The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1885-11-05
Why People Swear.

Why People Swear.
The London Telegraph asks why peo-
pie swear, and after considering the mat
ter at some length, confesses that it does
not know. The New York Herald
wonders at the Elegraph's ignorance, and
thinks that ga man must have been
reared in bandbox and never taken from
the upper shelf of the dark closet to be
confused by so simple o query" The
Herald does not state its own theory
directly, but indicates it as follows:
eff he had ever, while emerging from
an omnibus on day of slush and mud,
been suddenly dumped into the middle
Of the street if he had ever stepped on
en- eyangelic bit of orange peel, and seen
his hat gleefully escaping around the
corner, while the passcrs.by stood still to
see him gather himself together and give
chase to the title; if he had ever tried to
drive nail into the wall, and found that,
however he aimed, the hammer hit his
thumb twice out of three times, these
things would have suggested an answer
to his question too conclusive to admit OF
doubt"
The meaning of the Herald seems to
be, that man swears under such circum-
stances as it describes, because Of the
pain, or irritation, or annoyance they
occasion to him, and which he seeks to
express in language adapted to the vio-
lence of his disturbed feelings. This,
however, does not answer the question
why be should seek to express his feelings
in that way. The question is not when
does man swear, but why does he swear,
and the Herald has not touched it.
It is difficult to assign reason for the
vice of swearing, and the difficulty is
doubtless due to the fact that the practice
is irritational in itself. The man who
stops to reason with himself does not
swear. The habit presupposes hasty
spirit and disordered mind. In the in.
stances given by the Herald child
would probably cry, and there is quite as
much reason for the child's tears as the
mans oaths. If the child were asked
why it cried upon losing its hat, the
answer would be "becausc it had lost its
hat" and the larger child could not give
a better one. The weakness that is
shown by tears in the one case is equally
manifested by the curses in the other, the
advantage, of course, being in the child's
favor. The instances in which men find
excuse for profanity are we'll nigh iDnu.
merable, unfortunately, and, without
undertaking their classification, it is
sufficient to say that the motive" in all
cases is pretty much the same-to express
impatience, petulance or anger. 1t thus
appears that the cause of swearing is
not to be found in reason, but in the
lowest class of emotions, and that the
man who swears "to ease his mind" fails
of his vowed purpose.
There are many ways OF swearing,
however, besides the use of profane
words. The spirit of an oath exists in
many hearts, and ia materialized on many
occasions when it does not take the form
of speech. The. slamming of door in
wrath has been ftly characterized as a
wooden damn :" and that is about what
it means. The brute who breaks tables
and chairs or crockery to convey to his
trembling family sense of the power of
his. anger, says in deeds just what he
would say in words if he were to invoke
the condemnation of Heaven upon their
devoted heads at every breath. The
father who strikes his child in passion
would doubtless swear at the child if be
wore not free to beat it. Oaths and
blows are very near akin, and the former
are usually resorted to where for any
reason the latter would be useless or in.
expedient. The snarl of dog is an oath
of its kind, and the snarl of human
being, however manifested, is of the
same character. There are frowns, and
black looks, even, that are no better than
an anathema written upon the sullen
brow which gives them barbor. The
motion of hand, or the stamp of foot
says very plainly sometimes what the
lips are restrained from uttering, and
even while the curse dies behind the
clenched teeth it darts forth in angry
glances not hard to be understood.
There are mild forms of the vice, of
course, as there are mild forms of ether
vices, but the spirit is the same in the
cases we have considered, and it ia the
same throughout the long list OF other
examples which might be given in which
weaker forms of expression are used to
give vent to minor degrees of perturbed
feeling. Petulance, impatience, veSstion,
nervousness" all speak the same Ian.
guage, and he would try to obey the
significant injunction, "Swear not at aA,"
will find that the old Adam requires very
close and incessant watching, indeed, and
that he who would stand guard over his own
lips and heart must never slumper.
We have taken no account of that form
of swearing, so called, which is INDUCED
in as mere expletive. There are men,
unhappily, with whom profanity has be-
come habitual. Their oaths, so freely
employed, are meaningless they express
nothing but the vulgarity or general
deprayity of the one who uses them, and,
while more outrageous in form, have no
more intent than the more common BY.
words which are heard every day on every
hand. When they involve the use of
any of the titles of Deity they cease, of
course, to be mere exp!etives and become
blasphemy pure and simple, and will be
Judged accordingly. 1.-THE Lord will not
hold him guiltless who taketh His name
in vain."
The simplest plan is the best one.
Let your communications at all times be
yea, yea, and nay, nay, for whatsoever is
more than these cometh of evil. BY lop.
ping off the branches som stimes you
wither the root, and the root of swearing
and profanity is very deep seated. By
controlling your words you will learn to
control your spirit, and he who can do
that is nightier, and in the end will be
far wiser and happier, than he who con-
trolls city or even an hundred cities.-
Charleston Sunday Ne'cs.