and destroy.
cd him.
Against birds of every kind We entertain.
cd no vindictivo feelings, and yet our first
thought on seeing robin or lark, go, what
fair mark!' We threw sticks and stones
at sparrows, and our earliest bow and arrow
practice was against birds, and never were
we happier than when allowed to knock
over robin with a real shotgun. And vet
with all this destroying, there was Il latent
vein of sympathy. The coming of birds in
spring always set us into poetic ecstasios
and the songs of birds have often brough
tears to our eyes.
We baited our hook for fish without The
slightest notion that the worms suffered
The idea Of pain was never realized. I caI
hear myself saying, as if it were but yestcr
day, when vigorous earthworm squirmeC
violently, and refused to 90 on to the hool
peaceably, "Oh, squirm, will ye? Try i
agaih-see what you'll get! There, old iel
low, how do you like that ?''-and over n,
threw him. When plump fish seized hIl
and was landed, its gaspings awakened NJ
idea of suffering, its springings and flip
pings were merely efforts at escape, and t.
escape was heinous sin against its Lawful
captor!
l see the same spirit in human life. 4
deal of pain is inflicted by people who arr
not designedly cruel. When in the eSer
else of petty discipline, they are only sin
dicating their pride, guarding their vdlly
supporting their selfish authority. ltisno
that they enjoy ain in others so much, Il
that they are lnsenslnVe 10 another suner
ing. That there is stage OF dcpraVily II
which the agony of victim becomes
stimulant of horrible pleasure, there can b
no doubt. But ordinarily, men inlet pm
without much consciousness of the suiiern
it gives.
We love to fondle our own cats and dogs
but other peoples cats, and all stray dogs
when at a safe distance, we peltcd remorse
lessly. All Grant pigs, and all animals tina
broke over fences, we felt called upon t
discipline.
One would think, on reading over thl
account. that it was the history of a robu'
little robber, and that such boy wou
come TO the gallows. But it should be re
WONDERED that these acts were separate
NV wide interyals-that. rs a boy, | onl
ala What saw men doing about mo-tha
,,,,, cooliro, uas mot different from the feel
;ro 90 thoso whom respected, and that
~, ,,,;,,o,, any, 1igbt and KNOWLEDGE.
- ~. ,a,,,.,,t dot tho Rible soid anvthiu
-, NJ ala tho Catcchism. nor di
1aI,,nson Crueoc (which I strangel
-" .aI,.lod ,,,oro t,,on tho Catechism). | ne,
Laor1 y sormon an our duties to lowe
~. IT ,o,or have veD.
49,, ,,,,t only of all that I can r,
- zo,,,,,,t 20 insniro n real bumanit
-. ."J r,n1a a,,irro,s insects and beasts. Bl
Y ,o.a~3ad :, nc ono Of her peculiariti.
O. ,,,aoar had nrofound respc,
''"N "''' " "N