Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1885-03-15
faE nav wae MaDE rHs arusx.
tiss LAI6H.

Professor Cafne advanced some eri.
R'nal views 10 his lecture Oh Arisso.
pnanes apd Greek comedy, worth tn.
careful consideration OF thosA xhc
Judge other periods by oar ozn. In
bis remarks be said:
Hreciaa comedy - extrets4iv o..se,,.
and dirtf. khs saccsssfuI wit,iciz,n- :
were repeated Ia every hoas. in GrsacA
ufse a and rnodsrns take diff ifzreat ztsi.
tadss tow@r1 nature. Toe Greeks wsr.
tue children of uatur-. Tbe or1yaz
were theiT Gods fissl temples.
Natufh vas Ia humanity as we'll "a in
the outside world. rheir statues xsr.
alSsys naked and their Jokes obscene
Iney never Rrsx sentimental ar shrsT,k
from her forms. Since then q ,ture 80
hsd from humanity.
we st IN ecstsSy before the cIond
capped mountain and shrink from the
nnde pictures OF Aristophanes. Tse
ufhehs were not roused to their best
thereby. Art will yet again be tins
aoofsd. Children are admirers of n.-
turs. an not ia favor Of nay-ilasi
statues, hecaass the world has p4ss13
from this stage. Buf I urge that The
Hreeks Sers children of nature. Frsnofl
hossean declares that nature is the
brute which civilization destrovs- Rnt
man is nat1re, bat the product Of ma.
ture and history with ali the ieSroiuv
of past centuries.
History has driven rs aSay fros ,a
ture, bettaass history IA with ~ not
wfth theua. Their obsosnisy was harm
less, n9t iutended % stir the sensu Al 40.
peiltes. Ot all men Who sdd.esss,I
bteek audiences as Aristophanss. Sn,
tates loved him, the people loved hin.
J beiieVe the fellow waO oanno, read
AristophAnes without blushiug. -
hypocrite vh0 shoaid lay asiis the dear
old book OF books. bseause il mentions
osaRss OF sosiety noE passed away.
IL - rare that men can laugh Others
out OF their fo.iiss. The fi:eht of the
dizzy hight of clmedy occurs very
freiy m moral movements. Aristo.
pnanss Wa 4 tr4ns.res31r IN too -
yersly saiIrizing the folliss of hia time.
Grand old Socrates vas ono. made the
bntt OF ridleuie. There IL no prosea
aion exempt from rid,eule, not even the
ministry. Even We. poor teachers, must
turn our scholars frou, doashheads and
teach boys Latin Who cannot read Eac-
lish. Hia mind was serious. All shat
was dear 10 Greek VIA at stake. FOR
one short hour At the thester We tarn
our ideas outward.
Modern o0medy laughs at oar foibles.
But ArisE0phanes drRgs upon the stage
every Renowned man of bis period
How sacred IN memory is our youthful
stndy loonis; but nov these looms man
afacture different thought
We either get mad at the world or
rise aoova u. AristophaneS rose above
II. Never was fun 50 harmless or plen
ty. Fua is in the economy of nature
Just as h0yhoOd has its us,ls, to lose
through coming clouds.
In the thsologie eyes. when th "a thts
of death and future events ot1xdsd
men down into su Serstition, aud this
age was the paradise Of jokes. Dsath
never had terror to a Greek. II vas
Ehe doorway into another world. Tneir
fun Was not joke for moment. bot
enioymsns leading 10 tue fuest art.
.aristophanes did more for men than all
others.
II takes a skilled hand and much oau
gion to review AristOphanes. Hs made
fun OF religion, yet none 80 religious as
ne. The ofaolos. which had been the
dFN W t48 ufEGAs NtNg uON lAHhe0 LO the
political machinery. He strikes At the
ridiculous side of relieisn alone. ReII.
lgton, the most sacred thing, has i,s
ridiculous phases.
Again, he ridicales WON an a. depend
ont, checked in her growth. retrog aiding
nc times.
! almoas worship Al the altar OF old
Greeks, yes when | consider the Greek
woRasu | Am sad. for her last state " "A
FAR worss than the first. He ridieales
wonsan's rights. tie sweeps out With a
broom these old Scared warriors Of
Phatea and brings in women with gov
der and erlis to run the council. His
satire on the politics often brought him
before the judge, because he could not
tolerate nsnnness IN any man.
Curieulture IL the enlarged defects OF
Humanity true bat enlarged for olam-
enism.
Aristophanes was reformer. He had
faitn IN haslanity. Some become weAk
and % do not whine. He never whiued.
Clear. logical, he held up truth and 80
teais to higher powers, or he would
withdraw. Comedy among the Greeks
was oorp OF political freedom. speech
was then rs free as today. Bat he saw
freedom tal at the battle Of ArsospoI-
aDas. Grsoian civilization declines
becoming sabssrvieni to the tyranny OF
Sparta. Bat when the old oak fell she
Ias full OF aeofns which planted
thousand foresis whioG combined With
the power of Christianity has covered
the world with its fruits.
THE WHATcoM Coal FNp. - John
Rankin. Of the fiEm Of Cook, Rankin 4