The Jackson standard. [volume] (Jackson C.H., Ohio) 1847-1888, 1878-04-18
A Lecture on Mental Liberty, Delivered
in Music Hall, Boston, Tuesday Even
ing, March 5.


slavery but ignorance. Liberty Is IN
child Of intelligence. Just to the exten
. a man is intelligent be is liberal; just 4
the extent he is bigoted be lacks brains
[Applause The more a man knows tn
better he knows that he is not absolutell
certain Of il. The less a man knows th'
more willing be is to take his oath to tn,
correctness Of what he does know. Zap
plause If there is a person here no
willing TO give to every other man every
right that he claims for himself he i
Just so much more Of a barbarian than
am; the man that is not willing to give
TO every other man every right that ht
claims for himself, is not an honest man
Applause This is not only a question
OF necessity, but in my judgment, IL Is q
question Of intellectual development. III
we are any nearer being free than our
fathers were, il Is because we have better
/ heads, and more brains in them. IT.
\ say, we are any nearer being free than
they were, it is because there is more in
| tellect in the world; il is because men
and women have spoken their real, hon
I est thoughts; il is because we have ming
led our thoughts with our liberty it is
because we have begun a partnership
with the thoughts of Nature, instead of
the theories OF the clouds il is only a
I
and | want to prove it. A little while
ago / saw models Of everything man has
made for his use and convenience; | saw
models of all the water craft, from the
rude dug.out i'm which hoated naked
savage-one of our ancestors-with teeth
two inches long, and forehead half as
long as his teeth and with few brains
in the back OF his head. saw all the
water craft OF the world, from that dug
out up TO the man OF. war that carries 100
guns aud miles of canvas from that dug
out to the steamship that turns its brave
prov from the port of New York through
5000 miles Of bllows with a compass like
a conscience, that does not miss a throb
or beat Of its mighty heart, from one
shore to the other. / saw at the same
time all the weapons, from the rude club,
such as was grasped by that savage when
he cTawled from his rude den on a sum-
mer morning 10 kill snake for bis din
ner, from that club to the boomerang, to
the cross.bow, to the sword to the blum
derbuss, to the flint-lock, to the cap lock,
to the needle gun, up TO the cannon cast
by Ksupp, capable OF hurliug a ball OF
two thousand pounds through eighteen
inches of solid steel. ] saw. too. the ar
NOR from the turtle she'll that our ances-
tor lashed upon his skin when he went
out to fight for his country, TO the skin |
Of the porcupine, with the quills all brist |
ling. which he pulled over his orthodox |
head to defend himself from his enemies. |
Laughter. | mean, of course, the or /
thodox head of the day-up to the shirts
Of mail worn in the middle ages. capable |
Of resisting the edge of the sword and the |
point of the spear: up to the iron clad, to /
the monitor, completely clad in steel, /
capable, only few years ago OF defylng 4
the navies of the globe. | saw, at the /
same time, the musical instruments from /
the tom-tom-which is a hoop with /
couple Of strings Of rawhide drawn acro,s |
It-irom that tomtom up to the instTu-
ments we have to day. which make the /
air blossom with melody. | saw, too, the /
from the daub OF the yellow /
mud up the choice pieces which adorn
the galleries Of the world And the sculp-
lure, from the rude god with six legs and
4 half dozen arms and the row OF ears, up /
10 the sculpture OF now, wherein the
marble is clad with such-4oveliness that
t seems almost inpudence to touch it
without introduction. Laughter In
addition, | saw their idea of books
books written upon the skins OF beasts
books written upon the shoulder blades
Of sheep books written upon the leaves,
upon bark, up to the splendid volume
hat adorns the Libraries Of our time -
w hen | think of Libraries | think of the
remark of Plate, The house that has a
library i'm it has a soul" / saw all these
things, and also the implements Of agri-
from a crooked stick up to the
plough which makes it possible for a man
to cultivate the soil without being an ig
noramus. | saw at the same time row
1i skulls, from the lowest skull that has
ever been found, skulls from the central
portion of Africa, skulls from the bush
men of Australia, up to the best skulls of
he last generation. | noticed there was
he same difference between those skulls
hat there was between the product OF
those skulls, and said to myself, 1t is
all q question OF intellectual develop
nent.' 1t is a question OF brain and
,iuew. Applause | noticed that there
was the same difference between those
sk ulls that there was between that dug
put, that man oi-war, and that steamship.
rhe first skull was low. 1t had not "a
orehead quarter of an inch high But
shortly after the skull became doming
and Growing, and getting higher and
srander. The first skull was den in
which crawled the base, the meaneT in
was temple in which dwelt Joy. liberty,
md love So said This is all ques-
Jon Of brain. and anything that tends to
develop, intellectually, mankind, is the
gospel we want" We have improved
upon those things why? Because the
World said we want better clubs; we
want better guns with which to Kill our
fellow Christians; we want better can.
non. At that time mans idea Of politics
was might makes right that old skull
Of his was a devil factory that gentle
man believed in hell and was glad OF it
Applause On the lurid was es Of the
eternal wrath Of God, he saw the faces
and arms of those who were in agony,
and he was glad Of it; that gentleman
believed in a devil; he could not have
any doubt of it. ii was something like
the old lady who said, There must be a
devil, for, ii there was not one, how could /
they make pictures look SO much like 4
himY' Applause. That gentleman be 1
lieved the devil had a long tail and 1
very pleasant habit Of breathing sulphur; /
he thought he had cloyen foot, such as |
many OF the clergymen think have
Allow me to say that there has not been /
an improvement made on that gentle I
mems devil for 1000 years. Now, all |
A9A - hAN IeAAAS A4El1 ~ AAAbAcf@ pm Z
the politics as upon the dugOu as upon
the Eom.to upon the religion as upon
the agricultural implement. That is all.
Let Us have absolute intellectual liberty
On the intellectual sea there is room
for every sail; in the intellectual air
there is room for every wing Now, /
want to be honest with you; no matter
what believe. Suppose king, if there
was king, at the time this gentleman
hoated in the dug out, and charmed his
ears with the music OF the tom.tom SUD
pose the king at that time. it there was
one, had said That dug out is the best
boat that ever can be buIig; the pattern