Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1875-11-24
RELICS OF THE DARK AGES.

IL
It is extremely doubtful whether
the depth and extent of popular ig-
norance and superstition would ever
come to notice if it were not for the
policy business. Any Investigation of
that fragrant theme, or any contact
with its agents or victims brings us
face to face with a numerous class,
whose besotted condition makes US
shudder. 1t seems at first sight in
credtable, That gigantic system of
swinding can be carried on in city
like this, IN defiance of law; with its
sub-agencies quite as numerous as our
churches, and its whole machinery ex-
posed to the authorities and the pub
lie, who know it to be worked in de-
fiance Of law and in opposition to the
best interests of the community 1t
is still more increditable that this
system is based upon aud fourishes by
means Of the superstition and ignor-
ance OF portion, and unfortunately
large portion of that community. The
| policy business grows directly out of
the subsoil of our civilization. It
draws its nourishmept from popular
superstition.
The vast and vicious enterprise
which is doing business at the rate of
three or four millions a year in New
Y ork, draws seven-tenths of its iE-
come from the people who believe in
dream books and lucky numbers, and
who keep alive the fortune tellers,
the clairvoyants, and the innumerable
quacks, astrologers and charlatans of
the back streets. It is sheer folly to
talk about the light of the nineteenth
century pertaining to those people.
They herd and wallow in the profound
darkness Of the eleventh century.
They may indeed be animated by
the hustle about them, and doubtless
use all the improved material facilities
that are placed at their hands But
in themselves they believe in charms
and philters, and evil eyes; they have
their myths, their legends, their mcdi-
cine men, their sooth-sayers, and the
formula Of luck. You may preach
Christianity to them until you are ex-
hausted. and when your back is turned
they will call upon the devil through
one of his advertising media for the
information or assistance they desire.
The public school is all very we'll, per-
haps, but horseshoe over the door
is safer. Intelligence is good enough
in its way, but to be born with caul
is better What effect can you ex-
| pect from Ben Franklin's maxims or
even the sermon on the mount brought
to the notice of that woman, who be-
lieves that she is to marry rich
gentleman with blond hair, because
the wench up two flights of stairs told
her so for fifty cents? How are you to
inculcate industry, patience and COM
mon sense, when your pupil is ground
ed in the belief that if he can only
| dream of certain number seven times,
he will pocket the wealth of Cresus?
1t is discouraging to the humanita-
rian to come upon these pagans at his
| door steps, and to find them mailed in
the superstition that he supposed was
buried with the witches But there
is the fact. The element of savagery
underlines the body polite, and we
have only to dig in the dirty side
street to find it. We may not be able
to redeem these people at once with
knowledge, but there is one thing we
can do, we can prevent the lowest
grade Of ignorance from establishing
its rendezvous in our streets. We
can prevent it from developing ignor-
ance into crime by the warmth Of its
aggregation. We can say with au-
thority, you shall not drag Juggernaut
through broadway. Nor will we per-
NIT witches to be burnt on Madison
park. You may remain ignorant, if
you insist upon it, but you shall not
open your dirty Fetish temples on all
our thoroughfares, and make ignor.
ance public disgrace as we'll as a
public curse.
The policy shop remains to be
properly studied by the social phi
losopher. The brave man who will
examine it carefully must find that it
is the primary school of crime. It is
here that the indolent are tempted to
look for riches without giving any
equivalent for them, and It's here that
the idle and vicions come together from
theneighborhcod, and fuse their shallow
brains in cooperative yillainy. There
are, according to the evidence of an
old police dealer before the Committee
on crime, ESQ Of these Sens in New
York. Every one of them is school
of infamy, a resort of thieves, cheap
refuge for Ignorance and idleness
where they are lured on to wickedness
and ruin, by golden bait. We sin
/ ceraIv truSt that ranrUapiznd y,nlioo