The Cecil Whig., 1881-12-10

Ridicuie pays homage to iitellect ad
the objects ot its satire Its business iS
"in shoot folly as il iiieS.' bat il cannot
I shoot i,iircv or moral racnitv. The folly
/ must pertain "a IN Intelligent ard moral
/ 1y competent hcinr-thc rihiculed mar
must have mind and moral will. SO TIL"
/ people IN madh"uSrS and the entire class
/ Of the no0 romI2"S nentiS escaRed being
/ laughed at III the Condcmnatorv form of
! ridruIc Rut there is a further disrrim-
! nation to be made. There is no grade
or form or tvIn. Of moral excellence that
! cannot lie ii,.iru'ed. Mr. IngerSoll has
recently rtli"nlrd the God of the Bible
! and no doubt mnltitu les have laughed
which he finds III the first commandment.
| All the hest thin"s in life are ridicu'ed.
Love is best Mr. Blank teaches MS III
one Of his novels: but nothing else in the
world has been So much ridiculed. All
family relations and affections are butts
| for the lauahcrs. In short. nothing i
good enough to escape the laugh THAI
! censur"s Nor are things serious and
wcighty exempted from lidiculing cen
sure on that account. They may escapr
| by 4 single associations: hut not througl
their seriousness. Nothing is more ser
| inus han denth: but diving is the subject
| nf innumrrahle Jokes that cast a shadow
Of contempt onthc d. ing. And yet there
is one thing that escaprs-it is wicked
ness. And Just in the measure in whicl.
it advances III tu1pitujir it passed out o.
| the domain oc the censuiir- laugh. AT
mental shortcomings are butts for ridi-
rnle We can langh at the surgeons who
Attended President Gartield: but we can-
not laugh at Guiteuu. The irreprcs>ihir
spirit Of ridicule has played its prank
with every body associated with this awlu'
tragedy except the assassin. He is fell,
to be wicked enough to he beyond thai
| form oi condemnation. On 4 recent Sun
day Dir. Talmage preached against tb"
use of narcotics. For opium eating h,
had not y single shaft of ridicule: for
| tohaccD-usng he had Il whole column OF
/ ridiculc. There is no positive moral quail
| itv in the latter: only {. class OF foi!ies
which are commit ID by intelligent peo-
pie who should have self-reSpect enough
not to be filthy IN their use Of the weed.
| Opium eating is the more serious fault
and more blame attaches to its use: but
| 81 far As we know, neither DR.. Talmage
nor any other man has ever ridicule the
use of opinn..
Perhaps it is not worth our while to
inquire now why no virtue can escape
| ridicule. or why gross wickedIeSs enjoys
! immunity. The old theology has its ey-
planation; perhaps the new theology has
mother. The fact and an inference
| from it are our present business. The
| inference is that ridicule is a weapon to
! be used sparinsly by teachers of religion
| and morals. II good things are the Oh
| iccts of ridicule-if it is test of trnth
only by proving that there is some truth
| in anything that can be ridiculed-,i4ert
must be some laundering by which ridi-
cule gets Il large place in some pulpits.
! The fathers must have been more nearl,
right in that solemnity over which thei.
SONS make unSeemly jokes. No doubt
shooting folly as it flies " may be TIL,
occasional duty of the pulpit; but the
large duty must be to cultivate goodness
and uproot badneSS-and neither task
will get on rapidly by means of ridicule.
| 1t is well to try to interest and attract:
| but there Should be interest and wins0me-
ness in truths that can be pleaded fnl
with sobricty of speech: and it must have
/ ~ome very bad consequences if it shall
| become the settled habit OF reiigioni>ts t.
| shoot continual at the foiiIes Of each
other. or t. lay the stirSS of their cen
sure Oh errors IN thinking or habits that
are committed 10y the better pait of hl.
man sGciety.-N. !. 1riJUHe.