New-York tribune., 1875-12-13
LIE LECTTRE.


pssd to siand Not long ago Miss Helen Taylor visited
tbe Par,henon with her grandfather, John Stuart MIL
and while walking there sh sad 81 think the statue o
Minerva used 70 stand just herc;' and MI hiu smiled
and said That l. point thai nobody ever SuggeS'eu
before" Well" said. believe it " and the mser
passed of IN pIeasantry The very week after th- vist
OF their. 1t was established almost beyond doubt that
the statue of Minerva had stood almost exactly where
Miss Tayor had -ad it stood Tie sutiquarans who de
termned visited her and asked bow she came 10 n&
ON that point which never before suggested and she
replied Only this knew If 1t bad been Catnohc
church OF the Madonna would have stood Just
there" The antouarinns had overlooked the simple 10
their search profound If our philosophers would
interpret the past b the they would not have 80
much labor. and thoy would escape many biundeis'
religious custom will ae longer in the minds OF mankind
than flint viii last; but the AFRO" can "nS oe
interpreted by the modern spear SO in Judging OF
tho re ious custom must compare II with those Of
the present But must not only look IN
1tudyug religions at their ancient aud exact
forms; we must consider with equal practical
sense, possible what are their present
conditions aud outcome. have been astonished 10 hnd
in England every opportunity to study Orenta re
lsons to And cut how the great maxim Of Coofucius
vas uttered is passed by that practical people ui-
der he binding spell Of superstition There Is IN the
town OF Canterbury In England school for edu-
eating missionaries. Tic young men OF England
are there trained 20 work missionaries In
all parts OF the earth. In walking IN the
early part Of tins year through that old town Of Canter
bury with a body of students from this school, "s de
Lighted 70 dnd that although they gentemen-that
IL, not hroug ght up TO manual tOye they we're engaged
in learning carpentering matchmaking, medicine, ana
the ike In order that when they came among the
heather they might make themselves useiI III
every possible way. There, l said. Is tue
English practical good sense. They sl tried To
carry something ike civilization school there But a.
soon as these young took into their museum
aud allowed the idols, fetiches, and slrnes from
across the seas found they looked upon ali these
fsches and snTines from barbarous nations win simple
horror and hate Not OF them seemed 10 reflect that
the Idol might possibly be an ideal. None Of them
seemed to think these might be expressed wants
Oh: Of The dark back ages.
now TO STUDY FOREIGN RELIGIoNs
Itisa great pity that gel ieas of Oriental -
l.gions chiefly from missionaries, oecaust-thoush
honor ten the great OF the past and II is not 30
common FOR great to 20 on those MISSIONS as
u,ed to be-ttey approach foresn religions simply
A. eDemea aud with the single purpose Of crying M the
perfect0ns Of their OWL religion IL n simply pa Iran
shiD and IL resented In the Eas - sucD ana u i
n6-ine for us through such foes o those religions 10
cain true Interpretation Of thai Which they oppose anu
hate No doubt there are sacred syu0Os ~ Tue fas OF
Oriental religions which have coarse ana degraded
Ioiin. @ Du d9d o 2~, tool II fbs nssionary : own
dogma were suddenly 10 take form IL stone me
& ss'"SS e. ~ tnieTnTsiing their religion II ia 10 be
,HirL s rr-ent beevers wish it 10 interpreted BY
negerfni 10 consult the Oriental people themselves
Sscis,i2 IN London where they aIe now swarIningl.
people danger OF coming to silly conclusions about
ia;Ss E1.sn TO 'SS L6ndoa. and after passing bacEWard
and forward through tho cl,E' ~enI paSs - 10
China and wroe book about London IL Whcn ne sh,'
he English people w0rshIrd large god TN great eol
den teeth called Organ, Whch tseu made music dur
have lad the privilege during he last or IA years
OF enjoying intimacy and friendship N manY OF me
mo-t rmiuent teachers Of the Orental religion lhesr
men y hO have been living for wears IN England hud
Iee of kuowinc have their feet ami tried
10 learn tie Oriental religion by their guidance
pi. Of oriental thougbt; anil it i, the result OF
this that propose 10 give 10 YOU Every regioh 4
which report iLs character le pyramids ana saIcopbae
Of Egypt are the very ptysognomy OF tnouftnoe anu
tetironv of Herodotus that he Egyptians were
te nrst who believed in, the doctrine
Of immortality Everything on those great
romis tells his stOrythe circle, above oil tbe tle IN
Let which produces and deposits II and then die
ud leaves the bring forth II thr next spibg ia
insect Egypt has len but one book II IL now on the
walls Of the British Museum written upon papyrus snd
il called the book OF the dead Israel 40 ESCAPED
.lave book, in which there r nothing oi me
future life IL is the book OF the lying' Look at
Greece. Here have another pl! aiogn0my-shlnlng
TEMPLES and pure statues, the besnu hc ems ana me
radiant sky meeting in every one of Them The rOne. o,
tue god goddess dyei Win the morning sod ana
evening red TIE ple- CT prst = % Me's ~ iar~.s
rOOes for every ceremony. The neNn2ushaDe sltar
lamp hitnds ts rays with the sunlight. hnsic hoats
upOn the air OF the tempe Al II beauty IL ~ nature
;sausngurod by at that made the HrfeA fshslOn
'LiIast WIN ~, III. ,o mn his iinv man ~ IN.
10 ~ ar al ,vith 6is sv-ord to fhe Thunder Cod
mining % %G"G WI NS - ,nd al M .,a,rpsss md
tiOi WIN ms ,ro.,, a. I s,,r an "A IN. ma,
Ft1'! tneio va 80 1.. fs NIL tr,ryrreu az h fe.
sOhes tne! Led 90 nus iron yrn ~ nst,ue M
llS 7olne ..,.,'', nf plato had rad ancient uy,
fL0ogy until he became imbned win IL that it brought
him INTO the courts NuTie NJ % ~ @ ~ ' ~ -
@ @%,it zucl an ir.tapc, A. Ills shows how ar VI
tme and now dcep is the abyss between us aud these
ancient religions BIt Il We Io"h o,".E " % sn1 ma hLd
thal e t th iniverse Nn,ch wss IN The minds ~
sb Icoe n not 80 very Il nefent from that which L. ia
The minds Of the masses o NE peoe at the present DAY